• When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.

Rat Queens - Kurtis J. Wiebe, Meg Dejmal, John Upchurch
2 2

Started by buddymagoo,

1,617 posts in this topic

Crimebuster

Crimebuster

Posted
Posted (edited)

I tried to buy a lot of Rat Queens #1-5 on ebay over the weekend so I could read the series and see what it's all about.

 

It ended up selling for $36 plus shipping.

 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/RAT-QUEENS-5-Issue-Comic-Run-1-2-3-4-5-iMAGE-1st-print-Lot-/310951459732?pt=US_Comic_Books&hash=item486626bb94

 

 

If you look at the sold listings for similar lots on ebay, it's pretty crazy.

 

April 29 - $13.48 (plus $5.98 shipping)

May 2 - $25

May 9 - $36 (plus $5.98 shipping)

 

Of course, i think that April 29 price might be an outlier on the low end. But what's particularly odd about this last lot going for $42 after shipping is that that breaks down to $8.40 per issue. You can buy each individual issue on ebay for less than that even if you factor in the fact that buying them individually means you'll be paying five times the shipping cost! So I don't see what value the buyer was getting from buying the whole lot.

 

I am curious if this is just an anomaly, or if it represents new interest generated by people reading the first trade.

Edited by Crimebuster
Link to comment
Share on other sites
Hekla

Hekla

Posted
Posted

I think it's gaining new readers - esp. females. The goth girl at the LCS cash register *almost* smiled while telling me it was a book she recommended to her friends this week when I was buying #6.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
the authority

the authority

Posted
Posted
I tried to buy a lot of Rat Queens #1-5 on ebay over the weekend so I could read the series and see what it's all about.

 

It ended up selling for $36 plus shipping.

 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/RAT-QUEENS-5-Issue-Comic-Run-1-2-3-4-5-iMAGE-1st-print-Lot-/310951459732?pt=US_Comic_Books&hash=item486626bb94

 

 

If you look at the sold listings for similar lots on ebay, it's pretty crazy.

 

April 29 - $13.48 (plus $5.98 shipping)

May 2 - $25

May 9 - $36 (plus $5.98 shipping)

 

Of course, i think that April 29 price might be an outlier on the low end. But what's particularly odd about this last lot going for $42 after shipping is that that breaks down to $8.40 per issue. You can buy each individual issue on ebay for less than that even if you factor in the fact that buying them individually means you'll be paying five times the shipping cost! So I don't see what value the buyer was getting from buying the whole lot.

 

I am curious if this is just an anomaly, or if it represents new interest generated by people reading the first trade.

 

That's a really good question. Imo, the book has picked up secondary market interest at a slow but steady pace so I predict good things but I'm biased as I like the series since I first read the preview.

 

As for the buying in groups as opposed to individually, I would always prefer the run all at once. Too many chances for things go wrong on 5 small shipments. I don't think the savings would be great enough to make up for the effort. 2c

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Crimebuster

Crimebuster

Posted
Posted (edited)

One weird question that occurred to me is about the blank variant version of #1.

 

Which is this: Since the blank is so rare, is it actually worth more blank than it would be with art on it?

 

Usually, the value of "blanks" is determined by the artist who draws on it and the quality of their original art. But since the Rat Queens #1 blank is so much rarer than the other versions of the issue, is it possible that it's better to keep it blank rather than potentially devalue it by having someone draw on it? I mean, as long as it's blank, it still has unlimited potential, whereas once someone draws on it, its appeal is strictly defined and limited by what is drawn on it. Plus, every time someone draws on one, that's one less copy that is still blank, making the remaining blank copies even more scarce.

 

Has that ever happened with a blank before? I don't get into collecting moderns very much, so this is new territory for me. Am I nuts?

Edited by Crimebuster
Link to comment
Share on other sites
jjeanius

jjeanius

Posted
Posted (edited)
One weird question that occurred to me is about the blank variant version of #1.

 

Which is this: Since the blank is so rare, is it actually worth more blank than it would be with art on it?

 

Usually, the value of "blanks" is determined by the artist who draws on it and the quality of their original art. But since the Rat Queens #1 blank is so much rarer than the other versions of the issue, is it possible that it's better to keep it blank rather than potentially devalue it by having someone draw on it? I mean, as long as it's blank, it still has unlimited potential, whereas once someone draws on it, its appeal is strictly defined and limited by what is drawn on it. Plus, every time someone draws on one, that's one less copy that is still blank, making the remaining blank copies even more scarce.

 

Has that ever happened with a blank before? I don't get into collecting moderns very much, so this is new territory for me. Am I nuts?

 

I guess it's possible that, in the long run, virgin blanks will command a premium if they prove to be as rare as it appears. Personally, though, I'd much rather have mine sketched by Roc. Best of both worlds: Super-rare sketch variant with original art from series artist and co-creator. ;)

Edited by jjeanius
Link to comment
Share on other sites
Solar

Solar

Posted
Posted
One weird question that occurred to me is about the blank variant version of #1.

 

Which is this: Since the blank is so rare, is it actually worth more blank than it would be with art on it?

 

Usually, the value of "blanks" is determined by the artist who draws on it and the quality of their original art. But since the Rat Queens #1 blank is so much rarer than the other versions of the issue, is it possible that it's better to keep it blank rather than potentially devalue it by having someone draw on it? I mean, as long as it's blank, it still has unlimited potential, whereas once someone draws on it, its appeal is strictly defined and limited by what is drawn on it. Plus, every time someone draws on one, that's one less copy that is still blank, making the remaining blank copies even more scarce.

 

Has that ever happened with a blank before? I don't get into collecting moderns very much, so this is new territory for me. Am I nuts?

 

lol it's not like it's the Hero Initiative WD blank where there are only a few copies that shouldn't be out there.

 

CGC SS with a sketch by Roc will always be worth more than a blue label blank.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Crimebuster

Crimebuster

Posted
Posted

I finally tracked down Rat Queens #1-6 and read them.

 

First, a note about finding the issues. I went to four different comic shops. One of them is Newbury Comics, which is really a music store. The only thing they had was the Image First Rat Queens #1. On the one hand, I'm not sure if anybody actually buys comics at Newbury Comics or not. On the other hand, they have 27 locations. And they do carry lots of other indie and Image books there; my last purchase there was Black Science #1 blank variant. So getting Rat Queens in their stores certainly couldn't hurt.

 

The other three stores: The first only had one copy of #6. As a result, #6 was the first issue I read, which is really not optimal despite the issue being touted as a good jumping on point since it's the start of a new arc. I didn't really feel like it was a great jumping on point, to be honest. At least, it didn't feel designed to be a jumping on point for new readers, so I had to do some work to get into it. As a result, it was just okay for me, but it didn't turn me off enough to keep me from trying to find the rest of the series.

 

Second store is a place that has four long boxes of variants. I therefore expected to find some normal copies of #1 left, as I figured they probably ordered a bunch to get the 1:10 variant. I was correct. What they had on hand was four copies of #1, two copies of #2 and one copy of #5, as well as a stack of the Image First reprints.

 

The third store is the biggest comic store in my state. They also had a big stack of Image Firsts, but since they don't do the variant thing, they had no first print copies of #1 available. They had one second print copy of #2, two copies of #3, two copies of #4 and probably eight copies of #6.

 

So it worked out well for me - I got #1, 2, and 5 from the second store and #3, 4, and 6 from the third store. It was a lot of work, though, and the owner of the second store told me he has tried to re-order issues and it's impossible to do. So it seems like while there are still some copies around at the moment, the supply on all the issues to date is dwindling quickly.

 

As for the stories, I enjoyed them and added the series to my pull list. The style of humor was right on the edge for me; if it's not grounded in character and heart, it (and the characters) could become annoying very quickly. I was very happy with #3, therefore, because there were a lot of good character bits that hinted at some depth. #6 was a lot better for me once I had read #1-5, though there were still a few minor storytelling hiccups in it. I also have a pet peeve with anachronistic humor in fantasy stories - in this case, the "cell phone" thing with Hannah in #1 - so I would be very happy if we didn't get anything else like that in the future. I just find that type of thing to be cheap laughs at the expense of world building.

 

Those are minor complaints though. Overall, it was fun and I will be recommending it to some of my friends, particularly those into old school table top RPGs.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
PIR8

PIR8

Posted
Posted

I gave a few female friends of mine a ride home over the weekend. I had the TPB for Rat Queens in my back seat. None of them are comic book readers, but they all went crazy about the book. Ended up having to loan out my reader copy of #6, and I'm not sure when I'll manage to get my TPB back.

 

Just thought that was kinda awesome. lol

Link to comment
Share on other sites
kagenish

kagenish

Posted
Posted
I gave a few female friends of mine a ride home over the weekend. I had the TPB for Rat Queens in my back seat. None of them are comic book readers, but they all went crazy about the book. Ended up having to loan out my reader copy of #6, and I'm not sure when I'll manage to get my TPB back.

 

Just thought that was kinda awesome. lol

(thumbs u
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
2 2
Go to topic listing