BY MATT TUCK
We all knew it was coming, and now it’s official: the Thundercats are getting a movie, and the prices for their first comic appearance is standing by for liftoff.
Dear Time-Warner:
Please don’t let the CGI models look like 2019’s Cats or, even worse, Mike Myers in a giant cat suit.
Thanks,
Fans Everywhere
Just yesterday, Deadline reported that Godzilla Vs King Kong director Adam Wingard has been tapped to lead the efforts of bringing the Thundercats to the big screen. With visions of 2019’s Cats dancing in my head, I was relieved to read that the movie will be animated. Honestly, a live-action Thundercats could end up being the new Cat in the Hat level creepy.
There have been rumors and gossip from hopeful fans that the T-Cats would be getting a movie eventually. And it is not like there is a lack of fan interest. Don’t forget the Thundercats animated reboot on Cartoon Network back in 2011, which was surprisingly good and deserved more air time than it received. (#restoretheCatverse)
All this attention is propelling what has been a hot issue for the past month, Marvel’s Thundercats #1 from 1985. In the higher grades, this issue has been taking off lately, with records being broken practically by the week.
THUNDERCATS #1
The first print, as expected, is doing the best. At a 9.8, one sold for a record-high $1,400 on March 29, the same day the movie news was announced. Even before that, collectors were snatching up these gems.
Starting on February 25, the records began falling with a $975 sale. Then from February 27 and into March, three straight sales netted $1k or more, progressing to that previously mentioned record. And to think that two years ago, this comic averaged $255 and was still selling for less than $400 just last year.
One thing that helps keep those fair market values hopping is this book’s rarity in such a high grade. According to the CGC census data, there are only 168 graded 9.8s on record. Now that the movie news has been confirmed, those copies will be even more coveted.
The most popular grade, according to that same CGC census, has been the 9.6. Although there are more graded comics compared to the 9.8, there are still just 231 slabbed 9.6s on record. What’s best here is the price, as the 9.6 last sold for $320. However, that figure is soon to get a boost considering that a 9.4 surpassed it with a $430 sale earlier this month.
If you are looking to spend less than $100, you will have to go all the way below a 7.0, and that will likely change in the coming weeks.
THE OTHER PRINTINGS
While Thundercats #1 may be the only true key issue in the realm of the T-Cats, it is worth your time to watch the second and third printings.
Like the first print, those subsequent printings have few graded copies on record with CGC, especially in the higher grades. The second print does not even have a 9.8 on file, and there are just five 9.6s listed, the last of which sold for $115 on March 19.
There are even fewer third prints listed with CGC. Again, there are no 9.8s and only four 9.6s. The last time one of those traded hands was for $115 in December.
HOOOO!
Fans have been waiting for years to get some Thundercats news. After the well-received 2011 series, the only thing Lion-O’s supporters got was the tongue-in-cheek silliness of 2020’s Thundercats Roar. The question remains, will we see more of the mythological adventures of the 2011 reboot or will the new movie be closer to Thundercats Roar? Either way, that first issue of Thundercats will continue to climb as more details emerge.
Matt Tuck is the author of the novel, Lost Bones of the Dead. He is also a teacher, freelance writer, comic collector, and an international man of mystery. You can follow him on his Facebook page, The Comic Blog.