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Cap 1 vs Marvel 1 Which would you rather own and y?
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216 posts in this topic

Since I owned a store in the eighties MC #1 was the Grail. Have to go with that.

 

It was always like this until the movie speculator crowd entered.

 

Marvel #1 was for many years the most valuable book in the hobby. After the Batman movie craze in the late 1980's that changed.

 

I still think ultimately it's number #3 after Action #1 and Tec #27 regardless of what the numbers say.

 

 

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Since I owned a store in the eighties MC #1 was the Grail. Have to go with that.

 

It was always like this until the movie speculator crowd entered.

 

Marvel #1 was for many years the most valuable book in the hobby. After the Batman movie craze in the late 1980's that changed.

 

I still think ultimately it's number #3 after Action #1 and Tec #27 regardless of what the numbers say.

 

 

... and those numbers might change if a high grade October copy hit the block. GOD BLESS....

 

 

-jimbo(a friend of jesus) (thumbs u

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Since I owned a store in the eighties MC #1 was the Grail. Have to go with that.

 

It was always like this until the movie speculator crowd entered.

 

Marvel #1 was for many years the most valuable book in the hobby. After the Batman movie craze in the late 1980's that changed.

 

I still think ultimately it's number #3 after Action #1 and Tec #27 regardless of what the numbers say.

 

 

... and those numbers might change if a high grade October copy hit the block. GOD BLESS....

 

 

-jimbo(a friend of jesus) (thumbs u

 

No one would want to see one surface more than me but I doubt one exists. :(

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Since I owned a store in the eighties MC #1 was the Grail. Have to go with that.

 

It was always like this until the movie speculator crowd entered.

 

Marvel #1 was for many years the most valuable book in the hobby. After the Batman movie craze in the late 1980's that changed.

 

I still think ultimately it's number #3 after Action #1 and Tec #27 regardless of what the numbers say.

 

 

... and those numbers might change if a high grade October copy hit the block. GOD BLESS....

 

 

-jimbo(a friend of jesus) (thumbs u

 

No one would want to see one surface more than me but I doubt one exists. :(

any October copy would be nice to see. I only know of one copy.
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Since I owned a store in the eighties MC #1 was the Grail. Have to go with that.

 

It was always like this until the movie speculator crowd entered.

 

Marvel #1 was for many years the most valuable book in the hobby. After the Batman movie craze in the late 1980's that changed.

 

I still think ultimately it's number #3 after Action #1 and Tec #27 regardless of what the numbers say.

 

 

^^ Tec Action October Marvel

Edited by woowoo
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Since I owned a store in the eighties MC #1 was the Grail. Have to go with that.

 

It was always like this until the movie speculator crowd entered.

 

Marvel #1 was for many years the most valuable book in the hobby. After the Batman movie craze in the late 1980's that changed.

 

I still think ultimately it's number #3 after Action #1 and Tec #27 regardless of what the numbers say.

 

 

... and those numbers might change if a high grade October copy hit the block. GOD BLESS....

 

 

-jimbo(a friend of jesus) (thumbs u

 

No one would want to see one surface more than me but I doubt one exists. :(

any October copy would be nice to see. I only know of one copy.

 

Ben I'm disappointed in you. :baiting: There is the 5.0 Cage copy of course, this File copy:

Marvel1FileCopy.jpg

And this one:

MC1octclink.jpg

And this moderately restored copy which sold on Comicconnect:

marvelcomics1_zpsi29v4tfk.jpg

 

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Since I owned a store in the eighties MC #1 was the Grail. Have to go with that.

 

It was always like this until the movie speculator crowd entered.

 

Marvel #1 was for many years the most valuable book in the hobby. After the Batman movie craze in the late 1980's that changed.

 

I still think ultimately it's number #3 after Action #1 and Tec #27 regardless of what the numbers say.

 

 

... and those numbers might change if a high grade October copy hit the block. GOD BLESS....

 

 

-jimbo(a friend of jesus) (thumbs u

 

No one would want to see one surface more than me but I doubt one exists. :(

any October copy would be nice to see. I only know of one copy.

 

Ben I'm disappointed in you. :baiting: There is the 5.0 Cage copy of course, this File copy:

Marvel1FileCopy.jpg

And this one:

MC1octclink.jpg

And this moderately restored copy which sold on Comicconnect:

marvelcomics1_zpsi29v4tfk.jpg

I knew about those but I meant to say there's only one OCT copy I know where it resides. lol
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Marvel 1! And, I own a Cap 1 but have to go with M1 b/c of the historical significance.

 

"Historical significance" changes with time, which is why pulpy romance, science fiction, and western comics have also fallen out of favour. The simple fact of the matter is that the current Marvel universe is simply more identifiable with the contents within the pages of Cap 1, than Marvel Comics 1, and that is not likely to change.

 

Some may choose to disagree, but just about the only real significance of Marvel Comics 1 at this point is its title and the fact that it was the first "Marvel" comic.

 

And again, that hasn't stopped DC's titular namesake issue (Detective Comics 1), also a pulpy throwback similar to Marvel Comics 1, from being overtaken by multiple other subsequent books that were published subsequent to it.

 

If someone were to start yet another poll asking which they'd rather have, a Detective Comics 1 or an Action 1 or a Tec 27, and maybe even a Flash Comics 1, All American 16, Tec 31, and what the hell, an All Star 8, the responses would likely embarrass the Tec 1.

 

-J.

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Uh.... Old fogie collector bias aside....Show a casual person a Marvel 1, and you get a "so what?".

 

 

Show a casual person a Cap 1 and their eyes light up and they want to hold it and see it up close.

 

In 5 years or less , a Marvel 1 will be in the same boat as a Detective Comics 1- still important but long in the dust of a far more important and desired book- the Cap 1. According Gator and a few others, it already happened awhile back.

 

(It also doesn't hurt that nearly all of Marvel/Disney's movie and TV universes are either directly or indirectly born from the Cap universe/mythos, including Cap, Red Skull, Bucky/Winter Soldier, SHEILD, Hydra, the Avengers, Inhumans, etc etc etc. If Cap isn't already Marvel's #2 character in that sense he will be soon.)

 

-J.

 

And if Marvel gets around to making a movie showcasing the original Torch vs the Sub-Mariner those casual observers will change their mind in a heart beat. Besides MC#1 is much tougher to acquire than a Cap#1 as you rarely see them for sale. To me it's still "the" GA Timely book to own.

 

Yes, Detective 1 is the first DC and it’s not highly sought after so why consider Marvel 1 any differently? Good point, but 1) Detective 1 has an extremely simple cover that is a swipe from an earlier pulp, 2) there’s no continuing characters in Detective 1 that have survived to this day, and 3) New Fun and New Comics preceded that title so many collectors find it vague whether to truly consider Detective 1 as the first DC at all. On the other hand, Marvel 1 has a lot going for it: 1) the chromatic pulpy Paul cover with either a fuzzy or clean Torch depending which off registration you prefer most, 2) the October/November overprint variations, 3) origin of the Human Torch (continuing character throughout the 40’s and re-booted in 1962), 4) colorized origin of the Submariner (part of the current Marvel Universe), 5) mis-cut pages that prompted Goodman to switch printers, 6) controversy due to the discovery of Motion Picture Funnies Weekly 1, and 7,8,9) fantastic Everett/Burgos/Gustavson art continuing their great work with Centaur. Enough of that.

 

Back in the day (we’re talking 1960’s through mid 2000’s), Marvel 1 was far and away THE Timely prize to acquire. Period! Only after scoring Marvel 1 would the advanced Timely collector gravitate to the next logical steps which was owning Torch 1, Sub-Mariner 1, and Cap 1. The truly esoteric collector would also attempt to acquire Darings and Mystics for the obvious reasons (fantastic 1939-1940 Schomburg covers amidst some decidedly wacky stories). But back to Marvel vs Cap 1. What changed the values between Marvel 1, Cap 1, Torch 1 and Sub-Mariner 1? We all know it’s public awareness due to the movies. But why did Hollywood pick Cap for a movie and leave the Torch and Sub-Mariner in the dust (so far, that is)? Cap was the easiest character to work with in terms of special effects. No fire, no water. Actually, the movie industry figured that one out many years earlier with a Cap serial in 1944 and Cap TV movies in the 80’s. That may sound like a superficial way of looking at it, but it is so. However, Cap should not be minimized in any way just because he’s easier to put on a screen. Cap is the embodiment of American patriotism, and the dynamic art of Simon & Kirby and a solo Kirby continuing the character in the 60’s certainly made Cap a true superstar and the handling of the Cap character throughout the years has been more successful than even Superman (Batman’s pretty good though). In other words, Cap is amazing for all kinds of reasons, but Marvel 1 was the #1 goal and Cap #1 was secondary.

 

Let’s get back to Torch 1, Submariner 1 and Cap 1 as the secondary Timely prizes behind Marvel 1. I recall in the 60’s through 90’s that collectors who were lucky enough to score a Marvel 1 preferred to get a Cap 1 before they got a Torch 1 and Submariner 1. Why? Torch and Submariner were already in their Marvel 1s so naturally they wanted something different. Variety! Also, the fact that Cap 1 was an early Simon & Kirby product and that his first 10 issues rivaled the quality of content in Marvels 1-10 were the other hooks. Marvel 1-10 had the dynamic Everett and Burgos battles, Caps 1-10 were cover to cover Simon & Kirby at their absolute zenith. Also, collectors recognized that the art and story quality of Torch 2-10 and Submariner 2-10 were inconsistent in comparison to Caps 1-10. So, Captain America Comics was the cooler series to get! Cap 1 was also a little more difficult to acquire than a Torch 1 or Submariner 1. Collectors love the patriotic and the Hitler cover no doubt kept more Cap1s nestled in collector’s collections than either a Torch 1 or Submariner 1. But back to the question “which would you rather own?” As a collector who has been around the block, Marvel 1 hands down. If I wasn’t around the block I probably would say Cap 1. My answer: Get both and call it a day or at least get a Marvel 1 and Cap 2 (my favorite Cap) or a Marvel 9 and Cap 2 (you save yourself a lot of money and you have the best rendition of all three characters).

spoken like a true Timely veteran. One has to have experienced the whole gambit of gold to appreciate what's cool and what's important to the hobby. I have owned three Cap 1s and don't really regret parting with any of them. But I tend to always favor the earlier books.
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Captain America #1 all day. This would be like picking Detective Comics #27 over Detective Comics #1.

It`s a no-brainer folks. I don`t care what the consensus was in the past. Going forward Captain America #1 has much more upside than Marvel Comics #1.

It won`t even be debatable in 10 years,similar to FF#1 and AF#15.

 

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It won`t even be debatable in 10 years,similar to FF#1 and AF#15.

 

This is still quite debatable. I am selling off a huge chunk of my collection, and I chose to sell AF #15. I would much rather keep Fantastic Four #1.

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It won`t even be debatable in 10 years,similar to FF#1 and AF#15.

 

This is still quite debatable. I am selling off a huge chunk of my collection, and I chose to sell AF #15. I would much rather keep Fantastic Four #1.

Honestly it`s not. 10 years from now Tales of Suspense #39,Journey into Mystery #83, and Hulk #1 will have passed FF #1.

I get that you like the Fantastic Four, and I respect that, but their time has come and gone. They actually have a much worst future than Superman.

2c

 

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I think people will make a better decision if they have both books in front of them.

Here again is a cool photo of a kid deciding between a Marvel Comics 1 and a Cap 1 at a New York comic con in the 1960s.

Both books appear similar in grade.

It looks like he is leaning towards the Marvel 1.

ny-stand-marvel1_zps0f6ea4c3.jpg

 

This photo makes the thread. (thumbs u

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I think people will make a better decision if they have both books in front of them.

Here again is a cool photo of a kid deciding between a Marvel Comics 1 and a Cap 1 at a New York comic con in the 1960s.

Both books appear similar in grade.

It looks like he is leaning towards the Marvel 1.

ny-stand-marvel1_zps0f6ea4c3.jpg

 

This photo makes the thread. (thumbs u

 

Where's a flux capacitor when I need one

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