Next Breakout Walking Dead Comic

[Nico Esq]

 

I hoping all this is sarcasm.

 

Me too, I think Branget is just playin, but there are a number of people who are predicting the downfall of the tights b/c of cultural changes (UFC is more popular than boxing), we live in a culture of extreme sports, extreme violence, etc. As scary as it is there may be a day when non-super hero books dominate the market. We are seeing signs of it now with the hot Image books like Fatale, Walking Dead, Thief of Thieves, etc. As always, only time will tell. I doubt that Walking Dead No. 1 will ever be worth more than TMNT No. 1, but there are a lot of people whose opinions I respect that have told me with a straight face that they see that day coming in the next decade if the WD is marketed to a wider audience, gets a movie deal and other licensing deals. I don't think its going to happen, but I certainly prefer the WD to TMNT and clearly the WD is a much better written comic than TMNT.

[roastedbagel]

There's a surprising number of people who don't even know that they contain the first Walking Dead preview.

 

While this is probably true for people that bought the comics then stored them away. The people who have them on eBay though are VERY aware that they are the WD preview...

[NewEnglandGothic]

 

I hoping all of this is sarcasm.

 

Last paragraph was, first two were mindless, inexperienced speculation by yours truly.

(thumbs u

 

There is no such thing as experienced speculation, IMHO.

 

In 2008, I swore up and down that Snaked was gonna be the next BIG book. Even, requested a Registry set to Gemma.

 

Even that didn't happen.

[Nico Esq]

I agree on this with you, George on the basis of my experience with the Locke & Key preview books. Other than Angel: After The Fall #3, none of the previews in my encounters were treated all that well. Most weren't even bagged and boarded. I mean who is gonna treat a Doctor Who Classics #2 like a premium book anyway.

 

What I'm wondering is... where there more preview books before those. I spent a lot ours in New England comic shops going through back-issues working on my title. Has anyone did the same for TWD?

 

 

I thought it was an unwritten rule with Image previews that the run them in two books? That's what they've done with Thief of Thieves, Fatale, Danger Club, Harvetst, Revival, etc.

[NewEnglandGothic]

I agree on this with you, George on the basis of my experience with the Locke & Key preview books. Other than Angel: After The Fall #3, none of the previews in my encounters were treated all that well. Most weren't even bagged and boarded. I mean who is gonna treat a Doctor Who Classics #2 like a premium book anyway.

 

What I'm wondering is... where there more preview books before those. I spent a lot ours in New England comic shops going through back-issues working on my title. Has anyone did the same for TWD?

 

 

I thought it was an unwritten rule with Image previews that the run them in two books? That's what they've done with Thief of Thieves, Fatale, Danger Club, Harvetst, Revival, etc.

But, this was back in 2003. Even Invincible had more than two previews (I think- I remember another one after Masters of the Universe and Savage Dragon... But I could be thinking of Noble Causes too.).

[NewEnglandGothic]

Yup, I remember now. Tech Jacket #1.

[Solar]

I still don't get this whole 'first preview appearance' thing. Action #12 is the first Batman in an ad and nobody gives a damn.

 

I think the only book that sets historical precedence is Gobbledygook with the TMNT ad, but that would be valuable anyway because it's so rare.

[Nico Esq]

 

I hoping all of this is sarcasm.

 

Last paragraph was, first two were mindless, inexperienced speculation by yours truly.

(thumbs u

 

There is no such thing as experienced speculation, IMHO.

 

In 2008, I swore up and down that Snaked was gonna be the next BIG book. Even, requested a Registry set to Gemma.

 

Even that didn't happen.

 

It is a shame that speculation has become a dirty word b/c we all have such negative feelings about what happened in the 90s to the hobby we all love so much. Most of us are engaged in it in an effort to sell a little bit here and there so that we can make a little extra cash to afford the books we love, want to read, etc. Every comic retailer is forced to engage in it in some manner or another when they fill out their montly order form. I wish that as a community the board members did a better job of being honest with themselves about the speculation we are all engaged in, helped one another not make terrible decisions, etc. It's nice to see when good comics do well because of the quality of the work rather than the number of people stockpiling books. For me, the strangest development in this era of comics is that 2nd prints are now sometimes more valuable than first prints. We've seen it with the first issue of the Hush story arc b/c of the awesome Jim Lee cover, Walking Dead No. 33, etc. Things like that and the sucess of books like the Walking Dead will forever make speculation difficult. I just hope and pray every day that we don't see pwople who are not fans of the work buying comics in bulks as a future investment. This is clearly straying from the topic, but I'll say it anyway (and I've said it before) I think we are very lucky to be reading comics at this time in the history of the hobby because of the quality of the work that is being produced. I for one, feel very lucky to be collecting and reading comics right now and Robert Kirkman's wonderful series and awesome TV show (which got snubbed by the a**holes at the emmys) are responsible for bring so many of us back to the hobby who left b/c of the 90's melt down caused by the type of conduct I described above (among other things of course). End of rant.

[Nico Esq]

I agree on this with you, George on the basis of my experience with the Locke & Key preview books. Other than Angel: After The Fall #3, none of the previews in my encounters were treated all that well. Most weren't even bagged and boarded. I mean who is gonna treat a Doctor Who Classics #2 like a premium book anyway.

 

What I'm wondering is... where there more preview books before those. I spent a lot ours in New England comic shops going through back-issues working on my title. Has anyone did the same for TWD?

 

 

I thought it was an unwritten rule with Image previews that the run them in two books? That's what they've done with Thief of Thieves, Fatale, Danger Club, Harvetst, Revival, etc.

But, this was back in 2003. Even Invincible had more than two previews (I think- I remember another one after Masters of the Universe and Savage Dragon... But I could be thinking of Noble Causes too.).

 

very interesting ...

[Nico Esq]

I still don't get this whole 'first preview appearance' thing. Action #12 is the first Batman in an ad and nobody gives a damn.

 

I think the only book that sets historical precedence is Gobbledygook with the TMNT ad, but that would be valuable anyway because it's so rare.

 

I think the distinction for collectors is that there are actual pages of the comic so it's kind of like an ashcan (which as you are well aware was considered worthless until the 80s and 90s? I don't know ... I'm just thinking out loud and asking for input from others more than anything else. It could be manufactured by retailers who were able to buy cases of otherwise worthless comics or collectors who are fanatic about having every single appearance or a combination of a lot of different things. I guess the more important question is how these books will be treated in a year, five year, ten years, etc.?

[riveraXVX]

even if TWD one day plummeted in value I could see a resurgence in value happen around the same time most "retro" stuff makes a come back. once the 13-16 year olds now who love the walking dead but can't even do anything but dream about buying the early issues in high grade condition right now... once those kids go to school......get real jobs.... and start making actual legit $$$ for a living and then return back to their interests as a kid that they wanted then but couldnt' afford.

 

same reason I'd bet half of us are here and buy the way we do now. I know I couldn't buy comics the way I do now back when i was a kid... did I want to? of course just couldn't afford to.

 

once the interest surges back from those people 15-20-25 years from now and those smaller print run items are even fewer and fewer and further between and during that stretch the serious collectors throughout that time will have hordes of anything they could get their hands on.

 

more or less whether it dives in value or not now I can see it still being in demand years and years from now in regards to TWD

[Nico Esq]

I was shocked at the number of people who approached me to talk about a Walking Dead t-shirt I was wearing when I went out to a couple local bards in the OH/PA/WV area. About 1/4 of them knew it was a comic. None of them had read the comic. Once I told them it was based on a series of graphic novels (less of a stigma than comic books), everyone of them asked me where to get them and I sent them all to amazon for the compendium and told them that if they fell in love with the series, like I imagine they will, to check the local comic shop for issues and that some of the more rare issues are sold on ebay. It was wild there were probably almost ten people who stopped and talked to me about the series with comments like "that's my show", "that's the best show on TV", "where did you get that shirt", etc. It was actually really cool to see how many people love this series enough to approach a total stranger about his t-shirt to discuss a TV show in crowded bars and all of this happened in the span of less than 3 hours b/c I went out at 11 and was home by 2. It's like nothing I've ever seen before and I doubt that I we will ever experience a phenomenon like this again any time in the near future.

[N/A]

As much as I was joking it's silly to think superheroes will always rule the comic market. There was a time when if I said superheroes would be more popular than cowboys I would meet with the same amount of reluctance. Will superheroes still be the most popular in comics when comics collectibility dies or the other way around?

 

WD 1 (or a book in the genre) could pass the superhero greats over time. It is possible people with a combination of superheroes losing momentum. Assuming I live another 50 years will I see it? I think I will see the end of comics. In fact I'd bet on it.

[NewEnglandGothic]

I think the main thing with speculation on Modern books is when people want to compare it to older titles, like Batman, Superman and The Avengers, is it was from an era where kids read the majority of books out there. They grew up, earned money and got jobs (I hope) and wanted to relive the innocence of their youths through nostalgia of a happier time. The majority of collectors now are collectors, who don't read as much as bag and board, looking for that TMNT #1. There's no real emotional connection anymore to say 13-16 year old "kids" will seek these books out (also readily in NM/M condition) down the road. Granted, fans of the AMC TV show of The Walking Dead might want to hunt down issues, 15 years later, but I figure they will be after entertainment artifacts mainly, as seen in a lot of closed eBay auctions for assorted memorabilia. That's always been my opinion. Granted there are people who spend $15K on first edition Harry Potter books too. But, that's a whole different animal completely.

 

The stuff, we are all hoarding now is probably all wrong down the road in worth. My immediate guess would be Bone (which got a major uptick of interest from Scholastic).

 

So, for now read and collect what you like and there is no crime in speculating TWD will be worth something down the road either. Just put some thought into the idea of guys/gals with families in stable careers wanting to relive moments from issues #48 and #100 ten-fifteen years from now.

[NewEnglandGothic]

I never considered TWD a kid's book anyway. I always figured adults with $$$ were already buying it. Seems to me there's not too much growth potential there after it peaks. People will start looking at it like a genre TV show about zombies also if the actor who plays The Governor fails to show the real monster factor of the floppy (us). Look at the Emmy snub last week.

[THB]

FWIW I see The Walking Dead being continually rebooted ala Batman, Superman etc.... with every passing generation.

[maloney414]

I think the main thing with speculation on Modern books is when people want to compare it to older titles, like Batman, Superman and The Avengers, is it was from an era where kids read the majority of books out there. They grew up, earned money and got jobs (I hope) and wanted to relive the innocence of their youths through nostalgia of a happier time. The majority of collectors now are collectors, who don't read as much as bag and board, looking for that TMNT #1. There's no real emotional connection anymore to say 13-16 year old "kids" will seek these books out (also readily in NM/M condition) down the road. Granted, fans of the AMC TV show of The Walking Dead might want to hunt down issues, 15 years later, but I figure they will be after entertainment artifacts mainly, as seen in a lot of closed eBay auctions for assorted memorabilia. That's always been my opinion. Granted there are people who spend $15K on first edition Harry Potter books too. But, that's a whole different animal completely.

 

The stuff, we are all hoarding now is probably all wrong down the road in worth. My immediate guess would be Bone (which got a major uptick of interest from Scholastic).

 

So, for now read and collect what you like and there is no crime in speculating TWD will be worth something down the road either. Just put some thought into the idea of guys/gals with families in stable careers wanting to relive moments from issues #48 and #100 ten-fifteen years from now.

 

I never considered TWD a kid's book anyway. I always figured adults with $$$ were already buying it. Seems to me there's not too much growth potential there after it peaks. People will start looking at it like a genre TV show about zombies also if the actor who plays The Governor fails to show the real monster factor of the floppy (us). Look at the Emmy snub last week.

 

+1

 

I agree completely. I've always said WD is peaking right along side of the TV show. While the show is hot, the comics will be hot.

 

WD targets an older audience. The older audience are the people who spend big bucks on comics. It's doubtful there will be any 20 year rule applied to WD, since young kids aren't reading or watching now for nostalgia to kick in 20 years. People who claim the 20 year rule will kick in for WD really don't understand the 20 year rule of collectables.

 

[maloney414]

As much as I was joking it's silly to think superheroes will always rule the comic market. There was a time when if I said superheroes would be more popular than cowboys I would meet with the same amount of reluctance. Will superheroes still be the most popular in comics when comics collectibility dies or the other way around?

 

WD 1 (or a book in the genre) could pass the superhero greats over time. It is possible people with a combination of superheroes losing momentum. Assuming I live another 50 years will I see it? I think I will see the end of comics. In fact I'd bet on it.

 

Superheroes aren't losing momentum.

 

WD has a popular TV show targeting older viewers. Marvel and DC are putting out blockbuster movies creating younger fans. Even though kids may not be reading comics, superheroes are still popular with them.

 

Even if comic books end in the future, superheroes will survive in other media forms.

[N/A]

I was only concerned with comics. (thumbs u

And more specifically in the secondary market where they are not as dominate as they once used to be. Whether you consider that a loss of momentum or not is up to you.

[maloney414]

I was only concerned with comics. (thumbs u

Gotcha! (thumbs u

 

Yeah, I agree superheroes will not always be the most popular selling new comics.

 

In fact, I hope independent books get more popular. I certainly read more non-superhero stuff personelly already.