The hottest first appearance on the market right now doesn't belong to Spider-Man, Wolverine, or Venom. It's not a character that an average person would be able to guess because it's not a household name. In fact, even a reasonably experienced comic book collector like myself had never heard of this character before. Today, let's talk Peacemaker.

If you define "hottest" as the greatest percentage change in FMV over the past three years then the hottest first appearance likely belongs to Peacemaker. Most of the world saw Peacemaker for the first time yesterday during the trailer for The Suicide Squad, a movie that Warners Media will release in August 2021. (FYI I wrote this blog on March 26th). John Cena, one of the most famous professional wrestlers of all time, will play Peacemaker in the film and also in a Peacemaker TV series which will debut on HBOMax in early 2022.

We'll take a look at a couple of Peacemaker's key issues below.

Fightin' Five #40: 1st Appearance of the Peacemaker

Peacemaker made his debut in Fightin' Five #40. Charlton Comics published this Silver Age comic about a paramilitary team in 1966. In 1983, DC acquired most of Charlton's superhero characters, including the rights to Peacemaker.

CGC copies of this book are exceedingly rare. In fact, according to the CGC Census, CGC has only graded 56 copies of this comic. Its rarity probably partially explains why this issue has skyrocketed in value. For example, sellers have only sold two CGC 9.2 copies during the past three years. In December 2019, one 9.2 sold for $515. Just 11 months later, another 9.2 sold $4,250, a shocking 725% increase in value.

Peacemaker #1: First Peacemaker Solo Series

Peacemaker #1 includes his third appearance and it also marks the beginning of his own solo series. Like Fightin' Five #40, graded copies of this book are also exceedingly rare. According to the CGC Census, CGC has graded only 41 copies of this comic.

Its rarity probably partially explains why this issue has skyrocketed in price. For example, eBay merchants have only sold three CGC 7.0 copies during the past three years. Just nine months ago, in June 2020, one 7.0 sold for $39. Nearly 10 months later, another 7.0 sold for $390, an astounding 532% increase in value.

Watch out for the 1978 reprint of Peacemaker #1. You can identify the reprint by looking for a blue and white Modern Comics logo in the upper left corner. In fact, I had to deal with an unscrupulous seller who tried passing off the reprint as a first printing on eBay just a few days ago.

Crisis on Infinite Earths #6: 1st Appearance of Peacemaker in DC Continuity

If you're looking for a Peacemaker key that's still flying under the radar, consider picking up a copy of Crisis on Infinite Earths #6. Not only does this issue contain the first appearance of Peacemaker in DC continuity, but also the debuts for other Charlton characters such as Captain Atom, Judomaster, Nightshade, The Question, and Thunderbolt. In addition, this comic contains the first appearance of the Anti-Monitor as well. So, collectors have a few reasons to invest in this book.

This comic is cheap too. You can purchase raw, NM copies of this book on eBay for around $10. Considering how rare Fightin' Five #40 and Peacemaker #1 are, many collectors will turn to this book especially if Cena's take on Peacemaker is a success.

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