Comic Grading
Grading Scale
Our grading scale has its foundation in Overstreet Grading Guide. While we strive to give the best grading possible. Occasionally things slip past us and there may be an interior page which has flaws or a missed flaw in the comic. With higher priced books we examine the interior pages & cover more thoroughly than some of the lower price ones.
One other thing you will notice is that we rarely grade comics, that we sell, above NM- 9.2. Generally this means a comic graded at 9.2 by us will be from 9.2-9.8. We never grade any comic as 10.0, unless it is CGC.
If you are not satisfied with the grade of a comic(s) you receive contact us and we will see what we can do to resolve the problem. We always offer a 100% refund on all returned items.
Digital Codes
We do not consider missing digital code covers/tabs to be a negative when grading comics. We do not check comics to see if the code has been redeemed, unless the title specifically states the code is included assume it isn't. We do not guarantee that the code will work if not already redeemed.
Now on to the Scale.
10.0 MINT GEM(MT+)
The best possible existing condition of a comic book. A near perfect book. It is very rare especially in older comic books pre-1990 to discover a comic in either Mint or Gem Mint condition. Books in this condition pre-1980 are virtually non-existent. An extremely exceptional comic with only very minute printing or bindery defects. The books cover is flat and without surface wear. No autographs or writing is allowed on either the cover or interior pages. Cover inks are exceptionally bright with high gloss. The books corners are perfectly square and sharp. Interior pages must me white in color and supple to the touch.
9.9 MINT(MT)
Nearly perfect. Overall look is as if it had just been hand-selected as the best copy from the newsstand and never read. Only subtle bindery or printing flaws allowed. Corners are sharp and square, cover inks are bright and reflective, spine is tight and flat, staples are centered, pages are white and supple. No cover soiling, creasing, tearing, pieces missing, or wear.
9.8 NEAR MINT/MINT(NM/MT)
This comic book will have at most a few very, very minor flaws. Perhaps a slightly blunted corner. Or a spine corner showing a tiny hint of wear. Or a very tiny spine stress mark. subtle bindery or printing flaws, such as slightly off-center registration, are allowed. Corners are sharp and square, cover inks are bright and reflective, spine is tight and flat, staples are centered, pages are white and supple. No cover soiling, creasing, tearing, or pieces missing.
9.6 NEAR MINT PLUS(NM+)
Nearly perfect with only minor imperfections. Overall look is as if it had just been purchased from the newsstand and probably not even read. Subtle bindery or printing flaws allowed, including a 1/16" bindery tear. Corners are sharp and either square or with ever-so-slight blunting, cover inks are bright and reflective, spine is tight and flat, staples are generally centered, pages are at worst off-white and supple. No cover soiling, creasing, tearing, pieces missing, or wear.
9.4 NEAR MINT(NM)
Nearly perfect with only minor imperfections. Overall look is as if it had just been purchased from the newsstand and carefully read once or twice. Subtle bindery or printing flaws allowed, including a 1/16" bindery tear. Corners are sharp and either square or with ever-so-slight blunting, cover inks are bright and reflective, spine is tight and flat, staples are generally centered, pages range from white to cream and are supple. No cover soiling, creasing, tearing, pieces missing, or wear.
9.2 NEAR MINT MINUS(NM-)
Nearly perfect with some minor imperfections. Overall look is still as if it had carefully read a few times. Subtle bindery or printing flaws allowed. Corners are sharp and either square or with ever-so-slight blunting, cover inks are bright and reflective, spine is tight and flat, staples are generally centered, pages may be off-white to cream. No cover soiling, tearing, or pieces missing. One minor crease allowed in this grade.
9.0 VERY FINE/NEAR MINT(VF/NM)
Outstanding with excellent eye appeal. Overall look is as if it had been read a few times and carefully handled. Limited number of bindery or printing flaws allowed. Corners may have very minor wear, cover inks are bright and moderate to highly reflective, spine is almost completely flat with a possible minor color break, staples may have slight discoloration, pages can be at worst cream but still supple. Very minor cover soiling or foxing is allowed. No tearing or pieces missing. Cover may have minimal surface wear with a possible 1/4" or smaller bend that doesn't break color.
8.5 VERY FINE PLUS(VF+)
Outstanding with excellent eye appeal. Overall look is as if it had been read a few times and carefully handled. Limited number of bindery or printing flaws allowed. Corners may have minute wear, cover inks are bright and moderate to highly reflective, spine is almost completely flat with a possible minor color break, staples may have slight discoloration, pages may be cream to light tan and supple. Very minor cover soiling allowed. A small tear is allowed, but no pieces missing. Cover may have minimal surface wear with a possible 1/4" or smaller bend and color break.
8.0 VERY FINE(VF)
This grade still has excellent eye appeal. Overall look is as if it had been read a few times and accrued minor handling wear. Limited number of bindery or printing flaws allowed. Corners may have minute wear, cover inks are still moderate to highly reflective, spine is almost completely flat with a few possible stress marks, staples may have slight discoloration, pages can be cream to very light tan. Minor cover soiling or a small tear allowed. A small piece may be missing only if it is a printing/bindery defect. Covers may have minimal surface wear with a possible small crease or two.
7.5 VERY FINE MINUS(VF-)
Still nice eye appeal. Overall look is as if it had been read a few times and carefully handled. Limited number of bindery or printing flaws allowed. Corners may have some wear, cover inks are moderate to highly reflective, spine is almost completely flat with possible minor color breaks, staples may have slight discoloration, pages are cream to light tan and still fairly supple. Some cover soiling or minor tearing. Still no pieces missing. Covers may have minor surface wear with possible minor creasing.
7.0 FINE/VERY FINE(FN/VF)
Above-average copy that shows minor wear but is flat and clean with good eye appeal. Overall look is as if read a few times and handled with moderate care. Some accumulation of bindery or printing flaws allowed. Corners may have blunting, cover inks may be less bright or have reduced reflectivity, spine may have a minor roll with a possible 1/4" split or color break, staples may have minor discoloration, and pages can be tarnish but fairly supple. Minor cover soiling and staple tears allowed. No pieces missing. Cover may have minor surface wear with minor to moderate cover creases.
6.5 FINE PLUS(FN+)
Above-average copy that shows minor wear but is fairly flat and clean with good eye appeal. Overall look is as if read a few times and handled with moderate care. Some accumulation of bindery or printing flaws allowed. Corners may have blunting, cover inks may be less bright or have reduced reflectivity, spine may have a minor roll with a possible 1/4" split and minor color breaks, staples may have minor discoloration, and pages can be tarnish but fairly supple. Minor cover soiling and small staple tears allowed. A very tiny piece may be missing. Cover may have minor surface wear with minor to moderate cover creases.
6.0 FINE(FN)
Above-average copy that shows minor wear but is fairly flat and clean with decent eye appeal. Overall look is as if read a few times and handled with moderate care. Some accumulation of bindery or printing flaws allowed. Corners may have blunting, cover inks may be less bright or have reduced reflectivity, spine may have a minor roll with a possible 1/4" split and minor color breaks, staples may have minor discoloration, and pages can be tarnish but fairly supple. Minor cover soiling and staple tears allowed. A very tiny piece can be missing. Cover may have minor surface wear with minor to moderate cover creases. Centerfold may be a little loose.
5.5 FINE MINUS(FN-)
Above-average copy that shows minor wear but is fairly flat and clean with decent eye appeal. Overall look is as if read a several times and handled with moderate care. An accumulation of bindery or printing flaws allowed. Corners typically have blunting, cover inks may be less bright or have reduced reflectivity, spine may have a minor roll with a possible 3/4" split and minor color breaks, staples may have minor discoloration, and pages can be tarnish and somewhat supple. Minor cover soiling and staple tears allowed. A very small piece may be missing. Cover may have minor surface wear with minor to moderate cover creases.
5.0 VERY GOOD/FINE(VG/FN)
Average used copy with moderate wear. Overall look is as if read many times and handled with some care. Corners may have blunting, cover may have low reflectivity, spine may have a moderate roll or up to a 1" split, staples may have discoloration, and pages can be tan but not brittle. Cover soiling and minor to moderate staple tears allowed. Up to 1/4" triangle may be missing on corner or edge. Cover may have moderate to significant surface wear with moderate cover creases. Cover and centerfold may be loose, but may not be detached.
4.5 VERY GOOD PLUS(VG+)
Average used copy with significant moderate wear. Overall look is as if read many times. Corners may be blunted and worn, cover may have low reflectivity, spine may have a moderate roll or up to a 1" split, staples may have discoloration, and pages can be tan but not brittle. Cover soiling and minor to moderate staple tears allowed. Up to 1/4" triangle may be missing on corner or edge. Cover may have moderate to significant surface wear with moderate cover creases. Cover may have a full-length subscription crease. Small piece of tape allowed. Cover and centerfold may be loose, but may not be detached.
4.0 VERY GOOD(VG)
Average used copy with significant moderate wear. Overall look is as if read many times. Corners are probably blunted and worn, cover likely has low reflectivity, spine may have a moderate roll or up to a 1" split, staples may have discoloration, and pages can be tan but not brittle. Minor cover soiling and minor to moderate staple tears allowed. Up to 5/8" piece may be missing on corner or edge. Cover may have moderate to significant surface wear with moderate cover creases. Cover and centerfold may be loose, and centerfold may be detached at one staple.
3.5 VERY GOOD MINUS(VG-)
Average used copy with significant moderate wear. Overall look is as if read many times. Corners are probably blunted and worn, cover may have low reflectivity, spine may have a moderate roll or up to a 1 1/2" split, staples may have discoloration, and pages can be tan but not brittle. Cover soiling and minor to moderate staple tears allowed. Up to 5/8" triangle may be missing on corner or edge. Cover may have moderate to significant surface wear with moderate cover creases. Cover may be loose, and centerfold may be detached.
3.0 GOOD/VERY GOOD(GD/VG)
Used copy with substantial wear. Overall look is as if read many times, but is still complete. Corners may have rounding, cover may have low or no reflectivity, spine may have a roll or up to a 2" split, staples may have discoloration or some rust, and pages can be tan but not brittle. Moderate cover soiling and moderate staple tears allowed. Up to 1/2" piece may be missing on corner or edge. Cover may have significant surface wear with book-length cover creases. Cover may be detached at one staple, centerfold may be completely detached.
2.5 GOOD PLUS(GD+)
Used copy with substantial wear. Overall look is as if read many times, but is still complete. Corners are likely rounded and worn, cover may have low or no reflectivity, spine may have a roll or up to a 2" split, staples may have discoloration or rust, and pages can be tan but not brittle. Moderate cover soiling and significant staple tears allowed. Up to 1/2" piece may be missing on corner or edge. Cover may have significant surface wear with book-length cover creases. Cover may be detached at one staple, centerfold may be completely detached.
2.0 GOOD(GD)
Used copy with substantial wear. Overall look is as if read many times, but is still complete. Corners are likely rounded and worn, cover may have low or no reflectivity, spine may have a roll or up to a 2" split, staples may have discoloration or rust, and pages can be tan or even brown but not brittle. Moderate cover soiling and moderate staple tears allowed. Up to 5/8" piece may be missing on corner, edge, or interior page. Cover may have significant surface wear with book-length cover creases. Cover and centerfold may be detached.
1.8 GOOD MINUS(GD-)
Overall look is very rough, but is still complete. Corners may be very worn, cover may have low or no reflectivity, spine may have a roll or up to a 3" split, staples may have discoloration or rust, and pages can be tan or brown but not brittle. Heavy cover soiling and staple tears allowed. Up to 3/4" triangle may be missing on corner, edge, or interior page. Cover may have significant surface wear with book-length cover creases. Cover and centerfold may be loose or detached.
1.5 FAIR/GOOD(FR/GD)
Used copy with heavy wear. Overall look is as if read many times with little care, but is still complete. Corners likely very worn, cover may have no reflectivity, spine may have a roll or up to 2/3rds split, staples may have discoloration or rust, pages can be tan or brown, and edges may show some brittleness. Cover soiling and staple tears are common. Small pieces of front or back cover or interior pages may be missing, but nothing affecting the stories. Cover may have considerable surface wear with book-length cover creases, significant tears and folds. Cover and centerfold may be loose or detached.
1.0 FAIR(FR)
Very heavy wear. Often the only thing separating a FR 1.0 comic from PR 0.5 is the fact that a cover in some form is present. The cover may be detached or have chunks missing from the front and/or back, but it is there. The spine may be completely split. Cover soiling and staple tears are common. May have many tears and folds. Centerfold may be loose or detached.
0.5 POOR(PR)
Heavily used copy, may be incomplete. Overall look is not good, but hey, at least the thing's still around. Any cover-less book automatically gets assigned this grade. At Statistical Anomalies we generally only put cover-less copies in this category.