Hulk #340 vs. Punisher War Journal #6: Should They be Comparable in Price?

I actually don't see why people like hulk 340 so much. The cover really isn't that great, which is the high point of this book). There really isn't much to it. Lazy blue background and the claws look all weird and are not anatomically correct if you pay attention the angle of wolverine's fist.

I don’t know if I agree completely. It’s a pretty awesome iconic cover on hulk 340. As someone that bought both off the stands at the time… we were much more hyped for the 340. Furthermore they both feature the art of those creators in the interior. Both are master craftsmen at the height of their careers and have massive followings. But perhaps McFarlane in the end is the more popular creator? Both are fantastic though!

On it's face, prices for Hulk 340 are kinda crazy. Just a guest appearance and Todd's first work on both pencils AND inks. However, Hulk 340 is one of the most popular comic covers of all time, consistently making top 10 lists along with Amazing Spider-man 50, Avengers 4, Nick Fury 4, and Dark Knight Returns 1. Based on internet sleuthing, I think Hulk 340 could well win the vote in a "greatest cover ever" competition. Thinking of Hulk 340 as the greatest cover ever does make the prices seem a bit more reasonable. It also highlights the reason for the difference in prices--PWJ 6 is a good cover, but not really a great one for Jim Lee.

To me Hulk #340 is far more appealing than PWJ #6, both for the cover and the story. Personally I prefer the cover of PWJ #7 to #6. Although the cover is what drives the difference in price, the lackluster story in PWJ certainly didn't help increase interest in the books. I just missed Hulk #340 on the stands, but it was already hot (and stayed that way) when PWJ #6 came out. PWJ #6 was hyped for the first meeting of the Punisher and Wolverine, which were riding high at the time (I bought 3 copies of both 6 and 7 based on the hype). But the final product didn't match the hype, and the books never became anywhere near as popular as one would expect (or hope, in my case). I also think Jim Lee has much better looking Wolverine covers than PWJ #6, with Wolverine #27 being one of the few solo Wolverine covers from this era that I am aware of. As to the price differential, I am surprised how much Hulk #340 brings, but it has been seen as a "key" for almost 35 years, and that doesn't seem to be changing anytime soon.

I bought both comics off the rack when they came out. I still have the punisher comics but sold the Hulk decades ago and never wanted to get it back. I hated the claws and honestly am not keen on a lot of McFarlane covers... Like the ugly red detective cover that's everywhere now. His covers on "year two" were both better for me.

I would say McFarlane was maturing earlier into prime, at thi point, rather than Lee who is still a bit aways from prime time with his Xmen tenures.
Not debating styles, very different, but McFarlane's really coming into his own here and not far from what was going to make him really popular with Spidey. Lee had some more ground to cover. I think fans and collectors instinctively react and give ascent (ie market value).

They printed way more copies of war journal that was peak speculation glut time you can still find them for a few bucks there’s a million of them