Boring Question that has probably been asked 100 times

[jmelton8]

I've been collecting sketches for the past year and now I'm ready to move in to some published art. My budget isn't super high but I can grab a nice piece here and there. I found a cover that I like but it's for a HC/TPB and not an actual comic. Are these as collectible as normal art published in comics? Do they tend to hold up over time value wise?

 

Thanks for any and all replies.

[malvin]

there is no one answer, and I certainly can't answer about things holding up through time.

 

but err.... an HC/TBP is still a comic, and lots of people read comics via trades these days rather than floppies

 

In general, it is fair to say that TPB covers are valued less than "normal" comic covers, all things being equal (artist, content, etc)

 

Malvin

[jmelton8]

there is no one answer, and I certainly can't answer about things holding up through time.

 

but err.... an HC/TBP is still a comic, and lots of people read comics via trades these days rather than floppies

 

In general, it is fair to say that TPB covers are valued less than "normal" comic covers, all things being equal (artist, content, etc)

 

Malvin

 

That's what I was thinking. I can get a cover for the same price but I don't like it nearly as well so i'll probably hold out and keep looking.

[vodou]

there is no one answer, and I certainly can't answer about things holding up through time.

 

but err.... an HC/TBP is still a comic, and lots of people read comics via trades these days rather than floppies

 

In general, it is fair to say that TPB covers are valued less than "normal" comic covers, all things being equal (artist, content, etc)

 

Malvin

 

That's what I was thinking. I can get a cover for the same price but I don't like it nearly as well so i'll probably hold out and keep looking.

Re-read Malvin re: all things being equal (artist, content, etc). You are talking about two covers where one is preferable, for the same money, the only difference being it was published as a TPB cover? Wow. No choice there at all. If you prefer it, most others probably would and will in the future too. Ultimatley it's your call (as it's your money), but...I haven't seen either and I already know which one I'd buy (even with your money!)

[Mr. Machismo]

IMO doesn't matter. But I also read exclusively from collected volumes. I think it's great to have a cover that represents an entire arc or story rather than one segment of it.

 

At the end of the day, look at the artwork and go by that.

[Meeley Man]

I found a cover that I like

 

That's all that matters, then. You've answered your own question.

[alxjhnsn]

+1

 

Buy what you like not what you think will appreciate in value because it probably won't.

[Thawk]

+1

 

Buy what you like not what you think will appreciate in value because it probably won't.

 

Best advice on this board - buy what you really enjoy. Trying to invest in art is either too hard or too expensive. But when you look at your collection and it gives you that big smile, it doesn't matter.

 

Buy it because you love it.

[JadeGiant]

If you really like the art, don't let that it is published on a TPB dissuade you from a purchase IMHO. There are plenty of reasons not to buy art but this is not one of them (at least in my book).

[jick]

I have three trade covers from Jerry Ordway representing collected editions of his 1987 run that was concurrent with Byrne. I'd say I got it for considerably less than what an actual Superman Ordway cover from 1987 sold for in a private sale.

 

I did prefer my trade covers because it had more characters and a more pinup style large Superman image, and represented more stories than a single cover from that era woukd cost.

[Eltanin]

At the end of the day, pick what you prefer.

I'd personally just buy the cover I like more, without paying too much attention to it being a TPB cover or not. Most collectors would do the same.

[jmelton8]

All good stuff to think about. I'm not buying it to invest I'd like to frame and put on the wall. I would want to buy something I could recoup at least a good portion of the funds if I ever needed them is why I asked about value.

[Solar]

My take on TPB vs floppy cover is that (again, all things being equal) if the trade is published contemporaneously with the run, it's just as desirable as a regular monthly cover.

 

If it's published a decade later as some kind of fancy HC or TPB reissue, then I'd expect a discount, as it's after-the-fact work that probably varies in style and doesn't carry that same reader nostalgia as an image that came out when the story was first read.

[Pete Marino]

My take on TPB vs floppy cover is that (again, all things being equal) if the trade is published contemporaneously with the run, it's just as desirable as a regular monthly cover.

 

If it's published a decade later as some kind of fancy HC or TPB reissue, then I'd expect a discount, as it's after-the-fact work that probably varies in style and doesn't carry that same reader nostalgia as an image that came out when the story was first read.

 

110% agree if this is great in the all things being the same scenario.

 

But if the TPB cover has "more ink" aka every major character, or a better image vs a regular floppy that just has 1 character, or something less interesting on it.

 

So, if the TPB has a better image and is the same price, then that in-upon itself is the discount.

 

But since the OP said the TPB had the better image, that's something to take into account as well.

 

Does the art have a market? go look at HA and Ebay to see what's been sold, see what's on dealer's sites and what it's priced at. given 0 info it's difficult to say.

[vodou]

I would want to buy something I could recoup at least a good portion of the funds if I ever needed them is why I asked about value.

We're in the abstract here since you haven't shown us the pieces or told us specifics. With that in mind...if it's Big Two popular superhero, you should be okay on 75-100% of recoup or even a gain, if you can hang onto it for five or ten years. If it's popular to you and your crowd, it probably still will be in the (short) long-term. Anything else varies widely depending on specifics and there's no one statement fits all.

[jmelton8]

Alright. I'll post both since I've went ahead with the purchase. Big fan of Chew and it's getting close to ending so I wanted to grab something before it did. I got the Volume 5 Hardcover cover. [/img]

 

The cover that I didn't like as much was for number 48

[/img]

[rotembk]

My take on TPB vs floppy cover is that (again, all things being equal) if the trade is published contemporaneously with the run, it's just as desirable as a regular monthly cover.

 

If it's published a decade later as some kind of fancy HC or TPB reissue, then I'd expect a discount, as it's after-the-fact work that probably varies in style and doesn't carry that same reader nostalgia as an image that came out when the story was first read.

 

Also depends how long it's been since the collection was published because as time goes by and newer readers become familiar with the story more by reading the trades than the original issues, the HC/TPB cover may become more recognizable and "important" than the covers of the single issues (and at some eras trades downplayed or even didn't include the individual covers).

 

And to the OP, at the very least you can see based on all the responses that there is no particular bias towards either the individual cover or the collection cover, so really you should go with the image you like more (and in thinking of recouping your investment, you're betting anyway on others sharing your taste and wanting what you have),

[rotembk]

Alright. I'll post both since I've went ahead with the purchase. Big fan of Chew and it's getting close to ending so I wanted to grab something before it did. I got the Volume 5 Hardcover cover.

The cover that I didn't like as much was for number 48.

 

Well, I will tell you that as someone who hasn't read Chew I can appreciate the image of the TPB cover on its own, whereas the character design nature of the cover to issue 48 does nothing to me because I'm not familiar with the characters themselves.

[jmelton8]

Alright. I'll post both since I've went ahead with the purchase. Big fan of Chew and it's getting close to ending so I wanted to grab something before it did. I got the Volume 5 Hardcover cover.

The cover that I didn't like as much was for number 48.

 

Well, I will tell you that as someone who hasn't read Chew I can appreciate the image of the TPB cover on its own, whereas the character design nature of the cover to issue 48 does nothing to me because I'm not familiar with the characters themselves.

 

The characters on 48 are not big time main characters to me anyways, whereas the hardcover character is one of the main Villians. One reason I preferred it other than it just looks better to me.

[Pete Marino]

Alright. I'll post both since I've went ahead with the purchase. Big fan of Chew and it's getting close to ending so I wanted to grab something before it did. I got the Volume 5 Hardcover cover.

The cover that I didn't like as much was for number 48.

 

Well, I will tell you that as someone who hasn't read Chew I can appreciate the image of the TPB cover on its own, whereas the character design nature of the cover to issue 48 does nothing to me because I'm not familiar with the characters themselves.

 

The characters on 48 are not big time main characters to me anyways, whereas the hardcover character is one of the main Villians. One reason I preferred it other than it just looks better to me.

 

I came up with 2 results for TPB 5, is it the one with the big vampire or the guys playing baseball.

 

Both are superior (IMO) to the 48 cover. But I'd rather have the baseball one.