Welcome to Cool Comics in My Collection Episode 99, where we take a nostalgic look at comic books I currently own, and in some sad cases, ones that I let get away.

For each of the comic books I include in this blog, I list the current secondary market value. This is according to the listings at the website www.comicbookrealm.com. They list out the near mint prices, which are on the comic book grading scale of 9.4. If you go to the website to look up any in your collection, you can click on the price and see the value at different grades. Not all of my comics are 9.4. Some are probably better, and some are worse. But to simplify it, that’s the grading price I use here. And remember, a comic book is only worth what someone is willing to pay for it.

Have you considered being a guest host for Cool Comics? You can do a theme or just pick any of your comics for inclusion (this blog is for all ages, so please keep that in mind), with a maximum of seven issues. Repeat guest hosts are permitted and encouraged. Send your completed blog to edgosney62@gmail.com.

If you have any questions or comments, please scroll to the bottom of the page to where it says, “Leave a reply.” I hope you enjoy seeing these as much as I do writing about them. And now, Episode 99…

Cool Comics News!

If you live in Northeast Ohio, or don’t mind driving, this Sunday plan on a trip to North Olmstead for NEO Comic Con. There will be guests (including Kevin Nowlan, Bob Hall, Tony Isabella, Marc Sumerak, and more!), gaming, cosplay, and plenty of vendors. The cost is just $7, so start planning on all the cool comics you want to find in back issue boxes. I’ll be there, roaming around and taking it all in, so if you happen to see me, make sure to stop me and show me the cool comics you found. Keep in mind that this isn’t a full weekend show. It’s August 20 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Click on the link above to get all the details, and be sure to check out this commercial!

Cool Comics

Cool comics in my collection #473: Defenders #1, August 2017.

The Defenders TV series launches on Netflix August 18 (if you’re reading Cool Comics the day it comes out, then that means the show starts…tomorrow!!!), and I thought I’d do a little tribute by going totally Defenders with Cool Comics this week. As longtime readers know, I went cold turkey with my comic collecting in 2003. I had a mountain of white boxes and my house was being taken over, plus I just couldn’t afford it any longer. Finally, in 2011, I started reading some of my back issues that I hadn’t previously touched. I also realized I needed to get rid of some issues, so I painfully went through my collection and had a gigantic garage sale. I lost many a good friend that weekend, but it had to be done. I’ve been reading my back issues ever since, and also started my blog. Which in turn took me back to my local comic shop, where I started buying more back issues (especially when planning a special theme week for the blog). But until recently, I’ve kept my hands off the new comics. A few weeks back I noticed that my store still had the first three issues of this new Defenders series, so I decided to buy them, since the show is starting off. The cover price of Defenders #1 is $4.99, while the current value is $5.

Cool comics in my collection #474: Defenders #2, August 2017.

Did you know that this new Defenders series is Volume 5 for that title? Of course, Volume 1, with 152 issues, contains many more issues than the next four volumes added together, but maybe this new version will get traction and gain some ground on the original classic series. Especially considering that the characters used in this volume have live-action shows on Netflix. This time we get Luke Cage (Power Man), Jessica Jones, Danny Rand (Iron Fist), and Matt Murdock (Daredevil). With the exception of Jessica Jones, I’m pretty familiar with the other three heroes. Jones didn’t enter the Marvel Universe until after I’d stopped collecting in 2003, so she’s new to me. Are you excited for the show? Have you bought these comics, too? Well, I have a little confession for you. I’m behind on my Netflix viewing. I mean REALLY behind. I just finished Daredevil season one last night! And I won’t watch The Defenders until I’m all caught up. But if this new comic series is any indication, then I’m excited to see it! The cover price of Defenders #2 is $3.99, while the current value is $4.

Cool comics in my collection #475: Defenders #3, September 2017.

If you need another excuse to spend your pennies on this new Defenders series, just check out the cover for this issue. Yup. The Punisher. Back in the Seventies when I first started collecting comics, the Punisher was new, cool, and mysterious. Now, with characters like Venom, Lobo, and Deadpool, he doesn’t seem like a big deal. But if you were a kid when I was a kid, you know what I’m talking about. I’ve often mentioned here in Cool Comics my three phases of comic collecting, which always coincided with the purchase of new issues, along with some back issues. In 2013 I started subscribing to Afterlife With Archie, and occasionally getting some back issues, starting with buying some on eBay to help fill in one of my collections. Plus, I’ve also been going to Free Comic Book Day since then. I wanted to say that I’ve officially now started phase four of my comic buying and collecting this summer, since I’ve placed some orders with my shop via Previews, but I’ve just had an epiphany that phase four has been here since 2013. And here I thought it officially started a couple weeks ago when my comic shop actually pulled a new comic for me for the first time since the summer of 2003. I guess the first four years of phase four just looks a little different, but it’s there all the same. The cover price of Defenders #3 is $3.99, while the current value is $4.

Cool Comics Classics

Cool comics in my collection #476: The Defenders #11, December 1973.

For Cool Comics Classics this week, I must include an issue from the original Defenders series. Because I was just a kid and buying comics for the first time, the Seventies is the period most revered by me. And I think we can all understand that nostalgic feeling, whether it’s from 50 years ago or just 10. We get that longing for our childhood, to experience these positive emotions once more. Do you remember where you bought your first comic book? Life comes with ups and downs, but sometimes all it takes to get through a rough day is that happy thought we had when, with a pocket full of change and the company of a few good childhood friends, we make our way to that special place that has a colorful array of comic books with our heroes on the covers, and we gladly plunk down our money in turn for a couple hours of adventures. The Silver Surfer, Doctor Strange, Hulk, and Namor. It looks like they’re battling for their lives on this cover. Yet hopefully it brings a smile to your face as you think back to some of your best memories of good times reading comics as a kid. The cover price of The Defenders #11 is 20¢, while the current value is $60.

Recently Read Digital Comics

One of the most legendary of all stories in the history of the X-Men is The Dark Phoenix Saga, which ran in 1980, a period of my life in which I was not collecting comic books. To go back and buy issues 129 through 137 now would be too costly, but since we live in the age of digital comics, I was able to get the entire run for just $2.99, via Amazon. Anyone who is familiar with these merry mutants is aware that Jean Grey and her teammates went through these troubled times, as I was, but until now I hadn’t read the actual story. Chris Claremont (writer) and John Byrne (artist) don’t fail to entertain, and introduce some important characters along the way, such as Kitty Pryde (Shadowcat), Emma Frost (the White Queen), Sabastian Shaw, Allison Blaire (Dazzler), Senator Robert Kelly, the Hellfire Club, and, of course, the first appearance of the Dark Phoenix. If you appreciate the X-Men but haven’t read the Dark Phoenix Saga, it’s probably time that you did.