Eric Perry

Here's the back cover of the book.  My phone's camera doesn't always take color-accurate photos.  The cover looks really dingy here; however, it's really not that bad.

After a little while tending to other things, I finally had the chance to get back into this collection.  My next book was Special Marvel Edition 5.

From brawling to battling, Sgt. Fury and the Howling Commandos took quite the path from cover to cover in this one.  There was even a scene which heavily implied they gunned down a Nazi spy who had joined their group.  To make things more palatable for the readers (I suppose) Marvel had the spy shoot and miss first.  I couldn't help but think of Han Solo and Greedo...when they did a retcon to the Cantina scene. 

Of course, a handful of GIs were able to take on a staggering number of enemies and make it through without losing a single member of their ranks.  Dodging bullets and shrapnel with aplomb, they made their mission seem almost easy...just another day at the office for the luckiest sons of b**ches in the E.T.O.

On 7/2/2022 at 10:31 PM, ADAMANTIUM said:

The add on of the art almost or to me, makes it look like the wheels are still level with the ground. Like evil kenivel stunt cycle. I'd have loved that toy during that era. Those strip wind up really kept the force well to have cycles upright for Ramps. Side bar, but what I thought of, and I have a fondness.

 

Perhaps not coincidentally, here is the back cover.

While I'm a fan of the cover art, my favorite part of this comic was Ms. Marvel hitting The Destructor with a motorcycle.  When I saw these two panels, I instantly thought of that scene from Scrooged when Bill Murray said, "...the b**ch hit me with a toaster..."

The next book was a copy of Ms. Marvel 2.  Admittedly, I was already a fan of this series and had four issues before picking up this collection.  I didn't have anything quite so early in the run, though.

One of the ads in Sub-Mariner 29 caught my eye.  I imagine many of us would love to go back in time and pick up Bronze Age comics off the spinner racks.  I wouldn't mind picking up sealed copies of The Rolling Stones and Led Zeppelin albums, either.  

The next book in the collection is Sub-Mariner # 29.  It appears to be the oldest comic in the lot.

The text seemed ever-so-slightly larger, which made reading it easier on the eyes.  Some of the dialogue had an Old English flavor, though, so it took a little more thought to read.  (Let's be honest, phrases such as "hie me to thy side" and "doth return apace" aren't commonly spoken these days.)

The story featured Hercules, The Huntsman, a trio of "monsters from some madman's nightmare" thrown in for good measure...and Zeus.  The actors in this play made the battle scenes truly memorable for everyone.  Everyone, that is, except Namor.

All in all, it was an entertaining read.  I believe it's the first Sub-Mariner comic I've ever read.  Up to this point, I had typically been into "street level" superheroes, especially Daredevil.  I feel my horizons expanding...

On 6/28/2022 at 12:05 PM, MattTheDuck said:

It's possible this was "just" players he'd personally coached - The Babe would have to be on any all-time Yankees squad.

I believe you're correct about Stengel.

You're absolutely correct about Ruth. 

On 6/27/2022 at 9:05 PM, Dr Zen said:

Out of curiosity, who was on his team? I'm trying to figure out who the 3 outfielders better than Mantle would be. I assume DiMaggio is one.

It was a quote from Ken Burns' Baseball, spoken by Robert Creamer.  The full team was not mentioned.

I agree regarding DiMaggio, by the way.

On 6/27/2022 at 9:41 PM, MattTheDuck said:

Is this the one you mean?  Mantle's on there.

 

Cool piece.  I had never seen that before.

My comment regarding Berra being on the team, and not Mantle, was a quote from Ken Burns Baseball.  It's quite possible the speaker (Robert Creamer, a writer from Sports Illustrated, I believe) was talking about Casey's starting 9.

On 6/27/2022 at 1:43 AM, divad said:

FTFY . . .  Yogi and Thurman.

LOL - it was my opinion; no fixing needed.

Munson was taken too soon.  There's no telling how his career would have ended up had cruel fate not stepped in.

As for Berra; he was top-notch, both as a man and as a player.  I think he was a bit underrated, if such a thing is possible.  Casey knew - he put Berra on his all-time team...and left Mantle off that list.

I've been a sports card collector for ages, so this back cover was great to see. Despite being a lifelong Phillies fan, I can appreciate the immensely talented Johnny Bench.  In my opinion, he was the greatest catcher ever to play in the National or American Leagues.

The second book was this Spider-Woman # 2.  Jessica Drew (Spider-Woman) makes her way through London and tangles with a villain named Excaliber.  At the end, she finds herself with an unexpected ally who plans to accompany Spider-Woman as she makes her way to America.  Unbeknownst to Jessica, a different man is about to take a leave of absence from SHIELD, book a flight to the US, and follow Spider-Woman.

On 6/25/2022 at 3:10 PM, LowGradeBronze said:

You have my attention. The thread about comics with holes punched in them has very quickly run to 3 pages and is chock full of great comments and observations, so don't undersell your new finds! Looking forward to your future reads. Don't suppose you want to add a spoiler, by naming some of the upcoming comics from your new collection? 

I'll do better than a spoiler.  I just finished reading the second book and will post a couple pics...

I realize this won't be the most interesting or impressive thread, in light of the amazing material posted on this site.  Still, a recent pickup arrived today and I felt like starting to write my thoughts.  It's a small collection of 38 comic books, primarily Bronze Age.  They're all raw and I plan to read them.  As I finish each book, I'll post a picture or two and any interesting info.  Since I'm doing this one book at a time, It'll take a little time.  I'm in no rush, though; I got these to enjoy at a liesurely pace.

Hopefully, a few of you will also enjoy this little journey.

If they want to slow the pace of submissions to a manageable level, they should implement an "Ultra-Modern" grading tier.  People buying new books and shipping them to CGC by the dozens/hundreds creates massive backlogs.

I've decided not to renew my membership.  I've turned off what I believe to be the correct feature.  Is there anything else I need to do?  I do not wish to be charged in February when my current subscription expires.

On 12/16/2021 at 2:28 PM, CGC Mike said:

You have been sent an e-mail.  Contact accounting to settle up on the balance, and your submission will be forwarded to shipping.  I was told it takes about 5 days after the accounting issue is settled.  

Mike

CGC had had my payment info on file all this time.  It was even on the invoice.  Interesting they never charged my card until I called.

In any event, it looks like this has been resolved.  Thanks again, for everything.

On 12/16/2021 at 1:57 PM, CGC Mike said:

I will contact customer service and have them contact you with an update on your submission.  If you don't hear anything by this time tomorrow, let me know.

Mike

Thanks, Mike.  I appreciate the prompt reply.

@CGC Mike

Any ideas on how long this will take?  The submission # is 3848339.

For tax purposes, I'm trying to avoid booking the expense in 2022...especially considering CGC received this order over 8 months ago. TAT published at that time led me to believe this would be wrapped up by August.

So, it's now mid-December.  The books still haven't been graded.

This has been a very disappointing experience.  It has 8+ months since CGC received my order...

I personally feel the FMV of the book at the time CGC receives it should be the basis upon which its value should be determined.

With the market fluctuation, it is quite possible a great many people will "get punished" for slow TAT.  I sent books about 8 months ago, under the Value tier, that fit criteria set forth by CGC at the time.  During that time, some of those issues have risen in value.  Hopefully, they haven't gone up so much that I'll be upcharged.

On 10/14/2021 at 8:52 AM, Funnybooks said:

worth about $11.50 in today's market

Cool...it went up 50 cents.