[3][4][5][6] The sales figures were generated in part by publishing the issue with five different variant covers, designated #1A, #1B, #1C, #1D, and #1E.
Marvel's practice of issuing multiple variant covers backfired terribly when the bottom fell out of the market in c. 1997, as the company was stocked with multiple printings of variant and "collectible" issues that were no longer in high demand, and they could not cover the costs of their distribution service.
The 2004 limited series Identity Crisis from DC Comics was so popular that every issue went through multiple printings, each with a different cover.
When the Marvel Zombies universe first appeared in 2005's Ultimate Fantastic Four #21, the popularity spawned a limited series featuring several variant covers by Arthur Suydam.
These variants reproduced classic Marvel Comics covers with an added zombie motif.
[12] The covers were done in styles reminiscent of Pablo Picasso, Salvador Dalí, and Andy Warhol.
[13] The first issues to feature a Wolverine Art Appreciation variant cover were Captain Britain and MI13 #12, Amazing Spider-Man #590, Hulk #11, Uncanny X-Men #508, and Secret Warriors #3.
[15] In July 2014, Chuck Rozanski of Mile High Comics announced that he would likely end his four-decade-long history of appearances at San Diego Comic-Con, due to the proliferation of convention-exclusive variants offered by publishers and toy manufacturers to convention attendees,[16] many of whom Rozanski criticized for attending the convention solely to acquire those exclusives in order to resell them at higher prices on eBay.
[17] Rozanski further criticized publishers for denying these exclusives to retailers, which Rozanksi estimated cost Mile High Comics $10,000 of losses at the convention.
[18][19] The practice of issuing variant covers spread to some magazines, notably TV Guide (which has its own collector's market).