TOP 5 GRAILS - THAT YOU DON'T OWN 1 1

[Timulty]

Then give a shot at Blue Ribbon. From what I have seen posted of the stories, it has been very interesting reads. Ask Shield about those books.

[Psiknight]

In order:

 

Four Color 178 (8.0+)

Walt Disney Comics and Stories 31 (7.0+)

Four Color 386 (8.0+)

Four Color 199 (8.5+)

Four Color 308 (9.0 copy)

[action1kid]

High grade Action 7 and 23

[Timulty]

Do you have a 14 and 12, action1kid?

[action1kid]

Hi.

No, i do not. I only collect the key issues.....

[Timulty]

Darn, was hoping you did. Then I could have gotten you to post a scan. Oh, well. Thanks for responding.

[john72tex]

Detective 27

Action 1

Showcase 4

Green Lantern 1 SA

Justice League of America 1

 

Maybe I'll get 2 or 3 of these someday....

 

I will never own the first two, barring some freak accident like winning the lottery (which I don't play).

 

Good luck!

 

I don't think I'll have the first 2 either, but since I made my first post, I won a JLA #1 on Ebay this afternoon. Looks like a VG copy, but I'll keep it until I can upgrade at a later time.

[Scheradon]

This should be more like the top 500 grails that I don't own.

[Timulty]

Yeah, know what you mean. So far, only real grail I have is Swamp Thing #1. And that is a lower end Bronze Age Grail. No, HOS 92. So, that's on my list. I am starting to get closer though. Got a Police Comics 10 on payments. I will probably try for a Special Edition Comics #1 next.

[Scheradon]

Yeah, know what you mean. So far, only real grail I have is Swamp Thing #1. And that is a lower end Bronze Age Grail. No, HOS 92. So, that's on my list. I am starting to get closer though. Got a Police Comics 10 on payments. I will probably try for a Special Edition Comics #1 next.

 

Swamp Thing #1

 

My whole collection is Marvel but there's been many times I've googled at that book. Always loved it. Maybe someday

[Timulty]

It is one of the most affordable Bronze Age Horror Keys. There are plenty of them out there in High Grade. Much easier to find than HOS 92.

[Point Five]

More seriously, there are too many books I'd rather have than some of the most sought after ones listed here. As for the reason ... I have the Cap America (since Timulty mentioned him) Classic Years collections with the S&K stuff and I could barely read them. I would love to have a Cap 1 but the story isn't that good. Heck I also sold my Shazam! archives to Timulty since the stories didn't grab me either. I bought the JLA Showcase DC put out and have not yet been able to finish reading even the first story!! I understand the collectability (sp?) of these books as Norinn would say is from their historical importance but for a book to be a grail to me it would need BOTH historicality and readability. So, can you guys give me a list of some books that meet both criteria. I have never read the Flash story in Showcase 4. Is it any good? Tim, anyone, ...

 

Here's a quick stab at my favorite GA stories (as opposed to just the covers) --

 

Early Action Comics & Superman comics by Siegel & Shuster, DC, circa 1938-1940. Much better-written than most of the early superhero stuff, IMO, and their enthusiasm for the character and for righting the wrongs of the world is infectious.

 

Fantastic Comics, Fox Comics, circa 1939-1940. Some of the more bizarre superhero features I've ever read (especially Stardust and Space Smith), with a wild diversity of artistic styles. Science Comics had some cool features too, though the art went downhill pretty quickly into the run.

 

Catman Comics, circa 1941-1945. Another bizarre character and some wild WWII stories! Strange and unique backup features, too. I tend to like the earlier issues ('41-'43), though the end of the run features those great LB Cole covers.

 

Pep Comics & Zip Comics, MLJ, 1941-1944. More oddball WWII second-tier-superhero stories. Some of the Hangman stories from Pep (he briefly had his own title too) are quite striking (though violent) & darkly entertaining.

 

ECs, 1952-1955. No surprise here! Some of the best GA comics ever written. My favorites are the groundbreaking "social issues" stories (anti-racism, anti-McCarthyism, etc) from Shock Suspenstories, Weird Science & Weird Fantasy. The horror titles are very entertaining & darkly funny too. And of course, the ECs feature some of the best art in comics. These are widely reprinted & well worth a try.

 

Hope this helps!

Jon

[Norrin_Radd]

More seriously, there are too many books I'd rather have than some of the most sought after ones listed here. As for the reason ... I have the Cap America (since Timulty mentioned him) Classic Years collections with the S&K stuff and I could barely read them. I would love to have a Cap 1 but the story isn't that good. Heck I also sold my Shazam! archives to Timulty since the stories didn't grab me either. I bought the JLA Showcase DC put out and have not yet been able to finish reading even the first story!! I understand the collectability (sp?) of these books as Norinn would say is from their historical importance but for a book to be a grail to me it would need BOTH historicality and readability. So, can you guys give me a list of some books that meet both criteria. I have never read the Flash story in Showcase 4. Is it any good? Tim, anyone, ...

 

You are not alone. I'm starting to adopt this attitude as well. I want to enjoy reading the comic as well as appreciate the art and the collectability of the comic. I had trouble reading JLA Archive as well. I've come to the realization that I don't seem to like superhero team stories that well (with some exceptions... like All-Star #57 which I did like).

 

As crazy as it may seem, I like the story in Tec #31-32. I just read it again this weekend in my DC 100-page Spectacular #14. I like the early Batman stories as they are more visceral than later on. They may be short and somewhat simplistic, but I find something appealing about them.

 

I would add that CA #27 and Tec #64 are only tenatively on my grail list since I haven't read them yet (I just love the covers). I consider Tec #168 a grail for it's origin of the Joker. But since I think the story is goofy, it's not on my wantlist.

 

I don't know about Showcase #4, but I did like Showcase #22 (Green Lantern). And I like the cover better.

[Aman619]

I dont know how much readability plays into collecting key origin stories from 40 - 65 years ago.

They are desireable for what they represent now, not so much for how entertaining they might be now so many years and taste changes later. A lot of classic literature is a chore to read nowadays, but it doesnt diminish their 'importance' or value culturally.. That asking a lot of a 40 year old "funnybook" knocked off in an afternoon by some "hack" comics writer.

[Scrooge]

Jon,

 

thank you so much for the detailed reply you posted. I really ought to check out those early Superman stories and definitely try to give a deeper look at the non-teen output by MLJ which I admit I have never really read. Methinks a trip to Shield's website is in order. I must admit that my knowledge while strong for some periods fades rather quickly once I go back in time to pre-1947 / 1948 books.

 

Aman,

 

I don't think that's too much to ask for a reader like me to elect as my "grails" books that have weathered passage of time. I understand that I should not look for profundity from the output of this young medium from the late 30's and early 40's; yet, in all media there are pieces from the early period which stand out and command respect even once the medium's sophistication increases (for lack of a better word). I would be more interested in purchasing those rather than the "cadillac" of the medium if it turns out the cadillac has no clothes. Granted, this is something we'll have to disagree on I fear because we don't follow the same objectives in our collections.

 

While I have you, I would like to you for finally posting some of your gems in the Silver Forum. Any chance we get to see more from your treasure trove. I am sure many more than I would love to see more of what's in there. Pretty please.

[buttock]

I'd like to get nice white paged copies in 2.0-4.0 of:

All American 16

Batman 1

Detective 29 or 31

 

and a nice 7.0-8.0

AF 15

ASM 1

 

It's really kind of ridiculous, because I don't collect anything anywhere near any of those books, but that's what my long-term goals are.

[Aman619]

Scrooge, I just meant that the keys arent coveted for the stories. I have no problem with collecting great stories! I think thats a great way to collect. Thats actually th etrend comics collectinf started to take in the 80s when collectors sought out Alan Moore books...

[Scrooge]

Scrooge, I just meant that the keys arent coveted for the stories.

 

Gotcha

[GoodyRickles]

Action #2 Low Grade is fine, around a good+, cover attached (would LOVE a nicely restored one)...saw the one Neatstuff has on ebay, Don't want that one, looks horrible...Action #3, same shape if possible....Phantom Lady #17,do not think this has been mentioned yet, around a fine......Reform School Girl, yeah I want this one Very Good or better, Not going to overpay though....LOW Grade Captain America #1 Good + or better

[Point Five]

Jon,

 

thank you so much for the detailed reply you posted. I really ought to check out those early Superman stories and definitely try to give a deeper look at the non-teen output by MLJ which I admit I have never really read. Methinks a trip to Shield's website is in order. I must admit that my knowledge while strong for some periods fades rather quickly once I go back in time to pre-1947 / 1948 books.

 

Hey Scrooge, my pleasure.

Of course, your appreciation for most of the books I mention will depend heavily on your tolerance for early superhero stories in general, which do tend to be very primitive in terms of the writing. The earliest Siegel/Shuster Superman features (say, Action 1-20 or so) are a great place to start though... IMO, they're just plain fun... the stories hadn't yet fallen into formula, and you get this sense of feverish excitement as Siegel & Shuster discover what they can do with this neat character they created. And as Norinn mentions above, some of Bill Finger's early Batman stories have a similar kick to them. The other titles I mentioned tended towards more formulaic stories, although some of the weirder 2nd- & 3rd-tier heroes and WWII plots still keep things interesting. Hope you enjoy!