Today, my first indulgence into the pricey realm of CGC Graded comic books finally arrived from the good folks at Wizard Universe: "All Star Superman" #1, written by Grant Morrison and illustrated by Frank Quitely, featuring the rare cover variant by the legendary Neal Adams. One question: if this is a new book, fresh off the line, when why the hell isn't it a "10" instead of "9.8"? This is my second pricey Krypton-themed purchase in under six months--last October, I broke down and splurged for that vintage Jor-El card from the 1978 movie autographed by the late Marlon Brando. Fear not, citizens--I'll never name a kid "Kal-El", if that's what you're thinking.
So what's "CGC", you ask? It stands for "Comics Guaranty, LLC", the most recent addition to The Certified Collectibles Group, which also consists of Numismatic Guaranty Corporation of America--the leading grading service in rare coins, and Sportscard Guaranty, LLC--a grading service for sportscards. Each comic gets graded by "experts" according to CGC standards in what has been described, cryptically, in official literature as a "confidential process".
CGC seals each title in a clear and tamper-proof holder, with front and top labels displaying info about the book and its grade. The package can be opened, but the certification will immediately be invalidated, so obviously it's a good idea to pick up a copy of the regular newstand edition should you desire to actually read the damn thing...
In the interest of preservation, I've bound up the book in bubble wrap and have placed it in a box in my darkened closet, where the cover will be safe from sunlight, halogen bulbs, terrorists, and other urban perils. Which makes the purchase somewhat anticlimactic--all this money and anticipation for something I'll rarely look at again. I keep thinking what Charlie sez about "candy" in "Willy Wonka"--it doesn't have to have a point, that's why it's candy...or collecting...
