Discussing the minutiae of comic book collecting.
Discussing the minutiae of comic book collecting.
Dark Horse’s first foray into the Artist’s Edition market, Robocop Versus The Terminator Gallery Edition hits all the right notes. One of the most beloved comics crossovers of all time is back to usher in Dark Horse’s new gallery edition…
As a collector of various things for more than 50 years and, specifically, as a collector of Canadian war-time comics for the last two years or so, I have had pause to step outside myself and take an up high and a little to the side look at myself and this activity, pastime, or, some (specifically wives) would say, a kind of pathology, that has echoed in us down through history. With Fan Expo looming, in this column I want to examine what has put the wind in my collecting sails over this past half century and hope that it makes some sense at one point or another.
The Spotlight format only allows passing references and hopefully some insightful tidbits sprinkled here and there. In other words I have to pick a book worthy of a birthday tribute to the Man. I’ve picked Superman’s Pal Jimmy Olsen #133 because this book sticks out among the books that stick out, it represents Jack Kirby embarking on the most ambitious project of his career.
There are only a few short days left before this year’s Fan Expo. Fan Expo will be August 28-31 at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre in Toronto. Fan Expo is one of those events that is very polarizing. Some people love…
It has been a while since I’ve followed the Astonishing X-Men comic book series. I hadn’t really followed this series since the great early issues by Joss Whedon and John Cassaday, so I decided to read up on Astonishing X-Men issues # 44 to 47, which was the “Exalted” storyline done by the creative team of Greg Pak, Mike McKone, and Rachelle Rosenberg.
A gathering of wonderful art spotted by yours truly at the Heritage Signature Auction #7097.
While some evidence of restoration can be revealed by viewing a book in natural daylight and using a magnification loupe, my favourite tool in detecting restoration (both amateur and professional) is my UVA blacklight.
“DEAR DOC CURMUDGEON” IS A COLUMN BY CLINT McELROY, MADE UP OF COMPLETELY FABRICATED RESPONSES TO MOSTLY FABRICATED QUESTIONS. BUT YOU KNEW THAT, DUE TO YOUR DISCERNING NATURE AND BRILLIANT MIND WHICH WOULD NEVER FALL FOR A COLUMNIST TRYING TO…
This week Comic Culture hosts Chris Owen and Walter Durajlija try to dive back in after a 3 week break. They chit chat about comic book type stuff. Oh and as always they are joined by show producer Shekky Feldstein.…
The first Artist's Edition from IDW without a single complete issue or story arc, Dave Gibbons Watchmen Artifact Edition is a collection of what original art could be located within someone's timeframe.
Harry Joseph Brunt was born on Nov. 22, 1918 in Chicago but his family seems to have settled in the Toronto-Hamilton area a few years after he was born. Brunt started to work for Bell features as one of its artists while he was in his mid-twenties around the Christmas season of 1943. The nature of his contribution to these comics consisted of two or three page featurettes that were cartoony and goofy and invariably had an alliterative name.
My second favorite Batman story is probably a lot less known. When I returned to the wonderful world of comics after my 10 year hiatus, I found that a lot of my favorite Silver Age artists were gone or not producing nearly as much work any more. One of my favorite discoveries after my return was a series called Gotham Central. Which introduced me to one Michael Lark. Now I loved this series! I found Larks approach refreshing yet somewhat familiar. His ability to tell a story within the story drew me to his work as both an artist and a comics fan. His ability to make a very "talky" story interesting , even if it was two people having a conversation most of the time , reminded me of Gene Colan. Not in style at all but in substance.
Avengers #3, January 1964, Marvel Comics I received a very nice email from Mike Huddleston a few days back. Mike, who regularly contributes to CBD with his fantastic Arcs and Runs posts, was being a heck of a nice guy in serving…
My fellow Simcoe County Avenger, Dee, and I were invited to the store for the Grand Opening. We were happy to attend, especially when it's a chance to get out and have fun in Cosplay. Dee went as Valkyrie which was modified to be Thor (perhaps a possibility of what will happen in the comics) and I went as Thor and Captain America. It was fun with us both being "Thor" at the same time. It did piqué the interest of some people who stopped to see us, and we took the opportunity talking to people about the change with Thor.
A gathering of wonderful art spotted by yours truly at the Heritage Signature Auction #7097.
One of my go to comic characters from the 60’s was Daredevil. He was easier than most comic characters for me to relate to. No real super powers, Matt Murdock had acquired enhanced sensory powers when he lost his sight in an accident while trying to save someone when he was just a kid. He didn’t let his loss of sight slow him down and the youngster grew up to be a successful lawyer and the longstanding crime fighting hero Daredevil. My initial comic reading of this character took place in the issue’s #20 thru #53 time period. Our arc and run feature today take’s place right in the middle of this run and we also take a quick jump over to the Fantastic 4 to complete our story. Let’s take a look at this run, broken into four story arcs.
This train of thought got me wondering about those books that have no real financial value at all. That is you could probably find them in quarter bins or bargain basement section of your local comic book shop. These comic books probably wouldn't ever be worth anything, but they have one redeeming value; they are great stories. They are these amazing little gems that for whatever reason will never be a big book or sought after by any collector except for the absolute completionist, but man are they great stories. Here are 3 of my favourite hidden gems.
A look at a brief period of work from a classic DC artist, Buck Rogers in the 25th Century: The Complete Murphy Anderson Sundays, 1958-1959 is a niche product aimed at a very small audience.
This week I want to talk about a significant comic from the late WECA period, Slam-Bang Comics No. 7, with a cover date of May, 1946. (Jim Finlay informs me that his indicia for this issue has the date July, 1946 pencilled in, maybe with the May date whited out? Anybody else have a copy they could check?) It took the cover banner from Fawcett’s short live run of a same titled series of 7 issues from 1940, but why it began in Canada with an initial number 7 is still a mystery. Perhaps it was some sort of nod or licensing response to the Fawcett run, but who knows?
Man-Thing #1, Marvel Comics, January 1974 The success of the Guardians of the Galaxy movie has reignited some of the key comics associated with the team. Marvel Superheroes #18, Hulk #271, Marvel Preview #7 and Guardians Vol 2 #1 have…
It's been almost two years since I wrote the last installment to this feature, but I thought it would be fun to clear out the cobwebs and get some answers from "the people over there". Get ready to "Woof, woof, woof" and come up with some creative answers.