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| Copyright DC COMICS |
No, your eyes do not deceive you - you are seeing double and, yes, I've shown the cover of this number before as a single issue (though I applied digital technology to disguise some flaws.). Back in May it was, when I acquired a replacement for my original copy after 43 years. (I still have the cover and splash page though, 'cos I used them as pin-ups on my bedroom wall in another house. They're tucked away somewhere safe at the moment.)
As alluded to, it wasn't in perfect condition, as it had the number 10 scrawled on the cover in ballpoint pen (which I assume was a reduction from its price of 15p, and at one time it may have had a sticker on it which had been removed, leaving some residue over the 'E' of Superman. The '10' wasn't too noticeable, though its impression was visible if the light fell on it in a certain way, and I gave the area around the 'E' a colour touch after removing the residue, but it wasn't in perfect condition.
I decided to wait a while to see if I could live with these flaws, but when I recently saw another one on eBay described as being in near mint condition, I decided to take the plunge and purchase it. Alas, the seller had failed to notice a couple of small rips on the left-hand lower cover, one which was around half-an-inch long. He gave me a very generous partial refund after enquiring whether that would be acceptable, and the application of some PVA glue to the rips soon remedied that problem, but the colours on the cover and inside weren't quite as vibrant as the other copy. The vagaries of printing, alas.
Also, my original copy had, I'm sure, the UK 15p price on it (as does the replacement I bought in May), whereas the more recent copy has the original US price of 40c. Normally, such things wouldn't bother me if I were buying the comic for the first time, but as I'm replacing the one I had in 1980, I'd prefer it to be a 15p issue.
So what do I do now? Learn to live with these imperfections or wait until a near-pristine copy pops up at a reasonable price and go for third-time lucky? (Fourth if you count my original.) So far I'm undecided, but if and when I make up my mind, you'll be the first to know (after me of course). What I'm interested in, though, is what would you do in this situation? Just accept the flaws or look for a better issue? The comment section awaits!
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Ah, you'll have to be quicker, Crivs - just bought another one!
14 comments:
Don't buy any of them - just look at covers online like I do.
Too late, CJ, bought another one. Looking at covers online wouldn't be enough for me, I need the 'real deal'.
Collectors question:I have that issue ( my original purchase) and it has a smallish chunk out of the bottom corner of page 3 that takes a small part of the panel out that doesn't affect the story. I ripped the page in error not long after buying it, probably the same day I first read it. My question, would you feel the need to replace that issue (if it was yours)or would the rip form part of the need to have the original as it was part of the initial reading experience???
If it was just a small piece of the corner margin, McS, it might not bother me too much, as sometimes such flaws were caused when the comics were being 'guillotined' at the printers. However, if it affected part of a panel, I would probably have bought another copy as soon as I spotted it and likely given the imperfect issue to a pal. Therefore, even back in the day, I had little patience for imperfections. If it was a tear I'd inadvertently caused myself, I'd have used Pritt to affix the detached corner with such skill that it wouldn't have been obvious. That was a good question - I hope this was a good answer.
Yep good answer Kid, and as I thought.
And as I thought you'd think, McS.
Could you make a perfect copy by removing staples and swapping pages around? I've done that in the past with some British comics.
As have I, but not with this one as the staples are in slightly different places in both issues, M. Although the old staple-holes wouldn't necessarily be seen (except in the centre pages), I don't fancy there being more holes in the spine than there should be. Also, the real problem in this instance is the covers, not the interiors.
Kid, is your newest acquisition a perfect version?
Not quite, CJ, but its flaws are less obvious ones which I can likely minimise by the careful application of a hot iron (over a bit of protective brown paper) on the spine, rather than rips or marks on the cover like the other two.
By the way, Kid, if you're interested, Marvel has just published a facsimile edition of Amazing Spider-Man which featured the debut of Spidey's black costume in the '80s.
Ta for letting me know, CJ, but I bought it in 2019 (it's on the blog) so this is a 'second edition' facsimile. I've also got the original '80s mag and it seems I bought it only a handful of years ago, though I got it when it first came out.
Well, I've just purchased my third copy of a Doc Savage paperback in a quest to get a copy as good as the immaculate one I disposed of back in 1989. I must be nuts, but the lure of eB*y showing a better copy got the better of me. So I can understand your quest to get the best copy possible, Kid. It doesn't make any sense, of course, and matters nothing in the overall scheme of the universe, but if it gives you satisfaction and a sense of accomplishment to shell out a few quid, go for it.
Regarding the Superman Annual for 1980 which I show in another post, B, I had to buy four copies to get one that was in acceptable condition. As it happens, two of them were excellent, but the other two aren't as good as they could be. Yeah, it's nuts, but it becomes an obsession, doesn't it.
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