Big Brother

I have every issue of Planet Comics via PSArtbooks, as well as a half-dozen or so of the original issues. I got the reprints when I worked for Half Price Books and I got them for about $8 apiece – that's right, with my employee discount, about $8 each. I bought every single one.

In case you don't know, spoon = junk, since apparently another word is verboten.

The difference is, the artwork on Amazing Fantasy #15 is typically great Ditko. The artwork on Incredible Hulk #181 is Trimpe / Abel spoon. If you want it, you can have it. I could've bought a copy for peanuts years ago, but I didn't want it then and I still don't. I never bought comics because I thought they would make me money. I bought them because I liked them.

Well, as I said earlier, I based my list on one that was posted by Webhead, and I also said that I have the early Overstreets but I'm too lazy to look up the info. That's my excuse...

Who cares about embossed covers from the 1990s now? Or varient covers?

I agree that Overstreet usually lags behind the market but if comics were in free-fall in the late 1990s, why did AF15 go from $2,800 in 1994 to $22,000 in 1999? How do you explain that?

The price of Amazing Fantasy #15 doubled from 1978 to 1979, and from 1979 to 1980. It doubled again from 1983 to 1984, and once more from 1994 to 1995. Then from 1997 to 1998, it nearly triples in value. It doubles again from 2015 to 2016. in most other years, it's a steady rise with occasional pauses or rare setbacks. Does anybody have any explanations for the rapid price rises in the years noted here? Of course, Spidey is a popular character but why would AF15 go from $7,000 in 1997 to $20,000 in 1998, for example? Especially after remaining at $7,000 for two years.

P.S. I should acknowledge that my list was based on the one originally posted by Webhead.

Well, here's something new: an updated list of the valuation of Amazing Fantasy #15. I'd like to point out that the ONLY reason that someone would pay more than a half-million dollars for a comic book is if he thinks he can sell it for more later. And based on the list below, he wouldn't be wrong. All I can say about that is: tulips in Amsterdam. Prices via Overstreet 9.2 Amazing Fantasy #15 1970: $16 1971: $18 1972-1977: no data (I have Overstreets for those years, but I'm too lazy to look up the prices) 1978: $40 1979: $80 1980: $160 1981: $225 1982: $360 1983: $450 1984: $900 1985: $1,000 1986: $1,000 1987: $1,200 1988: $1,100 1989: $1,100 1990: $1,100 1991: $1,200 1992: $1,500 1993: $1,800 1994: $2,800 1995: $6,100 1996: $7,000 1997: $7,000 1998: $20,000 1999: $22,000 2000: $26,000 2001: $27,000 2002: $27,000 2003: $27,000 2004: $25,000 2005: $35,000 2006: $42,000 2007: $48,000 2008: $42,500 2009: $42,500 2010: $33,500 2011: $44,000 2012: $50,000 2013: $65,000 2014: $100,000 2015: $125,000 2016: $260,000 2017: $350,000 2018: $375,000 2019: $405,000 2020: $425,000 2021: $450,000 2022: $550,000

I bought early issues of Amazing Spider-Man because I love Steve Ditko's artwork, and I like Stan Lee's storylines. I didn't buy them as an investment. I don't mind that they're worth a lot of money now, but that's not why I got them. I think that Spidey #31-33 are some of the best super-hero comics of all time.

Somebody please explain something to me: This comic is graded 1.0, almost at the bottom of the ladder. Why would you keep it in the slab? How much damage could you possibly do to it by READING it?? What is the point of keeping a book in lousy condition in a slab? It's already trashed! Seriously, why?

You hope! There's no evidence that it's happened, so therefore it could never happen, right?

Thanks for your comments. Comic collecting, or as you put it, "the industry," has become all about money. I deplore this, but I can't prevent it. I collect comics because I enjoy them, not because I'm investing in them to make money. And yes, it's ridiculous to think that a tiny corner crease could devalue something by $5,000.00 or more. Especially if the grade is just some self-styled expert's opinion. By the way, I once bought a copy of Amazing Fantasy #15 for $6.00. That's six dollars, NOT six hundred dollars. It was in terrible condition, with no back cover, but even then that was cheap! Those were the days...

You can be reasonably sure that a book is complete if you EXAMINE it. You can count the pages, you can see if the stories seem to be all there, etc. And if you are knowledgeable enough to be able to determine if the grade is "in the correct range," then why do you need someone to tell you what the grade is (and for a price)? These days online, you can view scans of most books for sale and, even though that's not as good as seeing the item in person, it's a lot better than just having someone else's grading to go on. But yeah, comic collecting should be fun!

What does that have to do with anything? I haven't claimed to be an expert at detecting restoration.

I've been a comic collector for more than 50 years. I like things in nice condition, although I'm willing to settle for less on some books. You say, "And some people prefer to have neutral third-party experts grade those things..." But who appointed these "neutral third-party experts"? Aren't they pretty much self-appointed? Grading is an art, not a science, but anyone can learn it. Why not learn how to grade, instead of paying someone to tell you their opinion of the condition of your item? My comic books are in bags, and in boxes. They're reasonably well-protected. And I've got news for you: comic books, like people, will not last forever no matter what you do. My question still is: why would you pay a premium for a comic book that you can't read?

Yes, and since there's no evidence for counterfeits, they must not exist, right? I don't claim that fakes EXIST. I'm just saying that they COULD, and how would you even know – because you can't examine the books! But I don't understand why you would want a comic book that you can't read in the first place.

As I wrote earlier, it doesn't have to be a million dollar book. It could be any comic worth thousands of dollars. If people can counterfeit American money, don't you think someone could counterfeit a CGC case and label? But hey, if you want to buy comic books that you can't read, go right ahead.

Well, part of my point is that when things are worth thousands of dollars, they become worth counterfeiting. If you invested 5 thousand dollars in creating a fake that you turn around for 20 thousand, that's a pretty good return. But my main point is YOU CAN'T EXAMINE THE BOOK! It's sealed inside the slab.

Again, how would anyone know it was fake? The whole point of creating a fake is to make people THINK it is real. If the book is sealed inside a CGC case, how can you examine it? Conceivably, you could take a genuine cover and wrap it around the guts of some worthless comic. How would you know? And forget about a million dollar comic book – it would be worthwhile to fake any book valued at thousands of dollars. If you think it would be impossible to create a convincing counterfeit, I have a bridge in Brooklyn that I'd be willing to part with...

I've collected comic books for more than 50 years. I love 'em! My favorites are ECs and The Spirit, but I like all kinds of comics – everything from The Amazing Spider-Man to Little Archie. I have never bought a slabbed comic book, and I never will. What good is a comic that you can't read? Slabbing makes sense for things such as coins, stamps, and gum cards, because they have only two sides! But not comic books! I did finally figure out why slabbed comic books command a premium price: it's because most people don't know how to grade! They want some "authority" to TELL them what the grade of their item is. But exactly who appointed these "experts" as the ultimate arbiters? How did they attain their exalted position? Do you know? Grading is an art, not a science, and reasonable people can disagree – although they shouldn't differ by more than a half-grade or so, most of the time. But when the difference between a Very Fine grade and Near Mint can be thousands of dollars, it becomes ridiculous. Oh, that little corner bump makes it worth $5,000.00 less? That's insane!!

A million dollar item is "not worth the investment in tooling, manufacturing, and risk"? Really? OK, you go right on thinking that. When there's big money to be made, some people will do whatever it takes...

When some comic books are "worth" more than a million dollars, don't you think that would create a powerful incentive to manufacture fakes? You're fooling yourself if you think it can't be done. And how would anyone know the difference? You can't examine the comic book! All you can see are the front and back covers, and the sides of the interior pages.