Bloodshot #0 - Regular, Gold, ...Platinum?

Bloodshot #0 Regular Version Print Run: About 300,000 Distribution: Regular outlets

Bloodshot #0 Gold Variant Print Run: About 5,000 Distribution: Dealer Incentive

Bloodshot #0 "Platinum" Error Cover (Gold Ink Not Applied) Print Run: 25 to 300 copies estimated About 12 copies have been located Distribution: Unintended(?)

The Bloodshot #0 "Platinum" Error cover was not released
for sale to the public or as an official dealer incentive.
The print run was rumored to be as low as 25 copies,
which was the size of a test run during the printing process.
It is unlikely that there are so few in existence.

Discussion of the book among former Valiant employees at the Big Apple Con in April 2006
revealed that some feel the print run may have been as high as 300 copies.

The "platinum" cover version has been identified by Jeff Gomez
(former Valiant editor) and also by a former employee
in the printing operations as a printing error of the
Bloodshot #0 Gold variant, where the "gold coloring"
was not applied to the cover graphics by the printer.
The lack of a cover price shows that this is not the standard
"printer error" where a regular issue has printing discrepancies.
It should be noted that this variant does not have a cover price.

Multiple printer errors are known for some regular issue Valiant comics.
Issues of Harbinger #1 thru #6 are known to exist with blank coupons.
Ninjak #1 has been found without any white coloring on the cover.
X-O Manowar #0 has been seen with very light white coloring,
and also very dark "ivory" white coloring on the cover.
Some covers of Magnus #25 have no foil on the upper section.
Issues of Deathmate Prologue exist with no foil at all.
Turok #1 exists with a "double-embossing" effect, and also some
issues do not have the chromium art center-section on the cover,
with no evidence of the necessary glue being applied during production.

It is likely that many of the more common printing errors are the result
of very large print runs (500,000 copies or more) and/or special additions,
such as chromium materials or inserts such as coupons, which would allow
for a large number of errors to have surfaced because the production
process was not 100% perfect. More copies means more errors, in general.

The Bloodshot #0 "Gold Variant Platinum Printing Error" Explanation:

1) Former employees of printing operations have mentioned that the
"test run" for book printing is normally 25 copies, and these books were
printed without the gold coloring layer. Others have indicated that
up to 300 copies may have been printed at that time.

2) Jeff Gomez remembers these books as printing errors.

3) Kevin Van Hook said he cannot remember anyone purposefully
ordering a "platinum cover" version from the printers.

4) The lack of cover price indicates this is not a "normal" printer error.
It must be related to the premium cover because of the missing cover price.

5) The cover is platinum by default when the gold ink (or any ink) is missing.
The chromium material used for the cover is already platinum/silver in color.

The first known copy identified was purchased privately from a dealer
who received a shipment from Valiant that was supposed to
contain 11 Bloodshot #0 Gold issues, as dealer incentive books.
Instead, he received 10 Gold and the one Platinum.

In July 2002, a second copy appeared in an eBay.com(tm) auction.
The copy changed hands for a final bid of $460 before shipping costs.
The seller was a collector of the Valiant books since the early 1990's.
He believed his platinum copy to be an error, since the platinum
version was not documented to exist as an official variant comic.

The third and fourth copies appeared on eBay.com(tm) from one owner in March 2003.
Both were originally purchased new ("off the stand") at an Illinois comic shop
near Sparta, IL, where the books were printed in the mid-1990s.
The final auction price for the third copy was $711.01 before shipping costs.
The fourth copy changed hands in late-2003 in an eBay.com(tm) auction for $800.

A fifth copy was confirmed by multiple members of the ValiantComics.com messageboard,
but has not changed hands publicly.

In July 2003, ten additional copies of the book were reportedly located in the home
of a former employee in the printing operations. He remembers a test run of 25 copies
of the book, in which the "no gold coloring" error was discovered and corrected.
None of these ten copies have surfaced in public trading and cannot be confirmed to exist.
This report of ten additional copies was later determined to be fictional..

In August 2003, the first known copy of this book was graded/authenticated by CGC.




In June 2004, a second copy of this book was graded/authenticated by CGC,
and sold in an Ebay.com auction. The final bid was $2,067.42.
The CGC grade was 9.8, the same as the other CGC graded copy.

Between July 2004 and December 2004, two additional copies were graded
by CGC at the 9.6 level. The total copies CGC graded stood at 4 (as of mid-2005).

In September 2005, a sixth copy was listed for sale on eBay.com(tm).
The seller claimed to have book in his possession since he obtained it
while working for a New Jersey comic shop owner in 1994.
The auction ended early, but did not sell to the highest bidder.
It is unknown whether the copy changed hands, and due to the circumstances,
the book is considered "unverified".

In October 2005, a CGC 9.6 graded copy was listed for sale on eBay.com(tm).
Located in the collection/inventory of a former comic shop owner, the book
was submitted to CGC and became the fifth to appear on the CGC census,
selling on October 9, 2005, for $1,250.

The CGC Census as of December 2007, reflects seven copies that have been submitted.
It is believed that approximately five additional copies are known, but have not been
more formally documented by grading, public sale, or display of the books.

VISUAL DETAILS


Link: CGC's current population for the error edition

If you also own a copy, please let me know.

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