BeholdersEye

I thought that "Shilling" was more an act of bidding on your own material or an owner having a representative bid for the specific purpose of increasing the price or buying back their piece should they win. If a dealer bids and they don't cancel, but honor the win, then there's nothing wrong with that, even if it's in the spirit of trying to push the market value of artwork. If they're willing to pay and buy if they win, then there's nothing wrong with that. Even when dealers buy to instantly put on their site to resell at a higher rate, in an auction, everyone has a chance to be a winner, dealers have deeper pockets, broader connections and the ability to pay more and use it for trade bait, layaway payment plans for customers, etc.

Did Yanick go "Digital" so no more original art is being generated? I thought that's what I heard a few years ago.

I think the HA consignment minimum is for their "Signature Auctions" floor sessions, and it's a single piece appraisal. I'm not sure if they have a minimum submission per client, as it seems there's a shortage of quality consignments, so in competing with ComicLink, they probably waive any minimums on items that they know will sell for decent money so they can collect their approx 25% on the buyers/sellers premiums to make it worth their while. This piece I think they'd probably relegate to recommending listed on their weekly internet auctions held every Monday. It might be justified into their Signature Auction, internet session, but I doubt if they'd put it into their live auction sessions where pieces should be, at minimum in the $3-5k range in value.

As far as Jim Lee being "the next" Stan Lee, I'd personally say, not by a long-shot in any sense of who Stan Lee is, what he represented and his impact on the comic industry. I get a sense that Jim Lee is just a great artist. He has no place as a business executive. He draws great illustrations, but doesn't offer much in terms of marketing innovation. He's not very charismatic nor even personable in public for the most part other than the obligatory smile and friendly gestures to the fans. Sure, he was one of the founders of Image Comics. Sure, he was the artist behind one of if not the most mass produced and largest volume selling comic, X-Men #1. He hit a lull only to be resurrected by his participation in Batman "Hush" - - but aside from the X-Men and "Hush" I'm not sure if his body of work has anything meaningful other than having pretty pictures. He's not created any top tier characters. So, not even close to being Stan Lee as a person or a creator. I'd rank many others as the go-to spokesperson for the comic industry ahead of Jim Lee, such as Todd McFarlane who has way more business savvy than Jim. There's really nobody like Stan Lee who both created a multitude of characters, but also was able to mesmerize a listening audience. I'd say the ones who are great spokespersons for comics today are Neal Adams, Robert Kirkman, and Jim Steranko, as good captivating storytellers as public speakers. I don't not like Jim Lee, but I do think he's a bit over-rated. To me, Stan Lee was "Walt Disney" in that he created a universe and is an immortal iconic figure who nobody will ever compare to. In 50, 100, or 200+ years, his impact will continue to grow as part of his legacy to legendary status, much like there's Disney the brand and Disneyland with a plethora of characters, Stan Lee's name will be forever associated with the top Super-Heroes in pop culture.

I think when an art piece is sold within CAF Live, it's really really really important for the sustainability of CAF Live and those selling on the platform to keep items up as "SOLD" - - having the price is preferable, but just knowing an item existed during the 2 days and was available for purchase, but sold is key - - This sends a message to buyers out there that great items were available on CAF as well as great items were available from that seller - - It gets all of the slow lookie-loo's, tire kickers, and pennywise/poundfoolish negotiatiators to re-strategize and become active shoppers and committed buyers if they fear the potential of losing the opportunity to add a piece of art to their collection. The 1st CAF Live taught me that lesson, and this time around, when I saw something I liked, I committed to the buy right away, no nickle n' dime negotiations if the price looked right. If the price looked wrong, I just passed it by and kept scrolling down the galleries. If the item sold were removed during the auction, it gives less context to how awesome CAF Live is. Nothing gets my emotions up more than seeing a piece sold that I wanted, and even more so when it's at a price I would have gladly paid or paid a lot higher. It is actually encouraging that great deals can be found as well as notable new material at CAF Live. I didn't see any roadblocks or areas that needed improving, it was a great system. I like being able to sort by Day on Sunday, and sort by price too.

A) - I do think ComicLink is a good venue for modern art, where Heritage does well for Silver Age and older art. The ComicLink format of a timed ending (like eBay) allowing for sniping compared to Heritage's "going, going... not yet gone" style of allowing everyone an opportunity to bid and buy is always compared. I do think that ComicLink's format can actually be advantageous to certain pieces, forcing bidding warriors to get overzelous towards the end, fearing sniping and throwing big fat gaudy overinflated bids to ensure a win, and it just takes two combatants to cause a sudden surge. Where with Heritage, it's just an incremental notch above each other 'til someone taps out. I've been known to throw an $8k bid down on a piece ending around $2k that ends at $3k for me on ComicLink because I was willing to pay $8k or didn't want to lose the auction. B) - Mainly because you'd mentioned it was known to be for sale at a store in Las Vegas for $200k and was recently readily available, so isn't fresh to market, and it sound like $200k was too high and there were no takers (I'm sure plenty of lower offers 'tho) tells me, logically it shouldn't sell for $200k or more. In fact, feeling there were offers made that were declined, I'd venture to guess it's probably going to go for $150k (in ComicLink currency, not like Heritage where a bid of $150k ends up a $180k bill after their buyer's premium). I think the seller should have rested the piece, retired it from circulation / availability for at least a year, then bring it out for a better freshness to market. C) - I think it's a good cover artistically. Subject matter-wise, it's not the best, with no great villains, but does have the black costume (pre-venom too!) and the McF' webbing. The fact that it's got the last page with Venom as a true 1st appearance makes #299 a key issue. I wonder what would sell for more, this cover or the last page featuring the 1st appearance of Venom... I feel it would be the interior page by leaps and bounds, and may even challenge that the last pg of #299 could/should be worth more than the cover of #300 (basically because that cover has non OA elements to it and is rather simple, yes iconic, but less original art substance, and #299 end pg is the 1st rendered appearance.

$680,000 because it is a Spider-Man cover and iconic, but The Punisher is one of those mediocre characters who, despite a big push, publisher support, film/TV and a cool logo, is kind of a weak property not supported in comics and low potential for blockbuster success. $2 Million feels like insane hot air pie-in-the-sky dreams. I can see it going between $600k to $800k and if featured on Heritage or ComicLink where more art collectors gravitate to, getting higher final hammers by deep pocket impulse investor buyers or even dealers.

Is this an indoor event or an outdoor event?

Yeah, promotional sales are great. I love when dealer advertise limited time % off sales. I'm not a fan of Coupon Codes or seeing the "Enter coupon code" boxes on online checkouts. I used to run a direct to consumer marketing company and we found that unless you actually had regular coupons and wanted to use the data for affiliates or to see where/how people found out about your offer, an inactive coupon code campaign loses sales, as there's then a perception that coupon exists and shoppers google for that code endlessly to no avail and sometimes ultimately have an attitude of "I won't buy now, I'll wait for the coupon" (similar to how people felt about shopping at "Bed Bath and Beyond" famous for their 20% off or $5 off of $15 mailed coupon postcards).

My one pet peeve is dealers / sellers who charge fees if you pay by credit card or insist on you paying their Pay Pal fees if using Goods/Services (as opposed to Friends/Family personal to circumvent fees). I feel, as a business, you've taken a role to behave professionally. It's amateur to nickle and dime the payment process. Honestly, if a seller is so worried about that 2-3% merchant processing fee or Pay Pal fee, they're running a poorly designed business, it's the cost of doing business. It makes them look petty. If a seller is running such a low margin business that they need that small bump in revenue, they should simple take into account that fee and raise their prices by even 5% or 10% to cover it (and even add profitability) or inversely, instead of charging a fee for credit card users, offer a discount for those who don't and pay in equivalent to cash if they've raised their prices. I've consulted with one dealer to change their business structure (charging fees based on payment processing) to open their eyes to just how petty they were and looked like, and they did change it. I said "welcome to the big leagues" as they've been promoted out of the minor leagues.

I actually respect Albert Moy for his business model. It replicates a professional retail store. You don't go into a Target, Wal-Mart, Nordstrom or Costco and haggle with a sticker that clearly states the price. Do you want everyone to be like Coollines dealing like used car salesmen from Tijuana? Rate integrity is important. If you deal with a seller who lists something for $5k then offer $4k and they accept, you'll always ignore the price tag. If that same seller counteroffers you, and you reach an agreement, but the next time he takes your offer without a counteroffer, you feel you may have offered too much and could have offered less. It's a amateur business model. I enjoy buying from Albert and know his price tags are what they are. As a seller you avoid low-ball offers from buyers who don't come strong with their best foot forward trying to get a deal. As a buyer, you can feel treated fairly from a straight shooter. The marketplace benefits from sellers not gauging and buyers not wasting sellers time. I do get it, there's no comparable nor competition with "one of a kind" items like OA, no price guide and many work that way of what they wish for ($5k), what they want ($4k) and what they'll take ($2k) so price at the top giving them wiggle room as that's how so many buyers operate, but it would be nice to normalize the professionalism.

I feel if they do grade tighter than BGS (and PSA for that matter or any other peers) it's going to be awesome for CGC in the long run, having the true prestige and integrity of "top of class" integrity and not like GAI and other companies did in the past "handing out perfect 10's" to appease submitters with the illusion of perfection. It's going to be both a collector's and reseller's nightmare if CGC ever went that route. Already, people seem to be flocking towards companies who "grade tight" with accuracy. I hope CGC starts accepting all cards. It's 4 corners, 4 edges, 2 surfaces and scrutinizing the centering. Their cases look great by design as far as the label goes. I think it's a mistake upcharging for Sub-Grades, where BGS started doing that. I think if CGC just does it by default the way BGS used to do, and it sets the company standard, it's way smarter, even if it means raising their rates/prices. Having 2 separate standards is flawed. Where some may see one as an upgrade it's truly a downgrade for the lower tier and a bad move. I think it was a horrible move for BGS to offer "no sub-grades" I hope CGC just offers one service level. Also, don't get involved in the value of cards. BGS doesn't. PSA supposedly now does. A card is a card, whether it's worth $1 or $1 million, aside from insurance issues, the rates should be the same. Grading is supposed to be unbiased and you're grading a card, you're being paid for a service. There's no need to put your hands in a customer's back pocket.

I hope CGC doesn't make the same mistake other card grading companies did by offering "loose" grading and assigning high grades to appease submitter's fantasies and desires. If I were PSA and BGS (or a hard core collector), I'd submit about 1,000 MTG cards already graded by them for crossover grading analysis, then see how CGC really stacks up vs their peers when it comes to grading. Only a fool would submit all of their cards to CGC out of the gate without seeing how their efforts plays out in the hobby, otherwise you're paying for acrylic card holders that have no integrity if it ends up their reputation is sub-par.

It seems like leaving both money and opportunity on the table by only grading Pokemon and MTG cards. A card has 4 corners, 4 edges and 2 surfaces (front and back), so it should not make a difference what they're grading. It's like if a competitor to CGC emerged, as CGC's Card Division should be looking to earn market share from PSA and BGS and to a degree SGC (who is trying to climb back into the mix), and the new comic grading company said they only will grade Marvel and DC but not Dark Horse, IDW, Image, etc. It's a flawed approach to entering the market hoping to get forward momentum. It should be easy to set up grading centers where PSA and BGS are located to "steal" their employees if staffing is an issue too. CGC needs to get into the non-sports and sports card market out of the gate. MTG and Pokemon are popular but too niche.

This is a dream page to see, thanks for sharing. It seems very well priced compared to what other art of that era has sold for. I wouldn't be surprised if you put it up for auction if it exceeded $20k.

People like this impact the lives of their victims. He should not be fined and jailed simply as that. He should be stripped of all financial assets to be distributed to cover damages and whatever he can't cover to re-pay those he harmed plus additional monies to as damages, should have future earnings garnished. I'd not even contest nor blink an eye if he were incarcerated for a long term or even put to death, knowing he's a non-contributing member of society and a cancer who will always seek out victims to exploit for personal gain.

I'd say legitimate in that his original intentions were to admirable and honest, but his lack of communication and process leads me to believe he's a typical person who doesn't see anything wrong with a "crime of opportunity" - - the same type who would steal something left unattended if they felt they could get away with it, such as finding a wallet on the street with ID and taking the money out and sticking it in their pocket without guilt.

The problem with eBay and selling international isn't just the fraud. I had a recent legitimate sale to a legitimate customer who waited 2 months for a parcel sent via USPS to the UK, so not even a 3rd world country or a communist regime, and he grew impatient despite the proof of mailing, a USPS tracking status update (showing the parcel was en route but stalled at every hub and not delivered yet. So, he filed a "request for refund" without consulting with me. I provided evidence of mailing, tracking information, tracking status updates as well as the USPS disclaimer on their own website disclaiming the delays in delivery service due to Covid-19. It doesn't matter. In the wisdom of eBay, they automatically side with the buyer 98% of the time, as in this case. Issued him a full refund including the exorbitant shipping cost and closed the case. So, I'm out the product, and obviously out the money, spend money to send an item out as if it basically was a free gift because I'm certain the item will arrive, but am almost as certain the buyer will accept the item, won't reach out to me to repay me or send it back, nor will there be any way to recoup my losses. FYI - If a buyer does do this to you and you're forced to give a refund, I believe you can protest the case and if the item delivers within 30 days of the claim, you can petition for a refund/repayment under the eBay seller's protection. International customers are not worth dealing with quite frankly. I'd only do it off-line (not on eBay) and insist my terms are Pay Pal personal or a payment system where the buyer has zero recourse to force a refund, call their credit card processor and get a charge-back or any financial risk whatsoever on my side.

Question: Will there be a CGC presence to accept in-person drop off submissions?

This was a great inaugural event. It as nice to have the ability to sort by price and vendor type. It was helpful to search by keywords typing in artist names, titles or characters. I do like the 18 piece limit, forcing sellers to showcase their "best of the best" - and I feel, if a seller has more than 18 pieces, that's what their CAF Gallery is for and where additional merchandise can easily reside and be accessed. I do like the fact that every seller I encountered was friendly and prompt with responses. They were very professional as well. In relation to that, if this does grow, I'd love to see Premium CAF members start to get "feedback ratings" where a buyer can leave a simple verified positive experience vote, so that there's a certain level of assurance to buyers that the seller is on the up n' up. It's hard for some to just trust paying cash in advance $3,000 or more, and would be nice if CAF developed a system outside of CAF Live to evaluate sellers to instill that confidence it's a trusted seller. Not as complex as reviews or anything other than some sort of voting system that isn't easy to fraudulently manipulate. I do hope that CAF Live doesn't occur with frequency, not for any other reason that if it becomes a routine ritual, it will diminish the value of making this something special to look forward to. I think quarterly is the most frequently this should happen. Monthly would be an overkill and Weekly would simply be fruitless.

The most pleasant surprise was that of the six (6) individual sellers that I purchased from it didn't feel like "Amateur Hour" when it came to payment via Pay Pal and doing the ultra lame "send it by friends and family otherwise if goods and service, you pay the 3%, as a few million dollar high profile comic art dealers often unprofessionally practice that's so short term greedy from a customer's perspective. One dealer offered free shipping, even 'tho it wasn't listed. One dealer did the reverse Pay Pal fee reimbursement and said... if you want to, pay via Friends and Family and YOU (the buying customer) garners the 3% discount off the purchase price. It's so refreshing to see people treat their business professionally. KUDOS to the CAF COMMUNITY !!! You don't go to a major retailer, use your credit card, then told you need to pay an up-charge to cover their merchant processing fees, as it's commonly known those fees are a the cost of doing business and part of the overhead that's built into the pricing. I cringe in embarrassment on behalf of sellers who outline customers have to pay the Pay Pal fees as folks who "don't get it" and would be better off raising their prices by that 3% or even 5-10% to cover anticipated fees and not get so petty with their customers, especially someone about to spend $3-5k. It's the same feeling I get when airlines upcharge for luggage or hotels charge the resort fee. Just bake it into the initial price and be done with the nickle n' dimeing antics. Most sellers responded promptly, with only one getting back at the end of the day, but with a confirmation of availability, so I feel was honorable and dutiful.

Unless it's a passion play as a fan, the rates are so high, if you're on a budget that the $15k you'd be paying for a single figure would buy you probably 2 or 3 of the really nice pieces on the ComicLink auctions closing on 06/02/20 next week. Jim Lee commissions are market value after looking at his charity auctions but are not solid investments in my opinion, if anything they feel like they have the potential to stagnate or go down a little, depending on the character you get and what mood he's in to either fall asleep at the wheel or amp it up with extra bells and whistles. Go with published Jim Lee are, you know exactly what you're getting and it's recognized among the elite collectors as grail work

FYI - A Steve Ditko Charleton Comics "Scary Tales #11" Cover is going up on ComicLink auctions https://www.comiclink.com/auctions/item.asp?back=%2FAUCTIONS%2FPREVIEW.ASP%3Fcode%3D2020may%26itemtype%3D1%26Artist%3DSTEVE%20DITKO%26searchdbf%3D0%23Item_1397006&id=1397006&itemType=1 It's an end page where the last semi-splash panel was used for the cover artwork Here's the published cover: https://comicbookrealm.com/series/8150/97641/charlton-comics-scary-tales-issue-11

If, in mid-April we, as the general public aren't able to stand within 6 ft of each other and couldn't gather where groups of 20-50 were considered large, logic would say, SDCC was not going to happen. We can't even go out to eat dinner as a family in public let alone with friends. Imagine 50,000... 100,000... 150,000 + people getting together at a sporting event, concert or convention. The remedy for the virus won't be a light switch that automatically opens back up to "business as usual" come that one day you're able to dine in a restaurant. They say, the last places to be allowed to operate will be the big events like Comic Con, sporting events, concerts, amusement parks and movie theaters. So, it's a long way coming. We've not even seen the worst the virus has to offer yet. It's not even pinnacled. There is no cure, no vaccine, not pinpointed cause, no true protection. Comic Con is one of the worst environments as well, the crowds to line up to get in, the waiting for Hall H, the exhibit hall is hard to navigate as well without bumping into people. Comic/Pop Culture fans also have a bad hygiene stigma of being sloppy and unkempt. It's a recipe for disaster to hold the event. On the positive side, I do think that exhibitors can salvage their annual payday at SDCC by going online. Exclusives can still be sold. Artist's Alley creators can do at home commissions as well as private signings. The studios can make their presentations to hype up their releases online. Comic book dealers can sell online. There are options, maybe not the best nor driver of impulse and excitement, but transactions and communication can still be made, maybe even more so and better online to the entire world as well rather than limited to attendees. The only thing missing is the social interaction, the human experience (getting autographs, seeing stars, etc.) Cosplayers can still dress up at home or post videos. Gamers can still play games online I hope the comic community thinks smart and innovative to keep their businesses relevant and profitable. .

People seem to like Miles, which leads me to say he has a good creative team supporting the character with storytelling, more so than just pretty pictures and flashy artwork. Kamala Khan seems forced into popularity via the PC ain't it cool world, of she's Pakistani and Muslim race/religion card route. Nothing too dynamic about her as a brilliant character. I sort of feel, with all of these existing characters being reimagined as a new ethnicity or gender, the ultimate character to create would be an Elderly Buddhist Transgender Homosexual Physically Disabled Bi-Racial with Downs Syndrome to take over the mantle of an existing popular character like Deadpool. Spider-Gwen is visually cool, driven by great art, good writing and a unique twist, so feels like there can be more substance to develop upon here if they stray away from the whole Spider-Gwen Stacy aspects of her name. Silk seems like yet another young female super hero, but has the potential of all to be most unique and break free from being a copy cat lame creation. So, I'd probably be a buyer of Silk and Miles. At current prices I'd sell Kamala. I'd hold Spider-Gwen despite the high prices that seem overpriced.