AKA Rick

Personally, I'd say it's "case by case" factoring in all elements. BUT, generally, I'd say "1st Appearance" trumps all other factors in most cases. The "Death" is generally not permanent, and short of the "Death of Green Goblin / Gwen Stacy" and "Death of Phoenix" there's really not a lot of solid values in characters who are killed off only to later get resurrected, including from a comic book valuation standpoint "The Death of Superman", which was over printed and the most recent "Death of Captain America", "Death of the Human Torch", and "Death of Wolverine" releases. The storyline shake-up, is more about the story, but even then you'll still not see huge price surges on good arcs like Kraven's Last Hunt, Hush, Identity Crisis, etc. for the most part, in part because I think good stories with then impactful changes (like Spider-Man revealing his identity during Civil War) are subsequently unwoven and redone by new creative teams. So, in that way a "1st Appearance" can never really change ('tho I did read somewhere that there was a character that appeared in an old 1960's Amazing Spider-Man issue that they're now using as a "by the way, that was this person here that's being debuted" in that cameo type role. As far as high profile artists doing books and covers. If judging the cover, it has to be short printed, like the Campbell ones of recent. They don't have to be great renderings nor popular characters per se. If judging the interiors, it has to be good storytelling. Look at Jim Lee's Batman "Hush" values vs his work shortly thereafter on "Superman", so it's not just about the name of an artist. I'd not hold too much value on cover art by artists 'tho, as they're becoming essentially pin-ups (having nearly nothing to do with the interior story as a tied theme). And, once one cover comes out, another one is on the way after that, maybe better, maybe more scarce. So, the volatility of buying based on cover art is high if you're buying the comic book, but if you're buying original art, it's probably the smartest of buys.

There's a new J. SCOTT CAMPBELL book called TIME CAPSULE being released now on pre-order that is about $35 via Amazon and has a retail price of $50

Is there any more popular cover artist than J. Scott Campbell today? I think he's surpassed Adam Hughes as the king of covers. I think, where once his work is announced, pre-orders go up and in-store copies fly off the racks, while back-issues maintain good saying power. I'd love to see him do a solid arc on a series, much like how Batman's "Hush" reinvigorated Jim Lee's career (not that J. Scott needs any help with his relevance today), it would be great to see J. Scott leave a legacy beyond covers and the epic initial "Danger Girl" 7 issue series. I know years ago there was talk about a Spider-Man series I think he was going to do with Jeph Loeb. It would be really great to see him back inside the books.

I saw this link: http://www.comicbookresources.com/article/check-out-every-dark-knight-iii-the-master-race-cover-to-date

I do agree, he has a hot hand but I'm not sure if that heat is sustainable, so if you're looking for profit, sell now, if you're a fan, I'd keep the art as his originals are rather elusive.

Corning the market and owning the lion's share if not having exclusivity to everything is one way to control the value/pricing I guess...

...on a side but related to this note... in my opinion to in part why the DK3 cover(s) may not surge in value... The problem with the trends of the last half decade or so of these "Variant" covers once reserved for special occasions of landmark issues is it's so commonplace, utilized by Zenescope, Dynamite, IDW, etc. where you open up any monthly book and there's not only 2-5 variant covers, then there's variations on the variants with B&W sketch editions, and then now the "Blank Covers" So, from a nostalgia/nostalgic standpoint, even if a comic book becomes an epic story that captivates the hearts of fans, there's no longer a single iconic cover image that resonates emotionally with fans like how covers in the past have like Amazing Spider-Man #50, Batman #251, Green Lantern/Green Arrow #76, etc. With DK3, which cover will prevail as the one that people remember most to the series and story more so than any scarcity or value? It's too bad the publishers continue cranking out variants focusing on getting the retailers to buy more to get the rights to the limited run (1:10; 1:25; 1:100 etc.) covers and fans to buy multiple copies of the same book, when the publishers should be focused on simply quality storytelling with good writing and artwork as well as solid continuity to get fans to buy month after month instead of rebooting #1 issues over and over.

I think the NYCC program cover definitely has less prestige than if the same image were used for a DK3 comic book cover, but it is artwork and one of a kind, so it may not impact the pricing or value as much. What ends up happening is the program cover becomes less recognizable since it's a limited regional release, so won't be world renown as a published comic book cover would be. I remember when Jim Lee did a Batman Hush supplemental story published in Wizard Magazine, not in the Batman title and those pages seemed to sell okay, but weren't as highly recognized as the Batman pages.

Yeah... 1) I think the legacy of the original DK1 : Dark Knight Returns (1986) series is so strong, any follow-up pales in comparison and lackluster efforts sort of tarnish the original as an ill attempt to exploit and highlights just how bad the sequels are, as the case with DK2 : Dark Knight Strikes Again (2001-02), so with Frank Miller's diminished involvement (writing not illustrating) in DK3 : Dark Knight - The Master Race (2015), the odds are it's probably going to be a lackluster release. So, I'd be from the school of being better safe than sorry if buying any DK3 art as an investment believing that it's priced today on tomorrow's potential and that potential won't be realized, so it's better to abstain or wait than buy during potential market highs. 2) Yes, when buying any collectible whether as an investor or as a collector (and we all have limited funds looking for the best bang for our buck buying power), it's gambling through the odds making of making educated decisions somewhat influenced by historical precedent and trends. 3) You're right in that "buy what you like" and don't chase the value. If you buy what you like and pay "what it's worth to you" then you're really never or not overpaying to the value of the piece in your eyes and what it takes to acquire it. So, circling back to purchasing DK3 artwork, if you're buying a piece because you love the comic, character, artist and rendering, then go for it at any price within your comfort zone and you can't go wrong if you're happy.

I think an art rep's job is to help manage an artist and maximize profitability. That doesn't always mean hiking up prices and gauging the marketplace. There's a balance of pricing for sale and sold. Just because there's a sticker asking price doesn't mean it's worth that much, and as a testament to that, the simple fact that a piece is still available for purchase usually is telling that the price might be fair, but also might be overpriced. The art rep does not make money if the art does not sell, in fact loses money through efforts without revenue. So, the art rep needs to price artwork to move. Spencer is actually a good example of an art rep who does that with his annual sales where certain artists offer discounts towards the end of the year to move merchandise (art). There's been many artists who overprice their own artwork where a rep may discuss a plan to actually sell art and be realistic with expectations by reducing pricing out of the gate. Many artists, and as collectors most have encountered this, are not great business people. They can't remember if you paid them or not. They can't remember to mail your pieces paid for and often don't know how to prioritize which causes delays and buyer frustration. Art reps coordinate smooth transactions, so that's where they earn their commission. I think some art reps ask the artist what they want for their pieces, then they mark up the prices a tad to factor in their commissions. I've seen artists who have reps sell direct to buyers, circumventing that reps efforts and commissions, all while also offering different (usually discounted) pricing. So, the answer to the question if an art rep has any say in the pricing, I'd say "Yes" they at minimum have influence and at other times have total control. As for the question about the prices and success of a book. I think the value won't be handcuffed to a print run (look at all of those "Before Watchmen" books over produced, sold to retailers now in dollar bins, as with all of the 90's Image publications and X-Men titles) but closer to aftermarket value (as back issue collectibles) and if the story itself resonates and gets the TPB treatment and becomes somewhat seen as a "classic" like the original Watchmen, Batman Hush, Identity Crisis, Civil War, Kraven's Last Hunt, Kree/Skrull War, etc. I don't think being associated with DK3 is enough to warrant 2-3x higher prices to the artist's norm. Right now I see more downside than upside as a buyer of that art in terms of what the art costs and what that same money can buy otherwise in art.

From what I was told and was also recommended by a professional artist who uses it for not only producing prints, but also for scanning artwork to submit to publishers this is a great combo SCANNER and PRINTER (and it's a copier and fax too!) that's priced under $200 ($189 @ Amazon) with a large surface bed area that can accommodate original art sizes of 11" x 17" (so no need to stitch images). Epson WorkForce WF-7610 Wireless Color All-in-One Inkjet Printer with Scanner and Copier Bring wide-format printing and increased productivity to your small office with the WorkForce WF-7610. Powered by Epson's new PrecisionCore printing technology, the WF-7610 delivers Performance Beyond Laser. Get fast, print-shop-quality borderless prints up to 13 x 19-inches and laser-sharp black and color text. Plus, save on ink; get up to 40 percent lower printing cost vs. color laser. This wireless printer easily prints from tablets and smartphones. Additional features include wide-format scanning up to 11 x 17-inches and auto 2-sided print/copy/scan/fax with a 35-page, 2-sided Automatic Document Feeder. A 4.3-inches color touchscreen and 250-sheet paper capacity plus rear tray offer enhanced productivity. Wide-format 4-in-1 with Wi-Fi & Ethernet: Print/Copy/Scan/Fax. Powered by PrecisionCore — Performance Beyond Laser. Save on ink — up to 40% lower print cost vs. color laser. Print borderless up to 13 x 19-inches; scan up to 11 x 17-inches Fast printing — 18 ISO ppm (blk), 10 ISO ppm (clr). 250-sheet capacity; auto 2-sided printing.

Overall the artwork aside from being part of "DK3" looks nice, but I'd be a little wary of the DK3 title and legacy of the original DK series adding any premium to the value of the artwork outside of what the artwork value is on it's own stand alone merits. Remember all of the "Before Watchmen" hype and the artwork pricing only to result in a lackluster published release. I do think the Scott Williams rendering is among the best I've seen so far where a few of the other artists seemed to have fallen asleep at the wheel a bit or tried to make it with too much consideration of Frank Miller met with failure in execution. The detailing and energy of the Williams piece makes me want to read the book, which is what a cover is supposed to inspire.

Out of curiosity, did you just pick this up recently? Or did you acquire it around the time of the release? It would be odd for a gorgeous piece to be available for purchase for so long, especially, regardless of the 1st App aspect, it's a beautiful homage cover that stands on it's own merits.

Whomever comes up with the highest quality temporary tattoo solution to address the "fashion" of having ink and being able to switch back and forth will make mega bucks... The idea of permanent and that commitment I know is a badge of honor for many and anything short of that may be deemed "fake", so I'm not sure how that would be received and supported.

I wonder similarly, maybe post a poll in 10 years of the question: "Does anyone have any comic related tattoos they've had done in the past which they now regret today?" Not to knock tattoos, but the impulsive nature of securing permanent images knowing for various reasons, the biggest one probably isn't necessarily "I've grown out of / disinterested in" but more, "My body has limited inventory space to ink, so I've found something better I'd rather have that what's currently occupying that space" - - sort of like how people change framed pictures on their walls.

I bought an EoSV #2 land variant from a Mexican seller who told me it was the English version in NM+ condition. received it. 1. Spanish. 2. Book has many many spine ticks and color breaking creases 3. contacted seller to refund but return shipping was going to cost me $60. said screw it. he refunded 80% of what i paid. Then I got an email stating that he "accidentally" sent the wrong one and that he has a NM+ copy with him..... right.... Now i'm stuck with this book I don't want. Never buying from anywhere outside of Canada/US again. Good luck! The Mexican Edge of Spider-Verse #2 was a subsequent printing, not released simultaneous to the US release, and I speculate an effort to add (and confuse) to the marketplace of a sizzling hot book. I dealt with a Spanish / Mexican seller of this title, who was kind enough to deliver it via the US, crossing the boarder in Texas to mail it via USPS for safety/efficiency (speed)/cost, since the Mexico Post isn't reliable with any ability to trace a parcel. The book in the scan looked a bit jacked up and the packaging job was sub-par, incurring maybe a few more bends, but arrived nonetheless. I've not seen a lot of the Mexican Variant in great condition, not sure if that's the nature of the printing process (spines are always with dings and dents) or distribution or if the eBay sellers simply don't know how to handle comic books. I paid $50 for it months ago because I liked the cover artwork, and am not sure what the print run was/is nor if it's worth more/less now. I think if the seller has the US book in NM, the deal should be, to issue you a full refund incl Shipping since it was his error. Issue you additional payment to return the book back to him, then you're "whole" and as is he (sans shipping fees he has to pay for his own mistake). OR, he simply in good faith send you the book you paid for, along with a payment to return the book he sent in error. In no legit transaction where the seller is at fault should you be penalized and accept a partial (80%) refund for someone else's error, nor pay for return shipping out of your pocket either.

Personally, I think that the Greg Land ('tho his artwork has many naysayers) Variant is the rare one and ultimately the one most collectors will chase, regardless of the other variants made subsequent to the initial release (manufactured collectibles in the aftermath of it's popularity). I don't think the values will see their heights again for a short while or maybe even ever, as I think it was trading/selling for as much as the $600-800 range, which for a book less than a year old is/was a bit inflated ('tho those are actualized sales figures not the proverbial dealer price tags of merchandise that sits and goes unsold). I think the book is probably worth about $300 right now roughly, and I can see it holding around the $200-300 range and maybe popping back up to $500, then if anything remarkable happens with the character (license for other media such as TV, animation, Film), I could see it maybe go back up a little more, but it seems the print run isn't so scarce where the book is hard to find where I think the book is simply being horded not held (where Walking Dead #1 is being held and truly more scarce, as is Batman Adventurs #12)... I could be wrong 'tho. The estimated print run was about 55,000 of the standard version and there was a 1:25 ratio for the Greg Land variant, which puts that at around a print run between 2,000 and 2,500 I'm estimating. I'm not sure of, in the world of comic books, modern comics, if that's considered really low or not.

The best way to really determine the heat of the book and value is the frequency of it exchanging hands in sales, for example looking at completed (sold) auctions on eBay. Once you start seeing a bunch of listing at "$ or best offer" (pie in the sky sales attempt prices) and no sales the marketplace will officially will have cooled down and you can look at the sales precedent for the high/low benchmarks for average valuation. The problem with this book and how it's criticized it that it was a book marketed for children, not mainstream, but in all honesty that's what makes it more valuable since it was never speculated upon or horded by the masses and if you look at the estimated print run, I'd say a large % of the books have not survived through the hands of children and are in landfill. Also, as collectors in a modern age, it's always hard to give proper respect to things that are less vintage at times. It's the same way some people love the music from the era they grew up in and are critical about the new pop songs coming out today.

It was donated to the CBLDF in 2014 and they auctioned the pieces off separately, and oddly, the inks over blueline sold for higher than the original pure art pencils. I think the inked version was over $300 and the pencils were $250 (and just sold on Heritage for $350), so the pair was split up and maybe the owner of the inked version just won the pencils and is reuniting the pieces together.

I don't think the color variances are going to command different values, not remarkable enough of a difference and it's more sourced to the printing press used than a purposeful variant or an accidental error. This reminds me of when "Dazzler #1" came out and there were the "blue" vs the "purple" covers, and I don't think anything came about from that in terms of higher demand, value or interest.

1st Appearance of Misty Knight (Marvel Premiere #20 - 21) is supposedly heading up according to an article on Bleeding Cool, and there's an unnamed prototype (?) character which resembles if not is her in Marvel Team Up #1 that pre-dates her 1st app by name. It's all liked to the Luke Cage TV show casting. It's odd in a way how 1st appearances of characters in TV shows which will eventually be cancelled (even classics like MASH, Seinfeld, Cosby Show, etc. eventually get cancelled and fade into the sunset) shoot up. I wonder if the value growth is sustainable or temporary in most of the titles where it's either a villain or supporting character whose 1st appearance skyrockets just due to news of appearing on TV or Film.

Right now for fans of NAGAN who are also looking for that elusive page featuring actual ZOMBIES and the "All Out War" storyline, there's a piece for sale, the original pencils. It's on auction, ending this weekend on Saturday 08/29 via Heritage's internet auction, online bidding only. http://comics.ha.com/itm/original-comic-art/charlie-adlard-the-walking-dead-116-page-19-original-art-image-2003-/a/7147-93399.s?ic4=GalleryView-ShortDescription-071515 Signature® Internet Session No Floor or Phone Bidding (Mail, Fax, Internet, and Heritage Live) Live auction on Aug 29, 2015 Current Bid Price (as of 08/27): $70 Estimated Value: $400 +/- Artist: Charlie Adlard Publication: The Walking Dead Year: 2013 Issue: #116 Page: #19 Size: 11" x 17" Description: This is the original pencil artwork for The Walking Dead #116 by Charlie Adlard, and was the first issue of the epic "All Out War" storyline by Robert Kirkman. This 5 panel page features both Holly and fan favorite villain, Negan, the character you love to hate. What makes this page special as most collectors know is that it features zombies on it, and although The Walking Dead is centered around the zombie apocalypse, most stories centers around the human experiences of the survivors and it's much more rare and special when a page depicts actual zombies. Walking Dead #116 was the first issue of The Walking Dead where the original art reverted to the larger 11" x 17" size and inked (over blue lined pencils) by Stefano Gaudiano, and this is the highly desirable original penciled page by Charlie Adlard, art in it's purist form. This is the original pencils, no inks. 100% Charlie Adlard original art. This page is autographed by Charlie Adlard, signed on the bottom.

I think the best comparison for Spider-Women Gwen Stacy could be with Harley Quinn. Harley started out cute in the Animiated Batman Comic Book back in 1993, then after years, nearly 20 years, the character and comic book gained more massive popularity. That as a somewhat slow traditional grow. Spider-Gwen achieved near immediate success in terms of popularity with the character (cosplayers emulating her) and the comic book (multiple printings) and value (geez, it went up from cover price to $50 within the month, then kept going up, with barely any time for anyone to get in on the near ground floor) within months. I doubt if the book will come crashing down to dollar bin fodder anytime soon, but can see it fluctuate to even under $100, which is still a lot of money for a book released less than a year ago. So, even if Spider-Gwen loses popularity, much like how Harley Quinn had highs and lows the past 20 years, I think it's reasonable to foresee some sustainability, most hinging upon how the character is handled in terms of the creative team for the comic books and anything potentially in TV/Film. I think buying into Spider-Gwen at current prices might be a long term investment play and not a bad one.