X-Men #14We often see movies positively affect the price of a book, but in a first, one of them might have been negatively affected. In examining the key comic books of Dr. Bolivar Trask and his creations, Master Mold and the Sentinels, such an event might have been the case with X-Men #14.

 

 

X-Men #14X-MEN #14 (1965)

The most important key of the Sentinels collection is X-Men #14, containing the first appearances Dr. Bolivar Trask and the Sentinels. Sales for the book, graded CGC 8.5/8.0 (top 25.7/33.8%), are shown below.

At the start of the decade, sales prices for X-Men #14 were on a steady climb until the summer of 2014, coinciding with the release of X-Men: Days of Future Past; which featured appearances from Trask and the Sentinels. From there, the volume of sales experienced a sudden and extended decrease for the next year and a half. This was rather peculiar as movie-related books tend to decrease in the months that follow. With X-Men #14, even with the low volume, the bottom end of the sales range held flat. Possibly an absence of both buyers and sellers rather than just one. When sales volume finally returned in late 2016, volatility also decreased. After a year of consolidation, sales prices broke upwards in 2018 with greater strength than it had in the years prior.

The concern with X-Men #14 is determining whether it’s upward movements have been completely dependent on media bumps such as X-Men: Days of Future Past, Trask Industries in the Gifted, etc. The interesting thing is that an inverse might be the case; it’s possible that expectations of market value decline following a movie interrupted or spooked the natural growth of the book. A highly unusual scenario, but seems to fit. Should the current trend continue, it would lend weight to this theory; at which point it would be interesting to find another book that has experienced similar market behavior.

 

 

X-Men #16 X-Men #15X-MEN #15 (1965) & X-MEN #16 (1966)

To shed further light, we look to the keys of Master Mold; his 1st cameo appearance in X-Men #15 and 1st full appearance in X-Men #16. Over a similar time frame and comparable grades; sales prices for both books have been fairly flat. On the top is sales data for X-Men #15 (CGC 8.5/8.0); on the bottom is X-Men #16 (CGC 9.0/8.5/8.0). CGC 9.0 for X-Men #16 did increase at the higher end of its range with the 2015 Days of Future Past, but quickly came down; all the while the low end of its sales range remained flat. Outside of the minor 9.0 movement, there is no other associated activity with the two major market shifts of the above X-Men #14.

 

 

X-Men #98X-MEN #98 (1976)

Extending even further to another popular Sentinels-related book, X-Men #98, which contains the first time the new X-Men team face the Sentinels. With a much greater sales volume than X-Men #15 and #16, the overall market trend for X-Men #98 has also been flat. See the sales data for CGC 9.6/9.4/9.2 below.

 

 

“We are the Sentinels! Our brain is superior to your brain! Our strength is superior to your strength! We serve none! We are the Sentinels! It is our destiny to command!” – Sentinel/Section Leader

 

 

 

Not yet a GoCollect subscriber? Subscribe today to get access to the comic book price guide!