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Your Opinions on This Batman 1st SA Penguin

25 posts in this topic

hey folks,

 

no editorial from me on this book - just curious on your opinions on this auction.

 

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=32727&item=2164767004&rd=1

 

9.2 is the highest graded so far. i'd like a nice copy of that book eventually, but with that money, i'd probably put it elsewhere. thoughts?

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I was really eying that book but, the $770 is a bit much. I think that once a 9.4 hits the census (and yes, I do think that one will eventually) the book will drop to around $500. I would be willing to play ball there. I want to get all the Batman keys eventually in uber HG, but I would make the generalization that the highest graded copy is always a big pull until something better comes along at which point the price is usually decimated . . .

 

DAM

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I thought that this book would have gone for more. In another thread I tipped $870. Batman SA's just don't appear very often. This is definitely a key and as such was always going to go way over guide. I am not adverse to spending a few dollars on a great book but I wasn't going to go that high for a 9.2.I am not going to hold my breath though waiting for a 9.4.

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I must be the only person who thinks that was a pretty good deal on the Batman.

It's a May 1963 book for cryn' out loud.

Any Marvel hero book with a May 63 cover date in 9.2 would bring at least a grand,

especially one that introduces a major villain like that.

DC's from this time period are still very tough.

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I agree. There is no 63' Silver superhero Marvel that would sell for that low in a 9.2. Where are all the serious DC silver collectors?

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So first a disclaimer, $770 is outside my funny-book price range, so maybe I'm not the serious collector in question...

 

But lots of DC collectors view the pre-Schwartz, pre-"new look" Batman of the late 50's and early 60's kind of like Marvel guys view the abortive revival of Capt America in the middle of the Marvel monster books of the early 50's: Interesting from a historical point of view, but not particularly well done, and not the real deal.

 

Would be interesting to see what an equivalent condition copy from slightly later would bring, say a #164 or #171.

 

Cheers,

Z.

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so maybe I'm not the serious collector in question...

 

Sorry....perhaps the term I was going for was High grade collector. You can definetly be a serious collector without buying high end, slabbed stuff. Actually, there are many high end buyers who could care less about comics, so I retract and correct my statement.

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Hey, Andrew, no harm, no foul.

 

I was just trying to acknowledge that I wasn't approaching the question from the standpoint of investments in Overstreet-denoted key books. Batman 155 certainly is a key issue from Overstreet's perspective, it's just as an avid DC collector, I find these particular issues pretty...uninteresting... I guess is the word.

 

Cheers,

Z.

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I agree. I never liked the importance or extra "key" value of this book as denoted faithfully in Overstreet year after year. Ugly cover. Boring story.

 

This Penguin wasn't like Julius Schwartz et al bringing back and re-creating the Justice Society heroes as new Silver Age super-heroes. This in particular was just the first stupid Penguin story in quite a long time for whatever reason it was written or assigned "one day at the office". It didnt change anything permanent. Or begin anything lasting in the Batman storyline.

 

I havent pulled out the guides to do any research, but to me, its "key book" price status came about as part of a surge in interest for Golden Age return appearances in the Silver Age. And its' about their importance in today's minds is revisited

 

That being said, thre price it sold for (given its current accepted key status) does seem reasonable.

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AK, I was seriously thinking about putting in a monster bid for this book and I might have too. I ended up getting my first original art purchases right around the time of this auction which put me back $650 which seriously detracted my ability to put together the funds for the bid. For the most part, I am not that particular regarding such uber HG for these books (a Batman 155 from 63 in 9.2 depending on how nice the 9.2 is I would liked to a FF 5 cgc 9.4 or even a 9.6) but I like to have all the keys in uber HG as part investment, but mostly feather in the cap type books.

 

Also, regarding the long term price of this book a couple of things (some of which have already been pointed out):

1 - the cover is weak

2 - first SA appearance - so what?

3 - the Penguin seems to be losing status every year / declining interest in the character

 

Sadly, most of my Batman books and almost 100% of the back issues go straight into the box without ever having been read (don't really have the time right now, also don't have access to 'em - the nice books are in LI) and I only started reading every issue of Batman with 608, but I can't remember a good penguin story in a real long time . . .

 

DAM

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a Batman 155 from 63 in 9.2 depending on how nice the 9.2 is I would liked to a FF 5 cgc 9.4 or even a 9.6

 

Except you could probably buy around 25+ of those Batman 155's for the price of a CGC 9.4 FF #5. grin.gif

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