In what format do you prefer to buy old comics?

[stelok]

If you are interested in buying old comics, would you want to buy the original comics or would you prefer trade paperback reprints or comic book reprints?

I would prefer to spend my money on trade paperback reprints because original decades-old comics are difficult to find and therefore very pricey.

However, I do not mind ownng one particular original comic book. I would pay any amount to get my hands on Iron Fist #14 (the first appearance of Sabretooth) and #15 (battle with X-men).

[Reptisaurus!]

Depends. Price is the main consideration, but sometimes I'll pay more for really cool looking or effectively designed reprints.

A bunch of the stuff I collect (Gorgo, Reptisaurus, Zap, much of Kim Deitch's work, Sugar and Spike, Ambush Bug, and anything with pirates in it) hasn't been reprinted, so it's a moot point.

I get annoyed when trade paperback collections (not hardcover) are much more expensive than the original issues. I've seen this a lot from Marvel recently, like the Heroes Reborn and Avengers: Galactic Storm trades.

[Stephane Garrelie]

Tradepaperbacks and essentials are fine.
Hardcovers are too expensive.

[Apathy Boy]

The older stuff that I'm most interested in will never be collected and can be found in the cheap bins with a little bit of searching. I generally prefer singles to trades anyway, though I will buy trades when they're big enough and cheap enough.

[Green Lantern wannabe]

I would buy trade paper backs now, because I only go for the story, as opposed to price appreciation.

[The New Fate]

I would like to see 80's Punisher War Journal in TPB.

[founder81]

I prefer trades / hardcovers. I don't mind spending a few extra bucks for a hardcover over a TPB.

However, if I find the issues in a bargin bin, I don't mind getting the issues.

[suedenim]

I prefer TPBs for this sort of thing, but let me chime in with an alternative not mentioned - comics on DVD!

I've been reading the Fantastic Four on DVD lately, and really like it, especially since I got a wide flat-screen monitor that's the kind you can "swivel," giving the screen an aspect ratio perfect for reading one big comics page that fills the entire screen.

[Vakanai]

I kinda like the old, horror one shot stuff.

[Shellhead]

My favorite format for old comics is full-color tpb reprints. The Marvel dvd collections are awesome in terms of price and convenient storage, but are not as convenient when it comes to the actual reading experience. Original issues are more of hassle, because of the handling of bags and boards and tape while re-reading them, or else the degrading condition if not properly bagged and boarded.

[Vakanai]

Paperbacks, as long as I have the stories.

[BillR]

All of the above.

[TROUBLEZ]

Golden Age stuff, I prefer the Marvel Milestones and DC Archives, because 1) it's too damn expensive and 2) they might crumble into dust if i turn the page too hard. 3) because it's so damn old, and some aspects, timeless, that they deserve the hard cover fancy cover treatment.

50s and 60s i prefer tpb's because usually creative teams lasted long on these titles so you need to get at least 4 volumes and it needs to be cheap.

anything from the late 70s and up I like searching the back issue bins for story arcs like Kraven's Last Hunt or Batman: Year One.

[Brian Cronin]

If at all possible, I prefer the originals, if only for the sort of historic aspect of it all (original letters columns, etc.).

That being said, I have no problem reading through reprints (probably the vast majority of my older comic book reading has been through reprints).

-Brian

[Aaron Kashtan]

Original comics are not so expensive. I've managed to acquire a bunch of issues of Tales of Suspense, T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents, and Adventure Comics featuring the Legion, for example, usually without paying more than $4 an issue.

I'll read TPB reprints sometimes, especially reprints of stuff that really is too expensive for me to afford (i.e. stuff from before the mid-'60s). But I see reprints as a poor substitute for the real thing.

[Matthew E]

I'll take any format, as long as I want the comic and the price is right.

[The Batman]

Really it all depends on availability and price for me and some sort of wierd nerd completionist thing for me. If I can find an affordable, quality trade collecting something I tend to be more inclinded to get that than to try and hunt down expensive and/or hard to find back issues. I've done that with Morrison's Animal Man and Doom Patrol work or Kirby's Fourth World stuff. If it's something I really like I'll even spring for a hardcover or Absolute Edition.

If I know stuff isn't going to be collected anytime soon or that I can get it relatively cheap, cheaper than a trade, I'll still get single issues. I've done that with Doom 2099 and DC's Shadow Strikes and the Helfer/Baker Shadow stuff. There's something to the smell and feel of old comics that gives the whole experience of reading them this wierd cool sensory effect that I kinda like.

Finally, with Batman, the wierd nerd part of me wants the original issues and while I might get trades to read the stories I'll still try and get those issues whenever I can. At first I just wanted to have all the post crisis stuff, but now it's been pushed back to everything released since 1978. I'm getting there slowly but surely.

[Karl H]

Trades usually. However, if it's something I really want then I'll hardcover it.

[dancj]

TPBs all the way for me. When comics I've got get reprinted I'll often sell the comics and buy the TPBs if it won't cost me too much.

Doom Patrol is on my current "to be replaced" list...

[parrish]

I like the plain old trade paperbacks for older stuff. Marvel Essentials are pretty good, but I'd prefer them to be in color.

[i_mmmchocolate]

TPBs or in hardcover form.

Originals, especially old ones, always smell funky.

[founder81]

TPBs or in hardcover form.

Originals, especially old ones, always smell funky.


That old newspaper smell is the thing I miss most about original issues.

[i_mmmchocolate]

That old newspaper smell is the thing I miss most about original issues.
I'm not talking about 'that old newspaper smell', I'm talking funky...as in musty and stinky.

It depends on the seller, I think. I've just had bad experiences searching for originals, so I stick with TPBs.

[Reptisaurus!]

I'm not talking about 'that old newspaper smell', I'm talking funky...as in musty and stinky.

It depends on the seller, I think. I've just had bad experiences searching for originals, so I stick with TPBs.

Yeah. My comics stink. I always have to warn people before I lend 'em.

Not all of them, but I got most of 'em from my dad, and he was a smoker. And some of 'em got wet in transit. I try to let them air out, but they still smell kind of ginchy.

Interesting point about Trades vs. back issues which I read on the John Byrne forum: If you buy trades, the creators get royalties. If you buy back-issues, they don't. So that's another point fer trades.

I wonder if the royalties are different between trades and new singles?

[caney]

It's funny, while I prefer to get the original comics if possible, I find that I'm more likely to reread them when I get the comics in trade format. It's just more convenient for me to pick up and read a trade than it is to shuffle though the originals looking for a story.

I love the fact that they're reprinting so many of the classic stories in the Essential and Showcase formats. You get alot of fun stories for a great price. The lack of color in them bothered me at first, but now I find it fun to see the artwork in it's raw uncolored form.

[Citizen V]

TPB reprints,im not picky.I think original comics should be in the hands of dealers or collectors,people who know how to take care of them.

[The Xenos]

Forgetting availibility, well, I guess it depends how much I like it. If I really like a series I'll get it in hardcover. (Or if I absolutely love it, one of them DC Absolute editions.) If I just want to preview it, I'll pick up the trade.

If a trade is unavailible or it's recent, then I'll get the issues.