The closest to the original…
Any reader of 13th Dimension can pretty much tell you that we’re obsessed with Facsimile Editions. These little time capsules that cost you between four and seven bucks are a wonderful way to experience comics history and are one of the industry’s greatest bargains, to boot.
As great as they are, they’re not perfect. How could they be? Golden and Silver Age editions are published in Modern Age dimensions, and the paper quality, while an improvement over the original, is cleaner than it should be. (Personally, I think those are the definition of quibbles.)
But for purists, there’s an Action Comics #1 Facsimile Edition out there that’s just under your nose: A reprint that’s included in The Folio Society’s DC Comics: The Golden Age hardcover set.
The hardcover, which is just shy of being the size of a classic Bronze Age treasury edition and features 17 foundational DC stories, includes a separate, complete reprint of Action #1 — scanned from pages in DC’s vault and roughly the size of an actual Golden Age comic book. (A Golden Ager typically measures 7.75″ x 10.5″. This edition runs 7.5″ x 10.25″.)
It’s printed with an appropriately glossy cover and newsprint pages, giving the feel of a 1938 comic book that just happens to be in spectacular condition.
The catch is that you can’t buy it separately. It only comes with the $260 DC Comics: The Golden Age boxed set. As you can read in my complete review here, however, it’s an incredible package worth saving for, if you’re able.
Then again, the closest you’ll ever get to an Action Comics #1 of this quality is to A) tour the DC library, or B) spend millions of dollars on a high-grade original. There’s one going up for auction this week.
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DC Comics: The Golden Age is only available through The Folio Society. Click here for more info and to order.
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MORE
— The Ultimate TREASURY EDITION: The Folio Society’s DC COMICS: THE GOLDEN AGE. Click here.
— FOLIO SOCIETY Publishes High-End BATMAN 85th ANNIVERSARY Collection. Click here.
