Doctor Obscure

Oh wow I thought meant it was back as in, the older series is heating up on the back issue market.

So Battle Chasers got rebooted?! Joe Mad ain't drawing? Wow!

On 7/1/2023 at 11:29 AM, jimjum12 said:

You get it. 

Stan made it cool to be a comic geek. I guess Stan was our Fagan, at least some of us. He made it easy for a bunch of nerdy misfits to feel as if they belonged to something cool. GOD BLESS ... 

-jimbo(a friend of jesus)

 

.... on the other hand, I was DEVASTATED when Kirby left Marvel. 

so thats the "rosebud" lmao

its just that you guys have like, a pathological need for people to accept comic reading even tho the ppl laughing at it dont care about comics..

"made it cool to be a comic geek"  

you dont speak for everybody who read comics in the nineteen sixties surely?

this stuff went on in the eighties too... "comics arent just for kids anymore!"

comic fans need acceptance from the mainstream, thats whats caused so much damage to the business... so much. all because of insecure dorks! ha ha ha ha ha

Look past books per se. Seek out the EARLY issues of TwoMorrow's 'Alter Ego' magazine, the interviews by Jim Amash especially- for a wonderful period, he sought out and interviewed many, many Golden Age creators and, as such, you discover things about the publishers, the distribution and the general perception of the comics industry through these transcribed interviews. A serious gift for anyone who appreciates history.

Some links:

https://lithub.com/only-in-florida-couple-steals-rare-books-vintage-comics-and-endangered-tortoises/

https://icv2.com/articles/news/view/54160/comics-stolen-indiana-superhero-museum-surface-florida

https://www.wfla.com/news/pinellas-county/couple-accused-of-stealing-tortoises-rare-books-now-facing-more-charges/

“There were some pretty substantial Golden Age books stolen that’s worth tens of thousands of dollars if not more,” said Leto. “This is a very substantial theft.”

On 4/19/2023 at 8:28 PM, thehumantorch said:

I think he just loves comics and wants to buy as many as possible.  I recall a video where he was walking around his warehouse and talking about the 20 or 30 foot high shelves he had and how he liked to bundle a bunch of copies of the same book in plastic and store them on the shelves, all inventoried so he knew exactly where everything is.  He also talked about buying collections and how thrilled he'd be if he  found something he'd never seen before

Perhaps I was too harsh. But 65 bucks for Iceman #2 is ridiculous, even if I like Alan Kupperberg's pencils.

On 4/19/2023 at 8:17 PM, Cat said:

I don't know if he still runs sales codes or just runs a straight '50% off everything this weekend' type deal now, but it's one or the other. That's what his customers are trained to what for. It is an odd sales plan, but see my other point, Chuck really doesn't care if his books sell or not. He really doesn't. He has aspirations of his collection being this beacon in comicdom or some other nonsense, so really doesn't want to sell, he's mentioned it many a time. Weird, I know. 

I had no idea about that. This is a serious question but is he trying to get a world record for largest collection or some kind of record/validation for having the largest collection... does anyone know who has the world record for most comics?? That's odd, I guess he bristles every time someone buys a copy of Youngblood. 

On 4/19/2023 at 8:11 PM, Ken Aldred said:

Nothing. You expect their prices to be extortionate and shocking, along with feeble grading.

Typical operating procedure.

Well Ken, I didn't expect that but that's possibly because I've never shopped on MHC's site before. I am surely learning.

On 4/19/2023 at 8:11 PM, Cat said:

Chuck doesn't care if he sells his comics. His customers also rely on sales to do their shopping. 

So it is predicated on needing a Sales code on every book? I guess that explains it though it would make shopping slightly unwieldly... an odd sales plan. But thank you.

Not trying to troll... genuinely wondering what the deal is, what your thoughts are. Can prices go up if the store in question is notable due to ads within comics? I'm asking seriously here...

Just as a random example. Iceman #2 is 65.00 in NM at Mile High Comics. Sixty-Five Dollars. 

What am I missing.

By contrast, Iceman #2 is 7.20 in VF at MyComicShop.  Seven Dollars and Twenty Cents. No, I do not work at MCS and I have no prior interaction with Mile High. I genuinely went on Mile High to look for back issues and initially thought there was a mistake with the various non key eighties books I looked at.

So... what am I missing about this store?

I love it and thank everybody who shared. I remember some article a few years ago pointed out that Jack Kirby was "the only major comic book artist that literally killed Nazis" which I thought was just a fantastic tag for anybody.

On 4/3/2023 at 7:56 PM, Microchip said:

I thought Tuesday night was "New Universe" night.   Everyone brings their collection of DP7, and Psi-force issues to chat over?

I hope this is a real thing. I have some theories on Nightmask.

And hasn't the StarBrand been used in modern Marvel titles? It's not unreasonable to think that some degree of the New Universe, admittedly tiny, might make it's way into the MCU... stranger things have happened.

On 4/3/2023 at 7:47 PM, KCOComics said:

I'm sure this is a joke  I'm missing,  but did something happen with 2099 stuff? 

Back in 1999 when I was in high school,  I bought some original art from FF 2099 and Raven 2099 because I thought it looked cool and it was there. I'm sure it's worth more than I paid for it,  but it's not exactly like owning a Bernie Wrightson splash page.  

24 years later I'm fairly indifferent to it and would gladly sell it to the hoards of Raven 2099 fans that you always hear so much about. 

 

 

Ask and I will answer:
 

I wonder if the 1960s' Ditko Blue Beetles will see a spike at all with the release of the first Blue Beetle film trailer.

Of course, you all know that Marvel's initial 2099 line from 1992 are going to be valuable keys in the near future. You all know!

On 3/31/2023 at 10:04 AM, World Devourer said:

I've been told this several times, and read interviews with the greats who say as much. Stan Lee was all about Stan Lee, and couldn't stand the fact that some truly great writers came later and produced stories that trumped anything he ever did (eg. Starlin). Lee excelled at self-promotion, which is why he was such a huge part of popular culture. His ethics and integrity, however, were another matter...

Don't rely on what people tell you. Do the research. It's better.

Read every Stan Lee interview that exists, seriously. Read interviews with people who worked with him both pre and post Marvel. It will take years but as you absorb the entire context and scope of his life, career and output, you'll see.... that factually, with no bias, that the Stan myth just doesn't hold up. It's a necessary myth for fans who need Stan as the genial geek ambassador but really, the evidence for Stan is remarkably slim and the evidence for him getting the credit he did as a result of the corporate buyers of Marvel at the time Martin Goodman selling it needing to tie up freelancer's claims is much higher and much easier to see. Stan has more documented cases of declaring his lack of interest in comics, passion for comics, and reading comics than he has documented cases of him declaring that he even likes comics. He explained dozens of times how he tried to get out of comics. And once he could use comics as a chance to go to L.A., he did. Stan Lee is a myth. Being an admittedly witty and affable Editor and decent dialogue writer on finished fully drawn stories does not constitute what Stan gets.

But again. Those grown men NEED Stan. It's hard to let go of nostalgia and sentimental value, honestly. I have a hard time too, to be honest.

The Stan debate is another subject that is independent on the point of this poll.

So, one of the options should have been "I feel a Stan Lee signature does NOT add value", which would have been my option.

Before I explain my opinion, I should state of course it has value- for the collector that wants it. It certainly might help sell a book more than without it.

But in terms of investment value, which I presume is what the pollster means- no. For a simple reason- there's a glut of Stan Lee signatures, especially on characters he literally had nothing to do with. A glut. Stan signed for hours at conventions, on QVC and so forth- they aren't rare, they're not scarce. Therefore, they have less value.

On 3/9/2023 at 9:28 PM, Dr. Balls said:

Ravage 2099 #1 in VF/NM $3

 

This one is going to be heating up. 

I feel a touch of comedy makes the character more feasible, honestly. If it's just a grim "guy turns into a demon due to a curse" thing- there's many things like that. But Kirby's Demon (and Alan Moore continued in that vein), was frequently written with a degree of wit, Etrigan himself being a grinning, sardonic kind of entity. I love those Seventies comics by Jack Kirby.

I am very grateful to live in a time where there is going to be a DETECTIVE CHIMP collected edition.

If DC would collect some of those gorgeous DC Sixties Romance Stories- with Jay Scott Pike work, among others- I would be quite content. I realize it's not a financial benefit though so it's unlikely.