Brock

Awesome, Garlanda! Thanks for finding that...

They were loose in the bag, but I would say mine is still in 9.2/9.4, so they can survive Ok. There's nothing to distinguish them from the regular editions, though, so I've always suspected that if many got saved, they may have been separated from the bag and poster, and mixed in with the overall supply.

At the risk of derailing the conversation, I have a related question about ASM Annual 21... Back in the late 1980s when I was a student, I worked one summer for Sports Illustrated. It was a great summer job, and one of the perks was that I used to get Mets and Yankees tickets. On one occasion, I got some Mets tickets, and when I got to Shea stadium, they were giving away Spider-man bags with a poster (Spider-man with some Mets players) and a copy of ASM Annual 21 (newsstand edition). During the game they also staged a "wedding" with actors portraying Spider-man and Mary Jane on the field... Although I'm sure they handed out thousands of sets at the game, I suspect most were not saved... Has anyone seen these for sale, or does anyone have a sense of possible price? I'm not particularly looking to sell (I'm usually more of a "buy and hold" guy), but I've always been curious...

I had no problem with Searchlight's grading, but in my experience, their customer service is terrible. My first order with them was missing a book, and neither e-mails or phone calls prompted any actual response. It was only $20, but I certainly would never order from them again.

This is the Copper thread, right Joe? Anyway, that's why "classics" is in quotation marks...

I'm with jtlarsen on this one - I think the pendulum is swinging back in the artist direction, though it's a process that's only beginning... A lot of Neal Adams covers have really popped in the past year or two, and McFarlane stuff seems to be picking up again, too. As always, it's the "classics" - Adams Batman, McFarlane Sider-man - that lead the way, but other stuff soon follows. In part, I think this is the impact of CGC itself - if you can't read a slabbed book, the key feature becomes the cover. Over the past couple of years, Adam Hughes, Dave Stevens and J. Scott Campbell have been getting hotter, and others are showing signs of life - including Wrightson, Bolland, Kaluta and Linsner. It's a modern, but look at this book as a current example: http://www.ebay.com/itm/111360004629?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1423.l2649 If artists get hotter, it won't eliminate other kinds of keys - but it will bump books that are currently a little "cold." Right now, I'm watching things like the Adams covers on World's Finest, or some of the Wrightson and Kaluta covers on bronze and even copper horror titles. And like jtlarsen, I'm trying to pull together complete sets of Dave Stevens and Adam Hughes...

If I read divad and Rip's comments correctly, they're describing a parallel sort of process that starts both the Silver and Copper ages... We see one event or issue as a "spark" that presages a larger change which takes some years to fully manifest. So Showcase #4 "sparks" the Silver Age, but that larger change doesn't really fully impact Marvel until FF #1. The same idea could apply to, say, DC Comics Presents #26 as the spark of the Copper Age, though the changes - even at DC - are not complete for some time. In this context, it's interesting that it's Marv Wolfman who writes the New Teen Titans story in DCCP #26 who then becomes the individual responsible for "coppering" the whole DCU in Crisis on Infinite Earths. This approach places the beginning of an era in a "stylistic" space (which could work for Showcase #4, GL #76, or DCCP #26) rather than an "event" space (like FF #1 or Daredevil #181). However, this still doesn't fully capture the compelling arguments made here about technology, distribution and production changes that also characterize the Copper Age... And suggestions that the advent of things like mini-series are a part of the equation complicates this as well - despite some other candidates being mentioned here, I tend to think of the first "real" miniseries as World of Krypton from DC in 1979. In my own mind, though, I see this as a firmly 1970's approach, attempting to mirror the success of television mini-series like Roots (1977). But what do I know... as joe's suggested, I'm one of those "OS advisors who will never be known for their intelligence or foresight..."

Just thought I could add a few thoughts here... I think it's my bid that drove the Supergirl #1 3rd print to the $31 level on the auction Whetteon referenced originally. It might be worth noting that in previous weeks, I have bid higher on the same book, but more copies appear to be coming into the market. Most of these have had high reserves, so I'm not sure we have read on a "fair market value" on this book yet... In terms of whether this board drives the prices on a book like this? I'd say it's a yes and no thing... I'm an Overstreet Advisor, and I've mentioned this book once or twice in the last few years in my market reports, so the discussion is definitely wider than these boards alone. Having said that, I do think these boards are pretty influential. I try to use a lot of sources to track trends, but I'll be the first to say that sometimes I'll draw on what I see here. At the same time, there are lots of books that get mentioned here that don't spike in value. We all know there are some here who like to use the "pump and dump" approach to hot books, while others are overly optimistic about books they're emotionally invested in. Just because a book is mentioned here is not a guarantee it will get hot - but it can't hurt. I think the more reasonable scenario is "mutual reinforcement"... A book gets mentioned here, prices go up on ebay, CPG adjusts its values (and they seem to watch this site closely), I (or somebody like me) reference it in an Overstreet market report... If the price spike is sustained, we're all part of an ecosystem that legitimizes the increase, and locks it in. There's no question in my mind that sometimes that process starts here, and that there are some incredibly knowledgeable people on these boards, RMA among them (sorry to mention you again!) - but other times, it starts somewhere else and then shows up here. One possible lesson out of this is that sustained price increases require wider dissemination of awareness. In other words, if no one knows a book is a key or it's hot, it's hard to turn a value increase into a permanent thing. Scarce books (like Supergirl #1 3rd print) can be scarce, but if no one knows they're scarce, and there's no demand as a result, price isn't going anywhere. Talking about the scarcity is a necessary starting point to the whole process...

I think there are two parallel discussions in this. For most collectors, I think the interest in 2nd prints as variants often relates to identifiably different features in later editions - like the "Classic" tags on the So Much Fun editions, Marvel's gold ink 2nd prints, and DC's Roman numerals. These distinctions create "variants" that are easily recognized by many collectors, and this awareness allows demand to build in a way that - when combined with relative scarcity - can drive price increases into a feedback loop, where each price increase prompts more collectors to seek these books out. I think this stands in contrast to the many Batman reprints (for example), where the key differentiating factor is relatively obscure - like the numbers or symbols in the UPC codes, or the copyright dates of internal advertisements. These later prints - while still scarcer variants - lack the widespread "identifiability" that will touch off the collectible feedback loop. There are exceptions, of course - the McFarlane cover of Batman #423 seems to drive some additional attention for the variants of that issue, and there are whole threads here (and elsewhere) trying to sort out the nuances of early TMNT printings. By and large, my sense is that this holds true... Just my two cents... I'm interested in other perspectives on this, though...

And I forgot Detective Comics: #658 - 2nd print #659 - 2nd and 3rd prints #660 - 2nd and 3rd prints #664 - 2nd print I think these books are all marked with Roman numerals on the cover #695 and #696 ("Contagion") have second prints too, but they may be more "Modern" than "Copper"?

Here's a few additional ones: Armageddon 2001 (1991 series) #1 2nd print - Roman numeral II on cover Armageddon 2001 (1991 series) #1 3rd print - Roman numeral III and silver ink Batman Adventures (1992 series) #14 2nd print - Roman numeral II Batman Adventures (1992 series) #16 2nd print - Roman numeral II Flash (1987 series) #94 2nd print - Roman numeral II Robin (1991 miniseries) #1 2nd print - Roman numeral II Robin (1991 miniseries) #1 3rd print - Roman numeral III Robin (1991 miniseries) #2 2nd print - Roman numeral II I'm sure there must be more...

Can anyone tell if this one sold, and at what price? I seem to recall that eBay's Belgian site still showed this information... http://www.ebay.com/itm/310765972640?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1423.l2649 If it's anywhere near the asking price, that's a lot for 6.0.

Not to be difficult, but I don't think we can take it off the "heating up" list yet... http://www.ebay.com/itm/290983192947?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1423.l2649

Not sure where to post this... I recently picked up a copy of Famous Monsters of Filmland #4 as part of a larger buy. I don't know much about these, but it is a first print (the no-sticker version). It's very, very beat up - lots of photos cut out, etc. but probably about 75% complete. Does such a ragged beast have any value? Is there anyone here who'd be interested in this copy? I'm a comic guy, so happy to sell, trade or donate to a worthy home if there's interest...

Capital City orders for New Mutants #100 were slightly over 102,000 - and they were often about 20% of the market, so I'm guessing we're in the 400,000-500,000 copy range. I haven't found any numbers for the 2nd or 3rd prints, though.

Here's a modern variant that seems to be holding its value over the longer term... Price vary a little, but seem to me to be trending up a bit. Here's the most recent ebay sales: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Gotham-City-Sirens-1-2009-Variant-Cover-/300882021788?pt=US_Comic_Books&hash=item460df74d9c http://www.ebay.com/itm/GOTHAM-CITY-SIRENS-1-VaRiAnT-VF-NM-HTF-OOP-RaRe-Catwoman-POISON-IVY-Harley-Quinn-/370793456564?pt=US_Comic_Books&hash=item56550323b4 http://www.ebay.com/itm/GOTHAM-CITY-SIRENS-1-JG-Jones-VARIANT-Catwoman-Harley-Quinn-HTF-Rare-Batman-NM-/300893269698?pt=US_Comic_Books&hash=item460ea2eec2 http://www.ebay.com/itm/GOTHAM-CITY-SIRENS-1-JG-JONES-VARIANT-COVER-HARLEY-QUINN-CATWOMAN-IVY-/290906084967?pt=US_Comic_Books&hash=item43bb5a9667 http://www.ebay.com/itm/Gotham-City-Sirens-1-J-G-Jones-Variant-NM-NM-Cond-/140965157272?pt=US_Comic_Books&hash=item20d22d9998 And a recent CGC 9.8 "Buy it Now"... does anyone know the actual sale price? http://www.ebay.com/itm/GOTHAM-CITY-SIRENS-1-CGC-9-8-JG-Jones-VARIANT-Catwoman-Harley-Quinn-HTF-Rare-/271201391383?pt=US_Comic_Books&hash=item3f24dcd317

Hello all... long-time lurker, infrequent poster, etc., etc. Time to start paying my dues I guess. I haven't seen anyone mention this one yet... http://www.ebay.com/itm/Catwoman-51-Adam-Hughes-cover-Lost-numbers-RARE-/171055823099?pt=US_Comic_Books&hash=item27d3b8b8fb http://www.ebay.com/itm/CATWOMAN-51-ADAM-HUGHES-LOST-NUMBERS-COVER-SCARCE-HARD-TO-FIND-MOVIE-/190856699746?pt=US_Comic_Books&hash=item2c6ff21f62 http://www.ebay.com/itm/CATWOMAN-51-ADAM-HUGHES-COVER-FEATURING-THE-NUMBERS-FROM-LOST-/271217482989?pt=US_Comic_Books&hash=item3f25d25ced http://www.ebay.com/itm/CATWOMAN-51-Scarce-LOST-Numbers-Cover-ADAM-HUGHES-Mint-M-Gorgeous-2006-/130927588668?pt=US_Comic_Books&hash=item1e7be4753c

I found some circulation numbers for X-Factor #5 and #6 - orders for #5 through Capital City distrubtion totalled 49,700 copies, and fell to 47,200 for #6. Full circulation statements begin with #12, and state that sales averaged 340,850 copies per issue for the year preceding - meaning that Capital City probably accounts for about 15% of the total print run

Thanks, adamstrange - the link is great, and it looks like the copy is complete. Now I don't suppose anybody has a loose extra cover hanging around? :-)

Long-time browser/lurker here... first time poster. I managed to find a Mystic Comics (1940) #1 today at an antique shop for $2... Unfortunately, the story isn't quite as good as it sounds - it's a coverless copy, and as someone who mostly collects Bronze Age comics, I'm trying to figure out if the copy's complete... Apologies if this is the wrong spot, but I figured this thread would have the real experts... My copy has page 1 with the opening of the "Flexo the Rubber Man" story, and a back page with an ad for Marvel Comics and Daring Mystery Comics. I assume this means I am not missing first or last pages, but I suppose it's possible there is a missing contents page, and further ads or other material at the back... I also wonder how many pages the 3 X's story in the centre runs... My copy has an 8-page story running across the middle of the book, but the stripped-down "Golden Age-style" flow from panel to panel leaves open the possibility that this could have been a 12-page story originally, or that other pages (ads, etc.) could have been in a centrefold that's gone missing. Does anybody here know this book well enough to give me some insight into how complete this book is? Alternately, can you refer me to a source online where I could do further research? Finally, I'm located in Canada, but I assume this is not a Canadian white - I have several of those, and the ad I mentioned above suggests to me that this book is a regular US edition. Does that seem a reasonable assumption? All comments, suggestions and redirects welcomed, and thanks in advance!