I Paid $20 for a Dusty Box of Comics in the Middle of Nowhere… So What Was In It??

[@robertmonroejr1315]

That A-V in 3D is a nice find! It was Aardvark Vanaheim’s attempt to introduce their readers to a new lineup. It has Dave Sims’ Cerebus the Aardvark, Ms. Tree from Max Collins, Bob Burden’s Flaming Carrot, Valentino’s Normalman, Bill Messner-Loebs’ Journey, and Arn Saba’s Neil the Horse. I recently completed my run of Ms.Tree. It was a really great detective series!

[@lunchmoneycomics]

Thanks for the info!

[@JasonSnyder-o3q]

No mention of the Consn 58's? First appearance of Belit

[@dakotakessler]

That Conan 58 is also the first full appearance of Belit, unfortunately it's also the first cover appearance of Belit. If that Giant Size Conan is the number 1, its Belit's first cameo appearance. Cool pick ups.

[@kbar4462]

Wow that's so interesting I never heard about this coverless comics thing

[@l.greenemachine66]

Green Lantern Emerald Dawn is a key. By the way if you don't want any of the Green Lanterns you can send them my way LOL

[@dannyplaza5474]

That’s how I discovered comics. In the 70s when I was a kid (in Philly ), my corner grocery store would have a rack of comics. The comics were bagged and either coverless or the covers were cut in half. Two coverless comics in a plastic bag for .25 cents.

[@technodestructo]

I worked for a distributor at the warehouse when I was 18 they scanned the books then removed the cover for credit. They would let us take 6 coverless books a week home . Wanted to cry watching all thise books get spreader. The mafia got involved in back dooring comics even back in the 60s on the east coast that's were the massive warehouse of stuff the guy that owns mile high comics bought back in the 80s. Over a million books uncircleated on pallets for over 20 years there's a kinda half truth documentary on utube about it.

[@imperiousrex1873]

I watched it. It was pretty cool to see the history

[@robertmonroejr1315]

Leave It To Chance was a good kid’s series. It won Harvey and Eisner awards!

[@robertmonroejr1315]

Nice poster! Big Guy & Rusty The Boy Robot was a great cartoon series based on a comic book written by Frank Miller, drawn by Geof Darrow. The cartoon did a great job reproducing Darrow’s artwork.

[@clubb82]

I came for the comics, but stayed for the history lesson! LOL great stuff, Mike!

[@wolverado1322]

Nice variety of books and mags. Cool pick-up!

[@micpar2]

The stores also used to cut off the titles. Then they bag three comics or four and bag them in a plastic bag. And sell them for 25 cents a bag.

[@robertmonroejr1315]

Takio was a creator-owned comic book series written by Brian Michael Bendis under Marvel Comics' Icon imprint. I remember enjoying it.

[@jasonbell6670]

Man, that revolution war soldiers ad(2:12)really took me back. I absolutely loved it as a kid.

[@davidbrach3693]

Those cash and Carrie books are kickstarter exclusives!

[@robertmalinowski6804]

A lovely $20 pile! Well done!

[@l.greenemachine66]

That's the box of books you take camping with you so the kids have something to read when they get bored supposedly LOL

[@rhyattgere4833]

Those Newsweeks covered your purchase right there. And I love the AV in 3D with Cerberus, Flaming Carrot, Normal Man, etc. Fun score!

[@GrumpyColoradoDad]

Well, all I can say is that was a very interesting box of comics you found! But I agree, totally worth 20 bucks just to go through it!

[@Markus465]

Leave it to chance was hot in the mid-90's, probably due to Paul Smith on the art but James Robinson is no slouch in the writing department. Pretty good score!

[@grumpyiam6300]

Hey Mike the thrill of the chase 🤢 😆 I too never knew of the cover less comic arrangement. Every day’s a school day. Keep posting.

[@easycomicreader]

Did you notice on one of the coverless Kamandi comics, he was reading an issue of Newsweek 20:49 🤔 Great video as always 👍

[@TimothyRifenburg]

Leave it to chance is a series by James Robinson and Paul Smith (X-men artist) and even though it was never finished it is a great read. (A good kids book with an interesting girl character lead and some kid friendly monster hunting / fantasy.) Amelia rules is a series that started as an independent comic series by Jimmy Mcgownley. Scholastic picked it up and printed it in trades and it was completed in trades. (8 trades total and about 25 self published single issues) A really great kid series with a tween girl protagonist. The series has heart and a really relatable character. A great series for girls and a middle grade readers. The Coverless ones were a nice score because you get to read them and decide to reach out for better copies or introduce you to new characters and series. Kamandi is a Jack Kirby creation and he did 40 issues of writing / drawing and then they were given to other creators when Kirby left DC. Enjoy watching your discoveries.

[@lunchmoneycomics]

Thank you so much for the info!

[@dakoitcave817]

Leave It To Chance was one of the titles that ushered in the Image Renaissance, it was at the tail end of the “extreme” era. I know Jim Lee promoted that book when it came out.

[@backinthegame_comics]

Oh snap I always wondered why coverless comics were so common. Just seemed so random.

[@rupertpendergrass4014]

That was interesting...I wouldn't of thought to pick up books without covers. Glad you were happy with your purchase

[@imperiousrex1873]

Those two Newsweek magazine pays for the box right there.

[@lunchmoneycomics]

I agree!

[@gabesaquatics8495]

Man , that store has seen some history! Great video, Mike! All the bests from Germany! :)

[@BZackheim]

Leave it to Chance is a favorite around here. Definitely share it with your son. It's Paul Smith (yes, that Paul Smith) and it's a classic comic. Surprised it hasn't been optioned yet.

[@Moncomics]

Pretty crazy that on the Kamandi #42 (20:50 mark) cover he’s reading a Newsweek and you found those two old Newsweeks in that same box. Happy little coincidence! Great video as always man!

[@ryansperratore4243]

Your videos make me miss the days when I went to grad school at Brown University and would travel all around MA and RI comic hunting. Shout out to my old LCS The Time Capsule in Seekonk, MA

[@billparker442]

the AV in 3D is an 80's independent book.

[@connormacneil6138]

Hey Lunch Money! Love the channel. Love Hilda. Just wanted to ask, in a few videos you mentioned you like antiques too, and I was wondering if you had a separate antique related channel. Have a great one, dude!

[@lunchmoneycomics]

Thanks for the comment! I do not have an antique channel but a lot of people have asked me about my other collections. The tough thing is that a lot of the stuff I collect is very niche and some of it is downright odd. Although there might be a market for it, comics are "safer" to show on the internet. I've been reevaluating my antique and oddity collection for a while now and wondering if I should part with some of the stuff. Long story short, it's a complicated answer and I while probably won't show much of my existing collection I plan to show more of the antiques I pick up while hunting for comics books at these big flea markets.

[@dr5who1]

My favorite is the moon landing Newsweek. A great find.

[@jcp4162]

I still cherish my coverless comics from the early 70s. I was figuring out how to read so they just seemed so wondrous. If you can clean off the mold and leave them out for kids to find you’ll create new comic book fans. Cool video!

[@JasonBernier-b5r]

I couldn't even touch comics without covers it almost a little creepy haha.

[@richardwilliams6239]

Great reads on the coverless books. Great show too!

[@jarredsmith9187]

$20 for all of them that's not a bad deal.

[@twatson8709]

Never heard of any of those titles but it was worth it just for the Newsweeks. And two great issues to find

[@Coffee_And_Comics]

Good video. I say regardless of those titles and shape; I mean twenty bucks for all that is not bad because it's not just about the comics - but the story too.

[@lunchmoneycomics]

Absolutely agree, I can say now moths later my kids have gotten a ton of mileage out of those books. Totally worth it!

[@Vadim_Variations]

A-V in 3D is interesting...Aardvark Vanaheim, Dave Sim's comic book company (Sim is best known as the creater of Cerebus), and I also saw Flaming Carrot on the back of that issue. Although I have never seen that issue itself, but based on Cerebus, I wouldn't suggest passing it on to children. Not sure if that issue is worth anything, but both Cerebus and Flaming Carrot have devoted collectors.

[@Comiccomplter55]

I used to by comics like that but u can't get any return on those but it's nice to see what u have. Love the Boston accent I could watch any video u put up. Nice Bloodstone

[@nicholassmart4790]

Inhad no idea the Hilda comic had a North American edition!

[@daniellynch2300]

Starcadia Quest is a comic developed in partnership with CMON Games, after a board game of the same name as a promotional item and an attempt to flesh out some backstory for characters from the game. Aspen Comics is Michael Turner's independent label, most famous for Fathom. Mascots was an attempt to broaden the appeal of the publisher to kids. Free Realms is also an MMO and this was a companion comic, much like Starcadia. The most interesting comic from the modern stack was AV in 3D, which is kind of like DHP for Aardvark Press, Dave Sim's label. Notice Cerebus the Aardvark on the cover. :) Someone else also mentioned The Flaming Carrot featured on the back.

[@lunchmoneycomics]

Thanks for the info! This is why I love the comic community!

[@robphoenix1182]

Those Newsweeks are really cool. Totally worth the 20 dollars

[@samuelsiedschlag4486]

Might need to air all of them out for the next two or three... years. The magazines are fun to see. Lol

[@ColeCollects]

Great video man! I'd happily have paid $20 for the magazines alone. Cool pieces of history.

[@playersinexile72]

My son loves Hilda as well

[@dakoitcave817]

That Carrot head character is actually a very popular indie character called the Flaming Carrot. He was real popular amongst “cool kids” in the 90s. The TMNT were also guests in his own solo series and Todd McFarlane also did that TMNT/CC guest star cover.

[@RedRockShane]

I have three daughters and we love Hilda. Great pickup

[@darylploss3925]

Never underestimate the value of a good box.

[@l.greenemachine66]

I remember those record books in 3rd and 4th grade when they came out. We could go over to our local what they call the video unit now and check them out and take them home and read them and listen to the record. It also helped you learn to read a lot faster.

[@AnthonyOldhandGarcia]

The Newsweek posts are nice. That Kennedy, scandal almost sounds like the story about actress Natalie Wood's (Westside Story) mysterious death on a boat at Catalina Island on November 29 1981, who was probably married to actor Robert Wagner who was also on board on the boat along with actors Christopher Walken and co-star Dennis Davern. Wood's body was found a mile away from the yacht. Nice review.

[@comicspa]

Aahhh coverless comics..It’s like l can smell them even in my house. You can’t find any cheaper way to read my favorite time period…bronze please!

[@rowenaalix4817]

Just so you know, the Green lanterns are volume three not two Alan Scott is in volume one. Al Jordan is volume two and so on

[@lunchmoneycomics]

Thanks I realized my mistake afterwards and was too lazy to edit it out. Extra silly because I’ve talk about vol 3 multiple times in upcoming videos. It happens

[@bean6344]

Agree with all the comments about Leave It To Chance. AV in 3D is not a kids book. It features the a lot of early 80s Indy Creators. That was Blazing Carrot you saw. Also featured a Cerebus story.

[@lunchmoneycomics]

Thanks for the info!

[@fikebobby1]

That amazing Spider-Man is cool I looked up the cover. Might be a good read. Go through and pull out the cool ads

[@Comiccomplter55]

It was funny the guy wanted his box back lmao

[@attivolleyball202]

Love the vid!!!

[@rwheatley0206]

Great haul my friend. Have you ever tried lava rock to get the smell out of your books? It works really well. I am a big Astronomy fan too.

[@lunchmoneycomics]

Haven't tried yet, but that's a great idea!

[@turbomantodd2002]

Loved going through your purchase with you. The Newsweek find was nice surprise! My friend and I judge antique shops by the smell. If we walked in a shop that was to clean… we were fairly certain we would not find anything good and we’re usually right. However, your reaction to the smell? It must be really bad. Need a good balance of smell. My friend and I always joke around about selling candles called “Grandma’s Basement“.

[@jamesschulziii9098]

Great and most fun video for sure. Coverless comics, I'll say this, fun because you never know what you have until u read the fine print at the bottom. Still worth having and hopefully the centerfold is there etc. Honestly, it's oooo I do have a little something or whatever. I've decorated a comic box or two , 😎❤️

[@paulharper9711]

Yeah that was a good $20 value. I’m actually impressed with the Newsweek magazines. I’m a history geek myself and I love finding old magazines with historical topics. Especially when they are in good condition.

[@robertt9342]

I am guessing if they bought books back and tore the top of the cover off was an attempt to to get credit for unsold books and then they’d likely sell the books for the price they paid to make the equivalent of the full cover price while costing them nothing.

[@lorenzoclaypots]

This may be my favorite find for you. Very nice finds with Newsweek's. A nice frame and you could display those. Leave it to Chance is a James Robinson book. Great writer. I would think about finishing off that series since you have most. 13 books total. 2 publishers, possibly 3 (image, dc, and image homage?). Read these books for yourself. Then let your kids get into them. The DC books, I have all of them. The first book you pulled was a book Batman 439, the first Batman book I ever bought and read. It's the tale end to a story involving the 1st Robin who had now become Nightwing. Years later I would find the entire story arc. I have all three, year 1, 2 and 3. As for the books that don't have covers... even the smelly ones... there are a few things you can do with those. 1) You can try to sell or trade them if any are of value 2) You could create a binder for those issues that you do want to read or keep (think Conan, Dracula, Boris Karloff...) , punching holes in the comics or finding something like bcw pages for binders and then have those to read. 3) You could decoupage just about anything you want to decoupage in such a way that the scent wont escape but you could have a standard chair, table, desk suddenly becomes an awesome display for anything or anyone including... the 1st appearance of Leapfrog!!! It takes a little time and some planning but think about doing number 3. I will leave a link below if you want a short video on how to do this. kzbin.info/www/bejne/gZOccpSogbuem80

[@lunchmoneycomics]

Great info! This is why I love the online comic community!

[@bradforddillman7671]

I think the Brer Rabbit book will cover the cost of the whole box. Side note, I grew up a few miles away from Mary Jo Kopechne’s grave in Northeast Pennsylvania. Pretty random I guess.

[@charliedogg7683]

Lovely scenery to drive through. I remember Leave It To Chance, it received good reviews although I didn't read it. AV In 3D is Aardvark-Vanaheim, the publisher of Dave Sim's Cerebus The Aardvark and The Flaming Carrot among others (that's Ms. Tree, a private detective, on the back cover); the comic looks like a FCBD-style sampler possibly in 3D. I recognised none of the other kids' comics however. Ah, the perfume of aged comics is unique and if it could be bottled I would have it wafting through my house. The Newsweek issues are a great find, I remember watching the moon landing at school and then being very annoyed because the afternoon cartoons had been replaced by a repeat of the landing, which I'd already seen and I wanted my daily fix of Looney Tunes. Newsstands eventually sent back just the title/trade dress from the cover which included the issue number instead of the whole cover. The complete coverless comics are good for reading (with a mask on), the others can be used to line the bottom of the canary cage. I enjoyed going through the box of goodies with you Mike, a fun video.

[@mathchemboss7487]

Absolutely worth the 20 bucks. The 2 Newsweeks from 69 are great to show what the sixties also were beside the music and the Vietnam war. On your wall I can see old FF, so you must be a Kirby fan. Then check out Kamandi. Story is not superb (Stan Lee didnt write it alas, Jack did) but the art is great. 54 or so comics filled with JK art, just fantastic. And (still) cheap to purchase. Great video.

[@micpar2]

The one missing a lot is DC OMAC by Jack Kirby like 1974 /75. It only ran for eight issues sadly. I think Joe Kubert did the covers on #8 and maybe on #7 too? Kubert also drew some of the covers for Kirby's last few issues of Kamandi too. This was when Kirby was in the process of leaving DC. To go back to Marvel to do ALOT of their books for them again.

[@t-ravis6803]

Hilda is a good show! Hahaha!

[@lunchmoneycomics]

It really is!

[@fossiladventures2926]

Well worth $20

[@micpar2]

16:10 starts the coverless Bronze Age comics he bought.

[@lunchmoneycomics]

Thanks, meant to put time stamps!

[@Markus465]

You may want to hold on to Brer Rabbit and Tar Baby. With Disney getting rid of anything even remotely racist, sexist, etc. that could become a valuable rarity.

[@wilverdornell8]

Thanks Mike. Hope you don't get asthma. Lol. Better mask up.

[@comicbookninja5268]

If the smell is that bad I would just throw most of those books away. Just keep the Newsweeks and a few of the kids books.

[@lunchmoneycomics]

The smell has calmed down a bit, but yeah most of these are trashed.

[@jaxflfreebird]

Marvel's The Planet of the Apes just came out in Hardbook in 2023. You can buy the entire run but it isn't cheap. It's way overpriced at like $60 for only something like 12 issues. There aren't many and I just bought the run last year on a flash drive which was missing a couple of pages in issue one. But it also came with a run of the big magazine stories of Planet of the Apes. I think it was also published by Marvel. Apes was in magazine form like Vampirella, which I know nothing about at all. She was hot. That's my complete knowledge of the character.

[@bobh8783]

Sweet awesomeness

[@VERMrunner]

My guy, how much you want for that worlds finest 177?

[@lunchmoneycomics]

It's in pretty bad shape with some bad staining. Which is why it's a wall book lol

[@VERMrunner]

@@lunchmoneycomics I’d take it, that’s my favorite comic cover.

[@erictate1281]

Flaming karrot!

[@jon6309]

I am surprised you bought this with a lot of missing covers. There were a few things in there worth it but I wouldn’t buy the entire thing.

[@Frankofsector2814]

Hi Mike, interesting video. 20 bucks spent just for the fun of it might be okay but in the end it's a waste of money. Honestly, what are you going to do with all the coverless books but present them for this video and then throw them in the trash. In my opinion I would rather have 20 dollar on a complete book for your personal collection.

[@lunchmoneycomics]

If it was just the coverless books I would agree with you, but my son has been blasting through the modern ones and enjoying himself so I don’t think it was a complete waste.

[@robertt9342]

I agree and disagree with the OP. It’s both a waste of money for most of us, but absolutely worth it for Mike and some others. The moon landing Newsweek is pretty cool.

[@garymoviefan4294]

No covers! What a cringe!!!