Since I got back into comics in 2009, one thing that's constantly

They only exist to inflate sales and look pretty. They are a cancer on this industry and I implore you not to support them.

>>77843916
They're amusing and different?

>inb4 "Marvel panders to black people"

>>77843944
This. I don't think anyone actually truly likes buying & collecting variants.

>>77843988
I like variants when they're not incentive covers.

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>>77843916
They are for collectors, who will pay a premium for a comic they know has a low print run.

See this? This is the variant to a new Darth Vader mini series. If retailers ordered 5000 copies of the standard issue, they could order exactly one. There are 12 copies in total. One dozen. That's it. So far the copies that have hit ebay have sold for between $3000 and $4000. That's not what they were listed at, that's what they sold for.

Retailer Dennis Barger, who sold his copy for $4000, claims it cost $13,747.25 for him to order it. If he can flip the other 5000 copies, even at a slight loss, he should be able to make a profit. And even if he doesn't, the publicity he earned from having it might offset the costs.

>>77843916
90s variant covers were the best. there was chrome covers, hologram covers, shinny covers, nudey covers and other crazy material covers and superfold out covers

>>77844155

...Is that Bucky O'Hare?

>>77844209
It most definitely is man.

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>>77844209
>>77844237
Nah, he predates Bucky by a bit, though both are anthropomorphic green bunnies. His name is Jaxxon, he was a character created in the original Star Wars comic from Marvel in the 70's. Supposedly George Lucas absolutely hated him, and for a long time his existence was ignored. George isn't in the picture anymore so now he's popped up on some variant covers here and there as a joke. From Roy Thomas:

>George particularly disliked one of the Seven being a six-foot alien who resembled a green Bugs Bunny in space gear. In the latter instance, I had been “inspired” in part by seeing a Porky Piglooking alien in the Cantina sequence, either in the rough cut or on some production sketches at some early point. (I don’t remember if that alien appears in the finished movie, since that part of the film contained several 11th-hour inserts of other, more colorful aliens sitting in dark corners, and something may have been cut to make room for them.) I had figured my “green rabbit” Jaxxon wasn’t really much weirder than a Wookiee, but obviously George, as the creator of the Star Wars mythos, felt differently.

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>>77843916
Much like Funco "Babby's First Collectible" Pops, marketing knows that nerds are stupid, will eat that shit up, and spend more money than they should to get multiple variants of the exact same thing, just because they like the window dressing.

>>77844174
I'm aware, my initial thought was "didn't we leave variant covers behind when the bottom fell out of the market in the late 90's?"

>>77844174
examples of nudie covers?

>>77844377
Those weren't variants in the same way as today. In the 90's, the special foil-embossed-diecut-hologram covers were the standard covers, with retailers allowed to order a cheaper non-fancy cover if they wanted (but these always sold less than the special covers, and some retailers wouldn't even bother ordering them). Today's variants are limited printings aimed at collectors instead of the average comic buyer. That way the collectors still have something to aim for while most comic buyers can ignore them and pick up the standard covers.

>>77843916
I like looking at variants because I like art but I have never once paid for one.
That just seems absolutely retarded but I guess collectors do it

>>77844174
Chromium covers were the shit. I liked the uncolored side, with the shiny silver and all the outlines embossed. My favorite use of the gimmick was X-O Manowar #0.

Marvel is the only company to regularly exploit retailers with incentive covers.
DC at least lets retailers order however many of whatever variant they choose, give or take a few exceptions.

The only variant I've bought is a sketch issue of Uncanny X-Force. It was my favorite book at the time and wanted something special.

If you want a particular variant cover, chances are you can Google it. No sense in buying multiples of the same issue just to get a LEGO or Looney Tunes cover.

>>77844370
I have bought exactly one Funko figure ever and when Amethyst comes out that'll be two.

They're crap, but they're also a last resort for people who want merch of a show that refuses to license any.

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I get a lot of variants for DC stuff because they cost the same as the regular cover and they do a lot of good ones

>>77844459
Some of those shitty 90s bad girl comics had these. I know Hellina did and Double Impact did. I thought Dawn did but I can't find evidence.

Variants are the only real way to create scarcity in the comics market. They drive the myth that single issues can be instantly worth lots of money. It's all a scam.

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>>77846604
>cost the same as the regular cover
Yeah, I like fun.

My LCS was too small to stock the sexy constantine #1.

DC's monthly themed non-incentive variants are a neat way to get some different art in your collection. They have a bunch of different artists, and do some nice homages and stuff.

Marvel's ridiculously overdone incentivization shit is going to kill the industry this time for real.

>>77844485

So basically what DC did with the fancy covers in the Villain month with the holographic covers?