Get Marwood & I

Laurel & Hardy don't seem too annoyed there Sharon! Joking aside, it's a shame to see that this stuff is still going on - Newton Rings etc. The CGC process and case are great when everything works. But when you're one of those receiving books where it hasn't worked, I should imagine it's a difficult thing to deal with. Comics being what they are, delicate, rare, precious, the last thing any grading company should be doing is presenting them badly and, in some cases, damaging them.

...you can't call this a "UK Edition"... ...if you're also going to call this a "UK Edition": I'll shut up now. Next stop, email to CGC

Here's a further example on the CGC labelling point. This copy of the UK produced Spider-Man Digest, with repackaged US content, is labelled as "UK Edition", but also this time with the arguably unnecessary additional wording of "Distributed in the United Kingdom". It is labelled as a "UK Edition" even though there is no US Edition: So this repackaged book carries the same "UK Edition" identifier as a genuine pence priced variant which cannot be right. This nest copy of the similarly produced "Hulk Pocket Book" has no such "UK Edition" identifier, which is correct. The "Reprints..." wording is also correct. The book is what it is - it is not a "UK Edition" as that suggests a non-UK edition exists. But it is a reprint. So on this example, CGC get it right.

I remember my brother had all his Marvels in a wooden chest of drawers back in the late seventies. He had most of the Hulk, Defenders #10, Silver Surfers, all the keys (remember when "Defenders Ten" was a thing?). One day my Dad told him to 'grow up' and stop wasting his money on them. They'd never be worth anything. He ended up selling them back to our LCS for a pittance. Fast forward 40 years or so and I tell my Dad what my AF15 is now worth. "Who'd have thought it", he said

The copy on MCS's site is a consignment copy, and they are often priced significantly higher with the price set by the seller (I think MCS were going to look at the vast price discrepancies the consignment process often throws up). Here it is on eBay, alongside a more affordable copy which shows it can be picked up for less:

Heh heh, I was typing my post above and kept getting notifications from you Robert. Nearly lost the lot! Get your jokes in now We'll see. As I said earlier, I think CGC do want to get it right. I wouldn't have emails from Matt Nelson if he wasn't interested, as I'm sure he has enough to be getting on with. CGC's focus has always been on the US books. There aren't enough people contacting them about pence books, so it's understandable that the position is as it is. But that's they joy of their website, and the global nature of the hobby. We can all play a part building up the knowledge.

Morning bc I was trying to get some more participation last night if I'm honest. I accept that people will have different views on this and that's fine. It's difficult to get across a full, definitive description of something with a few words. But the industry needs a few words, as no one wants massive long detailed explanations on their labels. So my choice, as I've stated a few times in this thread and elsewhere, is as follows. We need to confirm that the books are first printings, that is, that they were produced alongside the cents copies, not later / elsewhere. So the word 'variant' is needed, as that word is generally accepted to mean just that in relation to comics (that is, a variant can only be a variant if it was produced concurrently with the 'original'. Anything else is a reprint or a repacked item) Then we need to identify the nature of the variance. In this case, predominantly, it's the price (although there are various other differences throughout the 1960-1982 period, all of which I cover in detail in my threads here). Then we need to identify to which country the price belongs. That will either be the UK, Australia or Canada. There are no other countries that I am aware of that have variants produced specifically for them which were produced at the same time as the cents priced originals. Italian, French, Spanish priced books etc - they are all repackaged books, printed elsewhere at a later date. In my view, the best way to incorporate those three aspects with the minimum of words is: UK Priced Variant Canadian Priced Variant Australian Priced Variant As Redshade said, it would be great to firm up peoples understanding of pence copies. In an ideal world, and in respect of graded books, CGC would have a page on their site with a glossary explaining these things. It's going to be one of my suggestions to them. Collectors will see the revised label wording, and be able to cross reference it to a page on the main CGC website for further clarification. CGC should do this, as the UK, Canadian and Australian priced variants are products of the US. They are legitimate copies and should have equal status to their cents priced cousins. Having said all that, the one thing I would like to achieve, if nothing else, is for CGC to stop labelling UK priced reprints / repackaged books as "UK Editions" alongside the genuine pence priced variants. They have to be labelled differently, or the confusion will not only continue but it will erode the integrity of the census data and normalise a clear misconception. More and more people seem to look to CGC to lead the way now than, say, Overstreet. They have a duty to present accurate assessments and data. So I will be running this all by CGC soon. It's of course up to them what they call the books, having considered others input. There are a few permutations of wording that I would be satisfied with. But "UK Edition" isn't one of them, if they are going to lump any book with a pence price under this category.

That's ok bc. It's dead in here at the best of times so I'm glad of the interaction! And I'll soon have us back on track with exciting indicia stuff

Thanks bc. Didn't anyone ask CGC direct? And do they really do all that work to determine a barcode number? They can't label books right in the first instance half the time

I'm back. Hastings might be a bent copper. Hope not. Anyway, the above coding is news to me bc. Is that common knowledge? "Italian Edition" further supports my anti-"Edition" stance. No such thing as a first printing Italian price variant. Is there?

...so they vary then.... Anyway, gotta go now - Line of Duty's on. See you all tomorra

Stop mucking about bc. What would you call them? On CGC labels I mean.

How do you rate our chances of this being adopted on a sliding scale of one to ten - ten being 100% successful adoption, one being "shove off"?

Maybe have the Type 1A definition on the reverse of the label.

Right in the neck. "Take that, masked man with bad teeth". Hope he doesn't drop the baby. I say baby, she's pretty big. And has a steely grip on Mr Bunny there. Kept hold of him all the way down the ladder. He's got a nice suit hasn't he, The Fighting Yank. Mr Bunny doesn't look too shabby either.

So, how do we overcome the fact that probably 90% of collectors don't know what "Type1A" means? And that it means nothing in isolation? Would that not increase the confusion a hundred fold?

What would?

I don't mind you saying at all. Now, explain - or die!

It's Jon's article / market report, with pence input from me - should be in the next issue, due out in July I think. My own current preference for CGC labels would be: First Printing UK Priced Variant First Printing Canadian Priced Variant First Printing Australian Priced Variant

The revised Type 1A wording shows on Ben's site and is: Type 1A: U.S. Published Foreign Distribution Variants Cover Price Variants intended for foreign distribution with limited regional distribution, published simultaneously with standard or “regular” editions. In the majority of cases, the indicia and all aspects of the book are identical to regular U.S. editions except for the cover price. In some instances other alterations may be present. These may include missing or different cover dates, regional indicia details and variant company logos. Other minor alterations may also be present.

Ben Noble and I collaborated with Jon late last year on an update to his Overstreet article and we agreed upon revised titles, noting that 'Type 1a' didn't jump off the page as a recognisable descriptor. You should see reference to it in his next Overstreet report and it should also include a summary from me on the pence numbers for the seven known publishers

A man after my own heart. The original title to this thread was actually "Marvel First Printing Pence Priced Variants". I got admin to change it as it just seemed to go on too long. The title, not the thread that is

Aint she pretty Good suggestion Mec. I may have to run a poll. (Sharp intake of breath) any other suggestions as to what they should be labelled as?

But what was the first preview appearance?

Hi Rick, You'll find others have researched this too. Here's a recent one: