Variant covers

[bholderman]

I've gotten back into collecting and reading comics after a 30 year drought, and one thing driving me nuts are the variant covers. I've managed to buy multiple issues of a few comics as I wasn't paying attention, or got lost in memory of what I had back at home.

And it doesn't seem there is one variant but in some cases, multiple variants.

That said, I do have to admit, I enjoyed some the of the Green Lantern variants out there.

But, my general question is, who are the variants geared towards, or perhaps, what is their purpose?

[GlennSimpson]

I've gotten back into collecting and reading comics after a 30 year drought, and one thing driving me nuts are the variant covers. I've managed to buy multiple issues of a few comics as I wasn't paying attention, or got lost in memory of what I had back at home.

And it doesn't seem there is one variant but in some cases, multiple variants.

That said, I do have to admit, I enjoyed some the of the Green Lantern variants out there.

But, my general question is, who are the variants geared towards, or perhaps, what is their purpose?

Well, first a bit of clarification. Up until about a year ago, most variant covers were rarer than regular covers. Retailers had to order like 25 or maybe even 100 of the regular cover to get the variant cover. So in those situations, the audience for the variant was generally collectors who wanted to purchase rare comics.

Then DC started doing the "freely-orderable" variants, where stores can get as many as they want without requirements. In some cases, the audience for those is still collectors, as the mentality that these are not rare hasn't necessarily trickled down completely. Or it could be argued they are still rare, because most people still get the regular cover. I don't have any statistics on that.

But they also appeal to people who just like the idea of the cover and would rather have that one than the regular one, or like it so much that they buy both versions.

Sales for series tend to go up when they do a variant, even when they are freely-orderable, so there is obviously someone out there buying a book they ordinarily wouldn't because of the variant cover. In some cases, that person might be me because Discount Comic Book Service will often do a bundle where you buy all of the freely-orderable variants and get a larger discount. Sometimes it's cheaper for me to do that than buy the individual issues. But there must also be other people who just like the idea of the variant cover and buy the book, even if it's not a title they normally buy.

[bholderman]

I appreciate it, thanks. And I cant't lie, I especially enjoyed this one:

http://www.flickeringmyth.com/wp-con...44-600x911.jpg

[C_Miller]

I appreciate it, thanks. And I cant't lie, I especially enjoyed this one:

http://www.flickeringmyth.com/wp-con...44-600x911.jpg

I have gotten a few variant covers during the new variant boom. I'm not a collector. I just get covers I like, if they're available for a good price. The comic book shop by me that just closed used to put collector prices on variant covers as soon as they came out, which, I always took issue with.

I did grab that Detective Comics cover. It's currently hanging up in my room. Not because I'm displaying a "rare" comic, but because I simply like it. I also got a few of the Darwyn Cooke covers.