What's New

Update Archives For June 2005

28 June 2005

British update -- Marvel UK, Lion, Scorcher, Valiant #1, Buster, Sparky, 80s girls' and lots more!

A huge update this week to our Britishg stock, with a wide range of titles in the following categories:

*Marvel UK: Additional stock of Marvel UK's flagship titles, Mighty World Of marvel (from #2), and Spider-Man Comics Weekly (from #11). Early issues of Marvel's pioneering attempts to conquer Britain; mostly FN condition.

*Boys Adventure & War Comics: Another pride of Lions from 1969-1971, plus Rover from 1970-71, Scorcher from the second issue (1970), and the very first issue of Valiant from 1962. The Steel Claw, the Wild Wonders, Kelly's Eye and Captain Hurricane -- together again for the first time and sure to move fast!

*Humour Comics & Picture Libraries: More classic comedy capers from IPC/Fleetway and DC Thompson, with additions to Buster (1969-72), Cor (1970), Jackpot (1979-80), Knockout (1971-72), Sparky (1971) and TV Comic (1969-71).

*Girls' Comics & Picture Libraries: It's an 80s extravaganza! New selections of Bunty, Debbie, Girl, Judy, Mandy (isn't that 'Angel' series a real downer?), the 'photo-story' Patches, Tammy & Tracy, from the decade of leg-warmers and New Romantics. Brace yourselves!

Posted by Rob | 06:32 p.m. GMT | 28 June 2005

American update - Charlton, 60s-80s Mystery/Horror & Classics Illustrated

Updates this week to three very popular sections of our American stock, in the following categories of our online catalogue:

*Charlton: A mostly high grade selection of 1970s eclectica, inc. John Byrne's Doomsday +1, Flinstones (classic and with the Great Gazoo!), Jetsons, Popeye, Timmy The Timid Ghost, Vengeance Squad and kung-fu fighter Yang!

*Horror/Mystery 1960-1980s: Another Charlton horror top-up, with new stock for Creepy Things, Ghostly Tales, Monster Hunters & Scary Tales. Plus a choice selection of early Witching Hour from DC, commencing with #11, and featuring superb artwork from Toth, Wood, Cardy and others.

*Classics Illustrated (American & British): Another recharge for this always popular category. Many additions to both US and UK series, including several first editions. Among the many titles featured are Robin Hood, Gulliver's Travels, Hunchback of Notre Dame, Jane Eyre, 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea, From The Earth To The Moon, The Invisible Man and Dr Jekyll & Mr Hyde.

Posted by Rob | 06:22 p.m. GMT | 28 June 2005

22 June 2005

The Alan Class Private Collection

Following our previous announcements reagrading the Alan Class Private Collection, we are now pleased to announce the second selection from this publisher's file copies are now on sale exclusively from 30th Century Comics. Each item comes with a Certificate of Authenticity hand-signed individually by Alan Class himself, and constitutes a very rare opportunity to own a piece of comics history.

This update, we focus on the short-run science-fiction titles: Outer Space, Out Of This World (both series) and Weird Planets, re-presenting a glut of vintage Atlas, Charlton, pre-hero Marvel and other sci-fi strips, with Kirby and Ditko liberally spread throughout the runs. These achievable short series are particularly pursued by Alan Class collectors. Full details in the Alan Class section of our online catalogue, where the Alan Class Private Collection has its own sub-section.

Posted by Rob | 05:03 p.m. GMT | 22 June 2005

British update -- Dr. Who, Vulcan, TV21, Cheeky

A good variety in this week's regular British update, featuring titles in the follpwing categories:

*Marvel UK: A stellar selection of Gallifrey's favourite son, Dr. Who, with a huge influx of issues, ranging from #1 (1979) up to around #250, plus specials and graphic novels. A plethora of time-twisting adventures await -- the Doctor is in!

*Boys' Adventure & War Comics: From 1975/1976, the short-lived but highly collectible weekly Vulcan, which reprinted the cream of IPC/Fleetway's adventure strips -- the Spider, Trigan Empire, Kelly's Eye, Robot Archie, Mytek the Mighty, Steel Claw and others -- in one series. This nice mid-grade selection, including the first 9 issues, will go very quickly! Plus from 1970/71, additions to the second series of TV21, featuring new Star Trek adventures and such Marvel super-stars as Spider-Man, Silver Surfer, Ringo Kid and Homer The Happy Ghost! (no, really...)

*Humour Comics & Picture Libraries: From 1977-1979, a long sequence of Cheeky, in which our eponymous hero, in true post-modern style, interacts with the stars of the other strips and consults such unlikely muses as Lily Pop, the startlingly shapely crossing guard! (Lollipop ladies didn't look like that when I were a lad...) It's all very metafictional...

Posted by Rob | 04:58 p.m. GMT | 22 June 2005

12 June 2005

British update -- vintage Bunty from the 1950s/60s, starting with #5!

Just one section this week, but what an update to our Girls' Comics & Picture Libraries category! You think we've done Bunty before? Hah! Brace yourselves for some serious Bunty action this time round with a cache of early issues commencing with 1958's #5, and running intermittently through almsot the first decade of publication, ending with #499. The early days of the Four Marys, The Dancing Life of Moira Kent, and Bimbo and her Baby (no, really...) laid bare for your diversion and delight!

Posted by Rob | 10:15 p.m. GMT | 12 June 2005

American update -- Gi-normous new stock of oddities and rarities and more!

A huge update to the American section of our online catalogue this week in the following categories:

*DC: Kirby says: 'Don't ask! Just buy 'em!' (to coin a phrase). High gradxe copies of the cult 4th World titles Forever People and New Gods, including first issues of both series. Snap 'em up now, or Granny Goodness will get you!

*Archie: Another selection of vintage comedy with comics' longest-running romantic triangle, ranging from Archie Annual #6 (1954/55) through the psychedlic 60s with Jughead, laugh, Life With Archie, Pep, Reggie and Me and more!

*Charlton: A plethora of oddities that truly earn Charlton their rep. as the home of the diverse and bizarre. From heroic firefighter Danny Blaze to Space Adventures and Hot Rods & Racing Cars, from crime-fighting fortune-teller Zaza the Mystic to sundry radioactive super-powered rodents, it's all here, and all strange!

*Harvey: From 1940s super-heroics with All-New Comics, 50s one-ff Captain 3D, and 60s revival Fighting American (not to mention Stumbo the Giant in Harvey Hits), it's a three decade touch-up for the House of Caspar!

*Miscellaneous 1940-1959: From the paranoid 50s, Captain Flash, atomic defender of liberty (together with the gender-confused heroine Tomboy), joins our range, together with new stock for Fiction House's Jumbo Comics.

*Horror 1940-1959: New entries for Merritt's infamous Dark Mysteries, Ace's Hand Of Fate, and EC's Shock Suspenstories -- classics all! (If your defintion of 'classic' is a pretty broad and loopy one...)

*Horror/Mystery 1960-1980s: A stylish swathe of Charlton's Scary Tales, with the Countess von Bludd as the horror hostess with the most, ably backed-up by Adventures Into the Unknown, Creatures On The Loose, Twilight Zone, Fear, Vault Of Evil and Weird Wonder Tales.

*Romance: A very tempting selection of affordable low to mid grade 1950s romance, with artists such as Toth, Cardy, Tuska, Romita etc liberally represented (as are many - let's be kind - less skilled practitioners of the medium. Titles include DC's Secret Hearts, Atlas's Lovers, Quality's GI Sweethearts, Standard's Popular Romances and My Real Love and loads of oddball obscurities (inc. Youthful Love Romances #2, which is front-runner for worst romance comic ever!)

*War: More mid-grade mostly pre-code macho mayhem from the 50s, with the star items being Farrell's 100 page Fighting Man Annual, but Battle Fire, Battle Report, Fighting War Stories, GI In Battle and War Stories all contribute to the bloodshed.

*Modern Reprints: More meandering down Marvel's memory lane, with Iron Man Masterworks Vol 2, new volumes of the Essential Defenders (Vol 1) and Thor (Vol 2), plus a new printing of the Essential Fantastic Four Vol 1. Also, a complete run of the increasingly hard-to-find Crime Suspenstories Annual reprints in mint condition, and some Vault Of Horror and Weird Science facsimiles. If you don't know how good the EC line was by now, what are you doing on this website?

*Undergrounds: Heavy top-ups on Crumb, with Weirdo and Zap fully re-stocked, including the brand new Zap #15, as well as vintage issues of Bijou Funnies, LA Comics and others.

Something for everyone this week!

Posted by Rob | 10:09 p.m. GMT | 12 June 2005

Alan Class Rough Guide update

A side benefit of handling the Alan Class Private Collection is being able to clarify long-standing questions and identify un-numbered variant issues. We have now been able to begin adding notes to our Alan Class Rough Guide in the Features & Articles section of the website on Out Of This World (1st series) and Weird Planets, two hugely popular series where un-numbered varaints often cause confusion. Where these are known to exist, we've noted this by identifying the issue either by cover -featured story (where applicable) or a capsule description of the cover scene. More data comingh as soon as we excavate it! And look for the Alan Class Private Collection sci-fi series on sale very soon!

Posted by Rob | 09:40 p.m. GMT | 12 June 2005

6 June 2005

THE ALAN CLASS PRIVATE COLLECTION

Following our previous announcements reagrading the Alan Class Private Collection, we are now pleased to announce the first selection from this publisher's file copies are now on sale exclusively from 30th Century Comics.
Each item comes with a Certificate of Authenticity hand-signed individually by Alan Class himself, and constitutes a very rare opportunity to own a piece of comics history.
We begin our exploration of this extraordinary treasure trove with a series of short-run and one-off titles covering a range of genres: Tales Of The Underworld (Crime), Blazing Trails (Western). My Secret Confessions and Uncensored Love (Romance), Super Mouse & Just Dennis (Humour), Tales Of Action (War) and of course the sci-fi and fantasy titles Amazing Stories, Eerie Tales, Race Into Space and Space Trip To The Moon. Of lower print runs than the longer-established Class series, these 'short series' are particularly hard to find, especially in the high grades of many of these copies.

Posted by Rob | 01:28 p.m. GMT | 6 June 2005

British update - Miller Mystic & Spellbound & loads of new Annuals!

Highly popular stuff in this week's British update:

*Vintage UK/Aus. reprints of US material: New additions to the Miller horror titles from the 1950s/60s, Mystic & Spellbound. Presenting a large range of pre and post code mystery stories from Atlas, Marvel, Ajax/Farrell, EC and other publishers, these compliations are an affordable 'selection box' of vintage material. But act quickly -- these titles sell fast!

*Annuals: incoming vintage stock of Beverly Hillbillies, Knight Rider, TV21, the scarce and controversial Action, Battle, Eagle, a seldom-seen Space Kingley and several 1960s and 1970s Bunty, Judy and Mandy Annuals in nice condition with dustjackets. You can't say that we don't cover all the bases!

Full details as always in the appropriate sections of our online catalogue.

Posted by Rob | 01:21 p.m. GMT | 6 June 2005

American update -- Large quantity of DC & Marvel Silver Age additions

In our American update this week, huge quantities of new stock from DC & Marvel, the two publishers who defined the Silver Age of Comics.

*DC: a comprehensive update of most key (and several off-key!) DC titles, with hundreds of new additions inc. mainstream titles Action, Batman, Brave & Bold, Jimmy Olsen, JLA, Lois Lane, Mystery In Space, Showcase, Strange Adventures, Superboy, Superman, Tales of the Unexpected. Teen Titans, Wonder Woman & Worlds' Finest, plus oddballs such as Karate Kid, Metamorpho, Phantom Stranger & Superman Family, plus loads'a Kirby -- Omac, Mr. Miracle, a lengthy Kamandi run and more!

*Marvel: a tempting selection of pre-hero Marvel fantasy/SF additions, with Amazing Fantasy, Strange Tales, Tales of Suspense and Tales To Astonish all recharged. Also, further stock of Astonishing Tales, Conan, Dr. Strange, Fantastic Four, Hulk, Silver Surfer, Spider-Man & the X-Men, for all you Merry Marchers!

Posted by Rob | 01:13 p.m. GMT | 6 June 2005

2 June 2005

American update - DC, Pre-code Horror (Atlas & Harvey) , Classics Illustrated

Plenty of new American stock this week in the following categories:

*DC: A medley of updates and additions from the 1950s to the 1970s, with new items added to Action, Atom, New Gods, House of Mystery, Sea Devils, Superboy (beginning with #15), Superman Annual and Wonder Woman.

*Horror 1940-1959: Another startling selection of Pre-code Atlas horror, with new additions to our stock of Adventures Into Terror, Adventures Into Weird Worlds, Astonishing, Marvel Tales, Mystery Tales, Spellbound (inc #1), Suspense and Uncanny Tales. Also, a copy of Simon & Kirby's Black Magic, and several of the classically lurid Harvey horror titles, inc. Chamber of Chills, Tomb of Terror and Witches' Tales.

*Classics Illustrated: New additions of both US and UK editions of this ever-popular category. Highlights include Ivanhoe, Joan of Arc, Juluis Caesar, Kit Carson and the extremely depressing Wild Animals I Have Known (they all die, poor things), plus many more!

Full details as always in the appropriate sections of the online catalogue.

Posted by Rob | 11:20 p.m. GMT | 2 June 2005

British update - Lion

New this week in the Boys' Adventure & War Comics section of the British part of our online catalogue is another pride of Lions, ranging from 1969 to 1972, with Spellbinder, Robot Archie, Gargan, Carsons' Cubs and all the established favourites. Despite frequent top-ups, this hugely popular weekly sells very rapidly, so order early to avoid disappointment!

Posted by Rob | 11:10 p.m. GMT | 2 June 2005