Regrets…I’ve had a few.

We've all had them.

What's your biggest comic book buying regret? I'm talking about that one purchase that seemed like a great idea at the time... but turned into a long box full of disappointment.

Mine isn't just one long box. It's many. But first, I want to tell you about my friend Patrick.

Back in the early 1990s, Patrick and I drove to my friend Jimmy's comic shop every Saturday to pick up our preorders.

At the time, I had already been collecting comics for six years and had started dealing comics myself. I ran ads in Comics Buyer's Guide, printed my own mail-order catalogs, and sold at conventions. Because I ordered so much each week, Jimmy gave me a 50% discount whenever my order topped $100. It helped him qualify for Diamond's larger retailer discount, so it worked out for both of us.

Every month I'd study the Previews catalog like I was preparing for a test, reading every description and trying to predict which books would become tomorrow's keys. I ordered heavily on books like Spider-Man #1 by Todd McFarlane, Jim Lee's X-Men #1, and Ghost Rider #15. I'd also hunt through back issue bins looking for undervalued books like Marvel Spotlight #5 and Albedo #2.

Patrick had a much different approach.

He wasn't really interested in reading comics. To him, they were investments.

One day he flipped through my copy of Previews for a few minutes, stopped on one page, and said to Jimmy:

"Put me down for 100 copies of X-Force #2."

Jimmy and I looked at each other.

"He is joking... right?"

He wasn't.

"Why would you order 100 copies of the second issue?" I asked.

"Because everybody bought hundreds of copies of #1 for the trading cards and because it was the first issue," Patrick replied confidently. "Most people won't order nearly as many copies of #2."

Jimmy laughed.

"Because nobody cares about second issues. Are you sure you want to be stuck with a box of X-Force #2 that you'll never sell?"

Patrick just smiled.

"Oh, they'll sell."

Fast forward to 1993.

Patrick rented a table at the Dallas Fantasy Fair. Most of what he brought to sell was X-Force #1, Jim Lee's X-Men #1... and those 100 copies of X-Force #2.

We spent the entire weekend there.

He didn't sell a single comic.

Sadly, Patrick passed away in 2020. In 2018, he posted the photo above on Facebook. You'll notice many copies of X-Force #1... and right in the middle is that familiar block of X-Force #2… some of them anyway.

Ironically, it turned out to be the second appearance of Deadpool. But the print run was so enormous that it's still easy to find today and isn't worth nearly what he had hoped.

Jimmy had been right.

Patrick was stuck with those comics until the very end.

As for me...

I have enough Patrick Gleason Amazing Spider-Man #55 "Web-Head" variants to shingle my roof.

I have an entire long box full of Shadecraft.

Another one full of Star Wars: The High Republic.

And far more copies of Stray Dogs and Family Tree than any reasonable person should own.

Your turn.

What's your biggest comic buying regret? Let's have a comic book pity party in the comments.