speculators picks for the next upcomming week.

[awakeintheashes]

Hmm, again seems like a thread full of winners.

 

So, where are the guys who bought the high priced items from you guys and are now staring at a pile of books that are nowhere near their peaks?

 

Sitting in a room with you staring at your Helheims

 

[aaronc]

On other sites and not doing their homework

 

I thought you were getting out of moderns because of your location. Did you decide to jump back in ?

 

Edit. Aaron, I would guess most if not all of us have lost money on comics from time to time. They typically pay off but if I could guess right all of the time, I would quit my job tomorrow. I love comics and have since I started reading them. My love causes me to read a lot and that helps given idea what might and what might not be hot.

 

 

, that is a funny one.

 

Still out of modern speculation but love this discussion so far.

(Note: I still read a lot of modern titles digitally)

 

I think if I liquidate all the moderns I have bought from Jan to Apr (where I stopped), my loss will be around 2k. They are mostly from Helheim, Uber and East of West.

 

Luckily, I have been buying older comics such as FF52, TTT44, Hulk 217 etc that have been paying off and helping to recover some of that sunk money.

 

[the authority]

I didn't take it as negative. I know I'm fortunate ( or maybe not ) to have access to a computer all day long. My business can be overwhelming at times but we have a lot of down time to go with it. I get what your saying about people not having the time to research. I take it for granted that everybody shares info like we do.

[kimik]

I don't think TSG or NWM have inspired much confidence in buyers either. Looking at some of the choices that have been good in the past versus my reading list I cringe a little inside at the books that get passed on which deserve a lot more attention (*cough*SoL*cough*).

 

/grumble

 

NWM #1 still sells for over $10 regularly on eBay - how is that a bad spec play? I dumped most of my small stack (32 copies) for $25 - $50 apiece on the way up, and if $10 is all I can get for the 8 or so I have left then that works for me. (thumbs u

[aaronc]

Sitting in a room with you staring at your Helheims

 

 

How true!! (thumbs u

 

I just sold my Helheim ECCC 9.8 which I bought for $180 for $39.

 

[the authority]

On other sites and not doing their homework

 

I thought you were getting out of moderns because of your location. Did you decide to jump back in ?

 

Edit. Aaron, I would guess most if not all of us have lost money on comics from time to time. They typically pay off but if I could guess right all of the time, I would quit my job tomorrow. I love comics and have since I started reading them. My love causes me to read a lot and that helps given idea what might and what might not be hot.

 

 

, that is a funny one.

 

Still out of modern speculation but love this discussion so far.

(Note: I still read a lot of modern titles digitally)

 

I think if I liquidate all the moderns I have bought from Jan to Apr (where I stopped), my loss will be around 2k. They are mostly from Helheim, Uber and East of West.

 

Luckily, I have been buying older comics such as FF52, TTT44, Hulk 217 etc that have been paying off and helping to recover some of that sunk money.

 

You never know with Helheim. I wouldn't get my hopes up but if they come back with more arcs as they've stated they intend to do, they could make a slight comeback. Uber got me a little too but very little, I didn't go heavy but it is a good story so I went some on it. East of West has been great for me. I sold a bunch early and pocketed a lot and still have a lot of books. I think you will be fine on these. Keep your fingers crossed.

 

This time of year is always tough on people's pocket books. I think last year was better because ebay pushed the heck out of billmelater and I know of a lot of people who used it. Ebay has been projecting a down quarter here

 

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/10/17/technology/ebays-outlook-for-4th-quarter-disappoints.html?_r=0

 

Some winters are great and some are going to be like this but we aren't too far from tax time and that is almost always decent for sales when people have a lot of disposable income that aren't used to having it.

 

 

[slym2none]

I keep hearing, for EoW, "wait at least 12 months on this one."

 

IDK exactly what that means, but so far, I am doing just that.

 

 

 

-slym

[the authority]

I don't think TSG or NWM have inspired much confidence in buyers either. Looking at some of the choices that have been good in the past versus my reading list I cringe a little inside at the books that get passed on which deserve a lot more attention (*cough*SoL*cough*).

 

/grumble

 

NWM #1 still sells for over $10 regularly on eBay - how is that a bad spec play? I dumped most of my small stack (32 copies) for $25 - $50 apiece on the way up, and if $10 is all I can get for the 8 or so I have left then that works for me. (thumbs u

 

It was a fantastic spec book. It still averages out to $8 to $11 per book sold in sets. I think Garf was referring to people who got in late and bought them at $75 to $95 per set. Btw, people never seemed to complain about the story, only the schedule for the majority. TSG was the same. If you speculated on this book prior to its release, you had to be in heaven.

[the authority]

I keep hearing, for EoW, "wait at least 12 months on this one."

 

IDK exactly what that means, but so far, I am doing just that.

 

 

 

-slym

 

I think most, me included, are counting on it doing something like Saga did last year and heat up after a year. It seems both of these books were really hot out of the gate and then cooled a little.

 

Maybe it will and maybe it won't but I'm thinking the story is so cool that the odds are with it imo.

[ZaCrew]

I keep hearing, for EoW, "wait at least 12 months on this one."

 

IDK exactly what that means, but so far, I am doing just that.

 

 

 

-slym

 

I think most, me included, are counting on it doing something like Saga did last year and heat up after a year. It seems both of these books were really hot out of the gate and then cooled a little.

 

Maybe it will and maybe it won't but I'm thinking the story is so cool that the odds are with it imo.

 

Probably because there was a great many people who simply didn't understand it. A lot of people had "oh I get it now" moments on issue #5.

 

 

[kimik]

I keep hearing, for EoW, "wait at least 12 months on this one."

 

IDK exactly what that means, but so far, I am doing just that.

 

 

 

-slym

 

I think most, me included, are counting on it doing something like Saga did last year and heat up after a year. It seems both of these books were really hot out of the gate and then cooled a little.

 

Maybe it will and maybe it won't but I'm thinking the story is so cool that the odds are with it imo.

 

Probably because there was a great many people who simply didn't understand it. A lot of people had "oh I get it now" moments on issue #5.

 

 

How much higher was the print run on EoW #1 compared to Saga #1?

 

There are two big factors working against EoW #1 right now:

 

1) EoW #1 was heavily speculated on and as a result any decent price jump will result in a ton of copies entering the market which will dampen prices.

 

2) It lacks the widespread appeal of Saga at this point as shown by the steady drop in monthly sales numbers.

 

 

 

 

[the authority]

I keep hearing, for EoW, "wait at least 12 months on this one."

 

IDK exactly what that means, but so far, I am doing just that.

 

 

 

-slym

 

I think most, me included, are counting on it doing something like Saga did last year and heat up after a year. It seems both of these books were really hot out of the gate and then cooled a little.

 

Maybe it will and maybe it won't but I'm thinking the story is so cool that the odds are with it imo.

 

Probably because there was a great many people who simply didn't understand it. A lot of people had "oh I get it now" moments on issue #5.

 

 

How much higher was the print run on EoW #1 compared to Saga #1?

 

There are two big factors working against EoW #1 right now:

 

1) EoW #1 was heavily speculated on and as a result any decent price jump will result in a ton of copies entering the market which will dampen prices.

 

2) It lacks the widespread appeal of Saga at this point as shown by the steady drop in monthly sales numbers.

 

 

 

 

I think your first point is correct but I think Saga had considerable speculation too. To your second point, you may be right but word of mouth from nearly all that I've spoken with about the story art has rated from positive to downright excited. I'm thinking this could and should attract the same old group that read The Authority 47-50,000 sales. I don't get the drop. Is anybody else surprised by the descent or am I alone on this one ?

[CallMeSang]

EoW was one of my heavy bet that I feel will make some descent returns, but I don't think it will be the same caliber as Saga. I hope I'm wrong on this one.

 

Have been lucky so far.

 

Manifest Destiny was also a big order for me and I'm optimistic it will be a hit. The premise of the story seems like something that could be fun for a TV show. Also ordered a couple dozen Alex and Ada. Not a big order but i had a good vibe about it.

 

I always order a dozen copies of vertigo #1. Its a safe bet as Most vertigo titles are fun to read and usually increased in value in the long run.

[aaronc]

I think it is not surprising if you consider the overall market for independent comics. Very few titles break out of this gradual decline. There is very little marketing dollars relative to the Big 2 throw in by the publisher and the creators so expanding market share for existing titles has been difficult.

 

We might have heard that image has been increasing its market share but I suspect that is due to the large number of #1 being launched every month. If you go to general comic forums, the number of posters in the Big 2 thread far outnumbered the independents so that will give you a good idea of how many comic readers are these new titles reaching out to.

 

EoW might be a good book but there is only so much it can do even it is marketed to folks who don't read independent titles. Good stories don't necessary means good sales.

 

 

[the authority]

I think it is not surprising if you consider the overall market for independent comics. Very few titles break out of this gradual decline. There is very little marketing dollars relative to the Big 2 throw in by the publisher and the creators so expanding market share for existing titles has been difficult.

 

We might have heard that image has been increasing its market share but I suspect that is due to the large number of #1 being launched every month. If you go to general comic forums, the number of posters in the Big 2 thread far outnumbered the independents so that will give you a good idea of how many comic readers are these new titles reaching out to.

 

EoW might be a good book but there is only so much it can do even it is marketed to folks who don't read independent titles. Good stories don't necessary means good sales.

 

 

 

You make some good points and I agree that there are far more Marvel and DC guys than indies individually but DC, Marvel, and indies each make about a third of the market.. The reason I used The Authority as an example is that it started off as Stormwatch vol1 #37 under the Wildstorm banner prior to their affiliation with DC comics. The book started off around 30-35,000 in monthly sales and ended up in the 47-50,000 sales range. They did this without flying the DC banner. It was a super aggressive, ultra violent, well written, and well drawn series that revolved around a great number of characters that liberally borrowed from other sources. Sound familiar ?

 

TWD and Saga are growing in sales and I believe this book will turn the corner. You are also correct in saying good stories don't always equate to good sales but to say that Image is gaining because of number 1s is overlooking what DC and Marvel do to maintain their sales.

 

Marvel has 4 books in October's top 10. Superior Spidey accounts for 2 and Infinity, a mini series accounts for the other 2. DC has 5 books in the top 10. Sandman mini #1, Superman/Wonder Woman #1, Forever Evil mini #2, Batman 24, and JLA 24. Walking Dead 115 is #1. Obviously, Image is not the only company using #1 issues or minis to boost their sales. As always, I respect your point of view and can see how you come to your conclusions. Arguments can always be made to support either side using the numbers and numbers within those numbers. I still believe East of West will carry strong readership long term and I don't think it would help improve sales if they produced under DC's or Marvel's banners.

[troydivision1]

A friend's conversation to me about which book to pick this week...and my responses...

Manifest Destiny is from Skybound? Yes

Kirkman runs Skybound? I think so

Aren't Clone and Thief of Thieves on Skybound? Yes

And they both have TV deals? Yes

I think Manifest Destiny is an easy choice.

 

 

[fastballspecial]

What other companies arent doing that Marvel and DC dont have to is build a universe. Crossgen tried it, Valiant is doing it again and I think thats it. Its hard to do up front, but if you build a foundation it will keep you going for years just ask Marvel and DC. Fresh ideas dont come from them much.

 

[aaronc]

@Authority

 

I am not saying that DC and Marvel don't play the # 1 or events game but just recognizing that Image is also playing that game to up its numbers. It is just playing better than other independents to gain more grounds.

 

The problem I have is still with the marketing aspect, specifically the lack of established characters to draw readers in and the lack of marketing dollars to push it out. Your example of the Authority didn't mention how it manage to increase readership. I would love to know how it spreads from one fan to another. I don't think just talking in forums is enough or EoW would have increase its readership by now. Knowing how successful title spreads will give us a better idea of whether EoW can manage the same.

 

Also, I wonder if you have the print numbers for the Authority. Did it decline like EoW or did it hold and increase?

 

 

[Joe Kim]

Besides Comics, TV is my favorite entertainment medium. And let me tell you, this is a very very volatile world, shows run by people with amazing track records and great premises get axed faster than you can imagine. Even fewer channels are willing to take real risks with Genre shows (supernatural/sci-fi/superhero), the longstanding exceptions being Fox (X-Files, Star Trek, etc.) and CW (Buffy/Angel, Vampire Diaries, Arrow, Smallville, etc.)

 

That being said, be careful when thinking that a TV option means that a comic is all of a sudden a golden goose. I'm sure we all have seen some of our "TV/Movie" options fall through for books we're invested in, but let me just re-iterated nothing is for certain.

[fufat70]

Besides Comics, TV is my favorite entertainment medium. And let me tell you, this is a very very volatile world, shows run by people with amazing track records and great premises get axed faster than you can imagine. Even fewer channels are willing to take real risks with Genre shows (supernatural/sci-fi/superhero), the longstanding exceptions being Fox (X-Files, Star Trek, etc.) and CW (Buffy/Angel, Vampire Diaries, Arrow, Smallville, etc.)

 

That being said, be careful when thinking that a TV option means that a comic is all of a sudden a golden goose. I'm sure we all have seen some of our "TV/Movie" options fall through for books we're invested in, but let me just re-iterated nothing is for certain.

 

 

I agree.. I would go as far as saying it wouldn't surprise me,that most of these books that get a tv/film option turn out to be just a ploy to generate interest and sales and then after a while news comes out and says tv option flew through. JMHO