It’s one more unfortunate day for the comic book community. Brian Augustyn, finest understood in the comics neighborhood for his fantastic occupation as an editor for DC Comics as well as a number of other publishers, died after suffering a large stroke. His colleague, as well as one of his closest friends, mark Waid, provided the news to his fans as well as fellow creators. If you’ve checked out DC Comics, you’ve checked out something that Brian has either edited or written. He’s a lot of popular for Gotham by Gaslight, in which he dealt with artist Mike Mignola. however that’s just a little decrease in his general career.

As a DC Comics Editor, Brian Augustyn introduced mark Waid’s Comic composing Career

Brian’s a lot of popular work. (DC Comics)

In 1991, mark Waid was an partner editor at DC Comics, however Brian Augustyn saw that his talents were much better fit as a writer. as well as ever considering that then, the two have been finest friends. That connection is obvious in Waid’s letter to good friends as well as fans:

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“This one hurt unimaginably: Brian Augustyn, rest in peace.

“The Augustyn household has asked me to let Brian’s good friends as well as fans understand that Brian passed away after suffering a sudden, serious stroke over the weekend. I have spent a great deal of time these last few hours composing about Brian, as well as I’ll share those thoughts soon, however for now I just wished to let everybody know. Comics has lost a extremely kind, extremely skilled guy who has been my huge sibling as well as one of my extremely finest good friends for almost 35 years.”

Throughout his occupation as a DC Comics editor, or as a writer or editor elsewhere, he’s dealt with a few of the very best creators in the business. In his phone call for condolences cards, Waid names just a few of them:

“If you’ve ever been a friend, colleague, or fan of Brian’s–or, frankly, a fan of the work done by Humberto Ramos, Mike Wieringo, Mike Parobeck, Oscar Jimenez, Howard Porter, Travis Charest, or any type of of the many, lots of other creators who owe their careers to Brian, myself included–I’m asking you to send a card or a note to reveal your condolences as well as tell them what he indicated to you.”

A look at Brian Augustyn’s contributions to Comics as well as graphic Novels

Brian’s very first DC Comics work. (DC Comics)

There are lots of best-of books we might listing here, however instead, let’s look at the beginning of his occupation as well as the last books he left us with. The very first comic Brian Augustyn got an editor credit score for wasn’t DC Comics. It was for the now-defunct publisher now Comics. The superhero he was accountable for? Valor Thunderstar as well as His Fireflies! You understand Thunderstar, right? No?

He lastly made his DC Comics debut as a writer for the newspaper-style comic everyday world #1. Oddly enough, mark Waid was the editor of that book! complying with this, he started editing on pulse-pounding books like Who’s who in the DC world as well as Who’s who in the legion of Super-Heroes. Thrilling. The very first huge superhero he edited was the dark Hawkman title Hawkworld. However, he would go on to either compose or The Flash from 1989 to 2000! He’s the person a lot of accountable for making Wally West the very best Flash. however let it not be stated he was biased towards DC. He did compose a marvel title: Imperial Guard #1-3, 1997.

Brian just recently assisted introduce Dragonlance: The legend of Huma for Devil’s Due Comics. He likewise had a hand in premiering a new comic imprint, absolute Comics, with titles like Darchon as well as Amped. however his a lot of prominent recent comic was Archie 1941, which he co-wrote with mark Waid.

From his work as an editor at DC Comics to his contribution to indie comics, Bryan Augustyn was a guiding force in comics, commonly working behind the scenes. It’s a heavier loss to the comics neighborhood than a lot of visitors will ever realize. however possibilities are, he edited a comic you loved.

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When it pertains to collecting and reading comics, taking care of them is fairly easy. A lot of care taking that goes into the hobby comes down to storing comics safely. then again, accidents do happen. It is unavoidable sometimes, due to human error, to never run into any maintenance issues. For the most part, taking care of any issues with a comic book are fairly straightforward. Collectors know too well that one of the most common problems is a comic book spine roll.

We will take a look at the ways in which comic book collectors can avoid this issue through care and storage, then take a look at why this issue occurs. To equip you with the ability to fix the problem, we will then go through the process of taking care of the spine roll, and lastly will make sure to wrap up any ideas or tricks to keeping this problem out of your mind as much as possible.

Caring for Comic Books

In a lot of cases, comic book damage can be avoided. Of course, it is not worth beating one’s self up about little spills or tears: they happen. Nevertheless, knowing the secret behind proper care of comic books is crucial for beginning collector’s. Likewise, a refresher for seasoned comic fans is never a bad thing either.

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Comic book Handling
When it pertains to managing and reading a comic book, a few easy options can help avoid major issues. The first and a lot of easy to accomplish is making sure you only read or manage a comic book with clean hands. simply taking 30 seconds to wash your hands before reading can save you the anxiety of a stain or smudge. Not only is food and drink residue present on the hands without our knowledge sometimes, but it can also slip the mind after a meal. wait to read, and wash your hands first.

Keep Food and drink away from Comic Books
While on the topic of food and drink, avoiding either to be present near comic books at any time is a good routine to get into. It only takes 30 days to make a routine permanent, so even if snacking or drinking some coffee while you read is a routine now, it won’t be in a month. Making an effort to kick this routine eliminates two major accidents waiting to happen.

Keeping Comic book page Angle at 180 Degrees or Less
The motion pictures and TV shows like to display kids or adults reading comics with the book folded over for convenience. bending the comic from cover to cover for one-handed reading is horrible for comic book care. nobody in any situation must be reading a comic book like that. two hands, at no a lot more than a 180 degree angle, is important to the longevity of the book. This gets into certain care for the spine roll. When bending the book from cover to cover, the spine roll begins to loosen and warp. In lots of cases, this can cause damage that is tough or impossible to reverse. Let’s take a look at a lot more spine roll worries when it pertains to comic book care.

Avoid causing Creasing
A lot of comic fans who maybe take their books on the go will use items to bind them into a lot more compact shapes. If this occurs, it could seriously damage the spine roll. A common item that gets used is a rubber band. The rubber band rolls the comic together into a cylinder, making it pocket friendly, and much easier to store in certain areas. While, yes, it does make it much easier to carry than normal, it can cause severe damage to a comic’s spine.

It’s clear to see from the lots of issues above how spine roll damage can occur, and just how easily it can happen. Overall, it is crucial to understand the spine roll and its configuration to know how to care for it.

Understanding Spine Roll in a Comic Book

Spine roll is an ever present problem for comic collectors. When a comic book is stored improperly, the cover begins to fall out of line. When the cover is visibly uneven to the back cover of a comic, that is considered a spine roll. The damage can be slight; only 1/4 of an inch can qualify as what a lot of would consider to be a spine roll.

When Does This occur a lot of Often
Spine roll a lot of typically occurs from pressure. Of course, binding a comic book with a rubber band or other item is damaging. lots of think that storing comics for a step or to keep them out of the way indicates stacking them into a box. In fact, this is one of the most likely ways to cause spine rolling. When boxing comics together, a stack of them can start to really add weight to the lower books in the pile. If the pile is not completely even and balanced, spine rolling can start to happen. even if you are careful, it can be hard to avoid.

A spine roll also occurs when reading. If the front cover or back cover are pulled too much during reading, warping can start to occur. If the binding is pulled too far in one direction, the covers can start to bend and fold into themselves, causing a little bump in the surface. That bump, even when corrected, can stay uneven. To avoid this, make sure to only read at 180 degree angles or less, as provided and in-depth above.

How to fix Spine Roll

The a lot of popular method for taking care of a spine roll is to press the comic with a tool indicated for that very action. By doing so, the spine is typically able to return to its original crease, avoiding damage or value depreciation. While some collectors look down on pressing comics, the method is typically the best way to battle a spine roll or other forms of damage to a comic.

Preparing to press the problem Away
Placing the comic book between two pieces of thick paper supplies the comic with protection from the press. By doing so, you are making sure that the comic is not coming into contact directly with the press. Some presses are heated, which could cause damage to the comic. Make sure the pieces of thick paper, typically a cardboard, are white. This allows the comic to come in contact with the paper and not run the risk of colors bleeding. Likewise, ink must not run onto the paper.

image Credit: Kaptain Myke

Pressing the Comic for Spine Roll
Most comics are under 30 pages and typically made with a thin paper. because of this, excessive pressing could cause real harm to the comic. even if the spine roll is severe, the pressure of the press need to not be too hard. If pressed roughly, the comic may be worse than when you started. By applying a press to the comic, the spine roll is being returned to its natural position.

The press can hold down on the comic for a few minutes before causing any cosmetic changes to the book. The spine, after four to five minutes under a press, and protected with cardboard, must return to its natural state.

Does pressing a Comic book with Spine Roll Work?

For some comics, spine rolls are much much easier to fix with a press. higher quality paper is much a lot more likely to respond positively to the process. Thin, more affordable comics are a lot more likely to experience additionally damage. As amazing as some older comics are, the material with which they were made is not always easy to work with. especially if the covers have worn extremely over the years, a press could easily cause damage to older, worse for wear comics.

Likewise, a comic that is newer and published relatively recently is a lot more likely to be able to manage the process. If a comic looks to be in good shape, even if it is from the 70s or 80s, it could likely hold up the process of taking care of the spine roll. As long as the pressure is not excessive, it will be fine with cautious care.

DIY Spine Roll care or professional help with Comic Books

There are professional card shops and comic stores that will have a high quality press in house. They may be able to do the job better than a novice who does not feel confident in their work. consider going to a professional if the job seems tough. It is also worth going to a pro if you just do not feel like you can do a good job. even basic spine rolls require caution and care. If it feels like a job you cannot handle, a pro might be the way to go.

Solve Spine Roll issues with Comic books Easily

A comic book spine roll is not the end of the world. They are not basic fixes in some cases, but they can be done if time and attention is given to them. If a comic book is looking rough at its spine, performing this fix could get it looking good as new! and if you want to keep your comics looking fresh, check out our post on how to get fingerprints off comic books!