100 Most Valuable Bronze Age Comic Books: Real Sale Prices

The most expensive Bronze Age comic ever sold publicly is not a Spider-Man or a Batman. It is Marvel Spotlight #5, the first Ghost Rider, at $264,000 in June 2021. That tells you what this era is: the age of first appearances, when Wolverine, the Punisher, Ghost Rider, Luke Cage, Swamp Thing, and eventually four turtles in a black-and-white indie all showed up for the first time in books printed by the hundreds of thousands and read to death.

This page ranks the hundred most valuable Bronze Age comics, 1970 through 1985. Same rules as the Golden Age, Silver Age and modern lists: documented sales carry their date and venue, reported figures are labeled, and where a number is a guide value rather than a sale the cell says so. One honest thing up front: most of the giant records here were set in the 2021 to 2022 spike, and the Bronze index has fallen since, so the entries tell you where today’s market actually sits instead of letting a peak price pose as current.

These are the books in Southern California garages right now. If you already know what you have, skip the reading: text a photo to (951) 515-9604 and I will tell you what I see.

Prices last checked August 9, 2026.

It’s a long page. Jump to where your books are:

• The six-figure books
• The rest of the hundred, ranked by record
• Entry 50 and the halfway point
• Three books the public record cannot price
• The 35-cent variant lottery
• The Marvel Value Stamp problem
• Get a cash offer

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The six-figure books

Five Bronze-era books have publicly cleared one hundred thousand dollars, and every record belongs to a census-top copy: three sold at or near the 2021 to 2022 peak, one in 2011, one in 2024. They prove the ceiling. The floors and the current-market lines tell you about your copy.

1. Marvel Spotlight #5 (Marvel, 1972): the first Ghost Rider

Documented high	$264,000 for a CGC 9.8, June 19, 2021, Heritage Auctions; the highest documented Bronze Age Marvel sale
Floor	Documented July 2026 sales: $3,100 in 8.5, $2,150 in 8.0, $993 in 5.0, $600 in 3.0; even a 2.0 brought $800
Current market	$858 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

Johnny Blaze’s origin carries the biggest documented Bronze Age Marvel number on this list, and it needs the biggest caveat: that was a census-top copy sold at the June 2021 market peak, and nothing has come near it since. The top tracked sale of 2026 is an 8.5 at $3,100. Read the record as history and price your copy off the 2026 ladder, where solid mid-grade copies are still four-figure books. Ghost Rider’s debut still surfaces in Southern California collections. Rough copies are worth a call too.

2. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #1 First Print (Mirage, 1984): the most expensive comic of the era

Documented high	$250,000 for a CGC 9.8, December 13, 2021 (ComicConnect); only 8 copies in 9.8, none higher
Floor	Documented 2024 by-grade sales run $13,300 for a 6.5 up to $132,000 for a 9.8 (venue unstated); even a 6.5 is a five-figure book

Eastman and Laird self-published about 3,000 copies, and one indicia line now separates a four-figure book from a six-figure one: a true first print has no printing identifier on the inside page, carries a back-cover ad for their Gobbledygook zines, and is printed on cheap newsprint in the oversized format. Check hard before you celebrate, because later printings have had their identifiers bleached out to pass as firsts, and outright counterfeits tend to be printed on white paper instead of newsprint. One label note: the trade press filed the 2021 record sales under the Copper Age, so you will see this book claimed by a different era; it appears here because 1984 sits inside the window this page covers. Read the record as a 2021 peak rather than today’s price, since 9.8 sales ran around $132,000 in 2024, still enormous, just not $250,000. If you think you have a real first print, do not clean it, do not press it, and let me help you confirm the printing before anyone else knows you have it.

3. Giant-Size X-Men #1 (Marvel, 1975): the new X-Men debut

Documented high	$170,000 for the sole CGC 9.9, June 28, 2024, ComicConnect Event Auction #58
Floor	Documented 2026 sales: $5,411 in 9.4 (July), $4,043 in 9.0 (June), $2,624 in 7.5 (July), $1,800 in 5.0 (July), $1,400 in 3.0 (June)
Current market	$1,265 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

Storm, Colossus, Nightcrawler, and Thunderbird debut and Wolverine joins the team, and the record is recent, but it is a one-of-one copy on a census of more than 13,000. The 9.8 tier tells the real story: $72,000 in June 2021 down to a $25,500 fair market value by September 2025, roughly a third of peak. What has not moved is the floor; this book brings four figures in any grade, the strongest bottom end in the era after Hulk #181. If your copy came out of a seventies collection and has never been graded, that is exactly the situation I like: photos first, and I will tell you whether grading is worth the fee before you pay it.

4. Incredible Hulk #181 (Marvel, 1974): the first full Wolverine

Documented high	$150,000 for the single CGC 9.9, 2011, ComicLink; still the issue record
Floor	Documented 2026 sales: $6,800 in 9.0 (June), $4,745 in 8.0 (July), $1,775 in 3.0 (July); even a 0.5 brought $1,350 (July 2026)
Current market	$1,300 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

The 9.8 tier is the whole market story in one book: $146,000 in October 2022 at ComicLink and $138,000 in September 2022 at Heritage, then a reported $67,100 for a 9.8 in May 2026, less than half the peak. Before pricing any copy, open it to the Marvel Value Stamp page: a clipped stamp means a green Qualified label from CGC, and in my experience that takes roughly 60 percent off like-grade money. Even wrecked copies are four-figure books. This site has a full Incredible Hulk #181 guide that walks through the #180, #181 and reprint check and the stamp page if this is the one you own. I buy it constantly, stamp or no stamp. The honest number depends on that stamp page, so photograph it first.

5. Hero for Hire #1 (Marvel, 1972): the first Luke Cage

Documented high	$102,000 for a CGC 9.8, September 8, 2022, Heritage Auctions
Floor	Current market values: $1,470 in 9.2, $573 in 8.0, $282 in 6.0, $113 in 2.0 (PriceCharting, August 2026)
Current market	$155 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

Luke Cage headlines his own Marvel title first, and the mostly black cover shows every handling flaw, which is why only 12 universal 9.8s exist. That scarcity plus the 2022 market produced the six-figure record; the current 9.8 guide value is $23,100, so treat the record as a peak census-top event, not a quote. Ordinary copies are three-figure books, and grade honestly on that cover, because everyone else will.

6. House of Secrets #92 (DC, 1971): the first Swamp Thing

Documented high	$90,000 for a CGC 9.8, September 2021, Heritage Auctions
Floor	About $570 to $720 in the 1.8 to 2.5 range (fetched 2022 grid); guide minimum $100
Current market	$799 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

The most valuable Bronze Age DC book, and the era’s great horror debut: Bernie Wrightson’s Swamp Thing first appears behind a dark purple cover that shows every flaw, which is why only two copies sat at 9.8 as of a 2018 census count. The 9.6 that followed the record brought $33,600, and the curve stays deep all the way down, with even a 4.0 around $1,150. This is also the rare Bronze book that gained ground while the market slid, up 7 percent in 2025 to take the top spot in GoCollect’s Bronze index. If a copy of this is in your boxes in any condition, I want to see it. Horror anthologies from the early seventies are the boxes people almost throw away. This issue is why you look first.

7. X-Men #94 (Marvel, 1975): the new team takes over

Documented high	$72,111 for a CGC 9.8, December 18, 2021, ComicConnect
Floor	Documented 2026 sales: $1,400 in 9.0 (March), $990 in 8.0 (July), $622 in 7.0 (July), $415 in 5.0 (June), $190 in 2.0 (June)
Current market	$352 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

The new team takes over the numbering here and the Claremont era begins, which makes this Giant-Size X-Men #1’s sibling key. The record is a 2021-peak, census-top result; tracked 2026 sales stop at a 9.0 for $1,400, a fiftyfold gap. Price off the 2026 ladder and be pleasantly surprised if a top-grade copy runs at auction. Selling seventies X-Men starts with two photos, the cover and the price box, and I answer fast on this run.

8. Gobbledygook #1 (Mirage, 1984): the pre-TMNT zine

Documented high	$71,390 for a CGC 9.0 signed and sketched by both Eastman and Laird, June 2021 (Hake’s)
Floor	A raw copy brought $1,200 (undated); guide $2,000 in near mint

Before the Turtles, Eastman and Laird hand-copied, folded, and stapled an estimated 50 copies of this zine, which contains the first Fugitoid and carries a back-cover ad for TMNT #1 before that book existed. Keep the record’s caveat attached: the $71,390 copy was signed and sketched by both creators at a single hot-market auction, and the unsigned documented base is a $1,200 raw sale. Something this crude is easy to fake, so look for honestly yellowed newsprint rather than suspiciously bright paper, ignore listings claiming 150 or 500 copy print runs, and demand provenance before any money moves.

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The rest of the hundred, ranked by record

Same rules as the other three lists on this site. Documented figures carry a date and a venue. Reported figures come from guides and secondhand coverage, and on this era most of the big records were set in the 2021 to 2022 spike, so the entries say plainly where today’s market sits below them. Where a figure is a current guide value rather than a sale, the cell says exactly that.

You do not have to reach the bottom to get an answer. Text a photo to (951) 515-9604 and I will tell you what I see.

9. Amazing Spider-Man #129 (Marvel, 1974): the first Punisher

Documented high	$57,000 for a CGC 9.8, March 16, 2022, ComicConnect
Floor	Documented July and August 2026 sales: $3,600 in 9.2, $2,145 in 8.0, $1,700 in 7.0, $930 in 3.0, $850 in 2.0
Current market	$900 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

The top non-Wolverine villain debut of the Bronze Age, and one of the most liquid comics of the entire era. A beat-up 3.0 still brought $930 in 2026, which almost no other book on this list can say. If you have one in any condition, it is worth a photo. Punisher’s debut hides in ordinary-looking Spider-Man runs. Check issue numbers before any box leaves the house.

10. Albedo Anthropomorphics #2 (Thoughts and Images, 1984): the first Usagi Yojimbo

Reported high	$55,000 reported for a CGC 9.8, 2024 market, venue unstated; the cleaner comp is $24,000 for a 9.6 in 2022
Floor	Guide $1,200 in near mint; dated sales have run well past guide, with worn copies at mid four figures during the 2022 peak

Stan Sakai’s samurai rabbit debuts here, in a tiny anthology whose 2,000-copy print run is stated right inside the issue. The census tells the scarcity story: 214 universal copies, and a black cover like TMNT #1 that makes high grade brutally hard. The $55,000 figure arrived without a stated venue, so I anchor on the 2022 ladder instead, where a 9.6 brought $24,000 and even beaten copies ran four figures.

11. Tomb of Dracula #10 (Marvel, 1973): the first Blade

Documented high	$48,000 for a CGC 9.8, September 12, 2021, Heritage Auctions
Floor	Documented 2026 sales: $3,294 in 9.6 (January), $1,300 in 8.0 (May), $860 in 7.0 (July), $636 in 6.0 (July)
Current market	$425 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

Blade’s debut set its record in the same September 2021 Heritage weekend that set records across this hobby at the absolute market peak. The correction here has been steep: a 9.8 brought $10,980 in May 2026, roughly a quarter of the record, and the book gave back 31 percent in 2025 alone. Solid copies are still three- and four-figure comics; just do not price yours off 2021. Tomb of Dracula runs come to me more complete than most titles, and the Blade issue is the one that pays for the whole box.

12. Star Wars #1 35-Cent Price Variant (Marvel, 1977)

Documented high	$40,800 for a CGC 9.4, August 8, 2024, Heritage Auctions; CGC calls this only the third-highest sale for the issue, so higher results exist
Floor	Current market values: $8,708 in 9.0, $6,661 in 8.0, $3,855 in 4.0, $2,360 in 2.0 (PriceCharting, August 2026)

In the summer of 1977 Marvel test-priced part of its print run at 35 cents in a handful of test markets, and this is the famous one: 327 graded variant copies against more than 17,000 regular Star Wars #1s. A genuine variant has a square 35-cent price box with “July” under the issue number and a UPC in the box; the far more common Whitman reprint with a diamond-shaped price box is not the variant. Even low-grade genuine copies are four-figure books, so check the price box before you assume yours is the ordinary edition. If your Star Wars #1 has a 35-cent price in a square box, stop and call me before you do anything else with it.

13. Incredible Hulk #180 (Marvel, 1974): the first Wolverine cameo

Documented high	$40,800 for a CGC 9.8, June 19, 2021, Heritage Auctions
Floor	Documented 2026 sales: $1,400 in 9.0 (May), $925 in 8.0 (July), $770 in 7.0 (July), $490 in 5.0 (July)
Current market	$384 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

Wolverine technically appears first here, on the last page, and the market prices that cameo at roughly a quarter to a third of the full appearance in #181; know which side of that split your book sits on before anyone quotes you a number. The record is another June 2021 peak result. Same warning as its sibling: many copies have the Marvel Value Stamp clipped from an interior page, and grades and prices assume it is intact.

14. Batman #251 (DC, 1973): “The Joker’s Five-Way Revenge!”

Documented high	$38,000 for a CGC 9.8, June 17, 2024, ComicLink (reported by CGC’s news desk)
Floor	Reported guide minimum around $20; ordinary near-mint copies are three-figure books
Current market	$214 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

“The Joker’s Five-Way Revenge!” put the Joker back to killing, under a Neal Adams cover that became one of the most recognizable Batman images ever printed. The record here is as clean as Bronze DC gets, a public ComicLink sale in June 2024 that beat the book’s prior record. With 30 copies on the census in 9.8, the top end is repeatable rather than a one-copy fluke, but an ordinary near-mint copy is a three-figure book, so price yours off condition, not the headline.

15. Green Lantern #76 (DC, 1970): the book that opens the Bronze Age

Reported high	9.8 sales reported in the $31,000 to $37,000 range, 2010 to 2014; sources conflict on the exact figure, venues not stated
Floor	Around $175 for a CGC 4.0; raw very good copies from about $100 (fetched guide minimums)
Current market	$175 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

For many collectors this is where the Bronze Age begins: Denny O’Neil and Neal Adams put Green Lantern and Green Arrow on the road, and comics grow up a little. Sources conflict on the record, so I quote it as a range, 9.8 sales between $31,000 and $37,000 from 2010 to 2014, and I will point out that the top-end data on this book is old. Underneath, a graded 4.0 runs around $175 and raw very good copies start near $100, which makes this one of the most affordable era-defining keys there is.

16. Batman #227 (DC, 1970): the Neal Adams cover

Reported high	Recorded sales have reached $33,600 (guide record, undated, no grade attached)
Floor	Reported minimum around $60 (price guide, undated)
Current market	$560 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

No first appearance here at all: the price rests entirely on Neal Adams’ cover, his homage to Detective Comics #31, and the market treats it as the most valuable Bronze Batman cover book. Recorded sales have reached $33,600, but no source attaches a grade or date to that figure, so neither will I. What the data does show is that this book gained 4 percent in 2025 while the Bronze index as a whole fell, quiet strength that pure cover books rarely manage.

17. Amazing Spider-Man #238 (Marvel, 1983): the first Hobgoblin

Documented high	$31,200 for a CGC 9.9, January 12, 2025, Heritage Auctions
Floor	Documented 2026 sales: $480 in 9.4 (August), $300 in 8.5 (August), $240 in 7.5 (August), $168 in 7.0 (June)
Current market	$188 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

Hobgoblin’s debut shows the sharpest grade cliff on this list: the record is a 9.9 rarity, while a 9.8 sold for $1,500 in July 2026. One notch of grade, a twentyfold difference in price. For everyone who does not own a nearly perfect copy, this is a solid three-figure book.

18. Werewolf by Night #32 (Marvel, 1975): the first Moon Knight

Documented high	$31,200 for a CGC 9.8, March 2020, Heritage Auctions; a higher $50,000 ComicLink 9.8 sale is reported but undated
Floor	Current market values: $3,513 in 9.4, $2,000 in 9.0, $1,300 in 8.0, $617 in 4.0 (PriceCharting, August 2026)
Current market	$586 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

Moon Knight debuts here, and with only 19 copies in 9.8 and none higher, the top of this book is genuinely thin. The current 9.8 guide value sits at $21,600, below the documented record, and the book gave back 9 percent in 2025. Copies at 8.0 and up remain firmly four-figure comics, which for a 1975 horror title is remarkable.

19. Amazing Spider-Man #101 (Marvel, 1971): the first Morbius

Documented high	$26,400 for a CGC 9.8, April 2, 2023, Heritage Auctions
Floor	Documented 2026 sales: $650 in 8.0 (July), $374 in 7.0 (August), $225 in 5.0 (June), $175 in 3.0 (May)
Current market	$221 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

Morbius arrives in the first issue not written by Stan Lee, and this book is quietly doing something unusual for the era: its low grades have been growing roughly 8 to 15 percent a year while most Bronze keys slid. The record is recent and clean. A reader copy of this one is worth holding onto, or worth showing me.

20. Amazing Spider-Man #252 (Marvel, 1984): the black costume arrives

Documented high	$24,000 for a CGC 9.9, May 23, 2022, Heritage Auctions
Floor	Documented 2026 sales: $450 in 9.6 (August), $370 in 9.4 (August), $250 in 9.2 (July)
Current market	$176 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

The black costume shows up in Amazing Spider-Man a story ahead of its origin in Secret Wars #8, and the two books trade as a pair. Same 9.9 cliff as #238: the record is a grade-rarity artifact, and a 9.8 is a $1,500 book as of July 2026. Common as this issue is, sharp copies still bring real money.

21. Iron Man #55 (Marvel, 1972): the first Thanos

Documented high	$19,200 for a CGC 9.8, June 19, 2022, Heritage Auctions
Floor	Documented 2026 sales: $995 in 8.5 (June), $800 in 8.0 (June), $575 in 7.0 (July), $315 in 3.0 (July)
Current market	$315 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

Thanos and Drax both debut here, and no Bronze book shows the movie cycle more cleanly: a mid-grade 7.5 averaged $755 in 2018 while Infinity War was in theaters and was back near $710 within a year of Endgame. That is the pattern to remember whenever a film announcement touches a book you own. Sell into the spike or hold through it, but do not mistake the spike for the new normal.

22. Batman #232 (DC, 1971): the first Ra’s al Ghul

Reported high	$18,000 for a CGC 9.8, 2022 (venue not stated); other reports place 9.8 sales roughly $10,000 to $22,000 across 2022 and 2023
Floor	About $340 for a 4.0 (fetched 2022 grid); guide minimum $90
Current market	$307 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

Ra’s al Ghul debuts in one of the defining O’Neil and Adams issues, and the top of this market is real but messy: reported 9.8 sales run roughly $10,000 to $22,000 across 2022 and 2023, with the citable figure an $18,000 sale in 2022. The catch is the cliff underneath, because a 9.6 is about a $3,300 book, so most of that headline is a census-ceiling premium. A sharp raw copy prices off the 9.4 to 9.6 column, never off the record.

23. Marvel Super Heroes Secret Wars #8 (Marvel, 1984): origin of the symbiote

Documented high	$16,800 for a CGC 9.9, September 12, 2021, Heritage Auctions
Floor	Documented June 2026 sales: $300 in 9.6, $250 in 9.2, $200 in 7.5
Current market	$175 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

The alien costume that becomes Venom gets its origin here, and the record combines the two inflations this list keeps warning about: a 9.9 grade rarity sold at the September 2021 market peak. A 9.8 brought $690 in June 2026. This is a common 1984 comic; a nice raw copy is a nice raw copy, not a lottery ticket. Every eighties longbox has Secret Wars in it. The black-costume issue is the one worth pulling before you sell the run as a lot.

24. Superman’s Pal, Jimmy Olsen #134 (DC, 1970): the Darkseid cameo debut

Reported high	$16,200 reported for a CGC 9.8, January 2020, attributed to a guide page that could not be verified; best confirmed point is a 9.8 at nearly $7,000 in a 2017 market report
Floor	About $92 to $150 in the 4.0 to 5.0 range (fetched 2019 curve)
Current market	$73 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

Darkseid arrives here, and Kirby’s Fourth World really starts here too, but let me be precise about what “arrives” means: he appears in a single brief panel, a cameo. His first full appearance is generally credited to Forever People #1, with some guides citing Jimmy Olsen #148 instead, so this book gets priced on its own record and not on a title it may not hold. That record is a reported $16,200 for a 9.8 in January 2020 that I could not verify at the source, while the best confirmed point is a 9.8 at nearly $7,000 in a 2017 report, and a beautiful 9.4 is roughly a $1,500 book on the fetched curve. All of that grade data is 2017 to 2020 vintage, so treat it as a floor on the conversation, not a quote.

25. Amazing Spider-Man #194 (Marvel, 1979): the first Black Cat

Documented high	$15,860 for a CGC 9.9, May 9, 2026, Heritage Auctions; the freshest record on this list
Floor	Documented 2026 sales: $560 in 9.4 (July), $369 in 9.2 (July), $249 in 8.5 (July), $205 in 7.0 (July)
Current market	$150 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

Felicia Hardy’s debut set its record this year, which I trust more than any 2021 number, but it is still a 9.9 result: a 9.6 is a $675 book as of August 2026. The gap between “record” and “your copy” is the whole lesson of this era. Nice copies are solid three-figure comics with a market that is actually being tested right now.

26. Conan the Barbarian #1 (Marvel, 1970): Marvel’s sword-and-sorcery landmark

Reported high	$14,400 reported for a CGC 9.8, April 2022, Heritage Auctions; secondhand sourcing, not verified against the auction record
Floor	Current market values: $1,477 in 9.4, $810 in 9.0, $602 in 8.0, $234 in 4.0 (PriceCharting, August 2026)
Current market	$233 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

Barry Windsor-Smith launches Conan and, by many countings, the Bronze Age itself; this is one of the 1970 books collectors point to when they date the era. I have to label the record reported because it reached me secondhand rather than from the auction record itself. High-grade copies are four-figure books either way, and mid-grade copies trade in the hundreds.

27. All-Star Western #10 (DC, 1972): the first Jonah Hex

Reported high	$13,800 for a CGC 9.8, 2024 (venue not stated); the prior 9.8 sale was $9,000
Floor	About $235 for a 4.0 (fetched grid)
Current market	$149 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

Jonah Hex rides in here, and this is one of the few Bronze DC books whose top end looks like it is genuinely rising: a 9.8 brought $9,000, then $13,800 in 2024, two consecutive climbing sales rather than one hot night. A 9.6 also hit $3,000 in 2024, so the strength runs a grade deep. While you are in that box, pull Weird Western Tales #12 and #13 as well, his earliest appearances after this one; they are sub-$100 books outside the top census grades, but they belong with this one when a collection sells.

28. Star Wars #4 35-Cent Price Variant (Marvel, 1977)

Documented high	$12,600 for a CGC 9.8, August 8, 2024, Heritage Auctions; the same sale that set the Star Wars #1 variant number above
Floor	No grade ladder captured for this variant; price off recent comparable sales

Every Marvel comic published from June to October 1977 had a 35-cent test version distributed to a handful of test markets, and the Star Wars issues are the ones worth real money. The identification is the square 35-cent price box on a first printing; a regular 30-cent #4 is an ordinary comic. This documented 2024 result gives the variant a clean, recent benchmark, which is more than most variants can claim.

29. X-Men #141 (Marvel, 1981): Days of Future Past

Documented high	$11,950 for a CGC 9.9, May 21, 2009, Heritage Auctions
Floor	Documented 2026 sales: $335 in 9.6 (August), $218 in 9.4 (July), $150 in 7.0 (May)
Current market	$100 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

The most influential X-Men story of the decade opens here, along with the first Rachel Summers. The record is a seventeen-year-old 9.9 grade-rarity result and useless as a comp; the 9.8 market is $995 as of July 2026. Everything below that is a well-loved reader book, and there are a lot of them.

30. X-Men #120 (Marvel, 1979): the first Alpha Flight

Documented high	$11,501 for a CGC 9.8, September 4, 2021, ComicConnect
Floor	Documented 2026 sales: $194 in 9.4 (April), $175 in 9.0 (July), $42 in 7.0 (July)
Current market	$60 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

Alpha Flight’s team debut carries one of the widest record-to-reality gaps on the list: the 2021-peak record is about twenty times the next grade down, where a 9.6 last sold for $550 in May 2026. Below 9.0 this is a double-digit comic. A useful book for calibrating expectations across a whole X-Men run.

31. Daredevil #131 (Marvel, 1976): the first Bullseye

Documented high	$11,347 for a CGC 9.8, August 24, 2023, ComicConnect
Floor	Documented 2026 sales: $550 in 9.4 (July), $350 in 8.5 (June), $240 in 7.0 (June), $175 in 5.0 (May)
Current market	$140 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

Bullseye’s debut has a post-peak record, which counts for something; a 2023 result did not need 2021 froth to reach five figures. Below the top grade it steps down quickly to a three-figure book. The kind of key that hides in a full Daredevil run without announcing itself.

32. Amazing Spider-Man #122 (Marvel, 1973): death of the Green Goblin

Documented high	$10,800 for a CGC 9.8, June 19, 2021, Heritage Auctions
Floor	Documented 2026 sales: $854 in 9.4 (June), $735 in 9.0 (July), $475 in 8.5 (July), $325 in 6.5 (July)
Current market	$202 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

The Green Goblin dies one issue after Gwen Stacy, and the two books belong together, in story and in the same collections. The record is a June 2021 peak sale, but the middle of this book has held: presentable copies are steady three-figure comics. If you have #121, look for #122 in the same box.

33. X-Men #101 (Marvel, 1976): the first Phoenix

Documented high	$10,100 for a CGC 9.8, August 17, 2021, eBay
Floor	Documented 2026 sales: $1,200 in 9.2 (July), $675 in 8.0 (July), $450 in 7.0 (July), $270 in 3.0 (May)
Current market	$358 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

Jean Grey rises from Jamaica Bay as Phoenix, and a stale “over $4,000” figure from 2019 still circulates in search results; the 2021 record superseded it, and 2026 sales are the numbers that matter now. This book softened noticeably through 2025. Mid-grade copies are dependable three-figure comics with a real four-figure top end.

34. Cerebus the Aardvark #1 (Aardvark-Vanaheim, 1977): the first self-published indie key

Documented high	$9,995 for a CGC 8.5, January 2023 (Goldin)
Floor	Mid-grade copies are solidly four figures: $2,450 for a 6.0 (December 2022), $1,950 for a 4.5 (February 2023)

Dave Sim printed about 2,000 copies, roughly 400 arrived damaged, and the census tops out at 9.4, so the 9.8 framing used elsewhere on this list simply does not exist for this book. The bigger issue is that around 2,000 counterfeits surfaced in 1982, as many as the real run, and a genuine copy has a matte inside cover and silver staples. Confirm that before quoting anyone money, because CGC will label the fake as a counterfeit and it is worth only a tiny fraction as a curiosity.

35. Star Wars #1 Regular Edition (Marvel, 1977)

Documented high	$9,600 for a CGC 9.8, April 10, 2022, Heritage Auctions
Floor	Documented July 2026 sales: $905 in 9.6, $600 in 9.4, $290 in 9.0, $152 in 7.0

Published before the movie opened, saved by seemingly everyone’s parents, and now sitting at more than 17,000 copies on the CGC census. Supply is why a beautiful raw copy is a few hundred dollars, not a few thousand. The 35-cent price variant above is a different animal entirely, and the diamond-box Whitman 35-cent reprint is neither one; the price box tells you which book you actually have.

36. Amazing Spider-Man #121 (Marvel, 1973): death of Gwen Stacy

Documented high	$9,300 for a CGC 9.8, June 19, 2021, Heritage Auctions
Floor	Documented 2026 sales: $1,000 in 9.2 (July), $611 in 8.5 (July), $500 in 8.0 (July), $299 in 7.0 (July)
Current market	$220 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

The story most often cited as the moment comics grew up, and the spiritual start of the Bronze Age even though the era’s calendar opens in 1970. Unlike most books here, the top grade has held a real market: current 9.8 copies trade at $5,500 and up per 2025 guide data. Any presentable copy is a three-figure comic, and demand for this story does not fade.

37. Iron Fist #14 35-Cent Price Variant (Marvel, 1977): the first Sabretooth

Documented high	$8,365 for a CGC 9.4, November 2016, Heritage Auctions; a decade-old record
Floor	Current variant market values: $7,475 in 9.2, $5,750 in 8.0, $3,925 in 7.0, $1,231 in 2.0 (PriceCharting, August 2026)

Sabretooth’s debut in its rare edition: only 46 variant copies had been graded as of late 2016, against 3,116 regular gradings, which makes it scarcer than the Star Wars #1 variant. The square 35-cent price box on a first printing is the entire identification. The record is ten years old and the market has moved since; a current 9.2 guide value of $7,475 nearly matches that old 9.4 sale, so a genuine variant deserves fresh comps, not the old headline.

38. Daredevil #168 (Marvel, 1981): the first Elektra

Documented high	$7,800 for a CGC 9.8, June 19, 2022, Heritage Auctions
Floor	Documented 2026 sales: $465 in 9.6 (July), $360 in 9.2 (July), $205 in 8.5 (July), $100 in 3.0 (May)
Current market	$173 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

Elektra debuts in Frank Miller’s first issue as writer, two firsts in one comic. The record is a 2022 result at the top of the census, and the step down is steep; below 9.6 this is a low-three-figure book. There are a lot of copies out there, because by 1981 everyone knew Miller’s Daredevil was special.

39. Swamp Thing #1 (DC, 1972): Wrightson’s solo launch

Reported high	Recorded sales have reached $7,000 (guide record, undated); a typical 9.8 trades near $3,000
Floor	Reported minimum around $30 (price guide, undated)
Current market	$98 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

Wrightson’s solo launch tells the origin story, one year after the House of Secrets debut. Recorded sales have reached $7,000, but nothing I could fetch puts a date on that figure, and a typical 9.8 trades near $3,000, so use the smaller number to set expectations. With a guide minimum of $30, this is a book where condition does nearly all of the work.

40. X-Men #129 (Marvel, 1980): the first Kitty Pryde and Emma Frost

Documented high	$6,600 for a CGC 9.8, May 9, 2021, eBay
Floor	Documented 2026 sales: $529 in 9.6 (August), $350 in 9.4 (July), $190 in 9.0 (July), $135 in 7.0 (June)
Current market	$108 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

Two major debuts in a single issue, and it opens the Dark Phoenix Saga on top of that. The record dates to the 2021 run-up, but this book has weathered the correction better than most of its X-Men neighbors. High-grade copies are steady three-figure comics with a four-figure ceiling.

41. Primer #2 (Comico, 1982): the first Grendel

Reported high	$6,600 for a CGC 9.8, October 2022, venue unstated
Floor	By 2024 a 9.8 traded at $2,400 and a 9.2 at $340
Current market	$364 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

Matt Wagner’s Hunter Rose debuts in this anthology, the single most sought-after Comico book. Flag the record for what it is: a pandemic-peak sale, with the same 9.8 grade trading at $2,400 by 2024, about a third of the high. With 33 copies in 9.8, the top of the census is thin enough that one motivated buyer can set a number nobody repeats.

42. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #1 Second Printing (Mirage, 1984): the June reprint

Reported high	$5,600 for a CGC 9.6, 2021 sales, venue unstated
Floor	2021 sales: $3,840 for a 9.4, $1,275 for an 8.5

Same oversized cover as the first print, produced just one month later in June 1984, but this one carries a printing identifier on the inside page, and that single line is the whole ballgame: a first-print 9.8 sold at $132,000 in 2024 while this printing’s recorded top is $5,600. A gap that wide is exactly why doctored copies exist, so if the identifier area looks bleached, washed, or otherwise wrong, walk away or get it authenticated.

43. Marvel Feature #1 (Marvel, 1971): the first Defenders

Reported high	$4,950 reported for a CGC 9.8 in 2019, venue unstated; the documented base is a 9.8 at $3,100 in 2018
Floor	Current market values: $1,600 in 9.6, $485 in 9.2, $280 in 8.0, $131 in 6.0 (PriceCharting, August 2026)
Current market	$75 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

The Defenders actually debut here, Hulk, Sub-Mariner, and Doctor Strange under a Neal Adams cover, a year before the team got its own title. Do not confuse this with Defenders #1; this is the book with the first appearance, and the market knows it. The reported record lacks a venue, so lean on the documented 2018 sale and the current ladder for pricing.

44. Batman #234 (DC, 1971): Two-Face returns

Reported high	Recorded sales have reached $4,800 (guide record, undated)
Floor	Reported minimum around $30 (price guide, undated)
Current market	$103 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

Harvey Dent comes back here, his first appearance anywhere since 1954, under another Neal Adams cover. Recorded sales have reached $4,800, undated and with no grade attached, so read that as a lifetime record rather than a market price. The guide minimum is $30, and most copies live far closer to the minimum than to the record.

45. Iron Fist #14 Regular Edition (Marvel, 1977): the first Sabretooth

Reported high	$4,800 reported for CGC 9.8 sales in 2024, venue unstated
Floor	Reported 2024 sales: $1,740 in 9.6, $1,350 in 9.4, $1,000 in 9.0, $640 in 8.0
Current market	$190 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

This is the common 30-cent edition of Sabretooth’s first appearance, with 3,116 graded copies, and it is a good book in its own right; high grades bring four figures. The serious money lives in the 35-cent price variant listed separately above, so check the price box before deciding which entry applies to your copy. The 2024 sales figures here are reported without a venue, so use them for scale.

46. Star Wars #3 35-Cent Price Variant (Marvel, 1977)

Documented high	$4,320 for a CGC Signature Series 9.6, August 8, 2024, Heritage Auctions
Floor	No grade ladder captured for this variant; price off recent comparable sales

Another of the 1977 35-cent test books, documented in the same August 2024 Heritage sale as its siblings; note the record copy was a Signature Series slab, which carries its own premium. The square 35-cent price box on a first printing is what makes a genuine variant. Rarer and more valuable than any regular-edition Star Wars issue, cheaper than the #1 variant by a wide margin.

47. Mister Miracle #1 (DC, 1971): the first Scott Free

Reported high	$4,250 reported for a CGC 9.8, around 2019 (venue not stated)
Floor	An 8.0 averaged $210 by July 2023 (fetched market data)
Current market	$55 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

Scott Free’s debut is a Fourth World cornerstone, and its numbers show what happened to the whole Kirby DC line once the hype cycles passed. The reported record is $4,250 for a 9.8 around 2019, venue unstated, while an 8.0 averaged just $210 by mid-2023. That gap is the story here: real money at the census top, ordinary money everywhere else.

48. Marvel Premiere #15 (Marvel, 1974): the first Iron Fist

Reported high	$4,150 reported for a CGC 9.8 at the 2017 peak, venue unstated
Floor	Current market values: $854 in 9.6, $350 in 9.0, $249 in 8.0, $108 in 4.0 (PriceCharting, August 2026)
Current market	$120 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

Danny Rand debuts here, and the record has never run away for a structural reason: no fewer than 40 copies exist in CGC 9.8, so the top grade is not scarce. That keeps this a three-figure book below the very top. A clean first appearance of a name character at this price is one of the more approachable keys on the list.

49. Ms. Marvel #1 (Marvel, 1977): Carol Danvers takes the name

Reported high	A CGC 9.8 reportedly reached $4,000 briefly; undated, secondhand, and recent 9.8 money is roughly a quarter of that
Floor	Current market values: $637 in 9.8, $168 in 9.6, $79 in 9.0, $28 in 4.0 (PriceCharting, August 2026)
Current market	$25 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

Carol Danvers puts on the costume here, though her actual first appearance is Marvel Super-Heroes #13 from 1968; sellers mix those up constantly. This book is the textbook movie spike and collapse: a reported brief peak near $4,000 for a 9.8, now about a quarter of that. Nice raw copies are $25 comics, which is worth knowing before anyone pays grading fees.

50. New Gods #1 (DC, 1971): the first Orion

Documented high	$3,960 for a CGC 9.8, April 2, 2023, Heritage Auctions
Floor	An 8.5 averages $175, down from a peak near $300 in 2020 (fetched market data, July 2023)
Current market	$50 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

One of only two Bronze DC records on this page I can document end to end: a CGC 9.8 sold at Heritage on April 2, 2023 for $3,960, a record for the issue. Orion debuts as Kirby’s Fourth World gets its flagship title. Below the top the money is modest, with an 8.5 averaging $175, down from a peak near $300 in 2020, so set expectations off the fresh data rather than the 2020 highs.

Fifty down, fifty to go. If your books are within driving distance of anywhere in Southern California, the shortcut is a photo text to (951) 515-9604.

51. Star Wars #2 35-Cent Price Variant (Marvel, 1977)

Documented high	$3,840 for a CGC Signature Series 9.4, August 8, 2024, Heritage Auctions
Floor	No grade ladder captured for this variant; price off recent comparable sales

The least expensive of the documented Star Wars 35-cent variants, sold in the same August 2024 Heritage auction as the others, and the record copy was a Signature Series slab. As with all of them, the square 35-cent price box on a first printing is the identification, and the regular 30-cent edition is a different, far cheaper book. Still real money for a comic most owners assume is ordinary.

52. Love and Rockets #1 Fantagraphics First Printing (1982): the alt-comics landmark

Documented high	$3,824 for a CGC 9.8, November 17, 2017 (Heritage)
Floor	A 9.4 sold for $49.95 the same month (eBay, November 2017); the grade cliff is the story
Current market	$50 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

The Hernandez brothers’ landmark in its first properly published edition, identifiable by the color Jaime cover added to the 1981 fanzine material. Price this one with extreme caution: the record 9.8 and the $49.95 9.4 sold in the same month, one of the most brutal grade cliffs on this list, and I found no dated comps after 2017 at all.

53. Superman #233 (DC, 1971): Kryptonite Nevermore

Reported high	Recorded sales have reached $3,500 (guide record, undated)
Floor	Reported minimum around $5 (price guide, undated)
Current market	$92 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

“Kryptonite Nevermore” relaunched Superman for the Bronze Age behind what may be Neal Adams’ most iconic Superman cover. Recorded sales have reached $3,500, undated and with no grade attached, and the guide minimum is all of $5. Every real copy lives somewhere between those two numbers, which is why a photo beats a guess; text me one.

54. All-Star Comics #58 (DC, 1976): the first Power Girl

Reported high	$3,500 reported for a CGC 9.8, June 2022 (unconfirmed); the fetched 2024 guide grid lists a 9.8 at $2,475
Floor	About $500 for a 9.6 and $125 for a 7.0 (fetched 2024 grid)
Current market	$62 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

Power Girl’s first appearance carries a reported $3,500 sale for a 9.8 in June 2022 that I could not confirm at the source; the fetched 2024 guide grid puts a 9.8 at $2,475, and at least the two figures agree on scale. The cliff below is steep, with a 9.6 near $500 and a 7.0 near $125, so everything under the census top is a few-hundred-dollar book. If yours is not slabbed, price it like a nice reader, not like the record.

55. Defenders #1 (Marvel, 1972): the team gets its own title

Current guide value	$3,416 in CGC 9.8 (PriceCharting, August 2026); this is a current guide value, not a sale, as no public auction record was found
Floor	Current market values: $677 in 9.6, $275 in 9.2, $199 in 8.0, $40 in 2.0 (PriceCharting, August 2026)
Current market	$55 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

The non-team graduates to its own series, but the Defenders’ first appearance is Marvel Feature #1, listed above, and the price difference between the two books reflects that. No public auction record surfaced for this issue, so the headline is a guide value rather than a sale. Everything below near-mint is a modest comic; a sharp 9.8 is where the money is.

56. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #1 Third Printing (Mirage, 1984): the one most raw copies turn out to be

Reported high	$3,360 for a CGC 9.8, 2021 sales, venue unstated
Floor	2021 sales: $1,850 for a 9.6, $850 for an 8.5

Roughly 35,000 copies of this printing exist against about 3,000 firsts, so when a raw TMNT #1 comes out of a box, this is usually what it is. The tell is more blood in the T in the middle of Turtles on the cover, and the stakes of getting it right are stark: $3,360 for this printing’s best recorded 9.8 versus around $132,000 for a first-print 9.8 in 2024. Bleached-out printing identifiers have been used to pass reprints off as firsts, so verify before you price.

57. X-Men #137 (Marvel, 1980): death of Phoenix

Documented high	$3,107 for a CGC 9.9, November 17, 2017, Heritage Auctions
Floor	Documented 2026 sales: $125 in 9.6 (July), $117 in 9.4 (July), $72 in 7.0 (April)
Current market	$30 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

The double-sized climax of the Dark Phoenix Saga is one of the most read comics of its decade, and read is the operative word; below 9.4 this is a reader copy, full stop. The record is a 2017 grade-rarity artifact from a 9.9 slab. Own it for the story, because almost no copy of this book is a payday.

58. Batman #244 (DC, 1972): the Ra’s al Ghul duel cover

Reported high	Recorded sales have reached $2,700 (guide record, undated)
Floor	Reported minimum around $10 (price guide, undated)
Current market	$98 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

The shirtless desert duel between Batman and Ra’s al Ghul is one of the most homaged covers Neal Adams ever drew, and the cover is the value. Recorded sales have reached $2,700, undated, against a guide minimum of $10, so the spread between an ordinary copy and a census-topper is nearly the entire price. Condition and eye appeal decide everything on this one.

59. Marvel Premiere #1 (Marvel, 1972): Warlock named and costumed

Current guide value	$2,520 in CGC 9.8 (PriceCharting, August 2026); this is a current guide value, not a sale, as no public auction record was found
Floor	Current market values: $950 in 9.6, $273 in 9.0, $171 in 8.0; raw copies around $41 (PriceCharting, August 2026)
Current market	$41 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

The character called “Him” in the Silver Age becomes Adam Warlock here, named and costumed for the first time. No public auction record turned up, so the headline number is a guide value only. Starlin-era cosmic Marvel has a devoted collector base, but raw mid-grade copies of the Warlock books are $15 to $50 comics; the value concentrates hard at the top grade.

60. Incredible Hulk #271 (Marvel, 1982): Rocket Raccoon’s first comic book

Documented high	$2,150 for a CGC 9.8, May 6, 2021, eBay
Floor	Documented July 2026 sales: $215 in 9.6, $205 in 9.4, $160 in 9.0
Current market	$91 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

Careful with the wording on this one: Rocket debuted first in black and white in the Marvel Preview #7 magazine in 1976, so this is his first color comic book appearance, not his first appearance flat out. The record is Guardians-movie-era money; a 9.8 is a $525 book as of June 2026. A fun key at a price that finally matches the fun.

61. Forever People #1 (DC, 1971): the first full Darkseid, by most countings

Documented high	$2,025 for a CGC 9.8, April 23, 2023, eBay auction; a 9.8 reportedly peaked at $4,500 in early 2021
Floor	An 8.5 averaged about $250 (fetched market data, July 2023)
Current market	$54 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

Most countings credit this book with Darkseid’s first full appearance, following his cameo debut in Jimmy Olsen #134, though some guides give the honor to Jimmy Olsen #148 instead, so I state the debate rather than pretend it is settled. The documented record is $2,025 for a CGC 9.8 in an April 2023 eBay auction, well off the reported $4,500 a 9.8 brought in early 2021. An 8.5 averaged about $250 in mid-2023, honest money for a Kirby launch book the hype cycle has already moved through.

62. Gobbledygook #2 (Mirage, 1984): the other pre-TMNT zine

Reported high	No dated public sale; guide $2,000 in near mint, with recent sales reported around guide (undated)
Floor	The #1 and #2 set carries a $5,000 near mint guide value

The second half of the pre-Turtles pair, concluding the Fugitoid story, with the same estimated 50-copy hand-made run as #1. No dated public sale surfaced for this issue on its own, so everything here is guide-level and reported, and every counterfeit warning from the #1 entry applies with equal force: yellowed newsprint, provenance, authentication.

63. Detective Comics #475 (DC, 1978): “The Laughing Fish”

Reported high	$1,800 reported for a CGC 9.8, March 18, 2025 (relayed secondhand from an auction index)
Floor	Ordinary copies are double-digit books
Current market	$59 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

“The Laughing Fish” earns its slot on the story, the peak of the Englehart and Rogers Joker run. A 9.8 reportedly brought $1,800 in March 2025, a figure relayed secondhand from an auction index I could not fetch directly. Ordinary copies are double-digit books, and that is fine; not every entry on this list is about the money.

64. Warlock #1 (Marvel, 1972): Adam Warlock’s own title

Current guide value	$1,762 in CGC 9.8 (PriceCharting, August 2026); this is a current guide value, not a sale, as no public auction record was found
Floor	Current market values: $567 in 9.6, $171 in 9.2, $80 in 8.0; raw copies around $15 (PriceCharting, August 2026)
Current market	$15 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

Warlock gets his own series months after Marvel Premiere #1 named him, and the same pricing shape applies: a real top-grade market, then a fast drop to reader money. No public sale record was found, so the headline is a guide figure. Raw copies around $15 make this a book to enjoy rather than insure.

65. Daredevil #158 (Marvel, 1979): Frank Miller’s run begins

Documented high	$1,680 for a CGC 9.8, April 7, 2024, Heritage Auctions
Floor	Documented 2026 sales: $1,003 in 9.8 (April), $415 in 9.6 (June), $261 in 9.4 (June), $75 in 6.0 (May)
Current market	$74 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

Miller’s art run starts here, which makes this a run-start key rather than a character key, and the market prices those more gently. Usefully, both the 2024 record and a 2026 sale exist in the same grade: a 9.8 brought $1,680 two years ago and $1,003 this April. That is the honest trajectory of a mid-list Bronze key right now.

66. Saga of the Swamp Thing #37 (DC, 1985): the first John Constantine

Reported high	$1,650 for a CGC 9.8, 2024 guide grid (venue not stated)
Floor	About $600 for a 9.6 and $355 for a 9.0 (fetched 2024 grid); guide minimum $25
Current market	$126 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

John Constantine walks in at the very edge of the era, mid-1985, in Alan Moore’s Swamp Thing. The 2024 grid puts a 9.8 at $1,650 with no venue stated, and the drop to $600 at 9.6 is why the source’s own advice is to stick to a white-pages 9.8. One wrinkle worth knowing: the scarce 95-cent Canadian price variant carries a premium over the standard copy.

67. Batman #237 (DC, 1971): the Rutland Halloween issue

Reported high	Recorded sales have reached $1,560 (guide record, undated)
Floor	Reported minimum around $10 (price guide, undated)
Current market	$120 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

The Rutland Halloween issue, with the first Reaper and another Adams cover, is a cult favorite more than a money book. Recorded sales have reached $1,560, undated, against a guide minimum of $10. It earns its place on charm; most copies you will actually find are ordinary reader copies.

68. DC Comics Presents #22, Whitman pre-pack variant (1980): the benchmark for a strange rarity

Reported high	$1,525 for a CGC 8.5, January 2014 (RecalledComics; venue not stated); a VG+ copy made $403 in late 2013
Floor	Ordinary direct and newsstand copies of this issue are dollar-box books

For a few months around 1980, Whitman sold DC comics in sealed three-packs through department stores, and the variants carry the Whitman logo where the issue number and month normally sit, with a diagonal line through the barcode. Distribution collapsed mid-run, so a handful of issues barely exist in the Whitman version, and this Superman and Captain Comet issue is the one specialists use as the benchmark. Check that corner on any 1980 DC book from a sealed pack before you assume it is ordinary.

69. Strange Tales #178 (Marvel, 1975): the first Magus

Current guide value	$1,457 in CGC 9.8 (PriceCharting, August 2026); this is a current guide value, not a sale, as no public auction record was found
Floor	Current market values: $274 in 9.6, $122 in 9.2, $54 in 8.0; raw copies around $19 (PriceCharting, August 2026)
Current market	$19 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

Jim Starlin’s Warlock run opens here with the debut of the Magus, and for the cosmic-Marvel crowd this is a cornerstone. No public auction record was found, so the headline is a guide value. Raw copies around $19 tell you where the market really lives; this is a collector’s book, not a seller’s windfall.

70. Thor #337 (Marvel, 1983): the first Beta Ray Bill

Documented high	$1,315 for a CGC 9.9, May 21, 2010, Heritage Auctions
Floor	Documented 2026 sales: $325 in 9.8 (July), $155 in 9.6 (July), $51 in 7.0 (June)
Current market	$60 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

Walt Simonson takes over Thor and hands the hammer to Beta Ray Bill in one of the most beloved single issues of the eighties. The record is a sixteen-year-old 9.9 artifact, and the book has simply never been expensive: a 9.8 is $325 as of July 2026. Hugely loved, modestly priced, and I mean both halves of that as a compliment.

71. X-Men #134 (Marvel, 1980): the first Dark Phoenix

Documented high	$1,080 for a CGC 9.8, March 3, 2019, eBay
Floor	Documented 2026 sales: $550 in 9.8 (July), $225 in 9.6 (July), $143 in 8.5 (July)
Current market	$53 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

Jean Grey turns Dark Phoenix in a transformation issue every X-Men reader owns, which is exactly the problem; supply overwhelms demand, and this carries the cheapest documented record among the X-keys on this list. A 9.8 sold for $550 in July 2026, about half the 2019 record. A great comic to read and a poor one to bank on.

72. Macross #1 (Comico, 1984): the first US Robotech comic

Reported high	$1,000 for a CGC 9.8, June 2018, venue unstated; the source itself flags the sale as a possible outlier
Floor	Fair market value in 9.8 was $625 at the time of that sale (2018 data)
Current market	$27 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

December 1984 puts this book inside the era by a single month, and it holds a real distinction as the first American comic for the series that became Robotech. Treat the number gently, though: it is one sale, flagged as a possible outlier by the article that reported it, with fair market value sitting at $625 in the same data.

73. Uncle Scrooge #179 Whitman (1980): the pre-pack sleeper

Reported high	CGC and still-bagged copies reported over $1,000 (undated); guide $425 in near mint
Floor	Documented low-grade copies brought $100 to $200 each (eBay, early 2012)

This is the headline book of the Whitman pre-pack story: in late 1980 Western sold its Gold Key line only in bagged three-packs under the Whitman brand, distribution collapsed, and a handful of issues from those months survive in an estimated 101 to 1,000 copies each. A Scrooge comic worth real money sounds unlikely, which is exactly why sealed bags and graded copies of this one keep surprising people; even rough copies were bringing $100 to $200 back in 2012.

74. Tales of the Teen Titans #44 (DC, 1984): Nightwing debuts

Reported high	Recorded sales have reached $850 (guide record, undated)
Floor	Reported minimum around $15 (price guide, undated)
Current market	$34 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

Dick Grayson puts on the Nightwing suit for the first time here, and Jericho debuts in the same issue. Recorded sales have reached $850, undated, with a guide minimum of $15. For a 1984 book, that record belongs to the census top; a raw copy is a modest book carrying one great story beat.

75. Grendel #1 (Comico, 1983): the first solo Grendel title

Reported high	No dated public sale; guide $850 in near mint
Floor	None sourced; a June 2021 census showed 353 graded copies with 12 in 9.8

About 1,800 copies were printed of Grendel’s first solo title, and high-grade copies reportedly bring three figures. Be clear on which book carries the money, though: Hunter Rose debuted a year earlier in Primer #2, and that is the Grendel key worth four figures, not this one.

76. DC Comics Presents #26 (DC, 1980): the first New Teen Titans

Reported high	Recorded sales have reached $775 (guide record, undated)
Floor	Reported minimum around $25 (price guide, undated)
Current market	$60 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

Cyborg, Raven, and Starfire actually debut here, inside a 16-page preview insert, not in the team’s own first issue. Recorded sales have reached $775, undated, with a guide minimum of $25. Since the debut is the insert, confirm the insert is still present before pricing any copy.

77. The New Teen Titans #2 (DC, 1980): the first Deathstroke

Reported high	Recorded sales have reached $770 (guide record, undated); a current dealer ask for a 9.8 is about $550
Floor	Reported minimum around $10 (price guide, undated)
Current market	$74 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

Deathstroke the Terminator first appears here, and two independent numbers agree on the scale: a recorded $770 guide record, undated, and a current dealer asking price of about $550 for a 9.8 billed as highest certified. That agreement is worth more than either figure alone. This is a three-figure book even at the very top, so set expectations in the hundreds, not the thousands.

78. Love and Rockets #1 Self-Published Edition (1981): the hand-folded original

Documented high	$700 for a CGC 9.6, September 13, 2017 (ComicLink); a 9.8 reportedly brought $849 on eBay (undated)
Floor	A 9.6 made $530 in mid-2013
Current market	$50 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

Hand-folded and hand-stapled by the Hernandez brothers in a run of about 800 magazine-size copies, with only 91 ever certified. For all that scarcity this is a story book, not a money book, with values in the three figures; the tell is the magazine size and black-and-white wraps, since the September 1982 Fantagraphics edition added the color Jaime cover.

79. Nova #1 (Marvel, 1976): the first Richard Rider

Current guide value	$690 in CGC 9.8 (PriceCharting, August 2026); this is a current guide value, not a sale, as no public auction record was found
Floor	Current market values: $245 in 9.6, $110 in 9.0, $83 in 8.0; raw copies around $39 (PriceCharting, August 2026)
Current market	$39 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

Richard Rider’s debut rounds out the 1976 launch class, and no public auction record surfaced for it, so the headline is a guide value only. The book has a loyal following and a modest price in every grade. If a Nova movie announcement ever lands, remember what happened to Iron Man #55 afterward.

80. The Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers #1 (Rip Off Press, 1971): the underground printing trap

Reported high	No dated auction record; guide runs $200 to $600 from very fine to near mint minus, for the 1971 first printing only
Floor	The many reprints run under $50 in any grade

Gilbert Shelton’s underground classic went through printing after printing, and only the 1971 Rip Off Press first carries the money. That makes it the whole underground problem in one book: the copy in the box is probably a reprint worth under $50, and confirming the printing matters more than the grade.

81. Starslayer #2 (Pacific, 1982): the first Rocketeer

Reported high	$565 for a CGC 9.8, August 2021, venue unstated
Floor	9.8s were trading at $200 to $225 by 2024
Current market	$14 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

Dave Stevens’ Rocketeer makes his first appearance and gets his origin here, and the character’s fame wildly outruns the price of the book. With 1,217 copies graded, supply is simply too deep: 9.8s settled back to $200 to $225 by 2024, and the single 9.9 on the census has never sold.

82. The Black Hole #4 Whitman (1980): the movie tie-in from the collapse

Reported high	$100 to $500 in near mint per the specialist guide; no dated public sale
Floor	None sourced; no dated sales exist to set one

When Western pulled its Gold Key line off newsstands in August 1980 and went to bagged three-packs under the Whitman brand, distribution collapsed almost immediately, stranding a handful of late-1980 issues in tiny print runs. This tie-in to the Disney movie is one of them, with an estimated 101 to 1,000 copies surviving.

83. Donald Duck #222 Whitman (1980): the throwaway that got scarce

Reported high	$100 to $500 in near mint per the specialist guide; no dated public sale
Floor	None sourced; no dated sales exist to set one

Nobody set this comic aside in 1980; it went into a plastic three-pack, into a kid’s hands, and then into the trash. That ordinary fate is the entire reason a common-looking Donald Duck issue now carries an uncommon guide value.

84. Little Lulu #260 Whitman (1980): the two-second identification check

Reported high	$100 to $500 in near mint per the specialist guide; no dated public sale
Floor	None sourced; no dated sales exist to set one

Identification is quick with the pre-pack Whitmans: the Whitman logo sits where the issue number and month normally go, and a diagonal line runs through the barcode. Little Lulu collectors are a small crowd, but scarcity this severe does not need a big one.

85. Mickey Mouse #208 Whitman (1980): the wrong decade for a valuable Mickey

Reported high	$100 to $500 in near mint per the specialist guide; no dated public sale
Floor	None sourced; no dated sales exist to set one

A Mickey Mouse comic on a most-valuable list usually means a much older book, not one from 1980. This issue is the exception because it shipped only during the doomed three-pack months, when the line’s distribution had already fallen apart.

86. Super Goof #61 Whitman (1980): supply, not demand

Reported high	$100 to $500 in near mint per the specialist guide; no dated public sale
Floor	None sourced; no dated sales exist to set one

Value here has nothing to do with demand for Super Goof and everything to do with supply. The last months of 1980 nearly erased this issue from existence, and the guide band reflects a rarity that has never actually been tested at public auction.

87. Walt Disney’s Comics and Stories #480 Whitman (1980): the scarce issue of a common title

Reported high	$100 to $500 in near mint per the specialist guide; no dated public sale
Floor	None sourced; no dated sales exist to set one

The flagship Disney anthology was as ordinary as comics got, right up until the pre-pack months made this issue scarce. If a sealed Whitman three-pack from 1980 is sitting in a closet, this is one of the issues worth looking for through the plastic.

88. Winnie the Pooh #22 Whitman (1980): the book nobody thought to save

Reported high	$100 to $500 in near mint per the specialist guide; no dated public sale
Floor	None sourced; no dated sales exist to set one

Few people would ever think to grade a Winnie the Pooh comic, and that is precisely the point: almost none were saved, let alone saved well. No dated public sale exists, so the guide band is the honest ceiling until a copy actually trades.

89. Woody Woodpecker #191 Whitman (1980): do not break the bag

Reported high	$100 to $500 in near mint per the specialist guide; no dated public sale
Floor	None sourced; no dated sales exist to set one

My advice for this whole Whitman group comes down to one thing: leave sealed three-packs sealed. An original bag is the best evidence a copy is what it claims to be, and an untouched pack from late 1980 is worth a conversation before anything gets opened.

90. Kamandi #1 (DC, 1972): Kirby’s other DC hit

Reported high	Recorded sales in the low hundreds; a 9.8 carried a $430 fair market value in 2018 (stale data)
Floor	About $78 for a 9.2 and roughly $38 below 6.5 (2018 data)
Current market	$25 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

Kirby’s other DC hit gets an honest label: every price point I have for it is 2017 and 2018 vintage, with a 9.8 fair market value of $430 in 2018 and a 9.2 around $78. So the fair summary is recorded sales in the low hundreds for nice copies, and the era of the data noted out loud. A fun book to own, minor money to sell.

91. Pacific Presents #1 (Pacific, 1982): the Rocketeer returns

Reported high	$400 for a CGC 9.8 at the March 2022 peak
Floor	$200 in a March 2024 eBay fixed-price sale; about $150 in late 2023

The second Rocketeer appearance, wearing a Dave Stevens cover, and its trajectory mirrors Starslayer #2 at a lower price point: a $400 peak in early 2022, then a settle into the $150 to $200 range. A lovely book to own, just not one to expect a windfall from.

92. The New Teen Titans #1 (DC, 1980): the title launch

Reported high	Recorded sales have reached $375 (guide record, undated)
Floor	Reported minimum around $1 (price guide, undated)
Current market	$23 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

One clarification does most of the work here: this is the title launch, not the team’s debut, because the New Teen Titans first appeared in the DC Comics Presents #26 insert. Recorded sales have reached $375, undated, with a guide minimum of $1. A landmark run begins here; the money stays modest.

93. The Eternals #1 (Marvel, 1976): Kirby returns to Marvel

Current guide value	$351 in CGC 9.8 (PriceCharting, August 2026); this is a current guide value, not a sale, as no public auction record was found
Floor	Current market values: $123 in 9.6, $58 in 8.0, $43 in 6.0; raw copies around $18 (PriceCharting, August 2026)
Current market	$18 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

Jack Kirby comes back to Marvel and builds an entire mythology in one issue, and the movie spike this book got has already come and gone. No public sale record was found, so the headline is a guide figure, and raw copies are under $20. One wrinkle worth checking: a 30-cent price variant printing exists from the 1976 price test, and no pricing for it was captured here, so a variant copy deserves its own research.

94. Wimmen’s Comix #1 (1972): the landmark all-women anthology

Reported high	Guide band of $150 to $300, undated; top of band assumes a first printing
Floor	None sourced; first-printing rules apply

One of the most historically important underground books, the landmark anthology produced entirely by women cartoonists. The money is modest and the guide band is undated, but the usual underground rule holds: only a first printing earns even that.

95. Subvert Comics #1 (1970): the Spain Rodriguez underground

Reported high	Guide band of $80 to $250, undated; top of band assumes a first printing
Floor	None sourced; first-printing rules apply

Spain Rodriguez’s underground title earns its slot as a lesson rather than a payday. Reprints outnumber originals across this whole category, and the $250 top only ever applies to a confirmed first printing in top shape.

96. Saga of the Swamp Thing #20 (DC, 1984): Alan Moore’s run begins

Reported high	Recorded sales have reached $210 (guide record, undated)
Floor	Reported minimum around $10 (price guide, undated)
Current market	$36 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

The money is small and the slot is earned anyway: Alan Moore’s run begins here, the most acclaimed horror run of the era, setting up “The Anatomy Lesson” in #21. Recorded sales have reached $210, undated, with a guide minimum of $10. If you are selling a Swamp Thing run, the Moore issues are the reason a buyer wants the whole box.

97. E-Man #1 (Charlton, 1973): Charlton’s Bronze Age flagship

Reported high	$105 for a CGC 9.0 on eBay, undated; a single search-sourced datapoint
Floor	None sourced; ordinary copies are reader-copy money
Current market	$4 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

Charlton made charming comics in the 1970s and almost none of them made anybody rich, and E-Man is the best of that story: a genuinely loved book whose only citable datapoint is a $105 slab. It closes the priced portion of this list on an honest note, which is fun books, minimal money.

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Three books the public record cannot price

No verifiable auction record exists to rank these three, which is information in itself: when the public record is empty, whoever names a price for you is guessing, and they should say so.

98. Detective Comics #411 (DC, 1971): the first Talia al Ghul

Reported high	No documented sale found; recent asking prices reach about £1,264 for a CGC 9.0 (UK listing) and about $650 for a CGC 8.5 (dealer listing)
Floor	Raw copies listed around £83 to £148 (asking prices, not sales)
Current market	$126 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

Talia al Ghul’s first appearance is a genuine four-figure book in 9.0 and up, yet I could not find a single documented public sale anywhere accessible, only asking prices. So the auction and asking figures above are what sellers want, not what buyers have paid; the only buyer-side number is the eBay-sold average, which is an aggregate across all conditions, not a comp. I will not pretend otherwise. If you have a nice copy, this is exactly the kind of book to get a real offer on rather than trusting listing prices.

99. Savage Tales #1 (Marvel, 1971): the first Man-Thing

Reported high	No public auction record found; No public auction record found; $7,854 in CGC 9.8 (PriceCharting, August 2026), a current guide value, not a sale
Floor	None sourced; low print run, and surviving copies are usually poorly preserved
Current market	$261 average for raw, ungraded copies; graded copies bring more (PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026)

A black-and-white magazine most families would toss without a second look, and it contains the first appearance of Man-Thing. No documented auction sale surfaced for it, so the four-figure ladder is a current pricing scale, not money that changed hands, and I would want an actual comp in hand before quoting anyone a firm number. Low print run plus bad storage is exactly the profile of a sleeper, so do not throw the magazines out with the newspapers.

100. Fantasy Quarterly #1 (Independent Publishers Syndicate, 1978): the true first Elfquest

Reported high	No public dated sale was retrievable; CGC 9.8 copies exist and collectors reportedly pay real premiums
Floor	None sourced

Wendy and Richard Pini’s Elfquest actually debuted here, printed on notoriously cheap paper before WaRP Graphics published its own #1. The honest entry is the missing number: collectors pay real premiums for this over Elfquest #1, but I cannot point to a single public dated record, and a list built on documented sales should say so plainly when the documentation runs out.

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The 35-cent variant lottery

For a few months in 1977, Marvel tested a 35-cent cover price in a handful of markets while the rest of the country got 30-cent copies. Same comics, same everything, except the price box. On Star Wars #1 the census tells the story: over seventeen thousand regular copies graded against 327 of the variant, and the variant brings many multiples of the regular book in the same grade. Every Marvel from June to October 1977 has a possible variant, and the check takes two seconds: look at the price. One warning, because it costs people money: Whitman diamond-box reprints of Star Wars are not the variant, and sellers mix them up constantly.

The Marvel Value Stamp problem

Through the mid-seventies Marvel printed collectible stamps on interior pages and invited readers to cut them out. Readers did. Which is why the single most important page in a Bronze Age Marvel is not the cover: it is the stamp page. Incredible Hulk #181 carries a Marvel Value Stamp on an interior page, and a copy with that stamp clipped grades with a green Qualified label and, in my experience, sells for roughly 60 percent less than an intact copy at the same apparent grade. Before you price any book on this list from Marvel’s 1974 to 1976 window, open it gently to the stamp page and look. The full Hulk #181 guide walks through how to check it, and the grading guide covers what a clipped copy is still worth.

Selling Bronze Age comics

Bronze Age is where most of my calls start, because it is what got saved: the boxes bought new in the seventies and early eighties that came off the racks and went into closets. The process is the site’s standard one. Photos first, including the stamp page and the price box where they matter. An honest number with the reasoning out loud. Cash, anywhere in Southern California, and I come to you.

Straight answers on Bronze Age books

What counts as Bronze Age?

1970 through roughly 1985. It opens with the darker turn of Green Lantern/Green Arrow #76 and Kirby leaving Fantastic Four, and it closes around Crisis on Infinite Earths and Secret Wars, with the black-and-white indie boom as the bridge to what came next. The trade press files TMNT #1 under the next era’s label; it is on this page because 1984 is inside the window and that is where sellers will look for it.

My book’s record says one thing and your current-market line says less. Why?

Because the record was probably set in 2021 or 2022, when this era peaked, and the index has fallen since. A record is a fact about its date. The current lines carry their own date, August 2026, and when they disagree with the record, the current line is the one to plan around. The price guide post shows you how to pull fresh sold listings yourself.

Are my ordinary seventies comics worth anything?

Run-of-the-mill Bronze books are dollar-to-few-dollar comics, and I will tell you that straight. The money is in the specific issues on this page, in the variants, and in complete runs of horror titles. That is exactly why the check is worth doing before a box goes to a garage sale: one Hulk #181 pays for the time a hundred times over.

Why do some prices say “current guide value, not a sale”?

Because for some books no public auction record exists, and the most honest number available is what the price aggregators currently model. I print it labeled rather than dressing it up as a sale, and I treat it as the weakest kind of number on the page. When one of these books actually trades in public, the entry gets the real figure.

Keep going

• The full Hulk #181 guide, this era’s biggest book, in depth.
• The Silver Age hundred and the Golden Age hundred, for older boxes.
• The modern hundred, for 1992 on.
• The inherited collection guide and what shops actually pay.

Cover images on this page are shown small, for identification, the way a price guide shows them, with the publisher credited in each caption. If you are a rights holder and want an image removed, contact me and it comes down.