Edgar Church's Basement, named after the location of the most valuable comic book collection ever discovered, is a collectible comics podcast from Rob Larsen.
Original Comic Art: Speculating on The Most Valuable Post-1980 Comic Covers
Welcome to Episode 22 of Edgar Church's Basement! Recording from a new external studio setup ahead of an upcoming live interview, we are shifting our forensic lens from Silver Age production pages to the explosive, high-stakes market of post-1980 original comic art.
Unlike pre-1970 Marvel where original art often operated like an information black hole, the post-1980 era changed everything: artists began getting their physical boards back, dedicated art reps emerged, and the modern collector market was born.
From certified multi-million-dollar auction titans to untouchable grails locked in private vaults, we audit 20 iconic covers and landmark pages that define modern comic art collecting
29 Jul 2026
Original Comic Art: Secret Societies, Hidden Grails and the Value Gap
Why does a 1-of-1 original art masterpiece sell for $4 million while a slabbed comic book sells for $15 million? Welcome to Episode 21 of Edgar Church's Basement! Following the historic $3.875M sale of Don Heck's Tales of Suspense #39 Iron Man splash, we are diving deep into the massive "Value Gap" between high-end original comic art, CGC-graded key books, and sports collectibles. In this episode, Rob breaks down the three structural reasons why original art lags behind comic books: starting from a worthless 1980s baseline, the extreme difficulty of building a targeted collection, and the "Secret Society" cabal that keeps major grails locked behind private doors. Plus, we play a game of "Fantasy Original Art"—speculating on what unseen grails like the Amazing Spider-Man #1 complete interior, the Hulk #1 splash page, or a Ditko ASM #14 cover would sell for in the modern market!
9 Jul 2026
Beyond Mile High: The Search for the Next Greatest Comic Collection in History
The debate is finally open. We all know that the S-Tier, God-tier crown belongs definitively to the Mile High / Edgar Church pedigree—but what is the absolute second-best collection in comic book history?
Welcome to the milestone 20th episode of Edgar Church's Basement. I have been teasing this deep dive for nearly two years, and today we are laying down the analytical groundwork for a massive, upcoming 61-pedigree definitive tier list.
Rather than just pulling opinions out of thin air, we are looking at this through a strict, weighted data framework built on four critical criteria: Breadth & Depth, Quality/Average Grade, Density of Major Keys, and Historical Importance to the Hobby.
In this extemporaneous sandbox episode, we audit 12 elite heavyweight contenders to see whose paper trails hold the ultimate crown outside of the Mile High vault.
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