Detective Comics #395, DC Comics, January 1970 I meant to post this book right after Undervalued Spotlight #98. The two books go hand in hand as far as I’m concerned since both represent major steps in the development of superhero comics. Alas, Halloween came along as did my 100th Spotlight...

 Famous Funnies #100, Eastern Color, November 1942 Well here we go, my Undervalued Spotlight #100. Famous Funnies #100 (November, 1942) represents the first comic to reach #100 and it did so in style. Added bonus points for the run being unbroken since Famous Funnies #1 (some titles cheat by...

Marvel Premiere #28, Marvel Comics, February 1976 Can’t figure out why but I was compelled to a Halloween theme this week. In my Undervalued Spotlight #84 I mentioned the proliferation of horror based characters right after the Comics Code Authority relaxed some of its very stringent...

Brave and the Bold #79, DC Comics, August/September 1968 Neal Adams knew something was wrong with Batman even during the absolute height of the character’s popularity. In a panel at the 2010 San Diego Comic Con (with excerpts reprinted in a recent Back Issue Magazine) Adams recalled his...

Alpha Flight #106, Marvel Comics, March 1992. The history of comic books could easily serve as a rich resource for any anthropologist. Studying comic book history can shed light on the behavior, the social and cultural development of humans in the 20th and even this 21st century. Women’s...

Batman #139, DC Comics, April 1961 I’ve honestly had this book on my “future undervalued’ file for at least 6 months and have just never pulled the trigger and posted it. In light of the new Batgirl #1 comic released September 7th getting $10 on eBay I thought the timing was right. Now...

Police Comics #1, Quality Comics, August 1941 This is a great Golden Age key that just does not get the respect it deserves. Thanks to DC’s acquisition of many of the Quality characters back in 1956 most of the characters introduced in Police Comics #1 are still active today. Firebrand, The...

My Love #14, Marvel Comics, November 1971 This is a bit of a deviation from my standard Undervalued Spotlight format. I’m featuring Marvel’s entire November 1971 line up using the worthy My Love #14 as the ambassador book. I’ve chosen My Love #14 to represent the group of books for many...

Blue Beetle #1, Charlton Comics, June 1967 Steve Ditko is one of the true giants of comic books. Ditko’s two major contributions, co-created with Stan Lee, were Dr. Strange and the Amazing Spiderman. In subsequent interviews Ditko has downplayed Lee’s contribution to the Spider-Man...

Avengers #110, Marvel Comics, April 1973 For Marvel Comics the X-Men were THE comic story of the second half of the 1970s. The new team that launched in X-Men #94 (8/75) slowly but surely began taking over the comic book world. At one point years later Marvel’s ‘X titles’ owned the sales...

Astonishing Tales #25 features the 1st appearance of Deathlok the Demolisher. The Frankenstein inspired character, a Cyborg reanimated from the corpse of American soldier Col. Luther Manning, was created by Rich Buckler. Doug Moench gets script credits and co-creator credits for the story but...

Captain America #117, Marvel Comics, September 1969 There’s an old saying that goes ‘timing is everything’ and the time seems right for me do dig this one out of my “Future Undervalued Spotlights” file. I read with sadness today of the passing of Gene Colan. My personal love for...

More Fun Comics #73, DC Comics, November 1941 Now here’s a comic book that should be getting a lot more respect and a lot more attention. More Fun #73 introduces two major DC characters, Aquaman and Green Arrow. Both were filler stories for a title that was at the time riding the success of...

X-Men #129, Marvel Comics, January 1980 X-Men #94 is perhaps the most celebrated re-jigging in comic book history. The book immediately began making waves, and fans. Soon the Chris Claremont/Dave Cockrum creative team had the X-Men title shooting up the charts. The first major arc that really...

Someone pointed out that I have not featured a Modern Era comic since my exquisite New Mutants #2 pick in Undervalued Spotlight #79 back in the middle of March (beware the ides of March). Oddly enough I was just going through a run of Amazing Spider-Man’s I’d just purchased and made a...

Wonderworld Comics #3, Fox Features Syndicate, July 1939 A while ago in Undervalued Spotlight reader Dave contributed installment #74. I’m happy to present another fan submission. Warren is a regular column reader and felt Wonderworld #3 was a good candidate. I love this pick! Great work...

Not Brand Echh #1, Marvel Comics, August 1967 Marvel Comics published a satirical parody filled comic called Not Brand Echh #1 in August of 1967. By 1967 the Mighty Marvel comic book beachhead was well established, the publisher was bursting at the seams with talent and ideas. The time seemed...

Amazing Spider-Man #101, Marvel Comics, October 1971 The issue marks the first time Stan Lee did not script Amazing Spider-Man. Stan the Man had his hand in the first 100 but passed the pen to scribe Roy Thomas for this issue. ASM #101 is truly the end of an era. While the Stan Lee era ended...

Daredevil #168, Marvel Comics, January 1981. The superhero genre was born with Action Comics #1 (June/38). All costumed heroes since owe pretty much everything to the success of Superman. So is where we are today all because of Action Comics #1? Well obviously yes and surprisingly...

Young Men #24, Atlas Comics, December 1953 Many comic book historians point to DC’s Showcase #4 as the symbolic start of the Silver Age of comic books. Showcase 4’s $54,000 high end Overstreet Guide value certainly conveys the collecting and investing community’s belief in the book’s...