The Absolute Hardest to Find 90's books. 7 7

[juggernaut]

Supergirl #1 3rd print is in the same category...

 

Supergirl #1 (1996) ??

[RockMyAmadeus]

Here, then, are some more actually rare 90's books..

 

The Ultraverse Golds.

 

Now, I don't mean Ultraforce, which is around in abundance, and only exists as a gold hologram cover...

 

I mean Hardcase, Mantra, Prime, etc.

 

In fact, Prime #1 Gold Hologram is the rarest Ultraverse book that exists. The rumored runs on these were 200-300 copies.

 

Impossible books, from a company that very few care about.

 

I think I might seen a few at the con on the weekend. I might have to pay closer attention to those holograms.

 

If you do find Ultraverse Gold Holos, buy them. There's a small, but willing, market for these. I have little doubt that a Prime #1 Gold is a $200 book.

 

And no, I'm not kidding.

 

You could easily get $40-$50 for the others, too.

[RockMyAmadeus]

Supergirl #1 3rd print is in the same category...

 

Supergirl #1 (1996) ??

 

The very same.

[Gatsby77]

Hah--the mention of Ultraverse golds inspired me to look up the Dark Horse "Comics Greatest Worlds" incentives--I have a mess of the monthly trade paperbacks somewhere.

 

And they're on Ebay for as little as $1.80 (plus shipping) each! Dang!

[ComicConnoisseur]

Does this book belong in this thread?

no believe it or not that book had a print run of over 300,000, yes the other version is over a million.This was an incentive for the lcs to order over a million. So this is not rare, I would say NM 87 and 98 are rarer than this.

[valiantman]

Does this book belong in this thread?

no believe it or not that book had a print run of over 300,000, yes the other version is over a million.This was an incentive for the lcs to order over a million. So this is not rare, I would say NM 87 and 98 are rarer than this.

 

Not true... notice the UPC. The book you're thinking of has Spidey's head in that spot.

 

The Gold with UPC version is probably the "rarest" thanks to the stacks of Platinum turning up,

but "rarest" of Spider-man #1 is still about 10,000 copies.

[ComicConnoisseur]

Does this book belong in this thread?

no believe it or not that book had a print run of over 300,000, yes the other version is over a million.This was an incentive for the lcs to order over a million. So this is not rare, I would say NM 87 and 98 are rarer than this.

 

Not true... notice the UPC. The book you're thinking of has Spidey's head in that spot.

 

The Gold UPC version is probably the "rarest" thanks to the stacks of Platinum turning up,

but "rarest" of Spider-man #1 is still about 10,000 copies.

thanks for clarifying this, what do you think the print run was for the gold and how many version of this McFarlane Spidey are there?

Edited August 31, 2010 by ComicConnoisseur

[valiantman]

Does this book belong in this thread?

no believe it or not that book had a print run of over 300,000, yes the other version is over a million.This was an incentive for the lcs to order over a million. So this is not rare, I would say NM 87 and 98 are rarer than this.

 

Not true... notice the UPC. The book you're thinking of has Spidey's head in that spot.

 

The Gold UPC version is probably the "rarest" thanks to the stacks of Platinum turning up,

but "rarest" of Spider-man #1 is still about 10,000 copies.

thanks for clarifying this, what do you think the print run was for the gold and how many version of this McFarlane Spidey are there?

 

300,000 is probably correct for Spider-man #1 Gold with Spidey-head in the UPC area.

10,000 is the "guesstimate" for Spider-man #1 Gold with UPC code...

it is probably higher than 10,000... but if they are Wal-mart distributed "reprints",

then they probably didn't survive as often because no one was looking for them,

or because they went to a lot of kids (how tragic ), or because collectors didn't

realize the UPC version was different from the Spidey-head version (at first).

[RockMyAmadeus]

The Spiderman #1 Gold UPC shouldn't exist at all...it is a "freak", caught between the normal practices of the past, and the new realities of comics in the 90's.

 

Spider-Man #1 Gold is the second printing of the book, printed because the first printings sold out at the distributor level. Because second printings (as opposed to reprints) weren't common at the time, and since "reprints" had historically been sold through alternative distribution channels like department stores (the most recent examples being the "multi-pack" DC reprints of various late 80's Superman and Batman books), there really was no mechanism in place to handle a "second printing" for newsstand distribution. Up to that point (including books like Dark Knight #1-3, Green Arrow: Long Bow Hunters #1, Ghost Rider #1, Killing Joke), second printings were printed for and sold to the direct market only. Partly because of the peculiarities of the newsstand market (there was no such thing as "re-orders" for that market, and most books arrived 2-3 weeks AFTER the direct market copies) and partly because it was assumed there would be no interest in second or later printings at the newsstand level, such books simply didn't exist.

 

What can be gleaned is that the second print/UPC code book was printed "by special request" (they weren't requesting a special variant, just more copies to sell) from Wal-Mart, which had sold a boatload of the first printings themselves.

 

Since Wal-Mart was a "newsstand" distribution channel, all comics they ordered would have to have a UPC code, and since there weren't any newsstand copies of the first printing left, the hybrid second print/UPC book was born. Since Spiderman #1 Gold was ALSO a hit, Marvel continued to use the "gold second printing" device for a couple of years, at which point print runs had become so immense, second printings were no longer necessary, and after that the Crash, and second printings were REALLY no longer necessary. It is likely the first, last, and only time in history that there was a "newsstand" version for a second printing variant.

 

It is assumed, but not proven, that these were printed by special order from Wal-Mart because the only known sources for these books were Wal-Mart.

 

By the by....if ANYONE has proof of "newsstand variants" (that is, copies with UPC codes) of later printings on ANY comic book, it would be warmly welcomed...particularly for books like Killing Joke or any of the other Marvel second printings.

[Gatsby77]

Is there a current market for Image newsstand variants? Or even a complete list? I have a WildCATS # 2 newsstand (no foil) and a Supreme # 1 (no foil), but does anyone care about these?

 

And this reaches into Modern, but how about a complete list of all of the $.25 Marvel comics that also had full-price $2.99 newsstand versions (like Daredevil vol. 2 # 41)?

 

Did every Marvel title have a $.25 promo book? The only ones I can recall right now are Daredevil, Hulk, and Fantastic Four.

[valiantman]

In an "opposite case" from the UPC editions, Acclaim published two comics which were "blister pack exclusives"

where the UPC code was removed (so as not to confuse the barcode scanner for the blister pack).

 

 

Not every blister pack includes a "no UPC" variant.

 

It seems like the design of the blister pack must have been changed

to block the UPC box on the comics inside... maybe the initial designs

of the package would have left the original UPC in view.

 

For whatever reason, there are two Acclaim books that exist as "no UPC" variants, blister pack exclusives.

Apparently they were printed specifically for the blister packs.

 

 

 

The UPC box is visible on the front cover of all the "normal" editions of these two books.

 

Take a small publisher (Acclaim), create a small number of blister packs (Heroes & Legends),

and include a "no UPC" variant in only some of those packs...

and you're left with a big question mark when it comes to the number in existence.

[RockMyAmadeus]

Is there a current market for Image newsstand variants? Or even a complete list? I have a WildCATS # 2 newsstand (no foil) and a Supreme # 1 (no foil), but does anyone care about these?

 

Absolutely.

 

And this reaches into Modern, but how about a complete list of all of the $.25 Marvel comics that also had full-price $2.99 newsstand versions (like Daredevil vol. 2 # 41)?

 

Did every Marvel title have a $.25 promo book? The only ones I can recall right now are Daredevil, Hulk, and Fantastic Four.

 

Fantastic Four #60

Avengers #77

Uncanny X-Men #423

DD #41

Hulk #55

 

Namor #1 ONLY exists as a 25 cent issue.

[Connor Underwood-migration]

I have several of those full holographic covers from Ultraverse and I don't think the 3-D aspect will survive. I mean these holograms are fading or diminishing over a shorter period of time than I expected. Will they continue to go all silvery and lose their 3-D thing? Probably. And sooner than you think, I'll bet. Perhaps the technology of the time couldn't test how long they would last. Perhaps the publishers used the least expensive technology at the time. Maybe that's why they're turning into silver foil covers.

[juggernaut]

The Spiderman #1 Gold UPC shouldn't exist at all...it is a "freak", caught between the normal practices of the past, and the new realities of comics in the 90's.

 

Spider-Man #1 Gold is the second printing of the book, printed because the first printings sold out at the distributor level. Because second printings (as opposed to reprints) weren't common at the time, and since "reprints" had historically been sold through alternative distribution channels like department stores (the most recent examples being the "multi-pack" DC reprints of various late 80's Superman and Batman books), there really was no mechanism in place to handle a "second printing" for newsstand distribution. Up to that point (including books like Dark Knight #1-3, Green Arrow: Long Bow Hunters #1, Ghost Rider #1, Killing Joke), second printings were printed for and sold to the direct market only. Partly because of the peculiarities of the newsstand market (there was no such thing as "re-orders" for that market, and most books arrived 2-3 weeks AFTER the direct market copies) and partly because it was assumed there would be no interest in second or later printings at the newsstand level, such books simply didn't exist.

 

What can be gleaned is that the second print/UPC code book was printed "by special request" (they weren't requesting a special variant, just more copies to sell) from Wal-Mart, which had sold a boatload of the first printings themselves.

 

Since Wal-Mart was a "newsstand" distribution channel, all comics they ordered would have to have a UPC code, and since there weren't any newsstand copies of the first printing left, the hybrid second print/UPC book was born. Since Spiderman #1 Gold was ALSO a hit, Marvel continued to use the "gold second printing" device for a couple of years, at which point print runs had become so immense, second printings were no longer necessary, and after that the Crash, and second printings were REALLY no longer necessary. It is likely the first, last, and only time in history that there was a "newsstand" version for a second printing variant.

 

It is assumed, but not proven, that these were printed by special order from Wal-Mart because the only known sources for these books were Wal-Mart.

 

By the by....if ANYONE has proof of "newsstand variants" (that is, copies with UPC codes) of later printings on ANY comic book, it would be warmly welcomed...particularly for books like Killing Joke or any of the other Marvel second printings.

 

Interesting

[valiantman]

The book being discussed deserves a better photo.

[P Keel]

Nice!!!! Is there a way to see who submitted my book and when?

[valiantman]

Nice!!!! Is there a way to see who submitted my book and when?

 

When? Yes. CGC certification numbers reference notes that include the grading date.

Who? No. CGC doesn't reveal what clients submit which books.

[Warlord]

Predator Vs Magnus TPB

 

Not a gold/platinum/signed limited edition. Just apparently had few orders and very few were printed.

 

Edited September 1, 2010 by Warlord

[juggernaut]

Predator Vs Magnus TPB

 

Not a gold/platinum/signed limited edition. Just apparently had few orders and very few were printed.

 

 

[CJ]

Not sure how many are out there but I have owned two (only own 1 currently)

Its an error, somewhat like the Gold UPC Spider-Man #1

Back when Marvel did all there 25 cent issues and 9 cent FF I found these two at a grocery store.

Cover has the .25 cent indica but in the UPC area it has a a higher price.