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Post by String on Aug 8, 2017 14:31:24 GMT -5
I view variant covers as a better litmus test for being a collector even more so than slabbing an issue. If you feel the need to own every variant cover of an issue or issue(s) then you are a collector. I see no purpose in spending the same amount of money (or more) each time to buy the exact same interior story just because of a different special cover (especially if you are only going to read that story once, maybe twice).
That's not say that I don't like the concept of a variant cover. If my LCS offers me the opportunity to purchase a variant copy that I like better than the regular copy, then I will do so, just not every single one of those offered.
I consider myself a reader with a large collection. However one of the few times that I do collect is in support of creator-owned titles that I enjoy.
Case-in-point: Lazarus. After reading the first trade, I acquired all 5 issues of that trade from my LCS and added the title to my pull list. I have bought the single floppies, every trade edition, every HC collection and any merchandise that I can find, all in an effort to support however I can (and for as long as I can) a creator/team that releases a product that I enjoy quite a lot. In fact, the only platform I don't buy in this scenario is digital, cause frankly I'm old-fashioned and I want to be surprised and entertained by the story and discussion while holding the physical book in my hand.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 8, 2017 15:13:44 GMT -5
I view variant covers as a better litmus test for being a collector even more so than slabbing an issue. If you feel the need to own every variant cover of an issue or issue(s) then you are a collector. I see no purpose in spending the same amount of money (or more) each time to buy the exact same interior story just because of a different special cover (especially if you are only going to read that story once, maybe twice). That's not say that I don't like the concept of a variant cover. If my LCS offers me the opportunity to purchase a variant copy that I like better than the regular copy, then I will do so, just not every single one of those offered. I consider myself a reader with a large collection. However one of the few times that I do collect is in support of creator-owned titles that I enjoy. Case-in-point: Lazarus. After reading the first trade, I acquired all 5 issues of that trade from my LCS and added the title to my pull list. I have bought the single floppies, every trade edition, every HC collection and any merchandise that I can find, all in an effort to support however I can (and for as long as I can) a creator/team that releases a product that I enjoy quite a lot. In fact, the only platform I don't buy in this scenario is digital, cause frankly I'm old-fashioned and I want to be surprised and entertained by the story and discussion while holding the physical book in my hand. The question I ask myself with variants is this-would I pay that much to get a comic sized print of the art featured on the cover? If the answer is yeas, and it's a piece of art I like/want to have, I'll pick up the variant if available whether I want to read the book or not. If it's standard cover price for the comics, my answer is often yes if it is by one of a handful of artist's I really dig (usually Cook or Steranko are the only variants I spring for of those I have seen). If it is a 1 in whatever variant at an inflated price, the answer is usually no. If the answer winds up being yes and I buy a variant cover, I am buying it as a piece of comic art not as a story to be read. If it's a new comic I want to read, I'll likely wait for the trade anyways, and read it that way as most modern individual comic books are not designed to stand up on their own and be read individually, they are constructed as a part of a larger whole meant to be read as a whole, so I'd rather just read it that way. Similarly, the question I ask myself when considering buying a new individual issue is not is this issue worth the $4 price tag but is it worth the $24 I will have to spend to get the entire story in that format, because spending the $4 will only get me a part of the whole, not an entire story, unless it is one of the rare exceptions in today's market that offers a complete story in a single issue. -M |
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Post by Arthur Gordon Scratch on Aug 8, 2017 15:32:55 GMT -5
I view variant covers as a better litmus test for being a collector even more so than slabbing an issue. If you feel the need to own every variant cover of an issue or issue(s) then you are a collector. Hmmm.. Nah, in my book, that means you're a collector and furthermore a fan. |
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Post by james on Aug 8, 2017 16:26:17 GMT -5
I consider myself a comic collector/fan/ reader for 38 years. I have read and reread my bronze and silver age over and over i do think thats the fun of collecting. I do keep them in the best shape possible but will always read an issue over keeping it NM. I read current comics as well and find it easy to keep them NM because ive found none that i want to reread unlike the bronze and silver age comics i grew up on.
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