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Hot take: First appearances don't matter as much as people say
I used to chase first appearances hard. Spent $80 on a random issue #1 from 1993 at a con in Portland. Thing is worth maybe $5 now. The real key is finding key story moments or iconic covers that actually hold value over time. Anyone else stop caring about number ones and focus on creative runs instead?
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hollyl4522d ago
@stella_lane I gotta disagree with the chaotic shelf thing being a downside. That's actually the fun part of collecting, having a pile of weird issues that mean something to you instead of just number ones. And @victor_jones99 McKean covers are definitely the exception that proves the rule, those things hold up. But I think first appearances still matter more than people give them credit for, you just gotta be smart about which ones you chase. The first appearance of a D-list villain in a 90s book is a trap, sure, but the first appearance of somebody like Kamala Khan or Miles Morales has real staying power if you buy at the right price. So I still look for key number ones, I just don't pay stupid money for random ones anymore.
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stella_lane22d ago
$80 on a random issue #1 from 1993... I once paid $50 for a blank cover variant thinking it'd be the next big thing. Now it's sitting in a long box with my regret and a half-eaten bag of chips. I definitely gave up chasing number ones after I realized my best "investment" was just a cool Dave McKean cover that I actually liked. These days I just grab whatever run has Frank Quietly or Tom King on it, even if it's issue #37 of something nobody's heard of. My wallet's happier, though my shelf looks like a chaotic mess.
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