Welcome to Cool Comics in My Collection Episode 222, 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 (except for 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. And for those who enjoy the additional fun of knowing some of the more important issues in your collection, I recognize each Cool Comic that is listed in Key Collector Comics
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.
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If you have any comments, please scroll to the bottom of the page to where it says, “Leave a Reply.” And now, Episode 222…
Cool Comics News!
As we prepare for 2020 and everything it may bring us in the world of comic books, I want to take a moment in this last episode of 2019 and wish you well for the coming year, along with hoping you have a safe and fun time of celebration on New Year’s Eve (which happens to be my wife’s birthday!), and a huge thank you of genuine gratitude from Cool Comics. There are seemingly infinite comic book blogs and sites on the Internet, and it’s humbling that some of you choose to read this one each week. Thank you for making Cool Comics a part of your Internet life.
PS: Did you get any Cool Comics stuff for Christmas? We’d love to hear about your comic book-related gifts, so feel free to share in the comments section below!
Cool Comics Battle of the Week!
Your Cool Comics Battle of the Week is Han Solo versus Flash Gordon! 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
#1126 — Doomsday Clock #12, DC, February 2020.
Remember way back in those ancient days of 2018 when Doomsday Clock was solicited as a monthly 12 issue maxiseries? The first issue is cover-dated January 2018. But after three issues, it started getting later…and later. Issue 12 finally arrived last week, with a cover date of February 2020. Okay, so they fell behind for various reasons. It happens, right? You, as the reader, had the freedom to choose dropping the title because of this publishing inconsistency. But I’m betting that most of you, like myself, waited patiently for each late issue, because the story was fascinating enough to ignore this hiccup, as long as you eventually got to read them. DC’s decision to continue playing in the Watchman Universe isn’t without controversy. Some fans refuse to support it, while others are loving this infusion of two worlds. But that’s the great part for fans. We get a choice. If you read it, how about that last page? What happens next is anyone’s guess. The cover price of Doomsday Clock #12 is $5.99, while the current value is $6. The Key Collector Comics value is $6.
#1127 — Star Wars: Empire Ascendant #1, Marvel, February 2020.
I had absolutely no intention of buying this issue that acts as a bridge for the Star Wars comics from Marvel, as they move from stories that take place after A New Hope to adventures that follow The Empire Strikes Back. As a matter of fact, 2099 Omega #1 is the comic that was going to be featured as Cool Comic #1127…but somewhere along the way, I got interested in Star Wars again and decided to try Star Wars: Empire Ascendant #1 and after reading it, there was no doubt in my mind that it’s a cooler comic than the closing of the new 2099 saga. This issue contains four stories told by the following creative teams: “Star Wars: An Echo of Victory” by Charles Soule (writer) and Luke Ross (artist); “Darth Vader: In Service to the Empire” by Greg Pak (w) and Roland Boschi (a); “Bounty Hunters: Two Sides to Every Sortie” by Ethan Sacks (w) and Paolo Villanelli (a); and “Doctor Aphra: Epilogue” by Simon Spurrier (w) and Caspar Wungaard (a). If you’re planning on reading the next waive of Star Wars comics from Marvel, you most definitely want to get your hands on this issue. The cover price of Star Wars: Empire Ascendant #1 is $5.99, while the current value is $6.
Cool Comics from the Quarter Bin
#1128 — Justice Machine #1, Comico, January 1987.
Several weeks back, as I was digging around in the quarter bins at Kenmore Komics, I found a number of Justice Machine issues from Comico (nine, to be exact), with the majority of them signed by Tony Isabella (who happens to reside in my neck of the woods). For 25 cents each. Yes, they came home with me, but there was no #1 issue in the bunch. But that was okay, because I remembered that I’d found the fabulous first issue a few months earlier. And while it may not be signed, one of the really cool aspects is that I’d recently had a conversation with the creator and artist for the series, Mike Gustovich, after discovering he had a table set up to sell his art at a craft show my wife was also involved with. I feel fortunate to live in an area that has so many 
talented comic writers and artists, and every once-in-a-while I find signed books in local quarter bins. Justice Machine is not a comic I’m familiar with (lots of stuff came out in the Eighties that I’m still discovering), but it was fun reading it, since I’ve met both Tony (on several occasions) and Mike, and I look forward to reading the other copies I’ve added to my collection. By the way, this issue contains a gatefold cover, which you can see in the additional image. The cover price of Justice Machine #1 is $1.50, while the current value is $3.
FCBD the Cool Comics Way (Week 34)
#1129 — Lumberjanes: The Shape of Friendship, BOOM! Box (an Imprint of BOOM Studios), May 2019.
If there’s one thing I know for certain each May when Free Comic Book Day rolls around, it’s that there are going to be titles not targeted towards the demographic I fall under. And that’s okay, because part of the fun of FCBD is discovering new things. And while some just aren’t for me, they might be just what you’ve been looking for, and Cool Comics aims to please. By now you’ve surely realized that Lumberjanes: The Shape of Friendship is not a comic I’m overly excited about (girls at scout camp just isn’t a setting in my wheelhouse), yet don’t despair if you’re a fan of it, because I understand. When I was young, I really enjoyed reading Dennis the Menace comics, but if I picked one up now, it wouldn’t hold the same magic for me. We grow and change over the years, and there is such variety in this hobby that we can often find something we do enjoy. And if this series is something you like, good for you. I didn’t dislike it, but I can’t say that I loved it, either. The cover price of Lumberjanes: The Shape of Friendship is free, while the current values are $0 on CBR and $1 on ZKC.
Cool Comics Kids
#1130 — Bugs Bunny #3, DC, September 1990.
Cool Comics Kids has reached the end of this enjoyable Bugs Bunny 3 issue mini-series. Every other episode over the past 5 weeks we’ve featured the issues here, with the intention of keeping a little variety in between (and perhaps a little suspense…and to keep boredom from setting in…but then again, how can you get bored with Bugs and the Looney Tunes characters, right?). But looking forward, if I happen to have an entire limited series for a category in Cool Comics, should I go episode-by-episode instead? It’s kind of rare to find entire runs like this when fishing in quarter bins, but this isn’t the only time it’s happened, so let us know your thoughts on this. Anyway, this wild adventure even takes us off planet (just look at the cover!) in this issue, which again features an all-star cast of these crazy critters from Warner Brothers. Buy this one for the kids in your life, but read it for yourself, too, just for the fun of it. The cover price of Bugs Bunny #3 is $1, while the current values are $3 on CBR and $4 on ZKC.
Cool Comics Classics
#1131 — Flash Gordon #21, Whitman/Gold Key, January 1979.
When I was young, even before I started buying comic books, the Sunday funnies were mandatory reading for me. Flash Gordon took me out of this world and into the kind of adventures that many children dreamed about during my earlier years (yes, I was around when man first walked on the moon…and the memories are still there). I thought Flash was so cool that I convinced my mom to buy me some paperback books featuring the fearless space explorer, which I read between my sixth and seventh grade years. But my best recollections of Flash, Dale, and Zarkov battling Ming the Merciless come from watching the old movie serials on TV with my father. These were special father and son bonding moments, and I wouldn’t trade them for the world. So when I saw this issue in the quarter box, I knew I had to take it home with me, read it, and fondly think about my dad, who passed away in 2001. The cover price of Flash Gordon #21 is 35¢, while the current value is $12.
Recently Read Digital Comics
While doing a little research about that Star Wars: Empire Ascendant comic that’s featured as Cool Comic #1127 above, I noticed that a good many of the collected volumes that take place between A New Hope and The Empire Strikes Back are available via Amazon Prime Reading. And since I decided to give some of the new issues a try when they start coming out in 2020, it only made sense to get a taste of what Marvel’s been doing so far with the Star Wars franchise, so I downloaded Star Wars Vol. 1: Skywalker Strikes onto the Kindle app of my tablet and found myself pleasantly surprised at how much fun these stories are. This collection contains the first 6 issues of the regular Star Wars series (which concludes at issue 75), and I intend to read as many on Amazon Prime as I can, since they come as part of your Amazon Prime membership. By the way, the first three Amazing Spider-Man Masterworks are also currently on there, along with lots of other great stuff, and you can have up to 10 on your device at a time. If you are a Prime member, check it out!
I noticed on comiXology a couple days ago that they had a few Christmas comics for free, and free fits my budget nicely. Without having to think too long about this, I downloaded them and then decided to give the Marvel Holiday Special 2011 a read on Christmas Eve before going to sleep. And while I’ve read better holiday comic books, it was entertaining enough for the price. This one features Spider-Man, Wolverine and a few other assorted X-Men, Nick Fury on a bit of a touching adventure inside the dastardly halls of Hydra, and a story that shows us what we already, know: The Thing might just have the biggest heart of all. Though Christmas 2019 is over, you may want to check and see if this one is still free so that you can read it next year before Old Saint Nick pays you a visit.
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 United 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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Views: 224
I strongly recommend that Star Wars series from Marvel that ended earlier this month. My favorite era of Star Wars is the time between Episodes 4 & 5. I give an equally high recommendation for the Darth Vader series that started at the same time.
I never saw Flash Gordon on the comic racks, only the newspaper strip. I now own several books that reprint the strips from Alex Raymond. All my Flash Gordon comics are from Dynamite in this decade. And yes he would beat Han Solo, because he would fire first and Flash isn’t missing.
I loved Doomsday Clock from start to finish. Issue #12 will be on my shortlist for comic of the year.
Action Ace, I have downloaded Vol. 2 of that Star Wars series via Kindle Prime Reading. They also have several volumes of the Darth Vader series, so I will give that a try too, at some point.
Flash is up 1-0 on Han Solo! Thanks for your input.
Doomsday Clock was certainly quite the event, and I think the creative team did a great job, regardless of following behind.
Thanks for being an important part of Cool Comics!