I sold 3 copies of ROTLD #1 yesterday… still some demand but prices are dropping fast.
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Mark Spears making money is not the same as whoring out. Its a little harsh. Whoring out would be him letting Keenspot 2nd and 3rd printing the hell out of those Monsters #1 covers. You don’t think Keenspot would have jumped all over that or asked him to do just that? IMO, he has firmly kept the collectors in mind while making money for him and his. He will over saturate, that will happen, but if he keeps it up I’m still a fan and I think you trust him to not sell out and ruin the fair value of his previous work just to make a couple more bucks. I think he has proven that already, IMO he deserves a little more respect. I wish more creators would do the same, or publishers (yes I’m looking at you Marvel), instead of grinding out every last dollar and not understanding the relationship between aftermarket and future market.
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I heard his words during that lengthy youtube interview.
Was very encouraged and had warmth on the things he said related to American Mythology.
But just like anything else, I put very little into what is said and, instead, observe actions.
Actions tell the tale; not words.
And I’m not liking what I’m seeing lately.
And I don’t feel it matches his words.
I’m still watching and observing, but it’s going down the wrong path
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Not sure about his other covers and art, but if his Monsters line gets any kind of film/TV production in the future demand will triple. Of course that is a what if at this point or maybe just wishful thinking, but I am sure with all the success it has been having he and his product are on some Hollywood radars. Honestly, I would enjoy it going live action.
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If you’re spec’ing on that, it’s the Universal Monsters series done over at Skybound that has promise. Not this Keenspot title.
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Disagree mostly. What do you mean about the printing thing? We are getting multiple later prints each issue. Reused artwork in different color varieties. There are people who FOC’ed that overpriced metal Jaws cover just a couple of weeks ago and now it’s being pushed out via exclusive trash shops. How is that not the pinnacle of whoring out?
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Universal wouldn’t be interested in Mark spears version anyway since theirs have been around for generations. Others out there might. I haven’t heard anything but wouldn’t be surprised if it takes a step toward in the future. So far, I have enjoyed what Spears has put out, so I wouldn’t complain. It would make a good Max series or Netflix series. I also wouldn’t mind Universal/NBC do more live action productions with their classic Monsters.
I think the Universal comic titles being put out by Skybound are part of the development process for future productions. They put heavy hitters on those titles and it’s on Kirkman’s imprint.
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I agree. It is a good, cheaper way to send out feelers on what might gain some traction in the public. Much less expensive than doing a pilot or regional or even country wide focus groups.
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I wouldn’t spec on Monsters. I mean “Vlad” is Bela Lugosi, literally.
Just collect it for the art and story. It’s a cool title.
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I was referring to the most popular artwork didn’t get reissued as a 2nd or 3rd or 4th print, until they can’t even give away the copies. Each with a slight difference, like color tint, or different background colour, etc. like Marvel will do for anything that even has hint of collectible value. For the most part, I think the 601 homage is the exception, each printing and each exclusive was original artwork.
To me, that is an artist making money at his craft, not whoring. 3/4 of a billion dollars for anyone to play baseball is too much money, but do I blame Shohei Ohtani for taking the money? Nope. I don’t blame Mark Spears for selling his artwork. To me, it is only selling out or whoring, or whatever you want to call it when you maximize your profits with the least amount of effort without a care in the world for what it does to the hobby. As an example, if you saw a Bridezilla 2nd print with the same artwork but a blue background, and a 3rd print with a red background, and a 4th print with a checkerboard background.
As far as I can tell, he is taking care to make sure to keep the print runs low, and to minimize the reusing of the same artwork. As I said, all things I wish every artist/publisher would consider a little closely.
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You’re entirely describing the $99 Jaws metal being offered for preorder and then announcing the same cover as an exclusive 1-2 weeks later.
People can listen to what he says and take him for his word, but like what was already mentioned, the actual actions are all that matters. Guy has saturated the market and is now pulling the rug out from under his collectors who threw away money on a $99 book.
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Spears should go get that money. I can’t imagine they are getting rich off this stuff. Grab the cash while it’s there. And, some of these decisions may be made by the publishers, not the artist.
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According to Mark (from the Youtube interview) he dictates what publishers can and can’t do with his art.
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He can do what he wants.
Make as much money as he wants
Create printings with 100 different colors without changing the art
Good for him. Make as much as he can while the iron is hot. He doesn’t need to take care of the long term hobby best interest.
All this is fine.
What is not fine, is promoting himself with an aura of something different. It’s the old “I say this, but do that”. It’s the hypocrisy that always has and always will drive me to frustration and other non-savory emotions.
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Can you guys pls point me to where he said any artwork will not be reused in general?
The only thing was able to find that he has publicly stated was that for his most recent Kickstarter for Monster and the Wolf, that the Kickstarter covers would not be reused in any retail release to keep them exclusive.
“I just wanted to let everyone know and I will put this on the story section as well, that all covers used in the kickstarter will be retired after the kickstarter. Meaning that they will never be used as covers for Keenspot books or exclusives. I had a few people ask and I wanted to make sure everyone knows. I think this makes the kickstarter rewards a little more limited.” https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/spearsart/mark-spears-monsters-the-monster-and-the-wolf-comic-series/posts/4267269
lets see as more exclusives get release the demand for the title will go down
should i remind you of the following titles
strange acd
immortal hulk
miles morales to some extent
sw high republic
venom (cates ) also to some extend
there are a few other titles that are long forgotten
when the exclusive stores get involved they ruin the demand on the monthly title
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I don’t see how any Spears fanboy can defend putting a $100 book out for preorder and then revealing AFTER that it’s an exclusive cover. That’s high on the scumbag mountain of things to do to collectors.
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