*Magazines/Books About Vintage US Comics: Running for 31 issues between 1983 and 1990, Nemo: The Classics Comics Library had as its emphasis the classic American newspaper strip. While some issues were thematic, most were a mix of articles, interviews, comic strip reprints and more. We have most issues fresh into stock, a mine of information for lovers of this genre.

*Boys’ Adventure & War Comics: In 1977, 2000 AD launched into the consciousness of the nation, and for better or for worse, the comics world was never the same again! Oddly enough, the title’s most famous denizen, ‘Judge Dredd’, didn’t make it into the first edition, debuting in #2, but the five strips that did premiere in #1 pushed the boundaries; ‘Flesh’ saw a starving near-future use time-travel to go back and harvest dinosaurs – what could go wrong? ‘Invasion’ saw a band of rebels stand alone against the ‘Volgans’ who had conquered the United Kingdom; ‘Harlem Heroes’ produced a violent reprise of the original ‘Rollerball’ movie, and ‘MACH 1’, with its bionically-enhanced action hero, was a clear homage to… oh, well, have a guess. No, not ‘Get Smart’. Topped off by a ‘reimagining’ of the classic hero ‘Dan Dare’ designed to induce apoplexy in aficionados, the violent, bloodier ‘heroes’ set the scene for myriad imitators, some more successful than others. This is a superior mid-grade copy, with clean bright staples, tight corners, no cover marring beyond very light patches of tape residue where the free gift has been carefully removed, light to moderate edge wear and only light yellowing of the pulp paper. GD/VG £70. SORRY, THIS HAS NOW SOLD

*Boys’ Adventure & War Comics: In this update we’ve added nearly every issue of Volume 9 (#2 to #46, with very few omissions), nearly all in attractive FN or VG grades.

*Girls’ Picture Libraries: We have new stock for four series aimed at a slightly older demographic this week, all from 1959. (We think; a couple are actually dated, and the others seem contemporary, so we’re going with that – until someone tells us different!) Famous Romance Library is from Fleetway, featuring often striking painted covers and line-drawn done-in-one long stories with appealing artwork. Similarly, the Australian-produced Silhouette Romance Library features painted covers, book-length stories, and fine interior illustrations. Miller’s Romance Strip Stories presents cheap & cheerful drawn covers and multiple interior stories, with a heavy reliance on US reprints, and Photo-Romance Novels from World Distributors presages the later ‘photo-love’ trend of the 1970s by having badly-staged photos instead of drawings, behind painted covers. Illustrated: Famous Romance Library #145 (VG £15) and a trio of first issues: Photo Romance Novels #1 (FN £10), Romance Strip Stories #1 (VF £15) and Silhouette Romance Library #1 (VG £12).

*Collected Editions: New in this week, the first volume of the Michael Moorcock Library from Titan books, reprinting the first two books of Michael Moorcock’s Hawkmoon/Runestaff saga, the comic adaptations of which were published by Savoy in the 70s and 80s. Lavishly illustrated in glowing black and white by the stylish James Cawthorn, this handsome hardcover volume presents The Jewel In The Skull and The Crystal And The Amulet, a science fantasy saga set in an eerily familiar post-apocalyptic land of the Dark Empire of Granbretan. With a wealth of extras included, priced at £36. SORRY, THIS HAS NOW SOLD

*DC: While all early issues of Hawkman are superb, with high-flying sci-fi stories by Gardner Fox and luminous Murphy Anderson artwork (not that we’re prejudiced witnesses or anything… ), the most sought-after in recent years is issue #4, featuring the debut of the Princess of Prestidigitation – Zatanna! Zee (as she’s familiarly known), a personal favourite here at 30th Century, is the daughter of DC’s Golden Age magician Zatara, and took her quest for her missing father through the pages of Green Lantern, Atom, Detective Comics and the Justice League of America in one of DC’s earliest ‘story arcs’, but this is where her illustrious career – which has branched out into both animated and live-action TV – began. (And yes, they did miss a bet by not having her featured on the cover -.foolish mortals!). This VG- pence copy (moderate spine wear and light cover corner creasing, unmarred interiors) is available at £200.

*Marvel: In the fourth issue of Marvel’s Avengers series, the already formidable team of Iron Man, Thor, Giant-Man and the Wasp was augmented by one of the legendary heroes from the past. Captain America returned to action after years in Post-WWII suspended animation, and rapidly became the acknowledged heart and soul of the Avengers, who have never flourished for long without him! This copy of an iconic issue is a very attractive VG+, pence copy, staples tight at centrefold and cover, unmarred cover scene with light corner and edge wear, strong spine, no exterior or internal markings, light diagonal crease in lower right cover corner. On sale at £625. High resolution scans are available on request. SORRY, THIS HAS NOW SOLD

*Marvel: Iron Fist’s 1977 title, though critically acclaimed and well-received, failed to catch a mass audience, and was cancelled with its fifteenth issue. But in retrospect, its next-to-last issue, #14, has become hugely sought after as the debut of Sabretooth, one of the X-Men’s most popular enemies, and sometimes related to Wolverine in some sense – depending on whose warped reality it was in a given week. Ironically, it’s only Sabretooth’s premier appearance by accident – he was intended to appear first in Ms. Marvel #24, but that series was cancelled with issue #23, so here he is, in all his feral glory! This issue is doubly desirable here in the UK, as it was never distributed through official channels, and only a relatively tiny amount of the print run made it over. This is a lovely, tight & bright VF+ copy, vivid and glossy, on sale at £170. SORRY, THIS HAS NOW SOLD

*Marvel: The incomparable Wally Wood drew just seven issues of Daredevil from the Man Without Fear’s earliest adventures, and we have six of them fresh into stock this week (missing just his debut in #5). Pick of the bunch is #7, the first red costume issue for DD and also the epic battle with the Sub-Mariner. Our new copy is VG/FN (cents); a nice mid-grade copy with minor stress at spine and some edge wear, but tight and flat with excellent staples and page quality, priced at £170. Other issues include the debuts of Mr Fear (#6), the Stilt-Man (#8) and the two-part encounter with the Organiser and the Ani-Men (#10-11). For grades and prices on all, consult our catalogue. SORRY #6 & #7 NOW SOLD

*Horror 1940-1959: Technically a Timely title when it started, Marvel Tales took over the numbering of the company’s flagship title, Marvel Mystery Comics, when it launched in 1949 with issue #93, and the former home of Captain America, the Sub-Mariner, Human Torch, Miss America and the Blonde Phantom became the dwelling of vampires, monsters, werewolves, ghosts and ghouls – and a howling success they made of it! We have 25 vintage Marvel Tales newly in, commencing with issue #113, and ending with 1957’s final issue, #159. This tasty torrent of terrors includes stellar artwork by Kubert, Krigstein, Ditko, Williamson, Wood, Morrow, Powell, Drucker, Kane, Orlando, Romita and Sinnott, as well as the ever-reliable, always excellent trinity of Maneely, Heath and Everett – the latter of whose ‘End of the World’ story in #153 is regarded as one of his finer works. Over half of this update – 14 out of the 25 – are illustrated here: #113 GD/VG £90, #115 GD/VG £90, #120 FA/GD £53, #136 VG- £64, #137 VG £66, #138 VG £73, #140 VG £66 (two copies, in identical grades and prices), #142 VG+ £74, #144 VG+ £74, #145 FN £98, #146 VG+ £63, #154 VG £56, #157 VG+ £64 and #159 VG+ £64. As always, however, with our recent large Atlas updates, there is a plethora of lower-graded issues at very economical prices, so do remember to check the online listing for more details.

*Western: Two 1957 entries in the Western field were the Kid From Dodge City and the Kid from Texas, neither of which really got a chance to catch on, as both ended with their respective second issues, despite having the same quality as the rest of the Atlas Western line. The Kid From Dodge City featured early art by Don Heck, an often-underestimated artist because of the high volume of rushed work he did in the 1970s, but back then he was an illustrator more in the Caniffesque tradition. The Kid From Texas was drawn by Bob Powell, with covers by Severin and Heath. Oddly for the frugal publisher, neither title was renamed from or into any other series, so this ‘pair of pairs’ remain odd cut-off trails on the dusty paths of the Western genre. Depicted: Kid From Texas #1 FN+ £38; details on the others in our online catalogue.

*Modern Reprints: A further trio of these phone book like Marvel black and white volumes added to our stock, all volume 1 of their titles in NM: Iron Fist, collecting all the early appearances; Super-Villain Team-Up with Dr. Doom and Sub-Mariner, collecting the entire series plus bonuses; and X-Factor, with all the early issues plus guest shots. Great reading value. Iron Fist is £30, the others are £12 each.  

*Magazines & Books About Vintage US Comics: Following the demise of legendary artist/writer Jack Kirby in 1994, many print tributes were issued to commemorate his life and works. One such was Jack Kirby Collector, which started humbly as a black & white fanzine but was taken up by Twomorrows into a slick ‘prozine’ which continues to this day. Our stock of Jack Kirby Collector has been enhanced by more than 40 issues, in numbers ranging from #6 to #74, all averaging VF/NM. In addition, we have the first paperback volume of the Collected Jack Kirby Collector VF £20, as well as a small selection of the lesser-known companion Jack Kirby Quarterly, which began as a black and white fanzine in the UK, but was taken up by Greg Theakston’s Pure Imagination for US distribution.

*Vintage UK/Australian Reprints of US Material: A whole box-full of goodies freshly added to this category, including Casey Ruggles, Crime Patrol, Donald Duck, Fantastic Tales, a large run of Gold Token Super Mag, Justice Traps The Guilty, Mr District Attorney, Police Comics, Race For The Moon, a New Zealand Rip Kirby, World Distributors’ Movie Classics (Searchers, Sharkfighters, Wings Of Eagles) and WD Western Classic.

*Boys’ Adventure & War Comics:  In 1976, the staid world of British comics was rocked by the advent of Action, a brutal weekly (by the standards of the day), where villains, including Nazis and man-eating sharks, were the heroes. Hugely popular and hugely controversial, we have the first three issues back in stock: issue #1 is only FA, complete but with a significant lower cover tear, at £20; issue #2 is VG at £20 and issue #3, unlike its chums, comes with the original free gift – 16 Soccer Super Stars of Britain Trading Cards, still in the pack/wallet (pictured)! The comic is Fine, and the Free Gift of packet plus cards, though opened, is also Fine – comic and gift combo on sale at £50. SORRY, THESE HAVE NOW SOLD

*Girls’ Picture Libraries: Better remembered for its long line of war-themed picture libraries, Pearson did occasionally venture into the softer side of things, and from 1965, we have an unusual example: Heart Beat #1, an extra-tall romantic picture library, a full 12″ in height, though no wider than the standard PL. This extra height was no doubt intended to make the series stand out at the newsagent’s, but we suspect that in reality, like the Giant War Picture Libraries, it simply meant it was a bugger to display and got mangled and mishandled, if the shops bothered to put it out at all. We suspect few survive, and certainly we had never heard of it until we acquired this copy. We have no idea how many further issues – if any – there were. Interior artwork is the same sophisticated European style seen in many romantic comics of the day, with three separate tales – ‘Guilty Secret’, ‘Front Page Story’ and ‘Love Tangle’ – featured. In excellent shape for its age (VG), this is a very uncommon item, priced at £50. SORRY, THIS HAS NOW SOLD

As you may realise, the purpose of our Clearance Corner lots is to clear space in our shop by discontinuing titles we’re no longer carrying to make way for new and incoming stuff. As such, they will only be offered for a short time. This Clearance Corner lot, listed on 11th December 2018, has not been snapped up and is nearing the end of its time with us. If not purchased by the weekend, we will have to dispose of it. Here are the details from our original listing:
‘A charming bargain lot in Clearance Corner this week. Classics Illustrated Junior, the companion to the famous Classics Illustrated series, commenced in 1953 and ran for 77 issues, featuring many famous (and some not so famous) fairy tales with brightly painted cover illustrations. Included in this lot of 36 different issues are Sleeping Beauty, Jack & the Beanstalk, Puss In Boots, Rumplestiltskin, The Emperor’s New Clothes, Rapunzel, Snow White & Rose Red and many more. The UK version of this was called Pixi Tales and there is one issue of that included in this lot of otherwise US versions, making 37 in total, all in a mix of FA to FN grades. We have to clear something to make room for our Atlas Explosion, so these, with regret, have to go. Here’s your chance for a real bargain — just £25 the lot (UK postage if required would be an extra £7).’ SORRY, THIS LOT HAS NOW SOLD

*DC: Following his critically-acclaimed ‘Fourth World’ series of intersecting titles at DC, Jack Kirby branched out into three stand-alone series. One such was Kamandi, a.k.a. ‘The Last Boy On Earth’, doubtless influenced by the then-ongoing Planet of the Apes phenomenon. Kamandi showed a post-apocalyptic future in which all humanity apart from our titular hero had degraded to virtual beasts, oppressed by all manner of super-evolved animals. Later attempts by other, lesser talents have been made to link this in with the greater DC Universe, but most folk prefer to think of the original 59-issue run from 1972 to 1978 as a self-contained odyssey. We have issue #1 of this cult series, a cents copy with no pence price or overstamp; only the very lightest, barely perceptible corner wear on this beautiful copy which we have graded VF+ at £50. SORRY, THIS HAS NOW SOLD

*Marvel: Among the most sought-after comics of the 1970s, Hulk #180 featured the first appearance of Wolverine, the Canadian super-hero who, outstripping everyone’s expectations, became the most popular Marvel character since the dawn of the Marvel Age. Created by Len Wein and Herb Trimpe (from a John Romita design), Wolvy was revived by Wein when he put together the New X-Men who debuted in Giant-Size X-Men #1, and since then, Wolverine became the star of the X-Men, and a media darling in his own right. Having said that, it wasn’t a lengthy first appearance – in the final panel of #180, Wolverine popped up to make dire threats to both Jade-Jaws and guest-monster the winsome Wendigo – but it’s still the first on-panel appearance of the decade’s mega-hot star. Never distributed in the UK, this gap in your Hulk history can be filled with an attractive FN+ copy, tight & bright with minimal spine and corner wear, flexible off-white interiors, and, most crucially, the Marvel Value stamp firmly in place! FN+ cents (no pence variants on this puppy) at £300. SORRY, THIS HAS NOW SOLD

*Marvel: By the time of Spider-Man’s 50th issue, ‘new’ artist John Romita had made the series his own, and this special issue was marked with the debut of a new villain, the Kingpin – so long associated with Daredevil, in the post-Miller years, that many people overlook the fact that he originally belonged to Spider-Man’s Rogues’ Gallery! The cover to #50, with Peter’s temporarily abandoning his Spider-Man identity, has become etched in the minds of a generation, endlessly imitated and ‘homaged’, in comics and other media. Our newest copy of ASM #50 is VG+, a pence copy with strong spine, but very light corner wear. Firmly attached at cover and centrefold, largely unimpaired cover scene, with excellent cover colour and gloss, and only a tiny chip out of the top cover edge. Interiors clean, off-white, flexible, with considerable eye appeal. VG+ p £200. SORRY, THIS HAS NOW SOLD

*Marvel: The Claremont & Cockrum New X-Men was already a critical hit when #101 turned up, and in a dramatic turn of events, Jean Grey, former weak sister of the team, was escalated into a powerhouse when a cosmic ray storm seemed to transform her into the entity known as Phoenix – and a major, ultimately tragic, story arc for the X-Men began. The legend was somewhat tarnished in later years by Marvel’s back & forth position on whether Jean actually was the Phoenix, or whether the Phoenix force just manifested itself in her form (with a swingin’ new costume), but nevertheless, this remains a key and highly sought after issue, whose appeal has been enhanced by the announcement of the forthcoming X-Men: Dark Phoenix movie. This copy is VG-, light to moderate spine & corner creasing, pence copy, for £100.

*Marvel: A fabulous fifty issues added to our stock of Earth’s Mightiest Heroes between #10 and #92, including highlights such as (deep breath): the debut of the sinister Immortus (#10); the Swordsman premiere in #19; the heroic Black Knight’s debut in #48; the nefarious Grim Reaper enters in #52; the second X-Men/Avengers battle in #53; the debut of Yellowjacket in #59, and his subsequent wedding to the wonderful Wasp in #60; the Invaders ‘prototype’ in #71; #72 sees the first appearance of the villainous cartel Zodiac; #83 sees the first appearance of the Valkyrie and the Lady Liberators and #87 gives us the awesome origin of the Black Panther! Depicted are #10 (VG+ p £45); #11 App. FN p £49 – one non-story page out and #83 VG+ p £45. Almost all of this new acquisition is characterised by high grades, averaging FN+ or better, and with many, many VF’s in the mix.

*Marvel: Following the success of 1970’s Conan the Barbarian title, Marvel hoped to expand the fantasy genre in their line-up, and their next target was Kull the Conqueror, another adaptation, like Conan, from the fantasy works of author Robert E. Howard. Although he didn’t achieve the popularity of Conan, lasting 29 issues in his first series, he remained an ongoing part of the Conan continuity, and has undergone sporadic revivals. We have issue #1 (1971) to #9, then #11 (when the title was renamed Kull the Destroyer) to #14, beautifully illustrated by, at various times, the sensational Severin Siblings, John and Marie, and Mike Ploog, among others. Issue #1 (Kull’s second appearance – the Marvel Comics version debuted in Creatures on the Loose #10 – and his origin) is FN+ £20; prices on all other issues in our online catalogue. SORRY, KULL #1 NOW SOLD