Set Description:
Synopsis: We decided to register our books here so that we would have one place for all our Avengers, but to date we have made no serious effort to finish this one.
Background: The Avengers were created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby and debuted in September 1963 in The Avengers #1. Labeled "Earth's Mightiest Super-Heroes," the original Avengers consisted of Iron Man, Ant-Man, Hulk, Thor and the Wasp. Captain America was discovered trapped in ice in Issue #4, and joined the group after they revived him.
Marvel initially published the Avengers bi-monthly through issue #6 (July 1964) and monthly thereafter through issue #402 (Sept. 1996), with spinoffs including several annuals, miniseries and a giant-size quarterly sister series that ran briefly in the mid-1970s.
Writers of the first series included Roy Thomas, Steve Englehart, Gerry Conway, Jim Shooter, David Michelinie and Roger Stern. Artists included John Buscema, Tom Palmer, Neal Adams, George Perez, John Byrne and Steve Epting.
While the line-up often changed, the Avengers were always an all-star ensemble cast of established superhero characters from the Marvel Comics universe. Unlike other Marvel teams like the X-Men or FF, members of the Avengers usually operated individually, but occasionally assembled as a team to tackle especially formidable villains.
Lee and Kirby reportedly created the Avengers to start a new line of books and to cross-promote Marvel Comics characters. Their thinking at the time was that an Iron Man fan might buy an Avengers book because Iron Man appears in them, and in turn take an interest in Thor, who appears in the same book as Iron Man's friend and comrade. The cast usually featured a few highly popular characters who had their own solo books, such as Iron Man, alongside a number of lesser-known characters who benefit from exposure, such as Quicksilver or Hawkeye.
The Avengers have appeared in a wide variety of media outside of comic books, including several different animated television series and direct-to-video films. Beginning in 2008, they were adapted in a series of movies from the Marvel Cinematic Universe, culminating with The Avengers in 2012, The Avengers: Age of Ulton in 2015, The Avengers: Infinity Wars in 2018 and Avengers: Endgame in 2019, which ended with the deaths of Captain America, Iron Man and the Black Widow. Those movies remain four of the top 15 grossing films of all time.
Our Collection: I actually still own a couple of raw Avengers #1s, at least one of which I bought from the drugstore on the square back in Oxford MS in 1963. Of course, those raw books are just readers, as I never knew about preserving them when I was a kid. But this run has long been a favorite. Strangely enough, despite the success of the movies, these books are still some of the more affordable Marvels with a couple of exceptions, probably because the title originated after many stalwarts like FF, ASM, JIM, TOS and TTA.
We completed our #1-100 Avengers set several years ago and slowly started adding the books #101-200 when we could find some affordable 9.8s. But we still have a very long ways to go taking our collection up to Issue #200. And to date, we have acquired no books in the #201-250 range.
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| Slot: |
Avengers 1 |
| Item: |
Avengers 1 Universal |
| Grade: |
CGC |
| Cert #: |
1205125001
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Owner Comments
Both Avengers and X-Men made their first appearance in Marvel comics the same month in September 1963. Unfortunately, I am old enough to remember well the excitement I had at finding two new Marvel superhero comics to purchase at the local drugstore. I still have both copies, neither is worth submitting to CGC, as I was not the smartest little kid when it came to preservation.
As for the issue itself, the Avengers, composed then of original members Thor, Iron Man, the Hulk, Ant-Man and the Wasp, face off with Thor’s brother Loki, the God of Mischief. (Why is Ant-Man hyphenated by Marvel and Iron Man not?) One thing I have always found rather funny, and which is arguably a mistake by Marvel, is that Loki says on the cover “The Avengers, bah, I’ll destroy you all”. In fact, it was not until after Loki was defeated and captured in Issue #1 that the group agreed they had worked well together and should be formalized as a team. The Wasp suggested the name "Avengers", and Earth's Mightiest Heroes were officially born. So since the Avengers did not even exist as a group during the confrontation with Loki, how did Loki know to call them by a name that the Wasp had not yet suggested?
Also, the Avengers’ stated purpose is to protect and safeguard the world from both domestic and extraterrestrial threats. Finding strength in union, they uphold their tradition to overcome menaces a single individual could not withstand, which draws into question the decision for the inaugural foe to be just Loki, who Thor often battled. It just doesn’t seem like Loki was a big-enough baddie to warrant the formation of a new team?
But putting all that aside, the Avengers went on to be one of Marvel’s greatest hits and the heroes in four of the ten biggest box-office movies of all time. We did own a 9.6 copy of this issue, which is one of six 9.6s topping the census. It was our included example in this set when we claimed to have an 9.6/9.8 run, which was technically correct. But unfortunately, that 9.6 was also trimmed. If anyone actually ever reads my descriptions, which are a work in progress and chronicle my experiences as a collector, you will see a recurring theme of first Marvel issues being high grade purple labels. (My DC keys are usually unrestored, but then they are generally much cheaper.) I personally think that the market punishes such issues too much, they look the same as a universal grade, but cost a tiny fraction as much. That difference has accelerated as time goes by as well.
In this case, our 9.6 was far and away the best restored one available and the only restored copy above 9.2 in the census. The book hails from the Second City Collection and was acquired in the 6/11/2018 ComicConnect auction. It replaced a Stan Lee signed restored 9.2 in our collection.
Then in May 2024 we acquired an unrestored 9.4 copy of Issue #1 to replace our restored 9.6. I cannot say that acquisition was planned, but in our regular effort to put in relatively low auction bids on certain high-grade unrestored keys in the hope of one of them falling into our hands, we picked up the book in the May CL Auction. The acquisition came just a month after our failed effort to acquire an unrestored 9.6 #1 in Heritage’s April 2024 Auction-in which, quite frankly, we weren’t even close. I do feel pretty good about the price, as the book has vibrant colors and is perfectly centered bearing a QES sticker. And we obtained the book at less than 30% of the of the hammer price of the aforementioned 9.6, while enjoying better page quality and a better spine than that book, despite its lower grade.
But the price paid still represents one of the highest prices we have ever paid for a book and we certainly had not expected to get it at the time. In fact, the acquisition knocked us out of bidding on several books we were targeting, so, all in all, it was a little bit of a mixed bag. Prior to acquiring the book, our concentration had been on finishing more sets, not upgrading completed ones; however, on the bright side, I feel the book really elevates this set to the level of our best Marvel sets, even if the price paid delays our efforts to complete a few other sets for a year or so.
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| Slot: |
Avengers 2 |
| Item: |
Avengers 2 Universal |
| Grade: |
CGC |
| Cert #: |
1493865001
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Owner Comments
Issue #2 features the first appearance of the Space Phantom and the exit of the Hulk, who did not play well with others-he obviously lasted much longer in the movie Avengers than the original books. This is one of our favorite Avengers covers-I actually prefer it to #1 just based on the art. We have previously owned a 9.0, a 9.4, a 9.6 and now, finally, after many years of chasing one, we finally landed a 9.8.
Our WP copy comes from the Federal Hill Collection and is one of five highest graded. We acquired it in the 12/1/2020 CL auction.
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| Slot: |
Avengers 3 |
| Item: |
Avengers 3 Signature |
| Grade: |
CGC |
| Cert #: |
0615707002
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Owner Comments
Issue #3 features the first Sub-Mariner and Hulk team-up. They would later share Tales To Astonish, as Hulk first joins that book, splitting time with Giant-Man, in issue #60-he actually spars with Giant-Man in a TTA #59, reminiscent of TOS #58 with Iron Man and Cap America. Sub-Mariner would later replace Giant-Man in that run in TTA #70.
The issue we own is one of nine, in total, 9.6s with none higher, but it is the sole Signature Series copy and thus probably will hold that distinction forever. It was acquired in the 9/6/2011 CL auction.
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| Slot: |
Avengers 4 |
| Item: |
Avengers 4 Universal |
| Grade: |
CGC |
| Cert #: |
1076358004
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Owner Comments
This issue is, of course, famous for first Silver Age appearance of, Captain America (Steve Rogers), although an imposter garbed as Captain America was drawn earlier in Strange Tales #114. We have a long history with this book, as we owned a 9.6 for many years before trading it for a JLA #3 9.4. I realize that sounds idiotic and it probably was, but from a rarity standpoint I have seen many 9.6 and 9.8 copies of this issue, I have never seen another JLA #3 9.4 on the market and that was what the collector owner wanted, not cash. I did and still do have a double signed Avengers #4 9.4 (Lee and Simon), so it did not break our complete set, but it did lower the minimum grade of our set to 9.4.
Nevertheless, from a value standpoint it was undoubtedly a bad trade. At least, however, that JLA #3 9.4, which is much rarer than a JLA #2, still stands atop the census, as there have been no more 9.4s or higher grades of that issue surface. So we traded a book that was one of thirty for one that was older, has a tough black cover, and is one of three. It just shows how much more the market values Avengers over JLA that is was a bad economic deal.
We initially went after a 9.8 to replace the book we traded, but always seemed to come in second. So finally we lowered the bar and picked up this 9.6 in the 2/27/2024 CL auction. I would not say it was cheap, but it was the least money I have seen this book make in years, perhaps because of the OW pages. It is also not ideal from a centering standpoint as a fraction of an inch of the cover rolls over to the back, although CGC does not consider that to be a fault. But otherwise, it is a very nice book. It was graded by CGC in 2012 and there are no negative grader comments.
We will probably retain this book and not chase a 9.8, as there are too many glaring holes elsewhere in our collections and money is far from unlimited. It does raise the minimum grade of this set to 9.6, although there is still the matter of our #1 being restored. Maybe someday…..
May 2024 Update: Just a quick note, some of the discussion above became irrelevant again with our acquisition of an unrestored #1 9.4 in May 2024.
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| Slot: |
Avengers 5 |
| Item: |
Avengers 5 Universal |
| Grade: |
CGC |
| Cert #: |
0615707009
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Owner Comments
Issue 5 features appearances by Hulk and the Lava Men. Our 9.8 comes from the Curator Pedigree Collection and is the single highest graded copy of this issue. I need to get a better scan of the book to the right, my apologies.
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| Slot: |
Avengers 6 |
| Item: |
Avengers 6 Universal |
| Grade: |
CGC |
| Cert #: |
1129570001
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Owner Comments
Avengers #6, in which the Avengers face Baron Zemo and his Masters of Evil s one of the easiest early books to find in high grade, as there are nine 9.8s in the census as of June 2020. We acquired our copy on 4/21/2015 from Pedigree Comics.
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| Slot: |
Avengers 7 |
| Item: |
Avengers 7 Universal |
| Grade: |
CGC |
| Cert #: |
2065130001
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Owner Comments
Issue #7 features a great action cover with Thor highlighted along with appearances by Baron Zemo, the Enchantress and the Executioner. It is is the sole 9.8 and single highest graded issue as of June 2020 with just four 9.6s next in line. We acquired it in the 2/22/2018 Heritage auction.
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| Slot: |
Avengers 8 |
| Item: |
Avengers 8 Universal |
| Grade: |
CGC |
| Cert #: |
0720661006
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Owner Comments
Issue #8 features the first appearance of Kang the Conqueror. This issue is second highest graded, bested by four 9.8s, two of which have come to the market lately, but sold at dear prices. Our WP copy was acquired in the 3/14/2017 CL auction.
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| Slot: |
Avengers 9 |
| Item: |
Avengers 9 Universal |
| Grade: |
CGC |
| Cert #: |
1290143006
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Owner Comments
Issue #9 features the first appearance of Wonder Man, Simon Williams. It is a tough issue to find in high grade, with only a single copy ever graded higher by CGC. We acquired our WP copy in the 11/20/2014 Heritage auction.
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| Slot: |
Avengers 10 |
| Item: |
Avengers 10 Universal |
| Grade: |
CGC |
| Cert #: |
0012617016
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Owner Comments
Issue #10 features the first appearance of Immortus, along with appearances by Baron Zemo, the Enchantress and the Executioner. Our WP 9.8 comes from the Pacific Coast Collection and is tied for highest graded. We acquired the book from the Heritage Exchange in November 2022.
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| Slot: |
Avengers 11 |
| Item: |
Avengers 11 Universal |
| Grade: |
CGC |
| Cert #: |
1493812003
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Owner Comments
Issue #11 features A Spider-Man cross-over and is one of the favorite early Avengers covers. When we acquired this one, it was just the second 9.8 certified by CGC, so we paid a pretty penny. Unfortunately, as of 5/2020, now there are three. Still, our copy emanates from the heralded Northland Pedigree Collection, which does set it apart. We acquired it in the ComicConnect auction of December 21, 2018.
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| Slot: |
Avengers 12 |
| Item: |
Avengers 12 Universal |
| Grade: |
CGC |
| Cert #: |
2031649006
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Owner Comments
Issue #12 features Red Ghost and Mole Man appearances. Also, for those GOT fans, of which I am certainly one, although I hated the last season, Issue #12 contains a fan letter from George RR Martin, the author of the GOT series of books. This gem is one of only two 9.8s and was acquired in 2019 from Worldwide Comics.
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| Slot: |
Avengers 13 |
| Item: |
Avengers 13 Universal |
| Grade: |
CGC |
| Cert #: |
0012617013
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Owner Comments
Issue #13 features the first appearance of Count Nefaria. Our 9.6 has white pages and hails from our favorite Pacific Coast Pedigree Collection. There are actually three 9.8s in the census, but I have always found it hard to break the bank to acquire a 9.8 when we have the PC 9.6. Still, if the opportunity arises and the price is right, we shall see. In the meantime, we acquired our book in the March 2018 ComicConnect auction.
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| Slot: |
Avengers 14 |
| Item: |
Avengers 14 Universal |
| Grade: |
CGC |
| Cert #: |
2122458001
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Owner Comments
Issue #14 features a Watcher appearance. This one is a relatively tough book to find in high grade, with only six 9.6s and a single 9.8 topping the census. I would consider our 9.6 to be the second best anywhere since it hails from the Pacific Coast Collection. We acquired the book off the ComicConnect Exchange in December 2019.
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| Slot: |
Avengers 15 |
| Item: |
Avengers 15 Universal |
| Grade: |
CGC |
| Cert #: |
1197579002
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Owner Comments
Issue #15 features the death of Baron Zemo and appearances by the Enchantress, the Melter, the Executioner and the Black Knight. Our WP 9.8 comes from the Northland Collection and is one of five highest graded copies. We acquired the book on 1/18/2017 from the Metropolis website.
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