Kingdom Come newsstands? 2 2

[Michael Browning]

I found these in a shop this week and I’m wondering what they are - Kingdom Come #3 and #4 with blank UPC boxes and UPC code stickers on the front.

I can’t find any for sale on eBay, nor any that have sold. I’ve also looked online to see if there is any information and I haven’t been able to find anything on them.

 

[onlyweaknesskryptonite]

From other books I have with the same type barcode stickers ( UPC with "EN" in the barcode) I can say that a lot of my copies came from book stores and they needed a upc to scan . Most of mine came from stores like Waldenbooks, Barnes and Noble, etc. 

[Qalyar]

On 6/18/2022 at 12:18 PM, onlyweaknesskryptonite said:

From other books I have with the same type barcode stickers ( UPC with "EN" in the barcode) I can say that a lot of my copies came from book stores and they needed a upc to scan . Most of mine came from stores like Waldenbooks, Barnes and Noble, etc. 

Yeah, those might be third party barcode stickers; it's sometimes hard to know. That said, it's the blank UPC boxes that make these super weird. These aren't either the standard 1st printings or 2nd prints, both of which have a back cover UPC. I wasn't aware of any pack-ins or packaged sets with Kingdom Come... and they still have a cover price anyway.

What does the indicia say on these copies?

[divad]

Nasty stickers . . . 

[Michael Browning]

Unfortunately, there aren’t indicias in any the Kingdom Come issues, just the publishing information on a page prior to the title page. The second prints said “Second Print.” These don’t say anything, so I’d have to believe they are first prints.

The blank UPC boxes are unlike any copies I’ve seen. I have other DCs with the stickers on them. I’ve always been told those were done at the printer for newsstands and bookstores - and not done BY the bookstores. 

[divad]

These do not appear to be stickers applied by the printer, they appear to be UPCs generated by the retailer, whomever that may have been. 

I can add that none of my copies have the blank box on the BC.

Edited June 19, 2022 by divad

[Michael Browning]

On 6/18/2022 at 10:50 PM, divad said:

These do not appear to be stickers applied by the printer, they appear to be UPCs generated by the retailer, whomever that may have been. 

I can add that none of my copies have the blank box on the BC.

The same thing was originally believed about the stickered Spawn Batman newsstand, but then it was determined that they were done at the printer (or somewhere before it got to the bookstore company) and not at the bookstore. 

[Michael Browning]

I had never seen copies with a blank UPC box before, either, as all my copies have the code in the box. When I found the #3 in the stack at the comic shop, I thought it was a reprint. Then, the guy had #4, too, and it was the same. Neither have any note that they are second or later printings, so I am believing them to be first prints. I have a second print of the first issue and it is noted by Roman numerals on the cover and it says “Second Print” on the publishing information page. I wondered if they were toy variants that might have been packaged with toys, but I don’t believe any were packed with the action figures and I can’t find any evidence that they were. 

[Brock]

A retailer sticker probably wouldn’t have both Canadian and US prices. Why sticker a Barnes and Noble book with a Canadian price, when they have no stores in Canada?

[divad]

On 6/18/2022 at 8:27 PM, Brock said:

A retailer sticker probably wouldn’t have both Canadian and US prices. Why sticker a Barnes and Noble book with a Canadian price, when they have no stores in Canada?

Who said it was Barnes & Noble btw? I am more interested in the blank box than the sticker. And I've never understood the price being included on any barcode - doesn't the barcode contain all of that information anyhoo? 

Edited June 19, 2022 by divad

[Cat]

On 6/19/2022 at 1:23 PM, Michael Browning said:

I had never seen copies with a blank UPC box before, either, as all my copies have the code in the box. When I found the #3 in the stack at the comic shop, I thought it was a reprint. Then, the guy had #4, too, and it was the same. Neither have any note that they are second or later printings, so I am believing them to be first prints. I have a second print of the first issue and it is noted by Roman numerals on the cover and it says “Second Print” on the publishing information page. I wondered if they were toy variants that might have been packaged with toys, but I don’t believe any were packed with the action figures and I can’t find any evidence that they were. 

No, none were packed with the KC figures. The packaging was barely big enough to fit the figures, definitely not enough room for a comic too. 

[Brock]

On 6/19/2022 at 1:24 AM, divad said:

Who said it was Barnes & Noble btw? I am more interested in the blank box than the sticker. And I've never understood the price being included on any barcode - doesn't the barcode contain all of that information anyhoo? 

I was using B&N as an example, as it was mentioned in the conversation earlier. The basic point is that there are no bookstore chains that operate in both countries.

There are stores that do operate on both sides of the border, though they were scarcer in the 1990s. Walmart, for example, opened its first Canadian store in 1994, and Kingdom Come was released in 1996. But - to the best of my knowledge - while they were selling books in multipacks, sometimes with specially-produced editions (perhaps like the DC Universe variants), they weren’t selling individual books. Even now, Walmart doesn’t sell single comic books (like the DC giants) in Canada.

While this doesn’t prove anything, it’s suggestive of stickering taking place at the publisher or distributor level, i.e. BEFORE the books get divided into retailer orders.

[Lazyboy]

On 6/19/2022 at 7:10 AM, Brock said:

I was using B&N as an example, as it was mentioned in the conversation earlier. The basic point is that there are no bookstore chains that operate in both countries.

There are stores that do operate on both sides of the border, though they were scarcer in the 1990s. Walmart, for example, opened its first Canadian store in 1994, and Kingdom Come was released in 1996. But - to the best of my knowledge - while they were selling books in multipacks, sometimes with specially-produced editions (perhaps like the DC Universe variants), they weren’t selling individual books. Even now, Walmart doesn’t sell single comic books (like the DC giants) in Canada.

While this doesn’t prove anything, it’s suggestive of stickering taking place at the publisher or distributor level, i.e. BEFORE the books get divided into retailer orders.(liker

Depending on the template they're using to print the stickers, it doesn't necessarily matter what country they're in.

Printers, distributors, and retailers have all been known to add stickers for various reasons. Unless the book itself is different (like these with the blank boxes), stickers are just stickers. If anybody wants to pay a premium for a sticker, I'll gladly print them whatever kind they want and stick it wherever they want.

Walmart definitely sold individual comics in the mid-90s, though I'm not sure if they ever had Kingdom Come.

[Brock]

On 6/19/2022 at 4:38 PM, Lazyboy said:

Depending on the template they're using to print the stickers, it doesn't necessarily matter what country they're in.

Printers, distributors, and retailers have all been known to add stickers for various reasons. Unless the book itself is different (like these with the blank boxes), stickers are just stickers.

Thanks for the input… I think we were discussing what it meant that both US and Canadian prices were on the sticker, and whether that could help inform us on when or by whom the sticker was applied. I’d love to hear your thoughts about that!

On 6/19/2022 at 4:38 PM, Lazyboy said:

Walmart definitely sold individual comics in the mid-90s, though I'm not sure if they ever had Kingdom Come.

That’s interesting - do you have some sources or additional info for this? It certainly does open up a possible origin for these books.

[Beastfeast]

On 6/19/2022 at 4:38 PM, Lazyboy said:

Depending on the template they're using to print the stickers, it doesn't necessarily matter what country they're in.

Printers, distributors, and retailers have all been known to add stickers for various reasons. Unless the book itself is different (like these with the blank boxes), stickers are just stickers. If anybody wants to pay a premium for a sticker, I'll gladly print them whatever kind they want and stick it wherever they want.

Walmart definitely sold individual comics in the mid-90s, though I'm not sure if they ever had Kingdom Come.

[Lazyboy]

On 6/19/2022 at 8:09 PM, Brock said:

Thanks for the input… I think we were discussing what it meant that both US and Canadian prices were on the sticker, and whether that could help inform us on when or by whom the sticker was applied. I’d love to hear your thoughts about that!

Yeah. If they used a template with dual prices, the stickers will have both prices. Why a retailer or distributor serving a single country would choose that type, I can't answer.

On 6/19/2022 at 8:09 PM, Brock said:

That’s interesting - do you have some sources or additional info for this? It certainly does open up a possible origin for these books.

I didn't stop shopping at Walmart until ~20 years ago and I've lived in Winnipeg my entire life. I didn't buy very many comics there, but I did buy a few. Never noticed any stickered books, though.

[Lazyboy]

On 6/19/2022 at 8:43 PM, Beastfeast said:

Yes, wherever you want.

[LikeEmScanned]

Issue #3 with the blank UPC is in this pack. Both the #1 and #2 2nd prints with the Roman Numeral II are inside as well.

 

[divad]

On 6/20/2022 at 8:19 PM, LikeEmScanned said:

Issue #3 with the blank UPC is in this pack. Both the #1 and #2 2nd prints with the Roman Numeral II are inside as well.

 

This is why I love this place.  

[Michael Browning]

On 6/20/2022 at 11:19 PM, LikeEmScanned said:

Issue #3 with the blank UPC is in this pack. Both the #1 and #2 2nd prints with the Roman Numeral II are inside as well.

 

Thanks! Now, I wonder, where did the #4 blank box come from?