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Can we talk about how many comic fans collect but never actually read?
I found a stat last month from a Diamond Distributor report that said around 40% of collectors never open their bags. It surprised me because I always thought people bought books to read them, not just to sit in a box. I remember talking to a guy at a local shop in Portland who admitted he had 2,000 issues sealed since 2015. Makes me wonder how many of us are really here for the stories versus just the hunt.
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jason5625d ago
Man, that 40% stat is wild but honestly it makes me think of something else entirely. The real hidden factor here is the speculator market. I've seen dudes drop serious cash on variant covers and first appearances purely as an investment, like they're flipping trading cards or sneakers. They buy the book knowing the story might be garbage, they just want that graded 9.8 slab to sell in five years. Wonder how many of those sealed boxes are full of books nobody ever planned to open from day one?
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wyattbennett5d ago
Guilty as charged, I bought a few sealed boxes thinking I was some kind of investing genius. They're still sitting in my closet under a pile of old coats. The worst part is I don't even like most of the covers I bought, I just saw the low print run number and my brain short-circuited. Now I've got a stack of slabs worth maybe half what I paid, and not a single good comic to actually read. Feels real smart when you realize you could have just bought a nice original piece of art for the same money.
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