Monster Comics

[horrorhunter]

HH, did you manage to get a Tomb of Dracula #10?

Yeah, I have the full run, 1-70. My #10 is in FN+ (6.5). I don't have a scan handy.

[creaturefan95]

Yeah, I have the full run, 1-70. My #10 is in FN+ (6.5). I don't have a scan handy.

Then you probably don't have your Werewolf by Night #32 scanned either, right?

[horrorhunter]

Then you probably don't have your scanned either, right?

 

[creaturefan95]

Now you see what happens when one leaves out something as important as the website address when inserting a hyperlink because I meant to ask this:

Then you probably don't have your Werewolf by Night #32 scanned either, right?

[horrorhunter]

Now you see what happens when one leave out something as significant as the website address when inserting a hyperlink because I meant to ask this:

Gotcha.

Yeah, my WBN #32 isn't scanned in either. I bought it new off the stands and it's in VF (8.0) condition (nice gloss).

[creaturefan95]

I just upgraded my copy of Tomb of Dracula #3 from a Fair/Good (1.5) to a Fine+ (6.5)!

Before:




After:

[horrorhunter]

I just upgraded my copy of Tomb of Dracula #3 from a Fair/Good (1.5) to a Fine+ (6.5)!

Good work. Those early TODs are difficult to find in nice condition.

Many of the '70s monster comics were sold unbagged in flea markets/yard sales, used book stores, and comic convention quarter boxes, up to the '90s and were beat all to crap. Not that many nice ones around anymore. In the '90s collectors and dealers began to realize how cool they are and they went from trash to treasure pretty quickly. The comics glut of the early '90s produced a resurgence of many monster comics in new series which probably had a lot to do with renewed interest in the original (and best) '70s monster comics. That glut set the market back and nearly destroyed it, but it did bring some of the original comics to the attention of thousands of new collectors. Nothing quite like late '60s-mid '70s monster mags and comics.

[creaturefan95]

I got the first slab in my collection from eBay for $24.98 shipped!

[horrorhunter]

Here are scans of my new copies of Swamp Thing #s 3-5.







Got these in an eBay auction lot including these three and #10. My previous copies of these issues ranged from VG to FN, and these are significant improvements being in the VF range. The seller claimed they were in NM but I knew better than that after examining his detailed scans of the front and back covers. He even supplied pics of the interior pages (which range from cream to off-white). Still, these are nice, and I knew this was my best chance to upgrade some of my worst condition copies for the least money since it was an auction. I ended up getting the books for a little less than $16 a copy including shipping. They would cost $25-$40 each in this condition at a comic convention, and more at a retail shop. Now I can sell my old copies over time and probably recoup most, if not all, of what I spent.

Bernie Wrightson is my favorite comic book artist, and Swamp Thing #s 1-10 is his most iconic run. It's important to me to have nice copies of these books. Very happy with the upgrades. 

[horrorhunter]

My Swamp Thing #s 6-10:











Issues 6-8 are in the FN range, and 9 and 10 are VF/NM (9.0). Weird scanner reflections/shadows are pronounced on issues 9 and 10. The printing process for certain colors shows up strangely on some scans. Issues 9 and 10 are very glossy so maybe that's causing reflection issues with the scans.

[marsattacks666]

Wow! A plethora of cool Swamp Thing comicbooks.

[horrorhunter]

Wow! A plethora of cool Swamp Thing comicbooks.

Thanks. I like the Nestor Redondo issues too, but the Wrightson run is classic. I have the full run of volume 1 and the only stinker in the bunch was the last issue, #24. Too bad it had to end on such a sour note. Of course, Alan Moore did great things with the character later on. But, the Wrightson issues will always be the best Swamp Thing issues to me.

[creaturefan95]

HH, do you have any graded comics?

[horrorhunter]

HH, do you have any graded comics?

No. I'm not a fan of comic slabbing. I don't mind slabbed trading cards, just not comics. I like to look through my comics too much to want them in a slab. The cost of slabbing usually increases the cost of the comic, especially less expensive books. I don't need CGC to tell me the grade of a book since I can read the Overstreet Grading Guide myself, and I've been grading books for over 40 years so I've seen the changes that comic book grading has gone through. Besides, CGC and the other grading companies are often wrong anyway. That's why some collectors keep resubmitting the same expensive books for re-grading hoping to get that tiny increase in grade which will translate to big bucks when they sell it. It's all a little absurd when you think about it.

I'm happy with nice looking books that I can look through when I want to. On expensive books I often settle for mid-grade just to be practical, but I prefer books in the VF range when I can get a good deal on them (and that's accurately graded VF, what many sellers call "NM", in other words it looks nearly new with hardly any wear and nice gloss). If I were stinkin' filthy rich I might get duplicates of everything slabbed in NM (9.4) but I'm not. I collect a lot of stuff besides just comics so I try to get the best value for my money. Nope, no slabbed books in my collection, cf95. 

[Hepcat]

Nothing quite like late '60s-mid '70s monster mags and comics.

Truth!