I started reading comics in the early 70s when you could find them at every grocery and drug store around. They were easy to find and fairly cheap. The environment is completely different today and I don’t think if I was 7-8 years old today, I would be interested in them. It takes a certain kind of person to be interested in them; in the 70s, they were a part of almost every kid’s childhood because they were so ubiquitous; times are definitely different now.

@RonSM2112

Жыл бұрын

Yep......guessing we are about the same age, and I totally agree with this. We all started as simple "readers" back then, not "collectors." With $1.00, you could walk home with four comics, and pcik what you wanted from month to month. It wasn't until I'd been reading for several years that I discovered the back issue store, and I'd say that was when I became a "collector."

@reprintranch

Жыл бұрын

Yeah, I think of my earliest years as being a comic book “accumulator” because I purchased only new off-the-rack comics and only obtained back issues if someone gave me one or I happened upon something interest at a yard sale. This was in the mid-60s to early ‘70s.

@GerarddeSouza-yt3fc

11 ай бұрын

We didn't have home video; we didn't have streaming; we didn't have every superhero realized on film, we collected them to have our entertainment on demand.

I got to that "Buy What you Like" phase fast, and I'm not mad about it. It didn't take long to make it clear those "Top 10" lists and such are mostly hype and nothing else.

@DanSchawbel

Жыл бұрын

I got there in 1.5 years lol

@legionofpaper

Жыл бұрын

100% agree! The listings are a "nice to know", but definitely not something you should dwell on.

This video is a work of art.

Great lesson prof Swag. Since I am currently in the dealer phase of your evolutionary progression, I am now scared shitless of becoming a businessman!

Well done swags. U earned my subscribe this vid

@Swagglehaus

Жыл бұрын

Woot! Appreciate it 🙏

Thank you again Mickey. As always, great presentation and humor. Your ability to quantify things and explain it is amazing.

Thanks man,that was really great and funny❤❤❤❤❤ Very informative!!!

Other than the ebay example (because we know after fees, that 25 bucks is more like $17)... this is one of the best videos about collecting comics out there

Great Video Swag !!! You hit the nail on the head . I can completely relate to this video .

Wow, this was very insightful bro! I found myself being described in those early phases. 😀

Hilarious, informative, and scary accurate 😂 You mapped out my entire journey. I've made it to the buy what you like seller phase. Considering my first name is Chad, I will save myself and my collecting love and stay in this phase forever

Just wow, this is just mind blowing. Felt like a Nolan movie.

"... sit in your basement, next to a water pipe ..." - Oh my gosh! That's hilarious! Been watching his channel for several months now but only JUST noticed the pipe the other day! LOL Great vid, as always! It's taken me 30 years to reach the Trader phase (sold my first book on Ebay earlier this year).

Single greatest Comic Book Video ever posted! I'm 53,I have been a hard core Comic collector for 40 years,I use to be a budding artist,and in fact was Gotham City Comics main artist for 2 years,I penciled many superheros for free at the 1990 Chicago Comicon and got into a war with unnamed Marvel artists because was doing it for free and of corse a dad with little kids doesn't care who draws it,but a price of free? Well now you have my ear!!! Anyways,bro,your channel is the most honest and true look at Comics I have ever seen!!! EXCELLENT!!!!!!❤❤❤❤

another awesomely funny vid , Swagg . i was laughing all the way thru . that's why i've subscribed to your channel !!!

I’m nominating this for best KZread video of all time. Loved it! I’m at the key collector phase and trying to decide if I want to move to trader. Thanks Swag!

Great presentation. Finally subscribed after this video - only because I thought I had already done so.

Being the 2nd comment Im leaving I just wanted to say the I will very likely be re-watching this again and again in slower motion. Even if just to pro-long the message extending it to current cinema lengths. So, so, so good. I would love to see more vids with this approach. Thanks for your time and prep. Beautiful execution.

You nailed it.

@Swagglehaus

Жыл бұрын

Hehe thx!

Swaggggggg You listened, Thanks for doing this... Fantastic thanks for this, your well informed and very entertaining

Great vid brother 🔥

Hey, great video👍🏽 you really put things into perspective for me. I’m currently in my return phase, I so into the hobby growing up in the 90’s (like most kids were back then) I kinda lost my passion for it once I started high school. I am in my early 40’s and just recently got back into collecting again. At the moment I am buying what I like, mostly issues I remember having back in the day. But being away for so long, it’s a very steep learning curve trying to know all the new era of comics. Just finished reading “King In Black”series. Venom was and is my favorite character, and I hope Knull makes his way to the MCU. And one more thing… I just watched your top 50 video and I just want to say, you have an amazing collection, and I was humbled… I like how you only have one slab, just shows your character💯👌🏽 you inspire me to want to just collect, not for what it’s worth (dollar wise) but what the comic means to me. Take care, and I look forward to your future projects.

Your deep dive videos are always so entertaining. Haha

Fantastic video, please make this a monthly sketch

Cool thanks!

Pffftt...there's a 1 step evolution from noob to comic book god. Buy yourself a pallet or 2 of Shadowhawk #1 and wait for it to go To The Moon, Alice!

Excellent. TV Quality information.

Haha…I feel like such a cliche! Great video again. I’m still in that buy what you like phase but have the hope of just keeping it a fun hobby and upgrading the keys I have. Thanks again for all of the work….and you comic. Great issue one start

Great stuff Swag! I know very much tongue in cheek video but you did miss an important branch. The completionist / Non seller sometimes can be just the one though usually both traits. The endgame being a massive hoarder of all sorts of stuff and leaving others to sort it out after they shake off this mortal coil. There are quite a few who fall into this category and less who manage to change their fate.

Bath water, why didn’t I think of that! This vid was not only eye opening, but it was also entertaining and HILARIOUS! Subscribed!

your best video yet

Very good, I enjoyed that. Key collector phase is king..

Haven't been into comics since the 80s (Savage Sword of Conan) but seriously thinking about getting back in. Not for money, not to flip comics, but simply because I miss the art and stories. I appreciate this video and subscribed.

Nailed it! After getting back into the hobby in early 2022, I quickly went through all those early phases and ended up in the collect what you like, and buy/sell phase. Made a lot of mistakes in those first 6 months back in, that Spec FOMO really bit me!

Absolutely brilliant! I've done all of this. I did find a narrow escape clause. I'm currently an eBay seller of 25 years experience, but have just begun allowing myself to collect books I like again without preconditions. It's fun again.

This was fantastic lol I literally was going hey this sounds familiar 😂😂😂

Great video and spot on commentary!!! Bottom line, to reside in the "buy what you like" window, we require others to churn out to feed the activity on either end of the evolution. Make sure you make friends along your collecting journey. You never know when opportunities may come!!!!

This has been spot on quite shocking halfway through

I had to rewind on the Comic Book Business Man descriptor ... superb (however ... I missed 3-4 phases to be a Fraz and Bronze Age horror high grade guy) ... love your work muh'man

Great video!! Took me 30 years to finally start selling books. I guess I’m halfway through the evolution.

Funny video and crazy accurate! I'm still in buy-what-you-like but do a lot of selling and dealing to feed that. Not jaded ... yet! What's funny is I know guys that are totally into high-grade bronze DC horror. That was a lol moment!

Well done, sir.

definitely in the deep dive / key collector phase now - bought my dad a chunk of the frank miller run for his bday and im looking out for doom covers, oh and spider-boy

@a3marketing991

Жыл бұрын

I love Frank Miller's cover and first Marvel work with John Carter Warlord of Mars #18. Definitely a huge Frank Miller key.

It’s funny nearly spot on. I entered into the buy what you like but at times found my self in the phases before that

Fantastic video. So sad but true.

More of this please and thank you

Hilarious and informative! I'm entering the later stages, looking into 'bath water' - dang it!

Fantastic presentation,. Luckily I'm still in the key collector window, I'll have to make sure I don't take the next step though. Thanks for the warning.

@Swagglehaus

Жыл бұрын

Glad you enjoyed it!

Fun stuff Swagg! NGL though giving off some slight Dr Gene Scott vibes with that board🙃

It’s like you were inside my head, everything was spot on haha

This video literally described me through out my years of collecting, but I’m still in the key collector phase

Nice! Im buying what i like at the moment and just scored The Walking Dead Compendiums 1-4 for £35 ($44.49 USD) for all 4. Great Video

Great how as usual.

That hit hard

well done sir

I peered into the depths of the abyss (collecting journey) and reverted back to the evaluation phase. I feel comfortable here. I might even venture into writing my own stories (comics 😅).

Loved your presentation. You forgot one important phase, that is the all important Marriage Phase. In my case, I was a serious collector growing up in the sixties owning most silver age Marvel books except a couple of dozen books. I continued collecting until such time I got married and you guess it, needed money. So I sold off the vast majority and lost focus on the hobby. It wasn't until I retired that I decided to reenter the hobby.

@robertt9342

Жыл бұрын

Weirdly enough for me, after I got married my wife got me back into comics.

@MetalBum

Жыл бұрын

Oof

Loving my phase 😎

Hey man I saw you popping around claim sales on the Gram tonight, hope you picked up some crispy Darkhawks or other lesser keys!

Slow clap sir, nicely done.

Damn swag . You got us scared lol . I've been trying to only buy what I love but like you said the fomo has people trying to buy everything. It's just not sustainable. I had to learn the hardway. Gotta keep my series under 20 . Lots of people when they first start go crazy . Lol . Thanks great video.

Great Video!

@Swagglehaus

10 ай бұрын

Thanks!

Swagglehaus’ secret power = making constantly interesting, funny content!!!!!

im a paper smeller too

The buy what you like phase is golden I buy a book it goes up like crazy I can sell it if it drops I am happy to keep it for 30 years.

😂 I am a unicorn!!!! This video made me laugh. I can see it all. Is it possible to be all of those things? I have 10k books I almost sold a few weeks ago. This is only a small portion of my collection and did not have a key or high value books. I would have still kept all my original art, cards, toys and tens of thousands of books. Oh well I think you should add the Unicorn hoarders that still exist! We buy, keep, chase and read all of our books!

Well done! That’s depressing Af but very true…

I paused at 24:06 and Google searched "Bath Water," thinking I might have heard it wrong. But it turns out there is such a "collectible" item... Well, I definitely learned something new today.

Good job swag

Started collecting DC and shortly after, Marvel. in 1960 (When American comics began being regularly appearing in the U.K). I was 8 at the time and the Silver Age was ongoing but still early enough to catch all the Green Lanterns and JLAs etc. Marvel universe began a couple of years later and I had every one of the keys as they came out (From FF 1). I'm in my 70s now and been through the many phases - selling big collections, buying again, becoming a dealer, totally losing interest then deciding to build a set of reprint books containing all that great 60s stuff. Now I have a pretty extensive wall of Omnibus volumes etc. Trouble is I'm now in my seventies (Not been 8 for almost 64 years). Bit feeble now too. Many of my books are too heavy and cumbersome to comfortably read without a lectern to hold them in. THAT'S comic book evolution.

Prefect example of the seller making sacrifices - Chuck with Mile High Comics. He had all those keys and sold them to fund a bigger business. You can't have any emotional attachment to comics at that phase.

@robertt9342

Жыл бұрын

Yet, he loves comics and his attachment has led to him jacking up prices to slow sales so he can hold onto them longer. He’s always been a dealer though.

I didn't realize I was so early in the progression. I recently got back into comic collecting after about a 30 year break. It has been fun (and expensive) trying to catch up on the approximately 1.3 million X-Men related titles and volumes. I'm now almost to the stage where I stop buying $3 bulk items to complete collections and start buying expensive older stuff like 1970s X-Men issues, or the first couple of issues of Ghost Rider or Luke Cage or Secret Wars #8. So far, the most I have spent on a single comic book is $100, for a very minty copy of John Byrne's Next Men #21. Sometime before I die I would like to have every issue of X-Men / Uncanny X-Men (1963). I'm only about 130 issues shy of that goal at the moment, but they are not the $3 issues. I have a hard time imagining myself actually trading or selling any of my comics, so I may end up stuck in my current phase.

Ryan with his water pipes and Excel sheets 😂

I laughed and almost cried at the @22:11 mark....i am that person.

Genius

I’ve been buying wolverine every month since 1988. I have all of his monthly issues up to date of this comment. Been happy for a long while

At what point do the simp covers get introduced?

Did Mickey leave out the stage where you get whatnot addicted and fill two short boxes with independent comics that don’t hold their value and have to get a separate bank account to maintain domestic bliss?

Never got into the trader, seller, dealer, businessman. Just stayed a hoarder with boxes and boxes, Running out of room and just giving up.

All I hear is spider-boy is going to the Moon BUY! BUY! BUY!

Great video… maybe instead of “key collector” use “focused collector”. I like ur chart. I do a lot of this stuff for work in the tech industry.

Swag, you forgot to include the 15% ebay takes off for each sell.😢

The final phase you left off is the dark hawk double cover collector

this video was sent to me and I've always purchased what i love to read i started in 1992 with batman thor green lantern spiderman jl avengers spawn darkness and many more if i'm lucky like i have been many times to get a possible key or hot book off the ones i love to read and buy cool, and I started buying old comics like silver age and bronze age since 2008 obviously of super hero books i like and love to read like Batman and Thor I have over 25 long boxes and really cool room to show them off have I thought of selling them ? NO I will never sell them or trade them (unless I get doubles) because they remind me of a better time and plus it's my favorite form of entertainment. If I die and don't get rid of them I will def leave a will to get donated to various comic shops or send them to exhibits because these books are art and fun to read. I don't like youtubers that are always telling you what to buy or what's hot in prices it defeats the purpose of a collection or the support of comic books because in reality they are just investors and don't collect for the love of comic books or art, and that's fine. But these youtubers make it really difficult for kids to get into comics because if they can't convince their parents to buy them 3.99 tcg pokemon magic whatever if they see how these youtubers skyrocket some of the prices they will think "it's too expensive I will find something cheaper"

You want to learn more about foreigns, its easy to learn but hard [or expensive] to find

Lol this is amazing. Be a CHAD

Looks like The Black Crowes Amorica

My comicshop has original Darkwing cover art for an affordable price

Pretty good video however I've only sold 1 book in my life

I am sure it seemed brilliant when you first thought of it. I gave it a like because you're willing to risk failure to produce original content. That's all I ever wanted.

@saintsataniko2116

Жыл бұрын

"Original content" is not something this guy know how to produce.

@holyharlot5222

Жыл бұрын

@@saintsataniko2116 issatso? anyone else doing this or compiling market indexes?

You forgot to add my phase witch i believe is right before the KEY COLLECTOR phase. I like to call the JUNK COLLECTOR phase.

I also learned, stay in the V!!! In the V is where you will be happy!!!lmao

This really made me laugh..sadly, this actually happens to a lot of collectors..

lol Frazetta covers 😅

Bath water...BOOM!!

I’m a key collector on the verge of becoming a trader. 😉

Collected in the 90s Sweet Spider-Man’s death of Superman’s. Then moved on to collecting sports cards.Covid hit mad a killing selling sports cards. I buy graded keys and sigs Stan Lee Todd McFarland. I chase and hunt grails for my PC at a great price only. No idea what place I’m in collecting.

Fantastic video. Sold on eBay for 20yrs. Tough to collect when you can flip and pay for daycare with your side hustle.

As someone who has already experienced the "everything is shit" phase in other trades and hobbies, I really hope I don't eventually get there with comics too! 😂

"Double X Chromosome To the Moon Book" now that's the book to get!