Xatari

More stuff is starting to post on Heritage!

Too funny! My response above was also pretty lengthy. It disappeared on me only to reappear when I refreshed, so I lucked out but you all had to suffer through my novel.

Looks like a good time was had!

Hey @John E., I was born in 1980 and caught the big comic boom of the 90s just prior to the Image formation. Thats a lot of why I missed some of the nostalgia of Conan, Watchmen, and Dark Knight. It doesn’t mean I don’t appreciate those properties, it just doesn’t hit me in the feels the same way it does the crew 5-10 years older than me. I stopped reading comics when I got busy in high school (around 1994) and got back in maybe 10 years ago. Being at a place in my life with a bit more disposable income, I picked up a lot of big key books I wasn’t able to buy as a kid… Hulk 181, FF48, etc. My wife and I made an agreement that money for any hobby wouldn’t come from our family account, so I ended up buying and selling some books to be able to afford others. During the pandemic I switch completely to OA and sold most of my books to fund art. In my opinion the art market lagged behind the comic boom by about 6-12 months, so it provided more buying power for me. I try not to sell art right now except in the rare instance it either provides some benefit to my family or helps me purchase a piece I don’t otherwise be able to afford. To answer your question about reading though, I read more comics today than in past years. There was a 20 year gap during which I missed things like Age of Apocalypse, but I am slowly making my way back through. There are some really good stories being told today though. Some of my favorites include Something Is Killing the Children, Ultimate Spider-Man (only one issue so far), Hulk (Klein is blowing me away), and Venom (I enjoy Dylan Brock).

@DeadpoolJr. shoot me a DM! I am always down to connect with other collectors.

I think it takes so much capital to make a splash in today’s market so likely few and far between.

Could be they are also not quite as visible. I know in my collecting group there are 20+ of us. Several are very active in a public setting and others have decided to stay behind the scenes. I understand the reasoning for both.

Oh really? I must be out of the loop with the new “hotness” in terms of who is new to the hobby. I’m just coming on four years myself and feel it’s been a whirlwind. I feel fortunate to have had a shot at most of the pieces I was after and could afford. I’m very grateful to those (both collectors and specific reps) who didn’t take my newness to the hobby as blood in the water and an opportunity to gouge but instead treated me fairly. I think the hardest thing coming into the hobby is knowing what to trust. Lots of messaging from people looking to make a buck and chalk it up arrogantly to teaching someone a “life lesson” as if they were helping a new collector learn early (no joke, I recently had a rep tell me this), so it is critical people of character come along side our new collecting family to help them have a positive experience.

Very true. I did a few posts on social media based on what I learned when I entered the hobby to help new users navigate as well. My posts were geared toward comic collectors transitioning to original art. I was very excited to hear Kasra's goal of attracting new entrants into the hobby and growing the collector space. I think it is critical to the long term viability of the hobby. Dealers and reps who hype, pump and dump do a major disservice to new collectors who get burned then don't stick around. It is short term thinking.

Really cool site so far! How long have you been up and running? What is the long term vision?

Great to hear! Have a blast today!

How was night one? Anyone have some stories to share?

I have had great responses from Paulo, Andrew, and Corey. If anyone is waiting on art that is paid for, feel free to reach out to me for their emails. They have been very responsive in my experience (with the occasional necessary nudge).

That is an awesome piece! I'll definitely be watching closely.

Regardless, this looks like this auction is going to be "Must See TV".

I was traveling for work all week and just now catching up. I couldn't agree more. Two fantastic human beings. It is awesome to cheer for these two titans.

Let's get this part started! https://comics.ha.com/c/search-results.zx?Ns=Bid+and+Track+Activity|1&Ne=1058&N=52+792+4294937535+1067&ic4=Refine-ComicCategory-102615

The auction prices all around felt very strong. I know having David Mandel consign quite a few pieces from his collection brought some additional attention which is great for the hobby. From what I heard, I believe the next Platinum will have even more premier pieces. Didn't win anything this round (runner up on several), but congratulations to those that did! Also, great to see some strong stabilization and rebound from the comic side of the hobby. I can't believe how many "highest graded" keys we saw in this one. Truly spectacular, and nice job Heritage! This auction kept me engaged throughout the entire event.

Man, that kept echoing for me too. Crazy!

Where to start? Nike Jordan 1 Origin Story Sneakers based on the first Spider-Verse Film - like it or not, sneaker collecting is a multi billion dollar industry. Miles had his own Jordan 1 signature model. Big deal? The Jordan 1 is the most iconic sneaker ever made, and they don't just pop off-brand collabs like Pez dispensers. To put this into perspective, no other comic character has ever had a Jordan shoe... ever. Here are some data points to provide some resale value of this model. https://stockx.com/air-jordan-1-retro-high-chicago-crystal Nike Jordan 1 Across the Spider-Verse - with the instant success and demand of the first shoe, Nike launched a second model for the second film. Here are data points of this model. https://stockx.com/air-jordan-1-high-og-spider-man-across-the-spider-verse-special-box Adidas Superstar - Adidas saw the success of Nike's collaboration with Miles and attempted their own Miles take on their classic Superstar model. https://www.adidas.com.sg/marvels-spider-man_-miles-morales-superstar-shoes/GV7128.html Video Games (another multi-billion dollar industry). While it's no Atari, Miles did help launch the Playstation 5 system as the premier title. In fact, it is Sony's third best selling game of all-time in the US. https://www.thegamer.com/spider-man-miles-morales-sony-third-best-selling-america. Also, here are the awards which it was nominated for and/or won https://www.imdb.com/title/tt12496734/awards/ Those "kiddie cartoons" of which you speak have a few awards to their name... https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_accolades_received_by_Spider-Man:_Across_the_Spider-Verse So, no, I would argue Miles may be a bit more relevant than you realize, even without any help from Zendaya.

I disagree as you could say that about a lot of key books. How many Hulk 181s are out there? With UF4, we have a pretty accurate approximation from Comichron and the numbers are far less than Silver and Bronze Age. Certainly there are a higher percentage of high grade copies given people treated comic preservation much better in the modern era. Miles is much more relevant to a large percentage of today’s generation. Just because we don’t feel the same about something someone else collects, doesn’t mean it doesn’t have merit or value to others. I’ve used the example recently that I don’t understand the prices for BWS Conan art as it’s irrelevant to me, however, I can understand there is a different generation to which it appeals and thus has value to those that do esteem it differently. I’m sure people felt the same when the OA from New Mutants 98, X-Force 1, Lee’s X-Men 1 all started selling for big numbers. “Why would someone pay so much in this market?” Hindsight brings much more clarity. Just different perspectives from different collectors.

Are you referring to the market swing or the book in question?

I think the book prices actually showed signs of Stabilizing. Hulk 181 9.8 had an uptick. FF48 9.8 was on par. Ultimate Fallout 4 9.8 Djurdjevic had an uptick form a recent bloodbath ebay sale of $8500 ($15k on HA today).

Walls, vaults, and museum exhibits. The current Marvel exhibit by Semmel Exhibitions is in New Zealand. If you happen to be in New Zealand, it is 100% worth stopping by Wellington to see this as well as the New Zealand National Museum (Te Papa Tongarewa) as they are across the street from each other. Additionally WETA Workshop is only 15 minutes away. In a single day, one could hit all three, each an absolutely incredible experience! https://www.semmel-exhibitions.com/marvel-mightiest/ https://www.tepapa.govt.nz/ https://tours.wetaworkshop.com/wellington/

Good luck on the search! I gave up a while back.