First White Vision
It’s déjà vu all over again, as the comic that started the back issue explosion in 2021 is climbing once more. That’s right – West Coast Avengers #45, the first appearance of White Vision, is selling at a pace not seen since, well, 2021. Since the Deadline report, 51 graded copies have sold.
The high was a 9.8 going for $450 in a fixed-price eBay sale on November 3. That’s down 70% from the peak price of $1,500 paid at the peak of WandaVision frenzy in February 2021. It does, however, represent a 23% increase from the current low average price of $345 set in August. The book has been climbing in this grade since.
The 9.6 grade, the most abundant of all graded copies with 503, or a quarter of the total of graded copies, has been climbing as well. It reached an average low sales point of $100 in September and is now going for an average of nearly $160. While it will likely be decades before West Coast Avengers #45 reaches the heights of early 2021, so long as you didn’t buy at the peak, there’s still value to be found in this comic.
It will likely be a slower and steadier rise and fall, but a careful buyer should still be able to find copies at reasonable prices once the current frenzy dies down a little.
Vision Quest Storyline
While nowhere near the volume of sales of West Coast Avengers #45, previous issues in John Byrne’s Vision Quest storyline were seeing more impactful sales when you consider that the average number of graded copies of West Coast Avengers #42, West Coast Avengers #43, and West Coast Avengers #44 currently stands at about 50 copies, or 2.5% of the total number of graded copies of West Coast Avengers #45.
Three or four copies of each of these books selling in a week and a half is a big deal in that context. The high was an 8.0 graded copy of West Coast Avengers #43 signed by Elizabeth Olsen going for a slashed $350. This stands as proof that it may be worth considering investing in other issues in a multi-part storyline other than that one key, particularly if it comes from a known creator like Byrne.
If nothing else, it helps to diversify your collection a bit more. Plus, you never know what surprises may be in store when Vision Quest comes to Disney+.
Bumps for Vision Keys?
No appreciable increase in volume or prices were seen for other Vision keys, including Avengers #57, Vision and the Scarlet Witch #1, The Vision and the Scarlet Witch #1, The Vision and the Scarlet Witch #12, The Vision #1, or Vision #1. One comic, however, is worth noting in that it’s part of an unremarked-upon trend.
Four graded copies of Marvel Super Action #18 have sold since the October 28 announcement of the Vision Quest series. This is a reprint of Avengers #57, the Vision’s first appearance. The universal high sale was a 9.0 going for a slashed $86 in a November 2 sale. Even more eye-popping, though, is the November 8 sale of a 4.0 graded copy signed by Elizabeth Olsen and Paul Bettany for a slashed $500.
More and more collectors are turning to comics that reprint key issues. They’re getting them signed and they’re getting them slabbed. This can be seen in other Marvel reprint series, including Marvel Tales, Marvel’s Greatest Comics, Fantasy Masterpieces, and more. Long dollar bin fodder, these reprint comics – many 40 to 50 years old at this point – have become keys in their own right and are definitely worth considering as worthwhile collectibles.
Are you excited about the WandaVision sequel? Which Vision keys do you consider worth tracking? Let us know below.
