The Todd McFarlane fans were spending big bucks on some of his most famous issues this week. Those “Toddfather” entries occupied four of this week’s five Hottest Comics.

For the uninitiated, welcome to the Hottest Comics, where we rank the five biggest movers and shakers eBay has to offer. Being the world’s oldest and largest online auction site, that essentially covers the entire secondary market. The data is taken straight from eBay; it encompasses both raw and graded varieties. Based on sales volume, GoCollect ranks the issues according to actual sales, not price tags. While there may be comics with skyrocketing fair market values, the realized sales may not land them high atop this particular mountain. 

Keep in mind that the index is continuously updated, and the rankings can change by the day. That being said, here is this week’s market snapshot.

25. SPIDER-MAN, VOL. 1, #1 GOLD EDITION (+72)

It was a huge week for Spider-Man #1. Across the board, the Hottest Comics were littered with various covers from the 1990 premiere. The gold edition may have had the rocket strapped to its back, but it wasn’t alone in the top 100 comics; the silver and standard editions managed to crack the top 10.

Virtually since its inception, this has remained a perennial favorite among collectors. Before Spider-Man #1 hit comic book store shelves, Spidey had numerous titles, so it’s not like this is a landmark issue in itself. What keeps it in such high standing with collectors is the Todd McFarlane artwork. Spidey posed on his web has been the subject of many, many homage treatments. McFarlane has paid tribute to his own work by putting Spawn in the Spider-Man #1 pose. The list of artists and titles that have struck this same pose is lengthy, and it doesn’t look like it will stop anytime soon.

The other claim to fame for 1990’s Spider-Man #1 is that it is credited for kicking off the variant age. There are plenty of arguments for what comics qualify as the original variant, but the 1990s saw the rise of the modern variety. Those blossomed into every gimmicky sales trick you can imagine, from holographic and foil covers to polybags and even a bullet hole. Compared to those, Spider-Man #1 was tame with its assortment of alternate colors for the main image.  

Finding everything outside the platinum edition is not a difficult search. Marvel Comics published a huge run for Spidey’s first new title of the 1990s; each variant got its fair share of printings. That also helps keep the price down. Even the famed 9.8 for the gold edition normally averages close to $200. However, that price tag has jumped to $314 for the past 30 days.

32. AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #363 (+37)

It was a week for the usual suspects, that’s for sure. If you are a regular to the Hottest/Coldest Comics blogs, you know the drill. Whether they’re moving up or falling down the ladder, there are certain issues that find their way onto one list or both week in and week out. This week, we get three such comics to discuss. 

We’ve already done the rundown with Spider-Man #1, and buyers then shifted their focus to another regular in the top 100 Hottest Comics, ASM #363. Besides being the second full appearance of Carnage, one of Spidey’s most popular villains, there’s another selling point at play here. This issue marked the first time Spider-Man made peace and teamed with his arch-rival, Venom. While the alliance was shaky at best, they combined efforts to take on Carnage in some of the most popular comics of the ‘90s. With all the talk of Tom Hardy possibly meeting Tom Holland in the MCU, it no doubt is influencing sales for ASM #363.

Within the past year, the graded 9.8 has averaged $114 with a ridiculous high of $408. It’s come back down to Earth in recent months, sporting a 90-day FMV of $80, which has fallen to $74 over the past month.

36. SPAWN #9 (+31)

Angela fans, it’s back to the drawing board for our MCU theories. With a title like Thor: Love and Thunder, the God of Thunder’s fourth title role had the chance to introduce a new character, but it fell short. Of course, the entire movie fell short with most audiences, so maybe it’s best that Angela didn’t make her debut in that particular flick. Alas, we have to look for new clues that could hopefully cue her arrival in the near future.

Famously, Heaven’s Assassin began her comic life with Image Comics. In the early days of Spawn, McFarlane brought in some legendary creators to help co-author various issues. Neil Gaiman came onboard for Spawn #9, and his story introduced the world to Angela. She was an instant hit and that popularity ushered her to self-titled comics and cartoon appearances. Then Gaiman and McFarlane butted heads over intellectual property ownership. Image is famous for publishing creator-owned titles, but McFarlane contended that he co-created Angela, therefore giving him rights to her character. Gaiman disagreed, saying he crafted the concept in his script. Eventually, the clash went to court, though they settled the suit with McFarlane handing over the IP. Gaiman then sold those rights to Marvel, who introduced Angela as another child of Odin.

While her debut in the Marvel-616 is a notable comic, collectors have their sights set on Spawn #9. Despite her not appearing in Love and Thunder, prices for the graded 9.8 have held steady in the $130 range for much of this year. 

46. AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #298 (+29)

This was a Toddfather-centric week on the Hottest Comics blog. On the heels of Spider-Man #1 and Spawn #9, both featuring that incredible McFarlane artistic style, we have one of his most famous issues, ASM #298. While the cover art isn’t overly impressive, this issue’s significance is tied to the man himself. This was his debut on the title that made him a superstar. In fact, you can still see his Spider-Man stylings in all of his Spawn work; this is where it all started. That makes ASM #298 a must-have for Toddfather collectors. It doesn’t hurt matters that we get our first Venom cameo in this issue as well.

This is another of the usual suspects in the Hottest/Coldest blogs, but that doesn’t make it a cheap find. The graded 9.8 has averaged over $800 for the past year. The current FMVs are down slightly, and it sports a $711 30-day average.

19. INCREDIBLE HULK #340 (+22)

From one week to the next, there’s no denying the fire that is Incredible Hulk #340. Last week, I spotlighted this comic on the Trending blog. Today, here it is occupying the 19th spot in the Hottest Comics.

It’s easy to see what has propelled this issue into the top 20: the MCU references. There have been several Wolverine Easter eggs sprinkled across Disney Plus in the past year. Whether it’s She-Hulk: Attorney at Law’s tantalizing barfight headline or Sam and Bucky taking a trip to Madripoor and visiting the Princess Bar, the Wolverine allusions are a-plenty. It makes for a hot speculative market for all things with adamantium skeletons. 

Of course, the biggest selling point for this 1988 issue is the stunning cover art, once again, drawn by Todd McFarlane. That makes it nearly a clean sweep for the Toddfather, and we can at least give him inspirational credit for ASM #363. After all, it does feature his co-creation, Venom, which spawned Carnage. It’s good to be the king.

For all the beautiful work he did with Spider-Man and Venom, McFarlane was on top of his game during his 1980s Incredible Hulk run, and Wolverine never looked better than he did in Hulk #340. If you have never read this issue, I highly recommend it. The Wolverine-Hulk battle is bloody and savage, and we even get Logan’s cool yellow and brown suit.

Those aforementioned Wolverine Easter eggs have prices on the move. The graded 9.8, which averaged $1,661 for the past year, has jumped to $1,957 over the past 30 days.

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*Any perceived investment advice is that of the freelance blogger and does not represent advice on behalf of GoCollect.