*Boys’ Adventure & War Picture Libraries: We extensively re-stock the ever-popular Thriller Picture Library this week, with dozens of issues new in ranging between #6 & #235. Including many titles previously missing from our listings, this new selection is in a range of grades between Poor and Fine. Having come to us all the way from Australia, these are ‘Overseas Price’ copies, otherwise identical to the UK priced copies. A high point of the British comics industry in the 1950’s with a superior standard of story and art.

*DC: It’s 1966 and Batmania’s sweeping America, with the Batman TV show in full swing and it seemed you couldn’t pick up a DC comic without Batman being involved. Even here, in Lois Lane #70, the Caped Crusader and Robin make an appearance, but the show is stolen by one of his most famous foes, Catwoman, making her first entrance into the Silver Age of Comics. For good measure there’s also the Penguin and plenty of Superman too (natch!) in this book-length tale of villainy, crime, magic and impersonation. All beautifully rendered at the hands of Kurt Schaffenberger, who knew how to tell a story! A lovely FN+ pence copy, clean, bright and tidy with just some wear towards the spine at £55.

*Boys’ Adventure & War Comics: Our Free Gift Farrago update this week turns to two popular British weeklies: from 1956, 2 issues of Hotspur (#1014 & #1016) with their free gifts: 2 per issue World’s Best Cricketers glossy photo cards; then a further Hotspur (#675 2nd series 1972) with Super-Duper Football Poster; rounding off with the Silver Jubilee issue of Tiger from 22nd September 1979 complete with Tiger Favourites Booklet plucked from its years of publishing history. As always, grades and prices may be found in our catalogue.

*Marvel: Another visit to the Silver/Bronze Ages of the House of Ideas, this time featuring the following titles: Conan, Daredevil, Fantastic Four, Howard The Duck, Invaders (Giant-Size #1), Iron Fist, Iron Man (many issues in high grade between #101 and #150) and Marvel Tales (many early giant issues reprinting Spidey and other Marvel classics).

*Annuals: A big lot of humour annuals fresh in this week, ranging from 1959-2011! Many perennial favourites featured including Beano, Beano/Dandy compilations, Beezer, Beryl the Peril, Broons, Buster, Dandy, Dennis the Menace and Desperate Dan.

*Boys’ Adventure & War Comics: Having played for Melchester Rovers since 1954 in the pages of the Tiger weekly, Roy Race finally got his own spotlight with Roy of the Rovers weekly, in 1976. A huge success, his title lasted until 1993, and the character has enjoyed sporadic revivals since then. We have the first two issues of RoTR weekly new in stock: issue #1 is in Fine, with not only an exclusive article by the Duke of Edinburgh (devoid of controversial content, so presumably HRH was on his meds that day), but also the original free gift, a fold-out wallchart (unmarked and VF) on which you were supposed to follow your team’s seasonal progress. Issue #2 is also Fine with the free gift, but the gift – a do-it-yourself Supporter’s Rosette with adhesive letters – is only VG, having been filled out by a Fulham loyalist!

*Boys’ Adventure & War Comics: From its inception in 1976, the Action weekly courted controversy by featuring as ‘heroes’ characters who would traditionally be regarded as antagonists; German tank commanders, man-eating sharks, and so on. The escalating levels of violence in series like “Hellman”, “Hookjaw”, “Dredger”, “Death Game 1999” and their stablemates caused increasing concern – and sharply rising sales as a result of all the publicity! Eventually, Action was hoist by its own petard, and publication was suspended while a reconfiguring of the series in a safer direction was implemented. Pre-ban issues, however, remain highly sought after, and we have a new batch in – just for you! Beginning with the very first issue in FN, this new selection is characterised by exceptionally high quality, particularly for British weeklies, which were printed, after all, on the cheapest disposable pulp paper. Most of these new additions achieve the seldom-seen grade, on UK pulp weeklies, of VF: white pages, bright colours, tight staples and flat copies with no spine roll or page-sliding. A handful dip to a ‘mere’ Fine, but the vast majority are in remarkable preservation. To top it off, we also have four of the Summer/Holiday Specials from 1976 and 1977, 1979 and 1980, not in quite as high a grade overall, but still eminently respectable.

*Annuals: Top-ups in three key divisions in this category. In Film & TV, we have two extraordinary condition items – the 1963 Fireball XL5 Annual in Fine/VF, illustrated by Eric Eden. Aside from one colouring page which has been very lightly done, this is in a remarkable state of preservation, and not common in any condition. We also have from 1965 the very first TV Century 21 Annual in a remarkable VF, with the ‘Owner’s Name’ page not filled in, and the price unclipped. Truly  beautiful copy. Other new listings in TV & Film related include the very first Dr. Who Annual from 1965, Man From U.N.C.L.E.Television Picture Story Book from 1967 (with Jet Dream and her Stunt-Girl Counterspies!) and TV Comic from 1965, featuring Fireball XL5 and Supercar. In Boys’ Annuals, We have a swathe of mid-seventies hard-bitten action with – appropriately – Action and Battle, plus 1977’s Spider-Man Annual, and 1900’s 2000 AD. And in Girls’,  we revisit our favourite doe-eyed goth waif with far too much makeup, as Misty welcomes us to the Land of the Shadows in her 1983 and 1985 Annuals. Full pricing and grading information in our catalogue listings.

*Horror/Mystery 1960-1980’s: In the 1970’s, Marvel’s relaunched horror line focused on the Big Three Hollywood Monsters: Frankenstein, Dracula and the Wolfman (Werewolf). Much quality art abounded throughout and in the Monster Of Frankenstein, early issues were graced by the work of Mike Ploog. Here we have all 18 issues of the run from 1973-75, all cents copies, in a variety of grades from Fair to Very Fine+.

*Dell: A handful of  Dells from the early 1960’s, starring the first Danger Man comic (Four Color 1231 FN+ £30, pictured) and also featuring Adventures In Paradise (from an unknown in the UK TV show), an early Turok (#20) and 2 Movie Classics horror issues: Twice Told Tales and The Wolf Man.

*Boys’ Adventure & War Comics: To complement our Humour update today, we have a selection of Boys’ comics (mostly story papers) from the dawn of time. Starting with a facsimile of the first edition of the famous Boys’ Own Paper from 1897 (!), we also have Boys’ Realm (1919), Champion (1952), Modern Boy (1929), Skipper (1934), Tip Top (1953), Topical Times (1938), Union Jack Library (1918 with Sexton Blake story), Wizard (1940) and Wonder (1952). A secure rest home needed for all these old codgers!

*Marvel: A triple treat of the Sky-Rider of the Spaceways this week as we present three seminal issues: firstly, a lovely high grade VF+ cents copy of #16 of the original Surfer series at £66, featuring the rematch with Mephisto; secondly, two copies of Vol 2 #1 from 1982 by Lee & Byrne in NM and FN/VF; finally, a less commonly seen copy of Lee & Kirby’s original Surfer Graphic Novel from 1978 – the Ultimate Cosmic Experience, published in the Fireside Book series — a softcover VF+ first printing at £38. The epitome of Marvel cosmic!

*Marvel: A quickie Spidey update this week, featuring most of the first 20-odd issues of Spectacular Spider-Man (launched as Peter Parker, the Spectacular Spider-Man in 1976) in mid-grade, characterised by central soft creasing, but eminently readable. As a bonus, we have 2 copies of the Macfarlane #1 issue of Spider-Man from 1990, both in NM condition: a first printing still sealed in its poly-bag and an uncommon second printing (gold edition).

On a regular cycle, we sweep through our entire stock to delete sold items and keep our listing as up to date as possible. We’ve just finished deleting sold items from the following file in our British section:
*Marvel UK
*Power Comics
As of the time of writing, these categories are bang up to date, with every item listed available.

*TV & Film Related Comics: From 1971, the very first issue of Look-In! The ‘Junior TV Times’ entertained a generation of readers with its features and photos on popular TV series of the era, plus comic-strip adaptations of the hottest series. What’s little known is that, virtually right up until publication, the mag was originally going to be called ‘Magpie’, and the content in this first issue reflects that, not just in the heavy presence throughout of Magpie presenters Susan Stranks and co., but in the Free Gift, which is a cardboard diorama of the Magpie TV studio! Comics content in this premiere issue includes “Please Sir!”, “The Freewheelers”, “Crowther In Trouble”, and “Wreckers at Dead Eye”, which will be greeted by nostalgia or bafflement depending on the age of the reader, but the comics highlight is a rather lovely “Timeslip” strip by Angus Allan and Mike Noble. This copy of issue 1 is a decent VG condition, an upper spine split preventing a higher grade, but the accompanying free gift is in sparkling VF. Yours for £100.

*Romance: Looking For love? Look no further! From 1959, to 1976, the ever-changing face of funnybook romance at Charlton and DC. The comparatively chaste Teen Secret Diary #2 from Charlton kicks us off with a rather lovely cover, despite being Collettaed to hell and back, and we add For Lovers Only to our inventory, with one of inker Bob Layton’s earliest efforts at solo artistry. Moving on to DC, we add a dash of Young Love and a sprinkling of Young Romance from the latter days of the 1970’s, where editors were fighting sagging sales with come-on titles like “Love Came C.O.D!”, “No Wedding For Me!”, and “Exciting Things You Can Do With Him!”. Much interesting artwork in these latter DC issues, with Saaf, Mortimer, Rosenberger and beautiful Gray Morrow story among the new additions.

*DC: Stop! This is the new Green Lantern co-starring Green Arrow! So proclaimed the 76th issue of the Emerald Galdiator’s Silver Age series. With sales falling, editor Julius Schwartz turned in 1970 to the creative team of Denny O’Neil and Neal Adams to add Green Arrow to the title and re-invigorate the series. And that’s just what they did, bringing in contemporary ‘relevant’ storylines dealing in issues such as drugs, racism, modern life in the USA of the day etc. The fame of their run extends to this day and it is avidly collected. It all started here in #76. We have a nice FN+ cents copy (£325) new in, with minor spine & edge wear. Some colour bleed through back cover. Unnecessary extra staple added to centre spine. Tight and flat with excellent page quality. Arguably, the comic that started the Bronze Age, and the Holy Grail for many collectors.

*Boys’ Adventure & War Comics: Another D.C. Thomson weekly titled devoted to war stories started in 1974 and we have most of the first 20 issues of Warlord fresh in this week. With such features as Union Jack Jackson, Bomber Braddock, Code-Name Warlord and Young Wolf, Warlord set out to enthral a new generation of war devotee readers. It lasted a very respectable 12 years and 627 issues before being subsumed into its stable-mate Victor.

*Marvel: Helping to fill up our boxes on display for the House Of Ideas, we have dozens of new issues in stock for the following titles: Astonishing Tales (from #1), Black Goliath, Captain America (inc. Kirby & Steranko issues), the Cat, Defenders (inc Annual #1), Hulk (inc. 1st Wendigo in #162), Iron Man (#11), Logan’s Run (#6 with Thanos), Machine Man, Marvel Presents (with the debut of the Guardians Of The Galaxy feature), Marvel Spotlight, Marvel Super-Heroes (with Medusa), Marvel Team-Up, Ms. Marvel, Nick Fury, Agent of SHIELD (inc high grade #15 with the debut of the 1st Bullseye), Power Man (inc Luke Cage, Hero For Hire #8 & #9 in high grade, 1st meeting with Iron Fist in #48 and 2nd & 3rd apps. of Sabretooth), Spider-Woman, Sub-Mariner (from #6), a couple of What If (1st series), #4 of the Miller Wolverine mini-series, and a whole gathering of X-Men (as early as #17 right up to the first apps. of Bishop in #282/283). Consult our catalogue for full details on all these.

*Girls’ Comics: The twilight curtain parts again and the tincture of the night reveals our ‘friend of the mists’ with a run of Misty complete from #1 up to 20th October 1979, thus complete except for the last couple of months’ worth. Included are the first three issues plus the 1979 special. This original owner collection is in nicely preserved shape, virtually all copies grading either VG, VG/FN or FN, and all copies are complete with calendars, cards and games inserts where appropriate. #1 FN £80, #2 VG/FN £35, #3 FN £40, 1979 Holiday Special (complete with poster) FN/VF £80.

*Marvel: A small update for the Man Without Fear, starting with a low grade #2, the first Gladiator appearance in #18, the anniversary issue #100, an early Bullseye in #146, several Frank Miller issues and the third Annual (or special, as it was known). Full details as always in our catalogue.

On a regular cycle, we sweep through our entire stock to delete sold items and keep our listing as up to date as possible. We’ve just finished deleting sold items from the following file in our British section:
*Girls’ Picture Libraries
and in our Books Section:
*Childrens’ Books
As of the time of writing, these categories are bang up to date, with every item listed available.

*Boys’ Adventure & War Comics: Despite only lasting 22 issues between 1970 and 1971, the IPC/Fleetway adventure weekly Thunder had a major impact on the comic industry, introducing popular and long-running characters such as the ageless wanderer “Adam Eterno”, crazed scientist “Black Max”, robot soldier “The Steel Commando”, and, erm, “Phil the Fluter”, who froze time whenever he blew his instrument.  No, really. All of these, plus Dennis McLoughlin’s “Fury’s Family”, “The Jet Skaters”, “Sam”, and “The Spooks of St. Luke’s”, moved into Lion after Thunder’s short run, importing fully half of Thunder into the veteran title. Steel Commando and Mr. Eterno were the most successful, the latter lasting until the end of Lion and moving on into Valiant until that title’s conclusion. Not only do we have all 22 issues of Thunder new in and available for purchase, but the first three come with the original free gifts! #1’s Ozzie the Jumping Kangaroo (from “Fury’s Family”) is admittedly past his best, having lost the original rubber and sustained some wear, but issue #2’s ‘Black Max’s Black Bat’ is very nice, mounted on its original card, and issue #3’s set of ‘Little Peeler’ stickers is untouched in the original envelope. For such a fleeting series, Thunder’s legacy is remarkable, and now there’s a chance to obtain the entire set – but move fast, or you won’t be Thunder-struck! Full grading and pricing information shown in our catalogue. SORRY, THE FREE GIFT ISSUES PICTURED HAVE NOW SOLD

*DC: In 1975, DC decided to take the daring step, for the time, of publishing a series in which a villain was the ‘hero’ – and what better choice than the Clown Prince of Crime, the Joker? Bat-Veteran creators Denny O’Neil and Irv Novick launched the series, and it was loaded with guest-stars – the Creeper, Lex Luthor, Green Arrow & Black Canary, the Royal Flush Gang, the Scarecrow and more. However, the pesky Comics Code Authority, still in force at that time, decreed that evil-doers should never be shown as triumphant, so the audience was in the position of watching the Joker lose out issue after issue, and while that was fine for a guest-villain, it didn’t fly for the ostensible star of the series! It ended with issue #9, but has since then, with the Joker’s ever-escalating popularity, become a highly sought-after series, and we have the first eight of the nine back in stock in nice grades, averaging Fine – but if you want to beat out the other larcenous miscreants in search of the series, better move with alacrity!

*Marvel: Several of the God Of Thunder’s adventures re-stocked, starting with Journey Into Mystery #94 and ending with Thor #172. Included is #118, the first appearance of the Destroyer. In most cases these are lower graded but very presentable and cheaper alternatives to high grade copies we already have in stock. Full details as always in our catalogue.