EastEnd1 Posted April 3 Author Share Posted April 3 Another order has been received from CGC and am happy to report that once again, 19 out of 20 have achieved 9.8. That makes a total of 56 out of 60 so far, a hit rate of 93%! And the few that hit 9.6 actually work out just fine at that grade. Needless to say, I am pleased with the results so far. So let me see if I can do a little catch up now... we'll start with the box from March 2001. Was a relatively small order with just a few noteworthy items... ADAMANTIUM and grendel013 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EastEnd1 Posted April 3 Author Share Posted April 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EastEnd1 Posted April 3 Author Share Posted April 3 A little "Mickey Spillane" greeted me this time... ADAMANTIUM and Yorick 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EastEnd1 Posted April 3 Author Share Posted April 3 Fantastic Ian Churchill Cyclops cover on this X-Men... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EastEnd1 Posted April 3 Author Share Posted April 3 Filmmaker and major league comic fan Kevin Smith made an appearance this month scripting the first issue of a brand new Green Arrow series. I was a fan of Smith's work and bought a few copies, and I think the rest of the issues that he scripted from this series... Yorick, ADAMANTIUM and BA773 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EastEnd1 Posted April 3 Author Share Posted April 3 And that was it for March 2001. Next is January 1998 which was a bit more successful... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EastEnd1 Posted April 3 Author Share Posted April 3 This one opened up with a "complementary" (misspelled) copy of Drayven #1... what ever that is. Don't think the series worked out... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EastEnd1 Posted April 3 Author Share Posted April 3 But this great Carnage and Silver Surfer cover on Spider-Man #430 made up for it! ADAMANTIUM and Tec-Tac-Toe 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EastEnd1 Posted April 3 Author Share Posted April 3 Can't say I was ever a fan of the Legion of Superheroes (though my best friend was big one), but I did pick up this giant-size anniversary issue... BA773 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EastEnd1 Posted April 3 Author Share Posted April 3 ANYTHING written by Alan Moore was eagerly bought. I recall when Moore started his groundbreaking run on Swamp Thing in 1983... was the first time I'd ever seen a comic book appreciate in value because of the WRITER! And the stories were just amazing... different, adult.. an early pre-cursor of the revolutionary comics to come in the new "copper age". This "Voodoo" series didn't quite work out, but the eye-catching Mike Lopez and Edwin Rosell cover is just gorgeous... newshane and Tec-Tac-Toe 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Qalyar Posted April 3 Share Posted April 3 (edited) On 4/2/2024 at 9:01 PM, EastEnd1 said: This one opened up with a "complementary" (misspelled) copy of Drayven #1... what ever that is. Don't think the series worked out... I like giving context to indie drek! Davdez Arts mostly served as the imprint for writer/illustrator/publisher David Hernandez's self-publishing endeavors, which absolutely includes Drayven. He managed to keep this book going to #3 (plus a "limited" -- it's not very rare -- variant cover to #1). The series is... well, I'm not going to say there aren't some interesting ideas there, but it is rather what you'd expect from an essentially self-published indie by a creator you've never heard of, if you know what I mean. Probably the most interesting thing out of Davdez Arts is that Hernandez did publish two issues of a spinoff of Barry Blair's controversial, cult-favorite Elflord (here titled Legends of the Elflord) in 1998, shortly before Davdez Arts slipped away into whatever darkness awaits failed indie publishers. Legends of the Elflord isn't as hard to find as what I consider "hard to find" stuff, but it does occasionally sell for higher-than-drek prices to fans of Blair's work. Edited April 3 by Qalyar F For Fake and EastEnd1 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Qalyar Posted April 3 Share Posted April 3 On 4/2/2024 at 9:17 PM, EastEnd1 said: ANYTHING written by Alan Moore was eagerly bought. I recall when Moore started his groundbreaking run on Swamp Thing in 1983... was the first time I'd ever seen a comic book appreciate in value because of the WRITER! And the stories were just amazing... different, adult.. an early pre-cursor of the revolutionary comics to come in the new "copper age". This "Voodoo" series didn't quite work out, but the eye-catching Mike Lopez and Edwin Rosell cover is just gorgeous... Ah, Voodoo, which is a strong contender for "the worst book Alan Moore ever wrote". Voodoo, the character, is an ex-member of WildC.A.T.s and also an ex-stripper, and despite what should have been a really interesting book where Alan Moore got to play around with the Louisiana mythos, we got this. Did I mention Voodoo was a stripper? Yeah, that... is a lot more relevant than it really should be in this four-book run, shall we say. Tim Callahan, writing for Reactor, gave this book a retrospective review. Here's sort of the take-home: Quote This miniseries doesn’t read like Alan Moore writing a parody of an Image comic, it reads like Alan Moore writing a dull version of an Anne Rice novel, using a former superhero in the lead role. And the art by Al Rio and Michael Lopez gives the whole thing a trashy and desperately-trying-to-be-sexy look that does fit the story, but, like the story, isn’t much worth looking at. Alan Moore did the Voodoo stuff a whole lot better in his Swamp Thing run, and he would go on to explore the junction of sex and mysticism a whole lot better in his later work on Promethea, which makes Voodoo a weird, sleazy rest stop along the way. It did get great covers the whole way through, though. Lopez and Russell only did #1, but #2-4 all had cover art by Adam Hughes. I think #3 is my favorite of them, really highlights Hughes's style. Interesting enough, since this character was originally in WildC.A.T.s, which was a Wildstorm property, when WS got absorbed into DC, the rights to Voodoo went with it. Unexpectedly, Voodoo got a 2nd series in 2011 as part of DC's New 52. For... some... reason. It actually started out okay, but it's clear that no one was really sure what to do with the series, which changed writers partway through the run and got axed after 12 issues (plus a #0, because DC), more or less in disgrace. If for some reason someone liked the character and these series enough to actually collect them (and no, this isn't one of my pet drek series!), none of this is super rare. The Image books stay out of the dollar boxes, probably carried by their cover art. Jason Pearson's variant cover to #1 (and it's Platinum variant-variant) would mostly just be hard to find in top grades because black covers and all. Nothing at all from the DC run is rare or valuable, although #1 went to a 2nd printing that is far less common than might be expected. If you want a challenge, German publisher Splitter reprinted the 4-issue Image series as a 2-issue mini with double-sized books (each containing two of the original US issues). Interestingly, the German #1 uses Pearson's racy variant cover instead of the Lopez and Russell work (did I mention the character is a stripper?). masterlogan2000 and EastEnd1 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EastEnd1 Posted April 3 Author Share Posted April 3 On 4/3/2024 at 9:04 AM, Qalyar said: I like giving context to indie drek! Davdez Arts mostly served as the imprint for writer/illustrator/publisher David Hernandez's self-publishing endeavors, which absolutely includes Drayven. He managed to keep this book going to #3 (plus a "limited" -- it's not very rare -- variant cover to #1). The series is... well, I'm not going to say there aren't some interesting ideas there, but it is rather what you'd expect from an essentially self-published indie by a creator you've never heard of, if you know what I mean. Probably the most interesting thing out of Davdez Arts is that Hernandez did publish two issues of a spinoff of Barry Blair's controversial, cult-favorite Elflord (here titled Legends of the Elflord) in 1998, shortly before Davdez Arts slipped away into whatever darkness awaits failed indie publishers. Legends of the Elflord isn't as hard to find as what I consider "hard to find" stuff, but it does occasionally sell for higher-than-drek prices to fans of Blair's work. Thanks! Didn't realize the Barry Blair connection, who's work I was a fan of. Feel free to post any background you want on any of the indies (or other moderns) I'll be posting... always good to put stories behind the books! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EastEnd1 Posted April 3 Author Share Posted April 3 On 4/3/2024 at 9:30 AM, Qalyar said: Ah, Voodoo, which is a strong contender for "the worst book Alan Moore ever wrote". Voodoo, the character, is an ex-member of WildC.A.T.s and also an ex-stripper, and despite what should have been a really interesting book where Alan Moore got to play around with the Louisiana mythos, we got this. Did I mention Voodoo was a stripper? Yeah, that... is a lot more relevant than it really should be in this four-book run, shall we say. Tim Callahan, writing for Reactor, gave this book a retrospective review. Here's sort of the take-home: It did get great covers the whole way through, though. Lopez and Russell only did #1, but #2-4 all had cover art by Adam Hughes. I think #3 is my favorite of them, really highlights Hughes's style. Interesting enough, since this character was originally in WildC.A.T.s, which was a Wildstorm property, when WS got absorbed into DC, the rights to Voodoo went with it. Unexpectedly, Voodoo got a 2nd series in 2011 as part of DC's New 52. For... some... reason. It actually started out okay, but it's clear that no one was really sure what to do with the series, which changed writers partway through the run and got axed after 12 issues (plus a #0, because DC), more or less in disgrace. If for some reason someone liked the character and these series enough to actually collect them (and no, this isn't one of my pet drek series!), none of this is super rare. The Image books stay out of the dollar boxes, probably carried by their cover art. Jason Pearson's variant cover to #1 (and it's Platinum variant-variant) would mostly just be hard to find in top grades because black covers and all. Nothing at all from the DC run is rare or valuable, although #1 went to a 2nd printing that is far less common than might be expected. If you want a challenge, German publisher Splitter reprinted the 4-issue Image series as a 2-issue mini with double-sized books (each containing two of the original US issues). Interestingly, the German #1 uses Pearson's racy variant cover instead of the Lopez and Russell work (did I mention the character is a stripper?). This is great background, thanks again! I never read it and never would have guessed it was one of Moore's worst. Or that the mystical beauty on the cover was a stripper! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Qalyar Posted April 3 Share Posted April 3 On 4/3/2024 at 8:40 AM, EastEnd1 said: This is great background, thanks again! I never read it and never would have guessed it was one of Moore's worst. Or that the mystical beauty on the cover was a stripper! That said, while this series isn't great, especially for a Moore work, I do think it helped sow the seeds for his later creation of Promethea. There are some clear thematic similarities. I speculate that the difference in quality between Voodoo and Promethea comes down to how personally invested he was in each of the respective works. My suspicion is that Voodoo isn't a book Alan Moore wanted to write; it's a book Alan Moore was told to write. And while he's brilliant, he doesn't exactly take instruction well! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EastEnd1 Posted April 3 Author Share Posted April 3 On 4/3/2024 at 9:54 AM, Qalyar said: And while he's brilliant, he doesn't exactly take instruction well! THAT, he made very clear! newshane and Qalyar 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Qalyar Posted April 4 Share Posted April 4 On 3/17/2024 at 6:46 PM, EastEnd1 said: And lastly, an Indie that I thought might have some potential from the Westfield catalog description... alas, it was not to be... Although this comic series never really took off, its creator has had a pretty successful career. Elizabeth Watasin is best known at this point as a novelist, particularly for her lesbian-themed steampunk / horror series The Dark Victorian. Not to knock her art skills, but she's a much better writer than an illustrator, and I think Charm School might have had more success if she'd been able to pair with someone else for the visual aspect of her storytelling here. EastEnd1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
newshane Posted April 4 Share Posted April 4 On 4/3/2024 at 8:30 AM, Qalyar said: Ah, Voodoo, which is a strong contender for "the worst book Alan Moore ever wrote". Voodoo, the character, is an ex-member of WildC.A.T.s and also an ex-stripper, and despite what should have been a really interesting book where Alan Moore got to play around with the Louisiana mythos, we got this. Did I mention Voodoo was a stripper? Yeah, that... is a lot more relevant than it really should be in this four-book run, shall we say. Tim Callahan, writing for Reactor, gave this book a retrospective review. Here's sort of the take-home: It did get great covers the whole way through, though. Lopez and Russell only did #1, but #2-4 all had cover art by Adam Hughes. I think #3 is my favorite of them, really highlights Hughes's style. Interesting enough, since this character was originally in WildC.A.T.s, which was a Wildstorm property, when WS got absorbed into DC, the rights to Voodoo went with it. Unexpectedly, Voodoo got a 2nd series in 2011 as part of DC's New 52. For... some... reason. It actually started out okay, but it's clear that no one was really sure what to do with the series, which changed writers partway through the run and got axed after 12 issues (plus a #0, because DC), more or less in disgrace. If for some reason someone liked the character and these series enough to actually collect them (and no, this isn't one of my pet drek series!), none of this is super rare. The Image books stay out of the dollar boxes, probably carried by their cover art. Jason Pearson's variant cover to #1 (and it's Platinum variant-variant) would mostly just be hard to find in top grades because black covers and all. Nothing at all from the DC run is rare or valuable, although #1 went to a 2nd printing that is far less common than might be expected. If you want a challenge, German publisher Splitter reprinted the 4-issue Image series as a 2-issue mini with double-sized books (each containing two of the original US issues). Interestingly, the German #1 uses Pearson's racy variant cover instead of the Lopez and Russell work (did I mention the character is a stripper?). Gorgeous cover though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Qalyar Posted April 4 Share Posted April 4 On 4/4/2024 at 1:41 PM, newshane said: Gorgeous cover though. I love all the covers from that run, honestly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BA773 Posted April 6 Share Posted April 6 On 3/14/2024 at 1:28 AM, EastEnd1 said: That's a pretty solemn Black Bolt on the cover of issue 1 of this Inhumans limited series... I dont care of Marvel but... Black Bolt is definitely my favourite charachter! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
