Autograph Authentication Report
2025 SMZ Comics Metal Trading Card - Artist Auto - Eddie Nuñez · #10
Findings
Signature comparison
This card. The signature as cropped from the slab photo (front).
Below, the known examples Crown compared it with. Examples with stronger proof (signed in front of staff, or certified by an independent authenticator) carry the most weight.
Feature by feature
| Feature | This card | Known examples | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall form and proportions | Abbreviated 'N-u-i' form. The N is tall and dominant, the 'ui' is compact and about half the N's height, and a long diagonal accent rises to the right. | R2, R3, R5, R6, R7 and R8 show the same tall N, compact 'ui' and long rising accent. R1 and R4 are a longer cursive variant. | Match |
| Slant and baseline | Strokes are near-upright to slightly right-leaning. The baseline rises slightly toward the accent. | R5, R6 and R7 are near-upright with a slight rightward rise. R3 and R8 are similar. | Match |
| Letter construction | N built from a tall left stem with a narrow looped or retraced apex, a diagonal and a right stem. The 'u' is two short peaks and the 'i' is a short upstroke ending in a hook. | Same N construction, including retraced or overlapping strokes, in R5, R6 and R7. The 'ui' peaks match R3, R5 and R6. | Match |
| Connecting strokes | N connects continuously into the 'ui'. The accent is a separate stroke. | The same connection, and the same separate accent, appear across R2, R3, R5, R6, R7 and R8. | Match |
| Starting and ending strokes | Starts at the base of the left stem. The accent begins thick and tapers to a fine point upper right. The 'i' ends in a small curl. | Tapering accent finish in R3, R5, R6 and R7. The curled 'i' ending appears in R5, R6 and R7. | Match |
| Line quality and speed | Fluid, confident strokes with natural paint-pen width variation. No visible tremor or hesitation. | Comparable rapid execution across the references. | Match |
| Pen pressure pattern | Heavier on the down-strokes and accent onset, lighter at the tapers. | Similar pattern in R5 and R6, which use the same light-blue paint pen. | Match |
| Spacing | Tight 'ui' set close to the N. The accent is spaced above and to the right. | Same spacing in R5, R6 and R7. | Match |
| Flourishes and underlines | Long rising accent or tilde stroke. No underline. | Same accent flourish and no underline in R2, R3, R5, R6, R7 and R8. | Match |
| Placement and size | Lower-left to center of the art, above and left of the '10/10' serial. Moderate size. | References are crops only, so placement cannot be compared directly. Size relative to the artwork appears similar. | Natural variation |
Examiner notes
Our card is labeled 2025 and is an SMZ Comics metal artist-auto release. All eight references come from the same SMZ metal-card program and appear contemporaneous, likely 2024–2025. Era drift is not a factor. R1 and R4 show a fuller 'Nuñ(a)'-style rendering, while R2, R3 and R5–R8 show the abbreviated 'Nui' form with a long rising accent stroke. Ours matches the abbreviated form, so the two forms read as alternate versions the artist uses, not an era change.
How Crown authenticates autographs: the signature is compared with known examples gathered from Crown's own authenticated cards, independent authenticators and public listings, measured by software, examined by an AI forensic model, and signed off by Crown Grading staff. The decision above is Crown's.
