Akira should be read by anyone in to graphic novels and or science fiction
It's not for the easily offended but Preacher is awesome
Since we are including compilations in the 'graphic novel' concept (whereas the original graphic novels published by marvel were single stories separate from the comic books) - early spawn, fables, and the ultimate spidermen compilations by bendis.

J Michaels Strzcinskis take on 'totemistic' powers and that spider man ALWAYS would have been sppider man is a good reinterpretation of the genre

Death of Captain Marvel
The New Mutants
God Loves Man Kills (loosely inspirational of X2:X-Men United)

Those are some of the early 'original' graphic novels...i actually owned them at the time, but alas no more.

Marvel Zombies is pretty good as well

Crisis on Infinite Earths was a series that was earth shattering (literally and figuratively) at it's time.

AOk, I'll stop now

I'm just about at the halfway point of Osamu Tezuka's Buddha series. It's absolutely brilliant. It reminds me of the History of the World series, in that it is serious and informative, while still retaining its sense of fun. The characters are vivid, credible, and moving. I can't recommend it strongly enough.

Oh, man! I just completed 2 of my favorite series, 'Rising Stars' & 'The Darkness'! For years I was missing 2 comics from the first run of 'The Darkness' & more than half of the issues that made up the run of 'Rising Stars'. Yesterday, the wife told me I couldn't buy any DVD's , & confused as to what else I could possibly buy, I stopped by my local comic book shop to pick up some more protective bags (they say you should change the bags every 5 years, but mine have been in the same bags for nearly 20! There aren't any changes in their appearances, though. they all look like they did the day I bought 'em!) & decided to check out their back issue bins. That's when I discovered they had every issue of 'Rising Stars' I didn't, for only 2-3 dollars apiece! I then checked out 'The Darkness' books & I found 1 of the 2 I was missing, which suddenly put me on a mission to find that last book. I found it on ebaY ! For the next few days I'll be reading comics instead of watching movies! All 24 issues of 'Rising Stars' & 40 issues of 'The Darkness', plus the 11 "connective x-over/spin-off issues' from 'Witchblade', 'Batman', & 'The Magdelena'! This little outting has rekindled my love of comics & it looks like I'll be visiting my local comic shop a tad more than my local DVD sellers. I'm only going for back issues, so I shouldn't run into any problems when it comes to finding issues to complete a series. Plus, in some cases, it's cheaper to buy a back issue! I saved .50 to 1.00 on each of the cover prices. I almost forgot! I also grabbed the first 'The Mask' mini-series! I've always had 'The Mask Returns' & a friend loaned me a TPB of the first series, so I knew the story (which is similar to the movie, but ALOT more bloody!), but I always wanted the original comics. AND NOW I'VE GOT THEM!!!!!!!!

Whew! When you have the WHOLE story, IT'S EVEN BETTER! I still stand behind the fact that 'Rising Stars' is one of the greatest tales ever told in this medium! I knew, with the way the first 14 issues were told, this was gonna be a helluva ride, but I never woulda guessed it would be this cold! I'm still waiting for The Darkness # 35, so in the meantime, I'm reading "The Age of Apocalypse" crossover.

Interesting sidenote:
As I was reading 'Rising Stars', I noticed a 3 month gap between issues 16 & 17, a 9 month gap between 18 & 19, and 10 months between 21 & 22! No wonder I couldn't keep track of this series! I thought I was missing new issues, turns out, they were running late & I found out why. It was because of the movie that had been in the works. Straczynski was halting any work on the books while they were fighting over the rights! Seems all that fighting was for nothing, though, because a movie was never made. However, Sam Raimi has expressed interest in turning it into a television mini-series.

Another interesting sidenote:
There were 113 specials born. The protagonist's name is John. In the Bible, John 1:13 reads: "Who were born not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God." Think J.M.S. was thinkin' of this verse? In the end, they did make the world a better place.


I also just got 'The Darkness' # 35 in the mail yesterday! The first volume of the series is now complete. I wonder what other series' I can finish up...

I just found another place that sells comics & they had a buy 1, get 1 free sale on back issues. I finally got the first 10 issues of 'Spawn'! When I started collecting comics, I missed out on most of the first run of Image Comics because I had no idea they existed! The Comic Book Guy I was seeing was only pushing Marvel & DC comics. When a buddy of mine told me about Image, I ran out & grabbed as many of their issues as I could. With the exception of 'Spawn' because it just looked weird & demonic. After seeing the 'toons, though, I realized it was demonic, but it had a good story! I can't believe they actually had the first 30 or so issues! I only grabbed the first 10 because I didn't have alotta cash, but the salesdude told me that only kids come in wanting their comics & it's mostly the 50 cent ones. So they should be safe for me to grab them a few at a time until I've got 'em all! I wanted a nice round number, so that's why I only grabbed 10. Strange. Out of all of the Image Comics I grabbed in the early 90's, not one is worth a darn thing now except 'Spawn' comics! I also got a few Wolverine VS Cyber stories. Man, I LOVED Cyber! The only person Logan feared! But they killed him off! WHY?! I don't know. He didn't even die at the hands of Wolverine, he was killed by bugs! FRIGGIN'FLESH EATING BUGS! They were mutant flesh eating bugs, but still... HE WAS KILLED BY BUGS! All so another villain could use his adamantium skin in order to lace Logan's bones with it & make him Apocalypse's Horseman of Death. However, this was all for nothing because Logan rejects the adamantium, thereby wasting Cyber's death. Accordding to the link I posted for some info on my main man, he's recently been resurrected in someone else's body, but he still has his adamantium skin. Of course I'm just finding this out because I haven't been into comics for quite some time, as I typed before. Well, guess I'll get to puttin 'em up. Catch ya later!

Hey, guys! I just found a free online comic book price guide! I don't know how many of you collect comics for their value, but I, personally, like to check out how much they're worth for fun. I'd never sell any of 'em. It's just cool to know that I actually have a few that are really worth somethin'. My comics are pretty much in near mint to mint condition. I make sure I never open the books too much to keep the spine from cracking & wear rubber gloves (that I nab from my doctor's "glove box" during appointments) when I handle some issues that are easily stained by fingerprints, like the 'Marvels' comics. I special ordered mine, so they've ALWAYS been fingerprint free & will ALWAYS be fingerprint free as long as I'm alive! Because of this little guide, I discovered I overpaid for one (Spawn #1- worth $5/paid $10), but the free one that I got with it was worth a tad more than what I paid (Wolverine #2- worth $12/paid $0)! What a nice surprise!

This price guide is GREAT! They have EVERY comic I own! Just for fun, I'm gonna list the worth (& picture) of each of the comics I have hanging on my walls in the Den. I didn't hang 'em because of their worth (most don't rise above 5.00), but because I love admiring the artwork. Some folks like Vincent Van Gogh, Pablo Picasso, Salvador Dali, Andy Warhol, or even Jackson Pollock. I love the works of Alex Ross, Jim Lee, Sam Kieth, Marc Silvestri, Joe Madureira, Joe, Adam, & Andy Kubert (father & sons!), Ian Churchhill, & Chris Bachalo! There are also a few up because of the recent trend of comic-based movies starring their characters. Just so folks can see that "Howard the Duck" (and the like) was actually a Marvel comic waaaaay before Geaorge Lucas' film!

Prime #1 - 2.50
Iron Man #122 (Vol. 1) - 10.00
Iron Man #1 (Vol. 2) - 4.00
The Mask #4 - 5.00
The Mask Returns #3 - 3.00
Avengers #4 - 3.00
Web of Spider-Man #32 - 2.50
Cerebus the Aardvark #104 - 3.00
Lobo the Duck #1 - 2.50
Legends of the Dark Claw #1 - 5.00
Spirits of Vengeance #6 - 2.50
Aliens VS. Predator #2 - 5.00
Aliens: Colonial Marines #1 - 3.00
Daredevil #325 - 3.00
Scud: The Disposable Assassin #1 (2nd Print) - 10.00
Scud: The Disposable Assassin #14 - 5.00
The Chroma-Tick #5 - 3.00
Powers #7 - 5.00
Howard the Duck #1 - 20.00
Bone #28 - 4.00
Spectacular Spider-Man #200 - 3.00
Cyblade & Shi: The Battle for Independents #1 - 20.00
Darker Image #1 - 2.50
Savage Dragon #1 - 5.00
Shi: The Way of the Warrior #3 - 8.00
Marvel Comics Presents #79 - 5.00
Rise of Apocalypse #3 - 2.25
Generation X #2 - 2.50
Generation X #26 - 2.50
Generation X/Gen 13 #1 - 4.00
X-Men #1 (A) - 2.50
X-Men #1 (B) - 2.50
X-Men #1 (C) - 2.50
X-Men #1 (D) - 2.50
Sabretooth #3 - 4.00
Wolverine #75 - 8.00
Wolverine #79 - 3.00
Wolverine #90 - 3.00
Wolverine #129 - 3.00
Badrock/Wolverine #1 - 5.00
Hulk #8 - 20.00
Cyber Force #3 - 2.75
Batman #497 - 3.00
Batman #500 - 5.00
Spawn/Batman #1 - 6.00
Marvel Versus DC #3 - 4.00
Marvel Premiere #51 - 3.00
Shadowhawk #3 - 2.50
Shadowhawk/Vampirella: Creatures of the Night #1 - 7.00
Comics Greatest World #3: Week 1- Barb Wire - 3.00
Comics Greatest World #7: Week 2- The Machine - 2.00
Comics Greatest World #9: Week 3- Ghost - 3.00
X-Force #4 - 2.50
X-Force #25 - 5.00
X-Factor #92 - 5.00
Uncanny X-Men #304 - 6.00
X-Men #25 - 13.00
Excalibur #71 - 5.00
Top 10 #1 - 3.50
WildC.A.T.S #1 - 2.50
Youngblood #4 - 2.75
Gen 13 #1A - 5.00
Fantastic Four #1 ('96) - 3.00
Hulk Smash #1 - 3.00
Pitt #1 - 2.50
Ripclaw #1 - 2.50
Witchblade #50 - 5.00
The Darkness #40 - 2.50
The Maxx #3 - 2.50
Marvels #1 - 8.00
Marvels #2 - 8.00
Marvels #3 - 8.00
Marvels #4 - 8.00
Kingdom Come #1 - 10.00
Kingdom Come #2 - 10.00
Kingdom Come #3 (No, I don't have #4... yet.) - 10.00

Simpsons Comics are displayed on the "Simpsons side" of The Den:
Krusty Comics #3 - 3.00
Simpsons Comics #9/Barney Gumble #1* - 3.00
Simpsons Comics #64 - 2.50
Simpsons Comics #72 - 2.50
Simpsons Comics #79 - 2.50
Simpsons Comics #91 - 3.00

These are in a display case with my Marvels & Kingdom Come books:
Origin (TPB) - 15.00
Star Wars (TPB) - 10.00
The Empire Strikes Back (TPB) - 10.00
Return of the Jedi (TPB) - 10.00
Sin City: The Hard Goodbye (TPB) - 17.00

Apparently I have 475.25 hanging on my walls down there! What's that? Natural light is gonna damage 'em? Oh, there is none down there, the only window is boarded up. In fact, it hardly has any light at all because the Den is my own personal home theater. It's lit (when a movie isn't playing) by rope lights most of the time.

Comics I own that are worth 10 bucks or more (not on display):
Aliens VS Predator #1 - 10.00
Ash #1 - 12.00
Avengelyne: Swimsuit Special - 10.00
Cliffhanger! #0 - 10.00
The Darkness #0/Witchblade #10 - 20.00
The Darkness #1/2 - 20.00
The Darkness #1 - 12.00
Detective Comics #485 - 15.00
Fantastic Four #102** - 60.00
Fathom #1 (Killian Cover) - 15.00
Marvel Team-Up #17 - 15.00
The Maxx #1/2 - 10.00
The New Mutants #16 - 10.00
Rising Stars #1 - 10.00
Rising Stars #2 - 10.00
Rising Stars #3 - 16.00
Rising Stars #4 - 16.00
Rising Stars #5 - 20.00
Rising Stars #6 - 16.00
Rising Stars #7 - 12.00
Vampirella Strikes #1 - 13.00
Vengeance of Vampirella #1/2 - 10.00
Wolverine #2 - 12.00
Wolverine #100 - 10.00
Wolverine #145 - 20.00
Wolverine #147 - 10.00
Uncanny X-Men #282 - 12.00
Uncanny X-Men #283 - 16.00
Uncanny X-Men #354 - 12.00
X-Men #50*** - 15.00
X-Men: Omega - 10.00
X-Men: Prime - 10.00

Do any of you have any comics worth anything?


*Barney Gumble #1 side is displayed. Sorry, can't find a photo.

** Truthfully... this comic ain't worth diddly squat because it's in VERY POOR condition, BUT it's in the exact same condition it was in when I first got it! So, I figure IF I had gotten this comic in NEAR MINT condition, it woulda still been that way! I only keep it because it was, pretty much, my very first comic & it's a sentimental thang. When I first got it, it was worth about 12 bucks in NEAR MINT, now, over 20 years later, it's 60! That's wild! Too bad the guy that had it before I did had to treat it like garbage.

***I can't believe they don't have a picture of it! This is the issue I have, though. Only 12,000 ever made! I don't know how long this item is going to be up for bid, but I guess you can see it before they sell it.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Monkey_Boy,

I used to have the Amazing Adult Fantasy, either #15 or #16, with Spiderman's first ever appearance. I had a copy and my brother did too. If only I'd kept it... Wonder what it's going for now?

I believe it ! I used to have EVERY "Star Wars" toy when I was a kid, from Luke Skywalker to the Emperor. The Millenium Falcon to an At-At! I mean EVERYTHING! However, when my mom left my dad, I had to leave it all behind . If only I'da known those things woulda been priceless...

Ya know, 'Spawn' the comic series is very different from the 'toon & the movie, BUT I still like it! I don't know why they changed what they did, but it doesn't make alotta sense. Like, they made the Violator waaaaay stronger than Spawn, but in the comic, they have equal strength! In fact, the Violator loses his powers by the fourth issue! (Now that 'Violator' mini-series I love makes alot more sense!) I only have it up to the 11th issue so far, but I'll be getting the rest soon enough. Cerebus' guest appearance in issue 10 was very cool & I was curious how they were gonna "fix" what happened to Spawn in issue 9. They actually don't answer that question until 11! That's why I only got that issue. I didn't have enough money for anything else & I really wanted to see where this was going! I can't wait to continue the story! Man! Why wasn't I born rich?!

I've been enjoying "The Spirit" sereis that DC launched early this year. Darwyn Cooke is doing fine, following in Will Eisner's footsteps. Love the artwork and that most of the stories are self-contained in a single issue.

Marvel's World War Hulk storyline has me disappointed. Damn, I was wanting Tony Stark's head ripped off and all I see is more of the ol' Hulk Smash but not kill routine. Even Thor (finally back from the dead) let Stark off too easy in the latest thunder god ish. Stark's probably a skrull in disguise anyway (that'd get him off the hook for his fascist Civil War stance).

"Jungle Girl" series is looking interesting, 2 issues in. Not just t & a (nothing bad there) but a fine story in the making.

Thor and Daredevil are currently my favorite series in the Marvel universe. Worse- if Fantastic Four doesn't rebound with the next storyline, I'm axing it from my pull-list. The writers need to darken that series, bring in Frank Miller and make it bleak.