Hepcat Posted January 29, 2008 Author Share Posted January 29, 2008 Good luck. Hopefully you're not holding out for NM copies.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shadow Posted January 30, 2008 Share Posted January 30, 2008 When I was younger (in the late 70's/early 80's) Worlds Finest was probably my 3rd favorite collecting series behind JLA and X-Men/Conan. As a kid, I appreciated them more. But when I started buying again in 1994, WF didn't hold the same appeal. I still have a decent amount but it's never been high on my want list. But, I have found it creeping up in the last 2 years. I bought quite a few books back on my first magical trip to a LCS in 1979. And one that I still have is a very beat up #137. Being 13, I thought a book from 1963 was ancient. My oldest WF now is #88 which was the 1st Luthor/Joker team-up. I've tried to get most of those and a have a smattering of SA WF's and plenty of BA WF's. But, since I bought many as a kid, most are pretty beat up. I think the appeal of WF starts off first as getting a book that features 2 icons. Especially as a kid. But as I grew older, I wanted to see more dynamic and interplay between the characters, all while mixing in some action and a good story. Even into the late 60's, WF was a "boy scout" book. Like much of DC, it hadn't left the 50's. By the 70's that seemed to change and I loved the Dollar Books. But it really seemed to die out in the 80's. Like it was out-of-gas. The new re-boot, "Superman-Batman" seemed to really grasp the concept at the beginning. As for "keys", maybe #3 and the 1st appearance of the Scarecrow? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thecollectron Posted January 30, 2008 Share Posted January 30, 2008 I enjoyed the SA issues as a kid, buying them off the stands and picking up back issues wherever I found them. I liked all the Superman family books and Curt Swan art, so WF was definitely included in my collection. I still have them all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adamstrange Posted January 30, 2008 Share Posted January 30, 2008 There's actually much to recommend the 1950s post code World's Finest -- though there are some tough issues amongst the 76 pagers. They are typically much better drawn and written than the Batman stories in Bat and Detective. Sprang is a frequent contributor and the stories read like the good stuff from the early 50s rather than the "alien" inspired stuff from Moldolff. As far as significant books, there is a Superman origin (65), start of the Batman/Superman Team-Up (71), and the origin of the Bat/Supes Team (94). WF 71 is very much a Silver Age book in spirit yet appeared a year earlier than Showcase 4. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
otherworldsj33 Posted January 31, 2008 Share Posted January 31, 2008 The story in #68 was used in one of the episodes of the Superman TV series at the time. Superman flew into space right into a meteor storm mixed with kryptonite, fell back down to earth, and he had amnesia. It is one of the best episodes of the TV series, on of the most fondly remembered. The story in the comic itself is not to bad either, but I am partial to the TV version. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cortez Posted January 31, 2008 Share Posted January 31, 2008 One other nice aspect of WF is guest apps. by other JLAers: Hawkman, Atom, Wonder Woman, etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrBedrock Posted February 1, 2008 Share Posted February 1, 2008 From a dealer perspective... Lots of folks collect Superman. Lots of folks collect Batman. Some Superman collectors don't collect Batman. Some Batman collectors don't collect Superman. Of the people who collect both, most (but not all) have some degree of interest in World's Finest. Therefore, of the whole pool of collectors of the big two DC characters less than half actively collect World's Finest. Unfortunately, based on my sales of World's Finest, I would have to say they are overpriced in relation to either Batman or Superman. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scrooge Posted February 1, 2008 Share Posted February 1, 2008 Invaluable insights dealt so freely Makes Richie such a cool boardie :applause: (thumbs u Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flatrock02 Posted February 1, 2008 Share Posted February 1, 2008 I am a fan of World's Finest I have always liked the stories. I am working on completing my run of #100-200 and after that will try to work on pre 100. I have a few under 100 with #36 being the earlist, but they are hard to come by with out spending alot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shark Posted February 1, 2008 Share Posted February 1, 2008 I have a World's Finest #19 that I listed in "Hey buddy, can you spare a grade?" but have gotten few responses on what people would grade it at. The scan is not that great (100dpi) but let me know what you think. Maybe I'll put up a higher dpi scan this weekend. BTW, it's NOT for sale. Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skypinkblu Posted February 1, 2008 Share Posted February 1, 2008 Some of the issues in the 70 to 80 range are incredibly hard to find, even in low grade condition. I think more people collected Superman and Batman and kept them. I know when I was a kid and buying comics, that was my 6th favorite DC title, so as someone said, i'd usually run out of money before I bought that one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rodan57 Posted February 1, 2008 Share Posted February 1, 2008 so as someone said, i'd usually run out of money before I bought that one. I'm this way at comic book conventions -- though as a Marvel fan, it seems that I just never get around to JIM and Avengers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hepcat Posted February 1, 2008 Author Share Posted February 1, 2008 From a dealer perspective... Lots of folks collect Superman. Lots of folks collect Batman. Some Superman collectors don't collect Batman. Some Batman collectors don't collect Superman. Of the people who collect both, most (but not all) have some degree of interest in World's Finest. Therefore, of the whole pool of collectors of the big two DC characters less than half actively collect World's Finest. Unfortunately, based on my sales of World's Finest, I would have to say they are overpriced in relation to either Batman or Superman. You seem to imply that the typical Superman only collector is uninterested in World's Finest as is the typical Batman only collector. Is this the case? You've focused in on the demand end of the equation. As a collector, I'm willing to pay for short supply but I'm very reluctant to pay for high demand. How plentiful are Silver Age World's Finest comics relative to Superman and Batman comics? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shadow Posted February 1, 2008 Share Posted February 1, 2008 Here's a little WF love... [/img] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shadow Posted February 1, 2008 Share Posted February 1, 2008 1st Lex Luthor/Joker team-up... [/img] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shadow Posted February 1, 2008 Share Posted February 1, 2008 Early, very plain, Adams cover... [/img] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shadow Posted February 1, 2008 Share Posted February 1, 2008 Early, very plain, Adams cover... [/img] Also my first attempt at scanning hence the small size. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrBedrock Posted February 1, 2008 Share Posted February 1, 2008 You seem to imply that the typical Superman only collector is uninterested in World's Finest as is the typical Batman only collector. Is this the case? You've focused in on the demand end of the equation. As a collector, I'm willing to pay for short supply but I'm very reluctant to pay for high demand. How plentiful are Silver Age World's Finest comics relative to Superman and Batman comics? From my experience 60% or so of Superman collectors are interested in World's Finest. A much smaller percentage of Batman collectors are interested in World's Finest (other than the Joker covers). From 100 on there are no rare or scarce issues, though some from 100 - 140 or so are tough in grade. The issues that skypinkblu talked about earlier, and particularly 50 - 70 are incredibly tough to find, and near impossible in grade. These issues are the only ones of the entire run that I would consider "over guide" books (with the exception of ultra-high grade slabbed). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EJR Posted February 1, 2008 Share Posted February 1, 2008 I collect WF but compared to the Batman and Superman titles, which I also collect, it is a much tougher title to find cause of the scarcity of the 76 and 68 pagers! Chris Foss of Heroes and Dragons had for sale a nice high grade run of World's Finest about 3 years ago and he sold these books fairly quickly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AtlasFan Posted February 2, 2008 Share Posted February 2, 2008 Well, I did enjoy the Kirby Green Arrow issues - all too fleeting. This was some of Kirby's best work.. I often wonder where he could have taken GA had he the chance to develop the character.. Bill Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...