joe_collector

I don't mean to rain on your parade, but you do realize that out of the four 35 cent ASM variants, two have a single copy at 9.0 with none above and one has the highest at 8.5? You should either be prepared to wait 5-10 years for the right copy and spend thousands on each, or learn to live with F/VFs.

Well stated, but there are actually five 35-centers, with the 173 in CGC 8.5 highest grade as well.

I also believe that most (all?) of these "highest graded" copies came from that Original Owner set 4gemworks paid through the nose for, so if you take those out of the equation...

P.S. Does anyone have a link to the post of the CGC grades he got back?

Is Showcase really that disorganized that they miss these over and over again?

I think it's just plain volume - I can't imagine all the crepe flowing through their greedy little hands.

Darth Diesel once said he had some spare CGC 9.2's. Can't remember if they were the 30 or 35 cent copies.

I think you can be sure they're 30-cent copies, and if true NM/CGC NM copies of some of the ASM 35-centers come up for sale, I'd call VISA and extend your credit limit.

I've talked to Cosmic Spider-Man and he thinks they are all about the same.

Well, maybe he's open to trading me some ASM 169's for some 171's, then.

You have dupes and are not selling/trading/giving them to me?

I have a few 170's, and I may just be selling a few 35-centers on the forums/EBay real soon.

Have any VF/NM ones you would be willing to sell?

I don't think any of my dupes would qualify at this level. 35-centers are tough, let alone high-grade.

I have all the ASM 35-centers in duplicate+, but not #169. I have even bought several 35-cent ASM lots, and runs of ASM comics with 35-centers in them, but still nada.

I know they exist, but it seems that the distribution may have been slightly different for that first month..

I found these listings earlier this week, and these illustrate exactly what I have found over the years, ASM 170-173 35-cent, 169 30-cent. If that 169 was a variant, I would have been so in there.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=180006173153

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=180006173571

For those that have got ASM 169 variants, I'd appreciate some info on where these are popping up.

I have just listed a ton of EBay auctions. Check them out!!!

Rule 2567:

Always post a LINK to your auctions in the message text, and do not just assume that everyone has signatures enabled and can read yours.

It's amazing how many people forget this simple rule.

Directly below, I will post what an "Example Auction Post" (which assumes everyone can see your sig) looks like to people with sigs disabled.

What should I use? I have bagged and boarded several hundred books and have held off on taping until I get the right stuff. Thanks

Personally, I use the green Scotch "invisible tape" that is commonly bought for wrapping Christmas presents.

Speficially they were talking about a 30-cent variant Hulk 202. Thus the sidebar on worth.

I thought Beyonder already had a nice 30-cent variant (he posted a scan awhile back), and was looking for a regular NM copy?

Plus I don't want to ask $200 for a $20 book, nor do I want to sell a $200 book for $20. Add to that, the minute anything sells, I have instant sellers remorse.....

Uh, we're talking about Hulk 202 here, right?

What the heck are these and how do they come up for sale? I mean, does Stan "the man" sell his books? Is he that desparate for money??

Nah, but even "Stan the Man" knows when the time is ripe to fleece the speculators.

Is the Overstreet an average price, median price, or just a price they thought the book might bring?

Truthfully, in most cases, it's the price the dealer pays 30% of to buy when a sucker walks in the door.

How come the easy to find Defenders go up $33 to $40 and Weird Wonder Tales stay at $21???

Because a few dealers actually sold some Defenders variants, and (gasp) reported them?

A while back BronzeBruce13 and I formally buried the hatchet, and as a gesture of good will, our resident Bronze Age CGC magnate offered to help me check off some of my BA "want list" at "bargain prices". Since the initial feud was pretty nonsensical to say the least (we collect many of the same books and share many "fave runs"), and I was a little more than curious at what kind of raw books Brucie had on tap, I agreed.

So I sent him over a list, and he stated that many of the Hero For Hire comics I needed were in the BronzeBruce13 Raw Vault, and in pretty snazzy condition. So I sent him over my address, ramped up my security forces, hired some illegal immigrants to open my mail, and waited. When the box arrived, I was very pleased at the contents, since not only did it contain the HFH comics we agreed on, but a few "surprises" as well.

But the biggest surprise was to come later, when I asked Bruce for an invoice total on the comics. His answer? "Fuggetaboutit!". Well actually, he kinda "made me an offer I couldn't refuse" and although I normally don't take anything gratis and inquired about a total again, Bruce's good-natured PMs, his winning personality, and the bloody Spider-man mask in my bed eventually won me over.

Suffice it to say I was blown away by the generosity, and for possibly the first time in years, I took the gesture in the manner it was intended. I also "filtered down" some of the upgraded books to other collectors, but that was nothing compared to this.

So without further ado, here are a few of the Hero for Hire books that the Godfather of Bronze Age Soul sent my way:

Along with a few "surprises" like this:

P.S. That's not ALL of them either.

Kudos to another nice set of BA books from our resident Guardian Angel of BINs, nikos61. Keep 'em coming buddy!

And kudos to r1970d. This is our first transaction, but well-packed and nicely graded books will have me coming back.

I whipped my @ss with a comic...true story...

So, did the whipping feel good?

SNAP!

"Again, this time with a GIANT-SIZE!"

He fought pretty well to me.

In X2?

In the first movie, he was pretty good, and they even had him fighting a bit without claws. But in the sequel, he fights Mystique and Deathstrike, and it's like a he's a person_having_a_hard_time_understanding_my_point, swinging away with his claws, and hitting just air. Over and over the poor guy swings his claws and misses, never thinking to change his attack, and never using his fists or hands in any way. It's just claws, claws and more claws.

Mystique and Lady Deathstrike pummel him mercilessly, right until the end, where Wolverine's adamantium skeleton turns him into The Terminator and he finally prevails. Lame!

He showed virtually no fighting skill in those bouts (a normal, non-Terminator would have been killed long ago), and basically the character degenerated into an adamantium-laced insufficiently_thoughtful_person swinging his claws around.

But since you brought it up...Wolverine is also just a 4 out of 7 on the strength scale. However Wovlie is one of only two to peak out at 7 on fighting ability whereas Sabretooth only ranks a 5.

Point 1: Don't tell me they've given Wolvie super-strength, as he used to be a 1 out of 7, basically a strong normal human.

Point 2: I agree with this last point on fighting, but did it bother anyone else that the "movie Wolverine" in X2 basically devolved into a claw-swinging-person_having_a_hard_time_understanding_my_point with no real fighting ability whatsoever?

Bah, enough whining about drbanner and his coal-powered Snipe software .. time to find more deals on EBay.

and where there is a hidden 35 cent variant, so is Cosmic.....

I probably find as many as he does, but I don't bid unless it's on my "list". Otherwise I pass it on to someone I know collects them... like banner and his Hulks.

So out of the goodness of my heart, I give banner this one:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=6602654690

** Edited to add-- I just took a look at the next issue blurb at the end of GL/GA #84: the next issue was projected to go on sale June 24, so the NYT piece is at least one example of mainstream hype, a couple of months prior to the DC drug books.

That's a good call, as I have see many articles on the "real life take" on drugs with GL/GA in various reprints, but I guess at least one article covered the initial start. I think I've been painted as an "anti-GL/GA 76" guy, when in reality I love the comic and it's one of the few DCs I own and plan to keep.

My only point was that the drug issue in 85-86 were the crowning achievement of the run, and helped cement it, due to mainstream media coverage, as a classic. If you reread my comments, in no way am I saying that GL/GA 76 would not be remembered had the drug issues never been published, only that their effect and influence would be muted.

I still stand by that, just the same was I feel that the BA ASM run would not be looked at the same way without ASM 121-122.

So what's the first Bronze Spidey???

ASM 101 (or the last page of ASM 100) with the 6-armed, Morbius vampire-killing machine, freakshow story.

The BA for Marvel had nothing to do with drugs or social issues, and everything to do with death, anti-heroes, and inserting horror elements into the superhero world.

For example, go back through the previous 100 ASM issues and find me a villain who hunts and kills people indiscriminantly, and does so in such a gory method as the black-hearted Morbius.