ExNihilo

I dunno, since only 3 of us have commented, and i'm the only one with a dissenting opinion, perhaps i'm in the minority.

I don't think anyone's changing your stance on this, but I think it's fair to say you're probably in the minority on this one. Had someone gone ahead and gotten Stan's sig and then written "I hate Marvel" over it, I'm pretty sure that would have been grounds for his handlers ceasing the signing of blank covers, much like with what happened after the Negan covers came to light. You say Stan is being exploited and that other artists are profiting off of it. First off, I have to wonder if you realize how little artists make. The work they get is inconsistent, and from what I've seen on social media, the pay doesn't sound like it's all that great unless your name happens to be Jim Lee, J Scott Campbell, Artgerm, or some other big time artist. That's why a lot of smaller artists have commission lists, because they have the time and they need the money. Secondly, if you're upset about artists profiting, then you should be upset about commissioned pieces in general. The artists don't own the copyrights to any of the characters and thus have no legal right to draw and/or profit from the artwork. To me, these pieces are labors of love and respect. If Skottie Young drew a baby Stan Lee piece, would it be any different? Or is it disrespectful because it portrays Stan as a big baby? I think you're hung up on the fact that he's gone and that these images happen to portray him as a zombie. Is this a feeling you've carried the last 5 years (or however long when the first commission was done)? If you're consistent about it, that's great. But if this is something that has only been an issue the last year, then I have to wonder why now? What changed? I mean, you're free to have an opinion and it's great to have a respectful discourse, I'm just going to have to politely disagree with you on this.

Read the Rules/Guidelines and then post your request there. https://www.cgccomics.com/boards/forum/50-comics-market-want-to-buy/

I'm still not comprehending the basis for this. So then do you take issue with his handlers for how they mistreated him in the waning years of his life? Or do you take issue with the artists? As I see it, the artists haven't done anything wrong. Whatever profit they make from providing the service of drawing the piece is no different than any other sketch drawing they do. Heck, one of those pieces you listed is Skottie Young, famed writer/artist who has done many MANY variants for Marvel. I guess I'm not seeing how (in these particular cases), the timing of the sketch is relevant in any way. (NOTE: when i refer to artists, i'm referring to the homage pieces, not the Negan ones...I'll go on the record saying I dislike those and think they're in poor taste).

I've got no problems with the eBay samples you've provided. There's a difference between those (homages) and the ones with him getting bashed in the head by Neegan. Homages pay respect to a person in the vein of the genre (in this case Walking Dead/Horror). The Neegan bashing one is a violent portrayal of a living person (or at least he was alive at the time those were made). To me the difference lies in the fact that once the Neegan ones came out and Stan's team became aware of it, that's when Stan stopped signing blank covers because they knew it could be manipulated in a negative way. The issue stems more from the seller trying to profit off the book and how we interpret the art given nothing other than what we know today (Stan's passing). If you look at it in context though, you'll notice those pieces were all completed years ago when Stan was still alive. As such, the artists must have not had any ill will or heinous intentions. Honestly, I can't imagine Stan being upset about it. "Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery."

I haven't paid attention to the variant market until recently, but I get this sense that we're seeing more variant covers than at any other point in the last 10-15 years. Perhaps Ross is just trying to take advantage of the variant market while its still hot same as all the other artists out there. I'm just glad that he's doing regular covers as well. Part of the reason why Immortal Hulk and Captain America are on my sub list are because of Ross' covers.

The only ones worth getting are the Alex Ross variants.

Received my copies of Silver Surfer Black #1 from IGComicstore. First time ordering from them. The books were well packaged, in mylites, and included a COA indicating what number out of 600 (or 400 for the virgin cover) I had. I know I know, COA's are meaningless, but I still find it a nice touch. My favorite though was the unexpected inclusion of a readers copy. Will be keeping an eye out to see what other exclusives they have in the future.

I'm more of a Keown/Frank Hulk fan. My issue has more to do with the many panels where Hulk is weakened and looks like he's melting. But I guess a lot of people have described it as a horror story and the art (as you depicted) really matches a book of that genre.

The sheer number of keys in your collection is jaw dropping.

I've used DCBS the last few months and have had no complaints. Books have been in better condition than what I would have otherwise gotten at my LCS.

I feel like a lot of the people who rave about it aren't pumping and dumping. From what I've seen on /r/Marvel, it's widely considered one of the better Marvel books at the moment. That's a community largely of casual readers...not collectors, not re-sellers. I personally enjoy it. I do wish the art was better, but Al Ewing's writing lends itself to a sort of gravitas. I love how the first page of each issue is this sort of deep introspective thought. It's really unlike anything else Marvel is putting out at the moment because it doesn't necessarily read like your stereotypical comic book (compared to books like ASM or Avengers). Also, this topic seems it would be better suited in the thread linked below.

My only real experience with a comic book creator was Ron Lim. He's an amazingly friendly guy with a contagious laugh. I also met Will Forte (SNL, MacGruber) at Disneyland while waiting in line for Indiana Jones. We ended up chatting, riding in the same ride vehicle, and then chatted some more while the park closed around us. Another all around nice guy. I was afraid I was taking up his time, but he kept the conversation going and at no point did he give me the impression that he wanted to be anywhere else. All in all we chatted for a solid half hour while the park was emptying out. I really can't speak highly enough of the interaction I had with him, especially since I feel celebs can be so private and a bit stand-offish.

I read the first 6 issues of Oblivion Song and got bored. I think independent non-superhero titles just aren't my thing. That or it was Kirkman's writing. Take your pick.

Golden Records Reprint

Has the creator list of those who will be doing signings been released yet?

I love that cover. I want one of the original ones signed in white. I ended up buying one such copy slabbed in a competitors red label, but looking to upgrade to the real deal (CGC yellow label).

I don't like buying signed books not graded by CGC. It's just a personal preference. And in this case, I shouldn't be spending $400 to buy cover A&B signed/graded. I'll just hope more stock goes up on his site or that I can get a facilitator to grab some for me at SDCC. Depending on popularity, some variant covers may increase in value long term, but it's a real crapshoot. I'm sticking with his regular covers, but in this case I do like his cover B as it's an homage to Hulk #1. But I'm also collecting it for its artistic merit and not for any long term value.

I see Jonathan Hickman listed here as a special guest. Does this mean he will be signing or that he's just speaking at a panel? Hoping it's the former. With the release of his X-Men books, I have to imagine he'll be signing somewhere, but just looking for confirmation. https://www.comic-con.org/cci/2019/special-guests?page=1 (EDIT: and the same goes for J. Michael Straczynski.)

Dang it, I missed this. Didn't even hear about it until it was too late. Guess I'll have to seek out a facilitator to help me pick up copies from his booth. :\

Truth. I had no idea slabbing was a thing until...well, whenever I signed up on this board. For that reason it just doesn't make dollars and sense to go about offering slabbed books because in all likelihood, the book will just sit there gathering dust. It makes even less sense to send in a number of new books hoping they'll return in 3 months and that there will still be a market for them amongst your customer base.

I've had two foil covers pressed. My recommendation, send it someone highly experienced with book pressing. I was worried that the heat from the pressing process might affect the book, but both came back 9.8.

I wonder if I should give this series another shot... I picked up the first 6 issues and then dropped it.

There is precedence though...Return of the King. That film only won because it was viewed as the culmination of work on 3 movies. Infinity War/Endgame is similar in scope imo. While it certainly lacks the depth of the typical Best Picture winner, if Return of the King is worthy of a nomination, then Endgame at the very least deserves the same respect.

But it looks sophisticated af.