*Marvel: In Spider-Man’s tenth issue, the mysterious ‘Big Man’ sought aid in his goal to become the king of the underworld, and enlisted the assistance of a trio of career criminals known as the Enforcers. One of them, the Ox, went on to become a nemesis of Daredevil, and enjoy a villainous career in his own right, but still ‘got the band together’ from time to time with his cohorts, Dapper Dan and Montana to battle the Human Torch, Dazzler and multiple clashes with Spider-Man and Daredevil. This vintage issue is a highly attractive VG pence copy, the only immediately visible flaw being a patch of spine wear around the ‘Big Man’s right side. However, full disclosure, there is a light colour touch (not immediately apparent) on Spidey’s thighs, which does not bleed through to the inside front cover. Because of this very minor restore, we have graded this copy, which in every other respect would be a Fine or better, at VG p at £130.

*Marvel: The 87th issue of the ‘junior X-Men’ series, New Mutants, featured the first full appearance (he had made a fleeting walk-on in the previous) of the man named Cable, the man from an apocalyptic near-future, son of Scott Summers by a cloned replica of Jean Grey, who came back in time to prevent his own future from coming to pass. Or something like that. His powers include metal bits, a strappy costume, really big guns, and glaring a lot. With a shiny eye, for no very good reason. Anyway, he took over the stewardship of the New Mutants from Magneto, and eventually honed the survivors into X-Force, a dubious achievement for which no-one should thank him. He’s since bobbed back between ‘now’ and the future, interfering with his own and the world’s time stream, and accosting various mutant children to become the Hope of the World. Kind of like Mary Poppins, he’s a super-powered nanny with metal limbs. Confusing back history and ambiguous abilities or not, his co-starring role in the record-breaking second Deadpool film has caused interest in the character’s early appearances to peak. This copy of the mulleted marvel’s debut is FN p £55, but – because we’re too good to you – we also have the sold-out second printing available in NM at £17.

*Archie: We’ve always been keen supporters of Archie here at 30th Century, and with the Archie series’ recent relaunch in a teen-soap style emulating the popular ‘Riverdale’ TV series, we’ve decided to upgrade our catalogue listing for Archie’s own title up to the final issue of the traditional, original series. This includes such attention-getting stories as the ‘Archie Marries Betty/Marries Veronica’ seven parter and its follow-up ‘Archie Marries Valerie’: ‘Obama Vs. Palin’: ‘Occupy Riverdale’: the charming gender-flip comedy ‘Reversedale’: and many more experimental issues, including crossovers with Glee, Kiss, Thor (well kind of) and Dilton Doiley’s epic battle with… Mark Zuckerberg? This catalogue expansion goes all the way up to the final issue #666, including, at the time of writing, all the #666 variants, plus other sought-after later Archie issues such as the scarce Adam Hughes variant cover on Betty & Veronica, and the debut of Riverdale’s first gay character, Kevin Keller, in Veronica’s solo title. But not content with that, we also have additional vintage Archie issues from Archie Annual, Betty & Veronica, Jughead as Captain hero, Laugh, Life With Archie, and Reggie and Me. See you at the Chok’lit Shop!

*Horror 1940-1959: Suspense (1949-1953), not to be confused with the later Tales of Suspense, was one of Atlas’ most popular horror series – though, oddly, it began not as horror but as crime, adapted very loosely from a popular radio series (later television) of the era. After the first two crime issues, it switched to supernatural mysteries rather than criminal mysteries, but for the first nine issues still proudly proclaimed its media tie-in status on the front cover. The publishers also seemed unafraid to experiment with the format, fluctuating between 48 and 32 interior pages, so most of the early issues are good value for money in terms of page count. As one of Atlas’ earliest horror titles, and the first to go monthly, it’s fascinating to watch the evolution of the series, aided, as always, by the top-notch stable of artists – Maneely, Heath, Everett and more, who produced some splendidly lurid and imaginative work, particularly on the covers! we have 25 of the 29-issue run now in stock, commencing with #4 and ending with the final issue #29. Most of these are in very affordable low to mid grades, respectable reading copies, complete, clean and with varying degrees of wear. A handful, however, do achieve higher grades and are illustrated below – #12 VG+ £82, #13 VG+ £82, #16 VG £73, #18 GD/VG £56. All of Suspense was Pre-Code, not subject to the later censorship that trammelled the genre, so here’s a rare opportunity to grab most of a renowned series – if you’re quick!

*Magazines/Books About Vintage US Comics: In the latter days of the 20th Century, Roy Thomas parlayed his long career as writer and editor to revive his former fanzine Alter Ego, now as a slick semi-pro ‘zine in which he could exploit his network of contacts to gather data from all aspects of the Golden and Silver Age of comics, including conducting interviews with all the surviving veterans he could reach. This labour of love proved successful, and is still running today – but we have acquired the first sixty issues of AE (2nd series), with a plethora of interviews, retrospectives, commentaries and seldom-seen or never-published artwork, covering not only Marvel and DC, but all of the companies of the Golden and Silver Ages. Issue #1, pictured, is NM £25; prices on the others, as always, to be found in our online catalogue.

*Boys’ Adventure & War Comics: A captivating quintet of first issues from various eras of the UK comics industry: from 1988, in the wake of the ‘Comics Aren’t Just For Kids’ hullaballoo, Crisis #1, looking at the planet’s nihilistic future VG £4; from 1970, the first issue of the footie-themed Scorcher, PR at a mere £7.50 – a corner off the back cover impedes the ‘Big Match Review’, but all other features intact; also from 1970, the first ‘reboot’ issue of the Wizard FA/GD £12.50 with a small corner off the lower front cover not affecting the story content and from 1974, Warlord #1 VG £15. Finally, Bullet #1 from 1976, home of the mulleted and moustachioed ‘Medallion Man’ Fireball and his chums, GD £20, plus issues 2 and 3 for those of you who just can’t get enough!

*Girls’ Comics: From 1967, the trans-European Tina, launched in multiple language editions, was so heavily pre-sold prior to its launch that it could legitimately claim, even on the front of its debut issue, ‘More copies sold than any other girl’s paper in the world!’ With a strong adventure-oriented line-up, curvaceous secret agent ‘Jane Bond’ illustrated by Michael Hubbard, was the lead, and the ‘Space Girls’ (in colour, by Dan Dare illustrator Keith Watson) added a sci-fi touch. Other features which debuted here were ‘Moira – Slave Girl of Rome’, exotic island drama with Brenda Burn and ‘My Chum Yum-Yum’, pop musicians ‘Jackie and the Wild Boys’, western adventuress ‘Glory Gold’ and ‘Barbie’. Yep, that Barbie. After thirty issues, Tina merged with Princess and lived a long and happy life as Princess Tina, but the pre-Princess issues remain scarce. This copy of #1 comes with its original free gift, ‘Gold Plated’ Troll Brooch! (bear in mind that in 1967, phrases like that were understood not to imply that there was any actual gold involved…) The ‘gold’ of the brooch has partially flaked off over the intervening decades, giving the badge a slightly grubby aspect, but the comic itself is Fine; the troll brooch, structurally sound, we have graded as GD/VG. Our price for the two together: £50.

*Magazines/Books About Vintage UK Comics: We’re pleased to announce a significant update to this small category, comprising the Eagle/Dan Dare fan magazines Spaceship Away! (Nearly complete run of #1-#43 fresh in — a title still being published today!) and, from an earlier era, an extensive run not only of Eagle Times, the Quarterly Journal of the Eagle Society, but also its precursor, Eagle Days. Started in 1986, when many of the original Eagle contributors were still around, these magazines contain a plethora of information about the classic weekly and its companion papers, and, being a club journal rather than a general-audience publication, have never been widely circulated. We have several issues of Eagle Days, from the very first, and most, though not all, Eagle Times from Volume Four onwards, with a scattering of earlier issues.  Due to the expansion, this category has now been relocated to our basement, where you’ll find it between Younger Readers’ Comics and Boys’ Adventure & War Comics.

*Clearance Corner: This week’s bargain in Clearance Corner is another of our irresistible Marvel reprint job lots from the 1960s — those (mostly) giant issues featuring classic tales from the dawn of the Marvel Age (or even earlier, in some cases). 13 issues included in this £20 selection: Fantasy Masterpieces #1-4, #6, #7, #9 & #10, Marvel Collectors’ Item Classics #1 & #4 and Marvel Tales #6, #8 & #10. Mostly in decent shape, one a bit ragged, one missing a back cover. These always sell very fast indeed, so get your order in early! (UK postage, if required, will be an extra £3.50). SORRY, THIS LOT HAS NOW SOLD

*DC: After his abandoning Marvel, Steve Ditko, co-creator of Spider-Man and Doctor Strange, moved over to DC, where one of his earliest assignments was the Creeper, a bizarre anti-hero created when TV reporter and commentator Jack Ryder, fired for his outspoken views, falls in with scientist Dr. Yatz, whose knowledge gives Ryder greatly enhanced strength, agility and damage resistance, which he uses to terrify monsters and enforce his own kind of justice. Although ostensibly scripted by Denny O’Neil, the plot and opinions carry strong flavours of Ditko’s own libertarian views, and present a considerably more politically-motivated hero than was commonplace at the time. The art, though, is what sells the book, a newly refreshed and remotivated Ditko turning out moody, vertiginous artwork fully exploiting the character’s agility. The Creeper remains a recurring figure in the DCU, and this copy of his premier appearance is a stunning VF, bright and lustrous with only minimal spine wear. VF p £50. SORRY, THIS HAS NOW SOLD

*Marvel: Our Mighty Marvel Firsts sequence continues this week with the most sought-after comic of the 1970s. Hulk #181 features the first full appearance of Wolverine, the Canadian super-hero who, outstripping everyone’s expectations, became the most popular Marvel character created 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 has become the star of the lucrative X-Men franchise, and a multi-media darling in his own right. This issue, where it all really kicked off following a one-panel cameo in the preceding ish, has good interior page quality, excellent cover colour and a number of faint fine creases at cover edges and corners which do not in any way detract from the cover scene. There is light spine roll, causing the back cover to ‘lean’ slightly, but staples are attached at cover and centrefold and, most crucially, the Marvel Value Stamp (probably the most important appearance of Shanna the She-Devil, bless her!) is still in place. This promotional coupon is the blight of Marvels from a certain period, often clipped and missing – but not in this instance! Between the frequently-missing Marvel Value Stamp, and the fact that this issue was never distributed in the UK, intact copies of Hulk #181 in any grade are at a premium. We have graded this full debut of Marvel’s most popular mutant at VG-, and the price is £950. SORRY, THIS HAS NOW SOLD

*Marvel: In the 11th issue of the X-Men, Magneto and his Brotherhood of Evil Mutants accosted a mysterious figure who appeared to be a mutant possessing power to dwarf even Magneto’s own – but the Stranger was soon revealed to be much, much more, a cosmic entity rivalling the Watcher in might, but, unlike Uatu and his chums, all too willing to use that power! A chain of events began which led to the dissolution of the Brotherhood, and the beginning of Quicksilver and the Scarlet Witch’s road to heroic redemption, all in this Lee/Kirby classic – oh, and Chuck X. and his merry mutant students are in there too! This is a very lovely FN- cents copy on sale at £90.

*Marvel: One of many new titles launching for Marvel in 1968, we present a chunky run of Captain Marvel, most of the first 20 odd issues starting with #2, including the costume change in #17, and #28 (4th Thanos) and #29 when the good captain attained true cosmicosity at the hands of Jim Starlin.

*Horror 1940-1959: Leading off our Atlas Explosion event, and continuing with our Pre-Code Horror Mega Fest this week, we turn of course to Atlas Horror. When Atlas embraced the Horror genre, they embraced it with a vengeance! 1952 saw the launch of several horror anthologies, including this week’s spotlit series, Adventures Into Weird Worlds! We have twenty of the thirty-issue run (it faltered in 1954, just shy of the advent of the Comics Code Authority) new to our listings, commencing with #2 and ending with the final issue #30. The stellar line-up of artists we’re accustomed to is present – Everett, Heath, Williamson, etc. – but it has to be observed that they excelled in producing a number of gloriously lurid covers for these shock-fests. (A particular favourite being #9…talk about ‘putting your face on’!) This selection runs from low to mid-grade, with some hitting VG or nicer. Depicted are #6 VG- £68, #9 GD/VG £59, #11 VG £73, #12 VG £73, #15 GD/VG £55, #16 FN £110, #28 VG £73 and #29 VG+ £72. This title, entirely Pre-Code, offers a plethora of delights to connoisseurs of the arcane and macabre.

*Boys’ Adventure & War Picture Libraries: In January 1961, Battle Picture Library joined its elder brethren, Air Ace and War, to complete the ‘Big Three’ of Fleetway/IPC Picture Libraries, running, between them, thousands of issues and showcasing scores of talented writers and artists. Early issues of these iconic titles are increasingly sought-after, and we are delighted to have Battle Picture Library #1, ‘The Rats of Tobruk’, back in stock in a highly attractive VG+ £80. The cover is tight and flat, spine in generally excellent shape with minor wear at top, and only very slight penetration by staple rust at mid-spine. These minor flaws, however, are offset by vibrant unfaded cover colour and superior interior page quality, resulting – as you can see for yourselves in the illustration – in a copy with considerable eye appeal at £80. SORRY, THIS HAS NOW SOLD

*TV & Film Related Comics: The ever-popular Star Wars weekly from Marvel’s UK division has been refreshed with 60 issues, pre-screened by our crack Stock Control Team, that were not previously in our inventory! from 1978’s #3 to 1980’s #117, the adventures of Luke, Leia, Han, Chewy and the gang, in mid to high grades, in glorious black & white and recut to fit the UK format, are yours to enjoy anew!

Exploding on to our What’s New page over the coming months will be one of the most significant collections of Atlas comics (the 1950s Marvel pre-cursor, not the 1970s failed experiment) that we’ve ever seen. Covering several genres (Horror, Western, War, Crime, Adventure and Miscellaneous, with a smattering of Super-Heroes, Romance, Funny Girls, Science-Fiction and Humour/Satire) and full of the work of such artistic greats as Everett, Heath, Severin, Maneeley, Pike, Colan, Baker, Krigstein, Shores, Williamson, Torres and many more, this will be a rare opportunity to build or add to a very nice range of Atlas in your collection, with over 1500 comics to choose from. We’ll be starting to list them this weekend, and will be working through them as quickly as time permits. Look out for the ‘Atlas Explosion’ tags on our What’s New page and in our Newsletter week by week!    

*Marvel: I don’t know, you wait around for ages for an Amazing Fantasy #15 to turn up, and then two come along at once! Join us as we celebrate the ultimate Spider-Mania/Mighty Marvel Firsts event — the first appearance of the Amazing Spider-Man in Amazing Fantasy #15.

In the final issue of the mystery anthology Amazing Adult Fantasy, dated September 1962 and renamed Amazing Fantasy for that one issue, Stan Lee and Steve Ditko created a character who was destined to change the then-nascent Marvel Comics’ fortunes, and the face of the comics industry. Peter Parker, the Amazing Spider-Man, became Marvel Comics’ solo super-star, wisecracking his way through all the slings and arrows a capricious fate (and the imaginative writers) could throw at him, and, decades later, following thousands of comic books and multiple multi-million media adaptations, he remains one of the most recognized characters worldwide. Copies of his first appearance, pre-dating his own series, are the most sought-after comics ever, always topping such lists of ‘hot’ comics that are compiled, so we are highly pleased (and honestly, a little staggered) to have not one, but TWO copies of this ground-breaking debut issue available.

The first is an unabashed Poor: a Pence copy, this has a long horizontal taped tear across the front cover, bisecting the logo. The spine is heavily taped, and there is a corner, approximately 2 x 3 inches, off the upper left back cover, which also has a horizontal taped tear similar to that of the front cover. The body of the book is taped to the inside front cover at the staple areas. There are minor biro markings on the advertisement on the inside front cover. There are two sets of rubber-stamped initials, one at lower splash page margin, another (with added date 1967, presumably a previous owner’s year of purchase) at the bottom of the inside back cover. All interior pages are present and complete, with no defacements or significant defects, and the interiors, if considered in isolation, would present as GD+ to GD/VG. Although there are, as detailed above, extensive drawbacks with the cover, they do not significantly impact upon the cover image, which is clean and unmarred. For this PR p copy of Amazing Fantasy #15, the price is £4,000.

The second copy is a significantly higher grade, which means, paradoxically, that there is less to actually say about it. Another Pence copy, we have graded this as GD+. There is one tiny diagonal tear on the lower cover edge, around ¼”, just below the yellow Editor’s Message box. There is moderate to significant spine wear, but the spine remains firmly intact, and staples are solid at cover and interiors. Numerous small creases and ‘scuffs’ on the cover image, but none of a cumulative magnitude to detract from the cover image. No tape or any interior markings of any kind. Interiors clean, off-white and flexible. Owing to the multiple small and light creases and spine wear, as detailed above, we have graded this copy of Amazing Fantasy #15 at GD+ p and the price is £10,000.

Front and back covers and splash page images are shown here. High resolution versions of these are available on request. Please note that viewing of either or both copies can be done at our shop, but STRICTLY by appointment only; since we do not keep these comics on the premises, we will require a minimum of 24 hours’ notice for an appointment to view. SORRY, THESE HAVE BOTH NOW SOLD

*Collected Editions: Celebrating the Fiftieth Anniversary of the release of the Beatles’ animated feature, ‘Yellow Submarine’, Titan Books have released a previously-unpublished graphic novel adaptation of the film. In 1998, artist Bill Morrison, having established his reputation with Bongo Comics’ The Simpsons and their companion titles, was asked by Dark Horse to produce a Graphic Novel Adaptation to celebrate the 30th Anniversary of the movie. Some 25 pages in, the project stalled, but now, in time for the movie’s half-century, Morrison has extensively redrawn the previous pages and completed the work, for a full-colour hardcover extravaganza creatively adapting and reinterpreting the original! This brand-new iteration of a pop-culture landmark is £27.

*DC: Something a little more modern in this week’s Batmania instalment. Originally planned as a regular Batman Annual, the story which would become The Killing Joke evolved by accident; as the wait lengthened for the pages to come in from illustrator Brian Bolland, Alan Moore’s story shifted, becoming more of an examination about the nature of the relationship between Batman and his arch-nemesis the Joker. Collateral damage along the way was Barbara Gordon, Batgirl, who was crippled and traumatised in the start of events which transformed her into Oracle, a sequence which outraged many at the time and polarises factions even today. Regardless of whether you love it or hate it – and there’s many on both sides – its importance and popularity can’t be denied, as it has remained constantly in print and gone through a myriad of formats. We are lucky enough to have received two copies of the first US Prestige Format printing, one in NM at £60, and the second in VF at £50. In addition, we have a copy of the first UK printing – identical in format and content – in NM at £20.

*DC: A selection of Aquaman issues from the final years of the King of the Seas’ Silver Age run. Jim Aparo’s spare, kinetic artwork gave a genuinely alien feel to the undersea adventures, and while the previous artist, Nick Cardy, had abandoned the interiors by this point, he was designing the heck out of the covers, producing some of the most lush and innovative images of his career. This selection runs from #50 (guest-starring Deadman by Neal Adams) to #56, the final issue of the original series, with the dynamic debut of a new DC super-star – the Crusader! (Spoiler: don’t get too attached…) In attractive grades, averaging FN or better.

*Marvel: Ditko Spider-Mans are always a welcome addition to our lists, and this is one previously unrepresented in our inventory. Returning from a period of insecurity and self-doubt, Spidey roars back into action despite the Daily Bugle’s carefully-orchestrated smear campaign, aided by his best ‘frenemy’ the Human Torch, as they take on the combined menace of the Sandman and the Enforcers. A Lee/Ditko classic, with all the tropes you look for – JJJ’s insane ranting! Aunt May’s dicky ticker! Betty and Veronica – sorry, Betty and Liz’s – dating shenanigans! And, as a bonus, the first fleeting appearance of MacDonald ‘Mac’ Gargan, the man who would become the Scorpion! This copy is a cents copy with no pence price or overstamp, in VG with just a hint of sunshadow in a very narrow band at the spine, and a light sub crease (best seen in the illustration by checking out the sole of Spidey’s outstretched foot), otherwise it would be still nicer. On sale at VG £75. SORRY, THIS HAS NOW SOLD

*Marvel: From 1984, a little later than most fare in our catalogue, the famous Marvel series which launched a sequence of crossover ‘events’ which still reverberate through the Marvel Universe today. Secret Wars was the first of its kind, and featured many landmarks, but most famously the origin of Spidey’s black costume (later revealed to be the alien symbiote Venom) in #8. Cuddly brain-eating symbiotes remaining eternally popular with the kiddies, this origin issue is keenly sought-after – especially now our evil protoplasmic chum is the star of his own movie franchise – and our new copy of Secret Wars #8 is a highly attractive VF p copy at £40. SORRY, THIS HAS NOW SOLD

*Horror 1940-1959: In the 1950s, every comics publisher was having a go at the horror field, and the relatively neophyte Charlton Comics was no exception. One of their most notorious and lurid titles is This Magazine Is Haunted, with the usual Pre-Code array of giblets and gore, but occasional flurries of creative potential. We have two issues of TMIH new to our lists: #15, FA/GD £20, with a cover by Dick Giordano – another artist who would go on to greater things  and issue #18, with striking cover and interior art by then-newbie Steve Ditko. #18 is a superior mid-grade copy with moderate spine wear, and only slight creasing to right edge and lower corner, not impacting on the cover scene; illustrated, GD+ at £63. SORRY, THESE HAVE NOW SOLD