Ultimate Spider Man 40 - Bindery flaw?

[Smokinghawk]

Ultimates have enough problems with cover flatness as it is, but USM #40 seems particularly bad...I went to two different comics shops today, and ALL the copies were badly bent and stressed and warped on the spine. Both shops said they arrived that way. Is anyone else finding similar flaws on this book, too?

 

[Lockjaw]

Heh, yeah my USM 40 would be lucky to get a 9.4-9.6 if I am lucky (in fact, all of my USMs from 37-present would only get a 9.4 at best, so while near mint...not worth submitting).

 

The cover stock on Marvel's Ultimate books is still so horrid that people who are selling 9.8's of the Venom saga for less than 35 a book, are in my very humble opinion (and admittedly worthless opinion), nuts. I am holding off on selling my USM 33-36 CGC set until S2 is a few months from coming out, and the attendant hype makes it worth putting up on ebay (33 and 36 are gorgeous 9.8's, 34 and 35 are nice 9.6's).

 

I lucked out with my USMs, as I have UXM 26-present, and not a single one of them would grade higher than 9.4-9.6 (and I honestly think a couple might be no better than 9.2, and that is how I bought them fresh from the rack on new comic day).

 

As someone brought up on another thread not that long ago, supposedly Marvel was going to thicken up the cover stock, but it seems not to have happened yet (I hope they did not forget about the retailers pleas to make the comics more sellable, as I am sure lots of customers grumble that while not every book should be guaranteed to get a 9.8--=books fresh of the rack that might only be considered Very Fine is a pisser).

[Darthdiesel]

Tofer - I've been putting up NM/MT copies of USM 20 - 36 just recently in sets of 4 over the past month. Not much interest from what I gather. I thought everyone had access to excellent copies. I agree though that for USM 40 - off the comic store rack i'd have to give it a 9.2 at best as well

[Lockjaw]

Yup, given that it cost me about 110 to get the four graded (cost of comics inclusive)...I will wait until some S2 hype allows me to sell them for 140 on ebay.

 

I know Joe C. is reading my posts, and going...awww, poor baby, the CGC specs are not buying his over-hyped modern junk for crazy prizes

 

It is cool that he has that opinion, but I am of the belief that selling the books around this time next year will pay off.

 

As far as access to great copies...I wish! I just lucked out that the copies I had graded were put in my pull box with mimimal handling of the book (and that they were not in groan inducing shape when they were unpacked at the comic store).

 

My store fills up all the put-away/pre-paid customers boxes before putting new issues on the rack for public purchase, so if the book is not mint when it comes out of my pull box, I am almost 100 percent sure it was dinged before my LCS owner ever laid hands on the book.

 

You want to hear something else that will make Joe C., and probably a few other forum members cringe...I am looking forward to slabbing the first issues (at least) of all of those new Marvel books/relaunches that have been hitting the store shelves lately (primarily the Tsunami books, maybe the Epic books, and then the rest of their line will be considered for slabbing if I fall in love with the condition of the comics that are in my pull box). I think many of these books will look lovely in a CGC case, and appreciate their comfy home. The condition of some of the books I have been purchasing the past few weeks has put me on

 

I am honestly not a speculator, and if I eventually have to sell my super-moderns at a loss I will do so without whining about how the comic business is falling apart. I say this, because no one forces me to spend my hard earned money grading my comics, so I am entering the choppy waters of selling CGC books with a clear head, and understand the risks. I KNOW the only guaranteed way not to lose money on CGC books is if I take pleasure in grading them, and keep the comics instead of selling them.

 

What it boils down to is that I am just an nutball who enjoys grading my moderns when I know they are in at least 9.6 condition (although more often than not, I have made a small profit selling my graded moderns).

 

Christopher H

[Smokinghawk]

Which mail-order subscription service would provide the best flat copies for someone just subscribing as an individual, not as a retailer?

 

It's nice to have "reading copies" (and I REALLY liked the USM 40 story/-script), but hey--I want some investment-grade stuff, too.

 

[Darthdiesel]

www.comic-central.com

 

www.comicsinfinity.com

[Smokinghawk]

www.comic-central.com

 

www.comicsinfinity.com

 

Megwetch, nich kihan!

 

("Thank you, friend" in Ojibway)

 

[lighthouse]

I got in 85 copies of USM 40, and there were only two that I felt were even 9.6 candidates... I was able to rule out all the rest just looking at the edge of the stack, the shrinkage ripple was so bad at the top staple... I have a half dozen mail-order customers who pay me double-cover-price to pull the best copies for them out of my shipment, and I didn't have any that qualified...

 

I would expect that 9.8 copies of USM 40 will consistently fetch over $100, because there are a few dozen collectors trying to put together complete runs in 9.8 and they are going to have a very hard time filling that particular issue...

 

Compare that to Authority v2 #1 and Venom 1 (both from the same week) where over 90% of the copies I received were 9.6+ and at least half were 9.8 candidates...

 

But there's no book as bad as Clockmaker... I could make a standing offer of $1000 for a 9.8 and never have to pay up... WTF was Image thinking???

[blowout]

Forget about what printing flaws the book has ...is the books story/art any good? Wasn't Bendis supposed to be introducing the first new 'Ultimate" villain in this issue?

[dolphinsrwj]

i honestly think that there will be a lot of 9.8s for #40.i have been hearing that about so many comics with black covers and spine damage.at first people will mabey pay high for a 9.8,but like always happens after a few weeks you start seeing them all the time.out of the comics in the last couple of years i think ultimates#2 was one of the comics that had terrible binding.i bought my 9.8 for around $25 but i really cant belive they gave it a 9.8 when i saw it up close.that is just my humble opinion.

[chrisco37]

is the books story/art any good? Wasn't Bendis supposed to be introducing the first new 'Ultimate" villain in this issue?

 

After reading it, I was trying to figure out who the villain was. I couldn't, so you might be right.

 

One thing I will say is that is was, by far, the least interesting isssue I've read. So far, I have really enjoyed the series, but this issue was pretty bad.

 

Chris

[Smokinghawk]

#40 was "laugh out loud" good. Not a hard-hitting story, but pure FUN. Bendis remembers how to make comics feel enjoyable again, whereas every other writer seems to try to make every character become "dark" and "hard" in an effort to achieve cool.

 

Incidentally, my wife has the EXACT outfit that the "transformed" MJ wears in the party splash page. Seriously. I mean, it was so eerie I told her, "Tonya, you're ni this issue!" and she didn't know what I meant. I said "just read it and see." When she got to that page she exclaimed, "omygod! She's got my outfit!"

 

I'm a very lucky man, as you can imagine. The outfit was from our past "party years" when we used to go clubbing together at various goth/industrial dance nights. Now we have kids, so we watch Frasier.

 

 

[chrisco37]

I will say, Hawk, that was one sweet outfit. And you are a lucky man indeed! I really just didn't like the issue. You thought it was fun, I thought it was pretty cliche. Now, an issue that I thought was "fun" was the issue (maybe #29?) when Pete was trying to get out of class to go fight the Rhino. By the time he get's there, Iron Man has saved the day. But, to each his own. I certainly am not going to stop reading the series.

 

Chris

[Ares]

Havent picke dup my copy yet.. What happens?

[blowout]

Havent picke dup my copy yet.. What happens?

 

You really want to know before you've read it?

[Ares]

Havent picke dup my copy yet.. What happens?

 

You really want to know before you've read it?

 

Yes I may not make it to store for a while.

I am looking for work, (laid off) SO i dont know when ill be able to journey to store to pick it up

[chrisco37]

Nothing happens. Pete tries to repair his costume. Has a little "high-school" note passing incident w/ MJ. Gwen and Pete [!@#%^&^] and moan about not being "cool". they decide to go to a party that Gwen heard about ("Let's do something for a change..." "Yeah, but nothing ever happens at these things..."). They go to the party, Pete runs into MJ (now w/ jet black hair and leather outfit). Commotion outside the party ensues. Everybody rushes outside to see what it is, and it's soem guy w/ powers blowing cars up.... To Be Continued...

 

Chris

[Darthdiesel]

Everybody rushes outside to see what it is, and it's soem guy w/ powers blowing cars up....

 

I'm real curious which Ultimate villain this will be? Pyro? Maybe the Ultimate Beyonder!

[lighthouse]

I believe his working title is "Ultimate Sell-More-Copies-Of-Issue-41"....

[blowout]

I'm real curious which Ultimate villain this will be? Pyro? Maybe the Ultimate Beyonder!

 

Darth, I am surprised you didn't know this (MR Ultimate), but the villain is supposed to be the first all-new Ultimate villain. So no revemp of an old character.

 

Can you say 'hype'?