The Beauty of Cover Art for Comic Books

[Alawson453]

I don't like signatures on my comics unless it is by the artist responsible for the actual cover art.

 

Hi gang, this is an topic that I have struggled with for quite some time. I really do not like having signatures all over the covers of my comics especially if it is a really cool book/cover.

 

The exception are photo covers where there is an actual person instead of a drawn image.

 

Another example is having writers and others that contributed to the interior of a comic but had nothing to do with the actual cover.

 

What's your view on this subject, I like to know if there are any others that share my opinion.

 

I guess one of my pet peeves is seeing all of the covers that have Stan Lee scrawled all over them. I understand that he is responsible for the majority of the Marvel Universe but he didn't ink the covers so at best I would allow him to sign the interior page.

 

Most of the comics I have purchased, I was drawn to because of the intensity of the art and the beauty of the colors. A black cover with high gloss, perfect spine and straight corners is a definite rarity and the last thing I want to do is ruin it.

 

Give me a mint copy of Amazing Spider-man #28 free of signatures over an SS copy in the same grade any day

 

Also not all artists will get a free pass to sign a cover even if they did work on it If I don't like their signature I can live without it.

 

So in the end I won't have very many comics with multiple signatures in my registered sets unless it something I purchased off E-bay which I really do shy away from.

 

I will leave you with a photo of Swamp Thing #4 that I recently picked up on E-bay free of signature, but I would have liked to had Berni Wrightson's sig on this one since he signs very nicely.

 

See more journals by Dre

[meshuggah]

There are quite some lengthy discussions on the general board about this. But I'm all for signatures. Part of its probably because I was getting sports stuff signed before comics. So I'm all about it. But I do agree sometimes depending on the marker or placement it can detract from the art. But sometimes I think it can add on to it. I believe its Bagofleas that has a magazine signed by Brent Spiner, where his signature looks like smoke coming from a pipe.

 

I also like the person to have something to do with the book. I'm not as strict as some others. I have Stan's autograph on ASM 252 and 700. He didnt' write anything, but I feel that as Spider-Man's creator its fine. I do have an X-Ment 300 signed by Romita Jr(cover art) and Claremont(absolutley nothing). But as an anniversary issue I'm planning on having major contributors of the X-Men sign it. Sort of like a lot of people did with the ASM 700 skyline variant.

 

But this is just my thoughts on it and I totally understand others wanting the purity of the art.

[n2wdw]

This is going to be heresy to many but I don't like Stan's signatures. He signs in places where you can't miss his sig - which I guess people who want his sig like that - but I think it detracts from the cover art

 

Having said that I'd eventually like a yellow label with Stan's sig. The good thing about his prolific signing is there are a lot of choices. I'll just keep shopping for the right book

[bagofleas]

I DO have that Starlog, Meshuggah. Good memory!

 

Up until today, I would have said that I would never get a celebrity sig on a comic that they technically had nothing to do with, and for the largest part, that will remain true.

 

But I just couldn't pass up on the chance for a Billy Dee Williams sig on my Star Wars #56. I already had Walt Simonson on it from Baltimore. Now, just today, I've added David Michelinie and Billy Dee to it, with plans for Tom Palmer at Supercon later.

 

I love sigs! The more, the better! As long as they are from actual people involved with the issue in some way. I know the aforementioned SW issue makes this statement seem hypocritical, but it is the very rare exception for me.

 

In fact it is the first time I have done this on a comic, and probably the last.

 

But I can see why you feel the way you do. Everybody is a little different in what they are willing to do with their collections. Your feelings are perfectly valid. But then so are everyone else's. It just depends on what your likes, dislikes and goals are.

[Brandon Shepherd]

I have thought about writing a journal for my thoughts and observations on signatures. My opinions are a bit scattered and contradictory to be honest.

 

First off, I do enjoy reading about everyone's experiences with getting signatures, especially form bagofleas, tnerb and kaholo1256 for example. The personal experiences shared, the work in prepping, standing in line, the multiple signatures and those who use specific markers and signature placements are truly awesome stories.

 

Second: I have yet to submit a book for a signature, I also currently do not have a yellow label in my collection. I have not even removed a book from a slab. I actually would like to embrace the challenge of cracking a slab, this is a big leap from my comfort zone, taking this kind of risk can be rewarding in terms of upgrades and getting signatures.

 

The scattered part: I admire the prestige of first edition novels signed by the authors, I also think it would be neat to have a collection of documents signed by every U.S. president.

 

The contradictory parts: I never got into sports autographs, or autographs for that matter due to the element of the unknown, how do you know they are really signed if you didn't get it yourself?

 

As for GCG, I feel that signatures on the older books are almost like defacing art work. If you have a book that is rare in high grade, I almost feel it should be left untouched. I don't mind the newer books, I think the more modern, glossy, thicker bound books of the last 20+ years look good with signatures. Seeing older books, in so-so grade with signatures doesn't catch my eye in particular.

 

Then there are those exceptions, like Frazetta signatures for example, I don't think there are very many yellow labels for him out there, a classic cover with his scrawl would be quite the show piece in my opinion.

 

Ultimately, what my thought process comes down to is that the best signatures are the ones by the cover artist. It's neat to have the writer sign his work, but it feels more appropriate being singed on the inside, like those novels I mentioned earlier, but then you can't see it on a slab (told you I was contradictory). I also enjoy the the artist signatures that are really distinct, like Neal Adams, especially in shinny silver, and on just the right place on the cover.

 

Brandon