X-Men #35, Marvel Comics, August 1967.
I was reading something about Warren Buffet and the way he bought stocks, it was all about finding quality and value. I thought I’d try Mr. Buffet’s technique to see if I can weed out some Undervalued comics, and I did. One good example is this week’s Undervalued Spotlight, X-Men #35.
X-Men #35 is one of the easiest comic books sell, instantly recognizable with the famous Dan Adkins cover depicting Spidey unexpectedly dropping in on the X-Men. It satisfies so many collecting strains because it delivers on so many levels. X-Men collectors, Spider-Man cross-over collectors, cover collectors, first appearance collectors, black cover collectors (getting a copy that has no stresses along the top has always been tough).
X-Men #35 offers up the first appearance of the Changeling. The Changeling dies several issues later in X-Men #42 but as we all know nothing stays dead in comics, the Marvel character Morph is a second incarnation.
Warren Buffet would approve because X-Men #35 delivers that quiet under the radar value that makes it a good addition to the portfolios – I mean – collection.
The comic book marketplace seems to be retreating a bit as I write this, especially high profile keys that have enjoyed steep price increases over the past several years. I think books like X-Men #35 are great safe alternatives to those now volatile key issues.
Recently a CGC 9.4 sold for $800, down from a $1,000 prior sale, a recent CGC 8.0 sold for $192 again well down from a recent prior sale. I wouldn’t worry too much about timing out the trough perfectly because you can’t, just take advantage of these softer prices and nab yourself a nice tight copy with high gloss and a crisp look to it.
The 48th Overstreet price breaks for this book are $168/$372/$575 in the 8.0/9.0/9.2 grade splits.
Strengths that make this comic a good long-term investment are:
- Great Dan Adkins cover that is coveted and instantly recognizable.
- First appearance of The Changeling
- X-Men #35 covers a lot of collecting strains
Have always loved this book since I was a kid! Isn’t this the 1st meeting of Spidey and the X-Men as well?
I don’t see a clear point to this one so I will just try a couple of things.
As we have been looking at a _lot_ of covers, I think I am in a position to have an opinion that this one isn’t very good. It might sell as it has Spider-Man and the X-Men, and is the first crossover cover, but I think it is pretty unpleasant. Adkins’s work looks like some kind of devolved Kirby.
Other than the crossover cover this is a run book through and through. Yes Warren Buffet has picked many run-of-the-mill companies and juiced them up, but many others have tried and failed in this approach. In the past few decades he has been able to trade on his reputation and make a stock perform just by saying he likes it. You aren’t quite at this level yet….
Let’s try one comp, which is Daredevil #16, from a year earlier, a Spider-Man crossover cover, and like this one, not the first Spider-Man crossover (which in this case was X-Men #27). Adjusted for scarcity the prices of these are right on top of each other (if you take that $800 for the 9.4 to be a bad level, as I think $1000 is more to be expected). I think the Daredevil cover is far nicer, so another reason to expect it to be worth more. Maybe we are seeing that “collecting strains” effect, but in that case it is already priced in, and is not something unrecognized which equates to undervalued.
We are left with The Changeling. You give him short shrift and I think the market does as well. This would just be one of a zillion bets on some kind of movie/TV treatment, which I think is a loser’s game.
You are going to have to give me something else on this one to get me interested.
Verdict: Boring not Buffet
While I won’t be as harsh as Chris on Dan Adkins cover… as I do like it…I also don’t believe its going to be another big cash cow. There are several better covers in the early Xmen run to make this just an average one.
After I got into comics in the early 90s, I got burnt out after a few years (who didn’t?) and just stopped cold turkey. I came back a few years ago, and with now being able to see everything via the internet, I had a whole new perspective on the hobby.
I’ve always loved art in general, and the first thing I got into when I came back, was Pre-Code Horror, because of the covers, that turned into keys, and that’s what I now spec/buy, keys & covers.
This was one of the first books that caught my eye that wasn’t PCH. It has a great variety of color against the black background, and is just a nice action scene overall. Chris mentioned DD16, and IMO it’s pretty underwhelming in comparison, far too much red being the main thing. Being a photographer, seperating subject color and turning the background grayscale is also usually a gray area trick used to turn a bad photo into a decent one. It rarely works, and usually only when there’s 1 subject. Maybe I’m a little jaded there, but that’s how I see it.
As far as undervalued, maybe a hair, definitely not going to pay off your kids college tuition with it in 20 years though.
I still love your detailed opinions Chris, I’ve been lurking this page for quite a while <3, but this book holds a special place in my Silver Age eye, probably some slight bias there too, lol.