Today Is Halloween ComicFest 2016

Today is a day to celebrate two things that fans adore, comic books and Halloween.

Oct. 29, 2016, marks the fifth Halloween ComicFest Celebration, inviting fans and their families to visit their local comic book store to get some free comic books and partake in other festive activities.

Halloween ComicFest is an annual event taking place at participating comic book stores across North America. Taking place each year on the Saturday before Halloween, the Halloween ComicFest invites fans to visit their local comic book stores and pick up some free comics.

Also available are free all-ages minicomics that make the perfect alternative or additional to traditional candy handouts for trick or treating. This year’s minicomics include popular characters from series like Archie, Pokemon, and Grumpy Cat.

Halloween ComicFest’s free comic book selection includes offerings from the industry’s biggest publishers, including Marvel Comics, DC Comics, Image Comics, Dark Horse Comics, and IDW Publishing. The event is also a great opportunity to sample offerings from smaller publishers, like Action Lab, Archie Comics, Boom! Studios, Aspen, and more.

Fans joining in the Halloween ComicFest activities can enter “The Greatest Halloween Costume Contest Ever.” All they have to do is dress up in costume and take a photo with one of the year’s free books. Participating adults and children can win prize packs from Funko and Scholastic and a $500 shopping spree at their local comic book store.

Halloween ComicFest is also a great opportunity for fans to lose themselves in comic books’ rich history with the horror genre, from modern tales like The Walking Dead and other stories of zombies, vampires, aliens, and monsters, to horror classics like EC Comics Tales from the Crypt and more.

And, of course, costumes are part of the comic book spirit as much as they are part of the Halloween tradition. Marvel, DC Comics, and other superhero characters are a staple of every Halloween season.

Check out some of the free comic books available at this year’s Halloween ComicFest in the gallery below. You can find a participating comic book store near you by using the comic book store locator.