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Post by MWGallaher on Dec 26, 2021 21:47:37 GMT -5
Inactive since 2010 here. I still pick up the occasional Aparo book when I find a rare one like an obscure Charlton that I didn't know about, but otherwise, there aren't any back issues I feel compelled to have, and digital reading suffices for me.
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Post by profh0011 on Dec 26, 2021 22:15:22 GMT -5
After maybe 10 years' break, I got back into collecting, but about 95% of what I've been buying in the last 5 years has been in service to a massive blog project I'm working on. There are new or recent books I'd love to get, but all from specific creators-- NOTHING from "the big two". I'm actually having more fun than I can ever remember buying DVDs of TV shows and movies, some upgrading 35-40-year-old self-recorded videotapes, but more so far "new" stuff I never had, in some cases, stuff I've never seen before. But to make room for this, of late I've been anticipating GETTING RID of at least HALF of all my comic-books, specifically, the ones I know in my heart I will NEVER want to read again. But doing this will be a major project in itself, as I need to really get things more organized, before turning what I want to dump over to a company that "pays cash" for collections. My latest acquisition is WHITE ZOMBIE (1932), a low-budget independant film that actually looks and feels more stylish than 1931's DRACULA!
The early-30s, so close to the silent era, is so ALIEN compared to the late 30s. I can't think of any era in movies when the styles of film-making changed that drastically. Many can't deal with it, but it's an ART FORM I find fascinating. And, like my POE comics, a growing number of movies I've bought have been from overseas... Spain, France, Italy, Germany, the Czech Republic... and I have my eye on one from Brazil. At least they have English subtitles, so I don't have to do the translations myself!
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Post by Hoosier X on Dec 26, 2021 22:40:23 GMT -5
After maybe 10 years' break, I got back into collecting, but about 95% of what I've been buying in the last 5 years has been in service to a massive blog project I'm working on. There are new or recent books I'd love to get, but all from specific creators-- NOTHING from "the big two". I'm actually having more fun than I can ever remember buying DVDs of TV shows and movies, some upgrading 35-40-year-old self-recorded videotapes, but more so far "new" stuff I never had, in some cases, stuff I've never seen before. But to make room for this, of late I've been anticipating GETTING RID of at least HALF of all my comic-books, specifically, the ones I know in my heart I will NEVER want to read again. But doing this will be a major project in itself, as I need to really get things more organized, before turning what I want to dump over to a company that "pays cash" for collections. My latest acquisition is WHITE ZOMBIE (1932), a low-budget independant film that actually looks and feels more stylish than 1931's DRACULA!
The early-30s, so close to the silent era, is so ALIEN compared to the late 30s. I can't think of any era in movies when the styles of film-making changed that drastically. Many can't deal with it, but it's an ART FORM I find fascinating. And, like my POE comics, a growing number of movies I've bought have been from overseas... Spain, France, Italy, Germany, the Czech Republic... and I have my eye on one from Brazil. At least they have English subtitles, so I don't have to do the translations myself! I love the early 1930s! When I had cable, I always checked the TCM schedule and I would always DVR bunches of movies from 1929 to 1935. Have you seen Tierra sin pan? I’ve seen it a few times and it blows me away trying to figure it out. Not to mention all those crazy Warner Brothers movie. Like Front Page Woman with Bette Davis. And all those Wheeler and Wolsey movies! Have you seen The Fatal Glass of Beer? That’s on YouTube! I’m gonna watch it now!
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Post by adamwarlock2099 on Dec 27, 2021 8:13:25 GMT -5
Outside of the convenience purchase (i.e. waiting for a free checkout at Walmart and saw Marvel's Aliens issue) here and there over the last ten years I have not really read or bought much. I've figured either desire to read and/or buy will come back or not. I have dollar issues I bought at a Memorial Day sale to fill in some slots that I haven't even read them yet. I still like to come here and talk about comics and hear other people's stories, but the last decade or so comic have not been what they use to me. Though the family has gone through a lot of changes and stress in the last decade or so. Maybe that's why I can't relax and read or justify purchases too much.
That said we have a nice local library that some years back I read the entirety of Neil Gaimen's Sandman in TPB
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Post by MDG on Dec 27, 2021 9:27:14 GMT -5
I buy to read--when I go to a show or store, I'll look for stuff that looks interesting or fun, but I'm not out to complete runs. And I enjoy coming home w/ a bunch of random floppies that I got cheap and can just read without worrying about "maintaining condition."
I'll buy some new books when they come out--books, not floppies--by creators I like or follow, like Los Bros (though nt everything, and I'll buy some of them digitally).
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Post by DubipR on Dec 27, 2021 10:00:42 GMT -5
Curious to know how many people here are still actively growing their collections, or more just enjoying what they have. Or maybe have even downsized some from their peak collecting? Would a significant "market correction" influence your future collecting goals? Do you care much about original issues at this point, or do nice reading collections (print or digital) provide more enjoyment? Also, who still has a "grail" or two out there they are still looking for? When my cat passed away last year, I seriously looked at all the stuff I owned and went full Maria Kando on my place, including my comic collection. I downsized to about 3500 essential comics from my collection and that's it. I have some odds and ends of a comic runs that I bind into making hardcovers for my shelves. I'm not collecting anymore unless it's something I truly want. Do you care much about original issues at this point, or do nice reading collections (print or digital) provide more enjoyment?Not really. I'm into reading comics rather than collecting for collecting sakes. I don't buy trades either, as that was part of the Kando decluttering. I have trades I go back to every year and re-read. I'm okay with that. The only original issues I care about at this point is the run of Amazing Spider-Man comics I used to get in the mail as a kid. I'm working on getting high grade copies. Out of the 70 I got a as a kid, I have 16 left. Also, who still has a "grail" or two out there they are still looking for?I have a couple grail books. Ideally I'd like great conditions but I'm patient for any condition these days. I have about 3 or 4 grail books at the moment: - All Star Comics #58 - Extra! #s 2 and 5
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Post by The Captain on Dec 27, 2021 11:09:30 GMT -5
I still buy current books if I like the character or creator, but I'm down to precious few at this point. My pull list right now has two ongoings and two minis, as the lists of new things being released interests me less and less with each passing month.
For floppies, the only things I am actively seeking are about a dozen issues of Jonah Hex and three issues of Amazing Adventures (the Killraven run) to complete those series. I pick up random old issues of Batman and Detective if I like the villain, and I will buy issues of Kull if I can find them cheap.
Mostly, I buy collected editions these days. Still waiting on one Amazing Spider-Man Epic to be released, need two more Sandman TPBs to have the whole run, and buy Hellblazer TPBs when I can find them used or cheap. Will occasionally buy a collection if they have a key issue in them and I don't want to handle the original book (like Captain America #117 or Tomb of Dracula #10).
Other than that, my buying days are mostly behind me. I have spent less money this year on classic comics than in any year in the past two decades, and I see that continuing to be the trend going forward.
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Post by MWGallaher on Dec 27, 2021 11:38:16 GMT -5
Also, who still has a "grail" or two out there they are still looking for? Oh, I forgot to add, I do have a "grail" I'd like to have in print, in case anyone stumbles across a copy for a modest price, readable condition, and that's: El Dorado, or Movie Classic #12-240-710 in Dell's incomprehensible numbering scheme, from 1967. One of Jim Aparo's first published comics (a few installments of his debut work on Miss Bikini Luv in Charlton's GO-GO had already appeared). In this one, he's providing ghost pencils for Sal Trapani; presumably his Charlton editor, Trapani's in-law Dick Giordano, arranged for Aparo's uncredited work, his only known work for Dell.
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Post by berkley2 on Dec 27, 2021 12:29:14 GMT -5
For awhile I thought I didn't have any more collecting goals but as a reader I'm always discovrring new tbings. The George Perez thread is informing me of afew things I hadnt known of before and reminding me of others I'd forgotten or never considered for some reason.
Until a few months ago I hadnt thought much about Dan Dare but after hearing some talk about it here and then reading the first collected volume I'm hooked and am now scrambling to find the next few before theyre priced out of reach.
As far as individual comics go i'm probably going to be concentratiing on certain favourite artists like Gray Morrow whose work is difficult to collecg because it's scattered amongst so many different series and anthology books.
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Post by Cei-U! on Dec 27, 2021 12:43:54 GMT -5
I'm still colleting, but the way I collect has changed in the last few years. I've sold off big chunks of my Silver Age DC and Marvel stuff because A) I know I'll never complete those runs, B) I have them all in other formats (either trades or scans), and C) I needed the room. I'm still on the prowl for Essential and Showcase collections (I love the black-and-white art), Most of what I now buy in the original are comics I enjoy that are both attainable and affordable, stuff like the Earth-Two canon, the Batman animated titles, Dell political bios, or individual series like Master of Kung Fu and Arak.
Cei-U! I summon the quests!
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Post by arfetto on Dec 27, 2021 13:38:50 GMT -5
I mainly collect trades. This is because I don't think I will ever have the disposable income to collect very old single issue comics (especially these days). I get excited when a comic anywhere from the '90s and back gets collected in tpb format. My intention is to read all the stuff I buy.
I still like to find old random back issues though. But I really miss the days when I could go to the yearly "yard sale" (not really a yard sale though since it was basically actual vendors just setting up for miles across) event and buy longboxes of unread full runs for like 10 to 15 dollars a box. I was able to do that up until, I guess 2009 or maybe 2010 or so? It's how I got full runs on stuff like Ostrander's Suicide Squad, Spectre, Martian Manhunter, then a full run of JLA (Morrison and beyond), Grell+Dixon Green Arrow, Firestorm, etc. Even back then I wouldn't find that much older stuff, but I did end up with a lot of nice condition copies of Jack Kirby Black Panther and Machine Man this way. It just isn't the same for me now. And usually I'd just find boxes of unread '90s stuff where you can tell the person selling just was buying for an investment that never came (don't know how many copies of Tribe 1 or The Maxx 1 I have because of this haha). But it gave me a fondness for a lot of '90s small press books that normally I would have not checked out. I don't care much for the value of the comics (the ones most valuable to me are basically monetarily worthless haha), except in the sense I'd love to buy them for cheap haha. Still, it was kind of cool to buy those longboxes and end up with something that is now worth at least a few dollars like six unread copies of New Mutants 98 for a quarter each haha.
I try to read digitally sometimes but I prefer physical if that is an option. I can easily read regular books on my kindle, but for comics I need to read them on my computer if I must read digital.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 27, 2021 14:55:49 GMT -5
My new issue status has taken a big hit. I have just 3 'pull-list' books. Anything else of interest can wait and I might pick up a run of issues later on.
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Post by majestic on Dec 27, 2021 15:55:02 GMT -5
Same as always. I'm a reader not a collector. I have to admit I LOVE the DC Showcase Presents and Marvel Essentials for this reason. Cheap thick reading material of stuff I probably wouldn't spend any time looking for in individual issues.
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Post by Hoosier X on Dec 27, 2021 17:03:58 GMT -5
I had set Detective Comics #267 to present as the parameters for my Detective collection. I recently got #267 and that should be a cue to stop or at least take a break.
But no! I keep checking eBay to find affordable issues of Detective in the #251 to #266 range. This is such a great era for Batman! I love this stuff!
I got #255 last week and it’s robot dinosaurs ... again! If the robot Tyrannosaurus in the Bat-Cave ever starts to decay or whatever, there is always another robot-dinosaur adventure just around the corner!
Not to mention Roy Raymond and the Martian Manhunter. I’m on the edge of my seat with every new Roy Raymond adventure, wondering if there was ever a time when Roy wasn’t a condescending jerk to his assistant Karen.
And then there’s J’onn J’onzz, where I look forward to those rare occasions where they vary the formula by having Captain Harding get up from his desk and leave the office.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 27, 2021 18:09:28 GMT -5
I had set Detective Comics #267 to present as the parameters for my Detective collection. I recently got #267 and that should be a cue to stop or at least take a break. But no! I keep checking eBay to find affordable issues of Detective in the #251 to #266 range. This is such a great era for Batman! I love this stuff! I got #255 last week and it’s robot dinosaurs ... again! If the robot Tyrannosaurus in the Bat-Cave ever starts to decay or whatever, there is always another robot-dinosaur adventure just around the corner! Not to mention Roy Raymond and the Martian Manhunter. I’m on the edge of my seat with every new Roy Raymond adventure, wondering if there was ever a time when Roy wasn’t a condescending jerk to his assistant Karen. And then there’s J’onn J’onzz, where I look forward to those rare occasions where they vary the formula by having Captain Harding get up from his desk and leave the office. I'm right with you! I feel like we are never going to get full run proper collected editions of this era, so while I appreciate the material that has been reprinted, I want the rest just to read!
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