100%, but not Complete.

[mattn792]

Wolverine (1988) reaches a midpoint milestone.

 

There I was. It was Tuesday, January 19, 2016, and I was engaged in an interminable wait for the mailman. 1 PM. 2 PM. 3 PM. 4PM. 4:40 PM...f this, I'm not sitting at the office all night. And then right as I was about to put my coat on, I heard the office door chime and my books had finally arrived. Having figured out a pretty accurate way to follow the census, I already knew to expect two SS 9.8s (40, 59) and an SS 9.4 (89 non-deluxe) from AwesomeCon. And its the 9.4 that has led us to this brief reflection on my 1988 set as it is the book that finally made it 100% populated.

 

Now I saw "populated" because my set is definitely not "Complete". Anyone who has spent a little time viewing my Wolverine for President set will know what an ardent Wolverine collector I am, and that naturally led me to set an ultimate goal of a full SS/Mint set. Doing a quick scan of my set, I count 62 books that don't currently meet that criteria. However, we must also subtract the 9, possibly 10, books that I know are coming back in SS 9.8 but aren't in hand yet. Then we must also consider that I have 11 more issues out for signature or still in the grading process. So in reality, I'm more like 40 issues away from my goal (and an Erik Larsen/Steve Skroce signing spree would resolve about half of that). Its certainly getting close.

 

The only thing that sucks is that my list is starting to get exclusively into what I call the "boogeyman issues". 21. 31. 32. 35. The 41 and 42 2nd prints. Doombringer foil. 2001 Annual. And others. Those books that, no matter how freakin' hard you look, you just can't seem to find a potential raw 9.8 that you think is worth ponying up the cash to have signed. Or you think you did find one, and then it bombs the grading. And at the same time, if you've got a Universal 9.8 copy, you just can't bring yourself to crack it and risk a downgrade. What's a man to do? Crash the back issue boxes at C2E2 for starters! It may be frustrating at times, but the chase is a lot of fun!

 

For this week though, I'll enjoy the moment when my set hit 100%, and dwell on how far its come since my first impression of CGC ("bah, who wants a comic book in a trophy case?") to my first impression of the Signature Series ("so some guy wrote his name on it, whatever...") and all the hits and misses in between (such as -- "10.0? Nah, I'll save the extra $30 buy the 9.9". "$2700 is a great price for the Nabisco variant!". "$400 for a 9.8 102.5?!? Hgblurshgkfhjk!! Buy it Now!!!!!!").

 

And on one last note, I'm proud to say I still own the first ever 9.8 addition to this collection - a copy of the 145 Dynamic Forces edition - which is also the first ever 9.8 I achieved from my first ever submission to CGC way back in 2001. Though a Universal that was later supplanted by an SS book, and despite its potential to fetch me a sizable amount of cash were I to sell it, it's not going anywhere.

 

So here's to you, "only a 9.4" legit non-deluxe Wolverine 89. You did good.

 

See more journals by Matt

[Professor Pecora]

Congratulations Matt!

 

I am enjoying reading "your process" in reaching your ultimate goal in assembling the 1st ever complete Wolverine (1988) run all in CGC SS 9.8 (or better)!

 

You and frostking70 have truly taken the whole SS 9.8 competition to another 3 levels!!

 

However, I can't help but to throw this in there (since noone else is documenting the history of the CGC Wolverine (1988) competetive set) ...so for the sake of preserving the historical record...my former Wolverine (1988) Set, "Against All Odds," will still go down as the 1st to have showcased at least "15 CONSECUTIVE CGC SS 9.8s." At the time right before I auctioned my set, I believe I had the 1st "30" issues all in CGC SS 9.8 (including Wolverine #1 CGC SS 9.9), which was also the 1st Wolverine (1988) Set to accomplish that goal! :-)

 

With that said, having been out the Wolverine (1988) competition for about 2.5 years, my hat goes off to you and frostking70 for pushing the competition to the limit! It looks like you will accomplish the apex of your collecting goal by the end of this year...if not sooner!

 

As I previously shared with you via our personal e-mail correspondences, I am very honored and proud that the large majority of my former Wolverine CGC SS 9.8 books are showcased in your Wolverine for President Set! You're very worthy of the #1 spot; you took your time over the course of like 15 years to assemble your world class set, which is key to "longevity" in the collecting hobby. Keep evolving your set! Looking forward to the final transformation!

 

Peace and Respect,

 

-Professor Pecora

[mattn792]

Double P!

 

Always good to hear from you. I still fondly recall those days when you and I would end up in the occasional bidding war on eBay without even knowing it! I was sad to see your collection dismantled but am certainly proud to be housing about 20 of those books in my own collection. They've certainly made a big impact on my own set.

 

Keep your eyes open, a whole bunch of 9.8s for my 1988 and 2003 sets are due back from NYCC/Durham Comic Con within the next couple weeks. Five of which feature the rarely seen signature of Daniel Way!