Hello true believers! This post contains spoilers for the just released ‘Avengers: Endgame’. If you haven’t seen the film (and don’t want major plot points revealed) do NOT read this blog post at this time. Come back after you’ve seen the fourth Avengers movie.
Okay, still with me. If so, and as mentioned, in this post I’m speculating on potential comics that might heat up now that ‘Endgame’ has come and gone.
For fans of the MCU, I think many will agree, ‘Endgame’ was a moving reminder of how much these characters have grown over the last ten years. It was also a fitting end to the saga that began with the 2008 ‘Iron Man’ film.
We got to see time travel, action on an epic scale and plenty of drama. The box office numbers are already out of this world, and while it was sad to see some of our favorite Marvel heroes go - and others grow and change - this moment was actually as 'inevitable' as Thanos only purported to be. Of all the original Avengers, we now can safely say, Tony is fairly certain not going to return. Having sacrificed himself at the end of the movie, a younger and perhaps female Iron Man (his daughter?) may take his place. Also, we can speculate here, the octogenarian Captain America, having traveled to the past to live his life with Peggy Carter, is now retired and will not return. With Steve symbolically passing his iconic Shield to Sam Wilson (aka Falcon), Sam will most certainly be the next ‘Captain America’ in future MCU installments.
Hulk #377 (January 1991) – First Professor Hulk
To start we can confirm one of the earliest and already widely guessed rumors for 'Endgame'. Bruce did indeed become Professor Hulk. What this means for comic spec is that Hulk #377 will probably retain its gains and may even see a bump now that the character of Professor Hulk has arrived. This comic is staying strong. Current 9.8 graded copies sell for $170.00 (third printings are even more valuable). The three month average on returns for Professor Hulk are as follows:
9.8 = positive +20.2% after 18 sales. The last three eBay sales standing at: $185.00 (04/24/2019), $225.00 (04/17/2019) and $169.00 (04/17/2019).
9.6 = positive +19.1% after 14 sales. Last three eBay sales: $129.50 (04/23/2019), $73.85 (04/21/2019) and $74.99 (04/17/2019).
9.4 = positive +26.6% after 9 sales. Last three eBay sales: $89.99 (04/24/2019), $89.00 (04/23/2019), $79.99 (04/17/2019).
Secret Wars #4 (August 1984) – Iconic cover with Hulk holding up falling mountain
Another Hulk-related ‘Endgame’ comic we should keep an eye on is this issue of Secret Wars. The scene right after Thanos attacks the Avengers compound, after arriving from the past, features the Hulk holding most of the structure above the helpless and injured Rocket and War Machine (James Rhodes). This scene screams homage as it looks like a swipe at Secret Wars #4. Will this comic see a spike because of 'Endgame'? Currently it sits at $95.00 for a 9.8 graded copy. Returns on this Copper Age title over the last three months are mixed with 9.8 positive +27.1% after 3 sales, 9.6 negative -72.8% after 2 sales and 9.4 positive +88.6% after 2 sales.
Avengers #395 (February 1996) - Tony Stark Dies
It was during the ‘Avengers: the Crossing’ story arc that Tony dies for the first time in the Avengers comics. This one has more than just Tony’s death in common with the ‘Endgame’ movie, there’s also time travel and sacrifice at play. While this comic is currently very affordable, it will be interesting to see if ‘Endgame’ has any effect on the numbers for sales. Only 4 (yes 4) of these on the CGC census; all 9.8 grade. The price on the total of 2 sales on graded certified copies have a FMV of around $36.00.
Captain America #25 (December 2014) – Sam Wilson becomes Captain America
The very end of 'Endgame' saw Steve Rogers entrusted with the mission to return the Infinity Stones from where they had been taken from the past. Instead of coming back to the present however, Steve completes the mission and stays in the past to spend his life with his 'best gal'. This event will have all kinds of spec related fallout. Most likely it will push Captain America #25 up in price. With 39 copies on the CGC census it currently has a FMV of around $40.00 in 9.8 grade. Will this see a spike due to Endgame’s conclusion?
We can say that the comic people have already been betting on as relevant to Endgame is CA #25. What you may not know is that Sam actually receives the shield for the first time in an early series: Sentinel of Liberty #9. With 5 copies on the CGC census, it’s no stretch to say that this book has been flying under the radar. Current FMV on certified 9.8 just before Endgame’s release was around $20.00. Raw copies on eBay are already selling for over $25.00.
There are plenty more Sam Wilson keys that will probably heat up now that he's officially Steve's successor in the MCU. Wilson's first appearance in Captain America #117 (August 1969) is another book to keep an eye on as well as his origin story in Captain America #186 (May 1975). But that's going to have to be the topic of another post.
