How is it possible, with so many DCEU movies already made, there has been no appearance of Darkseid yet?
Strange as it sounds, we’ve gotten teased about upcoming Darkseid appearances and then disappointed time and again.
That may soon change, but will the eventual appearance of the ruler of Apokolips do anything to help values on his key comics?
According to Ava Duvernay who (with help from Tom King) is in charge of the upcoming ‘New Gods’ movie, Darkseid may soon be on the way. In response to request via twitter asking if Darkseid will be present in the new film, Duvernay responded: “Darkseid is.” (see here).
If you’re a DC fan, this is indeed big news. If you’re not a DC fan, you might think, so what?
Well, think of it this way: Darkseid (created by comics legend Jack Kirby) has been called DC’s version of Thanos. In actuality, he would mop the floor with Thanos.
Darkseid is basically an inter-dimensional force of evil. He is power incarnate, and usually whenever this tyrannical figure actually appears things go from bad to completely terrible very quickly.
The ruler of Apokolips, literally a hell planet, Darkseid is also obsessed with control and power. His goal and the reason for his existence is to possess the Anti-Life Equation. Obtaining that would make him the literal master of all wills. Without it, he is a formidable foe, equipped with his Omega Sanction: eye beams powerful enough to disintegrate, teleport or even resurrect another being.
Make no doubt, the desire for DC fans to see Darkseid is strong and this desire has kept the prices on his key comics high.
My worry regarding his eventual appearance is twofold.
First, Darkseid’s Marvel equivalence, as I’ve already alluded to above, is not Thanos.
Thanos is a Titan.
Darkseid is more at the Celestial-level in terms of power. This is bad news for DC because, although they were the first to tease bringing the Kirby-created cosmic beings to the big screen, Marvel has yet again gotten the jump on them and will release ‘The Eternals’ before the ‘New Gods’ sees the light of day. The Celestials will appear in the Eternals movie and promotional shots for that film look excellent.
Second, Darkseid must be handled right in order to balance the sheer power and terror of the character with his intelligence and tactical flair. Portray him like Steppenwolf in the less than stellar ‘Justice League’ movie, and prices on these books could tank after a long holding pattern.
Superman’s Pal Jimmy Olsen #134 (December 1970) - First (Cameo) appearance of Darkseid
When we turn to the books, it should (if you’re a Darkseid fan) be obvious which books I’m talking about. The Darkseid keys, like other popular characters, are fraught with a fan declared order of importance. For example, this cameo appearance is deemed the top key: the Jimmy Olsen Kirby story from 1970, even though Darkseid barely appears and is nowhere to be seen on the cover. The Marvel equivalent would be like making Hulk #180 the biggest Wolverine Key or Fantastic Four #66 the big Adam Warlock key of keys. Don’t look for logic here, the fans have spoken and the one-panel distorted Jack Kirby drawing of Darkseid’s head is the major key.
The less than impressive one panel, cameo, first appearance of the D-Man in Jimmy Olsen #134Price wise, this comic currently has a FMV of $9, 250.00 in certified 9.8 condition after a $9,300.00 11/29/2018 ComicLink sale. With a total of 1,357 CGC copies, a successful Darkseid film appearance could lift that value, the only question is by how much?
Over the last three months higher grades are trending down. No 9.8 sales in that period but the two 9.4 sales show a negative -18.6% return. The last Heritage Auction of a 9.4 sold for $1,140.00 (FMV for that grade now: $1,350,00) and the last two 9.2 sales showed a negative -19.7% decline, with the last sale on eBay on 07/09/2019 going for an even $1, 000.00 [FMV for that grade = now $975.00].
This comic features the first actual full appearance of Darkseid. In certified 9.8 condition it will today cost you $2, 900.00. That’s less than half the price of JO #134 in the same grade, but whereas about a year and a half ago it was catching up with its sister book, today -and over the last three months- it’s been coasting.
Returns are definitely mixed and sales are few with some bright spots (9.0 up +61.3% after 2 sales; last sale on eBay 06/12/2019 for an even $300.00) but a softening and downward trend on 9.8 (negative - 3.8%, after 2 sales: last sale, eBay 06/06/2019; $2, 785.00).
