Anyone else like Trade over Virgin? 1 1

[JoeBrrr]

Since getting more into the *variant* game - sigh I know - I am finding in a lot of cases liking trade dress more than virgins. Although the Virgin art looks amazing often I forget which issue or even title some of them come from when they aren’t slabbed. I’m probably in the minority especially with virgins seeming to have lower print runs. 
 

Here’s a major one for me - ofc it’s a bit unfair due to the amount of nostalgia baked into the trade dress. 

[godzilla43]

In this case I also like the trade more but I am starting to hate trade, virgin, store and especially con variants. I hope comic book industry would go back to that regular cover and sometimes there is a ratio variant.

Edited January 5, 2023 by godzilla43

[SpineTic]

Trade dress = comic book.

Virgin variant = Just a picture.

[godzilla43]

I have Marauders 3 Jeehyung lee variant that is better in virgin in my opinion.

[ADAMANTIUM]

On 1/5/2023 at 10:32 AM, ak47po said:

Trade dress = comic book.

Virgin variant = Just a picture.

Plus the virgin is often skipped by me while bin diving, unless you are familiar with the issue to know it's number.

Key collector helps a bit but not enough, and definitely not soon enough after release.

Edited January 5, 2023 by ADAMANTIUM

[IbukiLord]

Depends on the placement and the art, sometimes virgin over trade and sometimes trade over virgin

[gradejunky]

In the case of this book I do like the Trade better.  Kaare Andrews cover?  Yeah, that old style price box with the heads is dope looking.

[JoeBrrr]

On 1/5/2023 at 12:44 PM, gradejunky said:

In the case of this book I do like the Trade better.  Kaare Andrews cover?  Yeah, that old style price box with the heads is dope looking.

Yes sir - I saw it on anti-hero’s shop which I’m realizing lately is related to unknown comics?

There was the NM98 Spider-Man homage a few years back that was the same. 
 

but to adamantiums point - if it’s art I like I’ll buy a virgin to display (if I did have a wall display). But for the average consumer or seller it’s really hard to tell what book is which, is it a key? I’ve seen ppl buy Strange Academy Finals 1 Peach virgin thinking it’s her SA 1 virgin since they both have magik. Some of these variants don’t even have the characters from said series in them - I just like knowing what’s a key, or at the very least is that great del’otto with venom a Venom, King of Black, ASM, etc. 

I realized this was a problem for me when I was watching a whatnot stream where they constantly had to remove the NM comics from the Mylar to look to see which issue and series it was. 
 

 

[paullam15]

Depends, but most of the time I prefer the virgin cover over the trade cover.

[gradejunky]

On 1/5/2023 at 7:32 PM, JoeBrrr said:

Yes sir - I saw it on anti-hero’s shop which I’m realizing lately is related to unknown comics?

There was the NM98 Spider-Man homage a few years back that was the same. 
 

but to adamantiums point - if it’s art I like I’ll buy a virgin to display (if I did have a wall display). But for the average consumer or seller it’s really hard to tell what book is which, is it a key? I’ve seen ppl buy Strange Academy Finals 1 Peach virgin thinking it’s her SA 1 virgin since they both have magik. Some of these variants don’t even have the characters from said series in them - I just like knowing what’s a key, or at the very least is that great del’otto with venom a Venom, King of Black, ASM, etc. 

I realized this was a problem for me when I was watching a whatnot stream where they constantly had to remove the NM comics from the Mylar to look to see which issue and series it was. 
 

 

It really just boils down to too many variants across all publishers...period. 

Not to mention all the series restarts over the years for the big 2 especially.  Before legacy #'s on books running concurrent with the volumes ongoing numbering, it is a mess show.  If you don't know what writer/artist team was on a series at what time, you are at a loss for what books you may be buying. Cover A or B etc. of what series? Alot of times the trade dress stays the same as well from one volume to the next, sometimes not which is an easy identifier.  For new collectors this must be completely maddening I would think especially if they do not know how to use the UPC to help identify covers.  There are tons of apps now obviously to help with this very thing, but just looking through back issues pre-2010ish was easy to remember a cover to what books you wanted or needed for your runs.

Edited January 9, 2023 by gradejunky

[Mr. Spider-Woman]

If I wanted a poster to hang on the wall, I'd go with the virgin cover. If I want a comic book for my collection, I want the trade dress.

[djzombi]

Trade dress.  

[eastbayrudy]

I prefer the the Trade Dress, but once in a blue moon the virgin seems to work better. 

[pmpknface]

I generally prefer the trade, but if I can get both all the more better.  I also like that they are often less expensive, but I did pre-order these 2: 

[Qalyar]

One of the more random things I collect are comics spun-off from the Labyrinth film. Boom has done quite a few of them, and many of their variant covers are essentially virgin covers. Sometimes it works for me, but not always. There's definitely a problem where there's no real way to know what book you're looking at without any front cover trade dress!

These are all cool enough covers, but there's no way you'd know that they're also from three different books (Labyrinth: Coronation #1, Labyrinth: Masquerade, and the 2007 Special). I don't think any of these would have been hurt by retaining trade dress (and, indeed, the rather pink one -- from Labyrinth: Masquerade -- also comes in a version that does have trade dress).

That said, I love this Joelle Jones "coloring book" cover -- from yet a fourth different book, the 30th Anniversary Special -- and it just wouldn't have worked out as well if there was full trade dress (heck, I wish they'd pushed the Fried Pie logo to the back cover, too).

[D2]

On 1/5/2023 at 11:19 AM, godzilla43 said:

In this case I also like the trade more but I am starting to hate trade, virgin, store and especially con variants. I hope comic book industry would go back to that regular cover and sometimes there is a ratio variant.

I know... it's one of those things. I love variants, and I love virgin variants... I love all that stuff, but at the same time a lot of it feels muddled and annoying.

Of everything on the table, I find what I collect the most are sketch variants, and ratio variants. I don't actually have many virgin variants, a few, and I like them, but they don't make up for the bulk of my variant collection.

If there is one constant, it's that, if there is a variant/sketch/virgin alternative, almost always, I prefer the look of the variant, to the standard cover A options, in almost every case.

[Dalehamblin]

I did have some virgin variants, I sold them all now just something about them that I think doesn’t seem right. Even if I have a chance now on getting them I pass, suppose I just prefer the standard trade dress but each to their own.