Comic Book Collecting

[horrorhunter]

More Wrightson goodness:



This is a (B&W) net pic of the centerfold of the oversized "Treasury" House Of Mystery issue from the '70s (Limited Collectors' Edition C-23, cover by Joe Orlando originally from House Of Mystery #174).



Around 1977 I bought a coverless copy of that book at a local flea market for a quarter, mainly for that centerfold. It's in color and features Cain and Gregory. I had it tacked to the wall for awhile and several years ago I put it in a poster frame. It's just newsprint, of course, so after all those years in the light it has a nice brown patina. It's still one of my favorite things to look at. I'm a big House Of Mystery fan mainly due to the great Wrightson art and early Adams covers. I finished my HOM run of 174-321 a couple of years ago. That took decades. Anyway, I bought a nice copy of the HOM "Treasury" a few years back. I don't know what ever happened to the coverless copy bought over 40 years ago, but my centerfold from that copy is still on my wall and gets appreciated every day.

[Rex fury]

Much like Sam Emerson from The Lost Boys, I'm not that into horror comics. I don't know why, but that's just how it is. That being said, the covers to some of these are awesome. I picked up Ghosts #9 on a whim because I loved the cover. In a perfect world DC would publish some nice hardcovers that collect the covers from their horror books.

I also enjoy the covers featured on Ghosts and other DC mystery books. The Skeleton at the wheel motif on Ghosts 9 is really cool. Similar images have been used on the original Pirates of the Caribbean poster and a book of supernatural sea stories, but I can't recall too many other horror comics that use this imagery. That image and covers featuring skeletons in wrecks and row boats always remind me of a weird story associated with the wreck of the steamship Valencia off Vancouver Island. While the wreck is a well documented real life tragedy, a story circulated for years that a life boat full of skeletal victims from the wreck was spotted in a sea cave along the north coast!  While there's no collaborative evidence of this tale, there is a piece of a lifeboat from the wreck on display at the Vancouver Maritime Museum.
At any rate I really enjoy the comic images depicting supernatural sea stories.
RF

[horrorhunter]

Here's a couple of net pics of the Marvel Legends Monster Set (Toy Biz, 2006):





I quit buying Toy Biz Marvel figures in the '90s because much of my basement storage space is still taken up by them, but I shopped around for one of these Monsters boxed sets and got one for a good deal a few years back. I'm a big Bronze Age Horror fan so this action figure set is worth digging up for me. They seem to sell for around $150-$200 currently, but can be found cheaper sometimes with patience. I noticed the loose figures and poster book sell for some decent coin these days. I guess a lot of collectors like to display the loose figures with their comics. If anyone has been wanting a set of these it might be a good time to pick one up before the Marvel Monsters are introduced into the MCU. After that anything Marvel Monster concerning the '70s characters will probably get more pricey.

As an aside I was watching a couple of comics recently that sold for surprising amounts even though I've gotten conditioned to the current pricing environment (or so I thought):

I was watching a copy of Amazing Spider-Man #124 (1st Man Wolf) on an eBay auction and what it sold for blew right by what I was planning to bid. It was a fairly nice mid grade copy, probably around a FN/VF (7.0) and ended up selling for over $130. I've never owned that book, and all along it was a very minor key and could be had a few years ago for probably 20 bucks for a decent mid grade copy, so I thought to pick up a copy since I have nearly all of the Marvel Monster books. I'll still keep my radar out for one but I may just tap out on it for what it sells for now.

I was flabbergasted at what a CGC (5.0) Silver Surfer #3 (1st Mephisto) sold for in a You Tube auction last night. It ended up selling for $760. At one point I was going to thin out my Superhero collection and sell my entire run of Silver Surfer for the current market value at the time which was around $500. I feel very fortunate that never happened. Be careful what you sell because it may be gone forever depending on how your financial future goes.

More and more books are getting priced out of what most collectors can comfortably afford. For decades it was generally accepted that if you sold some of your books, even expensive books, that you could buy them back at some point for not that much more. The longer you waited the more you would have to pay to buy them back, but in general they would only increase by a percentage, not by multiples of what they were selling for. That state of affairs doesn't seem to hold true anymore. Anything I really want to keep is staying in my collection. I sold a few Superhero books about 15 years ago and now it would be painfully expensive to buy them back. I'm not making that mistake again. Anything I sell going forward will be duplicates or something I'm certain I won't want in the future.

[John Pertwee]

That is such a great set. I bought it for $40 when it came out. I foolishly took that comic apart and used the pages to decorate our comic shop.

[horrorhunter]

This is pretty unbelievable...

https://www.ebay.com/itm/silver-surfer-3-8-5/203273382532?hash=item2f5409aa84:g:mqEAAOSwFsxgIdtv



Currently up to $214.50 with 48 Bids (8 hours + to go) and 67 Watchers, but clearly pictured is the Fantasy Masterpieces REPRINT of Silver Surfer #3. The Seller is either a dumb crook or clueless, and the Bidders are bidding big bucks on a $10 reprint. The winner is the loser in this mess. Get educated before you drop serious money. 

[John Pertwee]

Somebody is in for a rude awakening, and it isn't the seller. Is it misleading? A bit. But not enough to get Ebay to refund the money.

[horrorhunter]

Somebody is in for a rude awakening, and it isn't the seller. Is it misleading? A bit. But not enough to get Ebay to refund the money.

Yep. To beat it all the title "Fantasy Masterpieces" is prominent on the cover. I don't understand how anyone could throw that kind of money at something they obviously haven't researched. The Seller is either a poor con man or doesn't understand what he's selling. The Bidders obviously don't understand what they're trying to buy. Interesting as an unfortunate spectacle, it's like watching a multiple car pileup unfold.

I have noticed some silly prices on the Surfer reprints lately, but nothing like that auction posted above.

Here's a recent sale of the real deal.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Silver-Surfer-3-CGC-7-0-White-Pages-First-1st-appearance-Mephisto-Marvel-1968-/284178658612?hash=item422a5e3534%3Ag%3Af7YAAOSw1XpgHPIZ&nma=true&si=ukEZmjEG65byrAISQlk25gnSMJ8%253D&orig_cvip=true&nordt=true&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2557



Over $1500 for a CGC (7.0) with 27 bids. The prices just keep climbing on this book.

[John Pertwee]

This reprint sold for $375

This is pretty unbelievable...

https://www.ebay.com/itm/silver-surfer-3-8-5/203273382532?hash=item2f5409aa84:g:mqEAAOSwFsxgIdtv



Currently up to $214.50 with 48 Bids (8 hours + to go) and 67 Watchers, but clearly pictured is the Fantasy Masterpieces REPRINT of Silver Surfer #3. The Seller is either a dumb crook or clueless, and the Bidders are bidding big bucks on a $10 reprint. The winner is the loser in this mess. Get educated before you drop serious money. 

[horrorhunter]

Somebody is in for a rude awakening, and it isn't the seller. Is it misleading? A bit. But not enough to get Ebay to refund the money.

This reprint sold for $375

Rude awakening definitely forthcoming.

I bought the 14 issue run of that Fantasy Masterpieces reprint series 3 or 4 years ago in lower and mid grade just to have the option to read the Surfer stories without handling my originals too much. I remember getting them for a dollar or two each. The later issues also have early Warlock reprints so it's a cool series, just never has been very valuable. I still read my more expensive comics sometimes because nothing compares to reading the originals with all of the ads, letters, and editorial content...and that old newsprint smell is magic for older comic collectors. Still, I don't like to handle them too much, especially the square-bound issues. You have to be extra careful not to stress the spine because the square-bounds (like SS #s 1-7) tend to split at the corners more easily as the paper ages. It's nice to have cheap reprints to read casually and still enjoy the classic stories. The big books that reprint the original stories like Marvel Masterworks and Essentials are great for that too.

[geezer butler]

Here's a couple of net pics of the Marvel Legends Monster Set (Toy Biz, 2006):





I quit buying Toy Biz Marvel figures in the '90s because much of my basement storage space is still taken up by them, but I shopped around for one of these Monsters boxed sets and got one for a good deal a few years back. I'm a big Bronze Age Horror fan so this action figure set is worth digging up for me. They seem to sell for around $150-$200 currently, but can be found cheaper sometimes with patience. I noticed the loose figures and poster book sell for some decent coin these days. I guess a lot of collectors like to display the loose figures with their comics. If anyone has been wanting a set of these it might be a good time to pick one up before the Marvel Monsters are introduced into the MCU. After that anything Marvel Monster concerning the '70s characters will probably get more pricey.

Great set and great pics Double H! You know we have that in common. I'm huge fan of 70s and 80s horror comic books, but especially the Marvel horror characters (although If I had to pick one favorite it's prob Swamp Thing). Anyhow, I have that set too. I picked one up for $50 at a local comic-con, prob 10 yrs ago or so. That was one of the first big purchases I made when I decided to get back into collecting.

[horrorhunter]

Great set and great pics Double H! You know we have that in common. I'm huge fan of 70s and 80s horror comic books, but especially the Marvel horror characters (although If I had to pick one favorite it's prob Swamp Thing). Anyhow, I have that set too. I picked one up for $50 at a local comic-con, prob 10 yrs ago or so. That was one of the first big purchases I made when I decided to get back into collecting.

Very cool, geezer.

Yeah, man, I love all of those '70s Monster books- DC, Charlton, Gold Key, magazines, fanzines, but the Marvel Monsters are up near the top for me. And, I'm with you on Swamp Thing too, because of the Wrightson involvement and the character is great as well. I remember getting that Marvel Legends Monster Set for around $70 four or five years back, and I was patient to wait on the deal. When those characters hit the MCU it will be tough to afford the original books or any of the side stuff having to do with them. Thankfully, old Monster Marvelites like us picked most of that stuff up a long time ago. 

[Mike Scott]

The Seller is either a poor con man or doesn't understand what he's selling.

He's a crook. I wrote to tell him it was a reprint. His reply . . "Fu ck off!"

[Rex fury]

And that's the problem with this hobby. People get taken by hype and unscrupulous sellers. Back when I was involved with selling I'd get questions about how much Batman: A Death in the Family was going to be worth, or (worse yet) how much Valiants Turok 1 would rise in value. I believe it was Don and Maggie Thompson who wrote the article "Too Many Turks", so at least some people were sounding the alarm back then. Modern reprints are usually pretty easy for novices to spot, but not always. I've seen folks take the covers off DCs oversized reprints and claim they were original.  At least Flashback reprinted material in black and white, so there an obvious difference. With much of the Golden Age material now free of copyright, reprints have become common fair.. I guess the saying "buyer beware" is more true than ever. I was recently in a shop that had a copy of Captain America Comics 19 for sale . The pages were original but the cover was a facsimile. For all appearances it was being passed off as the real deal. 😦
RF

[horrorhunter]

He's a crook. I wrote to tell him it was a reprint. His reply . . "Fu ck off!"

Figures.

New collectors get caught up in the hype and throw money at books without researching them. The buyer is learning the hard way. Here's hoping karma is real and the scumbag seller gets his.

[horrorhunter]

I keep seeing more and more single pages listed on eBay. 

https://www.ebay.com/itm/CPA-5-0-Giant-Size-X-Men-1-SINGLE-PAGE/184653489973?hash=item2afe34a735:g:ecEAAOSws2dgH0NM



50 bucks for a single page? I know it's from Giant-Size X-Men #1 which is selling for $1500 in low grade now, and 2 or 3 times that in mid grade, but this still strikes me as very silly. 40 years ago you could buy a nice copy of GSXM for 50 bucks, and if someone said that in 40 years someone would be selling a page for that they would be laughed at. It looks like it's graded and certified. GSXM pages are listed heavily on eBay. It's like someone took a POOR copy and broke it down into single pages to sell. Weird. That's an area of collecting that I'll stay well clear of.

I Googled CPA and nothing came up for grading comic pages. Probably someone throwing some BS around trying to score a quick buck.