So much of comic book collecting and investing nowadays is dominated by modern books. With the endless variants, store exclusives, and first appearances of ultimately insignificant characters, many investors, especially those who prefer older books, often feel ignored and left out of the conversation. Fortunately, we here at GoCollect are here to help!! Every week, I am going to provide speculation recommendations for silver, bronze, and copper age books for a chosen topic. This week, we are going to talk about the last son of Krypton, the Man of Steel, the one and only Superman!
Silver Age
Action Comics #242
This silver age gem features the first appearance of legendary Superman villain Brainiac. Brainiac is most famous for shrinking and stealing the Kryponian capital of Kandor. In some versions of DC continuity, Brainiac is even responsible for the destruction of Krypton! The character has menaced Superman for decades and it is easy to see why.
The character has not only the physical might to challenge Supes and the dastardly intellect to threaten him, but the painful Kryptonian history to really make Clark hurt. He is a phenomenal, complex villain that could make for an excellent big bad not only in the comics but on the screen as well.
Graded Analysis: This book is up all time in every grade where there were multiple sales. And that growth has occured as Superman's comic sales have declined and his cultural footprint has arguably diminished. Imagine the heights this book could reach if Brainiac was adapted well into Gunn and Saffron's new DCEU? This book is a high-upside play with a proven track record of growth and a value floor that never seems to stop going up. If you somehow find the opportunity to own even a low-grade copy of this book, buy it.
Bronze Age
Superman #233
Superman #233 features one of the most recognizable comic book covers and Superman images ever created. Iconic covers are often great investments, due in part because every homage helps to extend the legacy of the original. Everyone from Spider-Man to George W Bush has emulated the cover. Every so often, a comic is able to pierce through the noise and indelibly mark itself in the anals of American pop culture. This iconic work from Neal Adams (though he actually hated it) was able to do exactly that.
Graded Analysis: In grades 6.5 and above, the comic has enjoyed at least 95% growth in every grade with multiple sales. Here is a breakdown per grade:
- 6.5 - 246% growth over ~9 years
- 7.0 - 97% growth over ~8 years
- 7.5 - 631% growth over ~11.5 years
- 8.0 - 336% growth over ~19 years
- 8.5 - 603% growth over ~17 years
- 9.0 - 543% growth over ~17.5 years
- 9.2 - 265% growth over ~22 years
- 9.4 - 177% growth over ~18.5 years
- 9.6 - 233% growth over ~11 years
And bare in mind that I use present dollar values in these articles, meaning the data is inflation-adjusted and thus presents lower than data based just on sales prices. So, needless to say, this book has been a really good investment.
Copper Age
Superman #75
There are few stories quite as famous as The Death of Superman. Superman #75, which features the actual death of the legendary figure, was the best-selling comic of 1992 and defined the comic book landscape for decades.
The cover image itself is iconic and received enormous media attention when it first hit comic shop shelves. Though fans and critics alike continue to debate the merits of this story, there is no question that it left its mark.
Graded Analysis: The Death of Superman is one of the most heavily printed comic book storylines of all time. Consequently, there is a glut of high-grade copies that makes the book only investable in a 9.8 (9.8s are 44.4% of the census). Fortunately, growth in that area has been both consistent and phenomenal. From November 2011 to February 2023, this book enjoyed a 473.55% growth in value. That comes out to a 16.79% inflation-adjusted growth rate, more than double the same rate for the S&P 500 over the last 30 years!