When it comes to comics, most people in the Melbourne/Palm Bay area often think of Famous Faces & Funnies. They have a ton of comics and comic-related paraphernalia for sale. However, there is another comic place that specializes in higher-end or rarer comics: 9.9 Comics. As a former comic collector, I like this as certain comics are definitely worth having especially when it comes to the overall worth of one's collection.
For starters, 9.9 Comics is located in the same shopping plaza as Mingee's Korean Kitchen and Vinyl Request Records, the one located at the northwest quadrant of the Sarno Rd. and Apollo Blvd. intersection. It is a rather small store compared to others in the plaza, but what they do have for what they sell amazes me: CGC comics.
In comics, the Comic Guaranty Company (CGC) is known for being the first independent and impartial third-party grading service. This means they grade comics on numerous factors such as rarity for example. They often utilize colors to help differentiate comics as well as number ratings. Color examples include blue meaning common (nothing outside of the norm) and yellow meaning signature series (signature of a very important person associated with said comic on it as observed by CGC associate). As for the number ratings, it is as it sounds. The higher the number, the better.
9.9 Comics tries to have comics that cater with the higher ratings preferably those in mint condition (which is 9.9 according to CGC). They do have toys, collectables, and events too, but comics of a higher caliber seems to be their centralized bread and butter. With that in mind, expect to pay a tad bit more over the common comic too. read more