COMPLETED! Spawn: Endgame storyline - 1st and only complete set in 9.8 or higher

[newshane]

Special thanks to Rich Henn for tracking the down the final two issues of my set!

 

 

I'm very happy to announce that this completes the world's very first and only complete CGC 9.8 or higher graded set (all variants included) of the Endgame story-line from Spawn! This story-line is absolutely key to the series because it marks the death of Al Simmons and the rise of Jim Downing as the new Hellspawn.

 

It's also very likely to remain the one and only set for a very long time. Some of these books are extremely difficult to find in any grade, and very, very expensive when you do find them.

 

To find a 9.8 copy of the 185 Sketch Edition is a total quest of its own. I've spoken previously about the rarity of this book - many sources indicate fewer than 60 copies exist. Census numbers for Universal 9.8 graded copies have remained stagnant at half a dozen for a very long time and numbers are very unlikely to rise. The last few sales of this book have topped $3K.

 

Then you have the task of tracking down the other variants - rarest of which is the 'headless" McFarlane variant. I've heard that fewer than 500 were printed.

 

Then you have the second printings of 185 and 186. Those were tough! I believe Rich helped me with the second printing of 186.

 

187 in CGC 9.9! Tied with one other copy on the census for the highest graded example of the issue. Thanks to Doc Joe for parting ways with this gem years ago! Told you I'd be a good caretaker.

 

The 189 Sketch Edition was a monster find. You just never, ever see these for sale in top condition. A shout out to my old friend Kris for finding that one for me!

 

Very special thanks to Rich Henn, who has spent a few years tracking down 191 (the first and only 9.8 on the census, as of this writing) and 194 (only 1 of 3 in 9.8). I thank him so much for taking this on with me!

 

The 193 Sketch Cover was tough, even though it was only a 1:2 variant. I had a far more difficult time tracking down the color cover of that issue and was ecstatic when I found it.

 

Folks, trust me, you might not think it, but this was a truly gargantuan task. It's taken over five years of vigilance and obsessive hunting. I'm so happy and lucky that I pulled it off and that all these great books are together and in one place!

 

Thanks to Rich, Kris, Doc Joe, and anyone else who helped me track down all these books!

 

I'm now just a dozen books from the complete 1-250 all variants included Spawn run.

 

I've posted pictures below of my entire Endgame run. Please click inside of the spoiler tab to enjoy!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[DWL]

Nice. I'm a Silver age guy, never read Spawn in my life but still, very impressive!

[Mr.Mister]

All hail! Beautiful.

[Mystafo]

Congrats on completing your set!

[Wilson3d]

Congrats! Nice work completing this!

[bug33fouf]

[Silent Master]

It's always a great feeling to complete a set in 9.8 (or better!)!!

[MetalPSI]

 

Excellent feat, well done

[mschmidt]

Very nice!

[SquareChaos]

[techtre2003]

Very cool! Spawn is on my short list of runs I plan on putting together.

[Erndog]

This is awesome, great set! Congrats!

 

I've always had a soft spot for Spawn. Issue #66 was basically the very first comic I ever bought (well, there were some given to me a few years earlier but just kinda tossed away).

 

Issue #66 I remember walking into my comic shop, spotting it, buying it and taking it home in a bag and board. I flipped through it back and forth for days. That was the start of my comic journey. I went back and did the whole back issue diving thing and collected Spawn up until #120 or so. I absolutely loved the first 60-70 issues.

 

I often wonder how the book is nowadays. What's the storyline like, etc?

 

Truly a wonderful accomplishment. The thrill of the hunt is easily the best part.

[Neurosis138]

That 185 sketch is great. I remember trying to hunt one down when they first came out. I would love to own a 9.8 someday.

[AnthonyTheAbyss]

This brings back bad memories. I bought a CGC 9.8 185 McFarlane headless variant a while back but it got damaged in shipping.

 

The seller was very understanding and he refunded me half of what I paid (which I didn't ask for but it was what he wanted to do).

 

Losing that book was one of the biggest disappointments in my comic book collecting journey.

 

***Great collection and truly jealous.

[newshane]

Anthony - so sorry to hear about your loss! That's quite unfortunate to say the least. I always hate to hear about rare books getting damaged or lost in the mail - one of my worst nightmares and I'm sorry you had to experience it. I wish I still had my other copy (at one time I had two 9.8s) but I'm afraid I sold it months ago.

 

Thanks to everyone for your kind words! I just wanted to communicate my feelings about what a wonderful community we have here on the boards. There is no way I could have put this together without help from many different boardies. The CGC boards have been the best thing ever for my collecting hobby!

 

Thanks again to everyone who helped me put this together.

 

Hopefully, I will finish my complete Spawn run any day now.

[musicmeta]

This is just so awesome! Congrats!!!

[GoldCap]

Congrats on your accomplishment! It's always great to hear someone completing a set!