Holograms And Glow In The Dark Doom: The Speculator Era Examined (1989-1996)
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- Опубліковано 31 гру 2020
- For a period of time in the late 80’s and early 90’s, comic books experienced sales and acceptance unlike before. The medium exploded. Then, just as suddenly, it imploded like a worthless fad. What happened? This video essay explores all the factors that led up to the Speculator Era, what occurred during it and why it all came crashing down.
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MAIN THEME:
“Is That You or Are You You” by Chris Zabriskie is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. creativecommons.org/licenses/...
Source: chriszabriskie.com/reappear/
Artist: chriszabriskie.com/
ANNOTATIONS:
1:38 - “Briefly, the biggest advantage of the direct market…” Newsstand distribution is greatly simplified and subscriptions to comics are not mentioned.
4:01 - “Of course, it has to be acknowledged…” Prior to Batman and the TMNT movie there was a popular TMNT animated series. However, that was a niche popularity with those that watched Saturday morning cartoons. Wide acceptance by popular culture was solidified by the movie, which debuted a year after Batman.
6:40 - Ghost Rider is a reimagining of a Western comic from 1967 that ran for seven issues. Oddly enough, this 1967 series was also a reimagining of another, similarly named character from 1949. Marvel published their Western comic in 1967 to secure the trademark on the name when the trademark on the 1949 character lapsed. The 1972 series only uses the trademarked name, not the character or concept previously established.
7:41 - “Probably in the area of a million copies” The best estimate suggests Batman: Legends Of The Dark Knight #1 sold 700,000 to the direct market alone. Newsstands sales aren’t publicly known and they may only reflect sales of the actual cover, not the multi-coloured variants. So, the estimation provided is a reasonable, possibly low guess. By all accounts, it was the bestselling issue of 1989.
10:21 - “The price guide was possibly…” As seen in the displayed graphic (which taken from Wizard Magazine, issue #25 from September 1993) the price guide was, “…meticulously calibrated in the recently-revamped Wizard Pricing Labs.” There’s no elaboration on what that means or who staffed that alleged lab. Nor on the process by which prices were determined. “…we are constantly in touch with store owners…” This is intentionally vague and, again, doesn’t name any stores or contacts to validate that sentence. Basically, these are unverifiable claims that have no evidence to support it. Therefore, the data analysis and the subsequent prices determined is questionable.
11:12 - “As was their relationship with certain publishers.” The connection between Image Comics and Wizard has a fair amount of circumstantial evidence to support it. Reportedly, Gareb Shamus, the publisher of Wizard was/is a family friend of Todd McFarlane, who provided the cover to the first issue. Shamus was also present at the first Image founders meeting. For the first two years of the magazine’s existence, almost all the covers were drawn by Image artists. The coverage of Image Comics also appeared to weigh heavier than other publishers. So, there is at least the appearance of a close connection between the comic book company and the magazine. In other words, there is the appearance of bias, which may have been reflected in their articles.
11:35 - “The bottom line was to get a collector to buy multiple copies of a comic book based on its cover…” Many of these gimmick covers were pre-bagged. So, a collector was unable to view the content beyond the cover without buying it first. Although, some stores would have an open copy for those that might ask to see inside before they make a purchase. In my experience, no one ever asked first.
12:17 - “During the early 90’s, when Marvel became a publicly traded company…” This portion just touches upon the more well-known factors that led to Marvel’s downfall. As suggested by some, Marvel offering stock and being answerable to shareholders was possibly motivated to increase the wealth of a few, select people. As were some of the subsequent business decisions.
18:30 - “This is not an exaggerated number.” In actuality, it’s a low number if one takes into account the various reboots of New Avengers, Secret Avengers and Dark Avengers. Most of which do tie-in to the ongoing Avengers saga. The real number is closer to 15 times since 2004.
#ModernAge #MarvelComics #DCComics #Batman #Superman - Розваги
What you said at the end; "my obsession with comics was absurd, but I didn't care; it was my thing. I owned it. I still do." --really kind of hit me in a special way.
Around highschool, I had fallen out of a lot of childhood interests, and for a time it remained that way. But for whatever reason, I had gotten back into comics and rediscovered that obsession that I had with superheroes in my childhood. And it was great, I loved it. I had genuine happiness in my life again after having lived in such mundane circumstances for the years leading up 'til then.
But now that obsession has weakened in the last few years, and it doesn't really excite me anymore in the way that it did, unfortunately.
My imagination has deteriorated because of it, as well.
I don't know why this is the case, seeing as how I've been regularly following comics since then, but hearing you say those things reminded me of how special things like this can be for someone, and how important it is to hold these things close to your heart for as long as you can because it can supply you with genuine happiness and creativity in dark times.
So the fact that you (among others I see in the comments and on youtube in general) have yet to lose that spark, genuinely makes me happy to see.
You never know if/when it may escape you, so you mustn't take it for granted.
Well, thank you. I'm unsure what else to say. If something resonated with you then that's all one can really hope for. It's quite humbling.
This is one of the best comic book channels out there. Great production and insight from a fan of all genres. Well done
Thank you very much! And thanks for watching.
Totally agree
I have fond memories of reading Wizard. It was one of the few comics magazines you could sort of reliably get. Also I was a young teen so I was at the right age to get into it anyway.
Yeah, I was reading Wizard in the post Speculation era. In it I could read about all the comics I couldn't afford to buy, many of which I'd never even see. It's the only reason I knew what Grendel or Hellblazer were as someone who lived in a place without a comicbook shop. I'd comb through the price guide, not for the prices but for the 1st appearances, and memorize them like other kids would memorize baseball stats. "Oh Apocalypse' first appearances X-Factor #5!"
@@icoop9760 Yeah, I get that. I used to buy my comics from grocery and drug stores as a kid.
I love the new production and design aspects in your show. You’re really stepping up your game.
Thank you. I approached this video as the rare, variant edition of Overlord Comics. :)
I was in my early teens during this era. So I was kind of the target demographic. It's funny that the era of "comics need to be taken seriously", wound up resorting to such cheesy gimmicks as hologram covers, and half-naked women on the cover.
Any time now, we'll be seeing a video on this channel with a deep and well-researched analysis of the symbolic aspects of Lady Death. :P
As a kid growing up in this era, I fell for all of the hype...I just couldn't afford it all. In defense of Wizard, I heard about many titles I otherwise would have never seen or thought about from them. All of your criticisms of them are 100% valid, though.
I go into more detail about Wizard in the annotations in the description, by the way. Although, I do have to concede I didn't take into account that they may have provided exposure to titles that may not have gotten attention otherwise.
Like it or not, you and other UA-camrs are the new Wizard...without the baggage. Thanks for another great video.
I have to say, I don't quite like that analogy. But I also don't get to decide how I'm perceived, either. Heh.
I only refer to exposure to new projects I otherwise never would have heard of. I have bought titles based on your videos. Thats all I'm saying. Sorry if it came across otherwise. No offense intended.
Oh, no worries. I took took offence whatsoever. And I hope some of those purchases you made due to my suggestions was worthwhile.
Your narrative at the end was stunningly personal and insightful. I really appreciate the inclusive nature of it. I will be thinking on it for some while.
Thank you. That's quite humbling. I didn't want to end on a downer, so I thought it best to share a little about myself.
I remember getting a lot of those special edition comics with the holograms and silver and gold covers in four packs at big lots real cheap. I guess they were comics that were over printed and didn’t sale. I remember getting some of those X-men/X-Factor fatal attraction books with the holograms in one of those packs. I always thought it looked soo cool.
The risk reward factor you mentioned is a great take that I haven’t heard before but it does make a lot of sense.
Would you do a video on Sal Buscema? He was a Marvel “workhorse” but fundamental art work was undeniable plus his body of work inspired countless comic book readers for generations!
Agree 💯
Oh man! Hot takes about Wizard lol. Very brave. I admit it was trash as a price guide (I figured that out when it told me my first appearance of Cable was worth 40 dollars instead of 2 bucks or so) but im still grateful that it introduced me to a lot of smaller or lesser marketed series in the 90s like major bummer or my beloved Starman from DC. It also was i nice bang for your buck as far as comics history for a poor kid from the hood who couldn’t afford to buy a lot.
Great retrospective as always brain parts! Happy new year
Happy New Year to you, too!
I usually ignored the price guide thing I loved it for the fun facts they had
I did occasionally see how some of my 'big' comics might go for but I think Wizard was up front it was serving
all customers even people who had zero interests in comics but wanted to just toys and collector's items
wizard was just what teenage boys wanted. the nose in the air attitude in the vid about it is what it is. if it didn't sell, it wouldn't have been popular.
A thoughtful, well produced video as always.
Nice to finally ‘meet’ you, Allan.
The pleasure is mine, Bill.
I was a kid in those days, one of the other problems were so many different versions of books for the same character. Try being a kid keeping up with, say Spiderman. I didn't know the difference between the web of or the Amazing. It was so confusing.
I was a kid at the time as well ‘89-‘96 I was 8-15. Everything in this video seems pretty spot on from my memory. Good Spider-Man was always Amazing til parents return/clone saga Bagley . Adejectiveless was good during Larsen and some Mcfarlane. Web of and spectacular were cash grab garbage from inception and were never worth bothering. The only reason you’d end up with web or Spectacular was from a toys’r’us grab bag
Same here... I also remember having a lot of FOMO in those days; it hurt seeing that book you passed up a few months earlier now listed for $50 in the Wizard guide 😅
Spectacular might have become a cash grab, but initially it was a very good comic prior to this era. Late 70s/Early 80s Spider Man could draw 2 titles. Web debuted during the Expansion Era.
@@chrisdragnet722 Those were my exact thoughts. I was a pre-teen in the early 1980s, and Spectacular Spiderman was to me the best written, most literary, and also DARKest title of the Spider comics. And I rarely brought Marvel in those days, but Spectacular, The Defenders, and Daredevil were my favorite. Too bad all of Marvel (and DC as well) became unreadable by '93, imo.
@@Madbmberwhatbmbsatmidnight '89-'96 I was 10-17. Your assessment is exactly spot on with that I remember thinking about the Spider-Man comics at the time.
There is a sameness going on at the moment with CGC slabbed comics. The speculators have come in and are buying anything and everything that is not nailed down. Prices for graded books are continuing to climb with each month that goes by. Instead of reading the comics, they are being put into plastic cases and held for "investment purposes". I see a major crash coming again very soon.
YO MY MAN SPILLIN' THAT HOT TEA ALL OVER WIZARD MAGAZINE!
But for real, I got in the comics right as the speculator boom was taking off, and I devoured Wizard pretty much every step of the way. They definitely played a big role in shaping the narratives that drove the most toxic elements of the industry. How could they not? When it came to comic book news, they were pretty much the only game in town.
Memories! I was a teen during this era. I still have my collection from this time, I even recognised some from this vid. The enhanced covers looked awesome back then. Not so much now.
One of my favourite comic analysts youtube. I really hope this channel takes off.
"The end result was a better product overall." Gonna have to press X to doubt on that one...
Great topic and I like the new format. I collected comics from 1976 to around 2012 and my anecdotal recollections of that era are quite similar to yours. The death of Superman was definitely the nail in the proverbial coffin. The creation of Image really fed into the whole thing. I'm actually still surprised that they survived and were able to reinvent themselves after the crash.
One of the best comic-book channels in YT, your content is amazing!
As a reader from the mid 80s to mid 90s I completely agree with this. Great job.
In my opinion there were a lot more good 90s comics than bad. The bad stuff is mainly just relegated to Image, Marvel, and Valiant.
Dark Horse was basically the thinking man's version of Image publishing comics by great creators such as Frank Miller, John Byrne, Mike Mignola, Paul Chadwick, Bryan Talbot.
2000ad was going strong, launching a sister title Crisis which is my favorite anthology series.
The underground comics scene had Eightball by Daniel Clowes, Love and Rockets by the Hernandes Brothers, Hate by Peter Bagge, Optic Nerve by Adrian Tomine, Peepshow by Joe Matt, Palookaville by Seth, and Yummy Fur by Chester Brown.
Aside from Bloodlines, the majority of DC's output was solid, and their imprints Piranha Press, Milestone, and Vertigo probably produced 100 classics during the 90s.
The amount of content in a modern book could fill five pages in an old school one.
You been reading the wrong books
I thank this era for forcing me to choose what I continually read carefully. I discovered so many series and creators that weren't part of the Wizard hype machine that I follow to this day. So much crap was being published that wasn't worth the paper and ink it was printed on. The publishers that survived the speculators seem to have learned their lesson (for the most part) unless they are owned by giant corporations (names withheld for legal reasons lol). Another excellent entry.
Your first sentence is right on the money. No pun intended.
This is perhaps the best overview of the chaos that was the scape of the 90s market I've ever seen. And good on you for calling out LOTDK for all those covers, for some reason people heap it all on Marvel and I always have to remind people about it!
Thank you, sir! Coming from you that is humbling praise.
@@StrangeBrainParts I feel hamstrung from time to time as tied to sources and factual assessment as I am. This is from the gut and in my opinion, extremely accurate. It's easy to loose sight of things sometimes and I really enjoyed how you didn't feel the need to slam or linger, but offer your opinion and observations and tie it into the quality of books today. I hear so much complaining and comparison to this period right now and I don't get it. I feel like there's a lot more readily accessible quality stuff today than back then. But what do I know? I'm just one jerk, haha. And seriously sir, this channel has been a huge influence on the way I chose to approach my content as seriously as passionately as possible. I doth my hat and thank you again for doing what you do! I am finally gonna sign up and support the channel this month too, I never messed with a UA-cam sub before but gonna have to after this and the Animal Man episodes!
@JerkComic : I feel you on that, brother. I do try to be factual and objective as much as possible. And when I'm not, I try to point that out so it isn't confused as fact. Personally, I don't see how things were better then than now, but that may be a matter of personal taste. Although, good titles and good stories aren't exclusive to any one time period, in my opinion.
Thank you for the sub, if choose to subscribe! That is always appreciated. And keep doing what you're doing. If I have any influence whatsoever I am suitably humbled.
This was the absolute worst time to be into comics, as I remember it. Nothing on the shelves worth purchasing, at least not from the major publishers. By '93/94 I had exclusively switched to European/Foriegn graphic novels and Independantly published works by Joe Sacco, Marjane Satrapi, etc. Marvel, DC and Image were putting stuff out that was Unreadable.
Personally, I was already familiar with a ton of independent stuff at the time. But, yeah...this era gave me more incentive to be more familiar with less mainstream stuff.
All the comics you state you got into instead of the mainstream seem to contradict your claim that this was "the absolute worst time to be into comics." Sacco's work was not very available before this era and foreign comics had begun getting translated into English in much larger numbers than before.
@@noneofyourbusiness4616 If I were to be truly honest, the mid-90s was when I left not just the major publishers, but specifically the genre of "American superhero comic books." The childish, dismal output by DC and Marvel coincided with me discovering works such as Joe Sacco's Palestine: Gaza Strip or Joe Matt's The Poor Bastard. I was blown away by the material and other works from Fantagraphix, Drawn & Quarterly, etc and almost felt embarrassed to be still reading Batman and X-Men. At the time I was a broke grad student on a limited budget and these graphic works were often three times more expensive from my usual purchases, but I was ready for a change. So I walked away. Hey I'm as happy as anyone else to see them on the big screen, but I haven't purchased a DC or Marvel book since '95.
You're focusing on the material too much. You're ignoring the impact on the industry. The speculating. The greed. The gimmicks to sell more material. The hype. ALL OF THE FACTORS, NOT JUST THE ONE YOU WANT TO FOCUS ON. These all contribute to it being the one of the worst periods. That could not be clearer.
@@StrangeBrainParts I simply disagree. I worked at an indie comic book company for a year during that period. Not that I'm claiming this gives me any particular expertise (particularly since I'm not giving my name or the name of the company after getting harassed by some delightful comic fan with an over-25-year-old grudge when I was using my real name in the UA-cam comments of comics history videos). I don't think the difference in our opinions is so vast that it requires ALL CAPS rebuttal. I enjoy your carefully crafted work and simply have a different point of view on this point, one which I don't require you to share in order to respect you and what you do.
I agree with your assessment of the situation; I worked in comic distribution during that period, I was also friends with a few retailers, and by all reports, most of their sales were going to speculators, not fans; additionally, comics during that period were being printed on high quality, acid free paper, and immediately poly-bagged and boarded; that meant there would be no shortage of these comics in years to come, so no real appreciation in value of individual books due to them being ‘rare’; most ‘savvy’ speculators were not holding on to issues, just selling them off as soon as their market value reached a certain % above their purchase price...
Great video. I started buying comics regularly in 1979 @ 11y/o. X-Men, ROM, Hulk and Conan Were my initial books. I remember when Micronauts went to direct market release only, as it was a month or more before we got a LCS on my hometown. Up until that point I subscribed to receive my favorite comics. Some of my favorite moments in the LCS were the conversations with others, especially the excited discussions of Walt Simonson Thor, Byrne's FF and Hulk (anger at the brevity) and Superman. Watchmen, Frank Miller's born again & Dark Knight. The best arguments were the resurrection of Jean Grey, (that is when I first felt slighted) and the abomination of SW2. Great memories.
A great overview and objective analysis of the Speculator Era and its ongoing impact on the medium.
You have the best comic channel on UA-cam.
fantastic video - I remember moving over to Eightball and various indies during this time as I felt less and less connected to the art and stories of Marvel/DC.
The four thumbs down must be Liefeld, MacFarlane, Silvestri, and Valentino.
It was McFarlane gathering up all the dislikes for himself
I’d say those guys have done well for themselves since then, all things considered.
Also, Image's founding itself was to blame. Those guys had mindless followers who were salivating over what they could do without Marvel.
Image took advantage of an opportunity and won. They got very, very lucky. Had they tried what they did a year later they would have likely crashed and burned.
And image is still around today, putting out quality stuff, taking chances on weird books you wouldn't normally get. I may be biased, being burnt out on Big Two, but Image, Boom!, and Vault have been stellar. Vault's 2021 lineup is insane.
I agree. I continually make the argument that Image is the new, possibly better version of Vertigo. Boom and Vault are definitely looking good, too.
You have to remember some of the complete garbage art that was being produced at Marvel/ DC shortly before the Image bunch jumped ship
Those crazy intricate lines just made me very excited to look at as much as I could get my hands on. I stopped collecting just after Image started so I didn’t bring any of those early issues home and stayed outside comics for another ten plus years ( thank goodness)
As much as Image contributed to this era, the early writing did critique the industry. It wasnt all fluff. I recall Shadowhawk, Savage Dragon, and Spawn pointing back at Marvel/DC.
Another excellent vid! Thank you for posting these
An interesting part of all this is that the comic that started the multi-cover fad (Legends of the Dark Knight) wasn't solicitated as such.
The orders were so big that DC panicked and put the outer color covers on at the last minute.
It was quite the stir when shops got them and we unboxed all these weird covers, not knowing they even existed.
I'm not sure I would describe what Tim Burton's Batman brought to comics as "prestige." Prestige was brought to the medium by Maus winning the Pulitzer Prize. The Batman movie increased the perception that adults displaying interest in superheroes didn't necessarily need to be shunned as emotionally stunted. And I'm not sure that general public perception extended very far into actual superhero comic books. Going to the movie theater to see action movies was something everyone did, so going to a Batman action movie with big movie stars in it was perceived as normal in a way going to comic book shops wasn't.
One of my favourite episodes yet
Another great video! I don't know why you don't have more subscribers. You have some of the best comic-related content on YT. Here's hoping the new year brings you more viewers.
I love your content. Especially the longer ones.
I feel like a little kid listening to my grandfather old war stories when I was watching this it was interesting
Come and sit by the fire. Let me tell about a time when stories were printed on paper...using only four colours!
@@StrangeBrainParts Geez whiz, thanks abuelo
God... lol. I was a small boy when this happened and I still recognize most of the covers in this episode. Not because I bought them myself (which, at that age meant seeing it on a rack at the shop and begging my parents to get it for me until they relented and gave in, if they didn’t get annoyed first and tell me no and to be quiet lol) but because my dad bought sooooo many of these and saved them to pass on to me. I’m guessing it was supposed to be my college fund lol. Some college fund that made. The entire collection (with the exception of one rare issue that my dad happened upon by chance which predated the speculation boom) is today worth a grand total of maybe 50 bucks all together.
Excellent video and retrospective.
This was a great video. Quite insightful. Thank you for making it.
You're welcome. Thank you for watching!
Great work once again!
Great video!! Thank you
Loved your thoughts on Wizard. 100% on point
You have hit the nail on the head - great work by you - thank you
This was amazing, thanks a lot for sharing it. Also my favorite gimmick cover was the one with a bullet hole that went all through the comic.
Great Video. I got in to comics during this era. I find your critique accurate and from the heart.
Why are we not spending more time discussing Teenage Sultry Super Girls or whatever that was when it went by. I've never heard of that one.
They deserve their own video. :)
"Brodsky, you're not the smartest."
The current mania with CGC slabbing really echoes this period. I can't help but wonder if publishers are gonna start releasing pre-slabbed 9.9 editions of their new books soon.
You Oversimplify one man's specultator era was a second Golden Age for many of us. The Movies have produced so many new fans that every book could find a home.1,000,000 fans means every eras print runs were small. I was there too btw.
Wow. Another great video. I've never heard that era described so clearly and if I may, heartfelt?
Thank you. I tried to portray it somewhat accurately, even though I couldn't deny there was a certain bias at points. It's only as thorough as memory and some research allows. And, yes, there is some genuine sentimentality attached.
The 90's also supported a LOT of great independent comics. Bone and Hate come to mind.
I hated this era so much, and could see the grift from a mile away. Your recollection is not at all wrong, and pretty much identical to my own. It actually drove me from the hobby for a long while. I think the defining moment for me was when i was explaining to some friends how the rebooted JLI title was absolutely killing it, and all they could talk about was Punisher and Wolverine, who were probably in a dozen or so titles at the time, and number one this and alternate cover that. It felt so artificial. (Incidentally, they would leave the hobby within a year).
It's a shame, there were some really great titles being produced at the time that got lost in the shuffle. Thank goodness for back issue bins and Comixology.
I’m going to put this one out there: while the 1994 “Zero Hour” story was a hollow regurgitation of “Crisis on Infinite Earths,” some of the crossover issues were good. My favorites were the ones from “Superboy,” “Robin,” and “Superman: the Man of Steel,” which featured a great cover depicting Superman being surrounded by different versions of Batman.
Great insights. Thanks.
Thank you for that very beautiful and very in-depth video. You definitely hit all the points. Just like you I remember that era quite well. And just as you said you are in my tribe.
Thank you, sir. It is a large tribe, indeed.
This was a story I was told, so I question the validity of it, but its still an interesting story: A classmate in college told me once that he collected comics a lot in the 90's and had collected the entire 'Funeral for a Friend' Superman arc (which wasn't a good arc or anything but whatever). Apparently someone, during that time, had offered him hundreds of dollars for that whole set, to which he turned down because he envisioned that it would be worth a whole lot more than that in a couple more years. Well a couple more years passed and he went to go cash in somewhere, where he was offered on the score of like $10-$20.
I mean to this day, I know of someone who was given a stack of comics from the '90s and thinks that he can sell them for a lot of money one day. We live in an age where everyone thinks they can become some sort of an entrepreneur, and comics definitely did their fair share in fostering that misconception that you can earn a lot from a little.
I'm guilty of buying multiples of every color of the Batman.
Love the Title Cards - WWlll? 🕶
I stopped buying new titles sometime in 1990 and didn't resume for over a decade. Thus - I found this fascinating.
Holograms and foil covers. 😂
Do *not* get me started on "events.* Is there even such a thing as continuity anymore?
We are a tribe. 👊🏻
You know what? Originally, that title card was, "1986-COVID19." I thought might be a bit too much. And I was barely able to touch upon the multiple events during this time! It makes this current age look like slackers. Heh.
We are a tribe, indeed. :)
I was probably your age when this craziness was happening. While the mainstream mishegas was going on, I had jumped in a vertigo hole and pulled a few Love & Rockets over my head. I’d come to realize this was crazy at the first whisper of this bubble. I bought 40 copies of the x-Men issue where Kitty fought a demon, and have a crate of eclipse issues with Coyote & Dreadstar, certain they were going to make me rich. At this point I occasionally pick up whatever Moore, or Los Bros Hernandez, or Don Rosa have put out, and then not go in a store for a couple of years. But I still remember those days, and love your channel.
I worked in a large comic shop for a bunch of these years, everything you say is accurate to my experience. Here are a couple stories where I realized I should back to school since these shops were on a steep decline:
Grendel War Child was selling well, the painted covers looked amazing, it won some now probably defunct award. I thought I would give it a try. The story was awful and made no sense, the interior art was lacking too. Why did this win an award? the nice covers? yeesh.
LOTDK #1: The shop i worked at ordered 5000 of these with maybe 300 pre-orders. Two years later i found the unsold cases of these crammed in a corner of our storage room, forgotten. 4500 copies still there, we couldn't even give them away.
Thanks for sharing your experience. Very appreciated.
“Gimmick” covers were so cool. They were a creative part of the art as any creative part of the art.
Attacking wizard magazine and not exploring publishers "trends" was a waste of 3 minutes also not discussing Image Comics also misses the point.
Image comics became the # 2 company for a while during 1992 (I do have the issues of Wizard magazine showing this and other magazine sources very much confirm the same) and for very good reasons DC got pushed into the # 3 position because most of their stuff was NOT loved and was NOT selling very well outside of Batman and Lobo at the time (and this is coming from someone who enjoyed their Impact comics line of books... which financially flopped hard). The reason they killed off Superman by late 1992 was because sales of the Superman comics were NOT good and DC in general was sliding pretty hard off the sales charts even before Image dominated them for a short while (Marvel was dominating them hard during 1991... and for good reason. For example, I really enjoyed the DC Starman comic from the very early 90's (the PRE-James Robinson Starman series, even though I enjoyed the James Robinson Starman series that started during 1994 very much), but I can fully understand why most people were deciding not to buy that and would buy Rob Liefled's X-Force during summer of 1991 instead... it just looked so much cooler and had more action in it).
Anyway, I enjoyed Wizard magazine and I still enjoy it (I will still occasionally take out my back issues and read them). As long as one has a sense of humor, they will see it's a very well written magazine. And underneath all the jokes (which I still find funny till this day. Again, anyone with a sense of humor will understand that they are JOKES and not meant to be taken seriously) there was A LOT of wonderful articles talking about critically acclaimed comics. It was because of Wizard that I found out about such treasures like Alan Moore's Watchmen, Neal Gaiman's Sandman, Frank Miller's Dark Knight Returns, Dark Horse comics Concrete, and tons of other really great comics that they recommended people check out and see if they themselves enjoyed them.
Great video. I relate.
GREAT VIDEO MAN !!! I love this video !!! I REALLY REALLY LOVE THIS VIDEO !!! I presume I'm a lil bit younger than you , I'm 39 yo , so I was a kid/adolescent/teenager during the "SPECULATOR ERA" , so as it was happening , someone such as yourself , a grown man , I think would have a better understanding of what was going on than I would , @ the time ... I pretty much agree with all your basic views/opinions ... The medium , 1 of the FEW TRUE AMERICAN ART-FORMS , is SOOOOO much more DEVELOPED , EVOLVED , RESPECTED , DIVERSE & QUALITY @ present time than it EVER has been !!! But I think the "SPECULATOR ERA" should be given a lot of credit & recognized as responsible for the CURRENT STATE of comic books ... & U definitely touch on that point , but even with all the "mailing-it-in" , gimmick covers , big-event-crossovers with seemingly no communication between the creators involved & all the other perceptively negative trends , the SPECULATOR ERA is DIRECTLY RESPONSIBLE for REVOLUTIONARY CHANGES like more CREATOR OWNED PROPERTIES & independent publishers , the amazing coloring techniques & technologies , higher quality PAPER being used & so much more !!! I'm very passionate about STORYTELLING , this form of storytelling particularly ... Sometimes I look thru old issues of WIZARD & I gotta tell you , no matter the motivations , regardless of juvenile content , there is some really cool , really SPECIAL content in those mags too some times , like DRAWING TUTORIALS FROM BART SEARS or a full history of the COMICS AUTHORITY CODE or whatever that stamp was on the covers for so long to in-depth interviews with guys like FRANK MILLER or BRIAN PULIDO ... I mean stuff like that is PRICELESS !!! that's really the only thing I disagree with you about ... & With the INTERNET now , who needs a publication like WIZARD MAGAZINE anyways ???!!! Anyways , if you're still here & you read this essay-length comment , THANK YOU !!! & for making this video : THANK YOU SO MUCH !!! I really enjoyed it !!! THANK YOU SO MUCH !!!
Damn, you went hard on Wizard lol
When I was 15 I had a summer internship at Defiant Comics. Their big get was Jim Shooter. I don't think even he knew what he was doing there. I don't know whose boondoggle it was but there was a distinct feeling of waiting for the money to run out. What made me think of it was that 'Warriors of Plasm,' cover shot...like an acid flashback.
This feels pretty spot on and matches my memories of the time.
The only reason I'm posting is: "It's difficult to think of one example of a classic comic book story from that time." One classic to come from that era is the Ostrander/Mandrake Spectre.
At that time I'd mostly abandoned the Big Two and read indie titles. But The Spectre was the one mainstream title I continued to buy and read when I had abandoned everything else superheroic.
Ostrander/Mandrake's Spectre would have been a great comic whenever it was published. But for it to have been put out from '92 to '98 and be as good as it was is a miracle.
Beautiful video!
I was a teenager back then and I remember it all - I did liked the Wizard magazine though.
At one point I had about 7k issues in my collection - nothing repeated or variants. If I ever fell for it I'd buy the 'variant' I liked and nothing else. Even as a teenager it felt stupid to have more than one I dunno...
And possibly like most I stopped collecting when I decided enough was enough - what's called here as 'event fatigue'. And I eventually sold it all when it started to feel like a chore to carry the collection with me when I moved around as a young adult.
As someone who grew up in the 80's and 90's, I think there was more good than bad in those two decades which, sadly, led to the fall of comics. A fall so hard that the industry is still scrambling to pick its self back up and regain some of that old glory it once had before everything fell apart in 1996. And if feels so odd for me to say it seeing how popular comics are today. Well, in the movie world anyways. I think the bad that so many remember in the 90's was merely amplified due to how congested the speculator boom became thanks to the overwhelming sale of one comic, Superman #1 from 1938. People saw how much money that rare first issue sold for at an auction, they went bananas, and a lot of the publishers started trying to feed the monkey that was on their back.
Hope you cover Brother Power the Geek in the future. He needs a new series. The poor character is a great existential figure that doesn't seem to belong to the contemporary time period.
I already covered Brother Power. Take a look in the archives and you shall see!
I was a teenager to early 20's during this time and I can agree with your assessment. A huge comic book guy and I had to shake my head and laugh at all of comics you used, which I have, including the different colored Batman covers. I really developed fatigue and burnout at all the craziness with covers and of course the ever increasing prices. A really good, and in my view, truthful perspective! Now if I could just get rid of my doubles of Cinder and Ashe... ; )
For all of Wizard's many, many flaws, it did highlight great indie books like Cerebus, Strangers in Paradise, and Love & Rockets. plus overlooked gems like Strikeforce Morituri, the 1985 Squadron Supreme mini-series, and Elementals. It was during the last years of its life that the magazine dropped all pretense and became Maxim for geeks.
great job :)
Well said, buddy!
I really came into buying my own comics, and deciding what I liked, during the Speculator Era. But, I was pretty set on only getting what I liked, and for me, not necessarily for sale later. I've kept them all in great condition, because I care for my things. Since then, I've expanded my collection slowly, venturing into different titles slowly, and usually focused on graphic novels or collections with story arcs I wanted to read.
One day, my collection will probably only be worth anything to a few people who want to break it up, and get the ones they need to complete their collections. But, for now, they bring me total joy.
I came onto the scene for real during the era, but it didn't affect me (or my limited budget).
Someone gained a level in Editing :) very very nice
Thank you! I was hoping it looked and felt a bit different. It's the variant edition. Heh.
happy new year
And happy New Year to you!
I had been a comic fan from the 70’s- the early 90’s. The Speculation Era got me to give up comics for good. It’s only very recently with the debut of Marvel Unlimited that I got back into comics.
13:44
I want to point another issue. Generally, price is inversely related to supply (i.e. the more rare something is, the more people will spend for it). The issue here is since millions of copies of these comics were being published they were too common to be worth much.
I read the entire run of Wizard. You have done Gareb Shamus a great disservice sir.
well done
I would disagree with the idea that comics have never been better. There are a few standouts, but the market's best work is indie, and often at least begins self published. Art is often muddy, color looks like shit, and the actual craft of cartooning is absent.
Better than the speculator era, I might grant. But not better than ever.
Most of the comics I read are indie and i prefer trades so it's the best time for me
As someone who didn't live through that era, I love scooping up all the dollar bin leftovers.
Thanks for the video, very intersting, biased opinion or no.
An intersting note: according to Sean Howe's marvel book, special cover issues always sold more than the previous issue, but then the following issue would sink to a sales number lower than the one before the special issue. Apparently it happened every time according to someone who worked at marvel.
Amazing X-Thing cover is great! Cracks me up! I would probably buy that right now
I'll sell you the Photoshop file I made. Ha ha ha.
As an amateur comic writer that lived and hated the 90s era of comics, this is a good video that expresses what caused the medium to almost die and has now kept comics in dire straits. Yes, Westerns comics have now a large swath of variety since it's not all superheroes, but most of the big-two products are subpar, gimmicky, overpriced, and disappointing. And the seeds of that is this period, when comics hit the mainstream and speculation almost killed it.
Ah, early '90s hobby price guides. Blatant market manipulation, and how we fell for it.
Thank you. This is a wonderful analysis of that era. You are in my tribe! I do have a slight problem with the video, though. You show many different covers of different books, but the labels you have applied to describe are inaccurate on a few of them. For example, The Adventures of Superman #500 cover you show is not a hologram. That book has a cardstock cover with a painting of Superman on it. Stuck onto that cover is a translucent plastic film with a matching painting of Jonathan Kent's arm reaching out to his "dead" adopted son. I believe the idea was to symbolize Superman's resurrection. With the film in place, he looks pale and ghost-like. Peel the film off and you can see him much more clearly, the Man of Steel reborn. Another example is the X-O Manowar #0 you have in the video. Technically, its cover enhancement was known as "chromium," and X-O #0 may very well be the best example of that format. Just thought you should know. Oh, and yes, Wizard was juvenile, but it was also a lot of fun for me. (And I'm pretty sure I'm older than you.) Always nice to watch your videos, tribe-brother.
I remember that time and I think you're correct
Funny the speculator boom began in 1989 and ended in 1996 when Kingdom Come came out. Kingdom Come was basically a response to the 90s era of anti heroes. Coincidence?
@StrangeBrainParts, Could you do a review on storytelling in the 2000’s between the big two
Sure thing! I do have something along that lines that's almost ready to go.
So, I would disagree a little bit with your theory about the start and nature of the boom.
While Batman might have done a lot for comic movies (eventually), I don't think that you can place 1989 as a point where the speculator era starts, at least for the reasons you say. Batman the movie had very little to do with the comics market as a whole. Superhero films rarely pop sales that much for existing characters. And it wasn't the DC characters that led the way in the speculator boom even if the Batman you mention in 1989 was the earliest entry into the multiple-cover game.
You need to look at the issues that were really popping in value. These were not #1 issues, but first appearances of characters and artists. #1 issues from the distant past had high value, but #1 issues from the near term were not particularly special even if pushed as such. Ghost Rider #1 was fairly exceptional. The biggest prizes of the era were a couple of books. New Mutants #87 where a new popular character from a new popular dynamic and untalented artist first appeared was headed towards $100. Hulk #340 with Wolverine and early McFarlane art was worth even more. In fact if you want to trace a year for the speculator boom I would choose 1988 with McFarlane on Spiderman or 1990 over 1989. If it is in 1989, it's about a growing trend.
But I think the idea of the Speculator Boom is overrated and a bit of a myth. I think it was a collector boom. When X-Men #1 came out in 1991, I didn't buy this comic believing I was going to sell 5 issues for a profit. I'm sure I thought my collection would have some value in the future which made it easier to keep, but I wasn't making an investment. I was collecting, and I suspect most other people out there did it for that reason too. While I'm sure there were some extra copies bought as investments, most of them were just because we had to have these things. The idea of collecting the older ones was a more appealing fad at the time.
Consider that while the drop in popularity in comics killed the back long box at comic stores, it did not stop companies from selling 4 covers. In fact there are often more covers for random minor books that there were for X-Men #1. If multiple covers didn't sell, people wouldn't buy them. And if people have no reason to see them as investments, they would only buy the extra covers if they actually want to have them for themselves.
The main difference is the lack of desire to go back to get most of what you don't already have. The comics market gives people enough ways to read old comics that the idea of going back to older books just to collect no longer overlaps with the desire to go back to read the books and that has eliminated the culture of collecting.
At least that's my theory.
I would love to hear your thoughts Preacher.
I think a lot of your points were true. The only thing I really had an issue with (hehehehe) is the work that you show when you say creators phoned it in, or when you talk about comics being bad back in the speculator era. I mean, the writing wasn't always there, but I think a lot of the artwork still stands as some of the most amazing. I love stylized art. I think Image made it cool for everyone to have a distinctive style. Sadly, everyone aped the styles of the creators they loved and some of those creators maybe weren't so good. But that Midnight Sons cover by Joe Kubert, whatever else about the story, I love that cover.
Funny you had a drawing of Joe Madureira up when you mentioned subpar art. His art was actually quite innovative. Someone like Stephen Platt who just clearly swiped Todd McFarlane would’ve been more suitable.
That image was used because of what it said about the age of Apocalypse being over. It didn't even occur to me that someone might think it was a criticism of Joe Mad's art. I can definitely say that wasn't the intention at all.
Yeah. A Wizard article had Mark Millar as the coolest writer ever because he was a fun when drunk. Right there and then I stopped buying American comics for 10 years. Crap “magazine”. Can’t believe the love it gets on other channels.
If you don't mind me asking, is there any relation to John and Nick?
If only! None whatsoever.
Ah ha ha!! 1989-1996. There were literally a few dozen foil and hologram covers from the Big 2 during that time. Now there are 30 or 40 variants and incentive covers every week.