VOTE!! Vote Early and Vote Often! No Photo ID Neccesary!

Of course, I’m talking about our annual rip-off of MENSA’s Bracket Challenge! This year, the goal is to select the Greatest TOY Ever! And, MENSA is opening up the voting to include the general public! Voting for Round 1 begins on Monday, October 15th and anyone can participate and follow by either going to Facebook.com/AmericanMensa or Twitter.com/AmericanMensa.

To participate in our in-store contest, you must turn in you completely filled out bracket entry form to the shop by next Sunday – the 21st. Initially, you are vying to win a gift certificate for $50 worth of green-tagged comics of your choice. For each entry above 20, I will add one dollar to that amount. So, make copies and have your family, friends, and co-workers enter!! But, again, entries must be delivered to the shop in person (no phone calls, no emails, no snail mail!) by 5:00 PM on the 21st! No purchase is neccesary to enter or win!

Each Monday, MENSA will post the results of the previous week’s votes and voting for the next round will begin. I will post results here and on the large board in the store. Scoring on my part will be an arbitrary 1 point for each correct prediction for Round 1. Then, as we progress through the contest, each correct pick will increase in value. Hopefully, your name will appear in my weekly posts as I name our current leaders. Last year’s reigning champ, Joe Forbes, is rehabilitating from an accident and will not be on his feet for quite a few weeks, but I hand delivered entry forms to him and he vows to defend his title.

MENSA is on board with us, or anyone for that matter, using their bracket challenge. It can’t hurt to get the name out there. Naturally, we encourage you to use it for a fun, maybe morale boasting, exercise in your company.

While we’re mentioning voting, there’s another contest in early November. I know that it is not a good business practice to bring up politics or religion. However, I sincerely hope that all of those who believe that our founding fathers got it right when they wrote the first amendment to the Bill of Rights (you know, the one stating that there shall not be an establishment of a religion nor should we force others to conform to one’s religious beliefs) will take the time to go to the polls. Too many blur the two and history – heck, today’s news – tells us that it doesn’t work very well. Note: the previous opinion is mine and not necessarily that of Captain Blue Hen Comics and/or its owners or staff.

Finally, let’s get back to talkin’ comics. I told you earlier about a nice golden age find I bought. A very solid copy of Batman #4, a nice Flash 27, More Fun 70, and a real sweet copy of Planet Comics #18 have already sold. There were several incomplete comics that I posted on eBay, including a cover only to All Winners #1. With 28 hours to go (ends Monday, the 15th around 8:00 PM) there are 21 people “watching” it. I have a starting bid at $199.99 because if it doesn’t sell for at least that price, I’ll wait until a coverless one shows up – “NM” guide is $35,000! The Superman #10 & #11, both missing centerfolds, have bids with over a dozen watchers each. You know I’ll be watching the snipers go at it near the end. Check them out by searching “coastalcandc” under sellers.

Thursday, Dave and I were treated by one of our customers to holding copies of Batman #1 and #2 in our hands. Both had been very nicely restored and graded by CGC. The #1 received a 7.0 rating and the #2 had earned a 4.5. CGC gives restored comics a purple label and says “apparent” above the rating. The #1 also stated that it had moderate restoration, while the #2 stated it had extensive work. What was puzzling to me was that judging just by what we could see – the covers – the #2 appeared to be nicer to the eyes of this inexperienced observer. Granted, one could not see the interior, so the score may have reflected a significant difference in the work inside. Unfortunately, CGC does not reveal their criteria for awarding different grades. Regardless, these two comics presented extremely well and were a pleasure to hold, if only for a short time.