Rob Liefeld Lands 27 Variant Covers for ‘Youngblood’ No. 1

When Rob Liefeld was putting out a Deadpool Team-Up book tied to last summer’s Deadpool & Wolverine last year, he was a little surprised the issue only landed four variant covers. After all, variants are a sign of interest in the book, because retailers are betting people will want to collect multiple copies, and this was a book tied to the biggest superhero movie of the year.

A year later, any disappointment he felt has been quelled thanks to Youngblood No. 1. Though on the surface it’s a lower profile book than a Deadpool book, it has landed a whopping 27 variant covers, an impressive number given the comic is not part of a multimedia franchise and has never been adapted for the screen.

“My instinct told me I would not have anywhere near this support,” a surprised Liefeld tells The Hollywood Reporter of the Nov. 7 release.

Each retailer chose the artist and commissioned the cover that will be exclusive to their stores, with Liefeld approving it all. For a normal comic, retailers are asked to biy 500 copies in order to carry it, but Liefeld convinced publisher Image to up it to 750 for these books, and retailers agreed, many ordering much more than that.

Youngblood is already a hit, even before this edition hits stores next month. Liefeld first sold bespoke editions on his website earlier this year, generating more than $500,000 in sales. The comic returns him to the title that launched Image Comics in 1992.

The artist and writer will be meeting with retailers at New York Comic Con next week, which arrives eight months after he publicly broke up with Marvel.

“I broke away from Marvel, and this year has been my biggest year in a decade,” says Liefeld.

The list of retailers participating include Big Time Collectibles, Geek Street Productions, Top Shelf, PCB Hobby, Black Saber Comics, Heroes & Fantasies, Shell Beast, AnZ Comics, Midtown Comics, Countdown Comics LLC, East Coast Comics, TenFwd Comics, Comic Inspiration, FURYCOMIX, Nirvana Comics, Windy City Comics and Third Eye Comics.

Read on for a selection of the covers.