Rick2you2

Go East, young men. (apologies to Horace Greeley).

I would definitely lock the garbage can lids if he were around.

You didn’t really lose the auction. You preserved your capital for something else. Something else, or better, will come along. Nice piece, by the way. When I really want something, which is rare, I put in a proxy bid of as much as 7 times what I think it is worth (not that high on expensive pieces). In those cases, I do not get sniped. Usually the worst case scenario is an attempted snipe at about 2-3 times the last bid. And when that happens, I love to see the win by a single bid increment.

I’ll wager there is less chocolate or milk fat in them. Cost issue.

I always agree to pay the extra charge. When dealing with artists, I automatically add it even if they don’t ask.

If you like quality, let me recommend the Korean shows on Netflix as well as Wiki Rakuten. I am addicted now, and don’t mind the subtitles.

I am aware of that. Same with All in the Family. The point is simply another example of Greed.

Add the TV reboots like Frazier and the upcoming American re-writes of K-dramas to the list (“Crash Landing on You” and Squid Game are planned, for example).

I have no idea what this is about, anymore.

First, you can get images by artists who haven't done a character before. Second, you get to play. Here is a female version of a Phantom Stranger I had done at a con by Colleen Doran: Things like this aren't intended, at least in my case, to make money.

If you get really lucky, maybe you can win some Garfield strips.

The problem with all these covers is that the covers are better than the underlying art. I do like 5 better than 4 in part because I have seen a post of the original art for 5. These are all dependent upon additional work after Lee’s work which made them better. Compare Lee’s art for no. 4 with the cover for example. One of the “nice” things about my niche is that the character isn’t that popular. So, I can often get art at a better price than if the same artist drew, say, Batman. On the other hand, if I really like a piece, I won’t be out-bid (unless I suspect market manipulation). With these, I could be outbid.

I think the following 2 are much more interesting Jae Lee covers. If one of these had come up instead of the one from issue 4 I think, I would definitely be in (unless the second one was heavily computer generated).

I’m sure you know that It isn’t just the artist; it’s the subject matter which matters. Look at the price differential between Byrne’s X-Men vs. his Next Men.

Fair point. More positive comments than I expected. I guess I should take a shot. The other 3 are much more interesting, but they aren’t up for auction.

If you look at the other Jae Lee covers, this one is a poor 4th, I think. I’ll probably skip it even if it cheap. The other 3, however, are a different kettle of fish.

I always enjoy a little deconstruction of a piece. As for the smoke, I honestly don’t remember the story even though I have it. To me, they look like symbols. Until DeMatteis took over the writing, the stories were execrable.

Don’t forget, we are looking at the cover art, not the actual cover. The cover is better than the art. I’m also a little biased because I know what the other 3 look like, and this one disappoints. But, that’s the reason I posted it; I have very real ambivalence about a piece from a good artist that I don’t think is up to snuff.

There are some very nice things at auction this time. What I am about to write about is not one of them. Not awful, mind you, just not really nice. My collective question is whether anyone sees merit to this piece I am missing. About 7 years ago, this cover by Jae Lee was listed for sale for $1,300 (I think). I didn't buy it then because I was unimpressed with it. I think the composition is unbalanced, the action is virtually non-existent, and the smirking Phantom Stranger looks like he was inhaling what President Clinton claimed he never did. It is also only one of four covers he did on this run (and the worst of them), but, I haven't seen the others for sale (except one other cover around the same time for $200 more which I skipped as well). Having a completist instinct, I am debating whether I should go for it, and if so, how much. Frankly, I don't think its worth much more, if at all, than it was originally priced. But that is for a different day. So, if you have something really good to say about it, please do so. If not, by all means comment anyway.

I was thinking more about combinations of artists in different runs, in which there is a rough market out there, but no one happens to be a fan of Devil Dinosaur on that auction. In the follow up reports on auctions there then appear to be some good deals, according to the writers. But, you obviously know better, and I have definitely seen some prices which wouldn’t stick even with glue on them.

Not everyone has the wide-ringing knowledge of a dealer, or particularly wants everything even if a virtual bargain, or is willing to invest for the long term. And, not everyone is involved in all potential auctions.I have passed on things which don’t match my collecting goals, like the adult gag cartoons that Anthony’s sells, but someone must be. I would also not buy a Byrne X-men page even while acknowledging its excellence. But you put up a Phantom Stranger page, and I will give it a lot of scrutiny.

To be candid, that is the way I have always set my bids. But, the other side is also true. There has to be some “meat on the bone” left for a dealer to buy, so unless it is a piece where the marketing is developing, and a dealer would know more than a collector abut prospective growth, you should always do better if everyone else who is bidding is a dealer.

He was an insider who also wrote stories. He seemed to have a more formal status than that at DC, mentoring artists among other things, but I don’t actually know anything. Whatever it was, it gave him access to not-readily-available DC information. In my case, he just blurted it out after I told him what I had learned in prior decades. Kind of like an unexpected tip. About those 4 stories, I am fairly certain that none of them are true. If there was a “master plan” in place all those years, which may not be the case, they are red herrings intended to make the reader think something different than the truth. If you look at issue 42, which was added to the Second Series years after it ended, you will notice that Deadman found evidence of 3 of the 4 stories in the Phantom Stranger’s brain. That would make no sense unless they are planted stories.

Clearly, Jayne Mansfield’s chest wasn’t buried with the rest of her.

I’ll keep the correct answer a secret for now; someday I’ll write a tell-all. But I will give one hint. The key question is not who the Phantom Stranger is but what he is. There may not be a who.