Sinister Six“What’s up Doc?”

After the Vulture and Mysterio showed up in the MCU, the complicated web and secret workings of character rights left many fans wondering where that left Sony’s original 2013 plans for a Sinister Six movie. Then came the surprise Vulture cameo in the Morbius trailer. It would appear that the Sinister Six are back on the menu.

Outside of the individual 1st appearance key books for each of the Sinister Six members, we look at the two most popular Sinister Six books in the market.

 

 

Sinister Six - THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN ANNUAL #1THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN ANNUAL #1 (1963)

The 1st appearance of the Sinister Six occurred in The Amazing Spider-Man Annual #1 and consisted of members: Dr. Octopus, Electro, Kraven, Mysterio, Sandman, and Vulture. The last decade of sales data for Amazing Spider-Man Annual #1, graded CGC 7.5/7.0/6.5 (the top 25.4-42.1% of the census), is shown below. One key aspect is that sales prices were fairly flat until late 2013 when Sony made the official announcement of a Sinister Six movie in development. Since then, the market for the book has soared.

Looking at the data a bit closer, there was a notable peak in late 2015. See below. This was then followed by a decline until early 2017. What was the reason for this peak? Likely the 2015 casting of Spider-Man and the character’s inclusion into the MCU; thus, dashing the chances of Sony’s original Spider-Man related plans. Just as sales prices gave up half of the 2013-2015 gains, the standalone Venom movie got a release date and hope for a Sinister Six movie returned.

What timing for anyone that acquired this book around that winter 2017/18 low. Or really even at the 2015 highs. From the Jan 2017 lows, sales prices for Amazing Spider-Man Annual #1 have doubled in just 3 years. One thing of note; sales volume has experienced a noticeable decrease in 2019 compared to prior years. It would appear sellers are less willing to place their slabs on the market, which will likely continue to pressure prices even higher.

On the market scale of team first appearance books, at one end you have the Avengers #1, and at the other, you have Marvel Super-Heroes #18 (1969); for the time being, The Amazing Spider-Man Annual #1 appears to be as good of a longer-term investment as the former. The recent exponential growth is making the book harder and harder to get. If you’re waiting for a dip, it could be a few more years as the chances of a Sinister Six movie are looking very good.

 

 

Sinister Six - THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN ANNUAL #6THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN ANNUAL #6 (1969)

After the 1st appearance of the team, the next most popular Sinister Six book in the market is The Amazing Spider-Man Annual #6. The book contains a reprint of "The Sinister Six" story from the above Amazing Spider-Man Annual #1; just five issues after the first and in the same series. Compared to the above book, the market for The Amazing Spider-Man Annual #6 is substantially lower in volume and almost 100x cheaper at its higher-end CGC 9.8-9.2 grades (the top 47.9% of the census).

Random exercise: A sale of note is a CGC 9.8 copy that sold for $3,107 in late 2014. Instead of that investment, a CGC 9.2 of Amazing Spider-Man Annual #1 could have been acquired at a similar price at that time. The current FMV of ASM Annual #6 graded at CGC 9.8 is $1,300; comparatively, the FMV of ASM Annual #1 graded at CGC 9.2 is $13,500.

 

 

“Now that we’re all here, well get down to business immediately! This meeting will be a turning point of our careers!” – Doctor Octopus, forming the Sinister Six

 

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