Every action has an equal and opposite reaction, and that is evident in the Hottest Comics index. When five keys soar through the list, it means five others must plummet to the bottom. Ranking the top 100 best-selling single issues based on eBay sales volume, the list gives you a snapshot of what buyers are targeting. Conversely, it also reveals the comics that are being shunned. Hence, this Coldest Comics analysis. However, that can present unique investment opportunities. See for yourself. Let's look at some recent Coldest Comics.
77. AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #363 (-48)
If you have been following the Hottest/Coldest blog series for many weeks, you will know the usual suspects in the lineup. Whether they are going up to the penthouse or down to the outhouse, you can count on certain issues being on the list. One of those happens to be at the top of the list (or bottom, depending on how full your glass happens to be), Amazing Spider-Man #363.
One way or another ASM #363 is a frequent customer on the movers and shakers list. This time around, it fell 48 spots to land in the 77th position. I have little doubt this one will jump by about the same margin within the next week or two. While a fall of almost 50 spots is never good, don’t forget that it was 29th in recent days, so it remains popular despite the drop.
This isn’t the first appearance of Carnage, nor is it the first time Venom and Spider-Man join forces. Why, then, would buyers keep this issue on the move? It must be the debut of the mysterious Daily Bugle reporter known simply as Levitz, who was such a major character that ASM #363 may be his only appearance.
Maybe Levitz isn’t the selling point with ASM #363, so my next guess is that it’s another early Carnage key. Just like Rocky Balboa fighting communism, you can’t keep a good man down. In this case, you can’t keep a bad symbiote down. While it may have been eaten by Venom in Let There Be Carnage, comic collectors can’t get enough of the murderous red symbiote.
It’s a good time to be a buyer. At the moment, the graded 9.8’s 30-day FMV stands at $80, which is $45 off the 12-month pace.
46. THOR: GOD OF THUNDER #2 (-47)
Even when the Thor: Love and Thunder hype was at its peak, we all knew this was coming. It was inevitable, especially considering this is a villain’s key. As the comic community turns its attention away from the fourth Thor film, those once-massively popular issues with their inflated FMVs have begun to drop. Not surprisingly, it started with the first appearance of Gorr the God Butcher.
The normal routine for any large-scale, CGI Marvel blockbuster or Disney+ series is that the keys get a healthy dose of inflation after the initial announcement. Prices plateau somewhat in the months between that breaking news and the castings. By the time the first trailers hit, the FMVs are skyrocketing, and that leads to the premiere weekend when the values are at their premiums.
It’s a seller’s market at that point. Depending on how popular the movie or show happens to be, the effect can last longer than others. In the case of Love and Thunder, critics and audiences were less than pleased with another round of silly shenanigans. Thus, the values began dropping slightly faster than in other cases.
At least for hero keys, even if the character dies (after all, this is the Multiverse where resurrections are easy to explain), there’s still interest in the comic in case there’s a bigger role in the future. For villains, the shelf life is shorter. More often than not, they don’t make it out of the film. That makes investing in those villain keys a risky prospect.
In the case of Gorr, fans cooled on him very quickly. Since last year, the graded 9.8 has sold for nearly $2k at times. Before the movie’s premiere, it brought as much as $1,100 in 2022, though it averaged a less impressive $385. Since Gorr didn’t make it out of Love and Thunder, buyers have shied away from God of Thunder #2. The 30-day FMV has fallen to $187.
92. VENOM #3 (-38)
The first full appearance of Knull and its current slide is indirectly blamed on Love and Thunder. As symbiote fans know all too well, Gorr’s magic blade was forged by the God of the Symbiotes. In fact, the Necroblade itself is actually the first symbiote, crafted into Knull’s sword, All Black, before there was light in the Marvel Universe. He even used it to behead a Celestial, which would become the Guardians of the Galaxy’s famed Knowhere.
The movie version didn’t touch on All Black having belonged to an ancient symbiote god, but it was just vague enough that Marvel Studios could easily make the connection if it so chooses. While buyers might be souring on Venom #3 for now, it will have its day sooner or later. For that matter, there could be more coming if Kevin Feige decides to use Knull during a possible Black Suit Saga that many imagine would produce a new Venom for the MCU.
At one point, the standard Venom #3 graded at a 9.8 had reached a high of $449 this year. While it hasn’t sold for less than $350 in the past 30 days, the average has remained in the $320 range since this time last year.
74. YOUNG AVENGERS #1 (-33)
When are we ever going to get the Young Avengers in the MCU? Marvel has been teasing them since before the Disney+ shows first premiered when Feige confirmed they were on the agenda. Here we are years later, and they still haven’t arrived. They must be in the plans, right? After all, we have seen the live-action debuts of YA mainstays Kate Bishop, The Patriot, Speed, Wiccan, America Chavez, and Kamala Khan. Since the pieces are in play, what exactly is the hold-up?
Phase 6 will have two new Avengers films, and that could be where things are heading for the Young Avengers. By the time the new movies roll around in 2025, it could be time for a changing of the guard. While prices are down, this could be a great time to invest. However, don’t misinterpret that as cheap prices. For the past 30 days, the standard cover at a 9.8 has an FMV of $645, which is down from the 12-month average of $884.
95. AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #298 (-33)
Another culprit on the Hottest/Coldest index, ASM #298 once again found its way onto the dreaded Coldest Comics list. Just like ASM #363, the first appearance of the Toddfather will make its way back up the ranks. Sure, it’s dangling on the edge of the 100th spot, but ASM #298 won’t fall out of the rankings. I expect the issue to come charging back into the fold just in time for me to write a Hottest Comics list next week.
Besides having a famous Venom cameo, this was the first of Todd McFarlane’s historic run on Amazing Spider-Man. He set the tone early by co-creating Venom with famed writer David Michelinie. From there, a legend was born, and kids of the 1980s and ‘90s still point to McFarlane’s take on Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man as the quintessential Spidey.
It’s no wonder that the Toddfather’s debut on the title still fetches a decent price and stays inside the top 100 eBay best sellers. It may not be fetching the same $800+ price tags it was earning this time last year, the 9.8 still averages $685 in recent weeks.
Want more from the Movers & Shakers list?
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COLDEST COMICS: MS MARVEL & HER NOT-SO-MARVELOUS WEEK
