Superman (2018 series) 14 cover

I LOVE the Reis and Prado team! Without question, this is a Reis and Prado cover. I'm not looking to "convince" anyone, because I know that many old school guys already have opened their minds enough to the concept that the pencils, whether graphite or printed blue ink, are simply "guidlines" that were once there and then subsequently inked/finished by the inker/finisher. The only issue is that they currently cannot and do not want to "accept" the fact that what they have always known as the historical method of assemply line style of working, is changing. I get it. Many of us do not like or want change. We want things that have always been done one way, to remain that way forever. But "not liking" and "not accepting" is hardly a good or viable counterargument.

All I would say, which I don't believe I got to say on my show last week when I spoke on this topic, is that for those who are still far more visually interested in the look of the inked, finished art, I strongly suggest still keeping tabs on the supply/demand ratio in order to determine what price is worth paying for this type of art. Because while I'm all for people considering these pieces as the work of the penciller and the inker, because that's exactly what it is, I still think the prices should be commensurate with the overall interest & demand level within the hobby. In other words, unless you absolutely adore the art and can't live without it, I still counsel collectors to only buy it if the asking prices are at strong discounts to the asking prices for the same art done over graphite. Since it's still taking a long time for collectors to come around to the concept of inks over blueline pencils and is a slow yet steady acceptance, I would suggest only buying a cover that would normally sell for $3,500 if it was inks over graphite, if the asking price was $2,000 or less. Since the demand for this type of art is still not equal to that of the traditionallly done art, then there's no reason to pay the same price levels. At least not until enough people have come around to accepting this modern method of creating art. At any rate, Miki, I'm glad to see you made the exception of your own volition on this piece, rather than because you felt pressured or "convinced" due to the the views I shared. That the actual graphite guidelines also exist on a separate board, should be looked upon as a postivie thing, not negative. Because they now at least exist as a curiosity as well as a de facto learning tool that can be used for further study of the penciller's work. But as a stand alone piece of art, to most eyes it will never look nearly as good as the finished work which in this case is Prado over Reis, and officially also the published cover art. Onward!

Just gorgeous. Congrats Miki!