Where there is hot, there must be cold, and here you will find the coldest of the cold on the secondary market. Using eBay’s daily sales data, the Hottest Comics index gauges the top-selling single issues regardless of whether they’re raw or graded. This week, it’s all about the bottom of the barrel, and these five were freezing.
90. THE NICE HOUSE ON THE LAKE #1 (-64)
If Nice House on the Lake finds its way onto next week’s Hottest Comics blog, then it may be time to designate this as one of the Usual Suspects (using my divine blogging powers, I have officially declared this a proper noun). For those new to the list, those are the comics that have the most pronounced yo-yo effect. They bounce all across the list in rapid fashion, and one or more find their ways onto either the Hottest or Coldest blogs, sometimes by the week. Since Omega Men #3 has been catapulted to the top of the rankings, it seems Nice House #1 is aiming to take its place as a Usual Suspect.
What’s the deal here? Why is it rising and falling from week to week? My best guess is that it’s due to its potential as the next live-action horror franchise. With The Walking Dead having just wrapped its final season (not that it hadn’t been on the decline for years), there’s no doubt that television and streaming networks are looking to claim that massive audience with a new show or possibly a movie. Nice House would be a great choice, and it seems tailor made for HBO Max, given that it’s published under the DC banner already.
Since there’s no news on the topic of a live-action adaptation, that’s the likely culprit behind Nice House’s dip this week. However, given the allure of the silver (or small) screen, buyers aren’t straying too far away from James Tynion’s horror hit. That leaves the standard edition in particular being tossed around like the proverbial hot potato. At least it’s a cheap find. Graded 9.8s have been selling for less than $20 in the past month, which is less than the cost of sending it to CGC for grading. What’s not to love about that?
95. X-MEN, VOL. 2, #1 GAMBIT, COLOSSUS, ROGUE, AND PSYLOCKE VARIANT (-64)
It was a tie for the Coldest Comic on the secondary market this week. Matching Nice House #1’s downward momentum was a 100% verified, certified, and petrified X-Men, vol. 2, #1. With so many variants and so many copies of each readily available at every comic shop and comic convention known to mankind, it’s no wonder these issues are scattered across the top-100 best-selling comics at any given moment. Plus there’s the stellar Jim Lee artwork, and that’s worth the price of admission alone.
As easy as it is to find these comics, you would think that every collector already had a full set in their long boxes. Despite there being an insane number of copies of each variant on eBay, X-Men #1 had been on the move for a decent part of 2022. Much of this could be tied to all the X-Men news and rumors that had littered the MCU gossip sites. It didn’t hurt that the X-Men: The Animated Series revival, X-Men ‘97, uses much of the ultra-cool designs from Lee’s X-Men era. Put it all together, and it made for a hot market for one of the most popular comics of all time.
While the easiest—and cheapest—way to own a copy of the Colossus, et. all variant is to swing over to eBay. There you will find the raw variety for around $15-$20. If you would rather have your comic in a slab, those have averaged $75 over the past 30 days, though one managed to snag $100 on November 30.
66. HULK #1 (-52)
I think we can all agree that Hulk #1 won’t stay down for long. Sure, it’s fallen on hard times this week, dropping from 14th overall to the 66th position in quick fashion. While that will get plenty of attention, especially considering how hot this comic has been in recent months, there is no reason to believe that it has officially cooled off. Instead, consider this a momentary blip on the radar of success.
In case you’ve been off the grid for several weeks, this comic had a fire lit under it thanks to the MCU. Then again, isn’t that the case most of the time these days? At any rate, it started with the rumors that Marvel Studios would announce Red Hulk as the villain for Captain America: New World Order. Although that didn’t happen at the D23 Expo, it was not long afterwards that a possible Red Hulk tease was spotted in the She-Hulk: Attorney at Law finale.
The roof came off a couple weeks after the She-Hulk Easter egg when Harrison Ford was rumored to be taking over the Thunderbolt Ross role following William Hurt’s death. By the time Marvel made the casting official, speculators were ready to pounce. Although the prices didn’t make any dramatic moves, the sales volume was heavy. After all, we all know that Ross will eventually transform into Red Hulk, especially since Tim Blake Nelson is playing The Leader in the film, which should make for an easy explanation for how Thunderbolt gets superpowers.
Over the past month, the graded 9.8 has an FMV of $330, which is slightly over its 12-month average. However, the most recent sales have been for under $300, so the tide may be turning, at least for now. Still, it’s safe to assume things will pick up once we get our first look at a CGI Red Hulk in the MCU.
59. MARVEL COMICS PRESENTS #72 (-39)
Once again, we have a comic with plenty of big-screen potential that is down only for the moment. Last year, there were rumors galore that Marvel Studios was working on a Wolverine streaming series for Disney Plus. That inspired theories that it would be an anthology show documenting Logan’s rich history similar to the Wolverine: Origins comics. That had collectors and speculators taking aim at all things Wolverine, including Marvel Comics Presents #72.
What made this issue special in the first place was the Weapon X program. Although the Canadian government’s top-secret experiment was initially mentioned in Wolverine’s early Incredible Hulk appearances, it wasn’t until 1991 that it was given a proper origin story beginning with MCP #72. Since a potential Wolverine anthology series would inevitably focus attention on the Weapon X program, that had collectors and speculators taking aim at this issue. Then came the news that Wolverine would return for Deadpool 3, and there’s little doubt that Weapon X will be part of that movie. After all, both Logan and Wade Wilson are products of Weapon X, so it would be a travesty not to include that in the upcoming movie.
Between any possible Wolverine projects on the distant horizon and Deadpool 3, there’s so much to love when it comes to MCP #72. For the past year, the graded 9.8 has averaged over $300. At the moment, that FMV has dipped to $210, so this is a prime opportunity to invest in a high-grade copy while values are down.
61. UNCANNY X-MEN #282 (-38)
Rounding out the bottom five movers and shakers is the first appearance of Bishop. Only a week ago, UXM #282 was flying high and making the Hottest Comics blog. Here we are seven days later, and it has fallen to the 61st position. Like most of today’s list, this is a momentary setback, though you’ll have to play the long game before you see any significant profits here.
When it comes to the future live-action X-Men, Bishop seems like one of the smarter choices. He’s an interesting character who has yet to get his due on the big screen. Sure, he was featured in X-Men: Days of Future Past, but he had hardly any lines and a small amount of screen time. Marvel Studios could rectify that with an A-list casting and a starring role in the MCU’s X-Men, which would delight ‘90s X-fans. For that matter, we’re bound to see him (and his glorious mullet) in X-Men ‘97.
Down but not out, UXM #282 is a wise investment, and copies are not hard to find. Since this time last year, the graded 9.8 had been averaging $222. However, those prices have fallen to $154 for the last 30 days, which should be enticing for potential buyers.
