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Are we in the middle of a comic bubble?506

Collector Oxbladder private msg quote post Address this user
While there are some factors in the current marketplace that are similar to the 90's the current marketplace still not anywhere close to being on the bubble because the single most crucial factor is missing ... namely the influx of thousands of collectors of other items that failed. In the 90's the collapse of the trading card market pushed many into the comic market. Being idiots they jumped at silly investments and when they realized that not all of these investments were going to make them rich they bailed. Almost all had no interest in the actual media they were looking for quick and steady money. It took months and months for shops and distributors, and the rest of the hobby to recover.

Could it all collapse? Sure but right now there is little danger of that. The market just isn't that perilously balanced as the 90's. Not even close.
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You think I'm joking, I'm not. earthshaker01 private msg quote post Address this user
I just looked the newest book I have is a 1968 Captain Action #1.
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Collector Maverick private msg quote post Address this user
@CatmanAmerica lol, we're surely in trouble then.
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Collector Revelations private msg quote post Address this user
I think even if a bubble exists, the aftermath of a burst won't be as serious as back in the 90s. I grew up in the 80s (born in the 70s) and loved comics. Like many kids, I could only buy 5-8 books a month. I collected comics up until college in the mid 90s. Now, decades later, I'm back into collecting. I'm seeing a lot more guys/girls around my age that are getting back into it because we have the money to buy what we want.
Comics and being a geek just doesn't have the same negative stereotypes that it had back then. I think people like myself will be able to help sustain a market, but only to a point. I love the variant covers for the artwork, but as others have said, it's getting ridiculous.
The reprints are out of hand though. Comics that aren't key issues are getting reprints, even when the originals are still sitting on shelves. Reprints should be left to those key issues to allow young collectors a chance to read from a real comic book instead of scans on google images.
The thing with comics is that for them to be meaningful investments, the owner usually has to sit on the books for years/decades before they can resell for huge profits, and only if the books they have are worthwhile. It's far easier to earn money through stock market investments in "safe" stocks/portfolios. People might read those articles and see the % gain, but not realize the amount of time it takes for comics to appreciate. Then there's the matter of selling at the perfect time and finding a buyer willing to pay that kind of price. There aren't a lot of people willing to pay $3M for Action Comics #1, even if they have the money to do so.
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Collector qube private msg quote post Address this user
Quote:
Originally Posted by zosocane
Depends on what is being sold. Almost anything modern is on the bubble, and I'm starting to see crazy prices being realized for mid-grade Bronze and even early Copper books that are common as dirt.


What are you seeing in early Copper, just out of curiosity?

I've been selling an awful lot of New Mutants books that have been $1 books since they came out, now I'm getting $10-20 on books just based on speculation.

NM 1, 14, 18 and 26 all are selling above what I believe their worth. I don't mind since I was sitting on plenty of them, but I do think it's silly.

I've also been seeing spikes in Copper Batman values, but nothing obscene, well, besides Batman 357 maybe. Random spike in Detective 523 as well.
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Collector FN_2199 private msg quote post Address this user
Quote:
Originally Posted by Oxbladder
While there are some factors in the current marketplace that are similar to the 90's the current marketplace still not anywhere close to being on the bubble because the single most crucial factor is missing ... namely the influx of thousands of collectors of other items that failed. In the 90's the collapse of the trading card market pushed many into the comic market. Being idiots they jumped at silly investments and when they realized that not all of these investments were going to make them rich they bailed. Almost all had no interest in the actual media they were looking for quick and steady money. It took months and months for shops and distributors, and the rest of the hobby to recover.

Could it all collapse? Sure but right now there is little danger of that. The market just isn't that perilously balanced as the 90's. Not even close.


This is what has to be taken into account.

Are outside "investors" soaking up "inventory" or are "fanboys" spending more money on "collections?" I see more girls/women in this hobby than the 90s and I have several sales a month to women, which was pleasantly surprising to me. Additionally, comics are one of the few, if only, print media that have survived digitalization (source not available but I read it recently). If anything, digital media has brought in new collectors of physical comics. I also think that -gasp- cosplay is good for comics and is very popular right now which draws in casual observers.
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Collector Stelbert_Stylton private msg quote post Address this user
Quote:
Originally Posted by earthshaker01
I just looked the newest book I have is a 1968 Captain Action #1.


Sorry to hear it.
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COLLECTOR DarthLego private msg quote post Address this user
I just noticed that Batman 227 seems to be going for nearly double what it was when I got my copy two years ago. Bubble speculation or legit appreciation? I don't know. But makes me even more wanting to get it encapsulated.
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Collector The_Curmudgeon private msg quote post Address this user
Quote:
Originally Posted by DarthLego
I just noticed that Batman 227 seems to be going for nearly double what it was when I got my copy two years ago. Bubble speculation or legit appreciation? I don't know. But makes me even more wanting to get it encapsulated.


People with cover-swipe fever making it popular.
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Collector MetalPSI private msg quote post Address this user
I had someone give me a pile of moderns, they weren't really a collector.

Found out Suicide Squad #1 is a hot book, going to get it slabbed soon.
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You think I'm joking, I'm not. earthshaker01 private msg quote post Address this user
Makes me yawn a bit
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Collector Mathyus_42 private msg quote post Address this user
I am normally into buying stuff that I like. Be it for the art, the story, or both. Now a days it is rarely both. Due to an ex wife, I am having to go back and get some of my key books that seemed to have disappeared when she left. So, some of the "hot" books are on my list. LOL
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Collector Stelbert_Stylton private msg quote post Address this user
Quote:
Originally Posted by The_Curmudgeon
Quote:
Originally Posted by DarthLego
I just noticed that Batman 227 seems to be going for nearly double what it was when I got my copy two years ago. Bubble speculation or legit appreciation? I don't know. But makes me even more wanting to get it encapsulated.


People with cover-swipe fever making it popular.


It helps when the swipe is better than the original Too bad the interiors are the classic artistic bait-and-switch.
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Collector Maverick private msg quote post Address this user
A lot of interesting points here. I personally think we are in the middle of a bubble which is why arguments can really be made for both sides.

When I see news articles like the one I originally linked, I always see them hyping the blue chips and nothing else. I found a decent article from CNBC that touched on the risks associated with other forms of comic investment. The main point that I took away from it was a Quote by Scott Davis. Collectors often "submit a comic book with that character's first appearance to us for grading, and try to be the first people to get it on eBay," "It's a good strategy, but risky … there's a pretty small window for success," That something I think A lot of the modern spec guys are forgetting is you need to be the first out of the gate.

Also some wise words from Mr Storms in that article.

The movie hype game will come to an end eventually. Im sure the movies will do relatively well but If the movies are all about setting up the next and you dont really give me any content its not much of a movie imo. I was dissapointed with Civil war and BvS btw.

Some things make sense financially. If you find a book at a killer deal then by all means make that money. I am in the camp of collect what you love and you can never lose but I know a lot of guys are in it for the money and that can very risky at times.
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Collector VillageIdiot private msg quote post Address this user
This so called "Bubble" has now been predicted and discussed with fail, for the better part of 12 years now
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Collector Maverick private msg quote post Address this user
Quote:
Originally Posted by VillageIdiot
This so called "Bubble" has now been predicted and discussed with fail, for the better part of 12 years now
Im not quite sure what you mean by "with fail"

What we're talking about is the rise and fall of markets. Surely you understand there has been and will be "bubbles" in any market. Comics are not immune to this. With the introduction of more and more tools/data to track sales we can now get a better understanding of this once obscure (to some) market.
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Collector infinityG private msg quote post Address this user
I say let it crash and stay there.

I miss the days of hunting and finding small treasures... but alas, the hobby is too mainstream.
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Collector Maverick private msg quote post Address this user
@infinityG I would ok with that. Maybe then I could find the books I really want. Its definitely getting harder and harder to find stuff in the wild.

I always looked at comics as an old mans game( no offense intended). Most of them got in on the ground floor in the 60s - 70s. Young guys like myself never had a chance. The only way to acquire a lot of these books now is to pay through the nose or inherit/purchase an old collection.
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Collector infinityG private msg quote post Address this user
@Maverick

The guys who had any inclination that comics would be as popular as they are, lucked out.

Maybe the bubble will burst and the Hollywood hype train will slow down... then we can pick up those books we always wanted at down-to-Earth-prices again.

Remember the days when a story gave value to a book and not a movie...?

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You think I'm joking, I'm not. earthshaker01 private msg quote post Address this user
Quote:
Originally Posted by Maverick
@infinityG I would ok with that. Maybe then I could find the books I really want. Its definitely getting harder and harder to find stuff in the wild.

I always looked at comics as an old mans game( no offense intended). Most of them got in on the ground floor in the 60s - 70s. Young guys like myself never had a chance. The only way to acquire a lot of these books now is to pay through the nose or inherit/purchase and old collection.


Not exactly agreeing with that, as an old man's game to get GA or SA comics I'm 40ish and I have an extensive golden age collection. That I have slowly put together. A unique collection of old high grade books that falls in between all the GA books that are key and way out of my price range.
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Collector VillageIdiot private msg quote post Address this user
Quote:
Originally Posted by Maverick
Quote:
Originally Posted by VillageIdiot
This so called "Bubble" has now been predicted and discussed with fail, for the better part of 12 years now
Im not quite sure what you mean by "with fail"

What we're talking about is the rise and fall of markets. Surely you understand there has been and will be "bubbles" in any market. Comics are not immune to this. With the introduction of more and more tools/data to track sales we can now get a better understanding of this once obscure (to some) market.


No, what I understand is exactly what I wrote. This "bubble" has been predicted, talked about, written about, and guaranteed for over 12 years now. Perhaps even longer, but 12 years or so back on the CGC boards in the early 2000's

It has still not happened. Will it ever? Shoot, a meteor will crash into earth ending life as we know it...eventually. That's just the study of chaos mathematics. Number parameters and physic inevitability. Nothing lasts forever, but a comic book "bubble"? impending? Been there done that. Nope, not happening anytime soon.!!!!
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Collector Maverick private msg quote post Address this user
@VillageIdiot Meh, to each his own. I suppose I started this thread looking for people to discuss the finer points of the current comic market.

12 years ago I was still wrapping up high school let alone discussing market reports, I'm sorry we all haven't been around as long as you. I will be more mindful in the future.

Out of curiosity what do you think about this article from a few years back?
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Collector VillageIdiot private msg quote post Address this user
Quote:
Originally Posted by Maverick
@VillageIdiot Meh, to each his own. I suppose I started this thread looking for people to discuss the finer points of the current comic market.

12 years ago I was still wrapping up high school let alone discussing market reports, I'm sorry we all haven't been around as long as you. I will be more mindful in the future.

Out of curiosity what do you think about this article from a few years back?


Oh boy! I refuse to even get on the Metropolis train too much inertia for me.
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COLLECTOR DarthLego private msg quote post Address this user
I'm not sure conning folks who stumble upon lottery tickets buried in their walls out of a 10% commission is sound investing advice.
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Collector Maverick private msg quote post Address this user
@DarthLego lol you think. That article makes me sick.

"A comic book could pay off your house"
"A comic book could save your home from foreclosure"
"Comic books are recession-proof"

Meanwhile some poor guy in mid America just picked up 10 long boxes of superpro, robin II and return of Superman books looking to pay off his house at his next garage sale.

Its in the best interest of these large auction houses to help pump up the market, With each future major sale expected to top the last. Its all good when it comes to profit for some people.
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Collector AnkurJ private msg quote post Address this user
I still buy some modern books including some variants. However, I have only paid a decent amount ($100) for a variant once as I truly loved the cover. Other than that, I buy modern comics simply to read and enjoy. I don't expect to ever sell them for a profit.

Now when it comes to truly blue chip or investment worthy comics, I would say only a few dozen exist, if not less. Even if the comic market falls apart, I don't see the demand for these books dropping significantly.
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Collector infinityG private msg quote post Address this user
lmao "A comic book could save your home from foreclosure."

right...

If you have a solid SA collection, with some GA sprinkled in, then maybe...

@Maverick
"Its in the best interest of these large auction houses to help pump up the market, With each future major sale expected to top the last. Its all good when it comes to profit for some people."

Nailed it. I think they ruin the hobby. It only boasts who has deeper pockets.
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