On September 23rd, Marvel released its first trailer for the Thunderbolts*, the 36th film in the MCU scheduled to be released in May 2025. In many ways, the film serves as a sequel to Black Widow, Falcon & the Winter Soldier, and Ant-Man & The Wasp, while introducing a new character to the MCU: the Sentry.
How did the market react to our first look at the Thunderbolts?
We're seeing slight increases in sales volume and FMV for the 1st appearances of the Thunderbolts.
Although the team is loosely based on the Thunderbolts team from the comics (first appearing in Incredible Hulk #449), the roster of the team in the MCU bears no resemblance to the Thunderbolts team in the comics. Even so, on the date the trailer was released, 11 copies of Hulk #449 sold on eBay (previously, roughly one copy a day was selling on eBay). We're also starting to see some improvements in terms of FMV as well for this issue. If you take a look at the most common grade on the CGC Census (a 9.6), we can see that the 30-day average ($132) is a bit higher than the 90-day average ($125); and the 90-day average is higher than the one-year average ($119).
During a year when most Modern Age books have experienced steep declines in value, this book is beating the overall market for comparable books.
Sales volume and FMV for the 1st appearance of Sentry have also been increasing.
Thunderbolts* may actually be more significant for introducing Sentry to the MCU. 12 copies of Sentry #1 sold on eBay on September 23rd. While it wasn't 100% confirmed that Sentry will appear in the film, we saw a mysterious figure named "Bob" emerge in a laboratory who is apparently bullet proof (we see his laboratory uniform riddled with bullet holes). "Bob" is most likely Robert Reynolds, the Sentry's alter ego, and one of the most powerful characters in the Marvel Universe.
In terms of sales volume, we saw a small boost on September 23rd with 10 copies of the Sentry's first appearance (Sentry #1) selling on eBay. In terms of FMV, if we examone the most common grade on the CGC Census (a 9.8), the 30-day average ($317) is higher than the 90-day average ($295); and the 90-day average is higher than the one-year average ($276).
The current FMV of $325 for a 9.8 for this Modern Age book is pretty steep, in my opinion. One 9.8 sold on the 23rd for a hefty $380 (shipping was included though):
The market's response to other characters featured in the trailer for the Thunderbolts* was muted. For example, only two copies of U.S. Agent's first appearance in Captain America #323 and only two copies of Yelena Bulova's first appearance in Inhumans #5 sold on the 23rd. Only one copy of the Winter Soldier's first appearance in Captain America #6 sold on the 23rd.
