Carlo M

This probably went below the radar as it was in one of HA ‘s weekly auctions, but it has to be an absolute record for P Smith ‘ s XM interiors . I know that issue is quite coveted but …wow ! https://comics.ha.com/itm/original-comic-art/paul-smith-and-bob-wiacek-x-men-172-page-7-original-art-marvel-1983-/a/122124-13956.s?ic4=ListView-ShortDescription-071515

Big Byrne fan here. I awaited so eagerly his XMHY series and I was so disappointed that I probably prefer to have a glimpse at the nice Elsewhen pencils every now and then rather than being disappointed the second time over. Carlo

Thanks ! Strong price !

What was the price on the Cockrum XM 99 page? It shows up as zero on my phone

You are right..the thought baloons in the top panels seem to the stretch out to what happened to the character 30 years later. Amazing how the ideas embedded in the characters early on could spawn such amazing sotrylines...

I'm also 53, and am planning to enjoy my collection for the next 30 years or so. And when the whole house of cards comes tumbling down I will be first in line to buy all those Kirby twice-up covers being sold for a couple of hundred dollars, even if I will have only a few months left to enjoy them! Carlo

Thanks MagnusX !

If the winner of this great cover featuring one of my favourite characters is interested in a quick flip.....here I am! https://www.ebay.com/itm/Carlos-Pacheco-Avengers-2000-Annual-Cover-/224354565978?_trksid=p2047675.l2557&campid=5338192743&customid=&hash=item343c92ff5a%3Ag%3A394AAOSwvWNgLC6H&mkcid=1&mkevt=1&mkrid=711-53200-19255-0&nma=true&nordt=true&orig_cvip=true&rt=nc&si=G%2FTa138BZ1lUlrWOJoDlR3N%2FO4Q%3D&siteid=0&toolid=10001&utm_campaign=Original Comic Art Tips&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Revue newsletter Carlo

Thnak you Joseph, that is super helpful! Carlo

Hi, anybody knows what the ask was for this fantastic Warlock page: https://www.comicartfans.com/GalleryPiece.asp?Piece=1705629 Thanks! Carlo

To be honest, even with all the context, even worshipping Kirby etc etc etc....Devil Dinosaur.....you would need a lot of context there. But I have a beautiful Eternals splash featuring a Celestials and my 16 year old son who has zero affinity to comics thinks it is fantastic and he gets it. So maybe there is hope for some intrinsic quality being able to play a role, alongside the context.

I don't know if I agree with you! I am confused! On the one hand, it is obvious that we are all skewed by context when we judge comic OA. I am lucky to own a page from the Dark Phoenix saga. Would I have bought it at that price without the context? No, of course not. And yet, I also find it beautiful to look at. I only strictly buy art the I find pleasing to the eye. I would never ever pay up for an ugly first appearance page. So, when I show my wife my Kirbys, Adams, Steranko, Byrne, J Lee etc (sorry I am not boasting, I am just trying to make a point), she sort of skims through all those absolute giants of the comic art medium and ends up with Jae Lee. This gets me thinking all the times. Maybe it is a matter of her not being used to the visual language of comic art as a medium? Still, she gets Liechtenstein... Oh well... Carlo

I go back to one consideration. Every time I show my wife my collection, and ask her to poin to me the "best piece" artistically, she goes for a Jae Lee page featuring Crystal. Nice page, but value wise certainly not the most valueable piece in my collection (and my wife, in fairness to her, is not exactly illeterate in arts...)

Total turnarounds: - '70s Kirby - F Miller on DD - W Simonson on Thor - R Andru Working on it - Mike Allred - Gene Colan on Dracula - S Ditko (I know I know....I will get there eventually) - W Simonson on X-Factor Not there yet - S Kieth - Sienkiewicz after the New Mutants

To answer directly the question in the title, it seems to me there are new collectors buying contemporary OA. I recently bought art from recent issues of PoX related titles (RB Silva, Dautermann, Asrar) and a couple of pages from Andrade's Cap Marvel. In all cases I was just able to buy the last couple of pages, with the rest having sold pretty quickly. Same apparantly repeatedly happens with Felix's drops. Pepe Larraz 's "Artists Proofs" from PoX have also been scooped in no time. And yet, very little of this material appears on CAF. So it seems to me there is a new generation of younger buyers. Some of them may be branching out into '90s and earlier stuff and support prices alongside us Gen-X ers...

You raise a good point. It will never be a science. Even the definition of A page is vague at best. Take this standard size Kirby Thor page that sold at HA for 19k. In my book this is an A page (four panels with title character in each panel, at least two strong shots, etc.). So this would belong to the 10-20 range, as currently envisaged. Yet I take it some boardies have a stricter definition: an A page should be a super top example, with four panels, each showing the main character fighting his / her arch viallin (see the SM vs Venom example), strictly inked by the best inking match (like Byrne Austin or Lee Williams). If it is a group book, then most team members should be featured. We are talking 4/5 examples per run at best. Based on this definition, and based on the HA sale, Thor standard size A page by Kirby would belong to the 20-40 k range, which does not feel right. So I think the right approach is to remain a bit loose, keep wide ranges, and not try to be too scientific about it. If people recognise that there will never be a mathematical formula to price this stuff, the list can be super fun to follow.

Just got my two Asrar XM pages today. Good packaging, once the item was sent delivery was fast, but then again I opted for Fedex which is by far the best on the US -Italy route. Based on my experience on this purchase I would buy from them again. They do have a stable of good artists! Carlo M

PUBLISHED - Filipe Andrade Cap Marvel Page Filipe Andrade - Captain Marvel 11 - page 17, in Carlo M's Filipe Andrade Comic Art Gallery Room (comicartfans.com)

Here is where I have a bit of a problem with the list. I think the list refers to a quality level for interior pages that is very very rarely seen publicly. Can someone give us an example of a mid '70s Kirby interior panel page fetching a mid teens number? I really don't recall that. Can we get a few examples of what an A page is? Because if people are referring strictly to four panels with the hero fighting his archenemy in each panel (so basically Spider Man vs Green Goblin or full X-Men vs Magneto with Phoenix or Wolverine claws out, or Avengers vs Ultron screaming "Avengers assemble" or FF vs Doom with the Thing shouting "its clobbering time"), then the prices make sense, but people need to be aware that we are talking about a very select number of pages (like 4/5 per run). Such high quality pages are hardly comparable with anything else, and you can get huge variance in pricing (hence ranges are appropriate). A few examples would be very very useful to keep the list within the right context.

Well done! Smart idea good service to collectors

I bought a couple of items late November, paid right away, good timely initial communication, some radio silence , then after some inquiry on my part last week I got a friendly email explaining the art had to arrive from the artist first and there were some delays due to COVID. Shortly thereafter I got a tracking number so it looks like the whole thing is back on track . So I think it is just a matter of slow processing at a busy time (they apparently sold a fair amount of stuff from artists like Asrar and Walta recently). Will keep you posted when the art arrives. Carlo

I agree on Byrne UXM at 50k, at least until we see a bona fide A page hit the market publicly or somebody provides anecdotal evidence on a private deal .

I would put Byrne IF, MTU and early Avengers safely in the 10-20k range, considering the quality level of an A page assumed in the list. AF can stay in the 5-10k range.

This is an increedibly useful list. One problem I have with it is that it seems that the definition of A gets diluted as you go towards the bottom. I will try to explain myself better. In the top part the list seems to make reference to truly exceptional pages, stuff that we hardly see publicly. A few examples: 2UP Kirby FF at >80k, JByrne UXM >60k, JLee UXM 20-30k, JBuscema Silver Surfer at 20-30k. Now I have not seen those levels in the pages going through auctions, even strong examples. So are the people who drew the list referring to private deals involving pages of even a superior quality? A couple of examples would be really helpful, so as to have a good reference for more "normal" (and yet strong) pages. The problem is less acute towards the bottom, probably because you have fewer historical / redefining moments in those, lower rated runs. As to comments, I agree Kirby 2x FF seems high at >80k. Interiors (including a half splash with Doom) from FF 56 were at 55-65k in 2018 (Heritage). I would call them A pages. Do people think that Kirby 2x up FF has increased by 50% in 2 years? I also would separate out Byrne Iron Fist / Avengers 1st run / MTU from Byrne Alpha Flight. I doubt two pages of similar quality would fetch similar prices. I also think Byrne FF at 10-20k seems high, unless we are talking about top top pages (like full FF vs Galactus or something like that). So we are back to my comment at the top.

Visually I like the earlier issues. BTW I think the price of the cover was about right. Very historical for sure but the image is about panel - size.