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So It's Been A Year

Started by Boozad,

32 posts in this topic

Boozad

Boozad

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Yep, it's been one whole year (or near enough) since I went to see The Dark Knight at the cinema, with it resulting in rekindling my interest in collecting comics again. It had been ten whole years since I had ventured into a comic shop, and I was expecting to pick up where I left off; having my favourite books put behind the counter, reading some good Batstuff, dabbling in some stuff that looked cool.

 

Man how wrong could I be?! So for starters, when I quit comics all those years ago, CGC had just emerged, and I couldn't understand graded books. I was a reader through and through. 'Why put comics in a case? You can't read 'em!' I thought. Then I never bought another comic book.

Not because of that, far from it. My old collection went the way any collection shouldn't, in the trash. But that's old news.

 

So I felt the bug kicking in again after watching the best Batman movie yet. Hell, probably the best comic book movie yet. I dreamt of short boxes full of great writing and artistic talent, reading comics til my eyes were sore, spending $60 a month or so on my favourite books. How wrong could I be?

 

I started by picking up some job lots on Bay, and I read them. I started plugging gaps as quick as I could. Then came the bags and boards (a luxury scarcely affordable my first time round). Then came the boxes and the reading slowed a little. Then a funny thing happened - I found a site called Comicopolis totally by accident. And boy is that site cool. I met some people who really knew about comics. They had CGC graded books, , they had a lot of CGC graded books. Then the collector in me kicked in. And to be honest, I never even knew it was there...

 

I'd always been a reader, I loved the Dixon/Nolan and Moench/Jones era of Batman/Tec, and that was what I was expecting this time around. But after Ledger's Joker portrayal, the first book I picked up was Grant Morrison's first RIP issue, and I knew straight away the ball game was a totally different one now.

There were Batman variants, Batman variants, wasn't this a Gen13 gimmicky thing in the past? I was never really that clued up on comic books - Batman was my sphere and that was it. But I realised then that moderns were now aimed at collectors, not primarily readers.

 

With the aid I had from Comicopolis, Gaz, F_T and others, I learned a lot about CGC graded books. Then I did what I thought I'd never do - I went and bought one. It was a Batman #497 9.8 - Bats gets his back massaged a little too hard. I always loved that issue, and when it arrived encased in plastic I had the intial 'I can't read it' syndrome again. But that soon passed. I fell in love with this lump of plastic with one of my favourite comics sitting inside it. In a 9.8 no less! What the hell was a 9.8?? Like I've said, I was a reader, not a collector - this grading thing was pretty new to me.

 

A few Ebuys later I found this place, and sheet were my eyes opened! The slab fever was well and truly in place, I had raw books everywhere... and I was getting a loose handle on grading. Suddenly I was appreciating the condition of the books, the sharpness of the corners, the tightness of the spine, the crispness of the pages.

But woah, these books could have been pressed into this condition?? Hold on a minute, I've got to get my head round this. You can actually marry covers or first and second wraps? You can actually add pieces to an old book? Wow. This was a world I'd never been. This was a very big learning curve.

 

But how have the members on here made that learning curve a very steep one. I was immersed in the collecting side. I had some people sell me me some great books in very good payment plans. I soon added some very nice SS books (and I used to covet DF when I was a teen!). I still have people selling me some great books, when I can afford them. I am much more knowledgable, I can actually cast a grading opinion, I have some stuff I can sell, and I have some really good friends I've made throughout. Sorry, I have made a lot of really good friends.

 

Basically I've been back into this for a year, and things had changed so much it took me by surprise. I had to adapt quickly and I think I've managed it quite well with the help of others, which I offer the world of praise to - you're all stars (thumbs u

 

So do I miss my old collection? Yeah, a bit. Is the collection I have now better? By a mile and a half. Am I enjoying this collecting stint better than the first time? That's a hard one. Of course I am really, but I miss the innocence of going to my LCS (I don't actually have one now) to pick up my monthly books and going home to read them and not bothering what grade it was in, now I look at the investment side. A raw modern fetching $40, $50, $100?? That never happened before!! Or was I just naive?

 

the old(ish) days, give me now, give me RRPs, give me Neal Adams SS books, give me the CGC boards and give me more Batbooks.

 

What a great year (thumbs u

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Boozad

Boozad

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I applaud you for staying sober long enough to finish that post. (worship)

 

I actually finished my ninth beer while typing. I took a lot of editing lol

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Boozad

Boozad

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I applaud you for staying sober long enough to finish that post. (worship)

 

I actually finished my ninth beer while typing. I took a lot of editing lol

 

Dude, if I ever make it to the UK YOU and I need to go out bar hopping.

 

That's a given (thumbs u

 

Pleasure would be all mine :headbang:

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Boozad

Boozad

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:roflmao:

 

As long as I have advance warning I'll get a neck full of sage and onion stuffing down me :sick:

 

Or a Garlic Chicken Tikka Chilli :sick: :sick:

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Boozad

Boozad

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So do I miss my old collection? Yeah, a bit.

Gav, overall fantastic post, and so sorry for what the girlfriend did. Not cool at all!

 

:frustrated:

 

Looking back at what I had in my old collection it would probably fill a few piddly gaps, nothing more. It would save me the hassle of buying them again but isn't that part of the fun?

 

I don't know, I just have a completely different outlook this time around, and I think it's a better one. I know I'm definitely having more fun now! (thumbs u

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Bosco685

Bosco685

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Looking back at what I had in my old collection it would probably fill a few piddly gaps, nothing more. It would save me the hassle of buying them again but isn't that part of the fun?

 

I don't know, I just have a completely different outlook this time around, and I think it's a better one. I know I'm definitely having more fun now! (thumbs u

Great way to look at things.

 

By the way, while reading this I was watching "The Dark Knight." What timing.

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Mr.Diggler

Mr.Diggler

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I applaud you for staying sober long enough to finish that post. (worship)

 

I actually finished my ninth beer while typing. I took a lot of editing lol

I'm just about to start on the vino. Nice post Gav. You're a real asset :whistle: to the boards.

(thumbs u

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Fazybones

Fazybones

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Great post Gavin and you are a fine or should I say a NM addition

to these boards. (thumbs u Maybe just a Fine Plus when you're

into your twelve beer. :baiting:

 

 

Any luck with those sweet Batman books this weekend?

 

 

Some crazy prices for raw books and I had no luck on the

one book I really wanted. :frustrated:

 

 

:foryou:

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Comicopolis

Comicopolis

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Great post Gav :golfclap:

 

And it's been great to have you around this past year (thumbs u

 

The 'Opolis wouldn't have grown as it has without your considerable input - I salute you (worship)

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He11blazer

He11blazer

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Damn good post :applause:

 

I made a similar transition these past few years, having rediscovered my comic collection and become enamoured of slabbed books.

 

The books you've already acquired - from what I've seen - demonstrate much better taste and focus than I can muster (thumbs u

 

Just noticed the Preacher in your sig. I must have one of those. I literally just this minute finished the final volume 'Alamo', as well as a bottle of vodka (they go well together), and am reeling from the sheer awesomeness of that epic tale.

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