These included art from comics like Wildcats, Stormwatch, Deathblow, and more. Later the same year that Gen 13 was released as a regular series, Image released the trading card set Wildstorm Archives I, which was a 99-card set showcasing cover art from various comics under the Wildstorm Productions banner. The Wildstorm Archives I chase card set, featuring 11 of the Gen 13 variant covers in a holofoil finish. I’ll blindly trust that the “legends” are true (and that possibly, there may be a drawn-on Do-It-Yourself cover inside too!), and keep my set sealed. I will admit even with the promise of an unsigned Chromium Cover inside, I have not been able to bring myself to open my set. Since then, I’ve never seen a proper price guide amount for the ‘Artists Proof’ set, which I guess just goes to show that these sets are incredibly rare. I have a vague recollection of the comic store owner I used to go to in Iowa, telling me that he heard one was going for $500 (and this was in 1995!). Through an online source, I was able to obtain one of these rare treasures, though I was surprised that unlike the black box set, the red one does not give a number of how many were produced (mine just has the number “294” on it). If you were looking to get that exclusive 14th cover without a signature, this was where you’d find it. Unknown to a lot of people, there was a super-rare ‘Artists Proof’ red-box of the variant cover set that was released. Each signature set for each of the creators was limited to a numbered edition between 1500-2500. The incentive to purchase these box sets was the 14th cover, signed by either Jim Lee, Brandon Choi, J Scott Campbell, or Alex Garner. Left) The black-box variant cover set (Right) The super-rare red-boxed ‘Artists Proof” variant cover set (Thanks, Sven!). Also, if you want to see what the covers look like at a higher resolution, simply click on the image. So, let’s take a little stroll down memory lane, and look at the 13 different variant covers, and a few other odds and ends. Nowadays, pricing on the variant covers is not as extreme as it was in 1995 (I attended the San Diego Comic-Con for the first time that year, and a couple sellers were asking upwards of $70 for a couple!!), but still, it can take a little jumping around to find these. Though somehow, over the course of the next year, I did manage to obtain all 13 of the covers. Even though I salivated over these covers, they cost much more than a 15-year-old like myself could afford (my Dad also wouldn’t pay the $25+ per issue they were asking). Now, I had encountered variant covers before (they were a staple of the whole death/return of Superman saga DC Comics did), but Image had taken the promotion of this new release to insane levels.Īccording to the comic shop owner, as well as Wizard magazine, a total of 13 different covers had been released. Along with 2 regular cover variants, I noticed 4-6 different covers for issue #1 sitting behind the counter (with much higher price tags, courtesy of the shop owner). I remember eagerly walking into my local comic shop, only to be greeted by a surprise. As it neared the end of its run in 1994, word spread that Wildstorm would make Gen 13 into an ongoing series, with the first issue released in March 1995. The series proved to be a surprise hit, and even ended up adding a 5th part to the storyline, and serving as a launching pad for up-and-coming artist J Scott Campbell (also known these days for his art on Danger Girl, and Wildsiderz). member John Lynch, who has defected, and becomes the group’s mentor as they work out their life and new powers in La Jolla, California. The comic dealt with a group of super-powered teens, who after their powers manifest at a secret training facility in the desert, go on the run from the group I.O. In February 1994, the Wildstorm Productions arm of Image Comics released the beginnings of a 4-issue miniseries titled Gen 13 (originally titled Gen X, until Marvel Comics came knocking on their door). But somewhere in the early 1990’s, the gimmick of specially bagging comic books with extra incentives (like promo trading cards), or giving them alternate covers came into play. It used to be that one would buy a comic book, and that was it. One that reared its head in the 90’s comic industry, were Variant Covers. I don’t know what it is about the 1990’s, but there seems to be an overload of special-edition/limited-edition stuff overflowing from that decade.
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