If you’ve ever dug through dollar bins, you’ve probably observed how they tend to be filled with American-published, English-language comic book reprints of Japanese manga from the 1990s. but do these consistently passed-over comics really represent one of the greatest investment opportunities of recent memory?
Proof of Concept
We’ve seen enormous spikes in pricing for comic books based on American cartoons of the 1980s. DC Comics presents #47, the 1st comic book to feature characters from Masters of the universe broke $2K for a 9.8 back in March and may pass $3K by the time the Kevin Smith reboot hits Netflix–if not by the July 7th street date for the prequel comic from Dark Horse. similar FMV can be reported for Thundercats #1, and sales records are even higher for Transformers #1 and G.I. Joe #1, which have new live-action films on the way.
Even kindergarten favorites like care Bears #1 and Muppet babies #1 are garnering boosted interest and record-breaking pricing. but the correlating comics based on Japanese Anime are only starting to see their prices rise. Marvel’s Akira #1 in 9.8 had an FMV of around $500 for a lot of of last year, but this year has seen four sales of between $750 and $950.
Comico’s Macross #1 from 1984 was in the same ballpark until a recent Heritage auction realized a price of $1350 for a 9.8. That said, FMV on a 9.6 is still only $200 (and even less for a 9.6 of Akira). Those prices are the new baseline. As soon as we get production updates on the decade-in-the-works, live-action film of Akira or news about the rumored Robotech reboot, it’s going to be a day at the races.
First things First
Independent publisher Educomics’ I Saw It (The Atomic bombing of Hiroshima) was the first widely available English translation of Japanese Manga, published in November of 1981. It was an un-numbered one-shot. It was distributed mostly through the national public schools’ “Weekly Reader” program, rather than on Newsstands or by means of the direct comic shop market. This is a reprint of Barefoot Gen designer Keiji Nakazwa’s autobiographical stories, first published in Monthly Shōnen jump in 1972.
It recalls in tragic detail his first-hand account of mankind’s first use of atomic weapons in warfare. As such, this is not just an exceptionally overlooked key. It’s a rare Bronze Age war book. There are only 2 CGC 9.8 graded copies on the census and only 8 total copies in any grade. It’s been three years considering that a verified sale of any of them.
Have you picked up a large Copper Age collection recently? You might want to check for a raw copy in high grade. They were re-solicited to comic shops shortly after publishers first and Eclipse kicked off the first terrific wave of American manga publication in 1987. You might also look for Gen of Hiroshima #1 & #2, (the first English Language adaptations of Nakazawa’s Barfeoot Gen), which were published at relatively the same time, but were delayed and poorly distributed.
Miller Goes Manga
The first American adaptation of a Japanese manga title to be printed in conventional comic book size as an ongoing monthly was first Comics’ April 1987 publication of Kazuo Koike & Goseki Kojima’s Lone Wolf and Cub #1. It featured new introductions and new cover art by Frank Miller on the first dozen or so issues. This was the first example of Japanese manga that a lot of non-Japanese comic book collectors saw.
Miller was fresh off the success of The Dark Knight Returns, which saw a rekindled interest in his prior Ronin –a series that was massively influenced by Goseki Kojima’s style (and one of the very first prestige-format comic books). first Comics had well established itself as one of the first indie publishers to break out of the direct distribution market. It found a presence beside DC, Marvel, and Archie on the newsstand.
As sponsors of the Creator’s bill of Rights, founders Ken F. Levin and Mike Gold had the cache to lure Miller to adapt the series from weekly Manga action for U.S. readers. significant among its lots of fans is Justin Lin, director of the fast & Furious film series, who has been attached to a remake considering that 2017. There are fewer than 200 graded copies of #1 on the census, and only 26 of #2. For some of the subsequent issues, there are NO graded copies. If this were to be remade either as a film or a series, those issues consist of the first appearances of crucial supporting characters. You can normally still get raw copies for little a lot more than cover price.
One month after the debut of Lone Wolf and Cub, Eclipse Comics’ would enter into a partnership with Viz Media to release four bi-weekly manga titles: area 88, The legend of Kamui, Mai The Psychic Girl, and Xenon.
Viz Media
Underwhelmed by the sales on the first three titles in their Eclipse deal, Viz Media would eventually pull the licenses before the stories were actually finished. The fourth title, Xenon, achievnullnull