Beyonder123

And the Acne 12 ad set of issue 3

Ahhhh! Thank you! And with a little looking I found a photo.

The worst part about this is that these ones are actually noted in the indicia. At least with the Transformers ones there's no note inside of the printing. Is it too much to ask for a little consistency? But I digress.

This throws a bit of a wrench into my previous prediction. But still valuable information. Here is another multipack, all with Star Wars back cover ads. (Including the issue i originally posted about)

Looking through the census and Ebay it seems CGC is not very consistent with what they label as second and third prints. As pointed out, so far we have found 3 different direct edition versions of Transformers #2. One with the "Star Wars" ad set, one with the "Risk" ad set, and one with the "Acne 12" ad set. The census is consistent with this in that it notates 3 different printings, but I found both these listings on ebay. One notated as a second print and one as a third print. So unless the interior ads are different I think CGC isn't very consistent with this labeling approach. As it seems it will become necessary for research purposes I will notate the interior cover ads in this thread at a later point. Again if you can contribute any information to this thread, or even just check your personal collections to see what you have it would be much appreciated. Either way I'm going to keep researching.

While I think it's unlikely, the idea can't be completely discounted. Maybe someone here can enlighten us on how advertising in comics worked in the 80s. I also wanted to share this. You can make out what looks like the advertisement for "Risk" on the back covers of all these books. So perhaps the first three issues with the Risk ad sets were released in the three packs.

Here is all the info I have compiled so far. Items in bold are printings that CGC has not yet noticed. Underlined items are what I believe to be the first printings. Below is a list of every combination of issue number and ad set, followed by the month that the ad set corresponds with. All newsstand and Canadian editions seem to have the same ads, so we can assume that that particular ad set for each issue is the first printing. For example Transformers #1 has 3 different ad sets. One with an ad for Risk on the back cover, one with an ad for Acne 12 on the back cover, and one with an ad for Star Wars on the back cover. Since all Canadian and newsstand editions have the same ads including an ad for Star Wars on the back cover, we can assume that is the first printing. So the list is as follows. Transformers #1 - Star Wars (09/84) Transformers #1 - Risk Transformers #1 - Acne 12 (Third Print) Transformers #2 - Star Wars (11/84) Transformers #2 - Acne 12 Transformers #2 - Risk Transformers #3 - Star Wars (11/84) (?) Transformers #3 - Montezuma (01/85) Transformers #3 - Acne 12 (Third Print) Transformers #3 - Risk Transformers #4 - Risk (03/85) Transformers #5 - Acne 12 (06/85) Transformers #5 - Payday (08/85) Transformers #6 - Astronaut (07/85) Transformers #6 - Payday (08/85) I can't assume that just because some issues have the same back cover ad, they have the same interior ads, because the first prints for Transformers #1 and 2 have the same back covers but different interior ads. Therefore if you have any of the above mentioned issues that I have not yet added a date for, pleaaase let me know what the interior ad is, so I can confirm the ad sets and give a release date for those printings. Also if you have any more issues that are not labeled above please let me know. The census lists more printings that I have not yet seen so I know more are probably out there, and I will probably be updating the list.

If only we could see the back covers...

Explains why I'm not familiar with it. I'm more of a Marvel 80s guy myself. Definitely a possibility. Nevertheless wouldn't this make it the true (technical) first printing? Even if the print run was small? I'd like to compare this copies ads against the second issue. Perhaps also the first 3 issues were simultaneously released in a 3 pack at some point with all 3 containing the same ads? Good catch. The census omits this part in the key comments, and I easily missed it as the front cover doesn't give me a whole lot of info. Last night I found a couple more unmarked subsequent printings that CGC has not yet recognized in the census. I will post those later.

What do you mean by "wetworks"? perhaps you are referring to the ad on the back cover? I would have to disagree that they are both first prints however, (at least for issue 3) as the Marvel checklist on the inside is different in both copies, indicating they came out in separate months. What does the Marvel checklist say for the inside of your 2 copies? And what are the back ads?

I spent quite a lot of time last night researching this going through my personal collection and skimming ebay listings, and found several more reprints spanning multiple issues that are not yet recognized by CGC. I will compile that information here when I get home. However in short, no. The first 6 issues have no note of a reprint in the indicia, and issue 7 seems to be a transitional point, as there is a third printing that has a note in the indicia, but no second printing that I can yet find. Issues 8 and 9 both have second printings that are noted in the indicia. Edit: Interestingly this would also indicate that most subsequent printings were not noted in the indicia for this series, but only issues 7, 8 and 9.

And it gets weirder. The checklist inside this issue lists Transformers #2 as the current issue. This is the checklist inside what CGC denotes as the "First Print" with the Montezuma ad on the back cover.

So I've always noticed that the back covers to a few copies of my early Transformers comics were different from what was available in pictures online, and I knew there were different unmarked second and third printings, with only the ads being changed. So while re bagging my books I decided to take a look to see what printings my books aligned with. The CGC Census recognizes 3 printings as well as the Canadian version. Below are photos I found on ebay of the back covers of each of the 3 printings. First PrintSecond PrintThird Print So I cracked open my copy and... So apparently there's a 4th printing as well that CGC is yet to recognize. And now I assume they will have to reconsider which printings are which, as this ad has the same back ad as the previous 2 issues first printings (if they really are the 1st printings) which of these ads were used first?

Definitely makes me more comfortable with sending in books

I think that's an awesome piece of foreign comic history and a really cool novelty.

I had the pleasure to meet Tim many years ago at Wizard World comic con. I asked him if he could sign some books but he apologized and said he couldn't at the moment as he was doing some commissions, but if I came back at the end of the show, he would be more than happy to sign whatever I wanted. I did, and as promised he signed every book in a pretty decent sized stack, including a really beat up personal copy of Hulk Gray #4, which was the first comic I ever remember owning. He seemed like an awesome dude. It's unfortunate his passing.

I can see the rationale of having the book stabbed backwards. I just assumed it was the decision of CGC or Heritage. But you know what they say about assuming. Awesome book btw!

Batman #244 - $100 Classic Neal Adams art and cover. Case is in great shape.

DC Comics Presents #47 - $200 First He Man and Skeletor. CGC 8.5 with ow/w pages. Case has a scuff on the top right corner but came back from CGC that way.

Trying to raise some funds and thought I'd try using the boards here. I have a 30 day return policy no questions asked. Buyer pays return. These books will ship safely via USPS Priority Mail for 15 dollars each. I can give extra photos if wanted. Payment is only accepted via PayPal g&s.

What do you guys think this book will go for? Paquito #255 which reprints page 3 of Action Comics #1. It apparently is set to be in a Heritage auction. On another note, I dislike that the book was encapsulated backwards, but what are you gonna do

Some of those aren't even bagged or boarded 😪

Cop kinda looks like Dewey...

I'll have to read this thread all the way at some point. For now here's some of mine. The Hulk book could be an American stamp but I somehow doubt it.

For free to anyone with a paid membership, as I understand it.