I had little choice but to order a copy of the San Diego Comic Con exclusive "Silver Screen Edition" reprint of Booster Gold Volume 1 #1 from eBay, making it the most I've ever paid for a single comic book.

But somehow no one told me it was polybagged.

I had to order another just to open one of them up (just like Superman #75 all those years ago). So now I've paid the most I've ever paid for two single comic books! And they're both reprints! Living in the future is expensive.

As you can see from the first-page indicia above, these shouldn't be called "Silver Screen Edition Booster Gold #1" because they are officially Booster Gold 1 (SDCC 2023 Facsimile Edition). "Facsimile Edition" is how DC has been labeling all of their recent single-issue reprints of classic comics. Could there be a non-foil Booster Gold #1 Facsimile Edition coming to comic shop near you in the near future?

To its credit, other than the foil wraparound cover, this Facsimile Edition is a very faithful reproduction of the original material, including commercial ads (for the likes of M.A.S.K. and Voltron) and house ads (for 'Mazing Man and the 1986 DC Wall Calendar), with only some small deviations.

• The book is 3 millimeters taller and 2 millimeters wider than the original, identical to modern DC Comics proportions.
• The price and bar code box have been removed from the original cover (reproduced on traditional cover stock) underneath the outer foil.
• The interior paper is much better quality than the original newsprint.
• The story pages use the remastered and recolored art used to produce 2019's The Big Fall.
• Unlike The Big Fall, which removed all ads and condensed the page count, all pages here are laid out on the left and right as originally presented except for the "continued on 2nd/3rd page following" editorial boxes, which have been removed from the bottom of story pages 4, 8, 16, and 20.
• Many, if not all, the full-page ads have been blown up to cover the entire page, minimizing and sometimes removing their original borders. (In the original printing, story pages and ads had the same border spacing on each page.)

Speaking of the ads, I'm not sure I enjoyed being reminded that we're exactly half way in between Halley's Comet visits. (And some friendly time-traveler might want to go back and warn the Red Cross about making that endorsement deal.)

Expense aside, I'm otherwise very happy to have this issue in my hands. It's gorgeous. I just wish I could touch it without getting fingerprints on the foil.

Considering that my very first, newsstand-purchased floppy Booster Gold #1 has long been what might politely be called a "reader's copy," I'd love for DC to release yet another "facsimile edition," preferably without the foil and priced at a more reasonable $5 ("reasonable" being a very relative term). If they do, I promise to buy another one. Two, if they come polybagged.

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