The moment I stopped rolling my eyes at variant covers

I always thought variant covers were just a way for comic shops to squeeze extra money out of collectors. But last year at a local convention in Portland, I saw a Neal Adams variant for a Batman issue I'd been hunting for 6 months. The detail on the cover was incredible, totally different from the regular edition I already had. I ended up paying $25 for it, and now I get why people chase these things. Anyone else come around on a comic trend they used to dismiss?

3 comments

3 Comments

jessej231mo ago

Yeah I FEEL this one hard. "I always thought variant covers were just a way for comic shops to squeeze extra money out of collectors" - that was ME exactly for like five years. I was SO smug about it too, telling my friends they were wasting their money on fancy cardboard. Then I found this David Finch variant for a Daredevil run and I literally stood there in the shop for ten minutes trying to decide if I was a hypocrite or not. I bought it AND the regular issue that day, so I guess the joke's on me. Now my poor wallet just sits there crying every time a new variant drops.

sean8541mo ago

Step one is accepting you're a collector and not a reader on those books. I started just budgeting $15 a week specifically for variants so I don't feel guilty when I grab one. Keeps the wallet from crying too loud.

emery2901mo ago

$15 a week just for variants huh, so that's the secret to converting to the dark side without going bankrupt.