Once again, I'm thrilled to introduce and debut a new comic to the CGC Census and to the Collectors Society. For all you Captain America and Marvel fans, this one-shot comic was a promotional giveaway that was included as a free insert in the Thursday Edition of the Wall Street Journal on June 6, 2013.

My brother, who's into the stock market, reads the Wall Street Journal daily. And he knows I'm a big comic book geek, so he calls me late in the evening (about 9ish) on June 6th, to let me know that there's a free comic book of Captain America with today's edition of the WSJ. I immediately rush down to the local CVS Pharmacy to see if they have any Wall Street Journals left.

I remember it was pouring rain and I got soaked. But I didn't care... I was determined to find these comics. Luckily CVS had two WSJ's still available. So I snatched them up and went to the cashier to pay for them. And to my detriment and horror, the cashier, not knowing there was comics in these papers, folds each newspaper to cram them into a plastic shopping bag!

I was mortified and couldn't believe my own stupidity and absent mindedness. I should have forewarned her. It was my fault. And I walked out into the rain in disbelief feeling these once mint limited edition comics had a catastrophic crease directly down the middle of each book. What bad luck! Bummer!

Downtrodden, I skulked back to my apartment and pulled them out to see their condition, and thankfully they weren't half that bad. I believe I got very lucky and somehow the comics may have slid to once side and avoided getting folded down the middle. But, being an anal-condition-sensitive-freak that I am, my paranoid ego couldn't rest until I found unblemished and unadulterated copies.

So I went back out into the rain and walked a few blocks until I found a newsstand that was still open. And voila, this store had six unsold Wall Street Journals... I guess nobody in my neighborhood cares to read about the financial markets.

I immediately searched through each one to see if they had the comic, and sure enough they did. And, learning my lesson with the CVS cashier, I asked the bemused cashier if I could personally place each WSJ into a plastic shopping bag. And, after a second of looking at me like I was a complete nut, he shrugged his shoulders and said yes. And why not? I mean, it wasn't like he was going to sell these newspapers so late in the night to other customers.

The rain was still pouring. And knowing my comics could get wet, I placed the shopping bag underneath my shirt. So I skipped back home like a little boy, dripping wet but gleeful that I had six potential mint comics. And the rain did absolutely no harm to them since they were tucked away under my shirt and inside the multi-layered protection of each newspaper.

As soon as I reached my humble abode, I laid each newspaper flat on my dining table. I changed from my wet clothes to dry ones and thoroughly dried my hands... making sure I wouldn't accidentally wet any comic. I fetched eight acid-free bags and inserted backboards in each and proceeded to the dining table. Like a surgeon, I delicately pulled out each comic from the center of each Wall Street Journal, separating each comic book from the advertisements and coupons they were grouped with. I inspected each one, taking mental note of the edges, the surface condition of the front and back covers, as well as the interior paper quality and staples, and then carefully placed each inside an acid-free bag with backboard. Afterward, I was satisfied knowing that at least 4 of the 8 comics were in Near Mint Plus state. And 22 days later, I those 4 to Wizard World NYC for grading.

Yesterday, they came back: 2 9.8's and 2 9.6's. Wow! I rarely get 9.8's... mostly 9.2's, 9.4's and 9.6's. And the CGC did a beautiful job with the encapsulations. The holders just look gorgeous. I'm happy!

About the comic book itself, I've taken selected excerpts (without permission) from an online article which appears in Ad Age Media News: "Kiehl's, the skincare and haircare retailer, sent a custom Captain America comic book to Wall Street Journal subscribers in New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco on Thursday as part of a content-marketing effort meant to help the company better connect with men.

The Kiehl's comic book, which was created by Marvel Custom Solutions, takes place in the original Kiehl's store at 3rd Avenue and 13th Street in Manhattan and features characters and displays from the company's past and present. Marvel Custom Solutions is an internal agency within Marvel's promotions group that works with marketers to create print and digital comic books, as well as a variety of other products, such as book covers and posters. The Walt Disney Company acquired Marvel in 2009 for $4 billion.

Kiehl's President Chris Salgardo, himself a comic book fan, reached out to Marvel earlier this year. "Of all of Marvel's iconic characters, Captain America was a natural fit," Mr. Salgardo said in an email interview. "He is an American icon and the story-line fits well."

In the 12-page story, created specifically for Kiehl's by writer William Harms and artists Angel Unzueta and Ty Templeton, Captain America must protect some "rare extracts and botanicals" -- hidden in the Kiehl's basement -- that could be used to create another super-soldier like himself.

The story doesn't mention any Kiehl's product by name, but the action is bookended by ad pages from Kiehl's including six pages touting its Facial Fuel for men and Ultimate Man body scrub soap.

The comic book is available at Kiehl's stores with the purchase of any product and a digital version is on the company's website, but Kiehl's worked with The Wall Street Journal because the company wanted more people, predominantly men, to see the comic. "We feel it is so true to our DNA," Mr. Salgardo said. "Instead of advertising, this allows potential new customers to understand Kiehl's -- our quirkiness, but also our expertise in serious skincare."

A comic book insert for a skin-care company appearing in The Wall Street Journal might seem like an odd fit, but beauty advertising is a growing priority for the paper. "This is a great example of our ever-increasing strength in the beauty category," said Nina Lawrence, VP-global marketing for ad sales at the paper. "We've invested in developing our beauty reach over the past few years and it continues to be a huge area of growth for us."

Currently the Kiehl's website lists the "Limited Edition Captain America Comic Book" as out of stock: http://www.kiehls.com/Limited-Edition-Captain-America-Comic-Book/899,default,pd.html.

Here's more promo on the comic book as seen on Marvel's website which includes a video: http://marvel.com/news/story/20784/ring_the_nyse_opening_bell_with_captain_america_kiehls.

Now I wonder: How many of these comics were printed and distributed? And how many were bought? And how many were destroyed that were not sold? And how many survived and are collected? I imagine the numbers are low since most promotional giveaways usually are discarded by the general public.

If you're looking to buy one, there are a number of raw/ungraded available on eBay. And I have to say, for a free promo comic, I was impressed by both the artwork and story which I believe takes place in the Marvel Movie Universe, with a guest appearance by Nick Fury, drawn and portrayed as Samuel L. Jackson.

S

To see old comments for this Journal entry, click here. New comments can be added below.