Cool Comics Celebrates 4 Years with Monsters and the Forever Man!

Welcome to Cool Comics in My Collection Episode 208, where we look at various comic books I own (and in some cases ones that I let get away), both new and old, often with a nostalgic leaning for those feelings of yesteryear. I hope you have as much fun reading about them as I had writing about these cool comics!

For each of the comic books I include here, I list the current secondary market pricing (with the exception of digital issues, which don’t have collectible value). This is according to the websites ComicBookRealm.com (CBR) and Zap-Kapow Comics (ZKC), using the comic book grading scale of 9.4 (if both sites have the same price, you’ll find just one price for that issue). Not all my comics meet that grade. Some are probably better, and some are certainly worse. But to simplify it, that’s the scale I use here. And remember, a comic book is only worth what someone is willing to pay for it.

Did you know that you can be a guest host for Cool Comics? It’s your chance to show off some of your favorite comics in your personal collection! Just pick any of your comics for inclusion (this blog is for all ages, so please keep that in mind), with a maximum of seven issues. Repeat guest hosts are permitted and encouraged. To submit your completed blog (or if you have any questions), write to edgosney62@gmail.com.

The Cool Comics In My Collection Facebook Group is a place where you can discuss the comics you love, your favorite titles, and the characters that keep you coming back for more. Also, creators are welcome to share news about what you are working on, including Kickstarter campaigns. And don’t forget the prizes. Yes, Cool Comics gives away cool prizes. Be sure and join today!

If you have any comments, please scroll to the bottom of the page to where it says, “Leave a Reply.” And now, Episode 208…

Cool Comics News!

Guess what? This is episode 208, so when we do a little math (believe me, I’m not a fan of math, but it comes in handy sometimes, doesn’t it?) and divide 52 (the number of weeks in a year) into 208, and we come up with…four…four years of publishing Cool Comics! Break out the cake, candles, and comics, celebrate along with us, and have yourself a fantastic weekend!

Cool Comics Battle of the Week!

Your Cool Comics Battle of the Week is Loki the All-Butcher versus Chakan the Forever Man! What do you think would happen if they faced each other in a titanic tussle, and how do you see the winner achieving victory? Let us know in the comments section below.

Cool Comics In My Collection

Contemporary Cool Comics

#1037 — Gotham City Monsters #1, DC, November 2019.

As many of you know, I wasn’t a monster comic book reader in my youth. I’d see books on the store shelves like House of Mystery and Werewolf By Night (and believe me, in the Seventies, there were way more than these two titles), but my money ended up getting spent on Spider-Man and other superheroes. I did appreciate scary movies, and purchased some monster magazines on occasion, but that was about it. These days, I have a yearning to get in on what I missed in my youth, so I grab horror and monster titles from the past, but I also keep my eye out for new titles that I may have an interest in. And when you see a comic called “Gotham City Monsters” and find out that Frankenstein is in it, it’s a no-brainer that it’s getting added to my pull list. Gotham City Monsters is a 6-issue mini-series, and if the first issue is any indication, I’m going to be sad when it’s all over. I don’t have as much history with DC titles as I do Marvel, so some of these monsters aren’t as familiar, such as Andrew Bennett, vampire. As I read his section, I had trouble recalling what else I’d seen him in, but I know I’ve meet him before, at one point or another. And Frankenstein is a DC character I have a certain fondness for, even though I’ve not read much with him in it. Typically, Dr. Frankenstein’s creation is referred to as the monster, but in DC, I guess they look at him as if he’s an offspring of the doctor, which I have no problem with. By the way, I looked the character up and learned that Frankenstein has been a part of DC Comics since 1948, which is really cool. Do you get the picture that I like this series so far? The cover price of Gotham City Monsters #1 is $3.99, while the current value is $4.

#1038 — King Thor #1, Marvel, November 2019.

Jason Aaron has been writing Thor stories for a long, long time! The cover of this new mini-series states that this is the conclusion to a story “Seven Years In The Making!” While I’ve missed out on most of it (I was on a comic book sabbatical from 2003 until 2017), I’ve enjoyed what I’ve read, and this first issue of the end is pretty cool. I’ve seen other stories set in a far-flung future, complete with Thor looking as old as Odin and his three granddaughters having adventures of their own, but now things are much more serious. Why, you ask? Okay, I’ll tell you…but just a little…it’s because now this ancient Thor has to go up against Loki the All-Butcher. He’s the same Loki, but yet not the same Loki. What’s new? The Trickster is joined with an ancient force called the All-Black. If you want to know more, you can buy it (it’s billed as being a 4-issue mini) or try to find spoilers on the Internet. My recommendation is to buy it. The cover price of King Thor #1 is $3.99, while the current value is $4.

Cool Comics Done Dirt Cheap

#1039 — X-Force #13, Marvel, August 1992.

In Cool Comics #1038 (it’s directly above, but I wanted to sound a little fancy on my four-year anniversary!), I brought up the sad fact that I had a comic book sabbatical. And during this break, I thought the relationship was over for good. Part of the problem was white boxes were taking over my house, so not only did I quit, but I had a garage sale that you really wish you had attended. I sold about 8,000 comics at that sale for just a quarter each. And amongst those comics was pretty much my entire “X” collection, and I had a pretty sizable collection. So it didn’t hurt my feelings one bit when I found this X-Force title in my legendary longbox (over a year ago, I bought a longbox that was stuffed with 419 comic books for just $20; hence, Cool Comics Done Dirt Cheap). Reading it brought back lots of memories of characters like Cannonball, G.W. Bridge, Rictor, and many, many more. These days, to keep a little sanity and space in my home, I sometimes read a legendary longbox comic and then put it in a garage sale box. But with the memories this issue invoked, I may just keep this one around for a while. The cover price of X-Force #13 is $1.25, while the current values are $3 on CBR and $4 on ZKC.

FCBD the Cool Comics Way (Week 20)

#1040 — Dragonfly & Dragonflyman #1, Ahoy Comics, May 2019.

If you read the six-issue series The Last Earth that launched in 2018 from Ahoy Comics, then you’re already familiar with Dragonfly and Dragonflyman. But if you missed out, you can really catch the flavor of these two heroes from two different Earths with this Free Comic Book Day issue. Did you take a chance on it and read it yet? Most stores that participate in FCBD limit customers on just how many free comic books they can take (which makes sense, because the stores pay for these issues…so a great way to help support FCBD is by making some additional purchases, even if you just get some comic supplies like bags, backing boards, and boxes), so you often have to make decisions on just what comics to try. This was a very entertaining story, written by Tom Peyer, with art by Russ Braun. The issue also contains a Captain Ginger story by Stuart Moore, and a couple of other shorts. It’s well worth the current back issue price if you missed out on this one. The cover price of Dragonfly & Dragonflyman #1 is free, while the current value is $1.

Cool Comics Kids

#1041 — Bugs Bunny #242, Whitman, May 1983.

While I can imagine a number of Cool Comics readers don’t particularly care much about Cool Comics Kids, it’s a really fun part of my week. When I started donating to ComicBooks For Kids (see information below if you’ve never heard of them, and don’t miss out on their new coloring book!), I wanted to do something beyond just giving money, so in the spirit of the charitable organization, I’ve dedicated this section of Cool Comics to issues that are safe and fun for younger readers. Many of us started reading comic books when we were kids and have terrific memories of reading fun stuff that wasn’t about superheroes (I was a big reader of Dennis the Menace…especially the digests), and therefore this section is to help you discover comics you can get for the young ones in your life, or just for yourself, because it should be about fun, right? Anyway, this Bugs Bunny issue has four stories that are sure to put a smile on your face. The cover price is 60¢, while the current value is $16.

Cool Comics Classics

#1042 — Chakan, the Forever Man #1, RAK Graphics, December 1993.

I’m new to the world of Chakan, the Forever man, but better late than never, right? I’m not a gamer, so I wasn’t familiar with that aspect of the character either (if you don’t know, there is a Sega Chakan game that came out in the Nineties). But it just so happens that the creator of Chakan, Robert A. Kraus (RAK), lives in the same area as I do, so I’ve gotten to know him a bit from a monthly gathering of comic book aficionados, along with talking to him at local cons. At the Cleveland Comic & Toy show earlier this month, I knew it was time to give Chakan a try, so it was fortunate for me that RAK was set up there, and I came away with some of the most fantastic Chakan comics and novellas a comic lover could ever imagine. Chakan’s really a tragic character who you can’t help but root for, and I can’t recommend these stories enough. Published in black and white, the art perfectly captures the mood and tone of these tales. But RAK didn’t create these like typical comic books. Though the stories contain dialogue, the writing doesn’t appear in speech balloons. You quickly grow accustomed to the style, and this method really allows the art to talk on the page. If you ever get a chance to meet RAK or read Chakan, I strongly recommend doing both. The cover price of Chakan, the Forever Man #1 is $5, while the current value is $5

Recently Read Digital Comics

The other day I finely made my way through the interviews at the back of Marvel Graphic Novel #5: X-Men: God Loves, Man Kills. When reading lots of digital text on a tablet, you usually have to do the old finger maneuver to spread the page wide to enlarge the text, and the entire process adds some extra eye strain. But I never want to skip out on these pieces because it’s always interesting to get some background on these important stories. At the time it came out, this was considered one of the best and most important X-Men stories ever told, and it is still a story read and talked about today. It was also influential in the making of the movie X2: X-Men United. This one-shot typically sells on comiXology for $3.99, but I was able to get it on Amazon for just 99 cents during a big sale on Marvel digital titles. If you’re an X-Fan and have never read it, it’s a part of history you don’t want to miss out on.

ComicBooks For Kids!

ComicBooks For Kids! (CB4K) is a charity that Cool Comics In My Collection is honored to be working with. CB4K provides comic books to kids in hospitals and cancer centers all across the Unites States. You can check their website and see if your local hospital is included and if not, you can work with them to get them included! If you like what you see, please help them out and follow/like their Facebook page. Their link is https://www.facebook.com/comicbooksforkids/

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