Office worker Lee, 33, who watched the film "Odyssey," now checks used transaction platforms frequently. It's to find "Greek and Roman Mythology in Comics," which Lee enjoyed reading in school days. Lee even posted a buy notice saying "It's fine even if the book has mold and stains," but has had little luck finding a listing.
Lee said, "I'm trying to get the full set to relive my student days, but so many people are looking that the price has become too expensive."
◇Searches jump 250% after the film's release
As director Christopher Nolan's film "Odyssey" draws crowds, books on Greek and Roman mythology, including Homer's "The Odyssey," are gaining popularity as well. In particular, as more people seek out the out-of-print editions of the educational comic "Greek and Roman Mythology in Comics," which was popular among children and teens in the 2000s, shortages are appearing in the used market.
According to used transaction platform karrot on the 19th, searches for "Greek and Roman mythology" from the 5th, when the film "Odyssey" opened, to the 17th — a 13-day span — rose about 250% compared with the same period before the release. The increase outpaced searches for Homer's "The Iliad" or "The Odyssey."
A similar trend appeared on e-book and reading platforms. At Millie's Library, the average daily "Add to library" count for nine titles related to Greek and Roman mythology, including "Greek and Roman Mythology in Comics 15," increased 3.9 times from before the film's release.
"Greek and Roman Mythology in Comics" is an educational comic published by Gana Publishing starting in Nov. 2000. It was hugely popular among children and teens, with cumulative sales exceeding 10 million copies.
In particular, what is most popular in the used market now is the early edition drawn by author Hong Eun-young. The series concluded with a total of 25 volumes — 20 main volumes and five specials — but volumes 1–18 drawn by Hong went out of print after a court suspended publication following a royalty dispute between the author and the publisher. A new series with a different artist was later released.
Jang, 35, who said the comic was a school-days read, said, "I stopped reading around the part where Odysseus returns to his home of Ithaca as the art style changed," adding, "When I talk with my peers, many remember the hardships until Odysseus returns home but don't really know what comes after."
◇Out-of-print copies even "stolen" at secondhand bookstores
As demand has surged after the film's release, prices for out-of-print editions are also jumping. The list price for the 20-volume revised edition of "Greek and Roman Mythology in Comics" now on sale is around 210,000 won, but on used transaction platforms, older sets that include the Hong Eun-young edition are being listed for 400,000–1 million won. That's about two to five times the revised edition's list price.
It's also hard to find the older edition at secondhand bookstores. A check of eight secondhand bookstores around Cheonggyecheon in Jung District, Seoul, found only one store that had even part of the out-of-print edition drawn by Hong.
There have even been thefts. A, who runs a secondhand bookstore in Nowon District, Seoul, said, "I recently had an out-of-print 'Greek and Roman Mythology in Comics' stolen," adding, "It's hard to find even single volumes, and getting a set is truly like picking stars from the sky." A said, "As the number of seekers suddenly increased, both purchase prices and sales prices are rising together."
◇A case of "nostalgia consumption"… "Likely to be temporary"
Experts view this as a form of "nostalgia consumption," in which adults revisit content they encountered as children. Those who read the comic in the early 2000s have grown into people in their 20s and 30s with purchasing power, and the film "Odyssey" has rekindled those memories.
There have been similar cases in the past. After the release of the film "The First Slam Dunk," based on the hit comic "Slam Dunk," the original comic and related merchandise became popular again and popup stores opened one after another in Korea.
Choi Cheol, a professor of consumer economics at Sookmyung Women's University, said, "This can be seen as adults recalling the nostalgia and memories of their childhood and consuming related goods again," adding, "However, the phenomenon of out-of-print comic prices jumping sharply in a short period is likely to be temporary."