Most of us who love X-Men are now forced to face a harsh reality. We are likely priced out of the early issues of their books. Which Copper Age X-Men keys are the best for your investment dollars? Let's dive in and take a look. With CGC 0.5 copies of X-Men #1 selling for $7,000 and the popularity of Scarlet Witch sending X-Men #4 values soaring this past year, it's getting tougher to buy the early issues at reasonable prices. Even popular issues like the first appearance of Juggernaut or the first Sentinels or the first X-Men/Avengers crossover in X-Men #9 have crossed four figures just for mid-grade books.

Giant-Size X-Men #1 or X-Men #94? Fuggedaboudit. Same story. Even smaller Bronze Age X-Men keys like X-Men #141 are now over $1,000 for high-grade copies.

But fortunately for those looking to acquire X-Men keys at reasonable prices, there is a small treasure trove of books found in the Copper Age. Yes, that short window typically pegged from 1984 to 1991 produced a significant number of X-Men keys before Marvel went full 1990's with Jim Lee's new volume beginning in September 1991.

So which ones would I look for? Here you go.

X-Men #201

Fans of the character Cable will instantly recognize this book, although it is not one that is considered widely popular. X-Men #201 is the first appearance of Nathan Summers, who would later become Cable. Nathan is the son of Scott Summers and Madeleine Pryor, but would not appear as Cable until the famous New Mutants #87. With all of the hype around NM #87, the cameo in New Mutants #86, and a preview in Marvel Age #82, it all points back to this early appearance.

Of the 1.579 copies of this book that are graded by CGC, well over 1,000 of them are in grades 9.4-9.8. But not to worry, even 9.8 grades most recently sold between $100-$150. This book won't ever reach the popularity of NM #87. Still, it allows collectors a cheap way to get access to one of the most popular characters of the modern age.

X-Men #212

X-Men #211 is the famous 25th anniversary border cover with a half-masked Wolverine, and it directly leads into this key issue when Wolverine and Sabretooth battle for the first time.

We have seen these two battle it out on the big screen already; I can only imagine the hype when we see these two duke it out in the MCU in the years to come. Issue #213 may have the classic battle cover and feature the first cameo of Mr. Sinister, but it's  X-Men #212 when two iconic characters first meet.

This book does have a bit of a cult following so will run you quite a bit more than X-Men #201 or some other books on this list. A 9.8 copy sold for $450 in September right after a copy sold for $320. But 9.4 copies still get you into the top 2/3 of the census numbers and will run you less than $100 every time.

X-Men #221

As mentioned above, X-Men #213 has the first cameo, but this famous copy of X-Men #221 features the first full appearance of the intimidating and eternal X-Men villain. Mr. Sinister is tied to so many potential MCU projects, most recently the M.O.D.O.K. series, which could open the door to other appearances. Prices on this book are pretty stagnant right now, so it looks like the right time to buy.

Part of the price deflation is due to the fact that there are over 2,600 9.8 and 9.6 copies in the world today. According to GoCollect's sales database, the FMV of this book in a 9.8 was $490 one year ago. It was just $423 over the last month. The most recent sale on record was $488, but the three prior were all at $425 or below. Mr. Sinister is going to have some traction somewhere in future projects (he is immortal after all!) so this looks like a good time to invest.

X-Men #244

Jubilee has been a fan favorite ever since she first graced these pages of X-Men #244 and then it went to the moon with her yellow jacket and pink shades in the X-Men animated series in the 1990s. Besides being a culturally-relevant Asian-American superhero, her powers are just straight cool. She can produce pyrotechnic blasts and cause objects to explode at will. With the reintroduction of the X-Men animated series announced at Disney+ day a couple weeks ago, you are starting to hear the name Jubilee pop up again, which is causing this book to have a small spike.

For example, a CGC 9.8 sold in early October for $389. By the time late November rolled around, these books were all selling between $450-$500. Books in a 9.6 grade seem to be holding steady and might be a good place to invest. Every book sold in the two months between September 4th and November 7th went between $132 and $170. It is a stone-cold lock that Jubilee will make her way back to the X-Men series. We should see some upward movement again when that happens.

X-Men Annual #14

One of the most controversial issues of the Copper Age is the classic is-it-or-isn't-it first appearance of Gambit in X-Men Annual #14. This issue was the first that was available to consumers that featured Gambit, appearing on newsstands three weeks prior to X-Men #266. But #266 was written and published as if it would be the first appearance.  X-Men Annual #14 is often lost to the purgatory of comic timing, printing, and distributorships.

Either way, it is a desirable - and much more affordable - way to get to Gambit's first appearance. Copies in a 9.8 grade sold in late November for just over $300. Over 84% of the CGC graded copies come between grade 9.9 (there are 6 out there!) and grade 9.0. If you want to drop down to a 9.2, it can be yours for less than $120 these days.

What X-Men Keys Are You Buying?

If you're like me and you're not in the market for the ultra-expensive X-Men books out there, what are you hunting? Surely there are other X-Men keys you're looking for in this timeframe. All things mutant have had their moments of rising and falling popularity; I feel we are on the cusp of another wave of mutant interest.

What X-Men books do you prefer from the Copper Age or other ages? Let me know in the comments!