The 1970s were alive and well this week in the Hottest Comics with classic Star Wars and even Welcome Back, Kotter making their presences felt in the index. It’s time for your weekly dose of Trends & Oddballs.

Before anyone begins complaining that a hot comic should be based entirely on fair market value, that is not the only factor you should consider. Sometimes a cheaper comic can inspire a mad rush, and it pays to keep an eye on those comics that are getting an uptick in sales. On that note, let’s look closer at a few trends in this week’s Hottest Comics.

67. STAR WARS #7 (+123)

The Mandalorian single-handedly breathed life back into Star Wars. Since the second season premiered, the Disney+ series has made Star Wars comics among the hottest collectibles on the secondary market. Generally, everything connected to Mando has absolutely exploded in value, but we’re also seeing non-keys getting a boost as well. Such is the case this week.

Star Wars #7 happens to be the first Star Wars comic with an original story. The first five issues all followed the plot of the original 1977 movie, and this comic kicked off a new era of SW stories. It also introduced Crimson Jack, and there are virtually no characters off the table for a live-action debut these days.

177. STAR WARS #9 (+823)

Continuing its original stories, Star Wars introduced new characters in those early issues.

 Star Wars #9 happened to feature a gang of intergalactic bikers, the Cloud Riders, who were seen on the big screen in 2018’s Solo.

With The Mandalorian mining so many Star Wars comics and cartoons for source material, there is nothing that says we can’t see a version of the Cloud Riders in Mando or a future SW series. 

204. SWAMP THING #39 (+795)

There’s not much that makes Swamp Thing #39 a key issue besides it being an early John Constantine appearance. The bigger picture is that this and Swamp Thing #40, which ranked #205 this week, reveals the popularity of the 1980s Alan Moore run of Swamp Thing.

Constantine has gained more interest since the announcement of a Justice League Dark series. Who knows? Maybe we’ll even see Swamp Thing make an appearance.

226. THE TOXIC AVENGER #1 (+389)

At one point and time, the Toxic Avenger was a relatively big deal. After the famously bad B-movie broke into the pop culture zeitgeist, there were action figures and even a short-lived cartoon series, the Toxic Crusaders. Then people seemed to forget all about it. That will soon change, which is what is inspiring sales for the campy character’s first comic appearance.

With the Toxic Avenger reboot in the works, it has shined a new light on the original. That has helped keep his first appearance inside the Hottest Comics rankings for weeks now, though it has been bouncing around the index. Whenever the new movie starts getting hype behind it, The Toxic Avenger #1 could reach new heights for a short time.

THE ODDBALL OF THE WEEK

920. WELCOME BACK, KOTTER #1 (+79)

It was not long ago that another issue of Welcome Back, Kotter earned the coveted Oddball of the Week prize.

While I thought that was simply a flash in the proverbial pan, the first issue of the sitcom’s comic adaptation, Welcome Back, Kotter #1, found its way onto the Hottest Comics. It proves that there is a market for everything, and someone out there loves those 1970s comedies.

What did you think about the Trending and Oddball picks this week? Did you catch the books listed in our Hottest Comics blog?  Let us know in the comments!