CGC is preparing to add vintage VHS tapes to the list of collectibles it grades.
CCG (Certified Collectible Group), a division of CGC (Certified Guaranty Company), published an open call for applications from potential VHS graders on May 9. The new division would bring the total number under CCG to nine. The decision to form a new division comes on the heels of the successful launch of CGC Trading Cards in 2020 and of CGC Video Games earlier this year. Recently, the company passed a major milestone of certifying or grading 10 million collectibles since the company was founded in January 2000.
The statement from the company remarked on the growing market for vintage tapes, stating, "Well-preserved VHS tapes are becoming increasingly collectible as nostalgia for the media that revolutionized at-home movie watching continues to grow. Children of the 1980s and 90s are now collectors, and the clunky-cool VHS tape stands out as an icon of the last analog era, before cellphones, social media or streaming. Some of the most sought-after titles include Star Wars: A New Hope, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Revenge of the Nerds and classic Disney movies."
The push for graded and certified VHS tapes isn't an unexpected one, as '80s and '90s nostalgia has had an ever-growing presence in pop culture over the past few years. Various properties have even specifically leaned into VHS tapes as marketing material, including 2018's psychedelic horror film Mandy, which released its special edition on the vintage format. On the topic of the format's rise as a collectible, CGC CEO Steven R. Eichenbaum said, "Collecting VHS tapes is getting more popular by the minute, and CGC cannot wait to serve this burgeoning community with expert certification services. We are ready to talk to and potentially hire VHS experts who can help us press play in this growing market."
The graded collectibles market has seen an unexpected boom in recent years. Heritage Auctions has broken multiple records in the past year, including the $3.12M sale of a 9.4 (near mint) copy of 1941's Captain America #1 by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby. Heritage Auctions vice president Barry Sandoval remarked on the sale, saying, "Every time I looked up during the comic art portion of the session, a new record was falling, and with the comic books, that trend continued." And comics are hardly the only collectible seeing a resurgence. Uncut sheets of vintage Pokémon trading cards and original comic book pages from "The Death of Superman" have also drummed up plenty of noise in their respective markets.
I can only hope they make the same kind of mistake as what happened here and quickly go away. "Grading" certainly has it's purpose in some markets, but VHS/DVD/Blu Ray is not one of them.
Is the comic book market that strong still? I would've thought the comic book industry would have eaten itself by now what with all the crappy stories that have been perforating through the industry of late. I haven't read comics in forever, but what I hear from the internet sounds pretty bad. Story-wise anyway. DC Comics had a major event when I was growing up to get rid of all the complexities surrounding comics at the time. A sort of back to basics approach. Now though, it's even more complex and convoluted. I'm going to be an old fogey for a second and say that I miss the good old days. I'm just not sure which "good old days" those are. Long story.
Is the comic book market that strong still? I would've thought the comic book industry would have eaten itself by now what with all the crappy stories that have been perforating through the industry of late. I haven't read comics in forever, but what I hear from the internet sounds pretty bad. Story-wise anyway. DC Comics had a major event when I was growing up to get rid of all the complexities surrounding comics at the time. A sort of back to basics approach. Now though, it's even more complex and convoluted. I'm going to be an old fogey for a second and say that I miss the good old days. I'm just not sure which "good old days" those are. Long story.
Comic book movies are hot right now. Of course the comics would be thriving. There’s hundreds or comic cons worldwide. You living under a rock? Lol
Sure, comic book movies are thriving. But that's a whole different thing. My oldest sister goes to comic book movies, but she hasn't read a single comic book in her life and probably never will. Just because comic book movies thrive doesn't mean the comic books will too. They are generally two separate fields that don't have much to do with each other. Especially now that comic book movies have become mainstream. And Comic Cons are for the rabids. That's not a good barometer to determine success. Lots of rabid swifties. That doesn't mean she is still going strong. Heck, there are a ton of rabid Dragon Ball Z fans and most of the population has no clue what that is.
Sure, comic book movies are thriving. But that's a whole different thing. My oldest sister goes to comic book movies, but she hasn't read a single comic book in her life and probably never will. Just because comic book movies thrive doesn't mean the comic books will too. They are generally two separate fields that don't have much to do with each other. Especially now that comic book movies have become mainstream. And Comic Cons are for the rabids. That's not a good barometer to determine success. Lots of rabid swifties. That doesn't mean she is still going strong. Heck, there are a ton of rabid Dragon Ball Z fans and most of the population has no clue what that is.
Comic books will never go out of style even if there’s down time. They’ve been here for decades; they’re like sports cards. It was comic book movies that got me into collecting them. I’ve been to plenty of cons and collectors are still out there, even more so than movie collectors.
Comic book movies are hot right now. Of course the comics would be thriving. There’s hundreds or comic cons worldwide. You living under a rock? Lol
Sales are in the toilet for new titles (with the exception of biggest books). Of course they're never going back to their heyday, but numbers which would have got you cancelled a few years ago are now considered good. The movie audience just hasn't translated to the medium.
Sales are in the toilet for new titles (with the exception of biggest books). Of course they're never going back to their heyday, but numbers which would have got you cancelled a few years ago are now considered good. The movie audience just hasn't translated to the medium.
But Back Issues are still selling strong.
There’s too much shit out today and most of it ain’t worth the price. Plus it’s all about digital. I was at a con over the weekend and there were plenty of comic book dealers. The cheap boxes are still bringing in buyers.
Yes. All this variant crap and whatnot haven't done many favors for the industry. It's very reminiscent of the 90's and look at what that did to the industry. Nearly killed it. The only difference here is some of the major comic book publishers have the backings of very deep pockets. It doesn't hurt as much when you have Disney money. Marvel, for example, can afford to fill the toilet to the brim and flush it every once in a while. They're not writing the checks anymore.
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CGC to start grading VHS Tapes
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