posted by GW Dan

Embedded below is a quick video blog from Aaron at A Comic Shop in Orlando, Florida.  In it he explains his stores decision to no longer carry variant covers for any titles.  I support this decision 110%.  Variant, chrome, embossed, die-cut, gatefold, jam, 3-D, hologram, stickerfoil, bullshit covers ruined the industry in the 90′s.  Marvel Comics, currently the most successful publisher, filed for bankruptcy not so long ago.  One of the main causes of the bursted bubble was the fallout from the speculator market.  In the 90′s publishers put out a ton of junk just to get people into comic shops under the false pretense that these special covers would somehow be worth more money down the road.  Speculators grabbed these books like fat kid at a cake buffet.  But then, a realization began to sink in.  If everybody bought these covers, and everybody wanted to try and sell them, well then there would be no demand.  How many copies of the black-bagged Superman “death” issue did you buy?  How many did your dad get?  Your neighbor?  And now how many could you get for less than a buck at any number of stores around the country?  We are heading down a very slippery slope here and it’s nice to see a shop owner calling bullshit on the publishers.