Undervalued Comics #43- Newsstand 9.8
This is the second series of undervalued comics in 9.8 grade.
- In the first article, I look at modern 9.8 books that are undervalued but are closely related to other keys that are already hot.
- Second article (this one) is 9.8 newsstands that is under $300, with a target of them reaching $500 or more.
- The final article is about modern 9.8 black covers.
In this article, I will focusing on newsstand 9.8s. As my top 10 copper 9.8 newsstands have shown, these books are starting to move up. Some of them have even developed price premiums of 2-4X of what a direct edition 9.8 is paid for.
Web of Spider-Man #1
Date of Publication: 1985
Sale number: 300,000
Key strengths of this book
1. A #1 issue with a black costumer cover
In the aforementioned top 10 report I linked to, Spider-Man issues took 4 out of the 10 spots. In addition, 3 out of these 4 issues have the black costume on the cover. If we follow this trend, then Web of Spider-Man #1 will be a good candidate to invest in.
Currently, there is only 1 copy of a newsstand 9.8 that sold from May to July 2020. It sold for $99, which is the same price as the direct edition 9.8s. Hence, the market has not developed a newsstand premium for this book yet.
| Issue | Price of regular 9.8 | Price of newsstand 9.8 | Newsstand Premium |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spectacular Spider-Man #101 | USD 350 | USD 650 | 90% |
| Web of Spider-Man #1 | USD 100 | USD 100 | 0% |
I picked Spectacular Spider-Man #101 as a benchmark because that issue has no first appearance but is still able to command a significant newsstand premium. It is demanded simply because of that great cover.
Web of Spider-Man #1 shares the same trait. It has no major first appearance but has a killer cover with the black suit. In addition, it has one advantage over #101 which is being a #1 issue.
Supply wise, there is currently no listing on Ebay for a newsstand 9.8. Compared this to Amazing Spider-Man #252, where such listings are common. Hence, it is fair to say this book is pretty hard to come by in 9.8 newsstand.
Web of Spider-Man #32
Date of Publication: 1986
Sale number: 240,000
Key strengths of this book
1. Iconic cover
Related to Web of Spider-Man #1 is the #32 issue, which features the killer Last Hunt cover. The reasons for investing in this book is identical to #1, which are:
- Spider-Man book
- A fan favorite cover
- Black costume
- Hard to find
- No newsstand premium
Similar to #1, Web of Spider-Man #32 does not have a lot of newsstand 9.8 listings. For those books that were listed and sold, there wasn’t any significant any newsstand premium yet.
| Issue | Price of regular 9.8 | Price of newsstand 9.8 | Newsstand Premium |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spectacular Spider-Man #101 | USD 350 | USD 650 | 90% |
| Web of Spider-Man #32 | USD 220 | USD 200 | 0% |
Bear in mind that the same thing happened to Spectacular Spider-Man #101. There wasn’t any newsstand premium for this book until May 2020. However, once it developed, prices quickly escalated.
The same thing might also happen to Web of Spider-Man #32 and #1.
Uncanny X-Men #282
Date of Publication: 1991
Sale number: 600,000
Key strengths of this book
1. First appearance of Bishop
Bishop always has his fan base, although he is not as hot as he was during the 90s. During that period, this first appearance in Uncanny X-Men #282 actually got onto Wizard’s Top 10.
By now, we all know this book is very common, thus preventing the regular issues from reaching any kind of significant price level .
However, newsstand 9.8s of this book is another thing.
It comes up for sale once in a few months but is always being bought quickly. The latest sale was for $199, which is around 30% more expensive than a regular edition. In this sense, the issue is still undervalued relatively to its scarcity and the character’s popularity.
| Issue | Price of regular 9.8 | Price of newsstand 9.8 | Newsstand Premium |
|---|---|---|---|
| X-Men Vol 2, #4 | USD 150 | USD 350 | 120% |
| Uncanny X-Men #282 | USD 150 | USD 200 | 30% |
In terms of growth, we can look at X-Men Vol 2, #4 (first appearance of Omega Red) for comparison. This book is also very highly printed (900k) but a 9.8 newsstand is now commanding USD 350, which has a 120% price premium over the regular 9.8.
Uncanny X-Men #282 has half of the supply (412k) and has the first appearance of a hero vs a villain. It is very likely that the 9.8 newsstand edition of this book will outperform X-Men #4 once we have some Bishop hype.
Ghost Rider Vol 3, #1
Date of Publication: 1991
Sale number: 180,000-200,000
Key strengths of this book
1. First appearance of Ghost Rider (Dan Ketch)
2. First appearance of Stacy Dolan
3. First appearance of Deathwatch
Ghost Rider Vol 3, #1 is one of the under $25 marvel affordable key issues that I recommended investors to purchase before they got hot. Its 9.8 newsstand is also a solid investment if you are into newsstands.
I have been watching this book for over 2-3 years now. A 9.8 newsstand rarely comes up for sale and when it does, it would be scope up pretty fast. To date, I am still without a single copy.
Ghost Rider Vol 3, #1 was also a hot book back in the 90s if you look at the Wizard top 10 I posted earlier. If Dan makes it to the MCU, this book will probably be very hot again.
For this book, I have no direct comparisons. A possible candidate is the X-Men Vol 2, #4 that I posted above. However, since this is not a X-Men title, the comparison might not be as valid.
| Issue | Price of regular 9.8 | Price of newsstand 9.8 | Newsstand Premium |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spectacular Spider-Man #101 | USD 350 | USD 650 | 90% |
| Web of Spider-Man #1 | USD 100 | USD 100 | 0% |
Conclusions
Newsstand editions are entering into a new phase of growth. We can see this in terms of the newsstand premiums being developed as well as more collecting interest.
For example, if you fo to the copper and modern sections of the CGC forums, there are now threads dedicated to newsstand collecting.
If you want to get into this newsstand game, start targeting books like the above.
