The Great long over-due Albedo Anthropormorphic (#2) census

[Steve Hubbell]

A couple more responses to the e-mail... adds another five to the count (Becky Chan's was already counted). Currently, there are two copies up on e-bay for sale, which have not been included in this count officially.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I got mine...I think at Planet ComicCon in Overland Park, Kansas and paid
48.00 this was in 1999. Nice piece of Trivia, the Albedo 2 Image that is
currently part of the new Dojo layout was scanned from my copy.

Becky Chan

(also replied as Lady Shadow Wing)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hello there,

I don't have Albedo 2, but I do have Albedo 3 & 4. So
what's the comparison on rarity of these, if you don't
mind? I figure it was a good investent though, seeing
that I found them in a $.50 box several years ago
(score!).

Thanks,
Rosemary

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hi Steve,

I actually have 4 copies of Albedo NR 2. I can't recall exactly what I paid for each of them. The first copy I bought at cover price for it when it was first released in Seattle. The three extra copies I bought over the years were bought at auction (one in 1990 for $100, one in 1996 for $180, and one in 2003 for $250.

All the best,

Rick Bauer

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Steve:

I got mine about 5 years ago directly from Steve Gallacci (Washington state) who still had a bunch from the original print run. It was weird - I was looking for one, but didn't want to pay the full load and someone I knew said a friend of a friend knew Gallacci's wife and had her email address, so I took a shot.

I work in the book publishing industry and 5% - 10% overs/unders are considered within tolerance for print runs on an average press run, but for a run as small as 2000 it's most likely that the print run was exact (with the exception of beginning and end of run scrap). So, Gallacci's own stash was most likely skimmed off the original 2000 print run in which case the actual sales/distribution were less than that.

I can't really recall what I paid for mine, but it was less than what they were selling for on ebay and what the dojo said was the "going rate" so I considered it a good buy. For any true Usagi fan, it's a must have anyway so the price was almost irrelevant.

Kevin

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

[ZoneFighter]

I just checked my collection & I don't seem to have it anymore, at least it isn't with my Critters and other Usagi comics. I might have my Albedo comics filed someplace else though...

I would have bought it when it came out (at 35% off cover price, I worked at a comic store at the time.) I probably sold it after the first hardcover collection came out.

[yee28]

I have been a long time Usagi Fan and have purchased all the comics for cover price since Albedo #4. About 2 years ago my "Albedo #2 Grail Quest" ended when I bought my Albedo #2 off ebay for $400.00 buy it now I won the book from Washington and it is also signed by Steve Galacci.

It was the best present that i bought myself. I had the book cgc graded and it came back a 9.4

Good Luck to those who are still on the Quest.

[shaxper]

So we can confirm nearly 40 copies after polling a community that presumably includes most of the biggest Usagi fans with internet access. I also know that I've witnessed at least four ebay auctions for Albedo #2 that are not accounted for in this thread (only one person mentions purchasing a copy off ebay in the past year).

Of the 1,960 copies still unaccounted for, I wonder how many:

-Were destroyed/thrown out/lost to the ages
-Are still sitting in a private or resale collection, unrecognized
-Are owned by fans that either aren't aware of the Dojo or simply missed this thread
-Are owned by private collectors or resellers that aren't very interested in Usagi, but are keeping their copy(ies) as a collectible investment.