John E.

No wonder I didn't quite recognize it from Knightfall. I didn't read NML. But Gsl has a good point.

Oh boy that'll do it. Thanks for posting!

Eric makes some really great points in this post. There was a lot that I didn't consider which now makes so much sense once it was pointed out to me. I started off this posting saying that I'm still trying to figure out my focus. Right now I'm buying a lot of art that either is aesthetically pleasing or touches the nostalgia, but a lot of the time it's about opportunity and if do I have the money for it. Reading everyone's opinions and experiences I think I could scratch off a purely 90s focus. Collecting 90s art is no less accessible, inexpensive, or competitive than artwork from other eras. In fact, I have learned that if I do see a 90s piece that I like, or maybe even on the fence with it, to snatch it up if the price is right. It may not pop up again. One of my collecting philosophies has been, "I rather have the option to sell later, then regret not buying now."

I thank everyone for their input and leads! It has renewed my faith in finding examples from the 90s with a little digging and patience with patience as the key word. It will still be hard to resist buying art from today's books as they tend to be aesthetically well-done, accessible, and relatively economically. For sure I was pleased to see so many fans and supporters of 90s artwork and the comics from which they came. I had a chance to browse through some of the personal collections and I'm jealous of how disciplined some of you have been sticking to a focus and of course, how lucky you got. Many of you seem to agree that many of these 90s pages may be put away, like in a lost kind of way. It never even occurred to me that some of this could be forgotten in a box somewhere. But hey, when these pages hit 5-figures, memories get jarred and these lost pages tend to resurface quickly. Of course, by then, it'll be too late for me. I quoted the post above because it made so much sense once it was pointed out to me. Many of these top dealers don't bother with 90s pages, with the exception of top-tiered artists and covers. With the exception of Anthony Synder's site, if you peruse the bigger dealers sites hoping to find 90s art, you'll be out of luck, and it'll appear like nothing is out there. On the other hand, it might be better for us if the stuff never lands with the dealers...except for Meeley Man, who's reasonable with his pricing

That is a sweet DPS. Yes, that's the stuff that I'm talking about. I recently saw that Mike Manley had joined CAF and that he still had DARKHAWK pages. I thought those were permanently with him. I'll have to keep an eye out on eBay.

I visit your site often and have thought about inquiring pieces you don't have listed, but I'm always afraid that it'll be way over my budget. Soon though now that you've opened the door!

Bronty's recent poll struck an epiphany for me. My "golden age" of comic reading was between 1990-1996, half of the decade that most people seem to blow off. I've been collecting OA for over 3 years now, and yet, I virtually having nothing in my collection from that era, at least nothing that I actually read the month it was released. Three years of collecting and I still can't find my focus. Do I want to go 90s nostalgia? All vintage? Very modern? Commissions? You get it. I just realized that it's tough to get quality art from the 90s. My top three artists/books I'd love to get examples of are Mike Allred's Madman, Sam Kieth's The Maxx, and Kelley Jones "Bat" art. Madman pages are out there, but they don't pop up very often. But Kieth and James Sinclair have held on to every issue of the Maxx except for #1/2. Jones doesn't let go of his artwork either. And if you're a Jeff Smith Bone fan, you're out of luck. I don't see pages from Terry Moore's Strangers in Paradise. I have trouble finding Knightfall pages, pages from 90s Punisher and Wolverine (the Marc Silverstri stuff). Can't find JRJR Punisher War Journal pages. Nor early Sleepwalker or Darkhawk (I'm already "slumming" it at this point!). Forget "Death of Superman" pages from the issue. I can go on. Yes, there are 90s pages out there, but not with the "historical" quality. Sure, I haven't looked in every nook and cranny nor have I been aggressive trying to pry art from collectors. And certainly you can say, "You can't find the art you're looking for, welcome to the club, buddy!" I just find it odd that for a decade that everyone scoffs at and reviles, you'd think collectors would treat the art as anathema, liquidate it, then use the funds to buy better stuff. I'm wondering if there are any collectors between the ages of 34-42 who grew up during this reading period are having the same trouble as me, and how you've negotiated your collecting focus?

I just can't wrap my head around conceptual art.

In late February of 2016, I received two commissions-- one a 11"x17, the other a sketch cover--from the same artist. I commissioned the 11x17 in August of 2014 and the sketch cover in March 2015. So yeah, one took 18 months and the other 11 months. I received a third commission from the same artist earlier that took roughly a year. The cost of these commissions were below market rate and he was doing them as a favor to a new "fan." Since he is a regular of the local con circuit, I'd see him at his table and he'd show me a pencil rough or some progress which kept my impatience at bay. Every once in a while he'd email me a scan of his progress. Nonetheless, there was a point where I just said to myself, "Screw it. If he follows through, great. If he doesn't, oh well. I don't have a lot of money at stake anyway." The lesson I learned is to simply stay away from at-home commissions. Best to buy ready-made published art or something that was already done before hand. Or get the quality convention sketch while at the convention. But there are some exceptions. If you're going to get a commissions, I think these are good signs to look for: 1) Artist makes a specific announcement that she or he is accepting commissions in between gigs. This shows a priority, but I would still be flexible with the deadline they give you. 2) An artist announces they have spots open for commissions to be completed before and picked up during a major comic-con they plan to attend. 3) You go through their art rep, if they have one. This way you have another person who holds them accountable. I've never had an artist that I've commissioned meet a deadline. "I can get it done in a month" likely means six months. What I do ask them is "Can I check in once a month for the progress?" And they are usually okay with that without feeling badgered. And if you're lucky enough to live in a region that holds lots of comic cons like me, you can ask, "Hey, I noticed you're scheduled to appear at such-and-such con. Do you think you can finish the piece by then?" That usually works. I'm glad this issue was brought up. It can alleviate a lot of frustration for newbies. I think everyone who has commissioned artists has had less-than-ideal experiences. I recently spoke to a guy at a con who told me he stopped buying comic art one year and just started collecting on the commissions from ONE OR TWO years prior, and it was like he never stopped buying art. And ultimately, I was happy with the quality of the commissions from the aforementioned artist.

Felix, I've really enjoyed both podcasts...and the accompanying video. I hang on every word. Nice hint about having Steve on as a guest...but I hope Rich joins in, too. It's funny that Mandel said that he'd buy art by the inches while others bought by the trunk full; At Big Wow, Rich was telling me that he was one of those guys filling his trunk with comic art it was so cheap.

I can speak a little about personalizations. I had a college professor who collected signed first edition books who told me go ahead and get a personalization because it doesn't affect the value. Flash forward 15 years I noticed non-personalized books were ending with higher bids on eBay than personalized books. Now this is for contemporary books. So think about it this way: if a first edition Catcher in the Rye came your way at a great price that was signed and personalized to "Bob," would you turn it down because of that, assuming there was no other one on the market? I wouldn't. But relating to comic art sketches. I purchased a Bruce Timm sketch off the original owner in which the sketch was personalized. This didn't discourage me from buying it. Plus, I resold it at a premium a few months later. The personalization didn't seem to discourage that buyer either. Why? Because it's Bruce Timm! Bottomline: If someone wants the piece, I don't think the personalization matters. But if there are a thousand pieces like it out there, I think the personalization might fetch a lower price. But I believe someone in the future will enjoy the piece regardless of personalization. Hope that gives you some perspective.

signed by Gerry Conway, Stan Lee and John Romita I don't know why I haven't called this The Punisher War Journal. This is a 7.5 signed by Gerry Conway, Stan Lee, and John Romita. I bought this from the same eBay seller who sold me the Giant-Sized Spider-Man #4 Signature Series and for a good price too. I never thought I get a triple signed copy so soon. It's a shame that this book is only worth 23 points on the registry. To see old comments for this Journal entry, click here. New comments can be added below.

by Mike Zeck I absolutely love this cover. When I started collecting again a few years ago, Secret Wars #8 was one of the first wall books I bought. Some time ago I lost a bid on a SW#8, CGC SS 9.4, with a similar Mike Zeck head sketch. I thought I'd never see another one pop up on eBay. About a month later, this one did. Sure it's "only" a 9.0, but these books look better than their grade (and with white pages!). I snatched this one up through the seller's relatively high "Buy It Now" price within hours of posting. I paid that price only because I had eBay Bucks that were for such an opportunity. There hasn't been another one like this on auction since. To see old comments for this Journal entry, click here. New comments can be added below.

Giant-Size Spider-Man #4, SS CGC 8.5 For weeks, I had in my eBay watch list a lot of three Spider-Man books, all CGC SS by Gerry Conway. I didn't care much about the other two, but I just had to have this one: Giant-Size Spider-Man #4, signed by Gerry Conway, CGC 8.5. Although the lot was reasonably priced, the total is still a chunk of change, for me at least. This past August, I scored a table at the San Jose Toy Show. To my surprise, I turned a profit just nickel-and-diming some toys and 90s comics. Although I already had enough money in my PayPal account to pay for this lot, the extra money allowed me to buy the lot without regret and with the intention of re-selling the other two slabs to make up the money. So the next day, on my birthday, I made the purchase. I've yet to sell the other two books, but plan to at the next toy show. To see old comments for this Journal entry, click here. New comments can be added below.

Signed by Thomas Jane This arrived after nearly 4 months, which is later than stated on the form, but earlier by half from the rumors I've heard. This is my first SS I've done myself. Got it done at Big Wow in San Jose, CA in May 2013. Jane was supposed to be at last year's show, but didn't make it. He was scheduled to be here this year so I brought this just in case. I bought one of his own comic sfrom him at his table (he was sharing with Tim Bradstreet) and signed it without hesitation. It really inspired me to find a CGC witness and have him sign this ACE edition I brought along. I'm so glad I did. I have some regrets not seeking a signature from Humberto Ramos who was also at the show, but it's kind of nice to only have Thomas Jane's signature. This is my second Spider-Man/Punisher SS acquisition. To see old comments for this Journal entry, click here. New comments can be added below.