In January 1940, MLJ Magazines published a hero called the Shield in a costume of stars and stripes. Captain America Comics #1 arrived in March 1941, fourteen months later.
The Shield was first. Almost nobody has heard of him. Being first is not the same as being remembered, and this comic is the plainest example of it I can point at.
What it brings
| Grade | Result | Where and when |
|---|---|---|
| CGC 8.5 | $27,600 | Heritage Auctions, April 2021 |
| any condition | around $300 (reported, undated) | — |
| raw, current market | around $2,100 | PriceCharting eBay-sold index, August 2026 |
An 8.5 at $27,600 is a solid result for a book most people cannot name. A typical raw copy currently changes hands around $2,100 on PriceCharting’s eBay-sold index, against the $300 undated guide minimum — the range runs wide. The sale at the top is five years old now, so treat $27,600 as a 2021 data point rather than a current one.
One sale is one point. What it establishes is that this is not a cheap comic, which is the thing an owner most needs to know.
Why being first did not pay
Timely had Simon and Kirby, a cover that put a hero on the jaw of a living dictator, and a distribution reach MLJ could not match. The Shield had a smaller publisher, a less striking debut, and no equivalent moment.
Then MLJ found something that worked far better than superheroes. Archie arrived as filler in issue 22, took over the title, and eventually took over the company — the publisher renamed itself after a character who had not been invented yet when the Shield debuted. The Shield was pushed off his own covers by a teenager.
For collectors that history is exactly the appeal. A genuine patriotic-hero first, predating the famous one, from a company that abandoned the genre — it is a footnote with a real object attached, and footnotes with objects are what this end of the hobby collects.
Selling a Pep Comics #1
- Do not confuse it with #22. Same title, wildly different books. #22 is the first Archie and worth many times this.
- Describe the priority claim accurately. First patriotic superhero, January 1940, predating Captain America. That is the selling point and it is checkable.
- Expect a low grade. MLJ books survive poorly and the documented sale is an unusually good copy.
- Check the whole early run. If a run of early Pep turns up, there are two issues in it worth real money for completely unrelated reasons.
Have a copy?
Send three photos: front, back, and the small print. That is all I need to tell you where your copy really sits.
Related
- Pep Comics #22, the first Archie, and the far more valuable book in the same run.
- Captain America Comics #1, the patriotic hero everyone does remember.
- The 100 most valuable Golden Age comics, and what each one really sold for.
Cover images on this page are shown small, for identification, with the publisher credited in the caption. If you are a rights holder and want an image removed, contact me and it comes down.
