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My First Book Binding Batch of 2008

I received this batch of bound volumes from Single Bound Studios last week.  It was my first order since David Banks formally established Single Bound Studios and I was pleased to see that he is running everything as smoothly and professionally as ever.  It had been nearly a year since my last binding job which was really a result of the fact that many of the volumes in this batch were a bit more complicated than the average job.  In this case, I had some easy ones (She Hulk 1-25) and some hard ones (X-men The Secret Years with 24 issues from 10 titles + some cover scans).  I've inserted photos of the books taken by David Banks below along with some commentary. 

Original X-Men Vols. 2-4

These books are each 25-issue volumes running from original X-Men 26-100, inclusive of the reprint years.  I am admittedly a nostalgic completist, so I felt compelled to include the reprint years, especially since some of those reprint issues were my first exposure to the original X-Men.  Many of the reprint books also have fantastic new covers by Gil Kane, so that's an added bonus.

X-Men The Secret Years Vol. 1

This volume, which includes all of the in-continuity appearances of the X-Men during the reprint years, has actually been in the works for at least three years.  It took me quite a while to research all of the X-Men appearances during those years and then assemble the run.  The "Secret Years" title is a reference to the evil Secret Empire plot that is something of a common thread throughout.

X-23 Vol. 1

I admit to being skeptical when Wolverine's teenage female clone appeared on the scene a few years ago, but I have really enjoyed this concept and the growth and development of X-23's back story and character.  This volume includes the NYX, X-23 and X-23: Target X limited series as well as X-23's appearances in the Uncanny X-Men, Marvel Team-Up and the adjectiveless X-Men.

Marvel Universe Vol. 1

Ah, good times.  I was recently reading a message board thread that wondered when the Marvel Universe was "perfect".  To me, it truly was perfect in the early 80s when you had a confluence of strong editorial direction driving both innovation and continuity as well as great creative teams on all of Marvel's flagship titles.  The Marvel Universe handbook is a fond reminder of those days.

Generations Vol. 1

This book assembles John Byrne's three Generations limited series runs plus the Captain America-Batman one-shot in chronological order from 1939 to 2925.  This job was definitely one of the more complex ones in this batch as Single Bound Studios had to remove the prestige stock covers from 9 comics and break up the Generations I and II issues in order to put them all in the right order.

She-Hulk Vol. 1

By contrast, this book was certainly the simplest one of the batch as it had no special instructions, no logo die, etc.  The volume includes the full run of She-Hulk nos. 1-25 from the original series, which I recently bought on eBay.  This series is up there with Dazzler as one of my fondest guilty pleasures from the 80s.  Next, I'm looking forward to starting on John Byrne's She-Hulk run.

Civil War Vol. 1

This weighty volume includes the main Civil War and Civil War Frontline titles as well as all the key one-shots from the series.  I found Marvel's Civil War storyline to be a riveting and fast-paced read with some absolutely amazing art.  So, despite my horror at what I saw some of my favorite characters saying and doing over the course of the story, I generally enjoyed the series.

New Mutants Vols. 1-3, 5

New Mutants Vol. 5, including the New Mutants Annuals, Special Edition, Summer Special and the two limited series titles that followed the end of the initial 100-issue run, was the only new volume shown in this picture.  Volumes 1-3, which include issues no. 1-75 were actually sent back to get the new New Mutants logo die stamp that was recently completed by Single Bound Studios.

Posted by 1407graymalkin at 09:06 PM | Permalink

Bitten By The Binding Bug

I was bitten by the comic book binding bug almost two years ago.  I don’t recall where I first found a link to David Banks’ web site, but I was amazed when I saw all the photos of various bound volumes done by David in collaboration with Capitol Bindery.  Given that most of my comics are trapped in long boxes in a closet – therefore very hard to dig out to read – I really liked the idea of turning key runs from my collection into bound volumes for easy access and placement on my bookshelves.

I recall being very nervous when I sent my first batch of comics – a full run of John Byrne’s X-Men Hidden Years – off to David’s P.O. Box in Omaha, NE, but everything worked out very well.  I’m now approaching 100 bound volumes, including a number of comic books runs that are particularly precious to me for reasons of both sentimental and monetary value, including a full run of the orignal X-Men 1-25.  Among the many things that appeal to me about comic book binding are the following:

1. I love being able to read 25 consecutive issues without having to root around in the comic closet to find what I’m looking for and then dealing with bags, boards, tape, etc. while making my way through the comics. I’m a reader first and a collector second so it’s great to be able to read comics easily.
   

2. It’s nice having bound volumes that are presentable enough to have on the bookshelf and not elicit (too much) scorn from my better half or looks of concern or confusion from house guests and relatives. Ok, people are still curious, but you have to admit that it certainly adds an air of legitimacy to the hobby.
   

3. Getting the best of both worlds is great: Bound volumes offer the convenience of collected editions without sacrificing some of the things that really elicit great nostalgia such as letters columns, monthly checklists, and the classic (and not so classic) advertisements. Spider-Man web shooters circa 1976 anyone?
   

4. Customizing volumes with logo dies, sketches, autographs, etc. is a great addition to the stories in each volume.  David Banks has some nice examples on his website with sketches of the Fantastic Four by Joe Sinnott. I just sent of one of my books to Bob McLeod for some sketches of the New Mutants.
   

5. The completist in me loves being able to have full-runs of comics bound as compared to trade paperbacks and other collected editions that tend to focus on specific periods of time, famous creators or notable sagas. I’m pleased to say that I’m well on my way to completing X-Men Vols. 1-18!
   

6. The (guilty) pleasure of having bound volumes of titles such as Blue Devil, Champions, Dazzler, Warlord, etc. is great.  These are comics I loved reading while growing up, but I imagine the powers that be at DC and Marvel will never get around to publishing many of them. Can you imagine a Dazzler Masterworks?

David Banks Consistently Delivers Great Results 

Here are some examples of the great work done by David Banks through Capitol Bindery.  Obviously, every book is different in terms of the contents, logo dies and other elements of customization, but the common thread has been a consistency with respect to quality and attention to detail.  It actually feels like he gives as much attention to a volume of Blue Devil 1-25 as he does to a volume of the original X-Men 1-25.  David has also gone the extra mile to replace books that were damaged in transit or do custom work that is more time consuming, but ultimately yields a better result for a project.  It's those critical factors that keep me coming back to David Banks again and again.

Posted by 1407graymalkin at 09:27 PM | Permalink