San Diego Retailer Wrap Up – Dave from www.comicmysterybox.com

Hey CHUniverse, it’s Dave with ComicMysteryBox.com. I’m not here to promote my site, but Anthony asked me to give a sales report of some of the hot spec books I sold at SDCC last week (also known as C.C.I.).   In addition to my CMB site, I make a living selling comics at most of the huge comic cons all over the USA since 1986. If you have gone to a huge con, you have probably seen me there and maybe even bought comics from me. Anyway, before I get into my list of some of the hot titles being snatched up at SDCC, just a few comments about the con itself. Despite all the negativity you hear about SDCC, Blind Adam summed it up best in his most recent CHU posting – ” I love the way SDCC is now and I never want it to change. SDCC is still about comic books and if you can’t find comic books at the current SDCC then you’re not trying. San Diego Comic Con is a wonderful kind of magic.” 
There is definitely a certain magic about going to a huge comic con and San Diego has been, and always will be, the King of Cons. Of all the cons I’ve been to, both as a fan and a dealer, San Diego is the best and NYCC is second best (which is a huge compliment to NYCC, actually. I loved it the one time I went in 2015.)
I’ve been a dealer at SDCC almost every year since 1988 and I always sell more comics there BY FAR than any other show. Yes, if you want to go as a fan it’s really hard to get tickets, and all the hotels within 40 miles jack up their rates way too high. But if you love comic cons, and you’ve never been to SDCC, it should be on your bucket list. The trick to getting a hotel cheap is to book it a year in advance on Priceline. I booked a nice Best Western in El Cajon, 16 miles from downtown SD for $50 a night (plus tax) for the whole week. As to how to get tickets, just google “How to get comic con tickets” and you might get some tips.
 
Here’s a quick list of some of the hot spec books I was selling large amounts of, and yes, they were selling fast at these prices…
All 4 parts of “The Button”, Batman and Flash lenticular covers – $12 each
Dark Days The Forge – $7
Batman #24 – $15
Darth Vader #3 (2015, first Aphra) – $15
Justice League Power Rangers #1 (all covers) – $8 each
Gwenpool #1 Skottie Young variant – $12
Wonder Woman Rebirth #1 Artgerm variant – $15
All New Wolverine #1 (regular cover) – $15
Old Man Logan #1 (current series, regular cover) – $15
X-Men Gold #1 – $15
God Country #1 – $39
Spiderman Deadpool #1 Hip Hop variant – $18
Moon Knight #1 Hip Hop variant – $15
Old Man Logan #1 Hip Hop variant – $15
Black Panther #1 Hip Hop variant – $15
Black Panther #1 regular cover – $12
All New Wolverine #18 Venomized variant – $12
Deadpool #28 venomized variant – $12
Gwenpool #13 Venomized variant – $10
Captain Marvel #3 Venomized variant – $10
Venom #151 Venomized Mary Jane variant – $7
Defenders #1 (new series) – $6
Darth Vader #1 (new series) Noto cover – $10, Granov cover – $15, action figure cover – $8
Flash Rebirth #1 (both covers) – $15 each
DC Rebirth one-shot – $10
Darth Maul #1 – $8
Moon Knight #1 (current series) – $10
Secret Empire #0 – $6
Older books:
Werewolf By Night #32 (first Moon Knight) fine condition – $550
Iron Man #2 very fine – $300
Well, that’s just a taste, I could go on and on but those were some strong sellers that come to mind right now. By far the most requested book, amazingly enough, was the Batman/Elmer Fudd one shot (and I didn’t even have one with me to sell). It seemed like someone asked for that book at least once an hour every day. I’m guessing no dealers had them. The next most requested book was Dark Nights Metal #1. I had to tell everyone the book doesn’t come out until mid-August. But when lots of people are asking for a book a month in advance of its release, it usually turns out to be a super-hot book. Yes, there will be tons of copies printed but my gut is telling me demand for Dark Nights Metal will be off the charts (and my gut is usually right).
So that’s my SDCC report. If anyone has any questions about the con, write them down below and I’ll stop back in a little while and answer them. Thanks for reading!