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Randall Ries
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Posts posted by Randall Ries
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On 2/19/2022 at 11:54 PM, William-James88 said:
I don't think anyone here is a CGC stan, it's just about the money. If the competition provides a better service and their slabs sell for the same premium, then I think almost everyone would jump ship.
Also, regarding compensation, don't know about others but something went sour recently with my submission and I found the compensation to be adequate and not a lowball offer.
Not in a hurry to send more books for slabbing though.
Yes. But brand loyalty is a real thing, you know? When we read comments defending book damage or long wait times. All I can say is it's a good thing CGC isn't a medical group.
I do believe the competitions slabs don't sell for the same premium is because of the propaganda coming from CGC adherents. People in the know buy the book and not the grade. Lord knows I have. I have some beautifully undergraded 7.0-7.5's.
It is what it is, though. CGC is not alone in poor customer service. Some folks say Comcast is right up there. I have had nothing but good experiences with Comcast. So I joined the "Comcast Sucks Choir" that meets every Saturday night for rehearsals. I pay for Comcast Business Internet "Suite". So I was given a spot. Like it's a luxurious room on an ocean liner. They leave me alone. I pay my bill. I need help? They always are there. Like a good neighbor. Others will look at me like I'm huffing Liquid Plumber through a plague mask when I say they treat me well. But music is my life and singing is like flying to me.
I wonder if that's the way CGC has become? If I send in 2,000 books per month I am somewhat favored and if I send in my measly 3 Adams books to be graded they get kicked across the dusty warehouse floor and lost under a coffee table? Hasn't Metropolis gotten like that? When companies get big from small and begin to drink the blood of kittens their attitudes sometimes change.
I'd love to set up a camera at CGC. LOVE. IT.
Here is some rare footage of me at Comcast Sucks Choir doing what I love doing.
- William-James88 and JJ-4
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Why burn the sketch? It's worth more alive than dead. Burn it and it'll be just an unsubstantiated story. Keep it alive and Sudayam can be vilified with proof until the day he cashes in. The only way a burn could be valuable is if you locate him in a parking lot, get his attention and say "Remember this?" And light it under his nose. Video THAT and the master copy of the video will be worth a fortune.
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Oh easy. These are the best raw pressers in the world:
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What they do with concerts now is schedule the event and they have up until 3 days before to cancel the show because of COVID. And even after that, they cancel the day before or even OF and they collect the insurance payout. They can't lose. Good old COVID rules. I wonder if Comic-Cons have the same opportunities.
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Eefee. 3.5. There are books I wouldn't send in to have graded and slabbed, you know? Past the point of no return.
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Very disappointing to read all the apologist and excuses comments.
This has nothing to do with what another grading company does or doesn't do. If they step up to fill a vacuum. From their forums I read, they have the exact same issues. This doesn't have anything to do with Flintstone. I mean Blackstone. This has everything to do with YOU. The customer. The submitter. The co-dependent.
You are the problem. You tolerate bad service. You accept excuses as to what TAT is so high. You accept your books returning to you damaged. You accept excuses when they say "We can't find your order." You accept low-ball settlements when you book was damaged in the slabbing process. Or worse, you let it slide and don't demand reparation. You take it in the pants when services are foreshortened and prices raised.
Other grading companies are created and you immediately fluff them off or disparage them. They could be a fledgling 3 days old with only a few books completely graded and slabbed and you have already made your minds up they are sub-par and will NEVER succeed. Because CGC - the company you worship and the company who treats you poorly - is the bestest in the whole wide world.
You make excuses and tell them "Aw. It's ok. KEEP my books for a year! We KNOW you are making record profits and you HAVE to because of that meanie Blackstone demands it! We feel SO BAD for you and so we will do our part and stand by you! We intellectually KNOW they could hire and train more staff and afford better buildings and hire professional logistics people who could streamline the out of operations and make the company equal its fake reputation but we can't fit that into our heads because they tell us something different!"
"We KNOW you were like this BEFORE you were bought out by a raider. We KNOW you were like this BEFORE the pandemic but we need to keep fooling ourselves into believing you are top shelf and the pinnacle of quality service and industry leaders even though we secretly know in our hearts you peaked a LONG time ago, got cocky, got greedy and let your standards plummet while telling us you were still the best!"
You know what all that describes? It describes an abused spouse who no longer realizes how badly they are being treated and thinks it's their fault somehow and accepts every -a-mamie excuse the abuser has the nerve to hand them.
As someone who is outside of this frankly dysfunctional relationship looking in, it's easy to spot. It's easy to see that many of you have let your sense of commerce and greed get the better of you and if you actually LEAVE this abusive partner, you think you will suffer. Like the abuse is worth waiting a year to get your property back.
If you go to bed thinking "Gosh-a-rootie but it's been almost a year since I sent three lousy books in and gee whiz I HOPE I get them back SOON and hopefully they aren't DAMAGED or they don't get LOST" then you have a serious problem.
It's called "denial" and "delusional".
Try to remember: You built the company with your loyalty and money. Back when they were teeny, they would tell you how much they appreciated you and couldn't have done it without you. You are like the girlfriend who sacrificed a good deal of time and money to support your boyfriend as he attended law school. And now that he's a lawyer making good pay and even made partner, is thinking about leaving you or treating you with utter disregard and contempt.
It's YOU. Not them. You could stop this, but you likely won't. You aren't strong enough and still believe your faith will be rewarded somehow. You just don't KNOW any better. -
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I guess this is considered Bronze Age. i like the DC facsimile editions. I have seen a lot of signed stuff by Louise Simonson but not the HOS #92 facsimile. So, I am assuming this is the only one she signed. Plus, it's a 9.8 so I am going to try to sell it for $40 or $50 gazillion.
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On 2/17/2022 at 6:44 PM, Mystafo said:
I don't feel you can truly know a book you're keeping...it's strengths and weaknesses...without getting it out of that slab.
I don't know what that means.
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I never understood the need to send in fairly common books that are rats to have them come back as a .5.
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On 2/17/2022 at 1:33 PM, mysterymachine said:
I just noticed a big tear seal on the inside top of the book. I guess 6.5 is out of the question. What grade do think it will get?
It'll get a 3.0 purple label.
- grendelbo and mysterymachine
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On 2/17/2022 at 4:47 PM, Larryw7 said:
They're books, and were created to be read and enjoyed. I have very few books in slabs, except for a few that I'm ambivalent about.
Haha. The Bizarro World comic collector.
"Me crack out valuable, rare book. Touch with chicken wing fingers. Me keep books slabbed me no care about." -
On 2/16/2022 at 4:33 PM, Robot Man said:
I did one today. I had to. It was a prisioner of a slab from a company in the upper Northwest.
I rarely buy or keep slabbed books. I have cracked out quite a few. Occasionally, I keep books slabbed if they are super expensive or I buy them for the cover only.
I currently have maybe 25. I don’t really enjoy them much. Such a one dimensial experience. Look at the cover and put it aside.
They are much prettier in a shiny Mylar and I can pull them out and enjoy them whenever I want.
You could enjoy the reprints too, right?
Maybe my million dollar idea should be to manufacture a cologne that smells like old newsprint. Call it "Female Repellent". LOL!- Robot Man, lizards2, silverseeker and 1 other
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On 2/17/2022 at 4:04 PM, DocHoppus182 said:
Personally, I don’t crack books. Yes, I would love to read/handle my copy of AF 15. But, I have read reprints. I have read a ton of other “big books” in all their raw glory, Hulk 1, Showcase 4 etc.
I don’t see the point that if it’s already CGC graded, why I’d crack it. I wouldn’t want to spend the extra coin to get something re-graded, like my AF 15.
Yep. This. Plus, we tend to spend more for slabbed books than its raw counterpart.
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Virtually all the books that are classic, vintage, noteworthy have been reprinted in some form or another. So, I buy the original, keep it slabbed and read the reprints. If I buy graded and slabbed, it's because I wanted the book that way. Retired and protected. There are plenty of books like that which are raw and easy to find in decent shape. It doesn't make sense (to me at least) to buy an already slabbed book just to "liberate" it and then "flip" through it or read it. I wouldn't bust out an SS book for certain.
- Lord Gemini, badback83, musicmeta and 1 other
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On 2/2/2022 at 11:06 PM, William-James88 said:
Grade is In
It's a nice book! They didn't ding the back cover or the upper left spine, I see. I never know how anything will be graded anymore.
This is a sleeper book, I think. Once/if DC ever gets their act together, this one will see some heat, I think. -
On 2/2/2022 at 2:16 PM, Coverless 9.8 said:
To be clear, I'm not talking about present day Alan Moore! I'm talking about 1987/1988 Alan Moore!
Agreed. As I have been complaining about reading that God-awful Batman (1989) movie -script, that was after reading The Saga Of The Swamp Thing "American Gothic" and Frank Millers "DKR". Moore sure can write. When he re-explained Swamp Things origin, I actually geeked out when it dawned on me what he was doing. What a neat little bow he tied. Perfection.
Then, a year later, someone pointed out the obvious to me
"I'm Batman!" Really? You ARE? I never would have GUESSED. -
On 2/1/2022 at 9:35 PM, Bird said:
It seems like he was a real fan of the SA and they indeed squandered their opportunity to have him really propel them forward in so many ways. He knew the history and the stories. But why would they assume they couldn't screw him like they did those before him? He just didn't roll over when given the stick. DC may be wonderful with royalties for creators once their work (in any way shape or form apparently) hits the big screen or tv (didn't someone say they got more from a Batmobile design than major Marvel work that went to screen?) but it is my understanding they still play some games when they want to or if they feel a creator needs to be taught a lesson. Try buying a Starman omnibus or trade, you would think that they would stay in print huh?
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I belong to some music trackers. Upload music. Download music. Some trackers get way too big for their own good. They get full of themselves and start dictating terms. Moderators can be insufferable. They start dumping heavy contributors.
Now, I'm not here to argue the polemics of music trading. What I AM saying is pretty simple: Trackers need contributors more than the contributors need them. Same in the case of Alan Moore, I'd imagine. Let's see: Let's alienate Moore and then keep some mediocre or borderline poor writers around. I doubt Alan Moore loses too much sleep over it. He's probably filled with contempt with some of the "office" people he had to deal with. I wouldn't be surprised if some of them felt intellectually threatened because of his presence.
Alan Moore doesn't need to slum. He's Alan Moore. -
On 2/2/2022 at 8:39 PM, VintageComics said:
Also, you are correct. The movie moved the needle in Batman comics like no other move until the last 10-15 years have done.
Detective 27 overtook all other books as the most valuable book in the OSPG that year because of it and I think everything Batman doubled or tripled.
All that proves is movies and the flush of big money push comics around. Marvel is the king of that. They have gotten so good at it they move B rated characters like Shang-Chi and the Falcon to front and center.
They get novices interested in the medium. Sales go up. They stay steady for a bit. They settle back down. I was never upset about that. I was offended with the junk writing for the Bat movies. My prejudice began with that awful -script without any visuals like a movie to distract me. The pirated copy of the -script was read by 12 of us at different times. The best anyone could muster was "Eh. It was 'ok'." And that was the consensus. Mediocre. A few of us - like myself - were actually offended.
We were readers. And yeah. We only had the Superman movies and a couple of joke Captain America movies. I really wanted the Batman movies to improve. They never did. IMO, of course. They moved laterally but they never improved. Heath Ledger was the best thing that happened to the movie franchise.
But as I mentioned, we were readers. And no one can beat the imagination. The Batman in much of the books probably can't be realized on screen. There are too many other considerations that need to be taken into account when doing movies and they will always pander. The suits want to see a certain product and that's what they will get. The suits don't know. I doubt Michael Keaton knew. Burton probably didn't get it either. In spite of whatever hype press releases may have taken place ("Oh YES. I grew UP on Batman! I know him forward and backward!") Suuure you do. TV show most likely.
I was just saying not everyone was so welcoming. Not the people buying the comics regularly. They did not universally accept that movie. It wasn't even a polarizing thing. Most people I knew that were comic book geeks weren't having it. Kids at the time? Yes. What did they know? They were 6 and 7 year olds. Of course they loved it. Parent were showing them reruns of the 1966 tv show and that's what they expected the movie would be like. It kinda was.
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PGM All Star Comics 58
in Hey buddy, can you spare a grade?
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The rack seen around the world. Isn't she the Earth II equivalent of Supergirl of Earth I? I don't recall Supergirl being stacked like that.
6.0 for the book itself.