The X-Men fans rejoiced at the Wolverine PS5 trailer, and the reactions sent collectors on a spending spree for anything that might be connected to the game. Let's take a look at this week's Comic Trends & Oddballs

It’s time to take a deeper dive into the Hottest Comics index, and what we see is that it was a feeding frenzy for those X-Men key issues, particularly anything with a potential connection to the upcoming game. On that note, let’s examine the numbers when it comes to comic trends.

3. INCREDIBLE HULK #181 (+886)

No doubt Sony’s PS5 announcements propelled this holy grail back into the spotlight. With a comic as expensive as Hulk #181, it is notable when this issue makes such huge moves up the ladder. The new game is behind the drive to the front of the line. It also can be attributed to the intense speculation on Wolverine’s place in the MCU.

There have been rumors and gossip all year, and it is clear that fans are ravenous for any news. Although the Wolverine game is not on par with the eventual Marvel Studios announcement, the video game market cannot be denied, and this is further evidence of that fact.

7. X-MEN #1 (+558)

Is it any surprise that Sony’s Wolverine would create buzz for all the major X-Men keys? Like Hulk #181, the first appearance of the mutants is and always will be a holy grail.

Still, the speculation for their arrival in the MCU plus the game’s trailer was certain to give the rub to all the other X-keys out there.

What this shows is that, despite the high prices, collectors and investors alike are gunning for all the X-Men key issues, and money is not standing in their way.

11. X-MEN #4 (+152)

It was an X-travaganza this week for buyers. 

The market was flooded with Wolverine and X-Men sales, and again it was due to the game trailer. As long as Logan has been appearing on consoles, dating back to the original eight-bit NES, he has never had a legitimate hit.

In the hands of Insomniac Games, the same developers behind the hit Spider-Man for PS4, that problem looks to finally be remedied. The question, then, is what will the supporting cast look like? One possible inclusion is Omega Red, and the prospect of the Russian nightmare getting a featured spot on the lineup was too tantalizing for buyers to resist this week.

56. AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #149 (+856)

In the comics world, news moves so quickly that a month might as well be five years. Only weeks ago, Marvel issued the word that Ben Reilly would be returning to the pages of Amazing Spider-Man. The speculation is that Peter Parker will be written out of the series as writer Nick Spencer makes his exit from the title. That would leave Ben to take over as the full-time Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man. Not that we haven’t already seen that.

After seemingly dying at the end of ASM #149, Ben returned in the 1990s to fill the void after Peter took a hiatus from the role. It didn’t last, and Ben turned in his spandex, and this will likely end the same way. Still, it has been enough to earn his first appearance a few extra dollars.

ODDBALL OF THE WEEK

279. SUPER MARIO BROS. SPECIAL EDITION #1 (+720)

Anytime I see the inflated prices for the old Nintendo video game comics, they perplex me. Around the time these NES comics were being published by Valiant, the Mario Brothers had a God-awful movie and an equally cringey cartoon show.

Sales prices for this book have been all over the place, with 9.8s going for $339 in September and $921 in June, both on eBay just this year.

I can’t see the Super Mario logo without seeing Captain Lou Albano shaking his moneymaker to the beat of an oh-so-’80s pop-rap song. Do the Mario, guys.

What do you think about the latest comic trends? Tell us all about it!

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