I was introduced to Elfquest about 1980 in Bobbie’s Books, the local used bookstore which doubled as Bryan, TX’s only comic store at the time. I wandered over to the wall racks holding comics near the register, and started poking through them. I owned all of three comics at the time, purchased as some sort of three-pack from a local bookstore that had recently folded. There was one Disney comic, a forgettable superhero comic, and one science fiction horror comic sandwiched between them that weirded me the hell out. All I remember is one panel of some sort of bubbly goo, found on a distant planet by the protagonists. It unsettled me enough that I hid the comic underneath a pile of stuff in my room, and would occasionally pull it out to look at it when I’d screwed my courage up–I remember a distinct feeling of nausea when reading it. Why it was packaged with a Disney comic, I’ll never know.
Anyway, it’s a wonder that I was looking at the comics rack at all. I remember even then not really liking the mainstream superhero art styles of the 1970s (still don’t!). But the owner of the store noticed me, handed me Elfquest #1, and said, “You want to read this.”