Business Spotlight: Black Ice Comics

Black Ice Comics in Houghton is one of the few places in the Keweenaw area that sells comic books. The owner, Shana Porteen, is no stranger to rural towns with limited access to comics: “When I was younger, I would read whatever I could get my hands on since growing up in a rural area in Oklahoma it was hard to get ahold of stuff.”

When Shana was in high school, her brother opened up the first comic book store in their area. After getting her Ph.D. in sociology, Shana and her husband moved up here. “We came up here for jobs. We had been teaching in big universities and got tired of it, and moved up here because there was a job opening at Finlandia and ended up falling in love with the area,” said Shana.

After going through a health crisis, Shana decided to find something else that wasn’t as stressful. “I thought, ‘You know what, I’m going to go back to what I love,’ and that’s when I jumped in with both feet and opened up my shop.”

The store has been open for two years and everything inside is completely her own. “My stepdad and I built all of the fixtures in the shop. I have this beautiful double marquise that was designed and built by my stepdad.”

Even the name is completely original, “I was messing around with this program where you could make your own comic book hero and made this superhero that looks like she came out of a 90s comic. The colors that I was choosing made me think, ‘Aw you know what, I’m going to call her Black Ice.’ My husband thought it was a cool name, so I decided to call my shop that. I like the play with the elements that it has too.”

Black Ice Comics has become a favorite to many residents and non-residents, “I have such dedicated customers, and a lot of my customers have become very close friends. I even get returning tourists coming back to the shop.”

Diversity is making a big wave in the comic book world and Black Ice Comics is fully embracing it. It’s always been a male-dominated world, but that’s changing. ”People are realizing that girls like this stuff just as much, and I’m seeing a lot more women come in. There is a really good new series called “Bitch Planet” that is phenomenal and written by women. There are also a lot more comics that are addressing queer issues and people are loving it. It’s what the customers want. They want to see themselves and identify with these characters.”

Black Ice Comics doesn’t only sell comics, they also have manga, action figures, statues, posters and Pop figures, and they can order items for you. Shana also features a lot of fan art by local talent.

“I try making coming into my shop an experience,” said Shana. “I want people to feel awesome when they come here and feel good about what they love. I hope it is a source of inspiration for people, whether they want to write or draw or whatever. I hope everyone feels welcomed into the shop and can find a safe, happy place here.”