So, over the weekend, those of us with somewhat shady connections heard about the comic pirate site Z-Cult FM shutting down– living up to their slogan of “Give Me Comics Or Give me Death”, they’ve died. Rather than admit whether or not I got a copy of the good bye letter, I’ll claim I’m quoting from Comic Related:
Dear Cultist, I have decided that within the next few weeks Z-Cult FM
will be slowly closed down and the server put offline resulting in the
death of Z-Cult FM as we know it. Z-Cult FM was born in 2004 and over
the last 5 years has seen many high and low times. I would like to
thank everyone who was involved over the last 5 years in making Z-Cult
FM what it became. I would personally like to thank all the staff past
and present, all torrenters and supporters of the site. I did start
listing everyone by name but the list was too big and was scared I
would miss someone off. Thanks to everyone who posted and helped out in
any way possible. I would also like to unthank all the people who
during the 5 years have caused trouble for the site such as no-ip,
Marvel, DC Comics, etc etc list goes on….. least you made Z-Cult FM
into a soap opera with many dramas along the way. The future for Z-Cult
FM is currently a sad quiet death and a think about it’s future. If it
does return it will be just as a message board for the members who
still like to use it but we will see what future holds.
Thanks, Serj
R.I.P. Z-Cult FM 2004 – 2009
This now brings up the next question: so what? Is this going to make a dent in piracy? I got a note from one of the numerous shady characters I know, and the answer is– probably not.
My first reaction was – doesn’t affect me. I haven’t been to Z-Cult in at least 3 or 4 years. I stopped when it was still big, before they got all of their publicity. Why? Because it was a good place to start and then move on.
What was Z-Cult? Well, for me it was a place where I could find comic torrents to download. I would stop over every few days and see what had been posted. Usually I’d only get the latest comics for that week but sometimes there was something else I wanted. The only problem was that you had to either take the entire torrent or hand pick what you wanted. And if something went wrong, you got what you paid for (in other words, nothing). But as I said, I moved on.
I won’t say where I went or how I got there but eventually I got close to where some high quality scanners hung out. This got me the weeks comics much faster than Z-Cult ever did and also allowed me to get specific files I wanted. Listening to the people there gave me information I didn’t have, including the various troubles Z-Cult was having. But like I said, doesn’t affect me.
There are still things posted to torrent sites and you can find them if you know what to look for. And then there are specialty sites. I get my manga in raw (original scans) and scanlation (scanned with fan translations) formats on one ot two different sites. I read web comics such as Girl Genius from their author’s sites. I’ll even hit the site of a comic company to see what they have that’s nowhere else yet.
And yes, I still buy the comics I like. Sometimes I even get them on a per issue basis rather than in compilations. And if something I download really grabs my attention, I may go out and buy the back issues of it as well.
I don’t know what caused Z-Cult to finally shut down. I also know that there are too many other places to get comics, and there are still lots of people with scanners out there– including comics professionals. And there are still lots of people that want comics that they can conveniently read on their computers– including comics professionals.
Or, to quote the classics, “The more you tighten your grip, Tarkin, the more star systems will slip through your fingers.”
The Comic Book Legal Defense Fund is looking for interns to help with summer operations. 
I have not yet read 
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(Cue the citizens of Tokyo running in the streets and screaming AIEEEEEE!)
