The month of January heralded a grand-scale addition of entertainment-related titles to the Comics Registry. Many of the sets created this month tie into TV shows or movies that were just as popular as their corresponding comic counterparts. We added extensive sets for notable cartoon characters like Tom and Jerry, Chip 'n' Dale, Scooby Doo (DC), and Huckleberry Hound. We also paid homage to the different comic movies of past, present, and future by adding sets like Logan's Run, Conan Movie Comics, From Hell, and Further Adventures of Indiana Jones. Not to be forgotten are the live-action TV series like X-Files and Man-Thing (where the set was expanded to include volume 2 of this comic series).
Some other interesting additions I'd like to mention this month include the Modern Love set. Though only an eight-issue series, these books are renowned as early works of Al Feldstein, who later went on to work on Mad with Harvey Kurtzman, as well as being notable as EC's only attempt to break into the romance trends of the time. After this title, EC streamlined their efforts to their now-recognized style of horror, crime, science fiction, and fantasy. The covers of these books are great examples of his distinctive art style and were also where many other important EC artists and writers got their start, including Johnny Craig and Graham Ingels. Another interesting addition is the Dell Giants set. This set spans the entire run of Dell Giants, both the individually titled issues and the consecutively numbered series. These square-bound beauties are known to be hard to find in high grades, so this set is a great way to display your gems and give a bit of history on how you came into possession of them.
This leads me to the descriptive elements of our Registry. Not only can you catalogue your inventory of graded comics through this site, but you can also share your collecting experience with other enthusiasts through your creative and engaging descriptions. You can use the Set Description area to give some history about the title you are collecting, what attracted you to collecting it, and some key issues that are featured within your set. One of our winners for the "Best Presentation for 2007" in last year's Registry Awards, worldsbestcomics, did just this with his winning set, Beautiful Beasts. Some other prime examples of the Set Description come from the coin side, but are worth noting due to the creative and engaging use of the set descriptions. MEMMOTT COLLECTION Australia Lunar Series gives us a fun history of the Chinese Lunar Year and Just Having Fun with US Philippine Type Coins gives us a general history of the coins in his set, the collecting aspects of the set, and why these coins interest him. These are short but fun descriptions that help to draw attention to these sets and perhaps give incentive to other collectors to join in the fun! But the Set Description is not the only way to draw attention and interest to your collection. You can also use the Slot Description field to enhance your set by giving the history and details of the specific comic you have displayed in the slot and even telling why it is important to you. One of our many Comics Registry users who chose to use this option is Littleweasel, in his Spawn Set, who gives us the specifics of the issue and even information on the inserts in some of the issues. Or, you can look at kid comic's Civil War Set where he has given some basic information about the comic and sometimes even tells where he obtained it before grading. These are good examples of ways to enhance your sets using some basic information and even a little creativity!
If you have any requests for new sets that you would like to see added to the Registry, or any sets that you feel need expanding, just sign up for the chat boards and post them here. Not using the Registry yet? It's easy and free! Registry Help
