By Rob Lamberti
Movies and shows are once again affecting comic book demand and prices.
Major announcements by Marvel were recently made at the San Diego Comic Con and at D23, a Disney fan showcase. DC is also making its screen presence known with the Green Lantern HBO show and the upcoming horror flick Clayface.
The hit, Spider-Man: Brand New Day, is only pushing demand for what were already considered hot books. Key books in the character’s original run, whether related to the film, are regaining attention, including issue 14, the first Green Goblin, 129 with the first appearance of The Punisher, number 252 with the first full black costume in the series, and 300 with the first full appearance of Venom.
Filmmakers also did something very cool in the latest Spidey film. They choreographed several comic book covers into live-action movie scenes, linking the film to Spider-Man’s print history. They include: the iconic cover of Amazing Fantasy 15 with Spider-Man hoisting a bandit in mid-air; the cover of Amazing Spider-Man 134 showing him as the character Tarantula attacks; Spider-Man 345 trying to avoid the Boomerang’s attack; and Tombstone threatening the hero from Spectacular Spider-Man 142.
The Avengers will continue to garner interest, as the release of the movies Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars, along with a new Vision television series, VisionQuest, approach. There are many key issues among the Avengers first 100 issues, but the cream includes Avengers 1, the return of Captain America in the fourth issue, and the first Vision in 57.
Expect X-Men titles to sizzle because of its planned reboot announced at D23. Much of the cast for the mutant universe was introduced, including Adam Driver, who again plays a villain. Demand for Hulk 181, the first full appearance of Wolverine, a key book in the Marvel universe, continues to grow. But before dropping hard-earned cash for a copy, ensure the Marvel Value Stamp, usually found around the letters page, hasn’t been cut out.
Gambit, portrayed by Channing Tatum in Deadpool & Wolverine, is to appear somewhere in the new movies, so keep an eye on Uncanny X-Men 266 and Uncanny X-Men Annual 14 from 1990. The character first appeared in the annual, but he was introduced in the regular edition. The annual is a continuation of 266, so someone at Marvel’s shipping department apparently messed up.
Giant-Size X-Men 1, which introduced a new lineup in 1975, will continue to go up. And a question making the rounds is who will replace the aging male Wolverine (Hugh Jackman) in the movies?
In the mix among these movies is Spider-Man’s symbiote uniform, expected to appear in Secret Wars. The black symbiote costume first appeared in Marvel Super Heroes Secret Wars Series 1 number 8. A solid issue for any collection despite the goofy title.
Any comic book with Doctor Doom is going to carry a bit of a premium for the next while. He first appeared in The Fantastic Four 5 in 1962. He became a staple evil character throughout the Marvel universe, particularly as the nemesis of the FF. He also appeared in Amazing Spider-Man 5, in Marvel Super-Villain Team-Up, and Daredevil. The modern storyline — and most likely the basis of the Doomsday story — includes the Unthinkable story from FF Volume 3, Doomwar, the Books of Doom, Exiles (about an alternate version of Tony Stark becoming Doom) and the 2015 Secret Wars series.
The most surprising announcement from the San Diego show was that Canadian actor Ryan Gosling is to star in the Ghost Rider reboot. Several comic titles hosted the character, but the standouts include Marvel Spotlight on Ghost Rider 5 to 11, focusing on the first motorcycle-riding Ghost Rider, Johnny Blaze. The second rendition of Ghost Rider, Danny Ketch, was introduced in Volume 3 in 1990.
In disappointing news, it seems a new Blade reboot isn’t happening. The vampire killer first appeared in Tomb of Dracula 10, a key Bronze Age book, and was portrayed by Wesley Snipes in four films, including Deadpool & Wolverine, and one TV series. The great Mahershala Ali was cast in the new film, but it has apparently been spiked.
And the Emmy-nominated Disney show Wonder Man, a character that first appeared in Avengers 9 in 1964, was also cancelled.
DC looks like it has a hit in the making with Lanterns, and it has apparently sparked demand for the character’s comic books. Golden Age (1938-’56) editions of Green Lantern command some hefty prices. The character, created by Martin Nodell and writer Bill Finger, first appeared in All-American Comics 16 in 1940, the flagship anthology book published by All-American Publications, which later became part of National Publications (DC Comics). That GL is not expected in the show.
But Hal Jordan as the Green Lantern who first appeared in the Silver Age with Showcase 22, is in the show. It’s expected the abrasive Guy Gardner, which first appeared in Green Lantern 59, will join the story. Jordan’s understudy, John Stewart, first appeared in Green Lantern 87.
Batman adversary Clayface, a shapeshifting character, is coming to movie screens this year. It’s unknown if this will dovetail with The Batman: Part II, which is part of the Elseworlds storyline. The character first appeared in Detective Comics 40. The second Clayface, Matt Hagen, the same name as the movie character, appeared in numerous DC Universe books, including Detective 298, 304, and 312, and again in Batman 159.