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US vs UK editions

242 posts in this topic

here's the indicia to my "pence" ASM no.1 (nice of original owner "Gareth" to write his name on it!)

 

(sorry couldn't make it bigger :sick: , old pics )

 

You can see it actually says "printed in the USA"

 

asm1inner.jpg

 

I don't have any Silver Age pence copies and I wasn't aware of these differences on the inside cover, especially the T & P line at the foot of the page. Learned something. :)

 

For me, I could go to the corner newsagent and effortlessly buy a pence copy in the 70s, and maybe I saw US cent copies as aspirational and more logical to have as US-originated product?

 

 

Same here.

 

If anything that makes the argument for them being 'Foreign Editions' even more relevant to me. Cover is different and the internals are different as well.

 

Normal American issues with other currency stickers I have no issue with TBH, neither ones like the DCs that are stamped. I guess because they are totally 'valid' (in my eyes) American copies that have just been after publication priced for a foreign market rather than printed differently.

 

At the heart of it I think if people with pence copies could have them magically changed into cents copies it'd be a no brainer. They are collected and bought and sold because they are much cheaper, and deservedly so.

 

Interesting topic.

Cheapness is one aspect of why they are bought and sold but not the only one. Some UK collectors prefer them to cents copies, probably due to nostalgia or familiarity. Some collectors like collecting other versions of particular issues. Some collectors buy them because they are far more challenging to collect than cents copies which can be found with ease. Some collectors just don't distinguish at all between cents and pence copies. This isn't speculation, I've sold to people who fall into all of these categories.

 

True enuff. what I would add is whilst it seems to stand to reason that pence copies of any particular issue must be far rarer than their American counterpart when taken as a whole extant supply, when I was chasing early ASM in the early 80s, for myself pence copies were available more often than cents copies - which makes sense as I live in the UK.

 

I haven't really kept up with prices of pence copies to any great extent but when I used to stand at marts throughout the 80/90s even then the basic run collector would be very knowledgable about which they'd prefer, and I'd have to price pence copies very aggressively to make sure they moved.

Finding high grade late Bronze or Copper pence copies in high grade is easy enough, early Bronze in high grade is not so easy, late Silver Age in high grade is tricky and early Silver Age in high grade is very difficult.

 

As for pricing, I sell them at two thirds of the price that I sell cents copies for as I have for a while now and selling them has got steadily easier over the last five years. A few years ago, I wouldn't really want to take on buying a large pence collection to resell unless it was a really good deal, now I'd be happy to take one on at a proportional rate to a cents collection.

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Ah okay, then they definitely have increased a bit. Cheers.

 

In most straight-up auctions, grade for grade, they usually fetch 50-55% of the original American versions, which is consistent with the going market averages as reflected on GPA. (thumbs u

 

And BTW, people really need to stop referring to these as "price variants". They are not. That is just as incorrect and disengenuous as referring to them as "reprints".

 

They are foreign versions of American comics that just so happened to have been printed at around the same time as each other.

 

-J.

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If they are identical except for the pricing, how are they anything except price variants?

 

They also have some slight internal differences on the indicia.

 

I'm therefore much more inclined to go with the 'foreign edition' rather than just price variant naming.

 

Still better to just call them pence copies.

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If they are identical except for the pricing, how are they anything except price variants?

 

lol Because they aren't "identical". They were specifically printed for a foreign market, just like any other foreign comic book. They just so happen to still be in English. Real price variants (ie, Star Wars 1) are still American comic books.

 

And, as others have noted, they have a different monetary unit, no publication date, and a different indicia on the interior, all of which make them foreign comics (ie, not original American copies).

 

-J.

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If they are identical except for the pricing, how are they anything except price variants?

 

lol Because they aren't "identical". [b]They were specifically printed for a foreign market[/b], just like any other foreign comic book. They just so happen to still be in English. Real price variants (ie, Star Wars 1) are still American comic books.

 

And, as others have noted, they have a different monetary unit, no publication date, and a different indicia on the interior, all of which make them foreign comics (ie, not original American copies).

 

-J.

 

If they were specifically printed for a foreign market why are all the advertisments for American products?

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If they are identical except for the pricing, how are they anything except price variants?

 

lol Because they aren't "identical". [b]They were specifically printed for a foreign market[/b], just like any other foreign comic book. They just so happen to still be in English. Real price variants (ie, Star Wars 1) are still American comic books.

 

And, as others have noted, they have a different monetary unit, no publication date, and a different indicia on the interior, all of which make them foreign comics (ie, not original American copies).

 

-J.

 

If they were specifically printed for a foreign market why are all the advertisments for American products?

 

Because its a helluva lot easier just to change a price and alter a couple of words in the indicia than attract new advertisers in a foreign country and produce all the associated adverts.

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If they are identical except for the pricing, how are they anything except price variants?

 

lol Because they aren't "identical". [b]They were specifically printed for a foreign market[/b], just like any other foreign comic book. They just so happen to still be in English. Real price variants (ie, Star Wars 1) are still American comic books.

 

And, as others have noted, they have a different monetary unit, no publication date, and a different indicia on the interior, all of which make them foreign comics (ie, not original American copies).

 

-J.

 

If they were specifically printed for a foreign market why are all the advertisments for American products?

 

To taunt us with things we couldn't have.

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If they are identical except for the pricing, how are they anything except price variants?

 

lol Because they aren't "identical". [b]They were specifically printed for a foreign market[/b], just like any other foreign comic book. They just so happen to still be in English. Real price variants (ie, Star Wars 1) are still American comic books.

 

And, as others have noted, they have a different monetary unit, no publication date, and a different indicia on the interior, all of which make them foreign comics (ie, not original American copies).

 

-J.

 

If they were specifically printed for a foreign market why are all the advertisments for American products?

 

To taunt us with things we couldn't have.

 

America for Americans. Suck it.

 

sea%20monkey_zpsd3oupnqu.jpg

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If they are identical except for the pricing, how are they anything except price variants?

 

lol Because they aren't "identical". [b]They were specifically printed for a foreign market[/b], just like any other foreign comic book. They just so happen to still be in English. Real price variants (ie, Star Wars 1) are still American comic books.

 

And, as others have noted, they have a different monetary unit, no publication date, and a different indicia on the interior, all of which make them foreign comics (ie, not original American copies).

 

-J.

 

If they were specifically printed for a foreign market why are all the advertisments for American products?

 

That would make them foreign reprints which I think we all agree they are not.

 

They still, however, are foreign versions of American comics. They are not the American originals, hence their resulting steep discounts in prices.

 

-J.

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If they are identical except for the pricing, how are they anything except price variants?

 

lol Because they aren't "identical". They were specifically printed for a foreign market, just like any other foreign comic book. They just so happen to still be in English. Real price variants (ie, Star Wars 1) are still American comic books.

 

And, as others have noted, they have a different monetary unit, no publication date, and a different indicia on the interior, all of which make them foreign comics (ie, not original American copies).

 

-J.

 

No, most (non-original) foreign comic books were licensed by a publisher in the appropriate area and printed wherever that publisher did their printing. Versions like Pence copies and Copper Canadian Newsstands were printed at the same time and place as the regular "American" versions and published by the regular American companies.

 

I don't generally call Pence copies or Canadian Newsstands "price variants" or even "variants" just because those aren't the best descriptions. But there is nothing special or magical about the word "variant" that makes a comic better.

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If they are identical except for the pricing, how are they anything except price variants?

 

lol Because they aren't "identical". They were specifically printed for a foreign market, just like any other foreign comic book. They just so happen to still be in English. Real price variants (ie, Star Wars 1) are still American comic books.

 

And, as others have noted, they have a different monetary unit, no publication date, and a different indicia on the interior, all of which make them foreign comics (ie, not original American copies).

 

-J.

 

No, most (non-original) foreign comic books were licensed by a publisher in the appropriate area and printed wherever that publisher did their printing. Versions like Pence copies and Copper Canadian Newsstands were printed at the same time and place as the regular "American" versions and published by the regular American companies.

 

I don't generally call Pence copies or Canadian Newsstands "price variants" or even "variants" just because those aren't the best descriptions. But there is nothing special or magical about the word "variant" that makes a comic better.

 

I'm sorry but "where" the books were printed is irrelevant. They were printed "for" and distribution "in" a foreign market. They are therfore foreign comic books ie, not original American copies.

 

-J.

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As I said in a friendly way about 25 pages ago, the naming-conventions are really down to personal preference and semantics - people can call them what the want! :shy:

 

However, as I also said, I have a concern that the are referred to as a reprint - which I think everyone agrees now they're not.... so all good on that front

 

I am happy with "pence copy" or "UK edition" or "price variant" - all are factually accurate

I guess an American (or Canadian!) could call them "foreign editions" but seems a bit strange for a Brit to say that....

 

Anyway, an earlier poster suggested that I would ideally like to change all my pence copies to cents... the truth is that if I was about to SELL THEM in today's market then of course I'd agree on that - as clearly that would be commercially more successful!

 

And yes, If I found a colletion full of keys, I'd be even more happy (from a commercial sense) if they were cents... that's just common sense. To pretend otherwise would be mad - but that isn't the point....

 

Do I consider pence copies inferior in my collection now? NO

Am I "makiing do with pence copies" NO

Do I cry at nigh over having a FN/VF Daredevil no.1 in pence? NO

 

I have keys in both CENTS and PENCE

They are all welcome :)

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Brain teaser...

way out of Bronze & Silver territory but a bit of a logic test...

 

Miracleman no.1 from Eclipse Comics was published in 1985

 

The entire print-run was printed in Finland (which is not in America)

 

There are two versions, one intended for the American market, one intended for the UK market

 

The front cover to both these versions are 100% identical and they both carry USA cents, UK pence and Canadian dollars prices

 

The only differences in the two versions are 1) the rear cover (completely different) and 2) the indicia in the UK version says "not for sale in North America"

 

Both versions were on sale in the UK when launched

 

How do we classify these books?

 

 

 

 

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Brain teaser...

way out of Bronze & Silver territory but a bit of a logic test...

 

Miracleman no.1 from Eclipse Comics was published in 1985

 

The entire print-run was printed in Finland (which is not in America)

 

There are two versions, one intended for the American market, one intended for the UK market

 

The front cover to both these versions are 100% identical and they both carry USA cents, UK pence and Canadian dollars prices

 

The only differences in the two versions are 1) the rear cover (completely different) and 2) the indicia in the UK version says "not for sale in North America"

 

Both versions were on sale in the UK when launched

 

How do we classify these books?

 

 

 

 

In the case of Miracleman 1 I actually prefer the UK version due to the relative scarcity. But I'm also biased.

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Brain teaser...

way out of Bronze & Silver territory but a bit of a logic test...

 

Miracleman no.1 from Eclipse Comics was published in 1985

 

The entire print-run was printed in Finland (which is not in America)

 

There are two versions, one intended for the American market, one intended for the UK market

 

The front cover to both these versions are 100% identical and they both carry USA cents, UK pence and Canadian dollars prices

 

The only differences in the two versions are 1) the rear cover (completely different) and 2) the indicia in the UK version says "not for sale in North America"

 

Both versions were on sale in the UK when launched

 

How do we classify these books?

 

 

 

Standard edition and UK variant.

 

The important thing is that they were all published by Eclipse and printed together. Where they were printed doesn't matter. Tons of "American" comic books have been printed in Canada.

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Brain teaser...

way out of Bronze & Silver territory but a bit of a logic test...

 

Miracleman no.1 from Eclipse Comics was published in 1985

 

The entire print-run was printed in Finland (which is not in America)

 

There are two versions, one intended for the American market, one intended for the UK market

 

The front cover to both these versions are 100% identical and they both carry USA cents, UK pence and Canadian dollars prices

 

The only differences in the two versions are 1) the rear cover (completely different) and 2) the indicia in the UK version says "not for sale in North America"

 

Both versions were on sale in the UK when launched

 

How do we classify these books?

 

 

 

Standard edition and UK variant.

 

The important thing is that they were all published by Eclipse and printed together. Where they were printed doesn't matter. Tons of "American" comic books have been printed in Canada.

 

Standard edition and US variant

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Brain teaser...

way out of Bronze & Silver territory but a bit of a logic test...

 

Miracleman no.1 from Eclipse Comics was published in 1985

 

The entire print-run was printed in Finland (which is not in America)

 

There are two versions, one intended for the American market, one intended for the UK market

 

The front cover to both these versions are 100% identical and they both carry USA cents, UK pence and Canadian dollars prices

 

The only differences in the two versions are 1) the rear cover (completely different) and 2) the indicia in the UK version says "not for sale in North America"

 

Both versions were on sale in the UK when launched

 

How do we classify these books?

 

 

 

Standard edition and UK variant.

 

The important thing is that they were all published by Eclipse and printed together. Where they were printed doesn't matter. Tons of "American" comic books have been printed in Canada.

 

Standard edition and US variant

 

lol

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