Expert: Bill Robinson - 7/31/2003

Question
I wish to start a collection for my 4 year old son.  He wants batman and spiderman in his room, so my idea is to purchase comics and frame them as wall hangings.  I feel that this would be a better idea than just buying some misc. posters.  I am also hoping that as he grows older he will be able to enjoy these as a starting point for his own collection.  Would  you suggest some possible or suggested comics to buy, I was looking to spend around $15.00 per comic and purchase around 8 comics for his room.  What do you think of this idea or would posters be a better way to go.
Thank you in advance

Answer
While I always recommend people buy comics, I also recommend they read them. That being said, there are some options open to you.

If you want to buy pieces for a collection, there are a lot of busts and statues you can look into. These are fun to look at AND very collectible.

There are also CGC graded and "slabbed" (sealing the comic in a hard plastic case to protect it - can be easily hung on a wall) comics you can buy. Since you are looking to spend around $120, you should be able to afford 4-5 of them depending on the issue. These are comics that individuals and mostly comic dealers send to a company called Comics Guarantee, LLC http://www.cgccomics.com/

This company grades and protects comics for a fee. A comic that would normally fetch $5 could be worth as much as $25 if it is graded and slabbed.

Recent comics you could look at framing or getting CGC versions of include Batman #608 which has a great cover, and is very collectible because of the creators involved and recent Spider-Man titles like Amazing Spider-Man and Ultimate Spider-Man have great covers. Ultimate is more collectible due to popularity, but Amazing has better covers.

In general, newer Marvel titles make for better collectibles because they only do single print runs based on retailer orders. DC will do multiple printings of the same issue. In the case of Batman #608, make sure you are getting the 1st print.

I hope this helps. This is a good thing you are doing. I hope you have a good retailer in your city to work with.

Good Luck and have fun.

Bill Robinson

PS - if you do end up hanging comics on the wall, make sure to keep them out of direct sunlight.