Set Description:
Synopsis: Aquaman Sucks, but this set doesn’t LOL. This is a complete set of 67 books with a minimum grade of 9.0, which has topped the Registry since 2019. Highlights of this set are the first 14 issues (Showcase #30-34 and Aquaman #1-10), all of which are highest graded examples with Showcase #31 and #33 and Aquaman #1, #2, #5 and #8 topping the census alone. The set also contains the single highest graded example of the first appearance of the Black Manta (Issue #35). Sixty-five of our books are highest graded examples as of June 2026 with 24 books single highest graded (down from an all-time high of 33 books, 26 just a year ago). Approximately half of our books came from pedigree collections.
Background: Aquaman was created by Paul Norris and Mort Weisinger and debuted in More Fun Comics #73 (November 1941). Aquaman's appearances in More Fun Comics continued until issue #107, after which all superhero stories were replaced with humor features. In 1946, Aquaman was transferred to Adventure Comics with issue #103 along with the other superhero features from More Fun Comics. Aquaman would continue to feature in Adventure Comics for the next 15 years, making him one of the few DC superheroes to appear continuously throughout the 1950s.
Aquaman appeared in 1960 as a founding member of the Justice League of America in Brave and Bold #28. In 1961, Aquaman starred in a four-issue Showcase run in issues #30–33. These Showcase issues are notable as Aquaman's first cover appearances in any comic. Simultaneously, the Aquaman backup feature ended in Adventure Comics with issue #284 and was transferred to Detective Comics with issue #293.
Soon thereafter, the first Aquaman solo series began, with the first issue cover-dated February 1962, the same month, the backup feature in Detective Comics ended with issue #300. Simultaneously with the solo series, an Aquaman backup feature was also published in World's Finest #125–139 (May 1962 to February 1964). The solo series Aquaman would last 56 issues in its initial run until 1971. Then, after a three-year hiatus, Aquaman returned as a backup feature in Adventure Comics for issues #435–437 before becoming the main feature in issues #441–452. This run transitioned into a revival of the Aquaman solo series in 1977, resuming the initial run's numbering at #57; however, the series ended after just seven issues with #63 in 1978, which is the last issue in the set below.
In the comics, Aquaman was the son of a human lighthouse-keeper and the queen of Atlantis. Aquaman is the alias of Arthur Curry, who also goes by the Atlantean name Orin. His villains include his archenemy Black Manta and his own half-brother the Ocean Master, among others.
Aquaman has been featured in several adaptations, first appearing in animated form in the 1967 The Superman/Aquaman Hour of Adventure and then in the related Super Friends program. Since then he has appeared in various animated productions, including prominent roles in the 2000s series Justice League and Justice League Unlimited and Batman: The Brave and the Bold, as well as several DC Universe Animated Original Movies. Actor Alan Ritchson also portrayed the character in the live action television show Smallville. In the DC Extended Universe, actor Jason Momoa portrays the character in the films Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, Justice League and its director's cut Zack Snyder's Justice League, Aquaman, the HBO Max series Peacemaker, and Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom.
Aquaman in the Registry and Market: Compared to the other founding members of the JLA, Aquaman has been an unloved character:
https://youtu.be/w2o5tG0o7Xg
https://youtu.be/zPwSXfsT0-Q
Currently, the most valuable Aquaman issue in terms of registry points is a #1 9.8, which merits only 17,600 points. By comparison, the most valuable SA Flash, Showcase #4 in 9.6, receives 600,000 registry points, while the most valuable SA Green Lantern, Showcase #22 in 9.4, receives 124,000 registry points. Admittedly, both of those books came earlier in time, but of the original JLA members, Aquaman seemingly takes a backseat to every JLA member with the possible exception of the Martian Manhunter, despite enjoying a relatively successful solo movie. And if you compare Aquaman #1 to Amazing Fantasy #15, which it predated by eight months, the AF #15 in 9.6 receives 1,833,000 points, making it more than 150 times as valuable as an Aquaman #1 in 9.8.
Looking at the marketplace, the highest reported sale on GPA of an Aquaman #1 is $45,600 for a 9.6 on January 11, 2024, which is over four times the 11,000 registry points awarded for that book. (I am happy to say that was our under copy.) The registry points for a couple of minor Aquaman keys, Issue #11, featuring the first appearance of Mera, and Issue #35, featuring the first appearance of Black Manta, also appear to be out of whack. In the case of Issue #11, the Pacific Coast copy graded 9.4 sold for $26,400 in August 2019 in a CC Auction, while that book receives just 630 registry points. Similarly, a 9.6 copy of Issue #35, again the Pacific Coast copy, but ranking second in the census, sold in June 2019 for $9,000, while that book receives just 500 registry points.
I think these differences could probably be attributed to the fact that high census titles get adjusted more frequently because CGC responds to the squeaky wheels and adjust points when they receive requests from owners. So registry points for high population books from titles such as ASM and Daredevil track the market far more closely, because they are adjusted to reflect most recent sales; while high-grade Aquamans and some other titles where high grade examples rarely come up for sale, receive no point adjustments since there is no recent data to use for lobbying CGC. Consequently, the rarer the books, the more likely they are to be undervalued by the Registry.
While obviously there has never been a precise correlation between value and registry points, perhaps Aquamans deserve a little more love by CGC.
Our Collection: I realize we have benefitted from the fact that these books are generally unloved and nobody else seems to be actively trying to complete this set, but this is still a collection about which we are very excited. It may not be our best set in terms of the census, but it’s a really strong set and has now topped the registry by a wide margin for six years. Prior to that time, we had long owned high grade copies of Showcases #30-33, but only had them registered in our Showcase set. We changed our focus several years ago away from upgrading existing sets to starting new ones, which is much more fun to be honest and generally far less expensive.
What generally motivates us to start collecting a new title is the auction of one or more complete collections. In the case of Aquaman, in 2018-2019, the two collections previously topping the registry were both sold: the first set in a CC auction and the second in a CL auction. The books in the first auction went at pretty low prices and we were able to add a number of high-grade books at very reasonable prices. The second auction was more competitive, but the two auctions together allowed us to jumpstart this collection and leap to the top of the registry. We completed this set in April 2023 with the acquisition of high grade examples of Issues #12, #35 and #36 in a private transaction.
But what really sets this collection apart is a recent acquisition of twelve more single highest graded books in what was a very complicated deal involving both book swaps and cash, which brought the number of single highest graded books in the set up to a total then of 22, or basically a third of our books. We have since added five more single highest graded books getting us to our current 27. Moreover, almost half of our books come from pedigree collections with the majority being Pacific Coast copies.
The biggest weakness in this set now is our Issue #11 9.0, which is only third highest graded. Still, it is one of the five highest graded copies out of 486 certified by CGC. Finding a better copy of that one would move this set up to the level of our Flash, Green Lantern, JLA and Atom sets, so if anyone out there reads this and has one, we’re interested. Outside that flaw, this set rocks, as the minimum grade is 9.4 with 3/4 of our books grading 9.8s and all but one being highest graded examples!
2024 Update: From out of nowhere, a large cache of pristine raw Aquamans were submitted to CGC and graded in April, presumably by a dealer who immediately sent such books to Auction. Much to our chagrin, those newly-graded books bested five of our previously single highest graded books and tied five more. We were fortunate enough (I’m not sure that’s the right choice of words, they certainly were not free LOL) to acquire the five books that bested ours, which raised the number of 9.8s in our set to 49 with 14 9.6s, 3 9.4s and still the single 9.0. Our number of single highest graded books is now back to the 27 we had prior to the emergence of these books. They did, however, reduce the number of pedigrees in our set, since both our #5 9.6 and #8 9.6 that were beaten in the census emanated from the Pacific Coast Collection, books that we were bragging about recently acquiring above (and which we will undoubtedly now take a loss on when we sell). So basically, we expended a lot of time and money to stay where we were, as we are still 660 registry points from having a perfect set based on the current census data, with the same two slots filled by non-highest graded books.
As I have said many times, census changes rarely work out in a collector’s favor. The same thing happened to us last year in another collection, as after finally achieving our goal of having highest graded copies of the first 25 JLA issues, a #2 9.8 emerged from CGC, besting our 9.6. The one difference there was that book never hit the market or I am sure we would have done the same thing. But occurrences like this are why I would advise anyone just starting out to stick with Marvels, as their values are not as heavily dependent on the census.
I guess if one is trying to find a bright side, we are now much better protected from having the same thing happen again.
2026 Update: There are still just three books out there that would improve this set and none of them have come on the market over the last two years, so this is basically the same set we entered last year, although three of our books have been tied over the last two years. Prices of these books remain very low. A second 9.8 emerged of Issue #30, and while the seller started out asking $25,000 for the book, it eventually made less than $1,000 at auction. I am certain I paid far more for our copy-I’m afraid to look-but I have given up on averaging down on DCs. Needless to say, while I enjoy collecting Silver Age DCs, they have been far from a good investment.
|
|
|
| The gallery tab shows only items with images. Click the thumbnails to enlarge. |
| Slot: |
Showcase 30 |
| Item: |
Showcase 30 Universal |
| Grade: |
CGC |
| Cert #: |
1345315004
|
Owner Comments
Showcase #30 marks the first Aquaman try-out issue. Of course, it should be noted that Aquaman was previously introduced to the DC Universe as a member of JLA in Brave & Bold #28. And even before that, Aquaman back-up stories frequently appeared in Adventure Comics, although he made no cover appearances.
In the story, "The Creatures from Atlantis", Aquaman and Aqualad come to the rescue of a cargo ship that's been struck by lightning. When Aquaman finds that the cargo hold broke open and crates carrying a new type of poison are drifting out of the ship, Aquaman and his undersea pals collect all the boxes. Ordering Aqualad to bring all the cargo to shore, Aquaman then returns to his home where he finds fish with a telepathic message from Atlantis asking for help. Thinking of Atlantis, Aquaman recounts his origins: How his mother was an exile from Atlantis who bore a child with a lighthouse worker. As he remembers how his mother revealed his true nature on his death bed, Aquaman decides to go to Atlantis to find out what he's needed for. Upon his arrival, he is suddenly attacked by two giant humanoid sea-monsters.
Brought into the city, Aquaman sees that the people of Atlantis have been enslaved by this race of amphibious sea-creatures. When trying to demand answers by one of the leaders of these creatures, Aquaman is sentenced to work on the same device the other Atlantians are working on. There he finds out from one of the workers that these creatures came from a "hole" that appeared in the water. Sometime later, Aquaman attempts to start a revolt by summoning an army of sea creatures to come to his rescue, however, the creatures have blow guns which they use to turn back the attackers. Later, hiding in a tube close to the creatures, Aquaman learns the truth: They are criminals from another dimension who are building a device that would melt all forms of resistance from the surface world in their bid to conquer the entire planet Earth. Spotted by the creatures, Aquaman is locked up in a cell, but manages to contact his undersea friends, who summon Aqualad with a swordfish to spring Aquaman out of the jail.
Racing to the surface to stop the creatures who are out on a test of their new weapon, Aquaman, Aqualad and an army of sea life attack the monsters. However, they do not stop the creatures from testing their weapons. After a number of attacks, Aquaman orders an army of sea gulls to drop bombs on the creature's vessel rendering it inoperable. The fleeing creatures enter an undersea forest, where Aquaman manages to grab hold of their dimensional device and uses it to send them back home. Once the people of Atlantis are free, they reward Aquaman with a Hero of Atlantis medal before Aquaman and Aqualad return to their home in the sea.
Our WP 9.4 is one of four highest graded copies in the census and also comes from the Bethlehem Pedigree Collection. This massive collection of 18,000 comic books was assembled by Stanley Pachon in Bethlehem, PA, and stretched from 1950 into the Silver Age. It contained many popular 50's runs and a score of Marvel and DC keys. After Pachon passed away, the collection was sold to Joe Rainone and Phil Weiss in 1990. The Bethlehems were one of the first pedigreed collections to contain Silver Age, and many are easily identifiable by a store stamp found on the back covers.
We acquired ithe book off the CL Exchange on 11/2/2017.
I should note the price anomalies between the Aquaman Showcase tryout issues and those for Flash, Green Lantern, Atom and Metal Men-as well as the Brave and Bolds for Hawkman and JLA. Of those seven titles, I would say that the first Showcase or Brave and Bold try-out issues are more valuable, in some cases a multiple, of the first solo issues of the character or team in question. That is not the case with Aquaman. A Showcase #30 9.4 is as rare as an Aquaman #1 9.6 and predates it in publication, but the Aquaman #1 has been the more valuable book in the marketplace and receives twice the registry points. While there are no Showcase #30 9.6s as of this writing, a 9.6 would still be less valuable in terms of registry points than a similarly graded Aquaman #1, even though it would be much rarer. I can only surmise that the reason the Aquaman Showcases are not more highly valued is that they are not first appearances. Rather, Aquaman’s first appearance is as a member of the JLA in Brave and the Bold #28. By contrast, the Flash and GL Showcase try-out issues predate B&B #28.
2024 Update: One of the other 9.4 copies of this book was auctioned on Heritage in June 2024 and made only $17,000 plus the BP, or $20,400. As someone who already owned a copy, I thought it was a disappointing result, although not low enough for me to dive in and buy it, as we had other targets. (Of course, it was still over three times the registry points awarded by CGC.) I am not sure whether the poor result was attributable to the lack of success of the second Aquaman movie or what? The five single highest graded Aquaman issues that sold in the same auction did relatively better, but when one compares the auction price of the Showcase #30 to what highest graded first try-out issues of other characters have made, it remains one of the least loved titles in the marketplace. It would be interesting to see what one of the Aquaman #11 9.4s would do now at auction, as the last sale there was about 50% higher than the Showcase #30 9.4 made. My guess is that book would be cheaper now, especially since it was the single highest graded copy when it was auctioned and no longer is.
|
| Slot: |
Showcase 33 |
| Item: |
Showcase 33 Universal |
| Grade: |
CGC |
| Cert #: |
3816694002
|
Owner Comments
Showcase #33 is the last of the Aquaman try-out issues and features an appearance by Topo. In the story, "Prisoners of the Aqua-Planet,” Aquaman and Aqualad spot strange alien sea creatures attacking everything in sight. With the help of their friends of the deep, they manage to fight back the creatures. They are then met by water-breathing aliens who explain that they have come to Earth from the planet Venus in order to escape conquerors of their world. Taking Aquaman to their ship, they explain that they came to setup a new home under the sea when their sea creatures, which they used to aid in the building of their dwelling, escaped. Aquaman and Aqualad decide to stay and visit as the Venusians build their village and coat it with a protective dome. Once complete, however, the village is pulled out of the ocean by an alien space ship, taking everyone with it.
Brought to Venus, Aquaman and Aqualad are taken before the ruler, Naeco, who sentences them to be imprisoned along with the Venusians that are against Naeco's rule. With the help of their undersea friends who were captured along with them, Aquaman and Aqualad manage to break out of their prison cells. After an underwater chase, the two grab sea-sponges and escape to an island on the surface where the Venusians cannot follow due to their inability to breathe air. They soon are attacked by many exotic beasts that are native of the planet, but Aquaman and Aqualad quickly dispatch them, and replenish themselves with water from the sponges. However, they realize that they are now trapped on the island because the moment they step foot in water again they'll be captured.
Realizing that the Venusians are afraid of the surface creatures, Aquaman and Aqualad dive into the water and make a break for it and manage to escape the chasing soldiers. They find a number of rebels and they construct a projection device that enables them to project images of the surface creatures which frightens the soldiers. Even though the Venusians find the projector, Aquaman has them disorientated enough for the rebels to finally beat their foes and take back their planet. After thanking them, Mermor, the leader of the rebels, sends Aquaman and Aqualad back home to Earth.
Showcase #33 is also the toughest of the four Showcases to find in high grade, as there are only four books graded 9.0 or better. Our 9.6 is not only the single highest graded example in the census, but there are currently no 9.4s. After previously owning one of the two then highest graded 9.2s, we acquired the book in the 6/18/2022 Heritage Auction. Once again, we have been the only registered owner of this book.
|
| Slot: |
Showcase 31 |
| Item: |
Showcase 31 Universal |
| Grade: |
CGC |
| Cert #: |
1272979001
|
Owner Comments
Showcase #31 in the second Aquaman try-out issue from 1961. In the story, "The Sea Beasts From One Million B.C."
Aquaman and Aqualad spot a ship being attacked by a giant sea monster, and with the help of their undersea friends manage to save the ship from being sunk. Without the ship to trash, the sea monster makes a getaway, and before the two heroes can go after it, they're signaled to board a ship. There Aquaman is asked to see Professor Richards, a famous zoologist. Agreeing, Aquaman goes to the scientist, leaving Aqualad to continue their patrol.
Arriving at Dr. Richards' lab, the doctor explains to Aquaman that he had finally perfected an evolution ray that could evolve or devolve any living thing, however upon showing it to his assistant, John Cook, he was soon held at gun point as his assistant stole the device. Aquaman realizes that the evolution device was what created the sea monster he saw earlier, the doctor shows Aquaman how to set the gun to reverse the damage it does and Aquaman sets off to find Cook. Returning home sharing his findings with Aqualad, the two set out to look for Cook who is hiding out in the ocean. Upon finding him, Cook uses the device to devolve some sea creatures and sets them to attack Aquaman and Aqualad. The two summon an army of sea creatures to help them fight off the prehistoric monsters, however Cook then uses his weapons to change that army into prehistoric creatures as well.
With Aquaman and Aqualad preoccupied with battling prehistoric sea creatures, Cook sends a number of the monsters to attack a nearby ship, prompting Aquaman and Aqualad to save the passengers, and Cook steals the cargo on board. Aquaman tracks down Cook's secret underwater cave and knocks him out. Switching the evolution ray to evolve the sea creatures, Aquaman begins changing his undersea friends back to normal, however the device is jammed and the sea creatures are evolved into their future evolutions before Aquaman can shut the device off. Before he can fix the error he made, he and Aqualad are attacked by a giant future-evolved blow-fish.
Shooting the blow-fish with a harpoon gun, Aquaman and Aqualad take Cook to the surface where they find that these future sea creatures are attacking everything in sight. They save the crew of a ship and take them (and Cook) to shore, where Aquaman comes up with an idea. He rides on a rope being pulled by a large flock of sea-gulls and lures the future sea creatures back out to sea where they eventually turn back to normal.
With Cook arrested, Aquaman tells the police that he saw that the blow fish they had harpooned earlier had reverted back to its original state, and surmised that the others would do so as well shortly.
Our 9.6 has been the single highest graded copy since it was first graded by CGC in May 2018. The book was initially put up for auction that year, but did not reach its reserve. We acquired the book shortly thereafter in an after-auction private transaction fronted by Pedigree Comics. I am honestly not sure if there was another owner or whether Doug owned the book himself, but we have been the only registered owner of this one.
|
| Slot: |
Showcase 32 |
| Item: |
Showcase 32 Universal |
| Grade: |
CGC |
| Cert #: |
2087158011
|
Owner Comments
Showcase #32 is the third Aquaman try-out issue from May 1961. In the story, “The Creature King of the Sea", Aquaman and Aqualad come across a diver trapped under some rocks, and summon a manta-ray to help save him. On the surface, the man introduces himself as Jed Coombs and asks Aquaman to help him locate an ancient wizard's treasure chest that is reported to be lost at sea. Agreeing to help Jed find the treasure, Aquaman and Aqualad have to swim through a number of undersea traps to retrieve the treasure chest. Returning it to the surface, Aquaman realizes that Jed is sweating everywhere but his face, and realizes the man he's speaking to is disguised. "Jed" explains that the contents inside the treasure chest contains two magic potions and that long ago an ancient wizard created the potion, and its antidote for his king, that would enable whoever drank it to change into a giant creature and ward off attackers. Afterward the wizard had the potion and its antidote dropped into the ocean so that it may never be used for ill. After his explanation "Jed" takes the potion and becomes a giant creature and attacks Aquaman.
The creature then causes terror across the ocean, determined to rule the seven seas and loot and pillage as he sees fit. Aquaman and Aqualad summon various undersea animals to aid in their counter attack against the creature, however each attack fails until finally the creature manages to grab Aquaman and Aqualad.
Explaining that he is aware of Aquaman and Aqualad's weakness, he drags the two out of the ocean and leaves them far enough from the ocean to dry out within an hour and die. Leaving the two, and taking his loot (a large supply of gold), the creature takes the antidote potion to revert back into his human form, so that he can make a getaway with his gold. Upon getting out to sea, he is stopped by various sea life until Aquaman and Aqualad arrive alive and well. Explaining that they revitalized themselves by ordering seagulls to drop sea sponges on them, they quickly command their undersea friends to subdue the crook, whom Aquaman then promptly delivers to the authorities.
Our 9.4 is one of two highest graded copies in the census. We acquired the book off an E-Bay listing on July 8, 2018.*
|
| Slot: |
Aquaman 1 |
| Item: |
Aquaman 1 Universal |
| Grade: |
CGC |
| Cert #: |
4278360006
|
Owner Comments
Obviously, Aquaman #1 features the start of the Silver Age run of Aquaman in his own magazine after four try-out issues in Showcase (#30-33). It also features the first appearance of Quisp, an undersea creature blessed with magical powers. In the story, "The Invasion of the Fire-Trolls", Aquaman and Aqualad come into contact with a water sprite named Quisp, who asks for their help because his undersea home is being terrorized by fire trolls that were unleashed during an undersea volcanic eruption. After a quick battle, the fire trolls begin heading for the surface world. With the help of Quisp and the army, Aquaman and Aqualad attempt to fight back the fire trolls, but their attacks have no effect. Figuring that maybe a new experimental freeze device would be powerful enough to stop the creatures Aquaman uses the device against the fire trolls.
Spraying the trolls with the chemical, they soon find that it doesn't work, but Aquaman and Aqualad find that their legs have been frozen in place. To save their lives, Quisp uses his magical powers to shrink Aquaman and Aqualad down to size in order to get away. Finding themselves weakened due to their time away from water, the two battle many miniature menaces in an attempt to find water.
Tricking a pelican to drop it's meal (spilling the water in it's mouth on them) Aquaman and Aqualad soon find that the effect of Quisp's magic is wearing off and they resume their normal size. Returning to the sea they're met by Quisp who informs them that the fire trolls stole some experimental rockets in a plot to turn the surface world into a blazing inferno that they will rule. Aquaman sends Quisp to trick the fire trolls to the surface to destroy a lab that supposedly has an even more powerful freezing solution than before. On the surface, they are sprayed with the remainder of the freeze solution, which immobilizes them long enough for Quisp to use his magic powers to shrink the creatures in size.
Gathered up and restrained, the fire trolls are returned to the underworld via a crack in the ocean floor that's later sealed with the help of Aquaman's undersea friends. After the trolls’ defeat, Aquaman and Aqualad bid their new friend Quisp farewell.
Our 9.8 with OW/W pages is currently the only one in grade with three 9.6s. We acquired the book in a private transaction in 2023 and submitted it to CGC ourselves.* As with the case of many of our early Aquaman books, we have been the only registered owner of this one. Not long after acquiring it, we sold our 9.6 on Heritage for $45,600. So while nothing like as valuable as the most valuable JLA, Flash or Green Lanterns, this book probably warrants more than the 17,600 registry points it currently receives.
|
| Slot: |
Aquaman 2 |
| Item: |
Aquaman 2 Universal |
| Grade: |
CGC |
| Cert #: |
0994403005
|
Owner Comments
Issue #2 features a story entitled "Captain Sykes' Deadly Missions". While out patrolling the ocean searching for the cargo of the ship S.S. Vulcan, Aquaman and Aqualad board the ship S.S. Seahawk, owned by Captain Sykes. Sykes explains that he has captured the Vulcan, its cargo and its crew, and refuses to release them to Aquaman until Aquaman gets two items that Sykes is looking for.
While searching for the first artifact, they smash open a hollow cavern which exposes a number of sea creatures to a gas, which makes them grow in size and attack Aquaman and Aqualad. Thinking quickly, Aqualad exposes himself to the fumes making himself grow in size as well to fight off the fish. Eventually, the fumes wear off and all effected by them revert to normal allowing Aquaman and Aquaman to retrieve the first artifact, a treasure chest.
Their next quest takes them to an island protected by a giant sea monster, which the two heroes sneak past by hiding in a school of fish. On the island they are seized by the natives, who will only allow Aquaman to take the second artifact, a giant-sea shell, if he finds a way to defeat the sea monster. Aquaman manages to trick the monster into chasing after him, and uses electric eels to shock the creature out of the boundaries it protects, causing the creature to disappear. He is then awarded with the sea shell.
Taking it back to Sykes, Aquaman refuses to give it to him until he's shown where the Vulcan is hidden. After being taken to the ship, Aquaman gives over the sea shell to Sykes. Sykes explains that the shell controls a flying genie sea-horse that's contained in the box, and plans to use the creature to defeat the them and take whatever he wants.
Attempting to use the shell to summon the creature, nothing happens. Aquaman reveals that he suspected something fishy was up, and so switched the sea-shell with a fake. He and Aqualad make short work of Sykes and his goons. After turning them over to the police, Aquaman and Aqualad destroy the real shell so the creature can never be used again.
Our 9.6 is the single highest graded copy of this 1962 issue. We acquired the book from a friend and fellow collector in a private deal in May 2023.
|
| Slot: |
Aquaman 3 |
| Item: |
Aquaman 3 Universal |
| Grade: |
CGC |
| Cert #: |
1101079004
|
Owner Comments
Issue #3 features a cool cover as Aquaman travels to the mythical Atlantis. In the story, "The Aquaman from Atlantis,"
an Atlantean criminal named Pomoxis lures Aquaman into a trap using a device that sends him backwards in time some 2,500 years. There Aquaman encounters the armies of Greece, who mistake him for the sea god, Poseidon. Meanwhile in the present, Pomoxis attempts to conquer Atlantis by dressing up as Aquaman. Aqualad realizes Pomoxis is not his mentor, and fights against him until such time that Aquaman can return to the present. Commanding an army of fish, Aquaman and Aqualad manage to defeat Pomoxis' battalion and restore order to Atlantis.
Our WP 9.8 copy of Issue #3 is tied with four other books for highest graded, which is an unusual high number of high-grade books for a 1962 printing. We acquired our book off an E-Bay listing on 6/13/2019.
2024 Update: This issue is easily the most common of any of the early Aquamans in high grade, as there are now six 9.8s in the census.
|
| Slot: |
Aquaman 4 |
| Item: |
Aquaman 4 Universal |
| Grade: |
CGC |
| Cert #: |
2051715011
|
Owner Comments
Issue #4 features a story, "The Menace of Alien Island", in which a race of aliens known as the Suvians lands their space ship in the waters near a coastal community. Aquaman and Aqualad investigate only to discover that they are in fact a race of scientifically advanced conquerors, in control of a powerful weapon. Quisp the water-sprite, appears and aids them in combating the alien forces. It appears as if the aliens kill Quisp, but the sprite manages to survive and aids Aquaman in driving the invaders off.
Our 9.8 gem is one of the highlights of our Aquaman collection, being the single highest graded copy of this 1962 issue. We acquired the book from the 9/9/2019 CL Auction.
2024 Update: A second 9.8 of this issue with OW/W pages was graded by CGC in April 2024 and auctioned off by Heritage in June 2024, knocking our book down to 1/2 highest graded. As usual, the second book went for almost 50% less than the first 9.8. We considered buying it and averaging down, or at least bidding and hopefully driving the price up, but there were too many books we wanted in the auction to spend our money on duplicates. Again, the hazards of buying a single highest graded book strike again. You may think that a 60-year old book will be immune from such things, but it happens far too frequently.
|
| Slot: |
Aquaman 5 |
| Item: |
Aquaman 5 Universal |
| Grade: |
CGC |
| Cert #: |
4418768013
|
Owner Comments
A Scorcerer sends a group of killer whales against Aquaman and Aqualad on the cover of Issue #5. In "The Haunted Sea",
Aquaman and Aqualad investigate the mysterious disappearances of several sea vessels. They witness an ocean liner consumed by a gigantic hand made out of water and follow the ship's watery descent only to find themselves trapped inside of bubbles of air. They eventually break free and encounter a sorcerer who calls himself Baron Debois. Debois and his colleagues are trapped inside the microscopic confines of a drop of water. Debois befriends Aquaman but quickly turns on him, using his mystical powers to shrink the two in size. The Baron's true name is Merder, and he is a dark sorcerer who places Aquaman within a dungeon in Red Coral Mountain where he meets the crew of a sunken freighter.
Aquaman managed to escape and finds a serum that will return all of the prisoners to normal size, while Mercer employs his thunder-rod to take control of all life in the sea. But Aquaman discovers that a strong jolt of electricity is enough to free the creatures from Merder's spell. After setting them free, Aquaman and Aqualad hide inside the mouth of a whale shark until they can get close enough to Merder to apprehend him, after which they use his own technology to return him and his followers to their microscopic prison.
Our 9.8 is the single highest graded copy in the census and replaced our Pacific Coast Collection 9.6, which had previously topped the census. We acquired the book from the 6/22/2024 Heritage Auction. Of course, as almost always happens, the 9.8 copy of Issue #5, being single highest graded, went for roughly twice as much as the 9.8 copy of Issue #4. Again, such things are one of the drawbacks of collecting DCs, you do not see anything close to as dramatic with Marvels, as there are more collectors and far fewer single highest graded books.
|
| Slot: |
Aquaman 6 |
| Item: |
Aquaman 6 Universal |
| Grade: |
CGC |
| Cert #: |
0994441004
|
Owner Comments
Issue #6 features a Quisp appearance along with the first appearances of Quirp and Quink. In the story, "Too Many Quisps!", Aquaman and Aqualad are astonished to discover that their Water-Sprite ally, Quisp, has turned evil as Quisp attacks them and hijacks a cargo ship. They soon learn however, that this is in fact, not the real Quisp, but his twin brother - Quink, who is working alongside a pirate named Captain Slade. Slade manipulated the impressionable Quink into believing that Aquaman was evil and set him off to defeat him. Meanwhile, a third Water-Sprite, Quirk is found conducting mischievous acts of his own. Aquaman convinces Quink that Captain Slade is the true pirate, and together they join forces to stop him.
Our 9.8 comes from the Pacific Coast Collection, which is generally considered to be the greatest Silver Age collection to ever surface. It was brought to market by Robert Roter after he discovered portions of it for sale on E-Bay in 1999. The books were marketed through PCE over the next several years and contained over 7,000 comics and magazines that included Marvel, DC, and Gold Key among others, covering a time span between 1961 and 1977. Many of the highest graded Marvel and DC issues from the early '60s hail from this collection with exceptional page quality. The books do not exhibit any distinguishing markings.
Our book is currently tied for highest graded with one other copy. We acquired the book from a friend and fellow collector in a private transaction in May 2023.
2024 Update: There was a third 9.8 in the recent cache of high-grade Aquaman auctioned off in June 2014 on Heritage. As a third 9.8, the book made just $1,200 plus BP at auction. Again, census is everything in these books, as the sales price was 1/3 of that of the single highest graded Aquaman #5 9.8. Unfortunately, while I very much like these books, there is probably more downside risk than upside promise, as census changes almost always go against the collector’s interest.
|
| Slot: |
Aquaman 7 |
| Item: |
Aquaman 7 Universal |
| Grade: |
CGC |
| Cert #: |
4242420001
|
Owner Comments
Aquaman battles the Creatures from Atlantis in Issue #7. In "The Sea Beasts from Atlantis", Pomoxis embarks upon another daring plan to seize control of Atlantis. He works with the surface pirate, Captain Clay, and provides him with a special variety of seafood. Clay plants the food on several cargo vessels, which lures several large sea beasts to the area. The beasts attack the ships for the food, and Captain Clay comes along later to steal any booty he can find.
Stamar, the ruler of Atlantis, tells Aquaman and Aqualad of the various disasters and they swim off to investigate. When they attempt to calm down the destructive sea creatures, Pomoxis makes his move and takes command of Atlantis and arrests both Aquaman annd Aqualad throwing them into a dungeon. But Aquaman uses his telepathy to summon the sea beasts to aid him, who break down the prison walls allowing Aquaman to once again defeat Pomoxis, after which Stamar is reinstated as ruler of Atlantis.
Our 9.8 comes from the Pacific Coast Collection, which is generally considered to be the greatest Silver Age collection to ever surface. It was brought to market by Robert Roter after he discovered portions of it for sale on E-Bay in 1999. The books were marketed through PCE over the next several years and contained over 7,000 comics and magazines that included Marvel, DC, and Gold Key among others, covering a time span between 1961 and 1977. Many of the highest graded Marvel and DC issues from the early '60s hail from this collection with exceptional page quality. The books do not exhibit any distinguishing markings.
Our book is currently tied with one other copy for highest graded. We acquired the book in the August 4, 2019 Heritage Auction.*
2024 Update: The copy of Issue #7 in the new cache of books only graded 9.6, so our book is still one of two highest graded.
|
| Slot: |
Aquaman 8 |
| Item: |
Aquaman 8 Universal |
| Grade: |
CGC |
| Cert #: |
4418768005
|
Owner Comments
Issue #8 features the "The Plot to Steal the Seas", in which Lemur and his band of alien thieves arrive on Earth and begins stealing large volumes of water from various lakes. Aquaman and Aqualad investigate, but quickly fall prey to Lemur's attacks. Lemur announces his plans to bring the stolen water back to his home planet, Phrygia. Another alien named Syx - sympathetic to Aquaman's plight, helps him to escape, and together they travel to his home world of Phryigia to reclaim the stolen water. After several daring mishaps, the crew returns to Earth with the water, whereupon Aquaman rounds up Lemur and his gang.
Our 9.8 is the single highest graded copy in the census and replaced our Pacific Coast Collection 9.6, which previously topped the census. We acquired the book from the 6/22/2024 Heritage Auction. Of course, it and the #5 9.8 were the two most expensive Aquamans out of the new cache of Aquamans Heritage auctioned.
|
| Slot: |
Aquaman 9 |
| Item: |
Aquaman 9 Universal |
| Grade: |
CGC |
| Cert #: |
1101079005
|
Owner Comments
Issue #9 features the Secret Mission of King Neptune. In the story, a sea captain named Crane discovers a map that leads him to the kingdom of an ancient sorcerer known as King Neptune. Crane transforms into the living embodiment of Neptune and begins wreaking havoc. Aquaman and Aqualad investigate and find that Neptune is attacking all of the main shipping lanes. Neptune transforms Aqualad into a hideous crab creature and forces him to fight with Aquaman. But Neptune has actually taken control of Crane to prevent a volcanic ecological disaster. Once his mission is complete, he reverts back into the form of Captain Crane and Aqua-Crab transforms back into Aqualad.
Our copy is the single highest graded example and was acquired in the December 18, 2019 CC auction.
2024 Update: A second 9.8 of this issue with OW/W pages was graded by CGC in April 2024 and auctioned off by Heritage in June 2024. I guess I need not tell you that it sold for less than 1/2 of what we paid for our book, ugh!
|
| Slot: |
Aquaman 10 |
| Item: |
Aquaman 10 Universal |
| Grade: |
CGC |
| Cert #: |
0994441007
|
Owner Comments
Issue #10 features appearances by Quisp and Quirk. In "The War of the Water Sprites", Quirk invents a device that can steal power from other water sprite's and turns the weapon against his own brother, Quisp, removing all of his magic. Quisp swims away to seek the aid of his old friend, Aquaman. When Aquaman and Aqualad return with him to Quisp's kingdom, Quirk's gang attacks Aquaman and succeeds in capturing him. They then imbibe a special form of seaweed that transforms them into giants. More powerful than ever, Quirk and his cohorts prepare to invade the surface world.
Aqualad manages to escape from his prison and frees Aquaman. Aquaman catches up with Quirk's gang and recovers the item responsible for stealing Quisp's powers. He attempts to use it on him again in the hopes of restoring the sprite's magic, but it renders him unconscious instead. Aquaman and Aqualad then consume the same magic seaweed to transform themselves into giants to fight Quirk. Quisp eventually recovers and helps them to end Quirk's threat once and for all. The growth formula effect eventually wears off, and Aquaman and Aqulad return to normal size, while Quisp regains his magic powers.
Our 9.6 comes from the Pacific Coast Collection, which is generally considered to be the greatest Silver Age collection to ever surface. It was brought to market by Robert Roter after he discovered portions of it for sale on E-Bay in 1999. The books were marketed through PCE over the next several years and contained over 7,000 comics and magazines that included Marvel, DC, and Gold Key among others, covering a time span between 1961 and 1977. Many of the highest graded Marvel and DC issues from the early '60s hail from this collection with exceptional page quality. The books do not exhibit any distinguishing markings.
Our book also makes five of the first ten issues from that Pedigree, and is one of four highest graded copies. We acquired the book in a private transaction with a friend and fellow collector in May 2023.
2024 Update: The statement above about the number of Pacific Coast copies in this set is no longer true since we upgraded our #5 PC 9.6 and #8 PC 9.6 to 9.8s.
|
| Slot: |
Aquaman 11 |
| Item: |
Aquaman 11 Universal |
| Grade: |
CGC |
| Cert #: |
0191708013
|
Owner Comments
Issue #11 features "The Doom from Dimension Aqua", which starts out on a watery world known as Dimension Aqua, where a criminal named Leron seizes control of the kingdom, deposing the reigning queen, Mera. Mera is exiled and flees to the Earth dimension where she enlists the aid of Aquaman and Aqualad.
Leron pursues Mera to Atlantis and engages in battle with Aquaman, Aqualad, Mera and the water sprite, Quisp. He captures them all and brings them to Mera's homeland. But Aquaman discovers that traces of lead commonly found in oil, can remove the hard-water super-powers of people from Mera's home dimension. He makes use of this knowledge and succeeds in defeating Leron. Returning to Earth, Aquaman invites Mera to stay with him in Atlantis.
Issue #11 is a mini-key, in that it features the first appearance of Mera, who was a prominent figure in the Aquaman movies and played by the now infamous Amber Heard. Because of the black cover, it is a particularly tough issue to find in high grade and tends to be the most expensive of any Aquaman issue, excluding #1. The top copy in the census, a 9.4 Pacific Coast pedigree (now 1/2), recently came on the market and sold for about $30,000. While this copy was much cheaper, it is currently one of the four highest graded copies by CGC (now 6). We acquired the book in the September 19, 2019 CC auction.
|
|