The Hunt Goes On...

Probably for the past two plus months I've been on the hunt for a copy of the grail... the grail of grails--well, for comic collectors. More specifically, the grail for Spider-Man collectors: Amazing Fantasy 15.

Amazing Spider-Man #1 (which I acquired back in Feb of this year) is certainly a huge grail to attain for any Spider-Man fan. However, while it is the first issue of Spider-Man's monthly mag, it is not his first appearance. This honor falls upon AF 15. What's interesting about this particular issue is that it was a one shot deal which pretty much happened by accident in Stan Lee's attempt to fill out the final issue of the Amazing Adult Fantasy series before it's end. Due to an overwhelming fan response, however, our favorite webslinger was given a second shot at life in ASM #1. Interestingly enough, the cover itself was done, not by the interior artist Steve Ditko, but instead by Jack "The King" Kirby. This book is probably a runs a third place to finish only behind the greats such as Action Comics #1 and Detective Comics 27: the first Superman and Batman respectively. Sure, there are other books out there more expensive (i.e. Marvel Comics #1, etc), however, these are nowhere near as recognizable to the common public as these three.

And this is the book I have been hunting. Initially, I had made a few sales of comics and Warhammer models but it looked like my efforts weren't going to produce much in the way of an affordable copy. Further, my wife and I made the decision to begin trying to have a baby...which means one heck of an expense. However, a wonderful, part-time teaching opportunity presented itself over the summer which will provide a relatively significant boost to the household income. And my wife okayed my getting back into the hunt for a copy. After all, it helps to have some added motivation if I'll be picking up a second job. :)

So here's to hoping. It will be something else to be able to post a scan or pic of the grail once/if I manage to attain it. Til then, I'll keep my fingers crossed!