May Heritage Auction

[drdroom]

What I don't get is why the very next lot, which is like as perfect a comp as you could ever find with a big Cap's-face-hidden half splash also inked by Giacoia only went for 1/3? It's a better page IMHO and features the Red Skull from the Cosmic Cube storyline.

[Bill C]

 

The big shock for me were the Infantino pinups. I just didn't think they would go for nearly that much. I would much rather have a few nice MIS or Flash pages for that price.

 

Im not. Those images were all over the place - would wager a lot of collectors had Megos as a kid - and in a nostalgia-driven hobby the prices reflected it.

 

Yeah I'm not surprised they went for those prices for the same reason- those images are out there and ingrained in a lot of people's heads. Great pin-ups.

 

That said, I agree with NinjaSealed in that my personal preference from that art team would be some Flash pages from the same era.

[tth2]

The same page was in the Nov. 2015 HA sale and the buyer reneged on it (I believe at the same price it ended up at this time around). It was offered to me at my underbid price by Heritage, but I declined, as I thought the price was high, and that the reneger probably drove up the price to that (inflated) level.

It irritates me to no end that when someone renegs on Heritage, they offer it to the underbidder at the maximum underbid price. I`ve said to Heritage that this means they`re asking me to pay a price that`s been artificially driven up by a non-existent bidder--a classic heads they win, tails I lose situation, as all they`re out is the increment above my bid.

 

It would be more fair if they treated the renegging bidder as never having existed, and thus I should be offered the item at the increment above the next highest legitimate bidder.

[NinjaSealed]

 

The big shock for me were the Infantino pinups. I just didn't think they would go for nearly that much. I would much rather have a few nice MIS or Flash pages for that price.

 

Im not. Those images were all over the place - would wager a lot of collectors had Megos as a kid - and in a nostalgia-driven hobby the prices reflected it.

 

Yeah I'm not surprised they went for those prices for the same reason- those images are out there and ingrained in a lot of people's heads. Great pin-ups.

 

That said, I agree with NinjaSealed in that my personal preference from that art team would be some Flash pages from the same era.

 

I guess I understand the prices now, just didn't realize they had THAT kind of nostalgia surrounding them.

I absolutely loved the Riddler piece.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[comix4fun]

Maybe Thor looking forward?

 

 

I'd trade a beautiful clear front shot of Thor's face for all that action.

 

 

Just realized he's looking forward in that third panel. So it's got that frontal shot too.

[Mephisto]

Maybe Thor looking forward?

 

 

I'd trade a beautiful clear front shot of Thor's face for all that action.

 

 

Just realized he's looking forward in that third panel. So it's got that frontal shot too.

 

This is getting kinky...

[comix4fun]

Maybe Thor looking forward?

 

 

I'd trade a beautiful clear front shot of Thor's face for all that action.

 

 

Just realized he's looking forward in that third panel. So it's got that frontal shot too.

 

This is getting kinky...

 

 

It's not full frontal, so we've got a ways to go.

[suspense39]

What I don't get is why the very next lot, which is like as perfect a comp as you could ever find with a big Cap's-face-hidden half splash also inked by Giacoia only went for 1/3? It's a better page IMHO and features the Red Skull from the Cosmic Cube storyline.

 

Yep!

[suspense39]

Maybe Thor looking forward?

 

 

I'd trade a beautiful clear front shot of Thor's face for all that action.

 

 

Just realized he's looking forward in that third panel. So it's got that frontal shot too.

 

This is getting kinky...

 

 

It's not full frontal, so we've got a ways to go.

 

Ha Ha!

 

Some pages work great without full frontal, but I'd personally adjust what I'd pay.

[comix4fun]

What I don't get is why the very next lot, which is like as perfect a comp as you could ever find with a big Cap's-face-hidden half splash also inked by Giacoia only went for 1/3? It's a better page IMHO and features the Red Skull from the Cosmic Cube storyline.

 

Yep!

 

 

Sure they are comps in that they have the same art team, are three panel pages, and have the hero facing off against one of his main adversaries. At first blush they seem like they should sell for the same amount.

 

They are both great, it's like choosing the uglier supermodel. So I can't really say either is a poor example, but the JIM is really much better.

 

Compare those panels. Top panel vs top panel that Thor face off with absorbing man is picture perfect hammer on ball n chain face to face. The top panel on the cap page looks more like Red Skull needs to use his safe word. And it lacks battle or action in the other two panels.

 

I could see the cosmic cube making a difference if it made an appearance on the page. I'd wager it would make a significant difference in the final hammer if Skull has been holding the cube in that last panel. He's not and the Skull, overall, is poorly detailed on that page, facially I mean.

 

The Jim looks brighter, clearer, more well "lit" artistically.

 

Like I said they are both great and the final price should have been a smaller gap between them, but I can fully understand why there was more of a fight over the JIM than the TOS.

[GreatEscape]

 

The top panel on the cap page looks more like Red Skull needs to use his safe word. And it lacks battle or action in the other two panels.

 

Is Cap fighting Red Skull in the top panel? Red Skull calls it a "Creation' in the last panel and it looked more human to me. Perhaps if Cap was fighting Red Skull (or a look-alike creation) in the big panel then the hammer price would have been much closer to the JIM page where Thor vs Absorbing Man in all panels. Great TOS page with Red Skull nonetheless.

[comix4fun]

 

The top panel on the cap page looks more like Red Skull needs to use his safe word. And it lacks battle or action in the other two panels.

 

Is Cap fighting Red Skull in the top panel? Red Skull calls it a "Creation' in the last panel and it looked more human to me. Perhaps if Cap was fighting Red Skull (or a look-alike creation) in the big panel then the hammer price would have been much closer to the JIM page where Thor vs Absorbing Man in all panels. Great TOS page with Red Skull nonetheless.

 

 

You could be right. It's been years since I read that issue. The lack of detail would support it.

[drdroom]

 

The top panel on the cap page looks more like Red Skull needs to use his safe word. And it lacks battle or action in the other two panels.

 

Is Cap fighting Red Skull in the top panel? Red Skull calls it a "Creation' in the last panel and it looked more human to me. Perhaps if Cap was fighting Red Skull (or a look-alike creation) in the big panel then the hammer price would have been much closer to the JIM page where Thor vs Absorbing Man in all panels. Great TOS page with Red Skull nonetheless.

 

 

You could be right. It's been years since I read that issue. The lack of detail would support it.

 

Yes, it's the Skull's android, but that's characteristic of Cap vs. Skull battles: he's a schemer not a brawler. I agree on the mediocre Skull drawing, but to me the raw power in the top panel makes this page better than the Thor. YMMV

[glendgold]

Both 3-panel Kirbys were from the peak of his twice-up game, well inked, against great villains, but you can see Thor better, the opponent in the TOS page is a nameless thing rather than The Absorbing Man, and did I mention you can see Thor better?

 

I don't know why Jack kept drawing Thor with his face away, especially during fights, but I've noticed that before. If you flip through the Masterworks or Essentials, you can see whole fight scenes of 2-3 pages each where Thor is resolutely looking in the wrong direction. Kirby did this in the FF less frequently, but you can see (for instance) the cover of #60 which is otherwise a frighteningly good image -- but Doom's face is really deliberately obscured. No idea why.

 

 

[mtlevy]

Everett did the same limited face stuff...

[suspense39]

Everett did the same limited face stuff...

 

Yes, a lot of images with just subby's back

[suspense39]

Sometimes it works to great effect, usually with a combination of characters looking both in and out in various panels, pulling you in out of the visual landscape.

[Superhero]

The Cap piece isn't nearly as dramatic or powerful. Cap isn't doing much either, no throwing the shield, nothing interesting really but in the Thor piece its the first clash between Thor and a major villain. The hammer hitting the ball and chain is pure magic--Plus, the half page splash is very similar to the cover of JIM 114. Amazing! Worth every penny.

[delekkerste]

The Cap piece isn't nearly as dramatic or powerful. Cap isn't doing much either, no throwing the shield, nothing interesting really but in the Thor piece its the first clash between Thor and a major villain. The hammer hitting the ball and chain is pure magic--Plus, the half page splash is very similar to the cover of JIM 114. Amazing! Worth every penny.

 

Obviously this is a somewhat subjective matter. And, with that said, I agree that the JIM half splash is better than the TOS half-splash. Worth every penny to the tune of almost 3x better, though? In my opinion, the answer is not only "no", but NFW. I mean, $71.7K is surely enough to get you a good Stone-inked JIM title splash and still have a chunk of change left over (IMO, a far superior proposition), or a Colletta-inked title splash and have a LOT of money left over (one just sold for $38.2K in the last Heritage sale and, whatever else you may think of it, at least you can see Thor's entire face!) Or you could get four indisputably "A" quality Stone-inked JIM panel pages for that amount, or at least 5 A/A- examples (perhaps a mix of Stone and Colletta). I'd take any one of these alternatives to this page @ $71.7K.

 

Of course, after this result, maybe the whole market has ratcheted up and you won't be able get what I've described. But, I think you would have been able to a week ago.

[J.Sid]

The two aren't even close IMO.

 

The Thor page was perfect. Not an "A" page, but an A+.

 

If not for Cap's arm covering his head in the main action splashy panel, it would be the same, even with the lack of detail in the Red Skull.

 

Unfortunately, that's not the case. What should be the highlight of the page (the half-splash of Cap attacking) becomes instead a panel your eyes don't linger on for very long.

 

(Cap page: B+)