Category Columns

1st Brief Appearance Vs. 1st Full Appearance: Which Is Better?

If we only look at the Wolverine example, we would assume that the value of a character's first full appearance always trumps the value of the first brief appearance. It would stand to reason that a comic book reader gets more of the character in the first full appearance issue and this would increase more buying demand (and value) for the first full appearance issue. However, as I sifted through and compared first brief appearance and first full appearance values in this year's guide, I found that this wasn’t always the case. Here are examples of comics showing both cases: examples where the first brief appearance issue is more valuable, and examples where the first full appearance issue is the more valuable of the two.
Read More1st Brief Appearance Vs. 1st Full Appearance: Which Is Better?

Marvel 1960s Annuals: Part One, Fantastic Four

One of my personal favourite genres of comic books that I like to collect is the big square bound super-hero annuals. Twice the size and price of a regular comic, these books only came out once a year and were packed with pin-ups, some classic reprints, and usually a crackling good original story. The original stories quite often took place outside the current storylines taking place in the title, but had a place in the character or groups long term continuity. There were surprisingly few made – I count 18 in the sixties and some characters and groups had none at all. I did not include war, romance, westerns, or re-print annuals in this first series but may get to them at a later date.
Read MoreMarvel 1960s Annuals: Part One, Fantastic Four

Rise of the One Day Show

Now that the holy pilgrimage to the mother of all shows in Canada is over, what do comic fans have to look forward to? Typically, Fan Expo signals the end of summer and along with it the end of the convention season. However, it’s been an unusually busy summer for comics this year. In addition to new shows like the GTA Comic Con and the SuperFan ComicCon, we also have the rise of smaller one day shows like the Toronto Comic Book Show (TCBS).
Read MoreRise of the One Day Show

My Fan Expo 2014 Weekend

Wow... what a weekend for Fan Expo. I don't think I've fully recovered yet. It was an insanely busy 4 days of comic book, video game, Sci-Fi and horror fun. If you missed out on Fan Expo this year, you missed out on one of the best I have ever attended. Sure there were some hiccups and bumps along the road for this year's show, but all in all it was the most attended and in my opinion most successful Fan Expo's in it's 20 year history.
Read MoreMy Fan Expo 2014 Weekend

Limited Fan Expo Coverage: No Big Deal

I don't believe Fan Expo needs or really wants any press coverage: they have 100,000 or more email addresses of people who attend their show. A built-in captive audience they can sell to whom they know like the product they offer. One free pass means one body in the show who didn't pay and is taking a spot in a packed convention centre that could have been occupied by a paying customer.
Read MoreLimited Fan Expo Coverage: No Big Deal

Spidey Super Stories 1-57

We have featured many arcs in the last little while so I thought this week we'd take a look at a run. This run features Spider-Man outside of the regular continuity of the Marvel universe and in a joint venture the Electric Company. The Electric Company is the name of a PBS (US Public broadcasting) children’s TV show. It used live action skits featuring Spider-Man and Electric company characters, Easy Reader, Detective Fargo North, Jennifer of the Jungle, and a cast of kids to challenge evil doers like Blowhard, The Prankster, and the Blue Beetle.
Read MoreSpidey Super Stories 1-57