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shadow Administrator Posts: 20
12/31/2015
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People tend to think having a signature on a comic is going to raise it’s value..Is this right or wrong?
Many people debate this issue on comic forums daily so here is a small guide to help make up your mind before you get an artist to sign your comic.
Ask yourself some simple questions beforehand:
1. Why are you getting the comic book signed?
2. Is the comic going to be just for your personal collection?
3. Should the comic be signed on the cover OR inside of the cover?
If you're getting your comic signed for personal reasons then by all means get it done when you have the chance. The comic itself will hold more personal value to you even if it’s not worth much money wise. Some people get their comics signed on the inside of the comic book (first page) to not wreck the front cover appearance. But again if you have no intentions of selling it get the signature where you want but if you plan to possibly resell in the future think about where the signature is going to be put.
In general people are only going to pay for a signature on a comic book if it’s a key book or they really want to own the book. As Joker states on the CPG forum- “The only time signatures truly increase the value of the book is when it is a key book, signed by a key person in the creative process and CGC Signature Series encapsulation.”
Comics that are signed by well known artists and are dead could possibly raise the price of the comic but again you’ve gotta consider the condition of the book too.
Overall signatures on comics comes down to personal opinion!
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trduchien Posts: 3
5/4/2016
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Well, the trend DOES show that VERIFIED (CGC or CBCS) autographed books do garner a higher payout. Some key things about autographed books to consider:
1. Who signed it?
The signer needs to have something to do with the book. I really only get cover artist, artist and writers. I did get Chuck Dixon sign a book he did not have anything to do with, but he is the creator of Bane and I had him sign my Batman 497 (Bane breaking Batman's back). I am also getting Batman #200 signed by not only Neal Adams (his first art in Batman run), but Adam West & Burt Ward. I have heard someone getting an early Walking Dead comic signed by Norman Reedus even though his character is not in the comics and people having Stan Lee signing a Batman book; now these I would say would devalue the book.
2. Not only is the auto pertinent to the comic, but is the name worth the value?
Hence, is the name a notable name? There are plenty of names in the comic world people would love to have an autograph by such like Stan Lee, Todd McFarlane, Frank Miller (Rare), George Perez, etc. Having the Inker sign the book will not do anything (unless the artist is the inker). Same goes for the editor. The only editor I can think of may be an exception is Jim Shooter.
3. Where is the auto?
This may come into play if the auto is not in an aesthetically pleasing place or in black ink in a dark spot. I saw a Hulk 181 signed by Stan Lee where he signed on Hulk's face!! I always prep my books with them being in a bag with board with a masking tape box where I want the comic signed (the square cut out with a razor (book removed) so the book doesn't have to be removed to sign) with who I want to sign and what color marker written on the tape. I have had compliments by artist on how convenient this is as it saves time and protects the books.
4. Is the book a "key" book?
Now, I would say that how key the book is directly correlates to how much more valuable a signature makes it. So, a ASM 300 with a McFarlane auto gets a bigger jump (considering the grade) than him signing a Spawn #74.
5. Certification!!
You can say what you will about CGC (I can get all my comics digitally to read) but they do NOT certify it unless they witness it. Now, for older books that were signed back in the day, CBCS does do signature verification. CGC will not hit you on grade if it is signed, but will give it a green label. This happened to me before I knew about CGC and had a Dredd Comic signed by Karl Urban. It cam back as an 9.8, but a green label. Now, if I got it signed again to get that gold label, then the old signature would be no different that your kid coloring on it. So from now on I will send these books to CBCS. I have a She-Hulk 50 (not a key book) signed by John Byrne (rare signature as he refuses to do cons now and this was his last book in the run) and a Caliber Presents #1 (First Crow) signed by Tim Vigil which does not sign. I can send these to CGC but they will not be verified. I am also getting James O'Barr to sign the Caliber Presents #1 so I would be wasting my time sending it to CGC as the Vigil auto would hurt the grade.
6. Lastly, what does the signature look like?
This may just be me, but I would NEVER have Rob Liefeld sign a Deadpool comic as his auto looks like crap. It literally looks like a scribbled check mark. And this is where CGC comes in to play as his signature is SOOO easy to fake. I bought an Avengers 181 (first Scott Lang) signed by George Perez with no certificate. I bout it because I got a great deal on it, it is a key book and his signature is unmistakable and beautiful. I met him before and had him sign some other Avenger stuff and pretty confident that it is his auto. Placement for him is tough as his art never has any dead space to put it. Other artist with beautiful signatures are Bob Layton, Mike Perkins, Mike Zeck and Walt Simonson, among others. I even don't mind artist that just write their names in block letters such as John Beatty, Todd McFarlane and Ethan Van Sciver (with a bit of a design), but this again where CGC comes in so you KNOW that they signed it.
I enjoy comics for the art. Others enjoy for the writing. To each their own, but these are the things I have deduced from collecting comics and getting signatures. I actually collect comics JUST to get autos. In today's age of the internet, if you have the money any comic is easy to get. Getting a signature in now my hunt. Thanks for reading!
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kds_comics Posts: 652
3/20/2019
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if you have an signature - enjoy it !! Do not over-think it.
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Defiant1 Posts: 720
2/10/2020
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I will get something signed as a personal reminder that I met a celebrity or creator. It's more of a novelty to me. Most signatures mean very little to me otherwise. The only signature that brings me joy is perhaps that of Mike Judge because he's not someone that I believed I would ever meet and I consider him to be a comedic genius. He did not sign a comic. He signed my ticket stub from an animation show he was hosting. In most cases I consider any signature on a comic to be an act of defacing that comic. I have signed a dollar box issue for a store that had my letter printed in it. I did so to amuse them, but I would cringe at doing so it the comic had any great value. I used to sign a local magazine for people because they had my cartoons published in them. I always added a comment or added line of humor that tied back to may cartoon to make it more than just a signature. Seeing a signed comic that someone else got makes me want it less. To each their own.
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Defiant1 Posts: 720
4/5/2017
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People collect signatures, so a famous person's signature can have value apart from comics. I would say Michael Bay's signature would be collectible whether it was on a comic or not. It's not so much that the comic increased in value, it's just that Michael Bay's signature would be more valuable than 99% of the comic creators out there.
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Ronbatman Administrator Posts: 2378
8/24/2018
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Sounds like he is working both sides to make a little extra cash.
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brownchikano Posts: 14
1/6/2016
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Personal taste. I just started to get into sig series books, ive sold a few, my double and triple to make up for my one copy that stays in my PC. Money is made by whoever is 1st to market on such book, speaking about moderns. Im getting a few books signed by bruce timm this weekend, will sell at least one, a modern variant, will keep my harley ones in the PC until i upgrade since my harleys wont be 9.8. Ive seen a bunch of books get signed that end up selling for less than fast track cgc costs, books like o hate fairyland, papar girls, spider gwen variants, to name a few.
Big and popular artist/writters seem to sell for more than your avg comic artist, writter. Ive gotten a few books signed that will be sharing in my back olissue threads, those were signed because I really like the cover and the artist such as adam hughes, brice timm, jscampbell etc.
My advice for those doing it to sell, is be smart about which books to sign andmake sure you wont ve losing money and only get hard to find variants or keys signed. Dont waste your time with new released #1s.....unless of course is for PC.
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CapnDoug Administrator Posts: 151
1/6/2016
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I've found myself deep in this conundrum lately, too. One collection I bought had a ton of signed books. All raw, and a few I'm not even sure who the signature is. I've figured out most of them, like the entire "Crisis on Infinite Earths" series signed by Marv Wolfman, some Spider-Man by Frank Cho, Uncanny X-Men by Marc Silvestri, that sort of thing. I honestly have no clue what to do with these. I don't see the need to have multiple copies of the same book, but most of these would just go right in my dollar bin at the con table. Seems kind of a waste to me. I have a few comics that I got signed personally, and those have some meaning, but when it's someone else getting the book signed, I honestly have no idea what to do about it. If it's in better condition or even the same condition, I keep the signed copy, but what about the 7.0 Crisis that's signed when I have it at 9.2? If anyone has any advice, I'd welcome it.
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