Author: dgagnon

A Collector's Journey - Storage Systems

I gently tap the button with the Avengers logo on it.  One panel in the chest-high cabinet clicks as my request is acknowledged.  With a smooth hiss and a puff of air the climate-controlled, humidity-free drawer glides forward.  LED lighting along each side blinks on, banishing the...

Almost Infamous: Salem's Seven

Salem's Seven is the elite strikeforce of a hidden cabal of witches and warlocks.  These seven warriors can magically mutate into superhuman forms specifically designed to defeat the Fantastic Four.  They have also battled the Avengers and, perhaps more importantly for comic collectors, the Vision and the...

A Collector's Journey - Organizing My Collection

Turning boxes of comics into an actual "collection" means I have to organize things.  When I had three boxes of comics that simply meant putting each title into numerical order.  This was a pretty simple task.  It was slowed down only by me agonizing over missed issues,...

Almost Infamous: The Swordsman

"We are... only what we are, darling... I tried... to be worthy of you... of the Avengers... but... like Kang... I was doomed... from the beginning... I'm a failure... I'm just... one of those people... who doesn't count."  With those final words, Jacques DuQuesne - the Swordsman,...

A Collector's Journey - Getting Started

Comic books are a vehicle we use to temporarily escape our reality.  They take us to a place where good guys get to win.  A place where doing the right thing is the norm, not the exception.  Comics can make us laugh and make us cry.  Great...

Almost Infamous: Red Guardian

World powers, the United States, and the Soviet Union were embroiled in a Cold War since the end of World War II.  The two countries battled one another in proxy in Korea than in Vietnam.  They used the space race as a vehicle to promote their...

Almost Infamous: The Circus of Crime

Princess Python, the Flying Gambonnos, Cannonball, the Clown, the Strongman, and others.  Led by the Ringmaster, the Circus of Crime has the most diverse list of superhero opponents in the Marvel Universe.  One would be challenged to name a hero who has not at...

Almost Infamous: Leap-Frog

Not every villain is gifted with superpowers, alien technology, or a super-genius mind.  Sometimes even a self-professed loser like Vincent Patilio can make a claim for infamy by refusing to quit despite numerous defeats and the ridicule that can come with it.  His Leap-Frog persona has been...

Almost Infamous: Mr. Kline

In 1971 references to the mysterious Mr. Kline had appeared in over one-third of the superhero comics published by Marvel!  In more recent times that would equate to the type of hype crossover events like Civil War, Secret Invasion or Empyre would generate.  Despite this push, Mr....

Almost Infamous: Nightshade

Tilda Johnson, aka Deadly Nightshade, is the most versatile villain in comics. Her expertise includes biology, toxicology, robotics, and combat skills - all self-taught. She has turned heroes into werewolves, commandeered a SHIELD facility, and almost gender-swapped Captain America.  Her allies range from Yellow Claw to Superia...