DC Comics Liquidates Rare Variant Covers 0

[sd2416]

One store looked them up and didnt see them.  Are they already pulled? 

[Anfield Fox]

On 16/06/2017 at 9:36 PM, SquareChaos said:

That is the exact behavior by the publishers that a lot of people have been hoping would never happen. It conjures up a whole lot of questions.

True but if they have boxes of these books they have 3 options:

1. Liquidate

2. Stick them on a pallet in the archives to never see the light of day

3. Destroy them

At least by liquidating them they made a bit of money and get them into the hands of collectors. Now if you were one of those that paid premium prices for these then i can undertstand why you would be upset but to the best of my knowledge none of these books are all that desirable anymore despite the low ratio's. In future publishers need to be more wary of over printing these "rare" variants to avoid situations like this.

[Zacreth]

It wasn't hard to order, but they go quick. They have been doing this for a while now. All the batman/TMNT eastman variants, all american superman variants were sold out instantly. Speaking of, does anyone want to buy one...lol?

[darkstar]

On 6/17/2017 at 10:51 AM, Jaydogrules said:

Yay, I can finally get that copy of wolf moon 1 and trinity of sin 3 I've been looking all over for!

Yes, this is nothing new. Burning off remainders of case packs of un-sold/un-ordered drek variants happens periodically. 

Keep dreaming on that happening on famous $5k+ books 5-15 years after the fact though.   

-J.

 

Plenty of books on that list aren't drek though. 

[1950's war comics]

On 6/16/2017 at 6:29 PM, Kevin76 said:

Stay away from variant covers no matter how hot they are, they all sink or have a ceiling. Who knows how many ASM 678 MJ variants marvel is sitting on or how many Batman 608 RRP covers DC has sitting on a bookshelf somewhere.  Variants are pretty much a waste of money. 

WISE WORDS !

[revat]

27 minutes ago, 1950's war comics said:

On ‎6‎/‎16‎/‎2017 at 3:29 PM, Kevin76 said:

Stay away from variant covers no matter how hot they are, they all sink or have a ceiling. Who knows how many ASM 678 MJ variants marvel is sitting on or how many Batman 608 RRP covers DC has sitting on a bookshelf somewhere.  Variants are pretty much a waste of money. 

WISE WORDS !

I don't mind the advice, but if you've got a good sense and do your research and ENJOY IT, there's nothing wrong with getting in and getting out quickly for profits on modern variants, and using those profits to gamble on a few of them.  Obviously nobody wants to be left holding the bag or buy at GPA highs, but there's nothing wrong with buying them well below market for a flip or grabbing a few as investment for reasonable prices when they first come out.  But if, after a few attempts, you're not making money and/or your over paying after the market has peaked, the modern variants game is probably not for you. 

But to say its a blanket stay away in all cases isnt' quite right IMO, just like  nearly any other segment of comics, if you ENJOY IT and are willing to put in a little bit of work and have some sense, you can have some fun and make a little (maybe not a ton, but sometimes a ton) of money.

I think the most important part of it is not to 'stay away', but to not be left holding the bag when the music stops.

Edited June 20, 2017 by revat

[ygogolak]

As I stated before, you could apply this to ANY comic. The general public simply doesn't know if there are boxes in a warehouse, how many file copies, etc...

 

For instance, I recently purchased the first prototype of a popular independent character for below market value. Why was it below market? The comic itself has multiple stories in it. One of the creators of one of the other characters that didn't take off had a case of the issue in their closet. Obviously for personal reasons. They leaked out about 10-15 this time. What is considered scarce, low print, hard to find etc... is all relative to the market at any given time. This is not unique to variants.

[SquareChaos]

26 minutes ago, ygogolak said:

As I stated before, you could apply this to ANY comic. The general public simply doesn't know if there are boxes in a warehouse, how many file copies, etc...

 

For instance, I recently purchased the first prototype of a popular independent character for below market value. Why was it below market? The comic itself has multiple stories in it. One of the creators of one of the other characters that didn't take off had a case of the issue in their closet. Obviously for personal reasons. They leaked out about 10-15 this time. What is considered scarce, low print, hard to find etc... is all relative to the market at any given time. This is not unique to variants.

I'd generally agree, but similar to what I've said for a few years now... whatever heuristic is applied to these decisions should increase reluctance as the cost of entry rises - especially on items with a short track record of value. The concept of 'expensive' is subjective, so there is no real universal truth to be had on that front. But obviously a $20 variant purchase is probably not going to break the bank for most households, however, a $5000 variant purchase might be viewed a little dubiously by *nearly* everyone.

Obviously, it is still a free country and people are free to spend their money any way they choose, but the flip side of that 'free country' thing is some random punk mocking them for it on a message board 

[manetteska]

1 hour ago, ygogolak said:

As I stated before, you could apply this to ANY comic. The general public simply doesn't know if there are boxes in a warehouse, how many file copies, etc...

 

For instance, I recently purchased the first prototype of a popular independent character for below market value. Why was it below market? The comic itself has multiple stories in it. One of the creators of one of the other characters that didn't take off had a case of the issue in their closet. Obviously for personal reasons. They leaked out about 10-15 this time. What is considered scarce, low print, hard to find etc... is all relative to the market at any given time. This is not unique to variants.

[Jaydogrules]

1 hour ago, SquareChaos said:

I'd generally agree, but similar to what I've said for a few years now... whatever heuristic is applied to these decisions should increase reluctance as the cost of entry rises - especially on items with a short track record of value. The concept of 'expensive' is subjective, so there is no real universal truth to be had on that front. But obviously a $20 variant purchase is probably not going to break the bank for most households, however, a $5000 variant purchase might be viewed a little dubiously by *nearly* everyone.

Obviously, it is still a free country and people are free to spend their money any way they choose, but the flip side of that 'free country' thing is some random punk mocking them for it on a message board 

I updated the "most valuable modern variant" thread yesterday.  There is exactly one (1) variant that has publicly broken the  $5k threshold.  And it's 15 years old- Batman 608RRP.  I know of two other books that have done it privately a couple times (ASM 667 and 678).  So that's three books.  #12 on the list has a value of about $1550. Decent money, but not breaking the bank huge.  Some unordered/remaindered drek variants come out and suddenly we have yet another morphed "I hate variants" thread.  It's so predictable at this point it is almost laughable.  Again, this really isn't rocket science.  There are overages on prints at times.  Rather than hold inventory in perpetuity in that mythical "warehouse" they are burned off once there are enough to make it worth doing.  The variants you don't see that happen with?  Well obviously those weren't over printed or under ordered, so there's nothing to burn off.  

Usually the most obvious explanation is the correct one.  

-J.

Edited June 21, 2017 by Jaydogrules

[SquareChaos]

4 minutes ago, Jaydogrules said:

I updated the "most valuable modern variant" thread yesterday.  There is exactly one (1) variant that has publicly broken the  $5k threshold.  And it's 15 years old- Batman 608RRP.  I know of two other books that have done it privately a couple times (ASM 667 and 678).  So that's three books.  #12 on the list has a value of about $1550. Decent money, but not breaking the bank huge.  Some unordered/remaindered drek variants come out and suddenly we have yet another morphed "I hate variants" thread.  It's so predictable at this point it is almost laughable.  Again, this really is rocket science.  There are overages on prints at times.  Rather than hold inventory in perpetuity in that mythical "warehouse" they are burned off once there are enough to make it worth doing.  The variants you don't see that happen with?  Well obviously those weren't over printed or under ordered, so there's nothing to burn off.  

Usually the most obvious answer is the correct one.  

-J.

1. I'm not telling anyone to hate variants - I have many of them I quite like, so I'm not sure why you're quoting me with that statement, but perhaps you just mean it in general.

2. Great, we both agree people have paid $5000 for a modern variant.

3. When you say some "unordered / remaindered drek variants" - are these the variants we're allowed to show up and hate on? Only variants from pile A, not pile B?

 

Edited June 21, 2017 by SquareChaos
Clarity

[kimik]

On 6/18/2017 at 10:50 AM, ygogolak said:

I went to a shop this weekend that had two new copies of about 10 of the Harley 1:25s released over the last year. They were priced at $5-6 each. I think it was more than is listed here.

a quick look on eBay showed the issues the store had were being listed for about that much. They were going for $25+ when they were released. I know it's not uncommon to have that kind of price drop but for variants but for that title and the issues it seems suspicious.

The local stores here are sitting on long box after long box of 1:10/1:20/1:25 variants that did not sell when they first came out. The only way to move them when the cool off is to price them at $5 and blow them out. It is still a decent ROI compared to the initial cost and keeps the customers happy when they find a hidden gem. At one store I passed on two ASM #688 Campbell Lizard variants in 2015 before I knew they were worth anything. I had them in hand and was taking them to the counter since they were JSC and I thought they should be worth $5, but decided against it at the last minute since it was not a hot female character and just a fugly rendition of the Lizard. 

Edited June 21, 2017 by kimik

[Jaydogrules]

12 minutes ago, SquareChaos said:

1. I'm not telling anyone to hate variants - I have many of them I quite like, so I'm not sure why you're quoting me with that statement, but perhaps you just mean it in general.

2. Great, we both agree people have paid $5000 for a modern variant.

3. When you say some "unordered / remaindered drek variants" - are these the variants we're allowed to show up and hate on? Only variants from pile A, not pile B?

 

First, it's just dumb to think that nothing printed (variants) in the last 15 years is going to end up being valuable/desired/sought after.  This is a broad, diverse hobby, and, believe it or not, some people may actually like things that you don't.  

Second, why take the time to "hate" on anything?   It's so much more fun collecting and discussing what you like and what interests you.  Just assume that most of the people who have the wherewithal to spend $5k on one book aren't worried about selling, and are stashing these away for the long haul in their PC's.  

-J.

[SquareChaos]

3 minutes ago, Jaydogrules said:

First, it's just dumb to think that nothing printed (variants) in the last 15 years is going to end up being valuable/desired/sought after.  This is a broad, diverse hobby, and, believe it or not, some people may actually like things that you don't.  

Second, why take the time to "hate" on anything?   It's so much more fun collecting and discussing what you like and what interests you.  Just assume that most of the people who have the wherewithal to spend $5k on one book aren't worried about selling, and are stashing these away for the long haul in their PC's.  

-J.

It seems like you're defending against arguments I never made (again) - if you look at my comments in this thread, I never argued "nothing printed in the last 15 years" will never be valuable/desired/sought after. I never said I disliked anything, let alone certain comic books. I also failed to "hate" on anything - out of the two of us, you are the one that harshly dismissed a swatch of variants as "drek".

I mean this in the nicest possible way, but if this is a shtick, you could use a new one. I'm not the first person on these boards to say you're very difficult to have even a textual conversation with.

[Jaydogrules]

5 minutes ago, SquareChaos said:

It seems like you're defending against arguments I never made (again) - if you look at my comments in this thread, I never argued "nothing printed in the last 15 years" will never be valuable/desired/sought after. I never said I disliked anything, let alone certain comic books. I also failed to "hate" on anything - out of the two of us, you are the one that harshly dismissed a swatch of variants as "drek".

I mean this in the nicest possible way, but if this is a shtick, you could use a new one. I'm not the first person on these boards to say you're very difficult to have even a textual conversation with.

No I don't do well with intractable people who speak in absolutes, ignore finer points, and then back pedal their statements when they get called out.  

You may have not "literally" said those things but your history of posts on the subject has been very deliberate and focused, your disdain for variants is well documented, and if I'm not mistaken, you have been asked by other members on more than one occasion whether or not you actually like anything, because the vast majority of your posts espouse negativity, in one form or another.  

-J.

[ygogolak]

1 hour ago, kimik said:

The local stores here are sitting on long box after long box of 1:10/1:20/1:25 variants that did not sell when they first came out. The only way to move them when the cool off is to price them at $5 and blow them out. It is still a decent ROI compared to the initial cost and keeps the customers happy when they find a hidden gem. At one store I passed on two ASM #688 Campbell Lizard variants in 2015 before I knew they were worth anything. I had them in hand and was taking them to the counter since they were JSC and I thought they should be worth $5, but decided against it at the last minute since it was not a hot female character and just a fugly rendition of the Lizard. 

Yes, they are sitting on long boxes of action figure and other horrible variants. Harley 1:25 variants are not easy to find, especially in multiples from what I have seen. Also, I'll restate that these were in a short box labeled "new additions" meaning they had just added them to their backstock and it was a smaller shop that would probably not be ordering 50 copies of any book.

Edited June 21, 2017 by ygogolak

[fastballspecial]

10 hours ago, Jaydogrules said:

 

10 hours ago, SquareChaos said:

It seems like you're defending against arguments I never made (again) - if you look at my comments in this thread, I never argued "nothing printed in the last 15 years" will never be valuable/desired/sought after. I never said I disliked anything, let alone certain comic books. I also failed to "hate" on anything - out of the two of us, you are the one that harshly dismissed a swatch of variants as "drek".

I mean this in the nicest possible way, but if this is a shtick, you could use a new one. I'm not the first person on these boards to say you're very difficult to have even a textual conversation with.

No I don't do well with intractable people who speak in absolutes, ignore finer points, and then back pedal their statements when they get called out.  

You may have not "literally" said those things but your history of posts on the subject has been very deliberate and focused, your disdain for variants is well documented, and if I'm not mistaken, you have been asked by other members on more than one occasion whether or not you actually like anything, because the vast majority of your posts espouse negativity, in one form or another.  

-J.

 

I think he means "sorry my bad".