Don’t worry, I’ll have more to say about Wolverine back issues next time.
Going back to my ramblings about the influx of back issues of a certain age from newly unearthed collections:
philfromgermany has some germane thoughts
“These Byrne X-Men books always command high prices and I don’t count on ’em dropping off a whole lot. It’s great reading and if you get into collecting chances are you will want as many of these as you can.”
There are few perennials in the back issue comics market, but it seems like the Byrne-era X-Men books (and the Cockrum ones that just preceded) are always in demand. Even at my previous place of employment, with had a much larger backstock than I’ve yet to achieve at my own store, our Byrne issues were running a bit thin near the end of my tenure there a decade ago.
So…I may have been “worst case scenario-ing” the idea of a sudden price drop caused by people’s collection suddenly being dumped in the marketplace. I can see maybe a local price fluctuation given a large enough pile of a certain comic showing up at a particular outlet. (“What am I going to do with 1,000 copies of Unicycle Tragedy #14? Well, fifty cents each on ’em, I guess.”) It’s gonna take a warehouse find like the Heroes, Inc. thing I mentioned last time, with just thousands upon thousands of units showing up in a back issue market that couldn’t absorb them.
I think at this point it seems unlikely an Uncanny X-Men #142 treasure trove, many times the size of the batch I received, is still lurking in some as-yet-unexcavated storage until. But one can’t be entirely sure that’s the case.
“But is all that Venom/Carnage spec gonna remain strong? Early Wolverine after the mini? Signal? Gwenpool? Ghost Rider Punisher or Weapon H?”
That’s the continual question about “hot” books, how long ’til they cool down a bit? In most cases it’ll be a conditional thing…Punisher’s first appearance in Amazing Spider-Man #129 will likely always be in demand. However, I’ve told the story before about, at the previous place of employment, slashing the prices on our giant stack of this issue as they were gathering dust following the 1990s decline of interest in Punisher.
At this point, though, that #129 has passed some…event horizon, I guess, moving from “conditional hot book” to “perennial,” both as a Key First Appearance of a Major Marvel Character, and as a Bronze Age Amazing Spider-Man issue. Barring an overall industry crash relegating all comics to be of interest only to people who need paper after all the trees have died out, interest and prices will probably remain high.
The Venom thing has its own likely perennial, Amazing Spider-Man #300 (pictured above, if you couldn’t guess) with the first full-length appearance of that large-jawed, big-tongued adversary. Plus it’s got the extra perks of being 1) Amazing Spider-Man, 2) an anniversary issue, 3) an anniversary issue with that striking cover, and 4) a comic with Todd McFarlane artwork.
Later Venom/Carnage appearances may wax and wane, but that #300 feels like it will always be in demand. Maybe slightly less certain is the first appearance/storyline with Venom tie-in character Carnage, also appearing in Amazing Spider-Man. I mean, demands high now, but will that stick? Well, to be fair, 30 years on the kids still like Carnage comics, and hearing a kid that can’t even pronounce his “Rs” yet ask for “Cawnage comics” never fails to slay me. Anyway, I successfully talked myself into thinking that, yes, that first Carnage story will likely retain its interest and collectability.
Those other characters, though? Well, pretty much any first appearance turned into hot commodities, especially during the opening years of the COVID pandemic and speculation was rampant on just about everything that hit the racks and even slightly looked like it had a first appearance of someone in it. And…have people been looking for Weapon H books? hat’s new on me and I sell these darn things.
In short, some in-demand comics stand the test of time, some don’t. And some just remain pricey despite the reason for its value being pretty much negated (like that one issue of Uncanny X-Men with “The Death of Colossus” who, I’m pretty sure, is hale and hearty now).
To be fair, the “Death of Colossus” issue was also the end of the Legacy virus plot line, which wasn’t extremely popular. I’m sure the “death” is what most readers buy it for, but I remember being relieved the comics were moving away from that storyline.
Hey Mike, I don’t know if you saw it, but new X-office editor Tom Brevoort noted your recent X-haul in his latest newsletter: https://tombrevoort.substack.com/p/141-its-okay-to-complain-baby
When was the Heroes, Inc thing? I don’t think I’d heard of it before.
I’ve now spent a bunch of time reading threads on the cgccomics message board about “warehouse finds,” which are kind of interesting. I’ve never been a “collector” so a lot of this stuff about grading and slabbing comics is lost on me.
2020. I remember the price hike on those back issue of Carol Danvers fighting Corona.
What’s funny to me is that I have been trying to track down a copy of Heroes, Inc. no. 2 (which was published in the ’70s) for decades–now those are hard to find…at least in really great condition.
I always feel that Marvel Fanfare no. 4 is undervalued. I think it is the first time Paul Smith drew the X-Men (and he did an awesome job) and it has great inking by Terry Austin, and a Chris Claremont script. Of course, it is part four of the story arc, but still it is beautifully rendered.
“but it seems like the Byrne-era X-Men books (and the Cockrum ones that just preceded) are always in demand.”
I think it’s gonna stay that way! Those are pretty solid, as reputations go.
“I think at this point it seems unlikely an Uncanny X-Men #142 treasure trove, many times the size of the batch I received, is still lurking in some as-yet-unexcavated storage until. But one can’t be entirely sure that’s the case.”
I wouldn’t have thought it possible for you to find a pile of those like the one you just bought, but there they are! Those investment pile people usually have is the more common stuff: X-Men #1(1990’s), youngblood, turok 1, that stuff.
I know it’s not the likeliest, but, it’s possible.
“Punisher’s first appearance in Amazing Spider-Man #129”.
i think that one, the mini-series (Zeck!), other early ASM appearances, and some jim Lee issues, and the first few of the regular series. I liked a lot of Punisher comics, but, like Venom, he got WAY overexposed.
For a good little, one-part survivalist-type story, may I recommend Punisher #49? Probably the best this Chuck dixon ever wrote.
“Later Venom/Carnage appearances may wax and wane, but that #300 feels like it will always be in demand. Maybe slightly less certain is the first appearance/storyline with Venom tie-in character Carnage”
Venom was fun, Carnage is just a sociopathic Venom, him I could do without.
“The Death of Colossus””
Joss Whedon: “Oh, Yeah?”
“Marvel Fanfare no. 4”
Paul Smith is marvelous!