n2wdw's Tales of the Comic Book Room 15 15

[HENRYSPENCER]

But it says on his sign that he does accept Paypal...

[batman_fan]

5 minutes ago, HENRYSPENCER said:

Casper 1 is a tough book in grade. One of the few comics I still own.

It is a 100% keeper book.  

[HENRYSPENCER]

thanks for the report.  The pictures turned out great.

[n2wdw]

My Thoughts From SDCC 2018

As I've mentioned, I only spent Thursday at the con because that was the only ticket I was able to get.  Was one day enough?  Actually it was.  The con opened at 930.  I didn't wait in line to get in.  I just walked up to the door at 930.  There was a little wait, but I was in the con by 940. 

I spent 940 to about 1pm in the comics area.  Then 1-3 touring the rest of the exhibitor floor.  Then from 3 to 6pm, I went through the comics area again.  This was enough time for me.  By 6pm I was getting bored, so when my daughter called and told me she was getting hungry, I was happy to leave.

I'm sure if I was going to panels, then I'd need more than one day.  But 2 days would be more than enough.  I can't imagine going for the entire con. 

I was surprised by the crowds.  But in a good way.  The con did not seem crowded.  Sure, there were sporadic backups walking through the floor, but nothing bad.  Frankly, the last NYCC felt more crowded.  It will be interesting to see the attendance numbers.  Either less people went, or the SDCC team has gotten really good at moving people around.  I tend to think it's the latter and not the former, given how hard it remains to get tickets and hotel rooms.

People have lamented the loss of Mile High and Bud Plant.  I miss them too.  But you know what?  I never bought anything at Mile High anyway.  I rarely bought anything from Bud either.  Now let me be clear.  I've bought lots of stuff from both Mile High and Bud Plant over the years.  But mostly via their on-line sales.  Their prices at SDCC were always higher than their web prices.

I found the comic dealers at San Diego to be good enough.  I certainly blew through my budget.  My goals were to pick up one key.  I did that by getting Casper #1 from Carbo.  (I also got a low grade MIllie the Model #1 from Graham Crackers.)  I wanted to get one Baker.  I did that by getting Blue Ribbon #4 from Dale Roberts.  I also got some other cool comics, like this Lana from Bunky Bros.

 

Bottom line, I was happy with the mix of comic dealers.  The reality is, I only have so much money to buy comics.  Once I hit that limit, it doesn't matter to me how many more good comics there are at the con.  Now, you might say that more dealers means better selection.  Sure, I get that.  But I got Casper #1 and Millie #1, both grails for me, both at really good prices.   So yeah, if you're a high roller looking for big variety of high grade GA, then SDCC is probably not the place for you.  But then, probably the best places for you are private sales and on-line auctions.  Cons have always been hit and miss, and your happiness level with the stack of comics you bring home have always depended on what happens to be on your want list at that moment in time, and how much money you have to spend.

Having said that, it's unlikely I'll go to SDCC again.  Coming from the east coast, it's too expensive.  Also, it's too much of a hassle to get tickets and hotel rooms. 

I'm not in a hurry to go to NYCC again, or any of the Wizard World cons.  I'd still like to go to Emerald City, Wondercon and C2E2, but only because I've never gone before.  I suspect the selection of comics at those cons are the same as SDCC and NYCC.

Then there are the small one day shows like Terry's and Torpedo's conventions.  The problem though, for me, is I'm on the east coast.  I'm thinking about going to Carbo's Big Apple con in March.  That's another one I've never been to.

If I had a DeLorean, I think I would go to SDCC again because of the sweet deals I got on Casper 1 and Millie 1.  They made the trip worth it for me.  Also, I got to go and spend time with my daughter. 

Also, at the end of the day, going to any con is better than not going to a con.  So that made SDCC fun for me.

I'll end this SDCC report with a couple pics from that ramen restaurant we went to twice.  The first pic is tempura brussel sprouts.  It was delicious.  And the second pic is my ramen.  They call the red stuff on top the "bomb" as it's a spicy paste.  Thanks for reading!

 

Edited July 25, 2018 by n2wdw

[BakerFanOne]

On 7/23/2018 at 7:38 PM, n2wdw said:

Here are pics from Bunky Bros.  I think they had the most Bakers on the floor.  A lot of other good stuff too.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Bunky brothers definitely had some really great LB Cole and Baker books with the largest inventory by far.  It was displayed very well and most books had strong cover appeal.  Maybe I should have spent more time at their booth.

[n2wdw]

Quote

Bottom line, I was happy with the mix of comic dealers.  The reality is, I only have so much money to buy comics.  Once I hit that limit, it doesn't matter to me how many more good comics there are at the con.  Now, you might say that more dealers means better selection.  Sure, I get that.  But I got Casper #1 and Millie #1, both grails for me, both at really good prices.   So yeah, if you're a high roller looking for big variety of high grade GA, then SDCC is probably not the place for you.  But then, probably the best places for you are private sales and on-line auctions.  Cons have always been hit and miss, and your happiness level with the stack of comics you bring home have always depended on what happens to be on your want list at that moment in time, and how much money you have to spend.

I'd like to elaborate on this comment I made last night.  The point I was trying to make was, there was enough variety of comics at SDCC that I was able to find stuff to buy.

But, there definitely was a lack of small dealers from past years.  And there were no old book dealers, and I missed seeing them.  The artist avenue part of the con seemed smaller.  NYCC was definitely bigger in that respect. I think the fact it took me only 2-3 hours to tour the entire non-comic part of the exhibition floor tells you something about the dealers there. 

I guess the reason I feel okay about the comics at SDCC, is my expectations were pretty low going in.  I didn't expect to find anything good.  I felt the same way about NYCC last fall.  I agree with others that the big cons are more pop media than comics.  So I go to big cons for the experience, rather than any expectations for buying comics.  When I do find a nice comic at a big con -- like the Casper #1 -- then it's icing on the cake.  (I should also mention here that I've always gotten good deals with Carbo.  He can be disconcerning, as he gets right in your face and he puts pressure on you to buy.  But, if you are in the mood to buy, he will seriously consider any offer you make, and you'll probably do pretty well if you can agree on a price with him.)

I like this new trend of small one day cons.  (It's funny to call it a "new" trend, as when I got into comics 45+ years ago all we had were small 1 day cons.) By their nature, they attract the big dealers, but more importantly (to me) also the small dealers.  In my collecting life, I've gotten better deals from small dealers than big.  Probably because they can work on smaller margins, and they sell comics as a hobby rather than a job.  I got these comics at Terry's con, for a decent price.  No way I'd ever expect to get comics like this at a big con like SDCC or NYCC.

 

As I mentioned above, my only problem with the Terry and Torpedo cons is they are in CA and I live on the east coast.  But hopefully I'll be able to make it to at least one of them next year.

[BakerFanOne]

1 hour ago, n2wdw said:

I'd like to elaborate on this comment I made last night.  The point I was trying to make was, there was enough variety of comics at SDCC that I was able to find stuff to buy.

But, there definitely was a lack of small dealers from past years.  And there were no old book dealers, and I missed seeing them.  The artist avenue part of the con seemed smaller.  NYCC was definitely bigger in that respect. I think the fact it took me only 2-3 hours to tour the entire non-comic part of the exhibition floor tells you something about the dealers there. 

I guess the reason I feel okay about the comics at SDCC, is my expectations were pretty low going in.  I didn't expect to find anything good.  I felt the same way about NYCC last fall.  I agree with others that the big cons are more pop media than comics.  So I go to big cons for the experience, rather than any expectations for buying comics.  When I do find a nice comic at a big con -- like the Casper #1 -- then it's icing on the cake.  (I should also mention here that I've always gotten good deals with Carbo.  He can be disconcerning, as he gets right in your face and he puts pressure on you to buy.  But, if you are in the mood to buy, he will seriously consider any offer you make, and you'll probably do pretty well if you can agree on a price with him.)

I like this new trend of small one day cons.  (It's funny to call it a "new" trend, as when I got into comics 45+ years ago all we had were small 1 day cons.) By their nature, they attract the big dealers, but more importantly (to me) also the small dealers.  In my collecting life, I've gotten better deals from small dealers than big.  Probably because they can work on smaller margins, and they sell comics as a hobby rather than a job.  I got these comics at Terry's con, for a decent price.  No way I'd ever expect to get comics like this at a big con like SDCC or NYCC.

 

As I mentioned above, my only problem with the Terry and Torpedo cons is they are in CA and I live on the east coast.  But hopefully I'll be able to make it to at least one of them next year.

Wow.  Those are really fantastic books - I was bummed as I was unable to attend Terry's show this year as I was recovering from a broken leg.  but looking forward to attending next year!

[Ricksneatstuff]

2 hours ago, n2wdw said:

I'd like to elaborate on this comment I made last night.  The point I was trying to make was, there was enough variety of comics at SDCC that I was able to find stuff to buy.

But, there definitely was a lack of small dealers from past years.  And there were no old book dealers, and I missed seeing them.  The artist avenue part of the con seemed smaller.  NYCC was definitely bigger in that respect. I think the fact it took me only 2-3 hours to tour the entire non-comic part of the exhibition floor tells you something about the dealers there. 

I guess the reason I feel okay about the comics at SDCC, is my expectations were pretty low going in.  I didn't expect to find anything good.  I felt the same way about NYCC last fall.  I agree with others that the big cons are more pop media than comics.  So I go to big cons for the experience, rather than any expectations for buying comics.  When I do find a nice comic at a big con -- like the Casper #1 -- then it's icing on the cake.  (I should also mention here that I've always gotten good deals with Carbo.  He can be disconcerning, as he gets right in your face and he puts pressure on you to buy.  But, if you are in the mood to buy, he will seriously consider any offer you make, and you'll probably do pretty well if you can agree on a price with him.)

I like this new trend of small one day cons.  (It's funny to call it a "new" trend, as when I got into comics 45+ years ago all we had were small 1 day cons.) By their nature, they attract the big dealers, but more importantly (to me) also the small dealers.  In my collecting life, I've gotten better deals from small dealers than big.  Probably because they can work on smaller margins, and they sell comics as a hobby rather than a job.  I got these comics at Terry's con, for a decent price.  No way I'd ever expect to get comics like this at a big con like SDCC or NYCC.

 

As I mentioned above, my only problem with the Terry and Torpedo cons is they are in CA and I live on the east coast.  But hopefully I'll be able to make it to at least one of them next year.

NOW that is 3 SWEET pickups!! All 3 are classics!

[n2wdw]

1 hour ago, BakerFanOne said:

Wow.  Those are really fantastic books - I was bummed as I was unable to attend Terry's show this year as I was recovering from a broken leg.  but looking forward to attending next year!

I think Terry's will be the one for me too.  I think if I went to Torpedo's -- and they had it at the same time, the weekend before SDCC -- I'd miss going to SD.  Even though I know the comics at Torpedo would be better than SDCC.  Funny how the head works sometimes.

[n2wdw]

22 minutes ago, Ricksneatstuff said:

NOW that is 3 SWEET pickups!! All 3 are classics!

Thanks Rick, coming from you that really means something.

[Hudson]

4 hours ago, n2wdw said:

 I got these comics at Terry's con, for a decent price.  No way I'd ever expect to get comics like this at a big con like SDCC or NYCC.

 

As I mentioned above, my only problem with the Terry and Torpedo cons is they are in CA and I live on the east coast.  But hopefully I'll be able to make it to at least one of them next year.

I also live on the east coast, however, seeing these beautiful books may just convince me to jump on a plane next year!

 

[Ricksneatstuff]

Just now, Hudson said:

I also live on the east coast, however, seeing these beautiful books may just convince me to jump on a plane next year!

 

Thinking the same thing

[Robot Man]

Don't they have any good one day cons on the east coast like Terry's or Torpedo? A couple years ago, I went to Carbo's one day NY con for the day. Made a little vacation out of it. I really didn't go as much for the books but for the guest list. Carbo knows everybody and convinced just about every living GA and SA artist to show up at his con. They are all pretty much too old to travel all the way out to the west coast anymore. Was pretty epic. 

[Patriot6]

20 hours ago, n2wdw said:

Sorry, I didn't.  Prices were not on the front of the slabs.  I was asking Terry for books I could possibly buy, but I didn't want to take up his time with books I knew I had no shot with. 

Ohhh got it, fair enough. It even looked dreamy just from the peak I got 

Can you post some pics of your Casper when you get a chance  

[n2wdw]

3 hours ago, Robot Man said:

Don't they have any good one day cons on the east coast like Terry's or Torpedo? A couple years ago, I went to Carbo's one day NY con for the day. Made a little vacation out of it. I really didn't go as much for the books but for the guest list. Carbo knows everybody and convinced just about every living GA and SA artist to show up at his con. They are all pretty much too old to travel all the way out to the west coast anymore. Was pretty epic. 

Yes, I'm going to try to go to his Big Apple con next year (in March, I think).

[Yorick]

On 7/19/2018 at 4:41 AM, n2wdw said:

SDCC 2018 - Con Report (Wednesday)

 

 

I was surprised to see one thing in Gaslamp -- they are turning the Greystone steakhouse into a Taco Bell!  If you haven't been, Greystone is a higher end steakhouse, comparable to Del Friscos.  Greystone still exists, but for the length of the con they are turning it into a Taco Bell.  I think this is a brilliant idea and they'll get a ton of business.  Here's a picture as they are in the midst of the renovation:

That elevator is pretty scary.

The "Taco Bell" is from the Demolition Man movie.  I heard from a few friends that they were doing that for the con.  Great to actually see a picture of it!

[n2wdw]

31 minutes ago, Patriot6 said:

Ohhh got it, fair enough. It even looked dreamy just from the peak I got 

Can you post some pics of your Casper when you get a chance  

Sure!  It looks better in person.  My iPhone picks up a lot of glare.

[Patriot6]

3 minutes ago, n2wdw said:

 Gorgeous!

Love the book, not one you see very often. Congrats!!

[n2wdw]

More Books From Terry's Con

I got these books at Terry's con too.  I just got them back from CGC.  Looking back, I got a ton of great stuff there.  I think I'm definitely going back next year.

[Robot Man]

1 hour ago, n2wdw said:

Yes, I'm going to try to go to his Big Apple con next year (in March, I think).

His dealer list usually looks just "so so". But man, he can bring in the guests.