Are prices still climbing or have they eased up a bit??? 41 41

[Sweet Lou 14]

On 5/31/2023 at 9:13 PM, Beige said:

https://comics.ha.com/itm/modern-age-1980-present-/science-fiction/aliens-1-dark-horse-1988-cgc-nm-mt-98-white-pages/a/7339-94222.s

 

This has to be a mistake surely??

 

$5000 over the average - no way.

Can someone help me understand why anyone would pay $2,500 for this comic, much less $7,500 or the $11,250 suggested by Heritage's "make offer to owner" feature?

[pickycollector]

Another major drop, TTA #13 in 7.5 sold tonight for $7,475; last sale for a 7.5 was $13,812

TTA #13 CGC 7.5

[Beige]

On 6/1/2023 at 12:06 PM, Sweet Lou 14 said:

Can someone help me understand why anyone would pay $2,500 for this comic, much less $7,500 or the $11,250 suggested by Heritage's "make offer to owner" feature?

Lot of 1st apps of Aliens (The Movie) characters. Very popular franchise.

I can see the appeal in a 9.8 for fans (I most certainly am one myself) but $7500 is insanity.

 

[Sweet Lou 14]

On 5/31/2023 at 10:19 PM, pickycollector said:

Another major drop, TTA #13 in 7.5 sold tonight for $7,475; last sale for a 7.5 was $13,812

TTA #13 CGC 7.5

I'm too lazy to look up more data points, but this could be one of those cases where the $13K result was the nonsensical outlier.

I paid around $7,200 for my 7.0 in September, and I'm not surprised to see a 7.5 sale that makes my purchase look like a bit of an overpay, but let's face it a 7.5 is not worth nearly double a 7.0.

[Sweet Lou 14]

On 5/31/2023 at 10:26 PM, Beige said:

Lot of 1st apps of Aliens (The Movie) characters. Very popular franchise.

I can see the appeal in a 9.8 for fans (I most certainly am one myself) but $7500 is insanity.

 

I guess I just don't see the big deal when those characters were first seen in a movie and then adapted to a comic.

It's not like The Walking Dead (or many other examples) where the comic came first.

[Beige]

On 6/1/2023 at 12:27 PM, Sweet Lou 14 said:

I guess I just don't see the big deal when those characters were first seen in a movie and then adapted to a comic.

It's not like The Walking Dead (or many other examples) where the comic came first.

I can see both sides.

Both are as valid.

[Sweet Lou 14]

Well, maybe I need to take back what I said before.  Maybe high grade books are ease after all.

I just picked up two Bronze Age keys for a lot less than the going rate over the past couple of years:

Sold for $9,300 -- a 9.6 WP sold for $12K on Heritage last August, and another sold for over $10K in December 2021.

Sold for $7,701 -- multiple 9.6 WP copies sold for over $25K in November 2021, and a 9.6 OW/W sold for $14,400 as recently as last September.

[Microchip]

On 6/1/2023 at 12:56 PM, Sweet Lou 14 said:

Well, maybe I need to take back what I said before.  Maybe high grade books are ease after all.

I just picked up two Bronze Age keys for a lot less than the going rate over the past couple of years:

Sold for $9,300 -- a 9.6 WP sold for $12K on Heritage last August, and another sold for over $10K in December 2021.

Sold for $7,701 -- multiple 9.6 WP copies sold for over $25K in November 2021, and a 9.6 OW/W sold for $14,400 as recently as last September.

You definitely skipped the FOMO pricing frenzy of the last few years.   I've got to say, I loved the Werewolf by Night special, I'm looking forward to seeing what comes next with this character.  I think you've done particularly well here.

[jimjum12]

On 5/31/2023 at 10:26 PM, Sweet Lou 14 said:

I'm too lazy to look up more data points, but this could be one of those cases where the $13K result was the nonsensical outlier.

I paid around $7,200 for my 7.0 in September, and I'm not surprised to see a 7.5 sale that makes my purchase look like a bit of an overpay, but let's face it a 7.5 is not worth nearly double a 7.0.

It's Groot  ... a hugely popular character. I still feel like it's a decent value with the scarcity of pretty copies. These things may level out ... Covid sent half the baby boomers into early semi retirement and a sudden surge of new collectibles dealers. The market just couldn't handle the sudden flood. GOD BLESS .... 

-jimbo(a friend of jesus)

[F For Fake]

On 5/31/2023 at 10:27 PM, Sweet Lou 14 said:

I guess I just don't see the big deal when those characters were first seen in a movie and then adapted to a comic.

It's not like The Walking Dead (or many other examples) where the comic came first.

 

On 5/31/2023 at 10:33 PM, Beige said:

I can see both sides.

Both are as valid.

Longtime Alien nut here. I've had my set complete for a while now, and it took me a few years to find the #1. I paid $350 for it from a boardie, and was happy to do so. I have not been surprised at all to see if climb up to the $3000+ range, as it is a relatively low census title with an all black cover, and a rabid fanbase. Sure, Alien isn't Star Wars or Trek, but it still has a devoted following. 

Now, that being said, I was flabbergasted when the $7500 sale took place. The only explanation I can think of is:

1. the Alien franchise is about to get a BIG visibility boost, as we are getting a new feature film AND tv series in the next year or so. Both are currently in production (filming has begun on the movie) and are going to happen.

2. Someone(s) is/are experiencing FOMO, and want to get this book locked down before the new hype cycle begins.

3. I don't think there's been another 9.8 on the market since January. (I could easily be wrong about that.)

So, uncommon book and the potential for a groundswell of interest in the property, and someone with deep pockets was going to make damn sure they have their copy nailed down.

I understand the thinking, I do not understand the price. 

Besides, #2 is the one that's actually difficult to find.

 

There's also another possibilty:

1. Monkey business and shenanigans. Can't be ruled out.

Whatever the case, it's certainly interesting.  I have a long standing rule of not selling my Aliens comics, but man alive, if these prices turn out to be correct, or even consistent, that may prove tempting. I love my Aliens books, but if i could turn them into a beater Hulk or FF 1, I'd have to give that some serious consideration.

[batmiesta]

On 6/1/2023 at 3:56 AM, Sweet Lou 14 said:

Well, maybe I need to take back what I said before.  Maybe high grade books are ease after all.

I just picked up two Bronze Age keys for a lot less than the going rate over the past couple of years:

Sold for $9,300 -- a 9.6 WP sold for $12K on Heritage last August, and another sold for over $10K in December 2021.

Sold for $7,701 -- multiple 9.6 WP copies sold for over $25K in November 2021, and a 9.6 OW/W sold for $14,400 as recently as last September.

Very nice Lou. 

[batmiesta]

WTAF? 

ULTIMATE FALLOUT #4, VARIANT EDITION, CGC 9.8 NM/MT - THE AUCTION HAS ENDED 2011, 1st appearance of Miles Morales, the New Spider-Man

Current Bid: $35,000 Number Of Bids: 66  Add to WantList  [Sell One Of These]

[valiantman]

On 6/1/2023 at 3:09 PM, batmiesta said:

WTAF? 

ULTIMATE FALLOUT #4, VARIANT EDITION, CGC 9.8 NM/MT - THE AUCTION HAS ENDED 2011, 1st appearance of Miles Morales, the New Spider-Man

Current Bid: $35,000 Number Of Bids: 66  Add to WantList  [Sell One Of These]

The last six sales on GPA average $38,450.

[batmiesta]

On 6/1/2023 at 9:21 PM, valiantman said:

The last six sales on GPA average $38,450.

Ooooh! Bargain then. 

[valiantman]

On 6/1/2023 at 5:41 PM, batmiesta said:

On 6/1/2023 at 3:21 PM, valiantman said:

The last six sales on GPA average $38,450.

Ooooh! Bargain then. 

Your post seemed like you figured it should have been closer to $300. 

[batmiesta]

On 6/2/2023 at 1:55 AM, valiantman said:

Your post seemed like you figured it should have been closer to $300. 

I was thinking more like $200.  Seriously though, Lou gets 2 HG keys for less than half of what someone paid for that poop, I hope the buyer already had those two books. 

[Sweet Lou 14]

I just saw Across the Spider-Verse and the movie is freakin' awesome.  We are going to see a lot more of Miles Morales.

To be clear, I absolutely recognize UF #4 as a key.  But it's an ultra-modern key.  I happily paid a whopping $365 for my 9.8, and I'm happy to see how its value has grown.  But this should never be a five-figure book, and I would be very worried for anyone buying in at that kind of price.

[dikran]

On 6/1/2023 at 11:08 PM, Sweet Lou 14 said:

I just saw Across the Spider-Verse and the movie is freakin' awesome.  We are going to see a lot more of Miles Morales.

To be clear, I absolutely recognize UF #4 as a key.  But it's an ultra-modern key.  I happily paid a whopping $365 for my 9.8, and I'm happy to see how its value has grown.  But this should never be a five-figure book, and I would be very worried for anyone buying in at that kind of price.

Is there debate over it being a key?… 

[Sweet Lou 14]

On 6/2/2023 at 7:25 AM, dikran said:

Is there debate over it being a key?… 

No?...

[mjoeyoung]

On 5/31/2023 at 5:18 AM, Pantodude said:

Living in one of the test market cities is almost as cool as living in Hell's Kitchen!    Just a case in point.  The huge multiples paid for Star Wars #1 35-cent variants exists at ALL grades (from 1.8 to 9.4 per GPA).  So much so that in 2017.2018, a 35c variant in 1.5 or 1.8 in 2017/2018 went for about as much as the 30c version in 9.8!   Lower to mid grade 35c books routinely fetch over 20x premium over same-grade 30c books nowadays, with more extreme multiples at the high end (e.g., in 9.4, $50K vs $500).  So the premium phenomenon in the context of vintage price variants is not limited to the high grades, as it might be with modern cover variants (i dunno).  Also, unlike modern cover variants that are marketed and hyped (not judging here) as rare counterparts prior to sale, which of course tends to incite interest when released and thereafter, the vintage price variants did not receive premiums until many, many years after release.  When they were sold, the rest of the country outside of the like 4 test cities knew nothing about their existence, let alone how rare they were!  It took time to realize their scarcity, but once it happened, the premiums for 35c price variants have stuck (in all grades).  That's another big difference.           

There is absolutely nothing I disagree with here!  Yours (and I hope mine) is the mindset of a collector.   I think there are a lot of people still spending big bucks on comics that don't care much, if at all about the history.  These people are not like us. All they care about is the investment potential of these books.  To them, rarer books are better investments, end stop.  Here is the description of the 9.8 Eternals #1 30 Cent Price Variant: 

Created by the great Jack Kirby, the artistic father of the Marvel Universe, the Eternals are a superhuman race created by the Celestials. The offered example for the much rarer 30 Cent Price Variant is pristine and has been graded Near Mint/Mint 9.8, making it the highest graded and 1 of only 4 examples of this Variant ever assigned the top grade by CGC. Adding to its desirability, the pristine condition is further enhanced by newsstand-fresh White Pages. Consider that there are 642 CGC 9.8s (Universal and Signature Series) for the regular (25-Cent) edition, and it drives how how incredibly rare these 30-Cent Price Variants of Eternals #1 really are.

This description mentions nothing about the interesting history of price variants.  The hook is that they are rare, RARE, RARE! If you like 9.8s, these 9.8s are double-plus-good! 

Now it IS possible that more people have developed a genuine appreciation for this specific price variant and that is reason why they bid almost $15K for a book that last sold for $7500 in 2020, but I'm a bit too cynical for that.