The second season of Loki on Disney+ has received strong reviews from both critics and audiences (83% from critics and 93% from audiences on Rotten Tomatoes). YouTubers like New Rockstars and ScreenCrush produce multiple shows from each episode of Loki. Despite the show's success thus far, it doesn't appear to have had much of an impact on the comic book market.
The value of Fantastic Four #353 has flatlined.
Due to Luke Wilson's well-received portrayal of Mobius M. Mobius, his first appearance in Fantastic Four #353 became one of the most popular issues during the pandemic.
A CGC 9.6 (the most common grade on the CGC Census) copy of this late Copper Age book reached an all-time high of $263.05 in June of 2021 (when the first episode Loki debuted). Over the course of the next six months, the value of a 9.6 plummeted in value and then basically flatlined selling in the $40 to $60 range since then.
During the past week, a 9.6 recently sold for $74 and a 9.8 sold for $140. We'll have to wait and see if those sales are leading indicators of a new trend or if they're mere outliers.
The value of Avengers Annual #21 has risen by 57% since its pre-pandemic value.
You could find this late Copper Age book in dollar bins prior to the release of Ant-Man & the Wasp: Quantumania. Quantumania's post-credits scene, of course, introduced Victor Timely, a Kang variant, to the MCU.
Once he appeared briefly in Quantumania, this issue went to the moon. Specifically, a CGC 9.8 copy of this book reached an all-time high of $406.44 in February of 2023.
Prior to the pandemic, a 9.8 sold in the $40 to $50 range. This book has cooled off considerably since February, but it's still selling for nearly twice as much as it did prior to the pandemic.
Graded copies of the 1st Appearance of He Who Remains have generally held their value.
Prior to the last episode of Loki, Thor #245 wasn't worth anything. In this issue, Thor encounters a character named He Who Remains, a being who resides in the Citadel At The End of Time. Of course, the MCU masterfully turns the He Who Remains from Thor #45 into a Kang variant in Loki.
Kang's unexpected first appearance in the MCU as He Who Remains sent flocks of investors to this Bronze Age book for the first time. We haven't seen He Who Remains in the flesh in the second season of Loki, but he has been referred to several times during the first two episodes.
Let's take a closer look at the most common grade on the CGC Census: a 9.6. Prior to the pandemic and the first season of Loki, a 9.6 sold in the $63 to $95 range. During the early months of what became known as the "comic boom," a 9.6 sold for $112.
It's hard to know what this issue sold for when He Who Remains appeared in the last episode of the show (there were two "best offer" sales on eBay), but in late December 2022, a 9.6 sold $186. This sale occurred after the comic bubble had popped and comic book values had been dropping for about a year at this point.
Still, this sale is roughly 2.5x what it was selling for prior to the pandemic.
Do you know of other books that may be affected by the second season of Loki? Please let our community know what your opinions are in the comments section below!
