Disney has a hit on its hands with X-Men '97! The first three episodes of the show have received a rare 100% from critics and a 93% audience score.
The first episode drops a hint that the New Mutants may appear in the show in the future. Will the show's popularity help to juice their first appearance?
Kevin Feige may be introducing the New Mutants individually over time.
Marvel's well-established modus operandi is to introduce characters individually over time before they form teams (see, e.g., the Avengers, the Defenders, and the Young Avengers). X-Men '97 may be following that same game plan for the New Mutants. The first character we see in X-Men '97 is not one of the X-Men, but Roberto Da Costa, aka Sunspot, a mutant with the power to channel solar energy into superhuman strength.
Will future episodes also introduce Cannonball, Wolfsbane, Psyche, Karma, and Magik? I hope so because the show needs teenagers. With the exception of Jubilee, most of the current characters in the show are grizzled veterans. Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters is supposed to be a school for gifted youngsters after all.
Is Marvel Graphic Novel #4 undervalued?
The New Mutants first appeared in Marvel Graphic Novel #4. Marvel published a series of these graphic novels from 1982 to 1993 in an oversized format (8.5" x 11"). Published in 1981 and written by Chris Claremont, Marvel Graphic Novel #4 has multiple first appearances including those for Cannonball, Wolfsbane, Sunspot and Psyche (but not Karma and Magik).
Looking at GoCollect's sales history above, Marvel Graphic Novel #4 has resisted broader market trends for key issues in recent years. First, Marvel Graphic Novel #4 is the only key issue that I can think of that didn't go to the moon during the "comic boom" of 2020 and 2021. At the same time, unlike almost all key issues, it wasn't affected when the comic market bubble popped in 2022 and values declined throughout 2023. Remarkably, the value of Marvel Graphic Novel #4 has remained relatively flat for the past nine years.
While this book may have earned a meager 0% ROI over nine years, I have reasons to believe this book may be undervalued. First, graded copies of this novel are actually pretty rare; there are only 1,768 graded copies on the CGC Census. It's possible that investors rarely submit this book for grading, but it's also likely that Marvel Graphic Novels had lower print runs than standard Marvel comic books published in the early 1980s. Second, filmmakers haven't yet done a good job of portraying the New Mutants on TV or the big screen. If X-Men '97 nails it, you may see a renewed interest in them. Lastly, there are so many first appearances in this graphic novel; you're betting on more than one character if you invest in this book.
This month, a CGC 9.8 copy of New Mutants #1 sold for just $57.
New Mutants #1 could also be an inexpensive place to park your comic book investment dollars. This late Bronze Age book has a beautiful cover, a ton of second appearances, and is the first issue in a major ongoing series. Just a few weeks ago, one buyer purchased a CGC 9.8 copy of this issue for a mere $57.
Fifty-seven dollars would barely cover the costs of shipping this book to CGC and having it graded.
Would you invest in either of these books? Do you think either is undervalued? Please let us know what your opinions are in the comments section below!
