Put on your helmets, the sky is falling...

[FormerReader]

A raw copy of Valiant's X-O Manowar #1 (1992) is currently at $115: http://www.ebay.com/itm/360454814886

 

A raw copy of Valiant's X-O Manowar #1 (2012) 1:50 variant comic that is 5 days old has just sold for $202.50: http://www.ebay.com/itm/360454814886

 

I'm sure that 10 years of discussions on this board would say this is the sign of the end of all things.

 

it's the rule of 25. if that's your IQ, you shouldn't have internet access

 

 

Probably has nothing to do with the relaunch. It must be the rule of 25.

[JuliusSeizure]

I'm 40 years old...I know they *were* popular shows, but I'm surprised to see their comics showcased HERE...where $1,000 books are purchased as frequently as I purchase Ramen packets.

 

Peace,

 

Chip

Strawberry Shortcake and Care Bears are hot in the collectibles field. They are now in that rule of 25 market.

 

And they are still popular with little kids my daughter's age.

[the blob]

Your prices analogy falls short on a number of issues. If you look at any of the VVSS issues, the price distribution resembles the asymmetric returns of an event-driven hedge fund. In other words, they were only cheap, and then exploded in price, selling for 500-1000% acquisition price. There was never a decline in asset value. And that doesn't include many of the VHTF Acclaim variant covers (published in the later years) most people don't even know about.

 

Last Point: the 1990s, right? Didn't 90-95% of all comics suffer a meteoric collapse in price, ala tech stocks? If you're upset about valiant prices, and you still have them, use this to sell them and be happy about it. 1991 I was delivering newspapers as an 11 yr. old; my tips weren't great enough for me to be caught in the comic speculative bubble. haha.

 

 

vintage stuff held up pretty well, some of it even went up in value.

 

the big difference is how expensive the valiants were and how low they went. what marvels or images hit triple digits other than maybe ASM 300? NM 87 was what, maybe $50 at its peak? it kills someone to have paid $250 for a Harbinger 1 and maybe it was a $5-$10 book at some point (though, in all honesty, I'm pretty sure it has been a $25+ book for the last 10 years). Sure, paying $5 for Darker Image #1 and it being worth 10 cents later is a bigger % drop, but it hurts less (unless you bought 100 copies of Darker Image #1...). And X-O #1...was that a $100 book (I don't remember)...and I just fished a nice copy out for $3 and those probably were in some $1 and $2 boxes. Nothing went as high and as low as Valiants if you had bought them as back issues at the peak.

 

Valid points, however, the opposite is also true and possibly more prevalent for Valiant.

 

Many collectors were AWARE that books like Harbinger #1 were $100+, but never obtained them.

 

As a result, the decline in the value from $100 to $20 means that a view of the book is that it is now significantly discounted by 80% if it's $20.

A collector who would have liked to have owned Harbinger #1 at $100, but never did, might be glad to pay $20 now, 20 years later if they still wanted the book.

 

Nostalgia has two flavors:

Flavor 1) "always wanted it, but never got it, would like to finally have it"

Flavor 2) "used to have it, lost it, but would like to have it again"

 

Valiant is primarily Nostalgia Flavor 1.

 

Other hot 1990s books (Image, in particular) were easily obtainable, so Flavor 1 doesn't apply to them.

Unless collectors are actively seeking early Image books (and I haven't really seen that), Flavor 2 doesn't apply either.

 

It's the difference between the never-ending love for early Valiant, even while the company was dead...

and the short-lived love for early Image, even though the company survived.

 

Most collectors on this board are focused on older books, but they could all probably tell you whether their nostalgia is Flavor 1 or Flavor 2.

 

The meteoric rise of Valiant made Nostalgia Flavor 1 an immediate possibility, instead of taking decades.

 

most of the snide remarks seem to be from folks who spent a chunk of money on these and feel burned or maybe didn't spend huge money, but are ticked off they didn't cash out when they had the chance. and i guess some are just misinformed to a certain extent.

 

and yes, i would like to pick up a nice sharp $10 harbinger 1, but then again, I have been on the lookout for cheap pre-unity valiant opportunities since they crashed. my problem is that i am a little too cheap.

[sufunk]

Or were just joking around since this is a thread in CG titled "the sky is falling"

[ComicConnoisseur]

I'm 40 years old...I know they *were* popular shows, but I'm surprised to see their comics showcased HERE...where $1,000 books are purchased as frequently as I purchase Ramen packets.

 

Peace,

 

Chip

Strawberry Shortcake and Care Bears are hot in the collectibles field. They are now in that rule of 25 market.

 

And they are still popular with little kids my daughter's age.

Yep they are still relevant with mainstream than say some obscure character like Hourman. Another hot collectible is My Little Pony with certain figures selling for more than a CGC 9.8 copy of Walking Dead #1 !

Lots of money being made if you know what collectibles to buy and not just isolate yourself to the world of just slabbed comics.

[ComicConnoisseur]

A raw copy of Valiant's X-O Manowar #1 (1992) is currently at $115: http://www.ebay.com/itm/360454814886

 

A raw copy of Valiant's X-O Manowar #1 (2012) 1:50 variant comic that is 5 days old has just sold for $202.50: http://www.ebay.com/itm/360454814886

 

I'm sure that 10 years of discussions on this board would say this is the sign of the end of all things.

 

it's the rule of 25. if that's your IQ, you shouldn't have internet access

 

 

Probably has nothing to do with the relaunch. It must be the rule of 25.

The rule of 25 is much better then the rule of 75.

[ComicConnoisseur]

Your prices analogy falls short on a number of issues. If you look at any of the VVSS issues, the price distribution resembles the asymmetric returns of an event-driven hedge fund. In other words, they were only cheap, and then exploded in price, selling for 500-1000% acquisition price. There was never a decline in asset value. And that doesn't include many of the VHTF Acclaim variant covers (published in the later years) most people don't even know about.

 

Last Point: the 1990s, right? Didn't 90-95% of all comics suffer a meteoric collapse in price, ala tech stocks? If you're upset about valiant prices, and you still have them, use this to sell them and be happy about it. 1991 I was delivering newspapers as an 11 yr. old; my tips weren't great enough for me to be caught in the comic speculative bubble. haha.

 

 

vintage stuff held up pretty well, some of it even went up in value.

 

the big difference is how expensive the valiants were and how low they went. what marvels or images hit triple digits other than maybe ASM 300? NM 87 was what, maybe $50 at its peak? it kills someone to have paid $250 for a Harbinger 1 and maybe it was a $5-$10 book at some point (though, in all honesty, I'm pretty sure it has been a $25+ book for the last 10 years). Sure, paying $5 for Darker Image #1 and it being worth 10 cents later is a bigger % drop, but it hurts less (unless you bought 100 copies of Darker Image #1...). And X-O #1...was that a $100 book (I don't remember)...and I just fished a nice copy out for $3 and those probably were in some $1 and $2 boxes. Nothing went as high and as low as Valiants if you had bought them as back issues at the peak.

 

Valid points, however, the opposite is also true and possibly more prevalent for Valiant.

 

Many collectors were AWARE that books like Harbinger #1 were $100+, but never obtained them.

 

As a result, the decline in the value from $100 to $20 means that a view of the book is that it is now significantly discounted by 80% if it's $20.

A collector who would have liked to have owned Harbinger #1 at $100, but never did, might be glad to pay $20 now, 20 years later if they still wanted the book.

 

Nostalgia has two flavors:

Flavor 1) "always wanted it, but never got it, would like to finally have it"

Flavor 2) "used to have it, lost it, but would like to have it again"

 

Valiant is primarily Nostalgia Flavor 1.

 

Other hot 1990s books (Image, in particular) were easily obtainable, so Flavor 1 doesn't apply to them.

Unless collectors are actively seeking early Image books (and I haven't really seen that), Flavor 2 doesn't apply either.

 

It's the difference between the never-ending love for early Valiant, even while the company was dead...

and the short-lived love for early Image, even though the company survived.

 

Most collectors on this board are focused on older books, but they could all probably tell you whether their nostalgia is Flavor 1 or Flavor 2.

 

The meteoric rise of Valiant made Nostalgia Flavor 1 an immediate possibility, instead of taking decades.

 

most of the snide remarks seem to be from folks who spent a chunk of money on these and feel burned or maybe didn't spend huge money, but are ticked off they didn't cash out when they had the chance. and i guess some are just misinformed to a certain extent.

and yes, i would like to pick up a nice sharp $10 harbinger 1, but then again, I have been on the lookout for cheap pre-unity valiant opportunities since they crashed. my problem is that i am a little too cheap.

+1

 

[Lobo1969]

I am happy to recently add these to my collection.

 

 

CLINK Right? If so I may have been the under bidder on both....

[Gatsby77]

Again, I'm actually a huge Valiant fan, and X-O's my favorite character.

 

But if X-O # 1s from '92 legitimately hit $50-$60 for raws, I'll sell all 8 of my copies.

 

The book never went higher than $35 back in 92-93. For it to do so now? Insane.

[SharpComics.com]

Again, I'm actually a huge Valiant fan, and X-O's my favorite character.

 

But if X-O # 1s from '92 legitimately hit $50-$60 for raws, I'll sell all 8 of my copies.

 

The book never went higher than $35 back in 92-93. For it to do so now? Insane.

 

In the Chicagoland area in 92-93, that book was selling for upwards of $150.... ALL DAY LONG

[Gatsby77]

X-O # 1?

 

The only regular Valiants that broke $100 in Philly back then were Harbinger 1, Harbinger 0, Magnus 0, and Magnus 12. Even Rai 3-4 topped out at $85 apiece.

 

I never saw books like Rai 1, X-0 1 or Solar 1 even hit $50, although Magnus 1 did (for a brief time).

 

Here's one of two Valiant covers I own--Chaos Effect Alpha:

 

 

 

[Bosco685]

X-O # 1?

 

The only regular Valiants that broke $100 in Philly back then were Harbinger 1, Harbinger 0, Magnus 0, and Magnus 12. Even Rai 3-4 topped out at $85 apiece.

 

I never saw books like Rai 1, X-0 1 or Solar 1 even hit $50, although Magnus 1 did (for a brief time).

I know sometimes it can feel like our view on the market is the right one based on whatever experience we may have, even if it was just in our region.

 

But if Brad states a price, it most probably is because he was also getting those prices since he has been selling for so long. I trust in what he says based on knowing this.

 

Being fair, though, I was buying back then as Valiants were hitting the shops, and I only remembered X-O 1s going for $50-$60. But I was stationed in Georgia and then Colorado, so I only had visibility to those two markets - pre-Ebay days when now you have a larger view on things.

 

And that included Mile High, since I was within driving distance to their super store, and had the "pleasure" of bumping into Chuck a few times. They were even only asking $60 - maybe $75 - at the time.

[Ken Aldred]

 

In England, Harbinger 1 peaked at £100 (around $160), and Rai 3, I saw a copy go for £130 (around $210).

[gyro-1]

World wide has a run of RAI at basicaly cost of slabing in 9.8

wonder how fast they sell?

 

http://www.wwcomics.com/newproduct.asp