Welcome back to this week's top pics from Heritage's weekly comic book auctions! Heritage holds weekly funny book auctions that feature key issues, overlooked comics, oddball memorabilia items, and more. These auctions are a must if you want to beef up your collection! Here are my top picks for you to watch.
Birds of Prey #1 CGC Universal 9.8
A personal favorite team of mine, Birds of Prey, initially started as a one-shot by Chuck Dixon in 1996. The team - comprised of Black Canary (Dinah Lance) and Oracle (Barbara Gordon, formally Batgirl)- would later expand to include Huntress. A rotating cast of characters would come and go through the series, but the core cast would be around in one shape or another. The only significant - if you can call it that - change was when Barbara Gordon was able to become Batgirl again, leaving behind the Oracle alias.
The series is still around, and thanks to its popularity, we have seen the team in other media ventures. In 2002, the Birds of Prey television series aired on The WB. The series only lasted one season. In 2020, Birds of Prey hit theaters right before the worldwide shutdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It was the last movie I saw before the shutdowns, and honestly, the movie was terrific. It was a great portrayal of the comic book team, and the movie is just plain fun.
This CGC Universal label 9.8 has white pages with terrific color on the cover. Per our sales history, prices for this book are down, making this an ideal time to pick up this underrated key. To date, only 164 copies of this book have been graded, with 67 copies obtaining a 9.8 grade.
Superman #3 CGC Universal 2.0
Golden Age Superman comics are some of the best collectible comics any fan could get. Action Comics #1, the introduction of Superman to the world, would inevitably change pop culture forever. Superman brought in a new era of comics and characters, so much so that many people overlook the previous eras, Victorian and Platinum. While some may look at that as a negative, I certainly don't. Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster created a phenomenon, a worldwide icon, and a character that is still as relevant today as he was in 1938.
Early Superman books command high dollar amounts, and rightfully so. According to our data on Superman #3, CGC has only graded 237 copies. Almost every single graded copy that has sold since 2020 has sold for no less than $1K. As we are moving closer to the 100th anniversary of Superman - which would also mean those comics would be classified as antiques - these books will become harder to find.
This CGC Universal 2.0 has off-white pages and was clearly well loved. The current value on this particular grade is going up, and right now, a Superman #3 2.0 has a fair market value of $3,700.
Captain Carrot and His Amazing Zoo Crew #1 CGC Universal 9.8
Captain Carrot is a character many collectors may overlook. This was the last of the funny animal characters to be created by DC, thus making this a very minor key book. Captain Carrot and the Zoo Crew didn't last very long in their own series- in fact, DC canceled it after issue 20. The characters still pop up from time to time in modern comics but have yet to cross over into the DC movie universe (and I would be shocked if they ever did, but you never know). While this series hasn't been outright forgotten, it certainly isn't talked about as much anymore.
This CGC Universal label 9.8 comes with white pages. According to our data, this book can be had for under $100 in this grade, making this an affordable buy.
