Secrets of Haunted House #31 (1980)

A late Bronze Age book I want to spotlight today is Secrets of Haunted House #31, for the simple reason it is a cheap book featuring a cover-featured first appearance of a 35-year old DC character with much potential.

Quick history: Mister E was the star of standard vampire-hunting stories in Secrets of Haunted House #31-41, then 10 years later was used by Neil Gaiman in Books of Magic as one of the "Trenchcoat Brigade," an informal "team" who taught Timothy Hunter about magic.  He's in pretty good company there, as Dr. Occult is a Seigel & Shuster creation predating Superman, Phantom Stranger's first appearance from 1952 is a thousand-dollar book in CGC 4.0, and Constantine's first appearance in CGC 9.8 peaked at close to $700 due to anticipation of his TV show (before coming down to around $425 currently).

Mister E was in a couple of Vertigo mini-series, then after being absent for 10 years was reintroduced in the New 52 with an altered appearance and a different explanation for his blindness.  His bibliography totals only around 50 appearances in the four decades he's been around (compared to 300 for Madame Xanadu).  I really have no idea why he has not been used more.  It is just a matter of time before a writer or film producer taps this character for bigger and better things, but for now his first appearance is very affordable.

The Overstreet guide lists this at $16 in NM-, $2 above surrounding issues.  Currently there are zero 9.8s of the mere 7 that have been graded) which is kind of odd, and it would make a fun quest to find the first certified 9.8.  I have found a few nice 9.0 - 9.4 range copies discounted from guide, in the $10-$12 range.  This is definitely a book to memorize and try to find high-grade copies at your LCS or at shows.

Mister E in the "Trenchcoat Brigade":

Mister E's debut in the SOHH #31 backup story:

SOHH # 35 sports an eye-catching Mister E/Frankenstein monster cover by Rich Buckler:

Good Value Golden Age: Flash Comics #88 (1947)

The cheapest ticket to the Detective Comics #27 club is around $100,000; a 3.5-graded Detective #38 (first Robin) sold recently for over 22 grand.  Are Golden Age comics out of your reach?  Fortunately, there are many superhero and villain keys that are still affordable ($200-$300 for a lower grade, complete copy).  Here's one.

The Gentleman Ghost first appeared in Flash Comics #88 from 1947 (which also happens to be the third appearance of the Black Canary).  He may be a character not many think to look up, but almost 70 years after debuting the ghostly Jim Craddock is one of the few big two characters whose alter ego (and costume, mostly) is unchanged since his debut (even Two-Face's name was changed from "Kent" to "Dent", not to mention the Paul Sloane version).  After his debut, Gentleman Ghost appears 5 more times over the next 2 years in Flash Comics.  He is reintroduced in the Silver Age in Atom and Hawkman #43.

Gentleman Ghost is one of Hawkman's best-known villains, but has also faced Batman and the JSA.

He has appeared in animated media across multiple generations:

Super Friends (1970s)

Justice League Unlimited (2000s)

Batman: The Brave and the Bold (2000s)

 Action figures:

The character explained:

2015 Overstreet Guide values:

GD	VG	FN	VF	VF/NM	NM-
$132	$264	$396	$838	$1444	$2050

The same prices are listed for issues 87 (1st Foil) and 90.  I've seen a couple raw copies sell in the past 6 months for around guide.  Compare the NM- value to that of 1st Solomon Grundy ($20,000), 1st Cheetah ($5,500 guide, true current market value likely $15,000), or 1st Vandal Savage ($4,000, market value likely at least twice that) and you have a true bargain.

Here's the whole Hawkman story in which the Ghost makes his first appearance, from Flash Comics #88!  

Enjoy!

- www.heronext.com

All Star Western #117 (1961)

All Star Western #117 (1961)

Keys associated with popular, relevant characters are worth the most and are the recommended best investments, correct?  True, but some comics don't follow this rule.  How can the rise in value of a comic like Space Adventures #33 be explained, when Captain Atom isn't a significant character these days?  Some books counter-intuitively rise in value (often dramatically) despite an association with defunct or seldom-appearing characters.  Is there a way to identify potential books in this category?  Considering most investors/collectors are focused on characters with high and rising popularity, is this a smart area to invest in due to the lack of competition for available copies?

As the price of keys related to more established characters continue to rise, collectors look for pieces from the past that fit their budget but still have cachet and a reason to collect.  Space Adventures #33, and books like it, gain a following of their own that exceeds the fame of the character that debuts within.  A critical mass of collectors are drawn to a book, and prices begin to rise.  These books are often described as "hard to find," or "rare in high grade" - claims that in general I advise buyers to take with a grain of salt.

One such book I believe has only a small following currently is All Star Western #117, which features the first appearance of Madame .44.  Putting aside for a moment the fact the "western" genre is probably the least collected and least popular comic genre (apart from perhaps "funny animal"), there is no reason that Madame .44 cannot approach the levels of popularity that characters like Lady Blackhawk and Mademoiselle Marie enjoy.  The first appearances of these two characters, Blackhawk #133 and Star Spangled War Stories #84, respectively, fit precisely into the category of collectible I describe above - defunct or rarely used characters whose first appearances have cachet due to their age, "rarity", and cover image.

Madame .44 debuted in the third-to-last issue of the All Star Western series.  Originally a Robin Hood-style bandit who steals from the corrupt and criminal, she teams up with Johnny Thunder to fight off an Indian attack.  They swap spit at their first meeting and later marry, in DC Comics Presents #28 (1980).  Madame .44 makes few appearances throughout the Bronze and Copper Age, and most recently was an occasional guest star in the 2007 Jonah Hex series and its follow-up, 2011's All Star Western relaunch.  I'm going to come out and say the 2007 Jonah Hex series are the best comics I've ever read.

Now regarding the western thing, in the DC world I believe there is enough crossover between the superhero, war and western books that this issue shouldn't suffer from the stigma of being a western comic.  It may currently, but I don't believe it should.

Three copies of this issue have been graded by CGC: a 6.5, an 8.0 (sold for $94 in 2010) and a 9.0 (sold for $255 in 2012).  This raw "VF" copy sold at auction for $113 in 2008.  I paid $28 for a VG copy in 2013, and $55 for a FN/VF (guide) in 2015.
 
The second story in this issue contains the first appearance & origin of another character, a Native American hero called Super-Chief.  Oddly, it is this event which is highlighted in the 2015 Overstreet Guide, with "Madame .44. appearances" noted only in a footnote.

The NM- value was raised a modest $5 over the 2014 edition.

You may even see her in an upcoming Legends of Tomorrow episode alongside Jonah Hex, but I won't make too much of that.  I'm not saying it's undervalued.  I'm saying it's a neat, affordable book to look out for.

- Heronext.com

Complete Madame .44 story:

Super-Chief origin story:

2nd appearance of Madame .44 & Super-Chief

3rd appearance of Madame .44 & Super-Chief

Captain Marvel Adventures #22 (1943)

I have a couple of Golden Age picks and a Bronze pick coming up.  First is Captain Marvel Adventures #22 from 1943, the first appearance of the Monster Society of Evil.

This article assumes that the Shazam film franchise due to begin in 2019 will be a success, spawning sequels, with characters crossing over into a wider DC film universe.  If you even slightly agree, begin speculating now.  If you don't, take a "wait-and-see" approach.

The most important Shazam key is obviously the first appearance of Captain Marvel himself, Whiz Comics #2 (#1).  Prospects for that book are beyond the scope of this article.  There are many, many other nice Fawcett keys to speculate on, given that Fawcett books have always been slow sellers and relatively cheap.  For decades, the interest in these books has paled in comparison to the interest in Marvel and DC.

The number one Captain Marvel antagonist is Dr. Sivana.  Given that he first appears in the aforementioned Whiz Comics #2 (#1) and that he does not have a huge modern fan base, we will move on.  The second most important antagonist is Black Adam, who first appeared in 1945's Marvel Family #1, and who of course is to be played by Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson.  The Rock famously teased audiences for more than a year about which character he would be portraying.  To me Black Adam was the clear choice, and I purchased a couple of copies before The Rock's official confirmation.  One I sold for four times my cost, and the other for 10 times.  Had this blog existed at that time, I would have mentioned this book, but today I have another in mind.

The number 3 antagonist for Captain Marvel, in my opinion, is the Monster Society of Evil, first appearing in 1943's Captain Marvel Adventures #22.  In that issue, a long serial started that ran for 22 issues, which features the first appearance of another major Shazam villain, Mr. Mind.  Mr. Mind is an alien worm and only his voice was heard in #22, but it is quite significant nonetheless.  Moreso when you consider his first "real" appearance (#26) he appears in only one panel.

This is a relatively cheap book and I have seen perhaps 15 copies of it for sale in the past year.  For many years in the 1940s, Captain Marvel in his various magazines was the best selling superhero.  CM #22 is more common than you might think so do not be put off by its age.  This book is 52 pages and was manufactured with only one staple, so be sure to check listings for mention of detached staples and loose centerfolds.  There was also a cut-out printed on the back cover and I have seen this missing in several cases.  

Some people say this is the first group of supervillains in comics to consist of characters a hero previously faced.  See here for an interesting and informative analysis of this claim.  Suffice it to say that the Monster Society of Evil is at least among the first supervillain group in comics, in addition to the longest lasting.

Read the story here:

Thanks for reading!  Please drop us a line at team@heronext.com if you have an idea for a book you'd like to see profiled.

www.heronext.com

 

Green Lantern #29 (1964)

Green Lantern #29 (1964).  First appearance of Black Hand (William Hand)

Last week I was telling a friend how I thought Green Lantern #29 was undervalued.  He had never heard of the Black Hand.  This is one of the problems many of us vintage comic collectors run into: we don't read new comics anymore.  When a character's profile grows in modern story lines, we are the last to hear about it.  The rise in value puts us off, or we end up paying more for the "new key".  If you have been reading DC comics the past five or six years (Green Lantern in particular), you'll know how important Black Hand has become in the DC Universe.  I see his star rising the same way as Black Adam and Black Manta, but so far the market value of his first appearance has not changed.  My one hesitation is that his portrayal won't engender the kind of fandom these other two characters enjoy.  In short, he is not quite bad-ass enough.  His first appearance is one to watch.

Comparisons must be made to Sinestro, who is still Hal Jordan's #1 adversary.  We've seen his star rise in the past twenty years.  He has evolved into a character of shifting allegiances rather than a pure mustache-twirling villain.  He is sometimes at odds with the Green Lanterns, sometimes an ally.  Black Hand on the other hand (pun not intended), is just plain bad.  This list from 2011 ranks Black Hand at number 4 amongst Green Lantern villains behind Sinestro, the Manhunters and Krona.

In the 2015 Overstreet guide, I see that Green Lantern #7 (1st Sinestro) is valued 6.5 times more than #29 ($2000 vs $310).  A CGC 9.4 #7 recently sold for $10,755 while a CGC 9.6 #29 recently sold for $657).  The 10 least valuable of the first 30 issues of the Silver Age GL series are each worth $270.  The first appearance of Black Hand is only worth $40 more than that.  According to ComicVine, Black Hand has appeared in more issues than Sonar (a minor, perhaps irrelevant GL character?), yet #29 is only 3/4 the value of #14.  It is worth less than half the first appearance of Carol Ferris as the (Silver Age) Star Sapphire.

Black Hand has been a near-constant foil in the current Green Lantern series (he appears on the cover of the December 2015 issue).  I think some market correction is in order.

Warner Brothers has already used Parallax, Hector Hammond and Sinestro as big screen adversaries.  Considering the disappointing results of the 2011 GL film with Ryan Reynolds, they are likely to go for a different direction in the do-over that is five years away.  I can't think of many more important story lines as Blackest Night.

Another thing this book has going for it is that Black Hand actually appears on the cover, something that can't be said for Hector Hammond or Sinestro's debuts. Finally, this book was published in June of 1964, right in the sweet spot of where I like to look for undervalued Silver Age material.

As a treat, check out the original cover art for this comic, which just sold at auction on Heritage two weeks ago.   

Enjoy this video of Black Hand's history...

... and gallery of Black Hand covers.

Flash (Vol. 1) #258 (1978)

Flash (Vol. 1) #259 (1978)

Green Lantern (Vol. 2) #147 (1981)

Green Lantern (Vol. 2) #206 (1986)

 

Green Lantern (Vol. 4) #6 (2005): "Mutilated by the events of REBIRTH, Black Hand returns to wreak horrifying vengeance..."

Green Lantern (Vol. 4) #43 (2009).  There is also a second printing.

Green Lantern (Vol. 4) #43 1:25 Variant (2009)

Blackest Night #3 (2009)

Green Lantern (Vol. 5) #9 (2012)

Green Lantern #11 (2012)

Green Lantern #12 (2012)

Green Lantern #23.3 (2013)

Green Lantern #37 (2015)

Green Lantern #45 (2015)