MadGenius

It's probably a legit 9.8 even with the spine ticks. Are there nicer 9.8s out there? Probably, But by the letter of the law those are not egregious enough to say it can't possibly be a 9.8. What would I do in this situation? I wouldn't return it because the problem isn't on the seller. I assume there were pics of the book in the listing for you to examine and you chose to buy that particular book. If it bothers you, try to sell it to recoup your money and find another one. I've done this plenty of times. No guarantee you'll get all the money back you put into it, but chalk it up to the cost of doing business.

The issue on the bottom corner is nothing to be concerned about. It's a bindery tear and is common on thick books like this. The color breaking spine ticks are more concerning. Generally speaking you wouldn't see those on a 9.8. I don't think it was damaged during shipping, but one of two things happened: 1) CGC overlooked that at the time of grading or 2) The spine ticks occurred during the encapsulation process. Not really the seller's fault as you got what you paid for: a CGC 9.8 comic as certified by CGC but it's understandable if this wasn't what you were hoping to receive. EDIT: It's also possible CGC did see the spine ticks and concluded the book still fit the criteria as a 9.8.

Call the number and find out.

Probably a minority opinion, but aside from the potential loss of the LCS I think I'm okay if the medium moves to digital and TPBs. The output of monthly comics, especially from Marvel and DC, is bloated and the glut of variants and constant events were already slowly killing the industry. Digital/TPBs might be a purer form of the medium that might allow it to go back to basics.

Wait. What happened exactly? Are you saying you sent a book to a facilitator to get signed at a con and instead of providing the contracted service, the facilitator sold the book without your consent?

Go with 3204 Auctions: https://cgcsubscription.com/

If you're not receiving books in order it probably means some of those earlier issues couldn't be found on the day of release. Jerry will try his best to find suitable copies after the release date but it is not always possible. Other services will not put forth this kind of effort to keep your run intact.

Ultimately I decided it wasn't worth my time to haggle over a few bucks. Also I believe the public service of exposing the sellers lackluster packing to potential buyers is more important than squeezing out a few extra dollars.

Look up the book in Ebay's sold listings and you can see who the seller is.

I'm not sure what I'd be asking the seller for in this scenario. If it was damaged I would be returning it. I think Neutral feedback is fair because the packing was subpar and the slab was VERY dirty which isn't acceptible.

I'm alive. I do have a persistent cough though...

Score!

Now the question of feedback. I am going to hammer the star ratings, but I think this warrants a more overt warning to potential buyers. I think neutral might be the way to go. Seller did not take proper precautions to protect the slab for shipping and the slab itself is super dirty and gross.

OK. The book looks the same as it does in the listing so my concerns of SCS are subsiding.

This is what it looked like in the listing:

Yes????????

Pages are peeking out a little under the right side of the cover. Can't tell if that was like that before from the pics in the listing. Might be nothing or it could be something.

No, that is just dirt.

Staples look okay...

The slab is remarkably intact. Filthy, but not shattered. Let's take a closer look...

Hmm. The bubblewrap smells like anthrax. Is that bad?

At least the seller had the decency to add an additional layer of bubble wrap around the slab. What a pro!

The package weighed 1.1 lbs. Shipping it in a free Priority Mail box would not have added anything to the $9.90 the seller paid to ship it.

I just realized I paid a robust $13.75 for shipping on the eBay listing. You think that would have ensured boxed shipping. Think again!!

I just received this CGC 9.8 comic that was shipped to me in a padded envelope and nothing else. Until I open it, the quantum state of the slab is both damaged and undamaged. What will I find when I look inside? Stay tuned....