Captain America: Brave New World is turning out to be just as much of a sequel to the 2008's Incredible Hulk as it is a sequel for Sam Wilson's Captain America. This makes sense because the rights to the Hulk as a character are complex (Marvel has the rights to the Hulk, but Universal Pictures has the right of first refusal to distribute any solo Hulk movies).
We know the Leader (from the 2008 Hulk film) and the Red Hulk will appear in the film; can Smart Hulk, She-Hulk and Skaar be far behind?
Over the past year, the 1st appearance of Professor Hulk has held onto most of its value in high grades.
Professor Hulk makes his first appearance in Incredible Hulk #377. An amalgamation of the grey Joe Fixit and traditional green Hulk, Professor Hulk had Bruce Banner's mind, but Hulk's body. This character served as the inspiration for the current iteration of the Hulk that we see in the MCU who first appeared in Avengers: Endgame.
Incredible Hulk #377 is an important Copper Age issue with enough market value to be included in GoCollect's Copper Age Collectible Price Index. Although this issue has generally lost value across seven CGC grades, that is only really true for the lower grades (8.0 through 9.2). In higher grades, it has generally held onto to its value or actually increased in value (see, for example, a 9.4).
Considering that most Copper Key issues in the CPI have generally lost value over the past year, and that the supply of CGC graded copies of Hulk #377 continues to grow, I think this demonstrates there is significant market demand for this issue. If the upcoming Captain America film turns out to be a Hulk sequel as well, we might see this issue get a small bump in value over the short-term.
A CGC 9.6 copy of Savage She-Hulk #1 has lost about 85% of its value during the past three years.
When the comic book market entered the early stages of a long-running bear market in 2022, Savage She-Hulk #1 and Eternals #1 became the ugly poster children of what happens to an investment when a bubble pops. I actually wrote a blog on this exact topic almost two years ago when I lost a ton of money on these two books.
Two years later, the 1st appearance of She-Hulk hasn't recovered. Let's take a deep dive into the most common grade on the CGC Census: a 9.6.
After reaching an all-time high sale of $612.48 in May 2021, the value of this book fell hard falling below $200 before the end of 2022. Although the pace of depreciation has slowed over the past two years, its FMV according to GoCollect is now only $150. In other words, a 9.6 has lost about 85% of its value during the past three years. It's value is roughly the same as it was just prior to the pandemic-fueled comic boom. Considering how much inflation rose in 2022 and 2023, you could make the argument that She-Hulk #1 has over-corrected, but there's also a much larger supply of CGC 9.6s on the Census than there was a few years back.
The market has designated What If? Featuring Planet Hulk #1 as Skaar's 1st appearance.
Lastly, we shouldn't be surprised if we see Skaar, Hulk's son, appear in Brave New World to help fight Red Hulk. He appeared briefly at the end of She-Hulk and we know Marvel is teeing up the Young Avengers for a future film or TV show. In a way, Skaar has two first appearances, one in Skaar: Son of Hulk #1 which is his first full appearance in Marvel's main continuity, but also in What If? Featuring Planet Hulk #1 which is his first appearance in an alternate reality. Based on sales values, the market clearly prefers What If? Featuring Planet Hulk #1.
Based on recent sales of the most common grade of What If? Featuring Planet Hulk #1, a 9.6, you might be able to find a great deal here especially if you're betting on Skaar appearing in a bigger role in Brave New World. For example, the most recent sale of a 9.6 sold for a mere $22!
What are your thoughts on Brave New World going this direction? Do you expect to see more of a Captain America movie or a sneaky Hulk flick with Brave New World?
