Welcome to Cool Comics in My Collection Episode 45, where we take a nostalgic look at six cool comic books I currently own, and one that I let get away.
For each of the comic books below, I list the current secondary market value. This is according to the listings at the website www.comicbookrealm.com. They list out the near mint prices, which are on the comic book grading scale of 9.4. If you go to the website to look up any in your collection, you can click on the price and see the value at different grades. Not all of my comics are 9.4. Some are probably better, and some are worse. But to simplify it, that’s the grading price I use here. And remember, a comic book is only worth what someone is willing to pay for it.
Have you considered being a guest host for Cool Comics? You can do a theme or just pick any of your comics for inclusion (this blog is for all ages, so please keep that in mind), as long as there are seven comics in your episode (you can still own all seven, or do it like me and include one you no longer own). Repeat guest hosts are permitted and encouraged. Send your completed blog to edgosney62@gmail.com.
If you have any questions or comments, please scroll to the bottom of the page to where it says, “Leave a reply.” I hope you enjoy seeing these as much as I do writing about them. And now, Episode 45…
Cool comics in my collection #288: Legends #1, November 1986.
It’s limited series week, and I’m starting off with Legends from DC Comics. This series fell in-between my second and third phases of comic collecting, and I picked it up from back issue boxes once I fell in love with comics again in the Nineties. I’d always liked the “Shazam!” Captain Marvel character, and when I saw he was in it, I searched them all out for about a dollar apiece. This issue also features the first appearance of Amanda Waller, so if you didn’t know that before and you are into the Suicide Squad movie that will soon be released, you might want to add it to your collection. But how can you resist a cover with Darkseid? That’s certainly reason enough to read this fun series from the Eighties. The cover price of Legends #1 is 75 cents, while the current value is $15.
Cool comics in my collection #289: Crisis on Infinite Earths #2, May 1985.
Crisis is another comic series I missed out on in the mid-Eighties that was a must buy when I started reading again. There were some references to it in some of the DC titles I was reading, so I wanted to get the scoop myself. And understand that in 1993, I couldn’t just look up the information on my smartphone. It was a completely different world from the one we live in today. So I searched at my local comic shop in Atlanta, Georgia, and found some of the issues for a dollar each. Yet my collection wasn’t complete until I went to a small comic book show in Georgia and searched through back issues. It was a great feeling to find the last few issues I needed to complete my collection of this series. Say all you want about the convenience of the Internet in both finding items you can buy immediately or just getting the basic storyline of a series, it really doesn’t match the euphoric feeling of looking for something over a period of months, or even years sometimes, and at last having it within your grasp. The cover price of Crisis on Infinite Earths #2 is 75 cents, while the current value is $5.
Cool comics in my collection #290: Kingdom Come #2, June 1996.
When I started buying comic books again in the Nineties, it was very different from my collecting as both a kid in the Seventies and my college years in the early Eighties. Now I wanted to learn more about the creators, the artists and writers and editors. And I wanted to know how to store them properly, find out what titles would be coming out in the future, and just enjoy the fandom through monthly magazines. One of the tools of the trade is Previews, a thick catalog that tells what comics will be coming out by what companies in advance, so that you could tell your local comic book shop what titles to hold for you. Which was also a new concept for me. At any rate, when I saw Kingdom Come in an issue of Previews and read the description, it was a no-brainer to put on my list. I loved the art and story, and continually enjoyed learning more about the DC universe. If you’ve never read it, I strongly recommend that you search it out. The cover price of Kingdom Come #2 is $4.95, while the current value is $8.
Cool comics in my collection #291: Marvels #3, March 1994.
Marvels is a visual feast for comic book lovers, much like Kingdom Come. The art is beautiful, and the story is a tribute to both the history of Marvel Comics and comic fans alike. I’m a big fan of limited series, and this is definitely one of my favorites. If you don’t care for the Marvel brand, it probably means nothing to you, but if you enjoy the characters, this is a fun way to see their history through other eyes. As the years disappear too quickly and I look back on comic book memories, nothing beats the feelings I had of walking into the little shop in my hometown of Martins Ferry, Ohio, and looking at the beautiful newsstand full of 25 cent issues. Marvels made me feel that way all over again. If you haven’t read it, and you don’t want to think about the encroaching twilight we all must face if we happen to be so blessed, do yourself a favor and feel like a kid again with Marvels. The cover price of Marvels #3 is $5.95, while the current value is $8.
Cool comics in my collection #292: Marvel Super Hero Contest of Champions #2, July 1982.
I made a brief foray back into comic books during parts of my Freshman and Sophomore years at Ohio State. Thanks to a really cool roommate also named Ed, he showed me some fun titles and got me hooked on one of my childhood passions again. As I said, it wasn’t for very long, but I had fun while it lasted, and this Limited Series was a blast. So many heroes were included you practically needed charts and graphs to keep things straight! But this was perfect for me at the time, as it re-introduced me to some old favorites and allowed me to read about some newer characters I wasn’t familiar with. Most people wouldn’t consider this story anything great, but for me it came out at the right time and I really enjoyed it and have kept it in my collection. The cover price of Marvel Super Hero Contest of Champions #2 is 60 cents, while the current value is $4.
Cool comics in my collection #293: Marvel Super Heroes Secret Wars #1, May 1984.
Marvel Super Heroes Secret Wars was another cool mini-series that I missed out on, as it fell between comic collecting periods for me. I do remember there was lots of merchandising going on, and even commercials on TV for action figures. But I didn’t pay much attention to comics or toys at that time. Then when the Nineties rolled around and I got back into comic collecting big time, I hunted down the issues so I could read the series. I like the cover of this issue, with so many characters leaping off the page right at you! A few years back when I had to get rid of most of my collection, this definitely wasn’t going anywhere. The cover price of Marvel Super Heroes Secret Wars #1 is 75 cents, while the current value is $10.
Cool comics in my collection #294 (One that got away): Out of the Vortex #1, October 1993.
In the early nineties, way back to the time that Superman died and Batman had his back broken by Bane, I started reading and collecting comic books again with unbridled passion. So much passion that I was trying companies other than just Marvel and DC so that I could see what was out there. Some were good, and some I could have done without. I decided to give this Dark Horse limited series, Out of the Vortex, a try. Part of the problem was that I had no idea who these characters were, and didn’t have any emotional or nostalgic ties to them. Of course this always happens when you try out a new character, but with this 12 issue series, there were lots of new characters. I came away not really caring, so this collection was sold in my giant comic book garage sale a few years ago. No offense if you have read these and like them. I just didn’t connect with the characters and stories. The cover price of Out of the Vortex #1 is $2, while the current value is $2.25.
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I love this list!
I am also a huge fan of ’80’s and ’90’s limited series. I really felt that was where the great stories were being told during that era. Kindgom Come and Marvels were the true standouts of the nineties and, of course, Crisis and Secret Wars were the big ones that started it all.
I loved a lot of the smaller limited series that were going in the 80’s for the “smaller” characters of each side of the aisle. Aquaman had a really cool 4 parter where they introduced the “blue camo” suit, and that one is still one of my favorites. There was the 4 part “Machine Man” limited that BWS provided art for and the 4 part “Jack of Hearts” that really changed my view of him as a character.
DC really got into it for a while with certain deluxe edition limited series. DKR was a huge one, as was Miller’s “Ronin”. But Neil Geiman and McKean’s gorgeous three part “Black Orchid” was incredible, as was “The Books of Magic”. Then there were the ripples from Crisis, like “Hawkworld” and “The History of the DC Universe.”
So much great stuff. I wish they told more stories like that instead of the (seemingly) endless crossovers of today.
Thanks, Rob, I’m glad you love it? And what about anyone else? Are there some mini-series that you especially like that aren’t here, or do you have opinions about any of these?
Marvels is one of my all time fave series. Just wonderful art and story. I also enjoyed the original secret wars as well.