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Had to pick between a full run of The Spectre or a single issue of Action Comics #1 in a trade
Tbh, I went with the Spectre run because it had like 18 issues and I'm a sucker for those weird supernatural stories from the 70s. The Action Comics #1 was missing the back cover and had tape stains all over, so I told myself it was a bad investment. After reading through the Spectre last weekend, I'm happy with my choice - the art by Murphy Anderson is killer. But a buddy said I could have sold the Action for triple that at a bigger con. Anyone else face a similar choice between quantity and a rare piece?
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ramirez.vera9h ago
Yeah you know what... I used to be all about the rare single issue flips, thinking that was the only way to go. But reading your breakdown about the Spectre run influencing Swamp Thing and Hellblazer really clicked for me. I spent last night going through those old issues again and you're totally right, the ghostly effects with Murphy Anderson's inks are just gorgeous, it's like watching a horror movie in comic form. I was second guessing myself but now I feel like I got the better end of that trade for sure.
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abby_martinez9h ago
Heard a podcast recently that was all about how those 70s horror comics basically laid the groundwork for the whole Vertigo line later on. Grabbing that Spectre run for a trade sounds like a smart long term play, especially with how people are rediscovering that era now.
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I read somewhere that the Spectre run from the 70s actually influenced a lot of the dark supernatural comics that came out later, like Swamp Thing and Hellblazer. So you basically grabbed a piece of history that a lot of newer collectors sleep on. Plus, Murphy Anderson's inks on those early issues are something else, the detail on the ghostly effects alone is worth having the full set. Your buddy's right that Action Comics #1 is worth more money, but a beat up copy like that with missing pieces is always a gamble to flip. You got a solid reading experience out of 18 issues for probably way less than what that single Action was going for, so that's a win in my book.
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