COMIC DETAILS
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Comic Description:
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Amazing Spider-Man 361 Modern
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Grade:
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9.8
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Page Quality:
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WHITE
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Certification #:
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2131047016
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Owner:
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Professor Pecora
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SET DETAILS
Owner's Description
Amazing Spider-Man #361 features the 1st full appearance of Carnage (Cletus Kasady)!
Overstreet 2023 NM- 9.2 value = $175.
According to the CGC Census Report as of Tuesday, August 22, 2023, out of a staggering total of 25,901 Universal copies graded, 5,754 copies were graded in 9.8 with ONLY 3 copies graded higher in 9.9!
With these statistics in mind, this represents a rarity factor of 22.22% of the total population.
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CARNAGE: PART ONE! Right when you thought there couldn’t be a more deadly adversary than Venom, in April of 1992, the world was introduced to the villain Carnage—a devastating, ruthless and psychopathic KILLER! “AT LAST! THE SPAWN OF VENOM!”
Unlike the alien symbiote that partially bonded with Eddie Brock—turning him into Venom; the neglected offspring of Venom fully bonded with its host—the deranged murderer Cletus Kasady, therefore making him extremely more powerful and destructive than his predecessor! For example, the Venom symbiote refers to its host as “we”—as in a partnership; whereas the Carnage symbiote states its identity as “I”—as in a dictatorship with full control!
Although issues such as ASM #50 (1st appearance of the Kingpin) and ASM #300 (Origin & 1st full appearance of Venom) are highly valuable and feature classic cover art by legendary artists John Romita Sr. and Todd McFarlane; the Kingpin and Venom are NOT depicted on the front covers of their initial debuts! In turn, the Kingpin doesn’t make his 1st cover appearance until the following issue—in ASM #51, and it would take fourteen issues later for Venom to make a partial cover appearance (only his head is shown) on ASM #315, with his 1st full cover appearance on ASM #316!
However, ASM #361 boldly showcases Carnage attacking a helpless Spider-Man, as he is entangled and hoisted in midair by Carnage’s shapeshifting, tentacle-like appendages! On that note, I definitely LOVE this classic Spider-Man vs. Carnage battle cover drawn by artists Mark Bagley & Randy Emberlin! I actually have a special connection to this issue, because I can recall when I was only 13 years old and purchasing several copies right off the comic book carousel rack at my local supermarket (Wegmans) in Rochester, NY! With that type of nostalgia in mind, it’s by far one of my favorite ASM 1st appearance issues in the entire run!
Moreover, on October 15, 2021, Carnage will make his official debut in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) with the world premiere of Venom: Let There Be Carnage! Even though high-grade copies of ASM #361 have already been significantly increasing in value, after the movie drops (considering it’s successful), I believe that it will drive greater demand and cause prices to soar to new heights! After all, what other villain can you think of that kicked off a “14-part” comic book crossover—“Maximum Carnage” (January 1, 1993), in just the 10th month of his existence!
Although ASM #361 is not considered rare, as the combined total of Universal 9.6 and 9.8 copies equals more than half the population on the CGC Census, this particular 9.8 copy is exceptional because it is PERFECTLY WRAPPED and CENTERED and contains PERFECT WHITE PAGES!
It’s truly a remarkable copy and if you could inspect the book in person, I’m confident that you would agree that it looks like it should’ve been encapsulated within a CGC 9.9 MINT holder!
Furthermore, this is a rare Newsstand Edition, which is indicated by the UPC barcode in place of the Spider-Man Rectangle located on the bottom left-hand corner of the front cover.
In closing, I purchased this pristine beauty from modruiz (via eBay) in January of 2021! The transaction and communication went extremely well and I’m proud to showcase this immaculate copy in Arachnophobia!
Happy Collecting & Enjoy the Hunt!
-Professor Pecora
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