The Beguiling

If you’re looking to discover comics as an art form, Beguiling is the place to visit. Stepping in for the first time, the collection on their shelves can be overwhelming. But if you slow down and take a closer look, you’ll definitely find something that interests you. Or maybe several things, after which you may end up having a hard time choosing.
While there’s impressive collection of superhero works here, what’s really impressive is their selection of international and independent items. For instance, I found James Jean’s PROCESS RECESS 2 on the shelves during one walkabout, still at an affordable price and well after it was out of print. Another time, I found Inoue Takehiko’s DRAW DVD set — something I thought I’d never find on local shelves — in its manga section. The place never disappoints! And the guys, obviously, know their stuff.
The Beguiling is one of those places that, in some circles, is synonymous with Toronto’s Annex. For those that’ve read Scott Pilgrim, you may notice The Beguiling is something interwoven into the series’ history :)
Through their long life in the area, they’ve built up the Toronto Comics Art Festival (TCAF). A decade ago, TCAF ‘took over’ the area around Honest Ed’s for one weekend every two years; now, it’s held annually at the Toronto Reference Library. Through the growth, the festival has never lost its vibe — something closer to ‘conventions’ held overseas, or perhaps Artist’s Alley (to compare closer to home).
Because of their history, it’s probable you’ll find works by some of your fave creators ‘before they were known’. Another example: Paul Pope’s ‘THE CORRUPTOR’, one of his earliest works, I found here — signed, affordable, and a first print!
I can’t recommend The Beguiling enough. I’ve discovered a lot of comic works from around the world here, and and found a few I never thought I’d get my hands on. Oh, and if you’re in Rosedale, they’ve got a second store @ the Toronto Reference Library now — a lighter selection, but definitely just as cool.

I spent a few years working as a manager in a local Buffalo, NY comic shop. Now closed, that shop sold much more than comics from the big publishers. It stocked a great deal of Indy and small press comics. Having been to shops all around the US, I’ve often found it difficult to find one as Indy-​friendly with a staff as knowledgeable (yeah — I knew my stuff back then) about small press books. Oddly enough, it is our neighbors in the Great White North that host my next favorite Indy-​friendly comic shop.
The Beguiling is located on Markham street, a short ride from the public library that hosts the Toronto Comic Arts Festival (TCAF). It is also in walking distance of some great shops, restaurants, and paid parking lots.
As soon as you walk in you’ll see a ground floor shopping area to the left and a staircase in front of you. The area to the left houses an amazing collection of Indy books. Here you will find some rare posters, a few books printed in French, and a small-​press rack that contains a quirky assortment of shorts and books that will satisfy your need for something non-​mainstream. Upstairs is their back issue room, stocked full of long boxes and books from many popular publishers. Here you can find mainstream sets, old trades, statues, and even some rare Indy books.
It has been a short while since I have had the time to visit The Beguiling, but if Chris is still working there I recommend you ask for him and spend some time talking comics. He is incredibly informative, knowledgeable, and will share a love for the books he stocks.
Along with The House of Secrets in Burbank CA, The Beguiling is one of my favorite comic shops. It’s well spaced, packed full of stock, competitively priced, and has that «old-​building» charm. if you are a comic fan, I am certain that you’ll enjoy it and come away with something new to read.

The place to go for comics in TO! Especially for indie comics. I didn’t realize how much I would miss it until I moved from Toronto.
They had all the recent English language releases from Pow Pow Press (MTL) in stock; and that was the driving reason why I went there in the first place. I was able to pick up a ton on CanCon that you can’t get in the States as well as peruse the huge amount of stuff on D + Q that they have.
Due to my pile of books that were forming in my hands they gave me even more suggestions to purchase based on what I already had! As a result I discovered Pope Hats (excellent!) and the recent release Johnny Canuck as a result of the war measures act with a forward by Seth.
I will definitely be back the next time I am in TO to stock up on more things. The most embarrassing aspect is that I went there twice to pick up another Pow Pow Press book. I simply love to look at everything that they have and wish I could read their large number of Francophone books as well.
I am not as big into manga as I once was but their selection is amazing as well and all of the mainstream stuff as well e.g. DC, Marvel, Darkhorse if you are into that stuff as well.

Absolutely wonderful: loads of quality manga and comics to choose from. Decent interior layout. Tasteful selections. This is what a comic book store should be like: rich, intimate, satisfying.

One of my favourite places in the city. You won’t find anyone more knowledgeable and helpful. And the stock! The place is overflowing with amazing finds including lots of out of print books.

The Beguiling has been my go-​to comic book store for years now.
While the staff does have a reputation for being standoffish (though never rude) their recommendations are always top-​notch.
Their discount for subscribers is the best in the city.
What really stands The Beguiling apart from other comic book stores is their selection of independent, global, underground, and local comics that are hard to find at most comic book stores. As the organizers behind the Toronto Comic Arts Festival, you’d expect them to have a great selection of rare gems, and they do not disappoint.

The Beguiling is an indie comic store downstairs, and a super-​hero comic store upstairs. They have a decent quarter bin, but there is also the fear that if you prefer Captain America to the latest release of Chester Brown you may not quite be ‘up to scuff.’
There is comic book elitism, but if you’re after Indie comics, this is the perfect place for you.
Unfortunately the space is rather cramped, and you’ll find yourself moving out of the way for people who want to get by, more than you’ll actually be looking at the comics.

This place smells amazing in a musty, papery kind of way (like an old florist?) And the selection is pretty good. Inner totalloser enjoys the wide selection of esoteric graphic novels and the ‘poster rack’ is full of some actually great prints, and original art’s for sale too.
Issue: They rarely have a complete series, so that a lady who has perhaps bought most of Optic Nerve over the past decade leaves dissatisfied.
Great for present shopping: the anthologies here are a good price point and usually beautiful (lots of Fantagraphics, Drawn & Quarterly, Dark Horse etc.)
But this search was sad:
. (Was going to buy for the 8^th birthday of my unborn niece so I guess I have time.)
ALERT!!! If you buy a Chris Ware, Charles Burns or Adrian Tomine work at Beguiling it gives you a ticket to their visit in November!
Nerd nipples hardening.

Une boutique de comics et bds parmi les nombreuses présentes installées dans le quartier de Bathurst. Au rez de chaussée vous y trouverez des bds franco belges et à l’étage manga et comics.
One of many comic books store you will find in the Bathurst area. Downstairs are the french and belgium section, upstairs you’ll find manga and comics.

I’m going to throw out the currently most overused word in the American vernacular in reference to this amazing TO gem — EPIC. If you are a comic fan who leans towards non– Big Two (read: Marvel and DC) publishers, a la myself, this is the Holy Grail for all your comic needs. The downstairs boasts a ridiculous collection of titles from all your favorites, alphabetized largely by author (Jhonen Vasquez, Adrian Tomine, Los Bros Hernandez, etc). You can find everything from their most notable works to super obscure early stuff that may be very limited edition. Prices are pretty reasonable for this harder to find stuff, IMHO, especially when a lot of it isn’t even track-​down-​able online. The owner is usually behind the counter and he may give off an unapproachably, cooler than thou vibe but he’s actually very helpful, laid back and concerned that you have the best experience as a customer.
The upstairs caters more to general, less niche tastes. They have several large racks of the current issues, both mainstream and independent, along with trades, manga, a massive back stock of individual issues and magazines. I can only deduct a star (it would only be half a star if I was allowed) because the store is just TOO stuffed, especially the back issues. The promise of obscure, hard to find back issues at a place with such varied stock as The Beguiling is quickly ruined by how crammed and stacked on each other the back issues are. There is no real space to pull boxes out and the stuff is so tight in the boxes you have to pull 20 issues out just to have room to flip through. The staff has zero idea of what is in the boxes either (which is pretty common for a comic shop) so there is no way to discern if they have what you need except to look through– a daunting task I usually give up on after 20 minutes. Aside from this, the staff has always been super helpful and knowledgable about the stock.
They also have a decent selection of interesting merch — buttons, posters, figurines, etc — that are reasonably priced. The much-​beloved Scott Pilgrim is heavily represented and the shop has some very cool posters for the manga-​style graphic novel series — if you see something on the wall you like, ask about it. Chances are it is for sale or they have another copy they will sell you cheap (for instance, a medium-​ish poster in the stairwell featuring a variety of full-​color Ramona’s from SP is available for only $ 10). A huge mix of free flyers, cards, pamphlets and low-​cost local indie comics, some hand drawn versus photocopy, also crows the front of the store.
I LOVE this place and make a point to stop every time I’m in TO to stock up on hard-​to-​find and unique items, along with recent issues local stores are sold out of due to their smaller ordering volume.

My inner Sheldon loves this store. I hop in here nearly every time I’m in town. The staff is super friendly and knowledgeable. I end up spending too much time here. I highly recommend checking it out.

I finally made it in here after walking by so many times at night when hitting up one of the neighbouring bars.
There’s lots of stuff here. Lot’s of stuff that I don’t have any clue what most of it is. There’s comics and books from all corners of the nerdy realm. The great thing about this store it that they probably have anything you can think of, but the unfortunate thing is that you probably wouldn’t be able to physically find it in the store. There’s just so much «stuff» that it’s mind boggling. There’s boxes on the floor that you can dig through, shelves/​counters with piles on top of piles, and it’s a small space so getting around can be a challenge when it’s busy.
February Food-​Free Unilocaling Challenge ¹⁹⁄₂₉

One of the best comic book stores in the world. They carry everything, from your monthly superhero fix upstairs to obscure (to us) French and Japanese sequential art books on the main floor. They run a now annual convention (TCAF) that is growing into one of the best indie comic shows in North America, manage the sales of original art and pages from some of the world’s best comic artists and now have a spin-​off kids’ store, Little Island, around the corner.
Why would you buy your comics anywhere else?

I just saw this on the front page and just had to put in my two cents.
Love this store.
It actually reminds me of a lot of stores in Japan in the way that you can judge from the outside but when you walk through the unsuspecting doors you are greeted with the wonderment of a place bursting at the seams with art books, comics, graphic novels and indie comics! You can tell that this place is stocked not by a top 40 but by people who really love books and go out of their way to find the most interesting things to put on their shelves no matter how big or small the artist.
That last part i think is what really puts this store over the top for me is their support for local talent and the community. i mean hell they put on «TCAF». A FREE 3 day comic book convention!!!

I could easily spend hours just browsing in here and the staff are friendly enough that they’d let you. Also, unlike many comic book shops, there’s actually room for you to do just that. They really have the best selection, too. They carry all of the more well-​known works but they also have indie and local books and proudly display artwork for sale around their walls and staircases. They’ve even got zines and small-​run editions. The second floor is where you’ll find the superhero and manga books.
They also support the community by sponsoring exhibitions, selling tickets for them, and doing signings and launches.
Much as I love this place, I have to be really careful about how often I’m there, otherwise I run the risk of spending too much dough!

I went to the Beguiling for one thing and one thing only — comics by Jason. He’s a somewhat indie artist published by Fantagraphic Books and previously, I was only able to find one or two of his graphic novellas here and there. And when I did find his books, they would usually be the same titles found elsewhere and at a ridiculously high Canadian price. But oh was I pleased when I discovered that the Beguiling carried almost all of the books in his library AND at US cover price. I was torn as I could only afford to pick up 4 books. But another plus one for The Beguiling, as their website carries original art by Jason himself.
Also an exciting point for me was the discovery that they carried Bear comics by Jamie Smart — again, something that I have been looking for but have not easily encountered.
So anyways, I didn’t really check out the 2^nd floor or much else of the first after I found my Jason comics — I was too excited to get out and read them. When I‘m back in TO, this is definitely on my list of places to go.

In the shadow of the looming giant that is Honest Ed’s, the Beguiling quietly flourishes in its homey little space. But like Honest Ed’s, when you head into the Beguiling, you’re faced with so much stuff it’s almost hard to know where to go first.
The Beguiling, despite its small square footage, pretty much has it all. Single issue comics, superhero comics, graphic novels, manga, specialised art books, zines, tshirts & other small merch, original art and even some DVDs. It can be a dangerous place to browse because it’s just so hard to leave all those tasty options on the shelf!
Prices are reasonable, considering the range of stuff from commercial/​big company books down to indie works. They’ve got a great online catalogue, too. Although it can seem chaotic, everything’s organised pretty well — you can tend to find a lot of comics by particular authors upstairs also (Alan Moore, Warren Ellis, Neil Gaiman, Joss Whedon, etc.) — and if you’re stuck, the staff know that place like the back of their hand and can help you find what you’re after.
If you find yourself on Markham Street and want to treat your senses to an overload of fantastic stuff, The Beguiling is the place you want to be. Don’t get lost in there!

I want to own everything in the Beguiling.
This could be my favourite place in the city, with racks upon racks of diligently categorized graphic novels and indie (as well as mainstream) comic rags. Totally devoid of pretension, it’s the old-​timey comic shop for cool kids, nerdos, fanboys/​girls, pervs and weirdos… you know, people like us.
I always find my new fave author/​artist when I go to the Beguiling and explore.

For fans of the graphic novel and comic genre this place is Mecca. The beguiling has the most comprehensive selection of graphic novels, comics and zines in the city. Instead of action figures and stuffed animals the shelves are stuffed with limited edition and indie literature.
Apart from the superb content it’s the staff that makes this place a five star. They are knowledgeable and super friendly. Even if your not into this genre i recommend everyone to check out the beguiling at least once when passing through Mirvish Village.

so heres an opinion from a newbie.
ROCK ON DEUTERONOMIES!!! (or duderonemies if you prefer.)
the first floor of this place is essentially devoted to graphic novels. their collection is so vast that you dont know where to start. i suppose if youve been a die hard fan all your life, youd know but i comfortably went to the front and asked a guy who looked mildly like my dad for some suggestions.
this gave me some comfort, for the reason that, as i expected, he directed me towards novels that focused on great writers, in addition to great comic book artists. more specifically, i was interested in things other than superhero comics (not damning those by any means, just different preference from the start). He was very humble, helpful and i felt like i was getting a peak at stuff that he really loved.
this was the first of many times that i will return. thank you beguiling.

The Beguiling, tucked away in Mirvish Village just off of Honest Ed’s, is probably the classiest comic shop in the city. They specialize in the more independent and art-​range books, but still carry the superhero stuff too (because even the superhero stuff can be done exceptionally well). The quality-​to-​floor space ratio is unmatched.
What’s also impressive is how well connected The Beguiling is to the comics scene. For a small shop, they have a lot of signings by great talents; for instance, they brokered a charity auction of a Simon Bisley painting on eBay for tsunami relief a few years back. And no, I didn’t come close to winning, alas.