Defiant1

all messages by user

1/10/2017 Topic: Need some help guessing the grade of this comic! Defiant1	I'd say a missing page is a 0.5. I wouldn't want it. Qualified grades are just a way to trick people into buying otherwise unsalable comics.
1/10/2017 Topic: Have a question about professional grading Defiant1	As a collector and buyer, a graded comic deters me from buying entirely. I was interested in a Tales of Suspense #1 until the shop owner had it graded. At that point I didn't want it. I like opening my comics and not just looking at the cover. Yes, I can remove the comic from the case, but the case typically jacks up the price that a seller wants to get for their comic. For that reason I quit negotiating.
1/11/2017 Topic: Best of DC digest (and other digests) Defiant1	glennsim wrote: Because these are squarebound with cardstock covers, you pretty much can't open the cover without creating a crease down the front and/or back. Are the grading criteria more forgiving for creases on these than for regular comics? Conceptually, the answer is no. The really high grade collectors don't even want invisible oils from your skin on the cover. They literally look at comics under a black light to find defects that can't be seen with the naked eye. It's all a battle to claim bragging rights to owning the most perfect comic out there. In all honesty though, the overall appearance of the book is going to weigh heavily on the assigned grade. The grades on Golden & Silver age books get skewed upwards because perfect versions are so rare. Grading & pricing is all a game and the end goal is for retailers to find something wrong with your comic so they can buy cheap and then convince other people the flaw they found is no big deal so they can sell high. It's all a game of betrayal and collusion while using an ever so slightly floating framework of what they call grading guidelines. I'm a quality inspector for a living. i can find something wrong with anything or I can be realistic and base the grade on the aesthetic fit/function/form of the product. Show me a CGC 10.0 graded comic and I can find something wrong with it even if it's an asymmetrical curve on the staple bends. Abandon the notion that collectors won't care about the crease. The goal of every collector is to own the nicest copy of a comic that they can (or will willingly choose to) afford. If there is an untouched and hermetically sealed copy without the crease sitting next to yours with the crease, someone will find a way to justify knocking the grade on yours down.
1/11/2017 Topic: Defiant1's Random & Odd Comic Art Collection Defiant1	This will sound odd, but I own the B&W Cavewoman:Rain #3 (Caliber) Watercolor Art for the entire comic. It is the watercolors painted by artist Budd Root over photocopies of his original art. These are what was reproduced to make the comic. Here are a few samples: Cavewoman:Rain #3 Page #1 Watercolor Art Cavewoman:Rain #3 Page #3 Watercolor Art Cavewoman:Rain #3 Page #5 Watercolor Art Cavewoman:Rain #3 Pages #8 & #9 Watercolor Art Cavewoman:Rain #3 Page #20 Watercolor Art Defiant1 - http://comics.vforums.co.uk edited by Defiant1 on 2/12/2020
1/11/2017 Topic: Defiant1's Random & Odd Comic Art Collection Defiant1	Here is my most recent purchase of comic art. This is Flaming Frame #19. It is a custom frame made by Roxanne Star with original Flaming Carrot sketch art by Bob Burden. Both were setup together at a comic show. This was the nicest sketch I've gotten from Bob at a comic show.. Normally he does real quick loose sketches for fans. This piece functions a stand-alone one panel cartoon with tight pencils and inks. Here is a photograph of the framed art... Flaming Frame #19 A scan of the back.. A closer cropped photograph of the art.. A closer image of the label: Defiant1 - http://comics.vforums.co.uk edited by Defiant1 on 2/12/2020
1/11/2017 Topic: Defiant1's Random & Odd Comic Art Collection Defiant1	I'm cheap, so this is probably the only original Steve Ditko page of art that I'll ever own. Inking by Gonzalo Mayo. Shadowman #6 Page 16 Defiant1 - http://comics.vforums.co.uk edited by Defiant1 on 1/11/2017 edited by Defiant1 on 2/12/2020
1/11/2017 Topic: Defiant1's Random & Odd Comic Art Collection Defiant1	Here is a Paul Gulacy Catwoman page. It's got some elements that I feel define his style. The original art looks so much nicer than the published page. I bought the comic after acquiring the art and I cringed after looking at the page in print. Defiant1 - http://comics.vforums.co.uk edited by Defiant1 on 1/11/2017 edited by Defiant1 on 2/12/2020
1/11/2017 Topic: Defiant1's Random & Odd Comic Art Collection Defiant1	Here's some original EC artwork from 1948 I believe. Three pages from Picture Stories From World History. Defiant1 - http://comics.vforums.co.uk edited by Defiant1 on 2/12/2020
1/11/2017 Topic: Defiant1's Random & Odd Comic Art Collection Defiant1	This is a preliminary sketch for a Fastner & Larson commissioned painting. It is done in Blue & Black pencils. Rich Larson pencils the image first in black pencils. Then he makes this second image with black & blue pencils to assist with shading and depth I believe. Don't quote me on that. From there Steve Fastner paints his paining of the image using this as a guide. It's 8-1/2" x 11" Defiant1 - http://comics.vforums.co.uk edited by Defiant1 on 2/12/2020
1/12/2017 Topic: Defiant1's Random & Odd Comic Art Collection Defiant1	Thanks! I only pick up art as a side hobby. This was a very affordable piece of art from the Spider-man newspaper cartoon. It doesn't really have Spider-man in this one so it was cheaper. I just grabbed it at Heroes Con one year as an afterthought. Defiant1 - http://comics.vforums.co.uk/ edited by Defiant1 on 2/12/2020
1/12/2017 Topic: Defiant1's Random & Odd Comic Art Collection Defiant1	I believe this is the watercolor art used to produce Harbinger #2 Page 7. This should not be mistaken for a color guide. It is fully painted watercolors over a 1st generation copy of the original art. Color guides were a different process. This is the actual color art used in the book. It has a clear overlay with the words on it. The colorist is JayJay Jackson. Defiant1 - http://comics.vforums.co.uk edited by Defiant1 on 2/12/2020
1/12/2017 Topic: Defiant1's Random & Odd Comic Art Collection Defiant1	Here is a Dave Berg cartoon strip from Mad Magazine. I picked this one up because it features William Gaines as a character in the cartoon. I believe the girl is someone significant as an employees also. I was investigating to see if that was his wife but I never got anywhere with that. There is a rough illustration on the wall in the background that seemed to relate to EC comics. It took several years to locate any similar EC image like that in print. It appears to be Dave Berg reproducing Graham Ingels art on the cover to Squa Tront #4. Perhaps the original art was actually on the wall in Mr. Gaines' office?! I like Dave berg's work so this is an item I really like a lot. Defiant1 - http://comics.vforums.co.uk edited by Defiant1 on 1/12/2017 edited by Defiant1 on 2/12/2020
1/12/2017 Topic: Defiant1's Random & Odd Comic Art Collection Defiant1	Here is a Frank Brunner preliminary layout cover for Wildstars #5. It was published by a small independent publisher. Defiant1 - http://comics.vforums.co.uk edited by Defiant1 on 2/12/2020
1/12/2017 Topic: Defiant1's Random & Odd Comic Art Collection Defiant1	Here is a rough Watercolor layout sketch done by Olivia De Berardinis. Typically, she's just known as Olivia. I actually had to start searching to find her full name. I bought this at Dragon Con in 2004 not realizing that it was a layout sketch for the image used on Dragon Con's program book that year. The full size finished painting cost something in the neighborhood of $8,000, so I was pleased to get this and pay significantly less. This is a very unusual piece in that it is signed by both Olivia and the model Sandra Taylor. Olivia is rarely in the same place as her models because the models do a photo shoot with her photographer and then she paints with the photographs for reference. Here's a nice picture of Sandra Taylor signing the piece. If you are able to see past Sandra in the picture, you can see the fully painted image featured on the cover of the Dragon Con program book in the background. Defiant1 - http://comics.vforums.co.uk edited by Defiant1 on 1/12/2017 edited by Defiant1 on 2/12/2020
1/12/2017 Topic: Defiant1's Random & Odd Comic Art Collection Defiant1	Stangehaven was a comic I liked a lot in the 90's. I liked the art. I liked the mystery. It was a comic that might explore how to properly make tea one minute to African mysticism the next. Strangehaven #1 I was overjoyed to get a page of art one year at Dragon Con. To my dismay, this page was drawn after the artist quit inking his own art by hand. I'm not sure how long it lasted, but he started hand drawing the art in blue pencils and then he scanned it into a computer and inked it in the computer. Regardless, I like the art and I was glad to get a page. I bought this from Chris Staros founder of Top Shelf Comics. Strangehaven #8 Page 12 Defiant1 - http://comics.vforums.co.uk edited by Defiant1 on 2/12/2020
1/12/2017 Topic: Defiant1's Random & Odd Comic Art Collection Defiant1	A retailer's wife liked page of Cavewoman: Rain art I owned. I told her she could have it because they were always doing me favors. She wanted me to have a page of art in return. We swapped. Art by Evan Dorkin Bill & Ted's Excellent Comic Book #1 Page#12 Defiant1 - http://comics.vforums.co.uk edited by Defiant1 on 2/12/2020
1/12/2017 Topic: Defiant1's Random & Odd Comic Art Collection Defiant1	DEFIANT Comics was to have a huge 4 issue crossover story with all their heroes involved. They shut down the company before the story was ever published. This is the only unpublished artwork that was ever colored. This is the watercolor art for Schism #4 Page 20. Color art by JayJay Jackson. Defiant1 - http://comics.vforums.co.uk edited by Defiant1 on 1/12/2017 edited by Defiant1 on 2/12/2020
1/12/2017 Topic: Defiant1's Random & Odd Comic Art Collection Defiant1	Most people go to conventions and have Neal Adams draw a sketch of Batman or the Joker. I had a different request that was a little more personal to me. I located a modeling photo of my girlfriend that I liked. I cropped it down to a head shot that I printed on 8.5" x 11" paper so that I could see if Neal Adams was willing to do a sketch of her rather than one of a superhero. With Neal's son as an advocate, he convinced Neal to do it. I'm pretty sure this is not a normal request. The photo I provided made it as easy as possible for Neal. It definitely resembles her from the photo I provided, but small touches of beauty I see in her weren't captured. In real life she's a 12 on a scale of 1 to 10. Her South American and Caribbean features don't shine through. She smiled when she saw it. I told her that she could have the original. She's an artist, but she didn't know who Neal is. She just wanted a copy. I still have the original. I was accused of being romantic by women online. Here is Neal drawing it. I almost had Bill Sienkiewicz do one from another photo. He was enthusiastic about it, but I was unable to allocate time to wait. Defiant1 - http://comics.vforums.co.uk edited by Defiant1 on 1/12/2017 edited by Defiant1 on 2/12/2020
1/12/2017 Topic: Defiant1's Random & Odd Comic Art Collection Defiant1	Here is a preliminary Wizard Magazine cover sketch by Mike Mayhew. Great artist, but I always get his name confused with that of the actor who played Chewbacca... same last name. Defiant1 - http://comics.vforums.co.uk edited by Defiant1 on 2/12/2020
1/13/2017 Topic: Have found U.K. comics in my collection Defiant1	The general consensus is that they are worth less, but there are fewer of them so I believe that over time they will be worth more. The changes in value depend upon what they are. I think maybe 20% of the value may be lost under the current mindset of collectors. I believe that they will eventually be worth double if people knew they existed and knew what to look for. One reason they are deemed less valuable is that people don't know what exists and when they get one, they think something is wrong with it or that it's a reprint.