I've never had any issues, either with just myself or my kids. I went in as basically a comic book noob and they were nice and explained things to me. They gave me promo tickets for the first Guardians of the Galaxy once when I went in with the kids too.

There's no denying that type of store attracts a certain type. Comic Book Guy from the Simpsons wasn't randomly made up. I have seen them have to get on people about the bag policy, and a few heated conversations with a lot of "ackchyually"s flying around.

They're definitely a prickly bunch

They won’t hesitate to make fun of you for your purchase if they don’t agree with its level of ‘cool’. Won’t ever set foot in there again. Duncan Books was my favorite shop in town, but I haven’t been out that way in a while and I heard he closed down.

Big Bang Comics in Sewickley is a nice little shop. New Dimension has shops in Homestead and Cranberry, plus their home location up north in Elwood City (never been to this one though). There’s also one on Mount Nebo Rd. that I can’t remember the name of and haven’t had the chance to check out. These are the ones I know of. Hope it helps.

Edit - not Mount Nebo, Mount Royal Blvd.

The thing with Eide's is that those dudes have been there forever and they've seen a lot of shit. Any time I am in there I feel like they are watching me to makes sure I don't steal or break anything. It is kind if justified because if I ran a business in downtown Pittsburgh in the 80s/90s I'd probably be a little skeptical of people too, but like damn is it uncomfortable in there as a customer sometimes.

Sarcasm and dry humor, sure, but that comes with the territory. They have always helped me find things or made recommendations etc. But YMMV I guess.

I would also recommend the New Dimensions in Elwood City. It’s a bit of a hike, depending upon where you are, but it has a huge selection of dollar books.

I know of multiple complaints in that respect, but I've never had any issues with any of them. Understand that the sarcasm meter can really spike with the workers if you're obnoxious. I've also seen them tolerate some egregiously stupid people, so you just never know who you're behind in line that day. You can ask basic questions, just don't behave like an idiot and you'll be fine.

They were in the late 90s and early 00s. they used to WRITE THE PRICES directly on the books in pencil also, which i always thought was insane. I can’t speak to the experience there now.

I went there a few times about ten years ago and was turned off. Just sort of dour and curt. I really didn't like them asking me to leave my bag with them at the counter

If you're not the stereotypical comic-buying type, you might have issues. I had an experience with someone whom I was told later was in charge of the comics section, gender-based.

They definitely have a large catalog to buy from; hopefully they have improved since my visit. I never went back after that.

I usually find them to be good if not great. I think maybe once of the dozens of times I've brought friends, one of them had an unpleasant comment, but not enough for me to even recall what it was.

I went once and they were douches to me. Considering how many other amazing comic book shops there are in the area, I don't see any reason to ever give them my business.

I don’t know about current ownership, but Greg Eide was a complete POS, to both customers and staff, from when he opened it in the 70s until the day he died. And treating customers like they should feel blessed to be allowed into the establishment was something he instilled in his employees.

I haven’t been there since Greg died, so I can’t say whether that’s still the attitude the staff has.