Packaging

A few weeks ago, I asked a friend for help running an errand because I have no reliable means of transportation other than public transportation. After finishing the errand, we went to stuff our fat faces on wings at a well-known wing restaurant. I'll let you figure out where we stopped to it; it's very popular as I'm told. Eventually, we went to a Barnes & Noble because I really wanted to buy a copy of Judge Dredd Complete Case Files. (Note: I'm not an asshole. He wasn't just used a chauffeur for the day, I told him to pick out anything he wanted and he did).

Since then, I've bought stuff from Barnes & Noble in person and online. Especially since I paid for the membership (which is paying for itself thanks to free shipping and the discounts). No, I am not a sell-out; I'd have to be getting paid in order to be a sell-out.

After that first Judge Dredd book, I went back to that same location and bought the Complete Case Files 02. Much to my dismay, however, some asshole had flipped through the pages and torn a hole through one and damaged the other pages as well. You bet your ass I was fucking pissed- still am, by the way.

I went back the next morning and explained my situation: "I don't want to sound bratty but there's a hole in a page and some of the pages have been damaged. I'm guessing somebody flipped through the pages and damaged them." The guy at the register understood completely and did the following: took back the damaged copy, and ordered a fresh copy to be delivered to me because that torn copy was the last one in stock at that location.

After I left the store, I ordered a copy of Tank Girl: Apocalypse online because I can and because reasons.

I'll just skip ahead to a few days after both orders came in, separately (obviously because I ordered them at separate times and in separate methods).

The packaging for both books was... perplexing. Tank Girl was in a folded thick cardboard folding box that you open by pulling some flaps on the sides and then tearing open.

(Part of) my most recent order (Bone: The Complete Cartoon Epic in One Volume and Seven Samurai) arrived about an hour ago. They came in a box with only crumpled up paper on top to protect the book and DVD set. I was very grateful that the people at UPS didn't accidentally damage the contents which could have easily happened given the pretty poor packaging.

I'm gonna be honest. The packaging Barnes & Noble uses honestly confuses me, and frankly sucks. Well, the box + crumbled paper combo sucks the most, the other method is surprisingly efficient though I would prefer the book to have been in shrink-wrap to further protect them from potential scratches when rubbing with the cardboard. A foolish notion but not entirely improbable, is it?

I've ordered some stuff from eBay and the packaging the sellers have used is way better. Maybe that's because I didn't order books and movies from eBay and because that's just the seller's preference: envelope and bubble wrap.

That being said, at least my copy of the Complete Case Files 02 came in without torn pages or anything of the sort.

As for the "part of" comment. I ordered Tank Girl: The Odyssey and am waiting for it to arrive tomorrow. It should have arrived today as well because I ordered it along with Bone and Seven Samurai. Hell, it would have made more sense for the box to contain Bone, Seven Samurai, and Tank Girl. But I guess stock is limited here and there and all that fun stuff.

Hmm.