collectibles
Comics A.M. | Fan/pro Bill of Rights; comics used in major drug ring
Bill of Rights
Creators | Writer Peter David shares a “Fan/Pro Bill of Rights” related to proper behavior at conventions, starting with a “Prime Directive”: “Fans and Pros have the right to be treated by each other with the same courtesy that they themselves would expect to be treated. Fans and Pros who act like jerks abrogate the right to complain when they themselves are treated like jerks.” [Peter David]
Crime | A Denver judge sentenced Aaron Castro to 45 years in prison after Castro pleaded guilty to drug and extortion charges. Prosecutors say he ran a major methamphetamine distribution ring and laundered the profits by buying and selling valuable comics in the collector’s market. [KMGH Denver]
Digital | Robot 6 contributor Graeme McMillan catches an error in Marvel’s press release from last week: Marvel was not the first comics publisher to release an entire line of comics simultaneously in print and digital—Archie Comics was. [Blog@Newsarama]
- November 14, 2011 @ 07:00 AM by JK Parkin
SDCC Wishlist | Gaze into the soulless eyes of Dark Phoenix
Dark Phoenix, from Tonner Dolls
Tonner Doll Company, the folks behind the DC Stars collection, has officially announced its 2011 Comic-Con International exclusive: a kind-of-cool — if you’re into high-priced collectible dolls, that is — kind-of-creepy limited-edition Dark Phoenix doll. How limited? Very, according to the manufacturer; just 150 pieces have been made.
That means, of course, that Dark Phoenix will be very expensive. Although Tonner’s press release doesn’t list a price — file under “If you have to ask, you probably can’t afford it” — eBay already has the doll pegged at anywhere from $254.95 to (gulp) $349.99.
But, hey, isn’t she worth it? Just read this description: “In keeping with the fine detail and quality of Tonner’s other product lines, Dark Phoenix will boast hand-painted facial details, including mesmerizing mirrored eyes and fine quality variegated, rooted saran hair. She features a recently enhanced 16″ high-quality vinyl and hard plastic body with 13-points-of-articulation for dynamic poses. Dark Phoenix’s meticulously crafted costume consists of a searing red bodysuit with metallic ‘Phoenix’ emblem and attached gloves, thigh-high faux leather boots, and matching gold sash with a ‘Phoenix’ charm. A display stand is also included.”
I would’ve gone with “haunting, soulless eyes” rather than “mesmerizing mirrored eyes,” but I’m not really the target audience for this thing, “searing red bodysuit” or no. Tonner will be at Booth #4149 in the San Diego Convention Center, so start saving those pennies.
- July 8, 2011 @ 09:00 AM by Kevin Melrose
Ouch! Upper Deck chops up vintage comics to make trading cards [UPDATED]
In a move that most likely is causing comics collectors almost physical pain, the trading-card company Upper Deck is cutting out panels from old, rare Marvel comics to make trading cards for their Marvel Beginnings series.
The cards are made from actual panels of vintage comics such as Amazing Spider-Man #2. The Marvel Ultimate Collection Panel Focus insert cards, as they are called, will be the rarest cards in the set, at one per case. The series also includes sketch and autograph cards by a raft of creators, including Stan Lee, Mark Waid, Kurt Busiek, and Brian Michael Bendis; these will occur with a frequency of one per box.
The question is whether it would be worth some entrepreneur’s while to buy up all the cards, pull out the panel focus cards, and piece together their own Frankenstein-like copy of Amazing Spider-Man #2. Probably not, but it’s fun to think about.
UPDATE: ICv2 has the list of comics used.
- May 10, 2011 @ 09:00 AM by Brigid Alverson
C2E2 | Friday on the floor
Waiting to get in.
My big question heading into the show this year was, “How much is it going to feel like a comics convention?” With Chris “Thor” Hemsworth and much of the cast of Chuck being around this weekend, would C2E2 start to feel like San Diego or – God forbid – Wizard World Chicago from a couple of years ago with movies and TV taking over the center of attention?
It’s only Friday, but so far so really damn good.
After last year’s C2E2, I had high expectations for the convention this year and everything got off to a great start. Press registration went smoothly again and some of the Artist Alley creators who hadn’t attended last year told me how impressed they were with the professionalism and just general niceness of the staff they’d worked with.
One major difference though is that the convention’s in a different part of McCormick Place this year. Instead of the impressive Lakeside Center with it’s unbelievable view of Lake Michigan and downtown Chicago, it’s in the West Building. Still a very nice space with lush carpeting and plenty of room, just not as jaw-droppingly grand as last year. I’m not sure why that is, but one artist brought it to my attention that the setting sun through the giant picture-windows last year could sometimes make it difficult to see and interact with fans. So whatever the rationale for moving, there are positive and negative things about both spaces.
- March 18, 2011 @ 09:34 PM by Michael May
Wizard drops its comics price guide (and the pages it occupied)
Wizard #218
Users of the Wizard Universe Message Board are reporting that Wizard, the flagship magazine of Gareb Shamus’s publishing, retail, and conventions empire, has ceased publication of its long-running price guide for collectible comics with this month’s Issue 218.
When Shamus started Wizard out of his parents’ basement in 1991, it essentially was a price guide. Even as it evolved from a glorified newsletter into a full-fledged comics magazine, its monthly tracking of “hot” comics and their supposed value on the secondary market — supplemented with “Hot Ten” writers and artists lists, mini-guides dedicated to particular characters, creators, or titles, spotlights on issues of note and so on — put the publication on the map during the speculator boom of that decade’s early years and, in the eyes of many readers and fans, was how Wizard earned its long-time subtitle: “The Guide to Comics.”
But the section has also been a divisive one, with many in the comics community tying it to what they see as lamentable trends like variant covers, “slabbed” and graded comics, and of course the bust that followed the boom, to say nothing of the somewhat-dubious notion that contemporary comics are potentially lucrative collectibles in the first place. Moreover, recent years have seen the section’s page count slowly chipped away (along with that of the rest of the magazine, which WUMBers report is still retailing at the same price as it did with the price guide’s eight pages intact) as the Internet’s capacity for constant updating caused much of the price guide’s information to be outdated even prior to publication. Outspoken staffer Mark Allen Haverty, who recently made himself a moderator on the increasingly hostile Wizard board, says as much in his explanation for why the guide is gone:
- October 29, 2009 @ 02:40 PM by Sean T. Collins
A tale of two statues: a ‘dominating’ Thor and a ‘sultry’ Scarlet Witch
Kotobukiya statues of Thor and the Scarlet Witch
Unless there’s a lot online discussion about an item, I usually don’t pay much attention to high-priced statues based on comic characters. It’s obviously a lucrative business, one that sometimes targets very specific tastes, but I have no interest in shelling out $50 for, say, a Supergirl mini-bust.
However, occasionally something catches my eye, if not necessarily for the intended reasons.
A few months ago famed Japanese collectibles-manufacturer Kotobukiya launched its Marvel Bishojo (“pretty girl”) Collection of statues designed by Shunya Yamashita, who’s well-known for his illustrations of busty young women in provocative poses.
Between the name of the line and the name of the artist, you have a pretty good idea what you’re in for: Black Widow, her cleavage in full view and perched atop impossibly tall stilettos, posing with a gun; Rogue, showing off her “voluptuous curves” as she activates her comlink or maybe cups her ear to sing; and Scarlet Witch as she … well, I’ll get to that in a moment.
- September 16, 2009 @ 10:53 AM by Kevin Melrose