In case you missed it last week, just a reminder that our Mega Half Price British Comics Sale is now in full swing. Huge amounts of fabulous British comics can now be found marked down to half price or less in the following categories:
*Boys’ Adventure & War Comics
*TV & Film Related Comics
*Humour Comics
*Girls’ Comics
While stocks last!
Category Archives: What’s New
Mega British Comics Half Price Sale
Following up on our highly successful British Comics sale this time last year, we are now offering a huge amount of our British original weekly comics at half price or less. Comprising a much larger range than last year, these can be found in our online catalogue, with the half (or less) sale price marked in red, in the four main British weekly categories as shown below. Some titles are all at half price; others may just be selected years – if it’s not in red, it’s still full price.
The terms and conditions for this sale are as follows:
Unlike our previous sales, this sale is open to all customers worldwide
There is no minimum quantity required for an order, but the value (at sale prices) must meet our regular level, i.e.
In the UK: £10
In the EU: £50 (now reduced from £100)
Rest of the World: £25
Our regular postage and packing charges will be extra on top of these minimums; please note we cannot give a postage quote until you have made a selection.
Sale stock may be mixed with full priced stock in the same package.
Like last year, we expect very many sale items to sell quickly, so would advise quick ordering to secure any bargains that you spot. First come, first served.
Half Price Boys’ Adventure & War Comics
Either all of or selections from the following titles are now half price or less:
Action
Battle inc specials
Boys’ World
Comet
Crunch
Eagle
Express (inc TV Express)
Hornet
Hotspur
Lion inc Specials
Ranger
Roy Of The Rovers inc specials
Scorcher
Score ‘n Roar
Starlord
Sun
Super DC
Tiger
2000 AD inc specials
Valiant
Victor
Warlord
Wildcat
and more! Consult our catalogue for full details.
Half Price TV & Film Related Comics
Either all of or selections from the following titles are now half price or less:
Candy
Doctor Who including specials and classics
Film Fun
House Of Hammer/Halls Of Horror
Look-In including specials
Radio Fun
Star Wars & Return of the Jedi
TV21 (2nd series)
TV Comic
TV Fun
and more! Consult our catalogue for full details.
Half Price Humour Comics
Either all of or selections from the following titles are now half price or less:
Beano inc specials
Beezer inc specials
Buster inc. specials
Cor
Cracker
Dandy inc specials
Knockout (both series)
Krazy
Monster Fun
Plug
Shiver & Shake
Sparky
Topper
Whizzer & Chips inc specials
Whoopee
and more! Consult our catalogue for full details.
Half Price Girls’ Comics
American Comics Update: The Bute Collection: Batmania: Batman #26 (1944)
*DC: From the Bute Collection this week, another gem of Golden Age Batmania. Beneath a seasonal cover by Jerry Robinson, three superb Dick Sprang illustrated stories await. The first features the villain the Cavalier, the second has the tale of Bruce Wayne’s descendant in the year 3000, and the final story features Batman & Robin adventures among the Indians on a lost mesa. In between there’s also an Alfred solo on a case of his own by Jerry Robinson. This is a reasonable copy. There’s a faint bookshop stamp on the moon in the cover background, some wear and tear along the spine and right edge; nothing too bad except the bottom right corner is significantly creased with a small chip out at bottom edge. Staples appear okay except the centrefold is loose and tape has been skilfully applied inside the spine. Pages are okay, with margins a little dingy here and there, as is the snow scene at the edges of the front cover. But not too bad for an 80 year old!
PICTURED: BATMAN #26 GD £200 SOLD
American Comics Update: Zipsville! It’s the Inferior Five from the beginning!
*DC: Long time followers of our ramblings will know by now what great affection we have for the Inferior Five – I just wish they’d gone on for longer! You can read Will’s Lockdown article on this famed group at this link: The Short but Brilliant Life of the Inferior Five. We’re blessed this week to have not just their first three try-outs in Showcase, but also a couple of issues of their ongoing series. All together now: ‘We are the Five, the Inferior Five – we are not very hot but we try…’
IN THIS UPDATE: ALL SOLD
SHOWCASE
#62 FN p £22 (PICTURED) 1st Inferior Five
#63 VG+ p £10
#65 VG/FN £12.25
INFERIOR FIVE
#5 VG p £4.75
#12 VG+ p £4.75 Reprints Showcase #63
American Comics Update: Silver Age Superman inc. Annuals
*DC: A big update to our Silver Age Superman stocks this week, between issues #150 and #182 plus Annuals #5, #7 & #8. A wonderful time for the Superman mythos, with all the expanding Superman family members to the fore. The Annuals are particularly evocative, with #7 being the Silver Anniversary issue, and #8 reprinting the very first story of the Legion of Super-Heroes. Full details as always in our catalogue.
American Comics Update: Spider-Mania: Amazing #100, the Anniversary Issue
*Marvel: We present Amazing Spider-Man #100, the Anniversary issue of Marvel’s solo super-star. Dated September 1971, this Stan Lee/Gil Kane epic features – behind an iconic John Romita cover – our tortured hero debating his roles in life, and endeavouring to choose, as the title suggests, between ‘The Spider… Or The Man?’ Ironically, the issue ends with him becoming an eerie amalgam of both! A very nice superior shiny, flat pence stamped copy with only very minor edge wear, no marking, no creasing and little corner blunting. Staples are firm and tight at spine and centrefold; supple pages are off-white to cream.
PICTURED: AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #100 VF p £175
American Comics Update: Mighty Marvel Firsts: Marvel Premiere #47 – ‘Scott Lang, Scott Lang, Does Whatever an Ant-Man Can’
*Marvel: When the Ant-Man name was unclaimed in the late 1970s, a brainier-than-average sneak-thief, Scott Lang, stole Hank Pym’s old apparatus and became the second bearer of that title! But it’s okay – he did bad things for good reasons, specifically to find a cure for his dying daughter, as was revealed in Marvel Premiere #47, the tale which (after a non-costumed cameo in Avengers #181) was Scott’s first full appearance. John Byrne and David Michelinie created this different take on the hero, and since then, Scott has had his ups and downs – been in jail a few times, been dead a few more, been a love-slave of the Purple Man – but he’s fought his way back to respectability, and has achieved cinematic stardom in three of his own movies plus appearances elsewhere in the MCU. Our latest copy of Marvel Premiere #47 is pence printed, bright, colourful and glossy, with tight, secure staples and white to off-white pages. Very minor spine ticks and some edge wear at the top do not break colour. A VERY faint crease (like part of a subscription crease) extends from the top edge centre down to the logo, but there’s only a slight suggestion of a colour break.
PICTURED: MARVEL PREMIERE #47 VG/FN p £50
American Comics Update: The Good Doctor Collection: Hulkinued/Mighty Marvel Firsts: Debut of Abomination in Tales To Astonish #90/91
*Marvel: Our ‘Hulkinued’ feature, um, hulkinues, this week starring the debut of the Abomination in Tales To Astonish #90 & #91 from the Good Doctor Collection. These are great packages art-wise. You get Subby stories illustrated by his creator Bill Everett, and Hulk stories by Gil Kane, both giants in the field; this was still in the day when Stan Lee wrote everything, of course. However, it is for the debut of the Hulk’s nemesis the Abomination that these issues are now chiefly prized, not the least due to his role in the MCU and the She-Hulk TV series. To Be Hulkinued…
PICTURED: TALES TO ASTONISH
#90 FN+ £95 1st Abomination. Very rich cover colour, supple off-white pages and firm, tight staples. There is a minimum of edge wear (mainly at top edge), a couple of soft dinks at top and bottom of spine (which are barely noticeable and do not break colour) and a very soft crease along the upper right edge (also non-colour breaking). This copy presents very well and looks nicer than the grade we’ve assigned.
#91 VG+ £50 1st Abomination cover. Glossy, flat copy with minor edge and handling wear. Firm staples; off-white to cream pages.
American Comics Update: Oh, Duck It! – Howard the Duck Restocked from #1
*Marvel: We’ve got all our ducks in a row here at 30th C., with a substantial restock of Howard the Duck, the cult satirical series created by Steve Gerber. Gerber took endless potshots at the wider world of the 1970s with his tale of a misanthrophic anthropomorph trapped in, as later taglines averred, ‘A World He Never Made’ (which is a damn silly tagline, if you stop to think – I mean, who do you know who has made a world lately? But I digress). Be that as it may; this cult series, illustrated at first by Frank Brunner, then (mostly) by Gene Colan, became a short-lived sensation, fizzling out only when Gerber, in his own words, decided that the political and social scene was beyond further satire, and lesser writers simply couldn’t make the Duck fly. We have every issue in of the first series from #1-31 plus the first annual (missing only #32 & #33, published years later); full details as ever in our online catalogue. Includes the first cameo and 1st full appearance of the band Kiss in #12 & #13.
PICTURED: HOWARD THE DUCK #1 FN/VF p £50 Pence printed, minor handling wear.
American Comics Update: Spider-Mania: Spectacular Spider-Man #101-262 plus Annuals #1-14
*Marvel: One heck of a Spider-Mania bonus this week as we present every issue of Spectacular Spider-Man from #101 to #262 (the penultimate issue), plus a full set of all 14 Annuals; everything in high grade. Too much ground covered in this gigantic update to go into too much detail here, but famous storylines include Spidey getting cosmic powers, Kraven’s Last Hunt etc plus the debuts of latter day villains such as Tombstone and Corona. And a whole kaboodle of gimmick covers: holograms, die-cuts, foil, flip books, acetate overlays etc. Full details as always in our catalogue.
PICTURED: SPECTACULAR SPIDER-MAN #158 NM £24.25
American Comics Update: Six Of The Best: X-Men from Cockrum to Smith
*Marvel: The artistic reins passed from one magnificent stylist to another within these six issues, as Dave Cockrum was succeeded by Paul Smith. Starjammers, the Imperial Guard, the Brood, Binary and much more!
IN THIS UPDATE: X-MEN ALL SOLD
#156 VF £6.75
#157 FN £5
#162 VG £5
#163 FN/VF £6.25
#164 VF+ £9
#165 FN/VF £7
American Comics Update: Six Of The Best: ACG’s Forbidden Worlds
*Horror/Mystery 1960-1980s: Forbidden Worlds from ACG was their second major title, starting in 1951. It’s the Silver Age incarnation that concerns us here, when the horror of pre-code had given way to the more whimsical fantasy/mysteries for which ACG became known in the 1960s.
IN THIS UPDATE: ALL SOLD
86 GD p £9 Flying Saucer cover
102 VG £6.75
106 GD/VG £5
107 VG p £6
108 VG+ £7.50
109 VG £6.75
American Comics Update: Creepy & Eerie: Warren Horror Classics
*Vintage Magazine-Sized Comics: In the 1960s, enterprising publisher Jim Warren, inspired by the success of classic monster movies on TV, decided to satiate the American public’s growing taste for terror by launching a line of horror comics. But there was that pesky censorship body, the Comics Code Authority. What to do? Why, launch them as magazines, aimed at an adult audience and not subject to the Comics Code! Beginning with Creepy, followed shortly by Eerie, Warren assembled some of the finest talents in the field, many of them alumni of the classic EC Comics line: Frank Frazetta, Johnny Craig, Reed Crandall, John Severin, Wally Wood – and some ‘new guys’ named Steve Ditko, Neal Adams, Richard Corben, Bernie Wrightson and Gene Colan! For the first few years – apart from an inexplicable weakness for Tony Tallarico – Warren’s publications offered the finest artwork comics had to offer, and paved the way for the eventual liberalisation of the Comics Code and the success of titles such as House of Mystery and House Of Secrets. We are chuffed to present dozens of issues of both Creepy and Eerie new in, filling many gaps in our stock. Three of the choicest examples are shown below. For full details of all issues with prices and grades, go to our catalogue listing.
PICTURED:
CREEPY #32 FN/VF £22 Frazetta cover
EERIE #17 FN £53 Low Distribution
EERIE #23 FN £140 Classic Frazetta cover
British Comics Update: Rounding Up UK Reprints of US Westerns
*Vintage UK/Australian Reprints Of US Material: A big influx of 1950s UK reprints of American westerns this week, all from Miller and World Distributors, featuring the following titles: Daniel Boone, Gene Autrey & Champion, Giant Comic, Jace Pearson’s Texas Rangers, King Of The Royal Mounted, Lash Larue, Masked Raider, Red Ryder, Roy Rogers, Tom Mix, WDL Western Classic – Trumpets West & Western Roundup. Full details as always in our catalogue. Fill yer boots!
British Comics Update: Over 75 issues of Super-Detective Library
*Boys’ Adventure & War Picture Libraries: A huge update to our Super-Detective Library stocks this week, with more than 75 issues added, many filling gaps. As this title developed, many more recurring detective characters in a variety of settings came on board in addition to those featured in the earlier issues. Joining the Saint and Lesley Shane, new regulars included Inspector Chafik, the Toff, Paul Darrow, Vic Terry, Blackshirt, Dirk Rogers, Temple Fortune, Rip Kirby, Buck Ryan & John Steel. A great standard of story and art in these done-in-one mysteries. Full details in our catalogue.
PICTURED: SUPER-DETECTIVE PICTURE LIBRARY
#59 GD/VG £11 The Saint’s Sunken Gold SOLD
#128 GD/VG £8.50 Rip Kirby: Fatal Target
141 GD/VG £8.50 Blackshirt And The Jewels Of Death
British Comics Update: Battle Picture Library: 60 issues from 1965-1969
*Boys’ Adventure & War Picture Libraries: If you’re looking to fill gaps in your Battle Picture Library collection, this update’s for you, with 60 issues newly added from 1965-1969 between #230 and #396. Nearly all these issues were missing from our listings, and nearly all are in pretty nice shape, clean, bright and unmarked, with just degrees of staple rust defining grade. Full details as always in our catalogue.
British Comics Update: Love Story Picture Library – Over 60 issues from 1970-1972
*Girls’ Picture Libraries: This week’s release of Love Story Picture Library, the longest running romance picture library from Fleetway, comprises over 60 issues from 1970-72, between #821 & #940. The series always maintained a high standard and the very accomplished art reflected the fashions and mood of the times. These new additions are mostly in excellent condition, with little wear or creasing, nearly all FN to VF. Full details as always in our catalogue.
PICTURED: LOVE STORY PICTURE LIBRARY
#816 FN/VF £6
#925 FN £5 SOLD
Books Update: Re-Working Our Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Category: Cowper to Davis
*Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror: We’re continuing to introduce the new layout for our books categories, with an image for each book. This week, we return to our Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror category and authors/editors alphabetically from Cowper – Davis. An interesting mixture: from ‘traditional’ science -fiction from the likes of Richard Cowper and Avram Davidson, and great, old-fashioned space opera from Ray Cummings, to classic anthologies from Edmund Crispin, Davidson and Brian Davis and a slice of historical horror in a book from James Darke’s adult’ Witches series featuring the Witchfinder and his victims.
PICTURED:
RICHARD COWPER: PHOENIX Ballantine 1972 2nd UK PB FN £3 SOLD
RICHARD COWPER: THE ROAD TO CORLAY Pan 1979 1st UK PB FN £4
EDMUND CRISPIN (Ed): BEST SF 4 Faber 1965 1st UK PB VG £8
RAY CUMMINGS; TAMA. PRINCESS OF MERCURY Ace 1966 1st US PB VG £3
JAMES DARKE: THE WITCHES #4: THE ESCAPE Sphere 1984 1st UK PB GD £15
AVRAM DAVIDSON: RORK! Penguin 1969 1st UK PB GD £3
AVRAM DAVIDSON (Ed): THE BEST FROM FANTASY AND SCIENCE FICTION No. 14
Panther 1969 1st UK PB VG £3
BRIAN DAVIS (Ed): THE OLD MASTERS NEL 1970 1st UK PB VG/FN £3
Books Update: Re-Working Our Crime, Spies and Sleaze Category: Erle Stanley Gardner’s Perry Mason (with new addition)
*Crime, Spies & Sleaze: We’re continuing to introduce the new layout for our books categories, with an image for each book. This week, we return to our Crime Spies and Sleaze category as we reach Erle Stanley Gardner, creator of Perry Mason (immortalised on TV by Raymond Burr). We have four classic Perry Mason mysteries plus (new in) a tale from Gardener’s DA series.
PICTURED: ALL BY ERLE STANLEY GARDNER ALL SOLD
THE CASE OF THE BURIED CLOCK Penguin 1961 2nd UK PB VG £3.50
THE CASE OF THE GLAMOROUS GHOST Pan 1963 UK PB FN £4
THE CASE OF THE LONG-LEGGED MODELS Pan 1966 UK PB VG £3.50
THE CASE OF THE MOTH-EATEN MINK Great Pan 1962 UK PB VG £3.50
THE DA BREAKS A SEAL Penguin 1964 1st UK PB GD/VG £5
Books Update: Two 1970s UK A4 pulps: Nebula and Vortex
*Pulp Fiction: Two A4 size British science fiction magazines from the 1970s very much in the pulp format this week. The first, Nebula, appears to very much an amateur production from 1975 (#5) full of articles, stories and reviews, profusely illustrated including a comic strip. The second, the better known Vortex (Vol 1 #1) from 1977 has high production values, colour as well as black and white illustrations, and contributions from Michael Moorcock, James Cawthorn, Robert Holdstock and others; with a Rodney Matthews cover.
PICTURED:
NEBULA: THE MAGAZINE OF SCIENCE FICTION AND FANTASY 5 JUNE 1975 FN £10
VORTEX: THE SCIENCE FICTION FANTASY VOL 1 #1 JANUARY 1977 VF £25 SOLD
Books Update: Arthur Ransome’s Swallows and Amazons
*Children’s Books: Two volumes from Arthur Ransome’s beloved Swallows and Amazons series new in this week, both in lovely hardcover editions with dustjackets protected by removable archival film. The twelve books are set mainly in the Lake District and the Norfolk Broads and involve children’s adventures in the great outdoors, particularly sailing, with an interwar setting. Charmingly told, with a real sense of chidhood wonder.
PICTURED: BY ARTHUR RANSOME
GREAT NORTHERN? Jonathan Cape 1950 6th UK HC FN £10 With DJ (GD, tanned)
PETER DUCK Jonathan Cape 1948 21st UK HC VG £9 With DJ (FN, later)
Books Update: Six Of The Best: More From Mad
*Mad Books: This week, reinforcements for our Mad Books category, celebrating those fondly remembered paperback books featuring the best of Mad. Wit, sarcasm, parody and irony never go out of style. Six volumes new in (including a couple devoted to specific creators) as follows:
PICTURED: ALL SOLD
DAVE BERG: MAD’S DAVE BERG LOOKS AT PEOPLE Signet 1966 1st UK PB GD/VG £4
HOPPING MAD Signet 1969 1st US PB GD £3
AL JAFFEE MAD’S AL JAFFEE SPEWS OUT STILL MORE SNAPPY ANSWERS TO STUPID QUESTIONS Warner 1976 1st US PB VG/FN £6
LIKE, MAD Signet 1964 8th US PB GD/VG £5
THE MAD JUMBLE BOOK Warner 1975 1st US PB GD/VG £4
THREE RING MAD Signet 1964 1st US PB GD £3
Books Update: Postcard Books of Vintage Sleaze
*Books About Books: From 2000/2002, five postcard books, each collecting classic pulp era paperback covers as collections of postcards (23 or 31 per volume). These can be detached and used, but surely you’d want to keep them as they are to treasure and enjoy time and again. The covers and blurbs tell you what awaits within! All in beautiful ‘as new’ condition.
PICTURED: ALL SOLD
HELLCAT AMAZONS Prion 2000 £10 Tough girls and warped women
SHE TRIED TO BE GOOD Prion 2002 £10 Sirens and vamps
TEEN-REBEL DOPE FIENDS Prion 2000 £10 Drugs, mayhem and juvenile delinquents
THRILL-MAD PUSSYCATS Prion 2000 £10 High-voltage temptresses
TOO LATE TO RESIST Prion 2002 £10 Steamy clinches
Reduction of minimum order value for postage to EU countries
We’re reducing the minimum order value for EU destinations to £50 (previously £100).
Minimum order value (not including postage and packing) for postage destinations:
In the UK: £10
In the EU: £50
Rest of the World: £25
If you’re placing an order for postage to outside the UK, you should be aware that you may have to pay duty/VAT to your local customs authority on receipt. This is not included in the price we charge you, since it varies by country. Please note that payment of this charge, if imposed, is your responsibility. If in doubt, please check with your local customs authority. By placing an order for outside UK postage, you are agreeing to these terms.
Merry Christmas!
We’re closing down for the holidays after posting out on 13th December, although we’ll still be answering your emails.
So, may I take this opportunity to wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year from all of us here at 30th Century, including our Fab Feline Four. Oh, and from the minions, of course!
We’ll be back here on 30th December with what will probably be our biggest Newsletter ever. Stay tuned!
Reminder: Today 9th December is the last day to order for UK Pre-Christmas Delivery
Here’s a reminder of relevant dates for our trading during the festive period.
Today, Saturday 9th December: Last day for orders for UK pre-Christmas delivery. You need to place your order no later than 4 pm. Orders placed after this deadline will not be posted until the New Year. This is also the last Newsletter before Christmas.
Wednesday 13th December: Last posting before Christmas for all orders placed by 4 pm on Saturday 9th and paid for by 4 pm on Tuesday 12th December.
Saturday 30th December: Newsletter resumes. All orders placed after 4 pm on 9th December (up to 4 pm on 30th) will be filled this weekend and bills issued on 31st December 2023.
Wednesday 3rd January 2024: Posting for all paid orders outstanding.
American Comics Update: Superman #233, pivotal issue with iconic Neal Adams cover
*DC: Superman #233 is something of a turning point issue; these days it would probably be called a re-launch. The iconic Neal Adams cover reflects the destruction of all Krytponite on Earth, Clark Kent switches to TV rather than newspaper journalism, there’s a fabulous Superman pin-up from Curt Swan, who also handles the interior art along with Murphy Anderson, Julius Schwartz edits and Denny O’Neill writes and there’s the first World Of Krypton story. All that for just 15 cents (back in 1971, of course). This wonderful copy has vibrant colour and brilliant gloss, showing off Neal Adams’ work at its best. There is a faint pence stamp over the ‘1’ beside the logo. There are some very small stress lines at staples and at the spine, but these do not break colour. Square corners, firm staples, lovely supple white to off-white pages. There is a soft, faint crease from the bottom edge up to Superman’s ankle, but this barely shows and does not break colour. All in all, a gem of a copy.
PICTURED: SUPERMAN #233 VF p £165
American Comics Update: Six Of The Best: Early Green Lantern Low Grade Reading Copies
*DC: There was a lot of quality going on in these early Green Lantern Silver Age issues: a 58th Century adventure, a Flash crossover, two Sinestro covers and stories, Sonar and much more. Bargain basement grades and prices in these flawed gems (but all complete!).
IN THIS UPDATE: GREEN LANTERN ALL SOLD
#12 PR p £4.75 Restapled; felt tip pen price and previous owner’s name on cover.
#13 PR p £7.50 Flash crossover; 3×4 cm hole in cover.
#15 GD+ £19.50 Sinestro cover; upper spine split
#17 FA p £7.25 Spine glued; crayon price on cover.
#18 GD- p £12.25 Sinestro cover; felt tip price on logo
#19 FA+ p £9 Long spine splits
American Comics Update: Spider-Mania/Mighty Marvel Firsts: Amazing #50 with debut of Kingpin and iconic cover
*Marvel: By the time of Spider-Man’s 50th issue, ‘new’ artist John Romita had made the series his own, and this milestone number was marked with the debut of a new villain, the Kingpin – so long associated with Daredevil, in the post-Miller years, that younger readers are unaware that he originated in Spider-Man’s Rogues’ Gallery! The cover of #50, with Peter temporarily abandoning his Spider-Man identity, has become etched in the minds of a generation, endlessly imitated and ‘homaged’, in comics and other media. A classic design, shown off here to good effect on this unspoilt pence printed example, with strong colour, no markings and only tiny bits of edge wear and corner blunting. Staples are firm at spine and centrefold and the pages are a supple off-white to cream. Would grade higher, but we have allowed for the fact that the inner covers are tanned at the edges, although there are no signs of brittleness.
PICTURED: AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #50 VG+ p £450
American Comics Update: The Bute Collection: Fantastic Four Annuals #2-6
*Marvel: Back in the 1960s, Marvel Annuals were a real treat and contained not just new material (some with some reprints), but stories that were often very significant for our characters. Nowhere was this more true than with the Fantastic Four, whose annuals #2-6 are featured in this week’s selections from the Bute Collection. Annual #2 is a Dr Doom special, featuring not just the origin of the Bad Doctor, but also a full length tussle with the FF. #3 has the cataclysmic wedding of Sue & Reed, with just about everybody in the Marvel Universe, including Millie & Patsy and Stan & Jack. #4 features the return of the original Human Torch. #4 has the Inhumans and the Black Panther, the debut of Psycho-Man, and a Silver Surfer back-up. #6 is the debut of Annihilus and the birth of Franklin Richards. All essential reading for followers of the regular comic.
PICTURED: FANTASTIC FOUR ANNUAL
#2 VG+ p £200 Nice pence stamped copy with solid spine (just tiny split at base). Firmly bound and stapled. Minor edge wear with some corner blunting. Excellent page quality. There is a small felt tip pen price central cover above Dr Doom’s head.
#3 VG+ p £45 Clean and attractive pence stamped copy with solid spine (very slight glue puckering). Firmly bound and stapled. Minor edge wear with some corner blunting. Excellent page quality. SOLD
#4 VG+ p £25 Pence stamped copy; glue puckering causes some soft, fine creasing to the left of cover; nothing colour-breaking. Solid spine. Firmly bound and stapled. Minor edge wear with some corner blunting. Excellent page quality SOLD
#5 FN p £50 Superior pence stamped copy, glossy and colourful. Square corners, slight glue puckering at solid spine. Firmly bound and stapled. Excellent page quality. SOLD
#6 GD+ p £55 Pence stamped copy with moderate edge wear, breaking colour at top and bottom edges corner blunting and upper 4 cm spine split. Some reading and handling wear. Firmly stapled. Excellent page quality.
American Comics Update: The Good Doctor Collection: Start of Sub-Mariner series in Tales To Astonish #70
*Marvel: As they put it, Marvel bowed to our demands and gave Prince Namor, the Sub-Mariner his own series in the front of Tales To Astonish, replacing Giant-Man & the Wasp with #70 of that series. The pageantry and spectacle of Atlantis came to Marvel on a regular basis, with the start of this multi-part storyline ‘The Quest’, featuring Lady Dorma and the villainy of Warlord Krang. It also boasted Marvel’s newest artistic talent Adam Austin, who was later revealed to be none other than Gene Colan with his Silver Age debut. And as if that wasn’t enough, the Hulk continued in the same issue by Stan & Jack. The Good Doctor Collection copy is a nice one, pence stamped, with great colour and some gloss. Some spine ticks and a couple of short spine creases which do not break colour. Firm staples and supple white to off-white pages.
PICTURED: TALES TO ASTONISH #70 FN/VF p £60
American Comics Update: Hulkinued: Iconic Hulk cover on #377
*Marvel: The latest comic in our ‘Hulkinued’ event is the classic Hulk #377, the iconic cover with the fluorescent green background. The story features the 1st All-New (Professor) Hulk. Lovely bright copy where the colours ‘pop’. Firm staples, white pages, 1st printing. Just very minor stress marks at spine that do not break colour. To Be Hulkinued…
PICTURED: HULK #377 VF £30
American Comics Update: Charlton’s Haunted/Baron Weirwulf’s Haunted Library
*Horror/Mystery 1960-1980s: Charlton’s Haunted started life in 1971 by just that title, but by #21 had acquired Baron Weirwulf as our horror host and had updated to Baron Weirwulf’s Haunted Library. 7 issues in from both sides of that divide including the Baron’s debut in #21. Plenty of Ditko, Sutton and Newton in this title.
IN THIS UPDATE: ALL SOLD
HAUNTED:
#10 VG p £3.25
#11 FN+ p £8
#16 FN p £6.25
#18 GD £2
#19 FN p £4.75
BARON WEIRWULF’S HAUNTED LIBRARY
#21 VG p £4.75 1st Baron Weirwulf
#22 FN p £4.75
British Comics Update: Alan Class: Sinister Tales with Spider-Man plus File copies
*Alan Class Reprints: Just three items this time. In our regular section, a low grade copy of Sinister Tales #98, reprinting Amazing Spider-Man #63. Plus two certificated File Copies of Uncanny Tales in our Alan Class Private Collection section: #36 with Wally Wood Dynamo and Iron Maiden cover and Thunder Agents interiors; #40 with Steve Ditko sci-fi cover.
IN THIS UPDATE: ALL SOLD
SINISTER TALES #98 FA £12 (PICTURED) Spine partially split and torn.
UNCANNY TALES:
#36 VG £5.50
#40 FN/VF £5.50
British Comics Update: Beano 1966 – New and Improved!
*Humour Comics: Continuing our policy of providing more information for Beano and Dandy, we have a new batch of Beano in this week from 1966, a year totally unrepresented in our listing for some time prior to this. Ah, 1966: England swung, the Beatles had conquered America, James Bond and the Man from UNCLE showed us that spying was all about gadgetry and England won the World Cup; Dalekmania, Thunderbirds Were Go and Holy Priceless Collection of Etruscan Snoods… None of which had anything to do with the Beano, which came from Scotland, of course. 1966 was not a good year for character debuts, but we do have three issues with promotional flyers (for Bimbo, Sparky and Hotspur), plus Fireworks and Christmas issues. It was a good time to be alive…
PICTURED: BEANO BOTH SOLD
#1268 VG/FN £6.75 Fireworks issue
#1275 VG/FN £9 Christmas issue
Books Update: Re-Working Our Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Category: Edmund Cooper (with mostly new additions)
*Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror: We’re continuing to introduce the new layout for our books categories, with an image for each book. This week, we return to our Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror category and the works of Edmund Cooper, where almost all entries are new additions. Cooper was an English science fiction author active from the 1950s to the 1970s; his work often depicts unconventional male heroes facing unfamiliar and remote environments. His novel The Uncertain Midnight, the first published under his own name and featured here, was noted for its treatment of the subject of androids, which was considered original at the time of writing. Also uniquely treated is the subject of the colonisation of planets, and the frank nature of the characters’ conversations and attitudes on racial and sexual topics. His attitude to women is said to have been controversial. His books are for the most part well written and original, and we have a good selection here: five novels and one short story collection.
PICTURED: ALL BY EDMUND COOPER
THE CLOUD WALKER Ballantine 1973 1st US PB VG £5 SOLD
THE OVERMAN CULTURE Berkley Medallion 1973 1st US PB VG £4
PRISONER OF FIRE Coronet 1977 1st UK PB GD/VG £3
TRANSIT Ace 1978 US PB VG £3
THE UNCERTAIN MIDNIGHT Coronet 1974 2nd UK PB GD £3
VOICES IN THE DARK Digit 1960 1st UK PB GD/VG £7 Short stories
Books Update: 4 US Crime Novels with a hint (or more) of Sleaze
*Crime, Spies & Sleaze: Four American (mostly) detective thrillers from the early 1960s new in this week, all with a hint (or more) of sleaze. Case Of the Village Tramp and Bier for a Chaser (the latter by Kendell Foster Crossen under his pen name of Richard Foster) feature recurring detectives. All with appropriate cover art.
PICTURED: ALL SOLD
ROBERT COLBY: LAMENT FOR JULIE Monarch 1961 1st US PB GD £4
GEORGE HARMON COXE: ONE MINUTE PAST EIGHT Dell 1960 1st US PB VG £7
JONATHAN CRAIG: CASE OF THE VILLAGE TRAMP Gold Medal 1961 1st UK PB GD/VG £9
RICHARD FOSTER: BIER FOR A CHASER Gold Medal 1961 1st UK PB VG £5
Books Update: Re-Working Our TV/Film Tie-Ins Category: 3 film related books
*TV/Film Tie-Ins: We’re continuing to introduce the new layout for our books categories, with an image for each book. This week, we return to our TV/Film Tie-Ins category to conclude our Re-Working exercise here. Three film related books of varying fame: That Touch Of Mink is the novelisation of the 1962 romantic comedy starring Cary Grant and Doris Day; Two A Penny is the novelisation of an unlikely vehicle for Cliff Richard, where, hungry for fame and wealth, he falls into London’s underworld, the world of the pusher and the junkie, the con-man and the thug; lastly, West Side Story, the world famous musical represented here by the script book of the film from 1962. From now on, all further listings in this category will be for books that are new in.
PICTURED: ALL SOLD
THAT TOUCH OF MINK BY JOHN TESSITORE Gold Medal 1962 1st UK PB GD £4
TWO A PENNY BY STELLA LINDEN & DAVID WINTER Hodder 1968 1st UK PB GD £4
WEST SIDE STORY BY ARTHUR LAURENTS Ace 1962 2nd UK PB GD £3
Reminder: Saturday 9th December is the last day to order for UK Pre-Christmas Delivery
Here’s a reminder of relevant dates for our trading during the festive period.
Saturday 9th December: Last day for orders for UK pre-Christmas delivery. You need to place your order no later than 4 pm. Orders placed after this deadline will not be posted until the New Year. This is also the day we shall be issuing our last Newsletter before Christmas.
Wednesday 13th December: Last posting before Christmas for all orders placed by 4 pm on Saturday 9th and paid for by 4 pm on Tuesday 12th December.
Saturday 30th December: Newsletter resumes. All orders placed after 4 pm on 9th December (up to 4 pm on 30th) will be filled this weekend and bills issued on 31st December 2023.
Wednesday 3rd January 2024: Posting for all paid orders outstanding.
American Comics Update: The Bute Collection/Batmania: Batman #35 (1946) with Catwoman
*DC: Another Batman gem from the Bute Collection this week. Batman #35 from 1946 has three excellent stories under a nifty Dick Sprang cover. Nine Lives Has The Catwoman is the lead story, wherein she adopts for the first time the classic purple and green costume with mask; written by Bill Finger with art by Bob Kane/Ray Burnley. Dinosaur Island is an action-packed adventure with monsters aplenty; the mechanical dinosaur here is the one that ends up in the Bat-Cave; written by Bill Finger with art (probably) by Paul Cooper/Ray Burnley. In Dick Grayson, Author, (cover featured) Dick goes to work for Crescent Comics; art (probably) by Sprang, Cooper and Burnley. This is a more than respectable copy, with a vivid red cover background and strong, reflective colours. Pages are white to off-white (rare for this vintage) and the staples are strong at centrefold and fairly firm at spine (just tiny tears around upper staple, visible only on interiors). Inner covers have slight tanning around edges. No cover creasing and virtually no wear; one tiny nick at centre spine. Very slightly mis-cut so that the cover is at a very slight angle, with the very top of the cover missing and a very small white border at the bottom. This does not spoil the appearance of the beautifully presenting copy. High resolution images are available on request.
PICTURED: BATMAN #35 VG/FN £550 SOLD
American Comics Update: Nine late Strange Adventures
*DC: After Julius Schwartz moved away from the editorship of Strange Adventures, the torch was passed to Jack Schiff with his brand of horror/mystery mostly replacing the title’s traditional science fiction. There were still plenty of recurring characters though: Star Hawkins and his robot secretary Ilda still had a few adventures left over from the Schwartz era, plus there were new heroes such as the Enchantress, Animal Man and Immortal Man. Nine issues new in from this period this week as follows:
IN THIS UPDATE: STRANGE ADVENTURES ALL SOLD
#165 GD/VG p £9 Restapled
#179 VG+ p £13.25 Star Hawkins story
#181 VG p £9 Upper restapled
#182 VG/FN p £11 Star Hawkins story
#190 GD p £11 Animal Man & Immortal Man stories
#191 VG+ p £10 Enchantress story
#192 VG+ p £10
#193 VG+ p £10
#217 GD p £2.50 Reprints 1st Adam Strange and Atomic Knights stories. Book shop stamps
American Comics Update: …In A Galaxy Far, Far Away… Star Wars #2-6
*Marvel: The original and, we’re fairly sure, the best loved Star Wars series from Marvel which debuted hot on the heels of the original film in 1977. Issues #2-6 which complete the comic version of the first Star Wars movie, all towards high grade, all first printings. Not my personal cup of tea but the Holy Grail for generations that came after me.
PICTURED: STAR WARS
#2 FN+ p £55
#3 VF+ p £55
#4 FN+ p £32
#5 VF p £42
#6 VF+ £32
American Comics Update: The Good Doctor Collection/Spider-Mania: Amazing #103-118
*Marvel: 16 consecutive issues of the Amazing Spider-Man from the Good Doctor Collection this week from #103 to #118. A mixture of cents and pence printed copies, nearly all in very decent shape. Spidey faces up to Gog, Kraven the Hunter, the Spider Slayer, the Gibbon, Dr Octopus, Hammerhead, the Smasher, the Disruptor and more. Highlights below.
PICTURED:
#109 VF £41 Guest-starring Dr Strange
#110 VF+ £60 1st Gibbon
#112 VF £41
#116 VF/NM p £70
American Comics Update: Hulkinued: Hulk #340: Hulk/Wolverine clash with classic cover
*Marvel: Fan favourite Todd McFarlane’s run on Hulk peaked at issue #340, featuring the classic cover design of the Hulk reflected in Wolverine’s claws and an ensuing battle royale within. Peter David’s intelligent script meant that this was more than a simple slugfest. Our latest copy is mid-grade, has great colour and gloss, white pages and tight, firm staples. There are several spine ticks that narrowly break colour, and a couple of shallow, faint creases on the cover which do not. Some handling wear, but presents well. To Be Hulkinued…
PICTURED: HULK #340 VG+ £60
American Comics Update: Tabloid Headlines: Howard the Duck and the Defenders
*Marvel: Two more Marvel Treasury Editions round off our Tabloid Headlines feature for the time being. The Howard the Duck Treasury reprints the earliest adventures of the fabulous fowl, and includes a brand new 27 page adventure with the Defenders, leading us appropriately enough into the Defenders Treasury, which reprints their most famous adventures. Both in beautiful high grade.
PICTURED: MARVEL TREASURY EDITION BOTH SOLD
#12 VF p £20 Howard The Duck
#16 VF/NM p £25 The Defenders
American Comics Update: Marvel #1s: John Carter & Tarzan
*Tarzan/E R Burroughs: In 1977, Marvel gained the license to publish new adventures of the major Edgar Rice Burroughs characters, leading to two series by many fine creators. #1 of both John Carter & Tarzan new in, plus Tarzan Annual #1.
IN THIS UPDATE:
JOHN CARTER, WARLORD OF MARS #1 VF £15 (PICTURED)
TARZAN #1 VF £10.75 (PICTURED)
TARZAN ANNUAL #1 VF £7.50