the gem in your collection

[cap5]

if you had to pick a comic that you cheresh the most ,a must buy or the one comic that nobody is talking about but should what is it

[JesseJay]

Spider-man #58, the mark of kain #3(I believe). It has sentimental value. The first comic I bought with my own money.

[Schuimend Mormel]

Uncanny X-Men # 189 is my favourite, for personal reasons. It probably isn't the best issue of that era, but it's sort of the issue that introduced me to my favourite character Rachel Summers. It's called 'Two Girls Out To Have Fun', and it's about Rachel and Magma sneaking into the Hellfire Club's mansion and seeking revenge on their mutual nemesis Selene.

A must-buy would be Uncanny X-Men # 182, 'Madness', in which Rogue rescues Michael Rossi from the SHIELD Helicarrier's brig, and slowly realises that she did this because Carol Danvers is still inside her psyche and is directing some of her actions.

[Pwood]

I have Avengers #16 in really good condition. Probably the third most sought after Avengers book there is, behind #1 and #4...

[DDM]

Uncanny X-Men #66 is cherished because the book is darned difficult to find even in comic book specialty shops due to the low print run given this is the last issue of the original X-Men stories. Uncanny X-Men #108 is another favorite since this is John Byrne's first issue of the X-Men as the book's new penciler. Byrne even has a nice little blurb in the letters pages about him finally getting a chance to draw his heroes, the X-Men.

http://www.zorph.com/images/xmen66.JPGhttp://image.milehighcomics.com/istore/images/fullsize/97792366288.108.GIF

[DonEMC]

Saga of the Swamp Thing 3. I saw it on the stands at the little community grocery store near my house and had to have it. I'd seen Swamp Thing in Challengers of the Unknown back in the late 1970s and I watched the movie, but didn't know there was another Swamp Thing series being published. When I found it, I was overjoyed and it was the best Swamp Thing story I've ever read.
DonEMC

[MichikoS]

Here it is, the Holy Grail of comics for yours truly. I almost crapped myself when I saw this baby staring out at me from the newsstand shelf back in 1968. After I bought it and read it, I spent literally hours staring at the cover. It still does it for me, all these years later. A perfect marriage of Steranko's illustration and design skills. Such an iconic image. Brings a lump to my throat every time I gaze upon it. A gem in every way. It contains comics' first-ever FOUR PAGE spread (you had to buy two copies to appreciate it fully, natch, but at the time I just put my copy together with a friend's). Today, I own about a dozen copies of this comic in various grades, (including the very copy I bought 40 years ago) and even a :eek:slabbed:eek: copy.
Michi

http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i221/elbert_coalwell/st_167.jpg

[icctrombone]

Avengers Annual #2. The Original Vs. The New Avengers. Best cover of all time. Great parallel universe story where the Originals defeat all the Marvel heroes. Just love that book.

http://www.comics.org/coverview.lasso?id=22165&zoom=4

[adam_warlock_2099]

Without a doubt my Silver Surfer Vol 1 #15. I have been told it is VF and VF/NM. Picked that baby up circa 1995 for $35. It is just incredible that something 10 years older than me is in better shape then I am.

Sentimentaly? Probably Astonishing X-Men #1 (AoA). One of four of the first comics I bought, but one of the most impacting ones. The others were X-Men 2099 #17, Spider-Man 2099 #29 and X-Men #40.

[Red Oak Kid]

Batman 237 (http://www.comics.org/coverview.lasso?id=24680&zoom=4)

A great 25 page story drawn by Neal Adams.

A Rutland Vermont Halloween party story featuring comic book artists as characters.

A Batman reprint from TEC 37.

I remember the day I bought this at the local 7-11. The sky was filled with puffy purple clouds from an approaching storm. The clouds were the same color as Batman's cape.

This was a time when I thought all things were possible in the comic book world. Adams would always be drawing Batman. Wrightson would always be drawing Swamp Thing. Smith would always be drawing Conan.

It was a great day to buy a comic book.

[Ideal.]

This is a real toughie... but most likely Impact 1, containing quite possibly the greatest story of all time -- Master Race. I love all my comics though :).

Well, most of 'em anyways.

[Heraclevs]

It's a tie....
1) Batman #232: Adams, Ras Al Ghul... great stuff. AND, I got it for a song ($15) in nm condition via eBay.




2) Detective 440: My first comic I bought off the rack... was wowed by Goodwin & Simonson's Manhunter, plus the Batman story drawn by Sal Amendola.




- Romans 9

[benday-dot]

New Gods#1 came on the scene in 1971 as the punctuation mark to start the third and perhaps finest chapter in the artistic life of the greatest creator the comic book world as ever seen. It became the cornerstone of my own abiding love affair with Jack Kirby. An epic for all times.

http://www.comics.org/graphics/covers/1981/400/1981_4_01.jpg

[Kirk G]

Here it is, the Holy Grail of comics for yours truly. I almost crapped myself when I saw this baby staring out at me from the newsstand shelf back in 1968. After I bought it and read it, I spent literally hours staring at the cover. It still does it for me, all these years later. A perfect marriage of Steranko's illustration and design skills. Such an iconic image. Brings a lump to my throat every time I gaze upon it. A gem in every way. It contains comics' first-ever FOUR PAGE spread (you had to buy two copies to appreciate it fully, natch, but at the time I just put my copy together with a friend's). Today, I own about a dozen copies of this comic in various grades, (including the very copy I bought 40 years ago) and even a :eek:slabbed:eek: copy.
Michi

http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i221/elbert_coalwell/st_167.jpg

I think this was the double page spread where the Yellow Claw storyline comes to an end, right? I remember that shocker well...

Or was it the big reveal when we learn that Agent Bronson is really Baron Strucker??!!

[Kirk G]

Oh dear, I'm going to date myself again.

I do understand the appeal of the Avengers Annual #2 Original vs Modern... and the Strange Tales double page spread...

And I agree Avengers #16 is also one of the better key Marvels...

but for myself, I gotta go with the original Galactus triogy... and the cover of #48 is a classic. Fanastic Four # 25 is also close to my heart for the same reason, purchased at the same time, but #36 and the first Frightful Four and #39 DD & Doctor Doom certainly make me warm and fuzzy.

For shear cover composition, Silver Surfer number 4 is tops, but I was there when the Vision was introduced in Avengers #57 too...

This is just too hard...

For the biggest Reading rush for me.... Uncanny X-men #174 with the big reveal of Mastermind or the death of Guardian in Alpha Flight #12 would tie for satisfaction!

[Christopher Cross Is God]

I have Avengers #16 in really good condition. Probably the third most sought after Avengers book there is, behind #1 and #4...

I never realized that's a sought after issue. I have #16 as well, although I doubt its condition is anywhere near as good as your copy's.

[Vegetarian Goat]

My copy of Uncanny X-Men #137 signed by both Chris Claremont and John Byrne that i bought for 6 bucks.

It's the Death of Dark Phoenix.... and high prices!

[FrogMan]

That would be my copy of Captain America, Vol. 1 #100.

Or was it my NFL SuperPro SuperBowl Edition?

Eh, it's one of those two.

[Cei-U!]

I suppose it would be my WWII-era DCs. If I had to narrow it down, I'd pick Adventure Comics #83 with its Simon & Kirby Sandman cover story, episodes of Starman, Shining Knight, Manhunter and the last Golden Age appearance of Hourman.

Cei-U!
I summon the 1940s goodness!

[MDG]

For me, probably my issue of 3-D EC Classics that I bought in the 70s--missing the green lens on the glasses (still attached), otherwise Fine.

In the "book" category, my HC Greatest Flash Stories Ever Told autographed by: Harry Lampert, Julie Schwartz, Carmine Infantino, Joe Kubert, Murphy Anderson, Mike Esposito, Frank McLaughlin, Irv Novick, and Joe Giella.

MDG

[Slam_Bradley]

It pretty much always comes down to this book.

http://i45.photobucket.com/albums/f67/h20lawyer/1895_4_74.jpg

The beginning of my love affair with Don Newton's art.

[dan bailey]

Probably this ish --

http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r87/starcult/7233_4_013.jpg

It's not my favorite comic, though it's definitely an early highlight in my favorite series ever, but from a degree-of-difficulty (i.e. monetary value, thanks to what I recall as Cap's first Silver Age appearance outside Avengers) standpoint, I'd say it's the one I'm happiest to own. I didn't buy it off the spinner racks or anything (my first Sgt Fury didn't come for another 3 years), but I've had it for something like 31 years now after paying a childhood playmate somewhere around $10 or $20 during my senior year in high school for a grocery bag full of comics from his & his older brother's respective elementary-school days. (Said bag contained a bunch of other likely candidates for "Gem of My Collection" status, like X-Men #2 & Spider-Man #14 & Journey Into Mystery #90, but I sold all those along with 99.9 percent of the rest of my collection back in '81 ... the Sgt Furys [& Not Brand Echhs] I couldn't part with, though.)

Also, it features the first joint appearance of my adult self's 2 favorite characters.

[Shellhead]

Fantastic Four #118, Diablo controlling Crystal and working with a banana republic dictator. My copy is in terrible condition, and doesn't even have a cover. But it was the first comic book that I ever owned. The main story had Crystal battling the Human Torch, Diablo versus the dictator, and then a huge explosion. The backup story had Thing battling robotic knights and then meeting an alternate reality version of Reed Richards who became the Thing. I was hooked.

[i*love*comics*247]

I think my favorite would be Avengers #57, the first appearance of the Vision. That book made me, at the age of 12, fall in love with comics.

[Chris Nowlin]

I think my favorite would be Avengers #57, the first appearance of the Vision. That book made me, at the age of 12, fall in love with comics.

I haven't decided what my gem is. It depends on what criteria I'm using.

But that's one of the comics I'm happiest to own. Because that's the moment Avengers becomes awesome to me.

My personal gem may have to be something I acquired younger that solidified my love of comics, but that would have to be something that came out a couple decades later.

I'll continue to ponder.

[zilch]

...but i love all my children equally!

[Schmakt]

I wanna go for my somewhat "important" books and say my slabbed TMNT #1 1st print 9.0... or the Albedo #2...

but, right now, I'll go with TMNT #10 (4th series)...
http://www.ninjaturtles.com/comics/mirage/volume04/10/10cover.jpg
http://www.ninjaturtles.com/comics/mirage/volume04/10/1003.jpg

poor Splinter...

[Babylon23]

New Gods#1 came on the scene in 1971 as the punctuation mark to start the third and perhaps finest chapter in the artistic life of the greatest creator the comic book world as ever seen. It became the cornerstone of my own abiding love affair with Jack Kirby. An epic for all times.

http://www.comics.org/graphics/covers/1981/400/1981_4_01.jpg

This issue is definitely the gem in my collection as well. I picked it up as a back issue when I was 8. It cost me $1. This one issue turned me into a lifelong comic fan and huge Kirby fanatic.

[Patrick Dean]

I guess "gem" shouldn't necessarily be "most valuable", so I guess I have to go with a book I'm just proud to own. There's a good number that pop into mind, but I'll split it up between;

1) Tales To Astonish #42, which I bought for a few bucks at a comic shop in Rome when I was in 6th grade. Great cover, bold logo, and the reddest red that has ever been applied to a comic cover. Plus, I loves me some early Ant-Man.

2) Mad #3 that I found a few years ago at a junk shop in Statesboro while my wife and I were visiting her parents. The first run of Mad had these wonderful Kurtzman covers (except for a Davis and Elder cover early on) and the third issue has this spooked out guy in a graveyard next to a little baby vampire. It's such a great beautiful cover.

[shaxper]

If we're talking about the comic I'm most proud/happy to own, it's definitely Batman #9. It's the oldest comic book I own, I'm a mega Batman fan, it's got a classic Batman/Robin cover, and it's the closest I've come thus far to owning my personal holy grail -- Batman #1.

http://www.comics.org/graphics/covers/141/200/141_2_000000009.jpg

If we're talking about that obscure issue that most others wouldn't appreciate, I'd probably say Warrior #1; the first appearance of V for Vendetta. V for Vendetta is almost certainly my favorite comic book story of all time, and that first installment contained in this volume is no exception.

http://www.comics.org/graphics/covers/2706/200/2706_2_01.jpg

[genesis]

If I would have to go with a comic I'd have to go with Amazing Spider-man 122 that my uncle gave me when I was little. I love that issue and its in decent shape. I also would have to say my other two gems are X-men #21-22 my dad had it in his collection and gave them both to me when I started getting seriously into comics a few years back.

[pryde15]

My favorite issue is

Uncanny X-Men #139. but my most valuable is probably Amazing Spiderman #1 or the Avengers #4

[twilight]

Devil Dinosaur #1.

-Twi

[shaxper]

Devil Dinosaur #1.

-Twi

I read this issue a while back and never saw the appeal. What makes it special to you?

[devildinosaur]

Devil Dinosaur #1.

-Twi

Now you know why I chose the forum name I did...but my actual favorite comic I own is X-Men #94. My dad bought it for me in high school.

http://images2.wikia.nocookie.net/marveldatabase/images/2/2d/Uncanny_X-Men_94.jpg

[devildinosaur]

I read this issue a while back and never saw the appeal. What makes it special to you?

C'mon! Dinosaurs! I was seven when I bought this issue! Seven-year-olds LOVE dinosaurs!

[shaxper]

C'mon! Dinosaurs! I was seven when I bought this issue! Seven-year-olds LOVE dinosaurs!

...and Germans love David Hasslehoff

[Heraclevs]

The oldest, and potentially silliest, Batman comic I have is Batman #119. Look it up. Due to being struck by lightning, Batman is turned into a Bat Fish.
This may be the 1st comic I ever saw in my life... well before I knew how to read. I saw this comic in my grandparents' basement in Athens, Pennsylvania in the early 1970s. It took me years to find out just what that issue was, never realizing that it was from the late 1950s.


- Romans 9

[Heraclevs]

The oldest, and potentially silliest, Batman comic I have is Batman #119. Look it up. Due to being struck by lightning, Batman is turned into a Bat Fish.
This may be the 1st comic I ever saw in my life... well before I knew how to read. I saw this comic in my grandparents' basement in Athens, Pennsylvania in the early 1970s. It took me years to find out just what that issue was, never realizing that it was from the late 1950s.


- Romans 9

Sorry, I meant Batman #118

38065

[Polar Bear]

It's probably the leatherbound Watchmen hardcover Graffiti released. I'm also pretty attached to the Avengers/JLA two-volume hardcover.

In terms of nostalgia, the one that started me on comics was Amazing Spider-Man 196. The cover still has a haunting, evocative power over my imagination.

http://image.milehighcomics.com/istore/images/fullsize/77906321824.196.GIF

[devildinosaur]

...and Germans love David Hasslehoff

Yeah, it's essentially the same kind of love.

Oh, and as a product of Germany (dad was in the Air Force), it's HassELhoff. ;)

[FrogMan]

It's probably the leatherbound Watchmen hardcover Graffiti released. I'm also pretty attached to the Avengers/JLA two-volume hardcover.

In terms of nostalgia, the one that started me on comics was Amazing Spider-Man 196. The cover still has a haunting, evocative power over my imagination.

http://image.milehighcomics.com/istore/images/fullsize/77906321824.196.GIF

I wish the old goat would just DIE already!!!!!

[Paradox]

I have these two...

http://www.comics.org/graphics/covers/1576/400/1576_4_004.jpghttp://www.comics.org/graphics/covers/98/400/98_4_0323.jpg

One of these two is the very first comic I ever read, dug out of my grandmother's box of "shut up and sit down" comics at the age of "almost 4". The other is in second place by less than an hour. These are what got me my start. And I still own them both. Not copies, but those very issues (I inherited the box upon my grandmother's death). They are both beat to crap and not worth an actual penny. The Adventure is missing the cover and the first "page" (actually, first, second, second to last and last pages, but all one piece of paper).

I wouldn't part with them for any money, anyway. :D

[Paradox]

FrogMan brings up the comic cliche:

I wish the old goat would just DIE already!!!!!

She has. Several times now. :D