Undervalued & Overlooked Comics - Bronze Age 6/2Hello, and welcome back to our weekly column where we take a look at a few undervalued or overlooked comics from one of each of four comic book eras – Golden Age, Silver Age, Bronze Age, and Copper Age – all in an attempt to find value for you, the comic book investor and collector.  Whether you’re a high roller or a bargain shopper, there will be something in here for everyone.  This week, it’s the Bronze Age.  Let’s get started.

A Currently Undervalued Major Bronze Age Key

Undervalued & Overlooked Comics - Bronze Age 6/2

While many times the focus in the Undervalued and Overlooked Comics category revolves around lesser keys and books that could someday be keys, sometimes prices drop so much for a major key that collectors have to pay attention.  This week, we present Hero for Hire #1 as a major key that has plummeted so much in value that it’s now time to consider buying that book.  Joseph Overaitis made reference to this in his May 16 GoCollect blog on Bronze Age Biggest Losers, and it’s worth a read for other Bronze Age keys that are dropping in value.

As the first appearance of Luke Cage, the first African American Marvel character to receive his own series; this is a book that has been much sought after by collectors and investors for years.  There were big price increases in 2021, but prices have recently begun dropping sharply.

Let’s look at sales in the 7.5 grade.  On June 30, 2021, this book reached its peak in this grade with a slashed $1,150 sale on eBay, very much an outlier.  However, the price was hovering in the $700 range in September 2021.  By the beginning of 2022, sales had dropped into the $600 range.

Despite a couple outlier sales on March 29 for $800 and on April 8 for $900, prices have continued to drop.  The last two sales were for $528 in a Heritage Auction on April 12 and $506 in an eBay auction on May 21.

This is a book that is clearly in a dip right now and has moved into the undervalued category.

Kirby’s DC Classic

Undervalued & Overlooked Comics - Bronze Age 6/2

As we’ve mentioned previously, when compared to Marvel keys, DC keys have routinely been undervalued, particularly when it comes to Bronze and Silver Age keys.  While not well known outside the collecting hobby, Jack Kirby’s 1971 creation, The New Gods #1, has proven to be a seminal work that has set the stage for numerous major storylines in the 50 years since and would incorporate one of DC’s most enduring villains in Darkseid.

While we can’t necessarily put this book in the overlooked category – there are, after all, 2,220 graded copies in the CGC census – it is a consistently undervalued comic when placed in its creative and historical context.  There have been five sales in May at three different grades, and it’s worth looking at each of those sales.

On May 1, a 9.2 graded copy sold in an eBay auction for $266.  The next sale was on May 14 for $271.  This is down almost 50% from its peak in this grade – a $500 fixed price sale on eBay on September 6, 2021 – but it’s also down 25% from a then-peak sale of $360 on June 9, 2018.

While the argument can be made that most books are lower in value in 2022 than they were in 2021, few major keys are selling below their 2018 peak.  We see the same in the 8.5 grade:  two sales in May for an average price of $235, and a peak 2018 price of $240.  In the 5.0 grade, a copy sold for $109, nearly identical to the 2018 peak of $108.

In short, this is a comic that has erased all of its value gained during the current collecting boom and is thus a very undervalued comic.

First Elfquest

In the late 1970s, two important fantasy comic properties were created outside the mainstream of comics publishing – Cerebus and Elfquest.  While many collectors are familiar with Cerebus the Aardvark #1 – it regularly ranks in Top 10 lists of most valuable Bronze Age comics – far fewer are aware of Fantasy Quarterly #1, the first appearance of Cutter, Skywise, and the elves of Elfquest.

While a more accessible comic than Cerebus, and more appealing to a wider fan base, collectors have, for the most part, not paid much attention to Fantasy Quarterly #1.  There are a respectable 418 copies in the CGC, with 83.6% graded at 9.0 and above,=. Few of these copies come up for sale on an annual basis, though.

There have been five sales of copies graded 9.0 or higher in 2022.  At this current pace, the volume of sales will be down roughly 40% between 2020 and 2021.  While prices have been following a similar trajectory to many books – a peak in 2021, followed by a drop in 2022 – it’s the drop in volume that is attention-worthy.

A key book with far fewer graded copies than its historical mainstream peers and sales volume that is down, a forerunner to a likely price decrease:  these are all markers of a book that has been routinely overlooked by collectors and could very well soon be deeply undervalued as well.

Next Week: Silver Age Undervalued & Overlooked

Well, that’s all we have time for this week.  Join us next week as we take a look at some undervalued and overlooked Silver Age comics.

Want more Undervalued and Overlooked comic coverage?

Are there any Bronze Age comics you think are undervalued and deserve more attention?  Let us know below.

*Any perceived investment advice is that of the freelance blogger and does not represent advice on behalf of GoCollect.