Ugh. That’s how things are looking for the comics in our Bronze Age CPI. A few Bronze Age issues gained in value; many, many more fell, some by quite a bit. Let’s take a look to note some winners and losers over the past 90 days.
Bronze Age Trends
Overall, the Bronze Age CPI dropped 40 points from an index value of 1,108 to 1,068 over the past three months. That’s a cumulative index loss of 3.61% in just 90 days. There was no particular time period of note, just a sure and steady decline that’s steeper than the last time we reported on the index. Of the 50 comics in the index, five were gainers, 42 were losers, and three ended up where they started 90 days ago.
Winner – X-Men #100 – up 2.0%
This anniversary issue featuring a classic cover pitting the new X-Men team against the old X-Men team was the biggest upward mover in the index over the past 90 days, climbing a measly 2%. A nice 32% gain in the average price for a 9.6 graded copy, as well as slight gains in the 9.2, 8.5, and 8.0 grades, was nearly offset by declines in the 9.4 and 9.0 grades, plus all grades 7.5 and below that sold. Still, a win’s a win.
Loser – Giant-Size X-Men #1 – down 14.7%
The same cannot be said, however, for the biggest loser in the Bronze Age CPI over the past three months. Featuring the first appearances of Storm, Colossus, and Nightcrawler, and an early Wolverine appearance (don’t worry – Wolverine will be showing up later in this blog), collectors appear to be far less willing to pay top dollar for high grades than they have been in a long time. The average price of a 9.8 graded copy fell 30% from $36,398.75 to $25,500. Recent sales in the grade are now at December 2020 levels, wiping away all of the Covid boom gains. The 9.4 through 8.5 grades all lost value as well.
Winner – DC Comics Presents #47 – up 1.9%
He-Man’s first comic book appearance, along with nemesis Skeletor, may not have seen spectacular gains, but the high grades all saw good enough upward momentum to keep this train rolling. Grades 9.0 and above saw gains of two percentage points and more, the most impressive being the 9.6 grade, which climbed 8.8%. However, some of the mid grades took a pummeling, muting the gains in the high grades.
Loser – X-Men #101 – down 11.0%
The Phoenix is not rising based on recent trends. Of course, this is a book whose value waxes and wanes with regularity; it could easily be one of the top gainers in our next report. The big culprit here was the 9.8, which saw the average price fall 28.8%. While there was an increase in the 9.6 grade, grades 9.4 through 9.0 saw declining values. The one bright note was the mid to high mid grades of 6.5 through 8.5, all of which (other than 7.5) showed increasing value, and the 7.5 only saw a modest decline of $10.
Winner – Star Wars #42 – up 1.7%
The first comic book appearance of Boba Fett – and Yoda’s first full appearance – had been spiraling downward for a while, so it’s nice to see at least a little upward movement. And it’s up despite declines in the average price in the 9.8 and 9.4 grades. The 8.0 through 9.2 grades all saw increases, the most impressive of which was the 8.5 grade, which climbed roughly $80 in average selling price. It’s too soon to say if this issue has hit rock bottom, unfortunately. The increase is far too modest to make any assumptions about future trends.
Loser – Conan the Barbarian #24 – down 10.5%
Chainmail bikini is clearly out this season, as Red Sonja’s first appearance took a fall. The 9.8 grade fell 21.6% since June 15. What can be said about this issue, other than it’s been falling like a rock over the past year, losing more than 30% of its index value during that time. The character is going nowhere in terms of other media – at least based on the bomb of a movie released this year – and continues to drop in terms of an intellectual property that anyone cares much about. It is really hard to see this book making any kind of recovery in the near future.
Honorable Mention Winners
We might as well at least mention the other two comics that saw gains in the Bronze Age CPI over the past 90 days. Drumroll please for X-Men #129 and All-Star Western #10, which increased in average selling price 1.1% and 0.6% respectively. This makes for a sad report on the index as a whole, but what comes next is quite sobering.
Honorable Mention Losers
Wolverine is easily the most popular comic book creation of the Bronze Age. The character is well known among the general public and could arguably be considered one of the top five super-heroes of all time. However, his first appearances have been taking a beating of late. Incredible Hulk #180 – the character’s first cameo appearance – is down 10.5% over the past 90 days, and his first full appearance in Incredible Hulk #181 – and the top book in our index – is down 6%. In fact, Incredible Hulk #181 is very much in danger of losing its top spot in the Bronze Age CPI to House of Secrets #92 if trends continue. The fact that a character as popular as Wolverine is losing value so quickly speaks volumes about the current state of the Bronze Age market.
