Only the SECOND known copy of a Valiant book located 4/10/14

[bamaphilosopher]

Wow about them ripping covers off to send back. I wonder how they'd feel knowing that this book, rare as the Bloodshot platinum error, would be worth very much today?

Man, I hate to hear about someone ripping covers off. Dang... that's like hearing someone found a bunch of Bloodshot platinum errors and ripped the covers off. Sigh.

It's my understanding that that's how things worked for newsstand issues. Stores return the covers of magazines of unsold copies for credit. (That saves having to ship all that weight back.)

If you wonder how that dealer felt, what do you think about all of those newsstand vendors that destroyed highly valuable golden and silver age comics? The reason that many collectibles are so valuable (not just comics) is because a vast majority of the population saw the thing as disposable, not realizing later that there would be a demand to own something that was remembered. That's why a good number of the valuable comics (or at least, books that have a greater demand) from the '90s are reprints; because at the time, they were seen as less desirable than the first print (which historically had been the version that had greater value). If everyone held on to old comics because they knew that one day they would be valuable, then they wouldn't be as valuable today. An estimate of 130,000 copies of Action Comics #1 were sold to the public. The print run of many Golden Age books exceeded one million. But because most people thought of them as junk entertainment (or recycled them during WW2), few survived.

Yes, I knew it was common practice to rip off magazine covers to send back. But, you make a good point that many golden age and silver age comics were destroyed. I wouldn't mind if more people had kept them, though, so I could get a copy of Action Comics 1, for instance.

Similarly with this newly discovered Valiant variant. I'd love to have a copy, but there's no way I'll ever get to see one, probably. I just thought it was heavily ironic that someone ripped them up, especially as this book came out in the 90's. You'd think people would realize by then that something like that could be valuable. Oh, well.

Hopefully, now that there's ebay, something like that might be preserved more often. Instead of ripping something up, maybe now people might think, hey, maybe I could unload this on ebay. Or, at least that's my hope.

[bamaphilosopher]

If everyone held on to old comics things because they knew that one day they would be valuable, then they wouldn't be as valuable today.

For an example, see 1988 baseball cards... ANY company.

Well, yes. Or later issue Beanie Babies. Or Fallen Empires– or later–era MTG cards. But I was making a point about the things that *are* valuable.

A good fundamental for investing (whether it's collectibles or stocks): go against the crowd. When everyone else is selling, buy. When everyone else is buying, sell. (Assuming the price is right in both of these scenarios.) When you follow the crowd, you end up with a subprime mortgage and a box full of Turok.

Yes, good!

Or, put another way: buy what YOU like, instead of following the crowd. The VEI guys like Dino waited until the Valiant heroes were down, nobody cared, and were simply put up for auction. But, they also knew they LIKED them. So they took your advice, and mine too, in a sense: they bought what they liked, when it was down in value, and made a really good investment.

I buy Valiants, I keep the pre-Unity and Unity stuff in mylar. It doesn't matter to me as much if the price for them goes up and down, because they will always be valuable TO ME. I learned a long time ago that buying stuff just because I THINK it will be valuable, but I really don't like it, never works.

I bought ONE copy of Turok number 1 because I LIKED it, or rather, because I liked Valiant. I did NOT buy 10 copies of it (thank god!). There is still one copy of it, in my VH1 boxes. When I stopped liking Valiant, I quit buying it.

But, like anyone else would be, I'm sad to hear when something I would like to have, like this variant, was destroyed. I guess that's great for those who have a copy, in that it makes theirs more valuable, but I don't like it when something I'd like to collect is so rare that it's out of reach.

[bamaphilosopher]

Lol about a house full of Turok. I guess folks could use that for toilet paper?

It's still unbelievable to me they printed 1,750,000 of those things! I wonder how many actually read it? Surely less than 100,000 at the time. And who would reread it and care today? Probably about 5,000.

I really wish they had stuck to their original agreement never to print more than 500,000 copies of anything (per Bob Layton).

[kjjohanson]

If everyone held on to old comics things because they knew that one day they would be valuable, then they wouldn't be as valuable today.

For an example, see 1988 baseball cards... ANY company.

Well, yes. Or later issue Beanie Babies. Or Fallen Empires– or later–era MTG cards. But I was making a point about the things that *are* valuable.

A good fundamental for investing (whether it's collectibles or stocks): go against the crowd. When everyone else is selling, buy. When everyone else is buying, sell. (Assuming the price is right in both of these scenarios.) When you follow the crowd, you end up with a subprime mortgage and a box full of Turok.

Yes, good!

Or, put another way: buy what YOU like, instead of following the crowd. The VEI guys like Dino waited until the Valiant heroes were down, nobody cared, and were simply put up for auction. But, they also knew they LIKED them. So they took your advice, and mine too, in a sense: they bought what they liked, when it was down in value, and made a really good investment.

I buy Valiants, I keep the pre-Unity and Unity stuff in mylar. It doesn't matter to me as much if the price for them goes up and down, because they will always be valuable TO ME. I learned a long time ago that buying stuff just because I THINK it will be valuable, but I really don't like it, never works.

I bought ONE copy of Turok number 1 because I LIKED it, or rather, because I liked Valiant. I did NOT buy 10 copies of it (thank god!). There is still one copy of it, in my VH1 boxes. When I stopped liking Valiant, I quit buying it.

But, like anyone else would be, I'm sad to hear when something I would like to have, like this variant, was destroyed. I guess that's great for those who have a copy, in that it makes theirs more valuable, but I don't like it when something I'd like to collect is so rare that it's out of reach.

My comments were specifically about looking to invest in something. But I'm on the same page as far as buying comics goes for entertainment. Despite Marvel and DC books likely having the most long-term probability of collectibility (since their characters are known far more than others, making it more likely that there will be a demand for their books than for those of other companies, on average), I mostly gave up on their books a few years ago, when I finally grew tired of corporate marketing driving the storylines rather than the creators. (Brand New Day was the final straw.) I'll still dabble in some of their books (a few Vertigo books, and the new She-Hulk) but largely I'm going to stay away.

[bamaphilosopher]

My comments were specifically about looking to invest in something. But I'm on the same page as far as buying comics goes for entertainment. Despite Marvel and DC books likely having the most long-term probability of collectibility (since their characters are known far more than others, making it more likely that there will be a demand for their books than for those of other companies, on average), I mostly gave up on their books a few years ago, when I finally grew tired of corporate marketing driving the storylines rather than the creators. (Brand New Day was the final straw.) I'll still dabble in some of their books (a few Vertigo books, and the new She-Hulk) but largely I'm going to stay away.

I'm the same way. I don't buy Marvel and DC anymore. I have more digital copies of comics than I can ever read, anyway. I mean, if I had tons of money, maybe I'd buy Spiderman, Batman, and Superman and some of the other characters I like. Also, a lot of their stuff isn't as collectible as it used to be because so much of it is printed, unless they hit upon something rare that people like, and I don't follow them enough to know what that would be.

And yes, Brand New Day kind of sucked.

[nycjadie]

When you follow the crowd, you end up with a subprime mortgage and a box full of Turok.

Ah, but if you are forward thinking, you take cases of Turok and build a house.

Or at least a bonfire.

[kjjohanson]

My comments were specifically about looking to invest in something. But I'm on the same page as far as buying comics goes for entertainment. Despite Marvel and DC books likely having the most long-term probability of collectibility (since their characters are known far more than others, making it more likely that there will be a demand for their books than for those of other companies, on average), I mostly gave up on their books a few years ago, when I finally grew tired of corporate marketing driving the storylines rather than the creators. (Brand New Day was the final straw.) I'll still dabble in some of their books (a few Vertigo books, and the new She-Hulk) but largely I'm going to stay away.

I'm the same way. I don't buy Marvel and DC anymore. I have more digital copies of comics than I can ever read, anyway. I mean, if I had tons of money, maybe I'd buy Spiderman, Batman, and Superman and some of the other characters I like. Also, a lot of their stuff isn't as collectible as it used to be because so much of it is printed, unless they hit upon something rare that people like, and I don't follow them enough to know what that would be.

And yes, Brand New Day kind of sucked.

My problem wasn't with any stories in Brand New Day per se, but rather that they basically tossed out all of the continuity since I started reading in the '80s. But it was more than that; it was the message that we really couldn't expect any stories of real change from Marvel. Not that I didn't already know that, but it really drove the point home.

[Watchtower]

Wait, is this book really that rare to find?

Because.....hehehehe.....I know my dad's got at least one copy back home. Bite me suckers.

......Not that I'm exactly proud of it either. Story's complete garbage.

You do realize there is a "regular" version of Iron Man / X-O, right?



Everyone has one.

Ah f***ing s** f***s.

Welp, there goes my attempts to be special.

........Story is still a complete s*** fest, though. And it's not like you can just do inter-company crossovers anymore.

[bamaphilosopher]

Ah f***ing s** f***s.

Welp, there goes my attempts to be special.

........Story is still a complete s*** fest, though. And it's not like you can just do inter-company crossovers anymore.

I was thinking the same thing when I first opened the thread. "The Iron-Man/XO special? Do what?"

[jmatt]

Okay, show of hands: Who ran off to Ebay to see if this thing was available?

[greg]

Okay, show of hands: Who ran off to Ebay to see if this thing was available?

You mean that I would list my copy, or that the seller would list his other copy?

[jmatt]

Okay, show of hands: Who ran off to Ebay to see if this thing was available?

You mean that I would list my copy, or that the seller would list his other copy?

Other other. I even checked the game sales section to see if sellers might have bundled it with an old cartridge.

[IMJ]

Okay, show of hands: Who ran off to Ebay to see if this thing was available?

You mean that I would list my copy, or that the seller would list his other copy?

If you ever want to let yours go I would hope for so many reasons that you'd give me first crack at it....

[iggy101us]

Congrats. I missed this post somehow.

[iggy101us]

Also any plans on submitting it to CGC to get it recognized?

[greg]

Also any plans on submitting it to CGC to get it recognized?

Maybe.

I'm not sure that would work, though, since I just sent them a Shadowman Vol 3 #2 Good, Bad, Very Ugly variant, and they sent it back labeled as Shadowman Vol 3 #2 (regular).

[iggy101us]

Also any plans on submitting it to CGC to get it recognized?

Maybe.

I'm not sure that would work, though, since I just sent them a Shadowman Vol 3 #2 Good, Bad, Very Ugly variant, and they sent it back labeled as Shadowman Vol 3 #2 (regular).

[kjjohanson]

Also any plans on submitting it to CGC to get it recognized?

Maybe.

I'm not sure that would work, though, since I just sent them a Shadowman Vol 3 #2 Good, Bad, Very Ugly variant, and they sent it back labeled as Shadowman Vol 3 #2 (regular).

Does it make a difference do you think, when you send something to CGC, to put a sticky note or something on the bag calling out if it's a special variant/error/whatever, to ensure that they recognize it as such?

[Phantom]

Glad you found it, and now own it.

[Aram]

If everyone held on to old comics things because they knew that one day they would be valuable, then they wouldn't be as valuable today.

For an example, see 1988 baseball cards... ANY company.

Wheew! missed the bullet on that one! Good thing I started Collecting Baseball cards in 1989!

[Beware Cyclops]

If everyone held on to old comics things because they knew that one day they would be valuable, then they wouldn't be as valuable today.

For an example, see 1988 baseball cards... ANY company.

Wheew! missed the bullet on that one! Good thing I started Collecting Baseball cards in 1989!

Boy do I have news for you!!

[bamaphilosopher]

Also any plans on submitting it to CGC to get it recognized?

Maybe.

I'm not sure that would work, though, since I just sent them a Shadowman Vol 3 #2 Good, Bad, Very Ugly variant, and they sent it back labeled as Shadowman Vol 3 #2 (regular).

[nycjadie]

If everyone held on to old comics things because they knew that one day they would be valuable, then they wouldn't be as valuable today.

For an example, see 1988 baseball cards... ANY company.

Wheew! missed the bullet on that one! Good thing I started Collecting Baseball cards in 1989!

[greg]

Third known copy was sold on Ebay on February 16, 2020: https://www.ebay.com/itm/114116399528

Looks like it was a "Buy It Now" at $400. (I didn't win it.)

[nycjadie]

Third known copy was sold on Ebay on February 16, 2020: https://www.ebay.com/itm/114116399528

Looks like it was a "Buy It Now" at $400. (I didn't win it.)

I bought this, and keep meaning to post on it. Been looking for this one for some time. I paid $300 plus shipping. Condition is high. I’m guessing a 9.6. The owner said he got it from his friend who worked in a video games store and it went straight into the bag and board.

Guy said he has other stuff, like BWS signed books. Old school collector. Really happy to have this.

I just noticed in the first post that the book came from Fair Oaks. My GF lives a few miles from there, and I’m there a few time a month, at least.