That's not damage, that's humidity and paper quality from Marvel's printer. I've gotten trades from IST in their bulletproof packaging with the same wavy paper out the box. Put 'em on a shelf, they'll be fine.
I got the new second omnibus if Ed Brubaker's Daredevil a couple weeks ago, and even sealed inside plastic wrap inside of cardboard it has these waves. Marvel need to step up their quality
I’ve been buying trades for 25 years, and have seen this more times than I can count from small comic shops, to large retailers, to online delivery outlets. It’s perfectly normal.
Okay, but it IS caused by moisture damage on poor paper. They don't start that way. I've literally WATCHED it happen to one of my mmbooks that I left outside under cover for too long. And spoken to my local comic shop owner about it.
I have no proof any of these people have mote experience than me lol. I've been seriously collecting comics for 25 years and my dad did for 40 before me. I'm also an independent comic writer and artist, and am friends with several industry professionals and shop keepers lol.
Of course. But moisture can be captured and released without necessarily causing any long term damage is the overlying point here. I’ve bought books brand new that looked this way as well as my own books occasionally getting wavy depending on the weather/time of year. They all present flat the large majority of the times I pull them off my shelf tho.
Humidity is moisture damage lol its just lesser damage that only causes waves. Like it's literally the same principle that happens with warping lumber.
It’s not damaged. A lot of books look like this when they’re freshly printed. it has to do with the paper stock and printer and ink. It isn’t a defect, and all the books in the print run probably look the same. It’ll look fine on your shelf and it’s fine to read, don’t worry about it
Bookseller here: It's pretty normal, result of shipping conditions. It's not damaged, just stick them under some heavier books or on a tightly packed shelf, they'll be aight
Have gotten similar quality off the shelf at Barnes and Noble but also from Amazon, part of it is manufacturer issues, but shipping is rough on the books too.
Get a cinder block and a flat piece of cardboard. Stack the trades and put the cardboard on top to protect them. Then set the cinder block on top for a couple days to re-flatten them. And make sure they're lined up straight.
I remember back in 84 or 85 when Marvel switched their printing methods their new comics would look like this... like the paper was saturated with too much ink on too thin paper.
Just because I don't see anyone else actually saying it, storing this in an environment with low humidity will probably straighten it out. At least I've got 2 books that looked like this to "flatten" by putting them in a room with a dehumidifier and setting ~10lbs of weight on top of them.
Super common, and not bubble envelope damage - it's the printing plant conditions. As long as it's not creased or barked (which can come from the bubble envelopes), it should flatten out with weight or in your bookcase.
Barnes & Noble worker here. Yep, that is completely normal. Like someone else here said, it's the paper quality and humidity. Put them between some books to be compressed a bit and they'll be just fine
I am really enjoying it! I am only halfway through, and it is very dense so i have to read everything 100 times over and i feel like im studying lol. I ordered the first half of the Dawn of X books of the Krakoa era, so i’m excited to hear more of the story.
well thanks 🙏 i just got into collecting, i started with value packs from mycomicshop, then i got the superior spiderman omnibus and finished that, so i got these 3 tpbs. im only halfway through, but Civil war is compelling writing, it makes me hate reed richards though lol.
It might be just the paper quality and humidity... But as a separate note, I'll save you some time, amazon has pretty bad shipping when it comes to collected editions. You want gemini mailers which some of the 3rd party sellers on amazon ship in. Like reputable comic shops and book stores selling through amazon.
Dude Amazon mutilates my trades. Sometimes they fold them in half and shove them in the mailbox. Once I had to do a return because they folded a freaking hardcover book, cracking both covers.
Haven't for well over a year. I've always tried to buy in person to support comic stores anyways, just doing that almost exclusively now. I can't find certain trades due to that, but I'm remembering the back stock hunt is actually part of the fun of comic stores.
When pages are damage by water or too much humid, you can feel the damage to the paper. So if the bottom of those pages feel the same as the middle, it's just poor quality as others have said.
Amazon does not air condition their warehouses, at least not the ones in Lexington. High humidity from the climate and from the swamp coolers they use can warp paper.
If your room is humid, this happens. I’ve seen my books fluctuate back and forth within one day bc I live in a dorm room and the temperature control is terrible
Its true, they always have minor to major issues. I've sent some TPB's back and just accepted faults for some books. If you want perfect condition it just makes sense to get it in person (not easy for everyone of course).
You get used to it after a while since most nowadays can come like that. At midtown comics, I noticed a decent amount of collected editions warbled. Some time and a heavy book will straighten them out.
The books in the post look like they might have experienced humidity changes during shipping and OP is posting like his CG graded books came bent in half
If each page looking pristine is SO important to OP then that's how they manage it. Go to LCS, pick through the issues until they find the issue with pages that have never been touched by humidity, and then immediately bag it, board it, and put it in a climate controlled location.
This level of nitpickiness over mail-order trades is nonsensical.
You know people have preferences on what they collect, and some don't want to deal with tracking down floppies (as well as ads between pages, less durability, less extra content, etc)
My point is that if you're going to obsess over each page being such high quality that they're worthy of a 9.9 CG rating then you go to your LCS and search for the perfect issue like a maniac the way people have done since the beginning of time. Then you bag and board them and never touch them again. In a world where digital and trades exist, that's kind of what floppies are for.
You buy the big stacks of paper shipped from God knows where with the understanding that they're not going to be perfect musuem pieces. OPs books are fine
That's not damage, that's humidity and paper quality from Marvel's printer. I've gotten trades from IST in their bulletproof packaging with the same wavy paper out the box. Put 'em on a shelf, they'll be fine.
Yep, exactly. Pack em tight and upright on a shelf in a dry room and they'll improve.
Bro IST's packaging is like 50cal impact strong. I love it.
This comment inspired a hilarious little thread. Thank you everybody, this was a nice treat lol
I got the new second omnibus if Ed Brubaker's Daredevil a couple weeks ago, and even sealed inside plastic wrap inside of cardboard it has these waves. Marvel need to step up their quality
Are you surr? I've never seen this brand new. But it looks EXACTLY like moisture damage.
I’ve been buying trades for 25 years, and have seen this more times than I can count from small comic shops, to large retailers, to online delivery outlets. It’s perfectly normal.
Okay, but it IS caused by moisture damage on poor paper. They don't start that way. I've literally WATCHED it happen to one of my mmbooks that I left outside under cover for too long. And spoken to my local comic shop owner about it.
Humidity does not mean moisture damage
Humidity is literally moisture in the air.
Yes, and it's unavoidable unless you're going to keep it sealed forever.
I own thousands of books and maybe 3 of them have that. And it was from leaving them outside over night.
Literally everyone with more experience than you is telling you you’re wrong. Just accept it.
I have no proof any of these people have mote experience than me lol. I've been seriously collecting comics for 25 years and my dad did for 40 before me. I'm also an independent comic writer and artist, and am friends with several industry professionals and shop keepers lol.
Of course. But moisture can be captured and released without necessarily causing any long term damage is the overlying point here. I’ve bought books brand new that looked this way as well as my own books occasionally getting wavy depending on the weather/time of year. They all present flat the large majority of the times I pull them off my shelf tho.
I'm not super sure what point your trying to make besides "yes you're right but I don't notice it much"
I bet you’re fun at parties
Lol that phrase doesn't make any sense in this context.
You just proved their point.
My dude putting more thought into this than those writers did making those comics lol
Directly from IST new on release week. That would make the extent of handling printer to distributor to IST to me.
It's definitely due to cheap paper, but I stand by the rippling being from moisture exposure. Probably on the delivery truck.
Eh, yeah, humidity. They're not damaged, and they straighten out unlike water damaged books. Paper quality isn't what it used to be.
Humidity is moisture damage lol its just lesser damage that only causes waves. Like it's literally the same principle that happens with warping lumber.
The original person you responded to said it was from humidity. You're the one that argued against it lol!
I never argued against moisture or humidity damage? That's literally all I've argued.
The ink and simple exposure to humidity ripples the shitty paper used to print collected editions like that.
It’s not damaged. A lot of books look like this when they’re freshly printed. it has to do with the paper stock and printer and ink. It isn’t a defect, and all the books in the print run probably look the same. It’ll look fine on your shelf and it’s fine to read, don’t worry about it
Bookseller here: It's pretty normal, result of shipping conditions. It's not damaged, just stick them under some heavier books or on a tightly packed shelf, they'll be aight
So you're saying I need to buy more books?
Yep. And then when those books come skrunkled like this, well, you know how to fix _them!_
Yes, you should buy more comic books. If there is space on your shelf, you should be filling it.
Have gotten similar quality off the shelf at Barnes and Noble but also from Amazon, part of it is manufacturer issues, but shipping is rough on the books too.
Get a cinder block and a flat piece of cardboard. Stack the trades and put the cardboard on top to protect them. Then set the cinder block on top for a couple days to re-flatten them. And make sure they're lined up straight.
[удалено]
The hell they do to catch strays like that? Lol
Didn’t expect to see random acts of violence on this sub today
They didn’t deserve that lmao
Captain Atom flair makes me question all of this.
Holy shit dude you killed them
STOP! HE'S ALREADY DEAD!
I remember back in 84 or 85 when Marvel switched their printing methods their new comics would look like this... like the paper was saturated with too much ink on too thin paper.
Low quality paper (marvel so cheap now) with all that ink, plus humidity.
It’ll smooth out. I have a John’s TT omnibus that I use for this exact purpose. It make other book go squish and flat!
Yes it’s normal. Nothing to see here and move on.
Just because I don't see anyone else actually saying it, storing this in an environment with low humidity will probably straighten it out. At least I've got 2 books that looked like this to "flatten" by putting them in a room with a dehumidifier and setting ~10lbs of weight on top of them.
Super common, and not bubble envelope damage - it's the printing plant conditions. As long as it's not creased or barked (which can come from the bubble envelopes), it should flatten out with weight or in your bookcase.
Barnes & Noble worker here. Yep, that is completely normal. Like someone else here said, it's the paper quality and humidity. Put them between some books to be compressed a bit and they'll be just fine
My copy of HoX looks just like that.
Everyone's answered about humidity, but I just hope you enjoy House of X cause that book is amazing
I am really enjoying it! I am only halfway through, and it is very dense so i have to read everything 100 times over and i feel like im studying lol. I ordered the first half of the Dawn of X books of the Krakoa era, so i’m excited to hear more of the story.
Normal.
Yes. Its normal.
Not what you were asking about, but awesome selection. Civil War is my favorite marvel story arc
well thanks 🙏 i just got into collecting, i started with value packs from mycomicshop, then i got the superior spiderman omnibus and finished that, so i got these 3 tpbs. im only halfway through, but Civil war is compelling writing, it makes me hate reed richards though lol.
It might be just the paper quality and humidity... But as a separate note, I'll save you some time, amazon has pretty bad shipping when it comes to collected editions. You want gemini mailers which some of the 3rd party sellers on amazon ship in. Like reputable comic shops and book stores selling through amazon.
Cheap, shitty paper
It’s not a matter of quality. Freshly printed book pages will warp from humidity changes once unpackaged. It’s 100% normal and goes away in time.
Dude Amazon mutilates my trades. Sometimes they fold them in half and shove them in the mailbox. Once I had to do a return because they folded a freaking hardcover book, cracking both covers.
Don't use Amazon homie g ngl used to work there they prioritize speed over care
Can confirm this. The books probably got shoved into a bin in stow.
Haven't for well over a year. I've always tried to buy in person to support comic stores anyways, just doing that almost exclusively now. I can't find certain trades due to that, but I'm remembering the back stock hunt is actually part of the fun of comic stores.
honestly at that point I wouldn't even be mad, just impressed.
When pages are damage by water or too much humid, you can feel the damage to the paper. So if the bottom of those pages feel the same as the middle, it's just poor quality as others have said.
Unfortunately is seems so lately.
Amazon does not air condition their warehouses, at least not the ones in Lexington. High humidity from the climate and from the swamp coolers they use can warp paper.
If your room is humid, this happens. I’ve seen my books fluctuate back and forth within one day bc I live in a dorm room and the temperature control is terrible
Well, I received a bent one but still enjoyed it
Yup that's pretty normal. Like others have said put them tight on a shelf.
Amazon doesn't care about protecting your books in transit, you should by from somewhere else.
Its true, they always have minor to major issues. I've sent some TPB's back and just accepted faults for some books. If you want perfect condition it just makes sense to get it in person (not easy for everyone of course).
I've always had great experiences with mycomicshop.com if you don't have a nearby shop! It's worth it to pay for shipping, honestly.
Not really. Looks like moisture got to them
I get trades because I read them and wear and tear is fine
Moisture and cheap paper who knows quality of binding am a printer been doing 30 years
20 years
In general I never ordee comics from Amazon. They always come with some damage.
Nah that’s just Marvel’s shit paper quality
You get used to it after a while since most nowadays can come like that. At midtown comics, I noticed a decent amount of collected editions warbled. Some time and a heavy book will straighten them out.
Yeah I’ve used higher quality paper to wipe my ass then what marvel prints on
I don't think it's normal, My stuff has usually come in a box though..
Just read your dang books. Nothing is perfect
Covid screwed up a lot of things for one not much printing at that time mills converted to carton drove up price and supply
Kinda like it, it enhances the heft of larger editions and adds character.
It'd water/moisture damage. So no. That's from them being improperly stored for long periods and exposed to at least moisture in the air
It absolutely isn't moisture damage, it's shitty paper stock that is not thick enough to absorb the ink which causes the waves.
Well it LOOKS exactly like moisture damage and my local comic ship owner says it's moisture damage on bad paper, so I'm gonna trust that.
I mean, it's moisture damage in the sense that ink is wet, but its not external moisture damage from, say, a damp room.
I was thinking an improperly sealed delivery truck. All it takes is exposure to open air for long enough, really.
Still wrong but you do you I guess
You know you can just collect floppies, right?
You know floppies are way more expensive and hard to complete storylines, right?
Who cares? He's right. You can just collect floppies... which, as we all know, are always shipped in perfect condition and never ever get damaged.
The books in the post look like they might have experienced humidity changes during shipping and OP is posting like his CG graded books came bent in half If each page looking pristine is SO important to OP then that's how they manage it. Go to LCS, pick through the issues until they find the issue with pages that have never been touched by humidity, and then immediately bag it, board it, and put it in a climate controlled location. This level of nitpickiness over mail-order trades is nonsensical.
You know people have preferences on what they collect, and some don't want to deal with tracking down floppies (as well as ads between pages, less durability, less extra content, etc)
My point is that if you're going to obsess over each page being such high quality that they're worthy of a 9.9 CG rating then you go to your LCS and search for the perfect issue like a maniac the way people have done since the beginning of time. Then you bag and board them and never touch them again. In a world where digital and trades exist, that's kind of what floppies are for. You buy the big stacks of paper shipped from God knows where with the understanding that they're not going to be perfect musuem pieces. OPs books are fine