Reading the Tea Bags

This week Chris and Walt dust off the old crystal balls, break out the tea bags and try to look ahead to see what the year 2023 will bring to the comic book collecting hobby.

Please let us know what you thought of the show. Leave a comment in the comments field provided below; all we ask is that you keep things civil.

So, what will 2023 bring to the hobby?

Walter Durajlija
Walter Durajlija

Walter Durajlija is an Overstreet Advisor and Shuster Award winner. He owns Big B Comics in Hamilton Ontario.

Articles: 1826

9 Comments

  1. Glad you finally got a taste of Te Bheag, but “a little rough around the edges?!” Try another sip! And, by the way, “unchilfiltered” just means that it is not chilfiltered like many wines and spirits, thus “preserving and accentuating the flavours often stripped away when wines or spirits are over filtered.” It is actually a blend of 8-11-year-old malts form Islay, Highland and Speyside, with “the richness of toffee and delicate peaty tones with a long warm finish.” There is nothing in the tasting notes to indicate that it might be “a little rough around the edges.” I think maybe you guys have spent far too much time drinking that sissy-sweet Irish plonk. I can mock the Irish because I have Irish blood myself. Actually, I have Irish, Scottish (Oy loves ta drink…buh ah hates ta pay fer it!) and English blood…with a Welsh name (Melvyn)!

    Anyroad, I’m sure “The LIttle Lady” will grow on you! Slainte!

  2. Waaay by the way…apart from that singsong cadence of Dylan Thomas, if it is that you may have an ear to hear great Welsh accents, you need listen no further my friends than the great Richard Burton and Anthony Hopkins.

    And…I hope you’re right about the real collectors again outnumbering the investors. Comics were, after all, written to be read! Thought I should slip in some comic book related content!

  3. On Insta & FB I can already feel the absence of the covic comic converts (CCCs)…they seem to be leaving the hobby but haven’t sold their books yet, I’m not seeing any fire sales! Perhaps they are waiting for a bounce…my gut feel says prices will continue to fall for at least 6 more months and they will start to release their collections onto the market, increasing supply and further reducing prices.

    I agree with Walt, Chris and Mel…I can see the spec/FOMO dispersing and the hobby returning to a more balance with readers getting their opportunity to enjoy once again!

    Live Frog may have abandoned us just 6 months to early…or….he may return by end of year!

  4. Don’t you worry !- I have not abandoned you !! I am still here, lurking in the shadows….watching your every move……!!!

    Yep, I got cheesed off with the hobby. I was tired of wasting endless hours bidding on books & being less successful at every auction. With every weekly auction [ on ebay, with comics4less & others ] I would spend entire afternoons & evenings winning fewer & fewer books & paying too much for the stuff that I did win. It just became too much & I needed to take a break from this. Being an addict, it is truly hard to stop, but I have managed to keep away from comics4less [ he has done nothing wrong, don’t blame him for anything !] but have managed to score a few pulps & a lovely VG copy of Hollywood Diary #1 for Overstreet value lately, with 9 glorious pages of Bill Ward art and another story which is just as nice, that looks like it could have been drawn by Mark Swayze [ better known for his work on Captain Marvel Jr]. Check it out on Digital Comic Museum- you will be impressed!

    I am an addict and it is hard to fully stop, but my resolution this year is to put a lid on it. I have way to much stuff, I cannot move in my basement [ lots of bulky model kits everywhere !!!] and I do need to let go of some stuff that I really don’t need to keep. I have contacted Heritage & intend to move some higher value pieces this year.

    I am hoping that the market does stabilize this year as it has gone stupid over the last few years. The investors need to go away. I do not intend to spend countless hours bidding again, but it is fun to throw in a bid every now and then and actually win something! It is always nice to get a new prize to add to the collection, but in my case I also need to begin to move stuff on that I no longer have an interest in. We will see how things play out.

  5. OK Mel, we’ll try another sip, maybe even a few more.

    I think we’re all being a bit too romantic and nostalgic for the old collecting days but any movements towards a broader and more active collecting base is welcome. Lets hope that more and more of the new hobbyists are coming in more for the love of the hobby thanfor the love of the flip.

  6. Oops!- my bad !!! It is Hollywood Secrets #1 that I won…….It’s way too early in the morning to be posting comments to a blog…..I need more coffee !!!!!

  7. LF, that’s an Australian one-man operation. I’ve heard mixed reviews, but the bad reviews are so bad that they are enough to keep me anything touched by them!

  8. I am alarmed that someone would even consider buying a single page, let alone a piece of a single page!! Someone actually purchased some shards & a staple from an Action #1 a while back- thus there is some precedent! I’m sure there are other such purchases out there- I don’t usually go looking for such activity, ‘coz it makes my head hurt !!

    However, the grading system is interesting- imagine this conversation in the future- ” Hey Guys!- I just won an Alpha Flight #17 with Fragment Points of 86 !! Is that good ???’

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