Am I the only one ready for Daredevil season three? I'm sure I'm not, which explains the recent boost in Daredevil keys.
We're just three weeks away from the new season of Daredevil on Netflix, and the DD keys are getting a boost. The most noticeable - aside from the first appearance of King Pin which I chronicled in "Return of the King Pin" - is DD's first appearance in Daredevil #1. Here's the breakdown.
DAREDEVIL #1
Understandably, we're seeing mostly mid- and lower-grade copies trading hands in the past 90 days. While there was a 9.0 that sold for $13,200 in August (which happens to be a new record, eclipsing the old mark of $8,880 set last year), most of the other grades have been down the ladder a bit. However, there have been four 7.0s that sold for an average of $3,741.
The most popular grades in these three months have been between a 3.0 and a 5.0, and they're all setting record numbers. Six 5.0s have sold recently, averaging $1,905, which is up a good $400 from the fair market values of the past two years. What's more is that a new high sale was reached when a 5.0 sold for $2,042 last month. The bigger seller, though, happens to be the 4.0, which sold eight times in 90 days for a high of $1,775 in mid-September.
Just behind the 4.0 you have the 3.0 selling seven times. As I've written before, you can tell how crazy things are getting with a key when the low grades starting hitting the quadruple digits. Two years ago, the 3.0's average was hovering below the $800 mark, which is understandable for such a major key as DD #1. It climbed to over $900 last year, but it's really kicked in the afterburners lately, striking the $1,200 FMV mark. There's also a new record-high sale of $1,500 that was set in August. When the low grades are in the $1,000 range like this, then DD #1 is likely out of reach for most of us.
Can't afford DD's first appearance? Welcome to the club; neither can the rest of us. For the Daredevil fans wanting a piece of the red devil's comic history, there is DD #7. If you don't know, this is when DD trashed the ugly yellow and black suit in favor of the iconic red costume. While it's much cheaper than DD #1, it's on the rise, so you will want to get one now. The biggest seller was the 7.0, which has sold five times in the past 90 days for an average of $417. Last year, it was averaging $320, and it will continue to go up after the season three premiere.
If you want to stay within the $200 range, you are in luck: the 5.0 is still selling for just over that mark. That is still a noticeable increase from last year's FMV of $186, and you can expect it to keep climbing in the weeks to come, so don't hesitate to get one.
By no means is this the most expensive of the Daredevil keys, but I'm adding it to the list because this is one of the single best comics in the Frank Miller Daredevil run. For that matter, it's among the best single issues in Daredevil's entire history. In its pages, Miller tells an engaging story of revenge from Bullseye's point of view. We see his obsession with Daredevil and, through his eyes, the brutal murder of Elektra that breaks DD's spirit and impacts him for years afterwards. The best part is that it is affordable; you can get a 9.0 for about $35. If you just have to have the 9.8, the newsstand edition is a reasonable $150. It's worth every penny because you don't find better storytelling than this.
