MARC ALAN FISHMAN: Variant Variety Ain’t the Spice of Life

Marc Alan Fishman

Marc Alan Fishman is a graphic designer, digital artist, writer, and most importantly a native born Chicagoan. When he's not making websites, drawing and writing for his indie company Unshaven Comics, or rooting for the Bears... he's a dedicated husband and father. When you're not enjoying his column here on ComicMix, feel free to catch his comic book reviews weekly at MichaelDavisWorld, and check out his books and cartoons at Unshaven Comics.

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3 Responses

  1. Martha Thomases says:

    Comics as collectible is fine, if you’re collecting because you love them and have to have them. However, as an investment strategy, it’s nuts because it’s so difficult to get liquid. When journalists would ask me about a particular comic (the death of Superman, or his return), saying, “What will it be worth?” I’d tell them, “Whatever someone will pay for it.”

  2. JosephW says:

    Not to get all bent out of shape, but why do “baseball cards” get to be treated differently from comic books? What is it about baseball cards that you feel they should be treated as meriting the status of “collectible” when the harsh reality is that the only cards people *really* want are those of the “hot” players? I remember when Mark McGwire’s 1987 Donruss rookie card was selling for $40 and up (and this was in 1987 when he was in the midst of his homerun streak–the only reason it didn’t go higher was because he decided his wife’s giving birth was more important than a silly old baseball game). Now, how much is that card worth? Barely $10 (even less if you go through eBay). And his 1985 Topps Olympic card was selling in triple digits then but now “officially” books for up to $30 (and can be bought for even less on eBay).

    My LCS also sells baseball cards and sees as much volatility in that market as in comics. People go in looking for specific players’ cards (or specific teams’ cards); I’ve personally witnessed people buying whole BOXES of new cards and are disappointed because they didn’t get some particular player or because they didn’t get THE “guaranteed collectible card” they wanted so they basically “trade in” all those cards on another box. (Or, they’ll go through a whole box, find ONE card they THINK will be valuable and let the store keep the rest of the cards.)

    What’s actually worse, I’ve seen some of these people wait to buy brand-new product release until it’s in one of the price guides because they want to make sure they’re getting their money’s worth.

    • Well Joseph, I think maybe I don’t know enough about baseball cards to pass judgement. I label them “collectable” more than a comic because they serve little to no purpose anymore. They’re not made to be ENTERTAINING. They’re meant strictly for collecting as far as I can tell.