Comic Book Men 601 “Bucket List”
Comic Book Men’s sixth season kicked off on Sunday with a geek inspired bucket list item, some comics featuring the first appearance of iconic villains, an obscure collectible and some cool Marvel folders from the 70’s.
Bucket List began with four key issues of The Amazing Spider-Man being brought into the shop. The issues featured the debut of some of the most iconic villains in Spider-Man’s celebrated rogues’ gallery: The Vulture (The Amazing Spider-Man #2), Doctor Octopus (The Amazing Spider-Man #3), Sandman (The Amazing Spider-Man #4) and Electro (The Amazing Spider-Man #9). A discussion ensued between Walt, Kevin, Bryan, Mike and Ming as to the stature of Spidey’s rogues gallery. Walt argued that ole Web Head’s is among the best in all of comics, even better than Batman’s.
Another customer entered the Stash with a collectible he couldn’t name. He turned to the guys for some help and immediately found his answer through Walt. The collectible in question was a 1974 Duke the Super Action Dog by Kenner. Duke brought back a lot of memories for Walt as it was one of his favorite toys as a child.
Talk soon turned to bucket lists and after quizzing the crew on what would be on their lists, Walt revealed that being in the presence of Action Comics #1 would be his. The significance of Action Comics #1, which featured the first appearance of Superman, is highlighted and Kevin noted that without that book, superheroes as we know them might not even exist.
A teacher stops by the shop with some folders Marvel Comics produced in 1976 featuring covers drawn by industry giants such as Jack Kirby, John Romita and George Perez. The teacher wanted to sell the folders to raise some money to buy the actual books for his students to read. After some negotiating a deal was struck for the sake of the children.
The boys then set out on the road and traveled to Baltimore where Action Comics #1 was on display at Geppi’s Entertainment Museum. Housed within the museum were some of the most iconic and valuable issues in all of comics including Fantastic Four #1, Tales of Suspense #39 (the first appearance of Iron Man) and the first appearance of Batgirl (Detective Comics #359). Superman’s first appearance didn’t disappoint. The experience not only fulfilled one of Walt’s dreams but also highlighted the cultural significance of comics as well as their importance as works of art.
