Welcome to Cool Comics in My Collection episode 377, 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 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 many are certainly worse. But to simplify it, that’s the scale I use. 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.
If you have any comments, please scroll to the bottom of the page to where it says, “Leave a Reply.” And now, episode 377…
Cool Comics Stuff!
Below are some of the highlights from GalaxyCon 2022 in Columbus, Ohio, December 2-4. As you can see, my wife and I had a fantastic time!
Friday night, we arrived, signed in, and proceeded to John de Lancie’s Q&A…with heavy emphasis on the Q!
Pics with John de Lancie.
Superman! With Tom Welling from the TV series Smallville.
The Flash! John Wesley Shipp was super nice!
Superman Returns! Brandon Routh has portrayed both Superman and the Atom, and he also had a role in Chuck!
David Gerrold, the creator of Tribbles for Star Trek!
And an autograph from David Gerrold on a copy of a special tribute of The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction!
John Glover! Do I like him better as Lionel Luthor (Smallville) or Brice Cummings (Scrooged)?
Panel Q&A with Ashley Eckstein, the voice of Ahsoka Tano!
Ashley Eckstein had a large crowd at her panel and her autograph line.
It’s Jim Shooter signing a poster!
From American Graffiti to Jaws to Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Richard Dreyfuss ruled the box office. It was awesome to meet an Academy Award winner!
Gates McFadden from Star Trek: The Next Generation!
Jonathan Frakes, also from Star Trek: The Next Generation, was super nice!
Kyle Higgins holding up a trade paperback edition of Radiant Black that he signed for us!
Lana Lang! Kristin Kreuk looks happy to be a part of Cool Comics!
Sunday Smallville panel!
The Fifth Element! There were lots of cosplayers at GalaxyCon 2022.
Cool Comics Battle of the Week!
The Cool Comics Battle of the Week is Jughead versus Dennis the Menace! 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 Creations!
This episode’s Cool Comics Creation, by artist Sydney Walton, is the Demogorgon from the Netflix hit series, Stranger Things! The awesome image, complete with Christmas lights, will take you back to the first season of Upside Down craziness in Hawkins, Indiana! The art is all hand-painted with acrylic paints. Syd is always taking commissions, so don’t hesitate to contact him for a cool cover or other fantastic creations. You can find him on Facebook at Syd’s Altruistic Art, or contact him via email at swaltoniii@aol.com.
You can have a piece of your art (or an original piece of art that you own) featured right here in Cool Comics Creations! Just send an electronic file in an email featuring one of your drawings, whether you’re a professional or amateur, (it can be just pencils, or inks too…or full color if you prefer) or a picture of a craft or sculpture that you’ve done, and if it’s family friendly (and not controversial…let’s try to keep this fun), you’ll be a part of an upcoming Cool Comics episode. We also want your name, an optional picture of yourself to go here, and any other background information you want to provide, such as a website or a way you can be contacted about your art (who knows, maybe someone will make you an offer for the original!). And then email it to edgosney62@gmail.com.
Cool Comics In My Collection
Cool Comics from the 21st Century
#1901 — Archie Christmas Spectacular #1, Archie, January 2023.
Cool Factor: For some of us, it just isn’t Christmas without Archie and the gang from Riverdale. There were years when I wasn’t buying comics, and I had no new Archie Christmas comics to read, but I often found my thoughts turning to them and the fun I had reading them during my younger days. When I purged thousands of comics about seven or eight years ago, I kept all my Archies, many of them Christmas issues, and looking back, I’m glad I did. Even now I can take myself back in my mind to those days of sitting in bed in late December, during the Seventies, reading about the fun times the teens were having in Riverdale during the yuletide season. Perhaps you can’t go home again, but Christmas with Archie tends to get me a little closer.
Comic Book Credits: Cover – Bill & Ben Galvan with Rosario “Tito” Peña; Christmas Pie Guy – Tom DeFalco (writer), Holly G! (pencils), and Bob Smith (inks); Holiday Lights – Bill Golliher (story/pencils) and Jim Amash (inks); O Christmas Tree – Dan Parent (story/pencils) and Bob Smith (inks); Santa Baby – Dan Parent (story/pencils) and Bob Smith (inks); Santa Con Carne – Ron Robbins (story), The Fab K-Bros (pencils), and Jim Amash (inks); Glenn Whitmore (colors), Jack Morelli (letters), and the editorial team of Jamie Lee Rotante, Vincent Lovallo, and Stephen Oswald.
Price and Values: The cover price of Archie Christmas Spectacular #1 is $2.99, while the current value is $3.
Media Tie-In Cool Comics
#1902 — Dragonslayer #2, Marvel, November 1981 (Original Source: Movie).
Cool Factor: Last episode I featured Dragonslayer #1 for the Media Tie-In category, and since I enjoyed reading it so much, it was an easy choice to go ahead and read the concluding issue to see how the story ended. As I mentioned last week, I never saw the movie, and I don’t ever recall hearing about it, but the creators of the comic version pulled me in to this fun fantasy adventure. If you did see the movie and are a fan, you may want to hunt down these two issues to add to your collection.
Comic Book Credits: Denny O’Neil (script), Marie Severin (pencils/colors/cover art), John Tartaglione (inks), Joe Rosen (letters: page one), Irv Watanabe (letters), and Jim Shooter (editor). Adapted from the screenplay by Hal Barwood and Matthew Robbins.
Price and Values: The cover price of Dragonslayer #2 is 50¢, while the current values are $4 on CBR and $3 on ZKC.
Cool Comics Celebrates FCBD (Week 32 of 2022)
#1903 — Jonna and the Unpossible Monsters, Oni Press, May 2022.
Cool Factor: Free Comic Book Day (FCBD), for me, continues to be a great source of delight. It’s an opportunity to discover new characters, creators, and companies, and sometimes old and familiar names. While Jonna and the Unpossible Monsters isn’t a comic I’ve read before (this FCBD issue is a reprint of the first issue, which has a March 2021 cover date), I am a fan of writer and artist Chris Samnee, who does the art for one of my favorite comics, Fire Power. With this freebie, I’m able to see more of his art, and what his writing is like. So, while some people don’t care much about the whole free comic book thing, I really appreciate it!
Comic Book Credits: Chris Samnee (script/art), Laura Samnee (script), Matthew Wilson (colors), Crank! (letters), Robin Herrera (editor), and Zack Soto (editor).
Price and Values: The cover price of Jonna and the Unpossible Monsters is free, while the current value is $1.
Cool Comics for the Young at Heart
#1904 — Dennis the Menace Bonus Magazine Series #123, Fawcett, October 1973.
Cool Factor: For some of us, it just isn’t Christmas without Dennis the Menace. Yes, I realize I made the same basic statement above, for Archie. And it’s kind of true. A reader requested that I include a Dennis the Menace Christmas comic, and I was more than happy to pull one out of a box and reread it, which, of course, made me feel young at heart! The difference, though, is that the Archie comic has a new story, but Dennis the Menace comics are now a thing of the past. Which makes it even more special to include one from my childhood. I started reading Dennis comics a few years before discovering Archie (which seems like a natural progression), and a flood of nostalgia poured over me as I lay in my bed and reread this last week. It seems hard to believe that I first read this issue 49 years ago. And while it wasn’t quite the same experience as before, I may just take this one out of the box and read it again in another 49 years.
Comic Book Credits: No known credits. Story titles for this issue are: Oh Christmas Tree, OW! Christmas Tree!; Black Marks and Bright Stars…; Hello, Kid-Dough!; and Early Christmas.
Price and Values: The cover price of Dennis the Menace Bonus Magazine Series #123 is 35¢, while the current values are $12 on CBR and $10 on ZKC.
Cool Comics from the 20th Century
#1905 — Batman and the Outsiders #30, DC, February 1986.
Cool Factor: I’ve always loved superhero team books, and though Batman and the Outsiders ran during a period in which I wasn’t buying new comics, I’ve been able to put together a modest collection (very modest) from fishing in quarter bins. And this series has a personal appeal to me for a couple of reasons: I’ve gotten to know the writer, Mike W. Barr, a bit over the last several years, and the title also includes Black Lightning, and I’ve had opportunity to speak with Tony Isabella, the creator, several times, also (both most recently at Akron Comicon this past November).
Comic Book Credits: Mike W. Barr (writer/editor), Alan Davis (Cover & Interior pencils/inks), John Workman (letterer), Adrienne Roy (colors), and Barbara Randall (associate editor).
Price and Values: The cover price of Batman and the Outsiders #30 is 75¢, while the current values are $4 on CBR and $3 on ZKC.
Cool Comics Reader Reviews!
By Ed Gosney
The Edge #1
The Edge is another Comicsburgh title I picked up at Akron Comicon back in November from creator Marvin Wynn (and if you click the cover, you can see his signature in the top right corner).
Everything about The Edge #1 is appealing: the story is intriguing and well-written, the art looks good and helps tell the story, the colors pop and help draw your eyes to the action, and even the lettering job caught my attention.
If you enjoy team books with action and great characters, I recommend giving The Edge #1 a try. You can order issues at The Edge website and learn more about what The Edge is (a steroid or enhancement that gives the user certain abilities), along with the characters and other fun information.
The creative team for The Edge consists of:
- Marvin Wynn (Writer/Creator)
- Mark Louie VuycanKiat (Pencils/Art Director)
- Jaymes Reed (Letters/Design)
- Luis Antonio Delgado (Colors)
- Steven Lisefski (Colors)
- King Bola (Colors)
Exciting things are happening at Comicsburgh, as their titles will be offered in Previews starting in 2023. You can follow updates by checking out Marvin Wynn’s substack, which also includes links, art, and even The Edge Strike theme song!
Would you like to write a review of a comic book or graphic novel for all the Internet to read? Our Cool Comics Reader Reviews section is looking for fans just like you to submit your review, along with a cover image of the comic. Additionally, you may provide a picture of yourself and any other biographical information you want published in Cool Comics. Send all this to edgosney62@gmail.com. Please keep in mind that we reserve the right to decide what will and won’t go in the blog, so keep the language clean, pick out a comic that won’t cause controversy (we try to have fun here!), and start tapping away on your keyboard!
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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I Read That Book!
Please check out my newest blog, I Read That Book! Periodically, I discuss a book I’ve read in an entertaining, positive manner. It’s not a book review site, but instead a fun way to look at many of the books that have been a part of my life (and perhaps yours, too!), through anecdotes, quotes, weblinks, fond memories, pictures, and other surprises!
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Hope you have a Very Merry Christmas, Ed! It took awhile for Batman & The Outsiders to grow on me.
I’d been long time collector of The Brave & The Bold — always looked forward to see who Batman teamed-up with the following month…disappointed it was cancelled too.
Earlier issues of BATO had the wonderful artwork of Mr. Jim Aparo, which ended up being a good transition from one series to the next!
Merry Christmas, Matt! I came to most of DC’s titles a little late in the show, but have completed several collections, including Firestorm and All-Star Squadron, and need just one more issue of JSA (along with some small runs). I also love finding issues of The Brave & The Bold when I’m out hunting for nostalgia. My first experience with it was via the 100-Pages for 60 Cent issues.
We appreciate your comments, and thanks for being an important part of Cool Comics!