PGM Batman 244 - Graded photo added 3 3

[Jesse-Lee]

Ok, so I have an already-CGC-graded Batman 244, but I was curious and thought it might be interesting to see how closely you all can guess/match the grade? (If this isn't allowed for some reason I can remove it).

I'll post a full photo with grade tomorrow around this same time.

Edited September 29, 2020 by Jesse-Lee
Updated title

[LDarkseid1]

Hmmm, I’m going to say 9.0.

[comicdonna]

8.5

[silversurfer275]

7.5

[Deadpoolica]

hard to grade in a slab but, 9.2-ish

[Funnybooks]

9.0

[KCOComics]

9.0 

[Randall Ries]

I started a game like this a few years ago here. Love it. I'm going with 7.5-8.0

[Jesse-Lee]

Thanks for indulging me (and for helping confirm to myself that I’m not nuts). Here’s a full photo of the graded book:

 

Sorry, kind of a long story here:

I watched this auction and studied the photos for days. I’d been looking at other copies in a price range I was comfortable with, and I saw this one and couldn’t believe it. I’ve seen 7.5s up to 8.5s - and even a couple of 9.0s - that didn’t look as clean or present as well as this book. Most of the copies I found in those grades either had some kind of color rub, crease or some other defect that impacted the cover art in some way that I didn’t like, or they were severely mis-wrapped (this one is slightly mis-wrapped, but in a way that’s at least acceptable to me, where the white/black line down the spine is basically uniform).

The only thing I can note on this book now that I have it in hand is in this photo that I included above:

 

What looks like a shadow cast by the slab edges (on the side and bottom edge of the book) is actually a discoloration of some sort on the actual book. It’s not water damage, it’s way too uniform for that and doesn’t have that “water damage” look. What it looks like is if some papers or other books or something were sitting on this one for a long time in such a way that it made some lined discoloration. Not sure if this kind of discoloration warrants a grade bump down that far? Any insights?

At the end of the day, the auction was not misrepresented in any way – it was listed as a 6.5 CGC, and there was no mention of “under-grading” or any other gimmicks to try to get anyone to buy. There were photos of the front and the back (I thought that discoloration was a shadow myself). I was the lone bidder, and I paid 6.5 money for the book – dead-on the current GoCollect FMV for a 6.5 in fact.

This is probably my favorite cover of all time (and I love the story too), and I was thrilled to get such a great-looking copy at a huge discount compared to higher graded books that didn’t look as good in my opinion. This book is absolutely gorgeous in-hand, and the colors really pop.

I was just really surprised by the grade and I wondered if others were seeing what I saw – that it looks way better than a 6.5. I can’t see myself getting it regraded anytime soon since I don’t plan on selling it, but I guess it would be nice to know if people think it would grade higher even with that discoloration. Maybe if I ever go that route or get curious, I’ll spring for the grader’s notes and see if I can learn more. Thanks again!

[silversurfer275]

4 minutes ago, Jesse-Lee said:

Thanks for indulging me (and for helping confirm to myself that I’m not nuts). Here’s a full photo of the graded book:

 

 

 

Sorry, kind of a long story here:

 

I watched this auction and studied the photos for days. I’d been looking at other copies in a price range I was comfortable with, and I saw this one and couldn’t believe it. I’ve seen 7.5s up to 8.5s - and even a couple of 9.0s - that didn’t look as clean or present as well as this book. Most of the copies I found in those grades either had some kind of color rub, crease or some other defect that impacted the cover art in some way that I didn’t like, or they were severely mis-wrapped (this one is slightly mis-wrapped, but in a way that’s at least acceptable to me, where the white/black line down the spine is basically uniform).

 

The only thing I can note on this book now that I have it in hand is in this photo that I included above:

 

What looks like a shadow cast by the slab edges (on the side and bottom edge of the book) is actually a discoloration of some sort on the actual book. It’s not water damage, it’s way too uniform for that and doesn’t have that “water damage” look. What it looks like is if some papers or other books or something were sitting on this one for a long time in such a way that it made some lined discoloration. Not sure if this kind of discoloration warrants a grade bump down that far? Any insights?

 

At the end of the day, the auction was not misrepresented in any way – it was listed as a 6.5 CGC, and there was no mention of “under-grading” or any other gimmicks to try to get anyone to buy. There were photos of the front and the back (I thought that discoloration was a shadow myself). I was the lone bidder, and I paid 6.5 money for the book – dead-on the current GoCollect FMV for a 6.5 in fact.

 

This is probably my favorite cover of all time (and I love the story too), and I was thrilled to get such a great-looking copy at a huge discount compared to higher graded books that didn’t look as good in my opinion. This book is absolutely gorgeous in-hand, and the colors really pop.

 

I was just really surprised by the grade and I wondered if others were seeing what I saw – that it looks way better than a 6.5. I can’t see myself getting it regraded anytime soon since I don’t plan on selling it, but I guess it would be nice to know if people think it would grade higher even with that discoloration. Maybe if I ever go that route or get curious, I’ll spring for the grader’s notes and see if I can learn more. Thanks again!

 

Damn and I thought I graded it too low 

[LDarkseid1]

Just now, silversufer27 said:

Damn and I thought I graded it too low 

Yeah I kept thinking, I bet I'm waayyy off and this is going to be like a 5.0 for some reason lol. It does present super well though!

[KCOComics]

That's why they say, buy the book, not the grade. Congrats!  

 

Maybe I'll post some graded books for fun and see where people land. 

[tvindy]

1 hour ago, Jesse-Lee said:

Maybe if I ever go that route or get curious, I’ll spring for the grader’s notes and see if I can learn more.

Yes, without the notes, there's no way to know for sure. I wonder if there's some internal damage that would explain the grade. Maybe there's a torn page, or someone doodled with a crayon. 

[Funnybooks]

Man, you have

4 hours ago, tvindy said:

Yes, without the notes, there's no way to know for sure. I wonder if there's some internal damage that would explain the grade. Maybe there's a torn page, or someone doodled with a crayon. 

me questioning myself...

Beautiful copy!

[Randall Ries]

When I did this game a couple years ago, members consistently graded high. I had some 7.0's that were getting 9.0 and 9.2.

 

[Jesse-Lee]

Just now, Randall Ries said:

When I did this game a couple years ago, members consistently graded high. I had some 7.0's that were getting 9.0 and 9.2.

 

I felt like I was cheating a little with this one - I've never seen a 6.5 that looks this good. It either has to be some inside issue like tvindy said, or it's that weird "tan line" on the back that's bringing it down (although I can't see how that drops it so far). If I ever end up getting the grading notes, I'll be sure to post them!

[Randall Ries]

1 minute ago, Jesse-Lee said:

I felt like I was cheating a little with this one - I've never seen a 6.5 that looks this good. It either has to be some inside issue like tvindy said, or it's that weird "tan line" on the back that's bringing it down (although I can't see how that drops it so far). If I ever end up getting the grading notes, I'll be sure to post them!

That's a "sun shadow" on the book. A section of the book sticking out of a pile that was exposed to the sun.

I have bought some really sharp looking books that look like they deserve a better grade. Upshot is I paid 7.0 prices for 9.0 looking books. Down side is I will sell them the same way. But I buy to keep, so it isn't an issue.

You must be able to ask for the notes. You are the original owner who subbed for a grade.

[Jesse-Lee]

7 minutes ago, Randall Ries said:

That's a "sun shadow" on the book. A section of the book sticking out of a pile that was exposed to the sun.

I have bought some really sharp looking books that look like they deserve a better grade. Upshot is I paid 7.0 prices for 9.0 looking books. Down side is I will sell them the same way. But I buy to keep, so it isn't an issue.

You must be able to ask for the notes. You are the original owner who subbed for a grade.

Thanks, that's kind of what I thought it might be based on reading stuff online, but then I started reading about "dust shadows" too, and thought maybe it can be that? Not sure if it really makes a difference either way, and it's not completely clear how far it affects the overall grade based on the info I can find. Seems crazy that a smallish defect like that on the back can take it from potentially an 8.5-9.0 down to a 6.5, but I realize they grade the whole book, not just the cover.

I'm not the original owner; I bought it slabbed. I can still get the notes for $5, which I might do, but I might wait to do that if there ever comes a time that I'd consider selling it. For now, I just love having it and looking at it -  it's so pretty...

Edited September 30, 2020 by Jesse-Lee

[comicginger1789]

1 minute ago, Jesse-Lee said:

Thanks, that's kind of what I thought it might be based on reading stuff online, but then I started reading about "dust shadows" too, and thought maybe it can be that? Not sure if it really makes a difference either way, and it's not completely clear how far it affects the overall grade based on the info I can find. Seems crazy that a smallish defect like that on the back can take it from potentially an 8.5-9.0 down to a 6.5, but I realize they grade the whole book, not just the cover.

I'm not the original owner; I bought it slabbed. I can still get the notes for $5, which I might do, but I might wait to do that if there ever comes a time that I'd consider selling it. For now, I just love having it and looking at it -  it's so pretty...

Whether its from dust or the sun, it has discoloured the cover. CGC hammers that hard. If you had that on the front of the book, colour fading would happen and it would hurt. This is on the back but they still seem to automatically drop a book a good 2 points when present, especially since you have a vertical strip and horizontal strip along the back.

Honestly, these are great books to buy because while the colouring is off on the back, it really does nothing to hurt the presentation. It is also not something that can get worse over time.

[comicginger1789]

If you had the fading on the front, it would really throw it off. I know the back cover doesn't matter as much in terms of display but CGC grades the whole book. I would not be surprised to see a similar copy with similar shadowing on the front (and no other major flaws) go for the same grade. They treat the back cover and front equally.