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Do you remember a time when if you went to buy a comic book there was only one choice of a cover? I kinda do...

How powerful of a cover would this have been if it were #8-Z?


Anyway, I just came across this:

Dark Knight III: The Master Race
(9 issues, 164 covers) - JAN 2016 to AUG 2017
DC 2015 - 2017 (9 Issues)

Nine Issues. One Hundred and Sixty-Four covers.

That is EIGHTEEN covers per issue. Wow.

OK, so here is the challenge. What is the shortest Comic Book Series with the Most Variants that you can find. I will also accept One-Shots, Micro Series, etc.

I apologize if I just derailed the rest of your day or night.

Not as many as Dark Knight III, but maybe good for second place:

Godzilla: Kingdom of Monsters
(12 issues, 134 covers) - MAR 2011 to FEB 2012
IDW 2011 - 2012 (12 Issues)

That's over 11 covers per issue.



I was going to pick Vampirella (2019), but I am not sure it is complete yet.

Vampirella (2019)
(10 issues, 159 covers) - JAN 2019 to JAN 2020
Dynamite Entertainment 2019 - Current

That would be almost 16 covers per issue.

My favorite single issue is Batman #50 that had over 100 variants... and how many of them were wedding themed? For a wedding that didn't happen...

The Masks mini-series by Dynamite had 8 issues, 84 covers.

Masks 2 had 8 issues, 65 covers.

Pretty sure we just need to stick with Dynamite or IDW for the biggest issue to cover ratios. They sure love variants and exclusives.

But that's because 105 of them are for #1. First widespread, modern usage of the store variant and all.




Really, any modern Vampirella or Dejah Thoris title as there seems to be 25+ variants per issue in the cover galleries.

Or Avatar/Boundless and Chaos.

I stopped adding the Lady Death variants years ago, so there are likely plenty more to each of these.

Lady Death: Apocalypse
(7 issues, 111 covers) - JAN 2015 to AUG 2015
Boundless Comics / Avatar Press 2015 (7 Issues)

15.86 covers per issue


Jungle Fantasy: Secrets
(2 issues, 59 covers) - MAY 2018 to OCT 2018
Boundless Comics 2018 - Current

29.5 covers per issue


Lady Death: Dragon Wars
(1 issues, 40 covers) - APR 1998
Chaos! Comics 1998 (1 Issue)

Good thing it was bi-yearly.

Just found this:

Web of Venom: Carnage Born
(1 issues, 17 covers) - JAN 2019
Marvel 2018 (1 Issue)

Just read this week's Vampirella #11.

There are 32 covers listed in the back. 32!! For issue #11. How is this a thing? Is anyone really making money on this? Why waste all that artwork on books no one is going to see? What the hell is a "Bonus FOC variant?" (I know what FOC means, but I don't get how it works.)

How are 9 of those covers for 5 retailers? How are retailer exclusive covers still a thing? I mean, maybe, MAYBE if it's a big time artist, but these are not them.

32 covers!!! For #11!!!

Collect them all, Dan!

As you know, FOC is when the orders have to be in to Diamond. Dynamite (and Boom) like to throw unannouned variants out right before the FOC, which retailers may or may not notice.

I really dig what Priest is doing on this book, but I'm already buying enough nonsense from you every few months.

Okay, but why? Just a way of getting 1 or 2 more copies ordered? Looked like the FOCs were something like 7, 11, and 21 copies

Yep. My guess is that Dynamite tries to bump up the number of regular covers ordered by announcing these incentives at the last minute.

Just closed out Red Sonja: Age of Chaos. 145 covers for 6 issues.

That is 24 covers per issue. Yikes.

Just noticed this:

Bettie Page (2020)
Comic Book by Dynamite Entertainment
(5 issues, 103 covers) - JAN 2020 to JAN 2021

That's 20 variants per issue average. Looks to be an ongoing series? They should ramp up to 30 variants per.

Something mildly interesting I learned about the first issue of that series, is that the first issue gave any store that ordered at least 500 copies a unique store variant.

That was the first time any comic company had done that... and things since then... took a turn.