As a comic book historian, one of my favorite chapters from comic book history is the comic speculator bubble of the 1990s. Spurred by a burgeoning speculator market, the comic book industry flooded the market with insane print runs of comics that had yet to prove their value. The result? The bubble burst and it nearly destroyed the industry. Marvel comics entered chapter 11 bankruptcy and the industry never fully recovered.

Here I examine in detail both the circumstances that led to the bubble and how decisions made by the comic book companies for short-term gain resulted in a bubble in the speculator market and how you can identify these red flags in any market you happen to be working in.

Got a question about science, history, or economics? Let me know down in the comments!

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