Vision75

<3 Nice book Second best Schomburg airbrush cover behind Startling 49?

.... for me, they all have that little extra appeal due to their uniqueness, but each title has it's standouts. I've always been drawn to books that have both nice covers and appealing interior craftsmanship as well. As a lover of Si-Fi , I can understand where the Wonder and Startling titles get the boost, but the jungle books have some real sharp material also. The Thrillings have a handful of issues that have some really well done Frazetta work inside and can be some of the few bargains a Frazetta lover can still find. GOD BLESS... -jimbo(a friend of jesus) Jimbo, good point about the interiors. And, I should have clarified. I still enjoy most Thrilling covers - and own them all. Just relative to Exciting, Wonder, and Startling they are not as consistently strong. That's a better way of wording it.

Have always thought that the Excitings don't get as much attention as they deserve. Book for book I think they stack up well against the Wonders and Startlings. #57 (bow and arrow), 60 (shark), 61 (panther), 62 (just great colors), and 66 (red eagle) are among my favs!! And that's no disrespect to the Wonders and Startlings. Just saying Exciting doesn't get enough love. Thrilllings - with a couple notable exceptions - have weaker XELA art.

I've always loved the colors from this underwater Xela cover! Next to the Startling 49, what would board members say are the next highest demand Xela airbrushed covers? Startling 47, 48, and Wonder 15 are likely the hottest. Prices of Startling 47 & 48 have recently been close to those of Wonder 15 grade for grade, which is crazy to me.

77K That's really low. What did most people think the grade actually was? 7.5? Yep, I have been scratching my head on this one too. Why didn't this book go for 100k+? 9.0s have exceeded 200k recently. So, one would think an 8.5 would be in the 115-140k range. Maybe the red label confused some folks? As gadzukes mentioned, perhaps soft grading. The top front cover has some issues, but nothing extreme. To my eye, it is at least an 8.0.

Not a book that gets a lot of play here on the boards. But, every time I see it, I like it more!

My unpopular opinion. Not a huge fan of Phantom 17. I guess it's more "titillating" than other Matt Baker covers. Nevertheless, I'll take Seven Seas 4 any day over P17. Thanks Point Five for starting this post. And, I get it - the reason it's an "unpopular opinion thread" is by definition each of us has unpopular opinions relative to our fellow boardees. If most people agree with my unpopular opinion, then it is not unpopular. Nice to share.

Yeah, congrats on the great find Ankur J. Wow

the 10 and 13 have great cover content, but Supe is drawn too small on those covers. If only he was larger like on the 7. The train on the 13 is great though. Unlike the early Actions, the Batman has a much larger drawn presence on the Pre Robins. The 10 and 13 is an early concept of a Superheroe flexing his superpowers. I haven't seen a 10 unrestored in the public market for a while and didn't a 13 poor recently sold on Heritage for almost 15K? plus the 13 supe image is just a mirror image flip of the 10 pose. The 10 is much tougher overall than any of the early action supe covers. Yes, a no back cover 13 went for $14k+ recently on a Sunday HA. I tend to agree with Ben on most of this. I like covers in which the character "pops" out. On the AC10 and 13, Sups is drawn rather small. With that being said, I prefer the 15 cover to either 10 or 13. Of course #7 beats all three and #1 is in a class by itself. The problem with looking at a #1 is determining whether you like the cover for the art (scene) or simply because it is an AC1. Being as it is impossible to look at an AC1 and not see it as just that; an Action Comic #1 (first appearance of Superman, most valuable book, etc, etc), I think we need to refrain from lumping it in with the other covers when it comes to ranking. As for me, my favorite Action cover of all times is #2. No superman, but the characters are big and pop out at you. As I look at the cover, it seems to tell a story of its own. I am sure I am in a BIG minority on this opinion, however, that is just one of the things that make comic collecting great; everyone's taste can differ and yet we can appreciate what others admire (without always agreeing with the other person's exact taste). a BIG minority indeed. The cover to #2 has never attracted my eye in any way, shape, or form. But that's why they make Fords and Chevys, or BMWs and Porsches, if you prefer. I think I'm in that minority. The pre-hero DC covers have really been growing on me. So much so that I think I'm in the camp that prefers some of the early non-Superman Action covers to the Superman covers. I like the covers of issues 2 through 6 and 8 better than 1, 7, 10 and 13. That's looking at them strictly as covers, divorced from the cosmic significance of Superman in the history of comics. Action 2 was voted into the Heritage-CGC top 40 golden age covers list; it is certainly a highly respected cover.

More Fun 54 Seven Seas 4 Superman 14 Amazing Fantasy 15 (used to own 2) USA 7

Daring 2 is SO tough in grade. Congrats for acquiring a beautiful copy.

Marvel 1! And, I own a Cap 1 but have to go with M1 b/c of the historical significance.

Great book!

Hard to find a HT2(1) with more eye appeal than the san fran copy

That few might annoy some, but I think there's some truth to it, at least when it comes to Schomburg's later work. I'd rank his early pulp-like covers very high, but many of his later Timely covers start to look alike. MM#46 is a notable exception. His Better/Nedor covers did not receive the same level of attention to detail; most of those are mediocre compared to his Timely work. I think I'd classify those as "pot-boilers." Some of Alex's mid-40's work was redundant, no doubt. That said, his late 40s work was fresh and imaginative. His airbrushed covers - particularly Startling 49,50, Exciting 60, 61, and 66 - amaze.

One of the coolest threads I've read in a while! Congrats to Cat and Ryan.

Great post! Although his style changed dramatically over 10 years - pulpy to slightly cartoony action/bondage to airbrushed good girls - he always left a strong impression. The fact that Schomburg produced so prolifically and that he was successful at so many styles leaves me no choice but to conclude...Schomburg is King of the GA Cover!

1.5 for me. I'm a cover guy.

CAT - you killed it. I have a Schomburg question for you and the other boardies. When did the first Schomburg comicbook cover come out? MM3 and Daring Mystery 1 are both dated January 1940. Were those the first two? I remember reading about this topic a few years ago on the boards but the answer escapes me, and I couldn't find it via google. Thanks!!

Have been quiet on the Boards for a while, but wanted to share my appreciation for this thread...for whatever reason...

Don't see many of those period, let alone in high grade

At first I just saw the severed head, but it looks like the entire body was halved! yikes.

Thanks guys. I'm real proud of the pieces. Also I might note, Ryan was very easy to work with and his ideas made the pieces better. For example, he suggested a few more rockets in the skyline for the Daring 1.

Here are my two

Nice books by the way CIORAC!