Good for you, Ricky. It’s great to take time to reflect. I’m laughing at the BttF bit!! This is really interesting. I don’t buy big or rare books, so it’s fascinating to hear what bigger collectors do and pay. That New Yorker is so coooool.
Gosh, how I dislike Jet Jaguar!! LOL I hope you also collect Godzilla covers from Famous Monsters of Film land magazine; those covers are beautiful. The one with him and Rodan are my favorite, but that's probably because I bought it when it came out, and I still have it... To go a step further; when the first GZ vs KK movie (new one) came out... I was so overjoyed when Godzilla curb stomped KK so bad at the end, to prove who the true King of the Monsters is (I had been living with the nightmare of the ending of the original KK vs GZ since I first saw it around 50 years ago).... I admit... tears of joy were shed! So yes, I am obsessed with Big G as well! 😉 Sorry I didn't pay too close attention to the other books you have; I am sure they were all nifty in their own way..... but you had me in a swoon at *Godzilla!* Great vid brother!
Love this one - thanks for coming back! And yes, Godzilla vs Megalon is so bad! I guess it did give us "Horizontal Godzilla Levitates and Kicks Megalon" clip though!
As someone who collected one particular comic series on and off for just over 4 decades (yeah it took me about that long to complete my Warren Vampirella run), I find the changing definition of rarity to be interesting. Back in the 80s, before Harris bought Vampirella and began their iteration, rarity was based on print run numbers alongside availability. Back then, and well into the 90s, the rarest and most sought after Vampi comic was issue #3. A low print run, and the fact that not many copies were in circulation at the time, meant that a Warren Edition Vampirella #3 fetched generally higher prices than any other issue, including #1. Fast forward into the late 2000s, 2010's and onwards, and it switched with the addition of not only print run numbers and availability, but also desirability. Vampi #1 started to overtake #3 in value, because the Frazetta cover was more desirable then than the Vaugn Bode cover of #3 (even though at one point Vaugn Bode's work had been highly desirable). I got my Vampi #3 copy (around a 6.5 to 7.0 grading) for $250AUD, a price that was vastly reduced compared to what that one was going for in the 80s and 90s (if you could even find it). In comparison I paid just short of 2 grand for a CGC slabbed 6.0 Vampirella #1, a price which is above what it was selling for several decades ago. Other issues have also now come to be considered 'rare', not always because of low print runs, but for their desirability and the fact that people tend to hang onto them, reducing supply in the market. The Frazetta cover of many names (Sea Witch, Witch Who Came from the Sea, World Beater) on Vampirella #11 is hella sort after, and finding a copy above a grade of 5.5 that does not cost an arm and a leg is nigh on impossible in an Australian market especially). I picked up a 7.5-8.0 grading copy for around $170AUD a few years back, and that was an absolute bargain at the time. Vampi 103 and 112 also tend to go for inflated prices, due to lower print runs, desirability of cover art, and the fact that #112 is also the last official Warren print run for Vampirella. Which brings me onto the topic of manufactured scarcity, or more specifically manufactured desirability. I see this being done with Vampirella #113, with sellers falsely stating that it's the very last of the Warren printed Vampirella issues, with a low print run (that is true) and is therefore ultra rare and desirable. It's not a Warren produced Vampirella, it's a Harris reprint of an old cover and old stories, that they put out just before the release of their first edition for the Harris run of Vampirella. To claim desirability under false pretences (ie not bothering to say upfront that it is not actually a Warren published Vampirella issue, therefore it is not the very last Warren published Vampirella issue, but rather the first Harris publication that reprinted old Warren material) to me is a form of manufactured desirability, similar to manufactured scarcity. Just personally my goal was to finish a complete run of Warren published Vampirella comics; and I don't consider a Harris run reprint that just happens to be numbered as #113 to be part of the Warren edition print run. As for manufactured scarcity, and variant covers especially, to borrow a Ren and Stimpy reference, "No sir, I don't like it". I've had people argue to me that manufactured scarcity and variant covers are a good thing, because it allows for up and coming artists to potentially be given a chance to have their own cover/art/story with potentially boosted desirability to collectors. Okay, I can kind of see that, but my response is always, "That's great, but why not just give them the main cover?" July 1970, Warren Publications took a chance on a then up and coming, unknown artist by the name of KEN KELLY by giving him his first professional job doing the cover art for Vampirella #6. Sure Frazetta came in and redid the face of the woman on the cover, but someone like Ken Kelly (obviously a huge name in fantasy art, RIP) still wasn't relegated to doing art for 'Variant' issues, because Warren chose to give him a chance by putting his work front and centre. I've also heard arguments for variant covers allowing BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ artists more of a chance, because they will tend to have more trouble getting hired in the industry. To which again I say, "Okay, I can see that, but again why should they be relegated to variant issues of a comic, Billy Graham, Vaugn Bode, and Jeffrey Catherine Jones weren't'. For me there is one legitimate reason, and one legitimate reason only for a comic publisher to put out variants for different issues, and engage in manufacturing scarcity, and that is, "We need to make money, so that we can keep publishing this comic."
Damnit I just wrote out the start of a nice long comment, and then got distracted and shut down my browser. Oops! That New Yorker is freaking gold! Well done for getting that. Now just give me a moment to regather my thoughts and I'll be back with a nice long Vampi related essay. :D
Awesome educational video, showing us stuff the average comic collector never sees. Great job, and welcome back!
Good for you, Ricky. It’s great to take time to reflect. I’m laughing at the BttF bit!! This is really interesting. I don’t buy big or rare books, so it’s fascinating to hear what bigger collectors do and pay. That New Yorker is so coooool.
Ricky!!!!! Welcome back! I could watch a thousand videos of you just appreciating your books one by one. Great stuff
Gosh, how I dislike Jet Jaguar!! LOL I hope you also collect Godzilla covers from Famous Monsters of Film land magazine; those covers are beautiful. The one with him and Rodan are my favorite, but that's probably because I bought it when it came out, and I still have it... To go a step further; when the first GZ vs KK movie (new one) came out... I was so overjoyed when Godzilla curb stomped KK so bad at the end, to prove who the true King of the Monsters is (I had been living with the nightmare of the ending of the original KK vs GZ since I first saw it around 50 years ago).... I admit... tears of joy were shed! So yes, I am obsessed with Big G as well! 😉 Sorry I didn't pay too close attention to the other books you have; I am sure they were all nifty in their own way..... but you had me in a swoon at *Godzilla!* Great vid brother!
Love this one - thanks for coming back! And yes, Godzilla vs Megalon is so bad! I guess it did give us "Horizontal Godzilla Levitates and Kicks Megalon" clip though!
Always teaching me something! Great video. More of this.
Great video! Loving the Vampi and New Yorker!
Love your show. Love that I learn something new about comics. Thank. Keep it up
Thanks Ricky! Really awesome video! 🤘🏼🔥🔥
As someone who collected one particular comic series on and off for just over 4 decades (yeah it took me about that long to complete my Warren Vampirella run), I find the changing definition of rarity to be interesting. Back in the 80s, before Harris bought Vampirella and began their iteration, rarity was based on print run numbers alongside availability. Back then, and well into the 90s, the rarest and most sought after Vampi comic was issue #3. A low print run, and the fact that not many copies were in circulation at the time, meant that a Warren Edition Vampirella #3 fetched generally higher prices than any other issue, including #1. Fast forward into the late 2000s, 2010's and onwards, and it switched with the addition of not only print run numbers and availability, but also desirability. Vampi #1 started to overtake #3 in value, because the Frazetta cover was more desirable then than the Vaugn Bode cover of #3 (even though at one point Vaugn Bode's work had been highly desirable). I got my Vampi #3 copy (around a 6.5 to 7.0 grading) for $250AUD, a price that was vastly reduced compared to what that one was going for in the 80s and 90s (if you could even find it). In comparison I paid just short of 2 grand for a CGC slabbed 6.0 Vampirella #1, a price which is above what it was selling for several decades ago. Other issues have also now come to be considered 'rare', not always because of low print runs, but for their desirability and the fact that people tend to hang onto them, reducing supply in the market. The Frazetta cover of many names (Sea Witch, Witch Who Came from the Sea, World Beater) on Vampirella #11 is hella sort after, and finding a copy above a grade of 5.5 that does not cost an arm and a leg is nigh on impossible in an Australian market especially). I picked up a 7.5-8.0 grading copy for around $170AUD a few years back, and that was an absolute bargain at the time. Vampi 103 and 112 also tend to go for inflated prices, due to lower print runs, desirability of cover art, and the fact that #112 is also the last official Warren print run for Vampirella.
Which brings me onto the topic of manufactured scarcity, or more specifically manufactured desirability. I see this being done with Vampirella #113, with sellers falsely stating that it's the very last of the Warren printed Vampirella issues, with a low print run (that is true) and is therefore ultra rare and desirable. It's not a Warren produced Vampirella, it's a Harris reprint of an old cover and old stories, that they put out just before the release of their first edition for the Harris run of Vampirella. To claim desirability under false pretences (ie not bothering to say upfront that it is not actually a Warren published Vampirella issue, therefore it is not the very last Warren published Vampirella issue, but rather the first Harris publication that reprinted old Warren material) to me is a form of manufactured desirability, similar to manufactured scarcity. Just personally my goal was to finish a complete run of Warren published Vampirella comics; and I don't consider a Harris run reprint that just happens to be numbered as #113 to be part of the Warren edition print run.
As for manufactured scarcity, and variant covers especially, to borrow a Ren and Stimpy reference, "No sir, I don't like it". I've had people argue to me that manufactured scarcity and variant covers are a good thing, because it allows for up and coming artists to potentially be given a chance to have their own cover/art/story with potentially boosted desirability to collectors. Okay, I can kind of see that, but my response is always, "That's great, but why not just give them the main cover?" July 1970, Warren Publications took a chance on a then up and coming, unknown artist by the name of KEN KELLY by giving him his first professional job doing the cover art for Vampirella #6. Sure Frazetta came in and redid the face of the woman on the cover, but someone like Ken Kelly (obviously a huge name in fantasy art, RIP) still wasn't relegated to doing art for 'Variant' issues, because Warren chose to give him a chance by putting his work front and centre. I've also heard arguments for variant covers allowing BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ artists more of a chance, because they will tend to have more trouble getting hired in the industry. To which again I say, "Okay, I can see that, but again why should they be relegated to variant issues of a comic, Billy Graham, Vaugn Bode, and Jeffrey Catherine Jones weren't'.
For me there is one legitimate reason, and one legitimate reason only for a comic publisher to put out variants for different issues, and engage in manufacturing scarcity, and that is, "We need to make money, so that we can keep publishing this comic."
Great vid and good to have you back
Damnit I just wrote out the start of a nice long comment, and then got distracted and shut down my browser. Oops! That New Yorker is freaking gold! Well done for getting that. Now just give me a moment to regather my thoughts and I'll be back with a nice long Vampi related essay. :D
Rare is an understatement. Great books!
Nice books in the back. Still have the New Yorker I won from you on my shelf.
hot topic baby lol 10:35
Good video brother. Lots of knowledge dropped
cool vid.