With great power comes . . . free comics!

As everybody knows, or ought to know, the first Saturday in May is when comics publishers and comic book store proprietors throughout the Marvel and DC Universes celebrate their independence from bullies by giving away books for the low, low price of bupkis.

Wait, strike almost all of that. First off, the perception that comics (or "sequential art," to use the term preferred by Will Eisner, one of the pioneering masters of the form) are all about superheroes has always been one of the major reasons they've usually been thought of as mostly kids' stuff in this country (and nowhere else in the world). But in an age when even deeply personal, emotionally sophisticated independent books like Marjane Satrapi's Persepolis or Dan Clowes's Ghost World get adapted into movies, it's probably safe to say the medium has turned a corner. (Nothing against super-heroes, mind you -- we'll be lining up for the much-praised Iron Man flick this weekend just like everyone else).

In any case, as unequivocal fan of both free stuff and comics, DCist has helpfully gotten in touch with local comics shops to find out how they'll be observing this seriously underrated holiday. We've also asked shopkeeps to make some recommendations from among the crop of books publishers are offering for free (you can see the full list here), and name-checked a few of our own faves, too.

Big Monkey Comics on 14th St. NW between R and S streets will have the stock of FCBD comics on hand as well as some 3,000 other comics that they've selected from their existing stock to give away, according to Big Monkey owner Scipio Garling. Comics-related movies will play on a big screen TV all day, and a demo of the Heroclix strategy game will be held, featuring official Heroclix Judge Tom Price. Plus, if you sign up for Big Monkey's subscription service on Saturday, you'll be entered in a drawing to win "some very special prizes." (We're hoping for the proportional strength and agility of a Spider, or at least Super-breath.)

LOCATION: 1722-B 14th St. NW
SATURDAY HOURS: 12 p.m. to 8 p.m. RECOMMENDED FREE COMICS: Tiny Titans, an acknowledgment from publishers "that most comics aren't for kids any more, but kids still want them," Garling says.

Meanwhile, at Fantom Comics, with locations at Union Station and in Tenleytown, there'll be trivia contests (at both stores) with $10 gift cards for players whose mastery of arcane comic book lore proves particularly superhuman, says manager Jordan Kessler. The Tenleytown store will also host a Nintendo Wii tournament (the Union Station store isn't big enough).

"It's gonna be a spectacle," Kessler promises. "Last year, we had people waiting at the doors at 10 o'clock." Special guests are a tantalizing possibility, too: "I think Batman may show up in Tenleytown at some point," Kessler says. (And if the Dark Knight happens to have exactly the same jawline as Kessler, well, that's merely a coincidence, nothing more.)

LOCATIONS: 4500 Wisconsin Ave. NW and Union Station, street level, West Hall
SATURDAY HOURS: 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. (both stores)
RECOMMENDED FREE COMICS: Drafted, Owly and Friends, All-Star Superman. ("An unbelieveable book; I can't believe I have customers who haven't read it," Kessler says.)

Big Planet Comics in Georgetown (and Vienna and Bethesda and College Park, too) won't be doing anything too crazy, says Greg Bennett, owner and manager of the Georgetown store - "Just giving away cases and cases of free comics." Bennett says he's placing no restrictions on how many of the FCBD books customers can walk away with -- they can take one of each if they want.

LOCATION: 3145 Dumbarton St. NW
SATURDAY HOURS: 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.
RECOMMENDED FREE COMICS: Another vote for All-Star Superman ("Great for everybody," Bennett raves. "Kids love it. Adults love it."), plus Geika, a manga anthology from the respected indie publisher Drawn & Quarterly.

Since nobody's mentioned them yet, DCist recommends Mike Mignola's fabulous monster comic Hellboy, and The Moth, the latest project from Steve Rude, co-creator of the great '80s indie existential sci-fi comedy Nexus -- now finally being reprinted in handsome hardback editions.

Pictured above: Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely's All-Star Superman, a stunning new take on the grandaddy of all superheroes, and Mike Mignola's Hellboy, both among the treasures you can pick up gratis this Saturday.