Classic Comic Book Cover of the Week: Amazing Spider-Man 121 The Death of Gwen Stacy

Amazing Spider-Man #121

Let's be brutally honest, the value of a comic book is tied to a number of different factors. When all of those factors are present in a positive equation, the secondary, or collector's market, for that particular issue climb. If the factors are really positive, the price of the book climbs to astronomical levels. For this reason, number ones, first appearances, and important events are sought after in the collectible market.

When it comes to the Amazing Spider-Man series, few events are as important as the death of Gwen Stacy, which is an event that happens in Amazing Spider-Man Vol.1 #121. The cover of the book is one that beginning collectors will want to memorize, but it actually is a pretty great cover considering the demands of the day it was printed. 

According to Comic Book Realm, Amazing 121 has a basic value of around $700, but condition is key like it always is with key issues. The cover on display in this articles shows a number of flaws and lands this issue at the bottom of the quality scale. That being said, this particular one is a great reader issue because quite frankly who wants to open and read a $700 comic book? Of course, if said copy was slabbed that temptation would be removed anyway. Therein lies the rub of professional grading services (they are investments after all).

The death of Gwen Stacy helped shape the future of Spider-Man and had a big impact on what the wall-crawler would become. This is one of those issues that pretty much every Spidey collector is chasing at some point in their lives, which keeps the value higher than normal. The fact that it is pretty hard to come by in any condition only adds to the level of enchantment surrounding it. 

Is is a great wall book? Well, this is another great John Romita Sr. work that is simple and effective. In short, anyone stopping by can instantly recognize this as a pretty serious book for the serious collector. So let your geek show, find a reasonably priced copy and put this issue next to those other great covers, because comics should be appreciated and enjoyed. Above all else, have some fun with it.

Classic Comic Book Cover of the Week: Amazing Spider-Man #55

There are legendary comic book covers and there is Amazing Spider-Man #55. The ultra-cool cover drawn by legendary artists John Romita Sr. features Doctor Octopus reflecting dual Spider-Man images (being attacked with those mechanical arms) is one of the most popular affordable early versions of the ASM lineup.

The 12-cent cover price is amplified by the long ago print date of December 1967, and Comic Book Realm lists available copies in the $300 range. Of course, these can usually be picked up with a lower grade for under $30, which is a steal for any sub-100 ASM. This is one of those covers that just looks great on the wall.

From an investment upside potential, there really isn't much here. Amazing Spider-Man #55 is the third part of the Doc Ock Wins! storyline (it's even right there on the cover) written by some guy named Stan Lee. However, it lacks any real significance with regards to first appearances, majestic revelations, or traumatic events.

From that standpoint, the only real thing this comic has working for it is the awesome cover and it's relatively low print run (likely under 80,000 copies at the time) and modern day scarcity. So follow that up after nearly fifty years of life, and there are probably just not too many of these running around. John Romita Sr. has a certain amount of appeal to fans of all ages, which makes it a really cool hard to find collectors issue.

All things considered, this is a cover that sticks with you thanks to the expression on Doc Ock's face and the great reflection idea. Long before the villain managed to land inside the head of Peter Parker in the Superior Spider-Man series, he was a mainstay of the classic ASM series. This is one comic that fits the ideal of a classic in just about every imaginable way.