Omnibus/OHC Graphic Novel Collectors discussion
Comic Reading Discussion
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What have you added to your collection recently?
As you guys are most certainly part of my community and as a doctor, I wanted to share this excellent synopsis of the COVID-19 situation and what is to come. I hope it will not come across as alarmist but rather a nice factual summary of the situation and expectations for the near and far future. Hope its ok that I am sharing:https://www.linkedin.com/content-gues...
Nickviola wrote: "As you guys are most certainly part of my community and as a doctor, I wanted to share this excellent synopsis of the COVID-19 situation and what is to come. I hope it will not come across as alarm..."I’m a firm believer in science and the opinions of those in the the professional medical fields. The way the COVID-19 situation has progressed so far, I feel that these are truly unprecedented times for us all, and so an overly abundant sense of caution is more than wise; thanks for this link, Nick.
Bummed, because the last couple of months my excitement for this summer’s comicon in my area has slowly dwindled to the point that I’m not comfortable at all about going, and yet I’ve been looking forward to it since last June. Oh well, at least I have a lot of books to read.
The next 12-18 months will be a very interesting time period, and hopefully much less eventful than worst case scenario predictions. Stay safe everyone!
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I ordered Justice Deluxe edition yesterday. :)
The last month and a half have been a bit over budget for me, but some great pick-ups:- Finished my HC collection of the X-Men vol. 2 run
- Finally got the last couple of OHC’s to complete my collection of Bendis’ All New X-Men run (Vol. 1 was a pain in the ass to find)
- About halfway through collecting David’s X-Factor vol. 3 run
- Decided to pull the trigger and pick up several OHC’s for Aaron’s Thor run in prep for the War of the Realms omni this fall
- Stumbled upon some killer deals to upgrade my slabbed copies of ASM 252 and Marvel Team Up 141 so that I’ve got a trio of 9.8’s: https://imgur.com/a/W2q0bum
Also just recently finished a read-through of the Annihilation and Annihilation: Conquest omnis, and found Conquest to be more enjoyable for me. That story finally portrayed the Phalanx as the serious threat I’d always envisioned them since my disappointed take on the conclusion to the Phalanx Covenant run in X-Men.
Last but not least: about to dive into the Marvel Civil War event with the collected slipcase that came out a few years ago. I’m very excited, but I’ve gotta step up my reading pace to get through it in a reasonable amount of time!
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I saw cgc has free submissions until April I think. Have lots I could send in just never have done it before.
Blindzider wrote: "I agree conquest was a better story. I saw cgc has free submissions until April I think. Have lots I could send in just never have done it before."
Yup! I was planning to submit a few at Denver Comic Con, which still isn’t cancelled, but this seems like a better idea currently. Free submissions must be postmarked by April 12th. Details here: https://www.cgccomics.com/news/articl...
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Can you pack and ship in a regular box or do you have to buy one of their kits?
Should you bag/board them? Will they send those back?
Is it better to put in a low value, and pay afterwards if they upgraded the value?
The lowest price for grading is around $18-135 depending on the value and speed you want it back?
How should you determine the perceived grade? eBay sales?
Blindzider wrote: "I watched the video on how to submit. Can anyone answer a few questions?Can you pack and ship in a regular box or do you have to buy one of their kits?
Should you bag/board them? Will they send ..."
I can only speak from my experiences, and don’t have 100% confidence in all my answers:
1. I’ve sent books to CGC, but always through other parties. I’ve sent directly to CBCS before and used priority mail boxes/my own packing. No issues there, and the base insurance with PM was a better deal.
2. All my comics I’ve sent, either directly or indirectly, have always been bagged and boarded (also with a makeshift cardboard shell, just in case). Never gotten any back. I also write information on the back of the board, like my name, contact information, and the comic that’s been bagged. This has come from working with 3rd parties to collect signatures that then go to CGC, etc. I don’t think CGC asks for this, but I’m overly cautious.
3. Grading and value are tough. I’d say check ebay, gocollect, mycomicshop, or other online resources. Be conservative in your personal evaluation. I don’t know how it would go if you put a low value in and they intervened to say it’s too low, but I’d like to think that they’d be fair, and also explain if you over-valued. Getting the value off considerably shouldn’t be an issue overall, but will probably delay getting the book back to you.
4. Grading prices are all about era, value and speed of return. For higher return rates, which is what I usually pay, expect about 2-3 months for return. I assume returns may take longer since this free submission period opens the door to more submissions, but I could be wrong. On the flip side, they’re not taking submissions at cons currently.
Hopefully that all makes sense. What are you submitting? Good luck!
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I’m not too concerned about speed more about paying less out of pocket but that seems to be tied to the era/grade/value.
I was going to ask for suggestions on what to submit. I have Deadpool’s and cable’s first appearance for sure that I’d like to do. Maybe venom’s first also and Spider-Man 300. I’ve got plenty of early X-men and amazing Spider-Man I could do as well. Open to suggestions, specifically hot sellers.
Blindzider wrote: "Thanks man! No 2 is an excellent idea. On their video they said they will raise the value if you put too low a number. I’m not too concerned about speed more about paying less out of pocket but t..."
Happy to help!
In regards to what you want to submit, I think it all comes down to what you plan to do with them. All the books I’ve submitted have been for me either to verify a signature for a creator I place on a pedestal, or for things like unique artwork/sketches. For the other comics I collect, I get them already slabbed because I love the artwork and want to display, but don’t want the hassle of submitting and waiting for a possible high grade. A few years ago I thought I’d be ok with lower grades, but now I find myself slowing upgrading those to the highest grades available—still a fun process, but admittedly some wasted money.
Long story short, if you’re looking to sell, any of those comics you mentioned might be good to slab so long as you feel confident that they’re high grade. If not, you might lose money in the end.
If it’s slabbing just for you, send a few in and see how you feel about the whole process once they come back. I’d maybe start with the older ASM or UXM comics first, but that’s mostly coming from me who isn’t as interested in books like ASM 299 or 300 (no offense, great books for the character, and I know a 9.8 of 300 is worth a few thousand).
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I’m not too concerned about speed more about paying less ..."
I think the first few are going to be stuff that I'm willing to sell. Like I said, New Mutants 87 and 98 for sure. I know I have an extra Spider-Man #1 still bagged (but I haven't checked if anyone cares about that.)
ASM 299 and 300, I have but wouldn't sell. I'm still on the fence about slabbing books that I want to keep. Even though I now have copies in Omnibus form, I like the idea of being able to flip through those original books, since I'm old school.
I'll have to do some research on what's selling I guess and look in my "for sale" boxes. Most of it is 80-90's stuff that nobody wants.
Blindzider wrote: "noelbeast wrote: "Blindzider wrote: "Thanks man! No 2 is an excellent idea. On their video they said they will raise the value if you put too low a number. I’m not too concerned about speed more ..."
You can’t beat the smell of an old comic, and I like seeing the old ads, letters, etc., so I know what you’re saying.
NM 98 is hot, as are the 2 ASMs. Unsure about NM 87. Spider-Man 1 definitely depends on what printing you have. If it’s a platinum or gold newsstand edition at high grade, definitely worth several hundred easily, if not more. The others aren’t worth much at all.
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I’m not too concerne..."
Looking through what I have, I'm ashamed to say I can't find NM 87, but I know I had it at one point. My NM 98 I'd be surprised if it got above a 9, however, I have no problems with selling it if I get more than the $1 I paid for it. My Spider-Man #1s aren't the gold or the platinum, only the original polybagged ones which nobody seems to care about. Maybe I'll throw in a really old ASM and UXM just for me, even though they won't be graded highly.
Is anyone else looking at the corona-virus situation and considering preordering from TOW for books coming out in the next few months as opposed to waiting for IST?
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Blindzider,I have followed these boards off and on for a while, but have never posted before. Hopefully I don't butcher this.....
Yes, ship with bags and boards. Double boarding doesn't hurt as well. No, you will not get them returned.
You can also double box your submission if you are concerned about shipping damage.
When shipping Slabs I use a USPS Priority Mail box from the Post Office, Box ID# PS00010000019, and once I have them properly packaged in that box, I put that box in a PS00010000020. I have packaged bricks of raw books successfully that way. You can also put your packaged books in a Gemini Mailer, and insert a couple of those into the PS00010000019 with no issues.
IMPORTANT: When shipping your books to CGC or any of the grading companies, you get charged for return shipping based upon the type of book. If you mixed magazines, silver age, and moderns in one shipment to them, you WILL be charged 5.00 paperwork fee for each category, and a return shipping fee for each category. They will not just bundle all your books into one shipment for return if they are multiple types. But all of the same type, up to 25 books will be shipped together.
There are numerous sites and apps that can give you a rough estimate of book values. But many of them pull from ebay sold values. I use a combination of all of them. GoCollect, ComicsPriceGuide, ComicBookRealm, and Ebay Sold Values.
On the CGC Forums, their is a thread called, I think, "Hey buddy, can you spare a grade?". In that thread, you can post photos/scans and the community will try and chime in to see if they can assist you. That way you can see if a book is a decent candidate for slabbing.
Take into account if you want to also invest in a Clean/Press of your books. If so, try and find someone local who does it. You can usually get the books back in a week or two from a local presser, then send them out to submit to CGC or whomever. CGC uses a 3rd party company called CCS. I have personally never had an issue with them, but some people complain about how long they have the books for. CGC would ship the books to CCS once they received them, then they go i to CCS's queue to be cleaned/pressed, then they ship them back to CGC to go into their queue, etc....
Hopefully that wasn't too long a ramble and some of that made sense. Let me know if you need anymore info!
Oh, and there are YouTube Videos that detail how to ship to the grading companies if you want to see how it's done.
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I’ve never investigated the packaging that slabs are made of. Are they some type of Mylar like material that doesn’t give off gases that deteriorate the book? I would assume so, just never found out what they were.
Blindzider wrote: "John, thanks so much! I’ve always been nervous about doing this but with all of this info I’m ready. Looking at my books and doing a little self grading, none of them are really pristine, VG at bes..."John’s posted some great information there that further explains bulk submissions, so I appreciate seeing that too. I’ve heard stories of “wonky” return circumstances because of different era books, types, etc., and that clears things up at bit more for me. All in all I think CGC is a great company, but yeah it gets pricey over time. Bulk submissions can really help cut down on costs.
Blind, your question reminded me of a topic that I saw some time ago about how apparently CGC recommended getting books reslabbed approximately every 7 years. I don’t think that’s still true now, and here’s an interesting read re what the slabs are made of: https://www.cgccomics.com/boards/topi...
User Herf gives a good detailed response about the composition of the slabs (assume he knows what he’s talking about). You might also want to research the Newton rings topic, if you’re not already aware. Really gets to people, myself included, but I think CGC will still work to keep you satisfied.
Last but not least, if you join the CGC forums, just watch your step. There’s some salty old dogs on there that don’t like newcomers, and I experienced firsthand the wrath of one or two despite other people warning me ahead of time.
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I checked out the comments by Herf. Good info and sounds like the current gen is ok. I figured they were safe materials, interesting about it letting the gasses out. Those Newton rings are a little worrisome though.
Thanks again for everyone's help. I'll return this thread to it's regular programming...
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I haven't been quarantined but have wanted to read more. Thankfully I have plenty at home ready to read. Although, my library closed for the rest of the month (unbeknownst to me) and I wasn't able to grab a couple things I needed. I have the Dawn of X V2 TPB, but I never got V1. Also got Flash V8 without V7.
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Cool. I have an Amazon package coming Friday and one Saturday with my latest IST order from last week scheduled to come next Monday. That should set me up with some new things and I've got several omnibus volumes that need to be read in my stack at home.
In other news, I just realized yesterday we hit the five year anniversary for this group in January. I appreciate all the help from Blindzider and Erik moderating here. I appreciate the fact this has been a quiet place to moderate. And I appreciate the participation from everyone with questions and commentary.
We recently hit 500 members. This (our largest thread with over 5k posts) has 344 views. I believe the view count only counts the first time an individual views the thread. Our Marvel upcoming editions thread has been viewed by 2,490 people and the DC upcoming thread by 1,658.
I started this group because I was putting a fair amount of work trying to track the forecast on upcoming books and thought it would be nice if something like this existed. It isn't perfect but hopefully it's been helpful for folks. :)
I got the option to work from home yesterday for the next 3 weeks minimum (hopefully not too late to reduce my exposure chances), but thankfully I’m sitting pretty on a good stack of unread books. Unfortunately, though, I’m already scheming further ways to spend more money. 1.5 days in so far and already planning a few custom bound books as well as eyeing those Daredevil omnis from Bendis and Brubaker...
Great update about the group, Rel! I think you guys are doing a fine job with the moderation, thanks for all your dedication, and I really appreciate the group as a whole. When I started collecting again, I felt rudderless without some sort of dedicated way to track future releases from publishers like Marvel, and finding this resource was a godsend.
This is also my favorite area of the web to discuss things like comics and omnibuses. There’s plenty of comic subreddits I’m a part of as on reddit, but almost all convos I have there seem pretty superficial. Here I feel like I can always get into specifics with like-minded individuals.
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The Amazing Spiderman omnibus vol 1 by Straczynski went from $89 to $112 in the last week on Amazon (they have four copies left). IST is sold out. This one is headed out of print if you are thinking about getting a copy you should look for one pretty soon. I decided I want to read the second volume because it has Spiderman Other, Civil War, and One More Day. Those aren't all popular with fans of but they were major stories for the character.
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And thanks Rel, for inviting me in! Those are nice stats and glad to see the group is growing.
As far as the virus, I know we all will get through this, but I worry about people that have already lost their jobs or soon will, as well as those small business that can't survive.
Everyone stay clean, be patient, and think about the ramifications of your actions on others.
Mod
https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...
Relstuart wrote: "Thanks for the kind works Noelbeast. :) Hopefully your time working from home goes well. The Bendis and Brubaker Daredevil runs are excellent. I think this would be one of my top ten modern Marvel ..." I saw your top ten list—appreciate your thoughts!
But you about gave me a heart attack: read your comment wrong about the JMS omnibus and thought you were talking about vol 2. IST has removed the book from their coming soon list, and I see no mention of it out to May. Think we can still go by Amazon’s info?
noelbeast wrote: "Relstuart wrote: "Thanks for the kind works Noelbeast. :) Hopefully your time working from home goes well. The Bendis and Brubaker Daredevil runs are excellent. I think this would be one of my top ..."Sometimes books fall on and off IST's coming soon list for no reason at all. Unless its status changes on Amazon or PreviewsWorld I wouldn't fret too much. I've been watching the books that are coming out in the next few months for any delays, that omni included. If I see anything I'll be sure to let you all know.
I too love this community, so thanks to the mods and members who post quality content. Everyone here is both knowledgeable and sincere, which is hard to come by in this day and age.
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As for this virus, my reading stack is ever growing and I’m hoping I can plow through some (read half the Y Last Man omnibus last night). I’m one of those small business owners looking at his payroll and getting concerned, but luckily I can hold on for what I think the time length will be. The other concern is Florida cancelled all school for the next month and my wife and I are full time workers with 3 kids under 5.
That being said, we are blessed and I’m certain all will be well . . . Now to prioritize which books get the attention.
Rel, I started the Gantz Manga and decided to go to omnibus two, but it will need to get better for me to continue. Have you read it? Thoughts? Anyone else have any praise or criticism?
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I think I'm giving Gatz two stars in my ratings because of the awkward sexual stuff. I would read the second omnibus to determine if the sci-fi mystery and action keep your interest. But, if you aren't feeling it by the end of the second book then I'd drop it. The sci-fi mystery and action are keeping me engaged so I'll probably stick with it for a bit and see how things go.
I note the Akira box set has skyrocketed up in price based on Amazon. Real prices from Ebay sold items, last one went for $300 and a couple of the last few were $349.
I've been reading around the web and watching some manga reviews on YouTube to find some other manga series to try.
Right now I'm going to check out:
The Promised Neverland (the first TPB was promising)
Ubel Blatt
Planetes (same author as Vinland Saga)
Blame
and I'll try Soul Eater when the Perfect Edition drops
Books I have I need to try,
I need to try out Attack on Titan as I was gifted the first Colossal Edition of Attack on Titan.
I'd love feedback anyone has on these or other recommended series.
I am reading Vinland Saga, Gantz, Full Metal Alchemist as the perfect editions come out, Vagabond, Drifting Classroom, and 20th Century Boys.
I read all of Blade of the Immortal, Samurai Executioner, Akira, Battle Angel Alita and liked them. I really wish they would release a Battle Angel Alita Last Order hardcover box set. I'd like to read more Battle Angel Alita but don't love the idea of buying paperbacks that will end up next to the hardcovers on my shelf.
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Power Pack Omnibus arrived in all its glory and, 200 pages in, I have to say Louise Simonson was so good and its a nice delightful low key read.Also, the fact that its sitting directly next to Punisher is my new favorite neighboring set of books.
Started to complete some of my series during the isolation / stay at home period. Now only some minor books missing from the Valiant DLX series. Really enjoyed Pestilence and Handmaid‘s Tale. And can absolutely recommend the Absolute Kingdom Come for its awesome extras.
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The Aftershock comic OHCs seem pretty well made. The two I picked up were both ok but didn't love the stories. I picked up the first TPB of Cullen Bunn's Knights Temporal and read it last night. Best story so far with good art so I do hope we see a hardcover for the series once it is complete.
I did note Amazon's Prime shipping for books has extended shipping times due to the pandemic. If I order a book right now instead of 3 to 4 days before it arrives it's expected arrival time is 21 April. IST could easily be faster at this point.
I put in an IST order Friday with a few new series I want to try out. The last couple months it's usually about a week and a half between order and arrival from IST.
We're shortening manning at my office so I'll be working a bit less. I should be able to clear more of my backlog. :)
While I don't have a local comic book shop, I subscribe through a shop online (G-Mart) and I added a subscription to the new Wolverine series to help them out with the likely closure of their physical store. I hope they do OHCs for the run but if not I'll likely do a custom bind eventually.
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Black Hammer/Justice League Crossover HC (standard size)
Because this is a DC/Dark Horse Crossover it may not appear in a future Library Edition. No way to know at this point. Shame it's a small size.
Complete Witchblade TPB vol 1
Canto TPB vol 1
For Better or Worse Complete Library HC vol 4
Batman Creature of the Night HC by Busiek (standard size)
DMZ Compendium TPB vol 1
Event Leviathan HC (standard size)
Justice League of America The Nail Complete Collection TPB
Tales of the Batman by Marv Wolfman HC vol 1 (standard size)
Captain America by T-Nehisi Coats OHC vol 1
Siberian Haiku HC
Once and Future TPB vol 1
Made in Abyss TPB vol 8 (manga)
Seven Deadly Sins TPB vol 37 (manga)
Suppose a Kid from Last Dungeon Moved TPB vol 1 (manga)
The Spirit 80th Anniversary Celebration TPB vol 1
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Looks like both the Black Widow omnibus and the Daredevil Love and War Gallery edition is moving to 14 Apr 20 (21 Apr 20 on Amazon).
I just put in an order for multiple books with IST on Friday and got an email they shipped this morning. For me that seems like a quicker turnaround than usual with them.Not surprised that books like the Black Widow omnibus are being pushed back. I assume it's related to COVID-19, and wonder if it's a production issue or a supply delivery problem?
In any case, overall I bought several books this weekend, including Bendis' Daredevil omnis from eBay; I started to doubt if those extra copies promised to drop in April would ever actually materialize.
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Looks like both the Black Widow omnibus and the Daredevil Love and War Gallery edition is moving to 14 Apr 20 ..."
Disappointing, just keep loading up April, Marvel. I guess the Wolverine Omnibus reprint moved as well.
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It looks like it was moved to the same release date in April per Amazon's update. I bought my copy when it was released in 2009 so I'm good for that one. :)
I'll be honest, not sure how or if this affects the topic of this group, but would love feedback from anyone who may understand this business better than I do.https://www.newsarama.com/49538-diamo...
There is a desperate thread dedicated to this, and I’m not the best person to answer, but all new releases (single, TPB, HC, omnibus, absolute, etc) that diamond distributes (which is most of the market) is now on hold so books will keep getting pressed (unless those shut down) and stacked in warehouses and release once shipping renews.I assume they will stagger releases and just redo the schedule, but they aren’t always the best about schedule changes so maybe it will be random?
This is probably for the best. It’ll save me from myself during this time when I should really be saving money, LOL
I love that I said desperate instead of separate. HaI’d like to be clear health and safety are the most important, businesses #2, my comic hobby #1000 this is just my only forum to complain!
Thanks for the reply Nick. I follow this thread and the upcoming DC thread and forget there are others in this group. I'll check it out.
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https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...
Since we're stuck without new stuff, how about let everyone know what you have to read and what you are most looking forward to here:
https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...
I doing re-reading Uncanny X-Force with the beautiful new omnibus and then probably Y the Last Man.I actually don’t have a lot of new stuff to read - the Miles Morales omnibus comes after the other Miles omnibus that’s now delayed so don’t want to read that out of order. I have 3 of the Timely’s Greatest Omnis but this are more to flip through. And I stopped my X-Men read through at Phalanx Covenant because I don’t have it but I have like 10 C hardcovers after so maybe I’ll skip it and just go ahead.
I was thinking of ordering Motor Girl because I liked Strangers in Paradise so much and maybe Abs. Sandman 3. Any other recs for books that are out and must reads?
Omnibus/OHC Graphic Novel Collectors
Books mentioned in this topic
Superman: The Coming of the Supermen (other topics)Batman: The War Years 1939-1945: Presenting over 20 classic full length Batman tales from the DC comics vault! (Volume 1) (other topics)
Superman/Shazam!: First Thunder (other topics)
Batman and Psychology: A Dark and Stormy Knight (other topics)
Nightwing: Mobbed Up (other topics)
More...
I finally read Batman Ego and Other Tails by Darwyn Cooke last night. It's a collection of shorter stories by Cooke featuring either Batman or Catwoman. The art is great and several of the stories were also good (a couple of them not as much). Selina's Big Score is a Catwoman heist story and Cooke mentions it is one of his favorite stories he's done for DC.