Keyframe Co LLC · Grading Guide

Grade it like you mean it.

Condition is the whole game in comics, and vague grades are how buyers get burned. This is how we talk about condition at Keyframe Co: specific defects, named out loud, with the actual book on camera. If a listing says 9.8, it's 9.8. If it isn't, you'll know exactly why.

What the numbers mean

The grades, in plain English.

These are raw-book grades the way collectors actually use them — the same language CGC speaks, minus the slab. Every tier below gets a real CGC-slabbed photo example so you can see exactly what each grade looks like.

9.8

Near Mint / Mint

The sharpest a modern book gets. Flat, clean, tight spine, corners that could cut paper. Under a hard light you might find one nearly invisible flaw — a single tiny tick, a faint press-able bend — but nothing you'd notice holding it normally. This is the grade most slabbed books live at.

9.6

Near Mint+

Still a gorgeous book. One or two small, honest flaws: a faint spine tick or two, a slightly blunted corner, a barely-there bindery dimple. Nothing that pulls your eye when the book is in your hands. Most collectors can't tell a 9.6 from a 9.8 without a loupe.

9.4

Near Mint

A very nice copy with a few visible-but-minor defects. A couple of spine ticks, light corner wear, maybe a faint non-color-breaking bend from handling. Looks great on the shelf and in the bag. The workhorse grade for readers who still care about condition.

9.0

Very Fine / Near Mint

Clearly handled but still a strong copy. Spine stress along most of the length, blunted corners, maybe a light crease that doesn't break color. A totally presentable book — just not one you'd send to CGC expecting a 9.8.

8.0

Very Fine

A reader's copy with real wear: heavier spine stress, color-breaking ticks or a small crease, rounded corners, maybe a light stain or a subscription fold. Structurally sound, reads fine, priced like it.

Below 8.0

Fine and down

Well-loved books. Creases that break color, bigger stains, spine roll, maybe a loose staple or two. We'll list these when the book is worth owning at the price — and we'll show you every flaw so there are no surprises.

Below 8.0 grade example — CGC slabbed comic

Know the language

Defect glossary.

The exact words you'll see in our listings and hear on stream. Tap any term for the no-BS version.

Spine ticks

Tiny white or light-colored nicks along the spine where the cover's ink has chipped off. Almost every modern book has a couple from printing and handling. A tick is small and shallow; when they stack up or deepen, they become spine stress.

Spine stress

Lines or light creasing running along the spine from the book being opened and read. A little stress is normal on any read copy. Heavy stress — where the spine looks tired along most of its length — drops the grade fast.

Corner wear / blunting

Corners that have been dinged, rounded, or flattened instead of coming to a sharp point. Blunting is the mild version — the corner's still there, just softened. Real corner wear means the tip is visibly crushed or creased.

Color-breaking crease

A crease deep enough to crack the cover ink, leaving a white or light line. This is the one that matters: a color break won't press out and it photographs clearly, so we always show it. A bend that doesn't break color is a much smaller deal.

Non-color-breaking bend

A bend or wave in the cover where the ink stayed intact — no white line. Often pressable. We'll call these out, but they bother graders far less than a color break in the same spot.

Subscription fold

The vertical crease down the middle of a book that was mailed folded in half to a subscriber. Common on older direct-mail copies. It's a real defect and it doesn't press out cleanly — we price around it.

Stain

Any discoloration: moisture spots, finger oils, price-sticker residue, foxing on older books. We'll say where it is and how noticeable. A stain on the back cover bothers most buyers less than one on the front — and we'll tell you which it is.

Spine roll

When the spine curves or rolls so the book doesn't sit flat — usually from being read hard or stored badly. Minor roll is cosmetic; a heavy roll means the book's been through it and we grade accordingly.

Press candidate

A book with defects a professional press could improve: non-color-breaking bends, light spine stress, minor waves. Pressing can't fix color breaks, creases that cracked the ink, stains, or missing pieces — if a book is a press candidate, we'll say so, and we'll also say what pressing won't fix.

Restaple

Staples that have been replaced or re-seated — sometimes from the factory, sometimes by a previous owner. We'll always disclose it. A clean factory restaple is a footnote; a sloppy one is a defect.

The Keyframe Co standard

How we grade.

Every book gets a real condition walkthrough before it lists — front, back, spine, corners, under a hard light. On Whatnot, you hear it live: every tick, every bend, every reason a book is or isn't the grade. On the site, the listing says it in words: the gallery shows the official cover art for the variant, and the description names every defect we found on the copy in hand. Never a copy-pasted grade.

We'd rather under-grade a book than over-grade it. A buyer who gets a book nicer than expected comes back. A buyer who gets a book worse than described doesn't — and tells everyone why.

Grade protection

A grade means nothing if the mailer kills it.

Every order ships bagged and boarded, braced inside the mailer so nothing shifts, and taped on the outside only — never on the inside flap, so the mailer stays reusable. Packing is treated as part of the grade: a 9.8 that arrives bent is a packing failure, full stop.

Still have questions? The FAQ covers shipping, returns, and the rest — or ask us directly.