Where is Man-Thing? He's been established in the MCU, but we still haven't seen him. Sooner or later, he'll be on screens, and now is a great time to pick up his key issues.
Marvel fans love their Easter eggs, and the MCU delivers them in droves. Few have garnered attention like the Grandmaster’s tower in Thor: Ragnarok. If you recall, etched into the tower were the faces of the Grandmaster's former champions, Beta Ray Bill, Ares, Bi-Beast, and Man-Thing.
In the case of Man-Thing, he's also been mentioned. On an episode of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Maria Hill tells Pepper Potts that Congress asked her, “Who or what is a Man-Thing?” (and, yes, my inner 13 year old just giggled at that). Couple that with his likeness on Grandmaster’s tower, and he is well established in the MCU without actually being seen.
Marvel enjoys dropping names and references (sometimes subtle, sometimes not), but those references don’t always pan out as fans may hope. In the case of Man-Thing, it’s safe to say that there are much bigger plans in place than a mere tease.
Marvel Studios head Kevin Feige has said before that he isn’t opposed to a horror-themed entry into the MCU. Of course Blade comes to mind first, and for good reason; his first movie from 1998 set the precedent that not all superheroes have to be family friendly. Plus, Blade is a Marvel mainstay and his popularity would warrant an inclusion in the cinematic universe. Where I lean toward Man-Thing appearing first, however, is simply from Blade not having references or hints. There’s been no mention of vampires or anything that would suggest Blade.
Between Thor: Ragnarok and Agents of SHIELD (not to mention that his wife in the comics had a small part in Iron Man 3), Marvel clearly wants our attention on Man-Thing. I find it hard to believe that after being so forward with his name and likeness that he would be left unused and as more or less background decoration. Eventually, Man-Thing will make his “full appearance,” so to speak, and you’ll want to be ahead of the curve when it comes to collecting. That being said, which keys should you pick up?
As a side note, I'm leaving Fear #19 off the list since it's more of a Howard the Duck key rather than Man-Thing since Howard's comic premiere was in that particular issue.
As usual, you’ll want to start with the first appearance. With Conan the Barbarian featured so prominently on the cover, it's easy to overlook that this was Man-Thing's comic debut. A 6.0 sold for $185 in February, so it's not in the unattainable range.
Over the years, Man-Thing has had several incarnations of his own series, and the first was three years following his debut. While not as popular an issue as Savage Tales #1, it is worth buying with the prospect of him making a full-scale appearance in the MCU. The best part is that you don't have to secure a loan to get a decent grade. A 9.6 has a 90-day average of less than $300, and the most recent sale was for $216.
Before Man-Thing had a self-titled series, he was the star of Adventure into Fear (also known as simply Fear). Beginning with issue 10, he was the protagonist for the title for 10 issues. Man-Thing has his share of classic cover art, but this is one of the more iconic. A 9.4 brought $200 in April, while an 8.0 drops all the way to just $51 if you're looking to save money.
