I started posting “cool comics in my collection” daily on my Facebook page, and decided to collect them here, each time I hit seven of them. It may happen in a week, or possibly longer, depending on life. You’ll notice that every seventh comic I list is one that I no longer own. My collection became so large that I had to make cuts a few years ago, although I did sell some of them to a comic shop when I was in college in the 80s, and I regret several that I parted with (like the first Wolverine mini-series).
Before we become writers, we learn to love reading, and comic books have some great adventures, which definitely influenced the way I tell stories. At one time I really wanted to be a comic book writer, and I had two fan letters published, one in an Iron Man issue and one in an issue of Peter Parker, The Spectacular Spider-Man. I also am the proud recipient of a coveted “No-Prize,” if you are old enough to remember them.
I welcome any comments you might have, and hope you enjoy seeing these as much as I do writing about them. So here we go….
Cool comics in my collection #1: Marvel Premiere #47, March 1979.
Several times a week I will show you some of the cool comic books I own (maybe I’ll sometimes show you the ones I mistakenly let get away). First up is Marvel Premiere #47. It’s the first appearance of Scott Lang as Ant-Man (with the movie that came out, I thought this one would be fun to start with). The cover price is just 35 cents, while the current price is around $140.
Cool comics in my collection #2: The Amazing Spider-Man #121, June 1973.
Here is one of my prize comics, although the condition isn’t great. The Amazing Spider-Man #121 came out in 1973 and shocked the comic book world by killing off someone important in Peter Parker’s life – his girlfriend, Gwen Stacy. I bought this from The Paradox Bookstore in Wheeling, WV, secondhand, for a measly 10 cents. The cover price is 20 cents, and today’s current value is around $700, but condition means everything, and mine has the old subscriber four-fold. But it’s a key comic, and the price was right!
Cool comics in my collection #3: Legion of Super-Heroes #290, August 1982.
The start of The Great Darkness Saga, featuring the awesome DC villain, Darkseid. While this issue is currently listed at just $12, it’s one of my prize comics because a friend I met my freshman year (at Ohio State) got me back into reading them after a hiatus of several years. Can you believe the cover price of just 60 cents, compared to today’s prices? They made this five issue series into a trade paperback, but I’m glad I have the original issues, buying them as they came out.
Cool comics in my collection #4: Captain America #166, October 1973.
The first Captain America comic I ever bought. The cover definitely attracted me, because of the mummies we can see battling Cap and the Falcon. The villain is the Yellow Klaw. This comic also features Nick Fury, Dum Dum Dugan, Agent 13 (Sharon Carter), and Peggy Carter, all familiar names if you’ve been watching the Captain America movies. Again, you have to love the cover price of 20 cents. The current listed value is $20.
Cool comics in my collection #5: The Defenders #1, August 1972.
I wish I could say I bought this one straight off the rack, because that would be cooler, but I didn’t get my hands on this gem until sometime around the year 2000, at Kenmore Komics in Akron, Ohio. At the time, I believe I paid around $1, a shocking 5 times the cover price! But currently, this comic is selling at $250, so I think it was a pretty good deal. And how can you go wrong when you have the Hulk, Namor, and Doctor Strange all on the cover? This is a key Marvel issue that should only keep increasing in value. Excelsior!
Cool comics in my collection #6: Ms. Marvel #18, June 1978.
Another one I didn’t buy off the rack, but got for maybe 50 cents or a dollar sometime in the 1990s. This issue presents the third overall appearance of Raven Darkholme (also known as Mystique), and her first full appearance. This issue also has Beast, Namorita, Scarlet Witch, Vision, Wasp, Wonder Man, Yellowjacket, and Tiger Shark. The cover price is just 35 cents, so I didn’t pay much more than I would have in 1978. And it’s a great issue to have, with a current value of $120. Make Mine Marvel!
Yes, I once owned the comic that became a media circus, because when DC announced that they would be killing off Superman, the story became big news. It wasn’t the first time the Man of Steel was killed, but the papers and TV picked up on it and everyone wanted a copy. My father actually got the coveted black bagged edition for me. The cover price is $2.50, and it’s currently valued at $18. This is the comic that started me collecting again after a decade off, continuing until 2003. As you can imagine,my collection became too large, and I had to cull the herd. And because I have the entire story in a trade paperback, I decided to part with this one at a garage sale. The issue has a great fight between Superman and Doomsday, in case you left yours sealed and never read it.
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