Graded 9.8 or multiple NM raw copies?

Since you are throwing in pressing for a brand new book, i think 75% success rate is doable.

I think there is a case to be made for both approaches. I’m going to monitor 9.8 ebay auctions in hopes of getting anything below $80.

I’m also going to keep an eye out for listings to buy multiple NM raw copies from the same seller at the same time as close to $20 a book as possible. To reduce paying for shipping on multiple raw copies from different sellers. Ideally with clear pics of the books.

Then I’m gonna DM Cates on Instagram and ask him if he’s keeping Codex around

Good luck with that… I’m sure he’ll spill all his secrets with you… :wink:

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What he said

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outcast comics has the venom 25 2nd print for $20 bucks.

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Agreed. The best would be the V#27 double cover, the V#25 2nd print and B&W 1:25 is also a good one aside from the cover A, Stegman variant and V#25 2nd PTG. The error is going for a lot now.

Venom #25 2nd PTG CGC 9.8 just auctioned for $81. Not bad for a new book 2nd ptg. That was about what Punchline’s cameo was going for during the same time frame.

Finally, like you said, hopefully Cates keeps Codex relevant. Some people already are placing their bets on his demise at the end of the arc, lol.

V25+27 Cover A’s are still really relatively cheap too and are really a small risk versus cost.

It’s a thick oversized book with a dark cover. 9.8s raw are going to be harder to come by. If 9.8 is what you want, buy one done not risking buying Raws.

My one issue with investing too much in Venom 25 2nd is that if Codex does become a major thing, we don’t know what book the market will get behind as THE book.

Venom 25 2nd
Venom 25 3rd 1:25
Venom 27 first full
Venom 27 error cover
Venom 27 3rd print

There’s a lot of candidates. So in those general instances where there isn’t a clear book, I go raw and spread out my money.

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This is actually the virgin exclusive variant of venom 25 2nd print. I’m trying to limit my exclusives(although I do have a couple copies of this as well). TY for sharing though

I’ve been picking up Venom 27 A covers whenever I see them. My main local shop frowns on customers bringing a stack of the same book to the counter. Or should I say certain employees have explicitly told me I can’t do it lol.

So I have literally been picking up 2 copies of Venom 27 cover A every time I go to this shop which is once a week. Slowly amassing my Venom 27s as they are still cover price.

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I suggest multiple raws it’s still early since the book came out and most will be 9.8 contenders. It will cost $12-$60 each to have them graded on your own depending on which grading company you choose and how quick a turnaround time you want.

There’s a lot of different Venom #27 errors the different double covers on the 1:100, same double covers on the cover A, then there is horrible cut comics like it’s early 80s basketball cards. I’ve seen one venom 27 reg cover and 3 of the Jonboy exclusives cut at a angle or missing 1/3 the book from the cut.

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I think the Venom 27 error cover will always price highest due to scarcity and being first full appearance. And the Venom 25 3rd print 1:25 will also price higher than the Venom 25 2nd print because it’s simply the more scarce version of the exact same book.

However I think after those two premium books, the Venom 25 2nd print will be the consensus most popular first appearance Codex book. Followed by Venom 27 cover A.

With that said, at one time I briefly thought Dylan Brock’s best book would be Venom 7 the hidden tongue variant OVER Venom 9. Which in retrospect was just wrong bc it was only a cameo with nothing Dylan on the cover. The main reason being that there was a 2 week period in which that hidden tongue variant was super hot. Regardless I picked up a bunch Venom 7 and 9 so it didn’t matter.

I also believed Hell Arisen 3 was definitely going to stay above Batman 89 in price. Which for the most part it has however there have been weeks where Batman 89 had higher average sales. Again, I picked up a bunch of both so happy either way

Dlyan’s best book is #7 its just a store variant so no one wants to talk about it. I think Venom #27 3rd print could be the real winner here no incentive variant to push up 3rd print numbers about a 12hr window from art being released to foc closing, we will see how it pans out here soon.

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And yet you are using the same logic picking the cameo (Venom 25) again…

I’m not saying you are right or wrong, just pointing out the conflict there.

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Someone here taught me this and it usually works
Cameo with cover > Full with cover
Cameo no cover < Full with no cover
Cameo later print with cover < Full with cover
Cameo later print with cover> Cameo and Full with no cover.
No one likes bubble portraits as first covers either like Venom’s 1st cover

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Yes but Dylan Brock isn’t on the cover of Venom 7, just the cameo. Venom 25 2nd print has the Codex cameo PLUS first cover appearance. Again, time will tell but yeah I do lean Venom 25 2nd print, at least for now. Totally acknowledging that is far far from in stone.

This is the variant with cover art from the interior where Codex is in front of the cross right? This really does get ridiculous. Calling these things ‘first appearance’ doesn’t even make sense anymore with an issue like that but I can totally see the logic for how this could be it.

It not a first appearance it’s a reprint of a first full but it makes a damn good cover. When I first saw the panel in the comic I was like that will make a nice cover if they use it.

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There’s no real rhyme or reason. There’s plenty of examples that don’t fit.

Look at most recent Example Black Winter.

The first full no cover goes for 12x cover, yet the later print cameo with cover and the full with cover barely going 2x cover.

Kamala Khan also doesn’t fit your chart.

It’s really tough to predict these days as there are so many more factors then historical examples. Today we have significantly more people buying later prints, many more store variants, and also now incentives on even later printings.

Venom 25 2nd will always get hurt by the 25 3rd 1:25. It’s the same cover and rarer. So any positive you can say about the 2nd, the 3rd 1:25 also has same positives plus the lower print run and incentive bump. It’s the same cover.

That’s a main reason I think why predicting what book the market gets behind on Codex is complicated. Buy them all and don’t get too heavily invested in one.

Captain Marvel #14 for Kamala’s first cameo make sense as being valuable probably due to the fact it’s got limited supply, very little available and there’s demand from Ms Marvel fans that seek out her firsts.

So when it all comes down to which one wins out, it’s just a simple… supply vs demand vs availability… they all play their part and role when it determines the overall value but the foundation for any thing to be valuable all falls back to demand. Without demand, supply and availability are moot.

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