jools&jim

Was very pleased to get this copy in recently -- sold as a "Good", and the stamp (to me at least) was a BIG bonus: Could one of our fine friends from across the big pond please be so kind as to decode all of the numbers and markings on the price stamp for us pre-decimalisation dullards over here in the colonies? 'Twould be very much appreciated!

Does anyone still use "OOP" (out of print) on eBay to imply that, for example, a VG Conan #105 is somehow scarce or exotic?

Redondo's art is glorious, no doubt, and the whole series is also very well written by Robert Kanigher (loosely adapted from an obscure 19th century novel). A lost & somewhat forgotten '70s gem that yields much enjoyment for a certain kind of reader...

Works for me! Is there a story behind it...?

My LCS (a small, two-store chain) is closed to foot traffic and delivery, but is now offering mail order service: I'm a subscriber, so I e-mailed and placed an order for the current contents of my box, some extra books they had on the shelves (which I saw courtesy of a "shelf review" Facebook video they posted), and also $100 worth of random SA/BA comics or mags (any title/grade/issue number/price...their choice). I called the store to give them my credit card number: the owner was taking the calls himself, and he said that the phone had been ringing off the hook with similar orders for several days. I guess it's just heartening to know that fans are out there doing their part when and if they can...

Mostly sentimental. I bought my first copy for a dime at a small basement thrift store back in the mid 1970s (it's not the copy pictured above, but I do still have it). At the time, it was one of the oldest back issues in my collection! First "Swanderson" art on Supes, too, which makes it roughly similar to the 'Tec 395 in that it introduced a (slightly) new, sleeker look for a franchise-level character, and debuted an era-defining art team as well...

.... FD

PS: extra credit will be given for telling us why you simply can't resist these treasures...

...but ONLY if they're dirt cheap. Here are two of my many weaknesses...

I obeyed the CDC and stocked up on my medications...

Wow -- great find, and clearly not a common book! I've been a fan of the Spire line since it first came out: I have never seen this book before, and it is clearly intended to evoke Spire's trade dress and overall vibe. The title also reminds me of this: Thanks A LOT for sharing it...!

I know I'm running against the grain on this, but I am, in general, a fan of Robbins' work. Still, I gotta admit, in that pic at least he kinda looks like one of his drawings:

Yeah...it was a much more insensitive era. I mean... On the other hand, the older Italian-Americans I knew and grew up around when I was a little kid back in the late '60s skirted the issue by inverting the language: e.g., "Big Tony" was a skinny guy, and "Little Tony" wasn't...

I attended my first con in 1978 at the ripe old age of 13, and remember it very fondly. And I suppose to me it felt the same way that it did to my earlier counterparts in fandom who attended their first cons during the glory days of the '60s and early '70s. John Keats said it better than I ever could: Or, to paraphrase Mitch...there was a palpable sense that something special was happening or going to happen. My point is simply that such a feeling is not confined to any particular era nor con nor age nor setting nor place nor books. The wonder and endless possibility of first love is what it is, no matter when nor where it's kindled or found. Somewhere out there and right now, there is an oddball misfit kid (of any age or gender) who is (or will be, after this present difficulty) attending their first con, and who is looking for a certain book or class of books that many of us couldn't give a damn about. But when it is found, among an un-guessed and unexpected embarrassment of riches which a con presents...oh what a feeling! The good old days are now...for someone!

I think the first sig is J. P. Starlin...

Can anyone tell me if the "Essentials" line ever reprinted abridged stories? For example: do the Kirby/Lee Fantastic Four volumes use the original '60s comics as source material, as opposed to using the often edited/abridged versions reprinted during the '70s in Marvel's Greatest Comics, where full-page panels and/or spreads were sometimes removed? Thanks!

DARK KNIGHT III - THE MASTER RACE (courtesy of Wikipedia): In DK III, Ray Palmer restores 1,000 of the inhabitants of Kandor to full-size, but they immediately begin to terrorize the Earth. Batman sets out to assemble his former allies against the invaders.

Grabbed these two yesterday @ $3 each... ..

It's not just the cover that makes this book desirable/valuable -- it's the Beatles connection in the story, too. Bats 222 has been broken out in the Guide for years as a "Beatles take-off". Plus, it's a "crossover" item which appeals to Beatles/music collectors as well as comics people...

Great thread...!

Steed is seen reading Tintin albums in several early, black-and-white episodes of The Avengers, and in at least one color (colour?) episode from the Tara King era...

Wow! I've never seen these before. Very, very cool...