Collector Keys Corner — Collectible Comics To Look Out For This Week
by Brendan M. Allen
Welcome back to Collector Keys Corner! As I previously stated, there are basically two kinds of people buying comics. Those who read them, and those who collect them. There is quite a bit of overlap between the two groups, but comics consumers generally lean hard one way or the other. This column is aimed at the collectors, highlighting some of this week’s comics keys.
Miles Morales: Spider-Man #37
White Cat and Inari – On the Prowl!
Two super-thieves with everything to lose are running wild in Brooklyn — and with Spider-Man still reeling from God War, the battle against these new foes might be the straw that breaks the camel’s back. Misty Knight’s leading the investigation, but she needs an extra hand. Someone with cat burglary experience perhaps…?
This is the first (full) appearance of two new characters, White Cat and Inari. First appearances, Spider-Man… There’s a lot of collector potential here.
Immortal Legend Batman #1
Humanity broke the barrier between our universe and our universe’s shadow. From the void came horrific apparitions that craved nothing but destruction. But from this terror… a legend was born. A warrior who found a way to access the energy that binds our universe and the shadow universe, transforming him into a cosmic dark knight.
This immortal legend was named Batman. He fought to keep us safe but then one day abandoned the war. Though he didn’t disappear entirely. Now they say he hunts a rogues gallery of monsters… born from the shadows!
Premiere issue of a six-issue limited series about a horror facing cosmic dark knight who hunts a rogues gallery of monsters. Batman has always been more horror adjacent than a lot of the capes and tights stuff out there. This series leans hard into the darkest corners of the dark knight mythos.
Immortal Legend Batman #1 Cover E 1:25 Matt Taylor Variant
This is a 1:25 incentive, which you probably already know means that your local shop needs to order 25 open order covers to receive a copy of. That requirement means that these are rarer, and as such, are usually marked up at 2-3x cover price. This one is definitely worth the extra expense, if you can find it.
The Mortal Thor #1
The legend begins! The Norse Myths tell of Gods who walked the Earth, doing great deeds for the mortals who believed in them. But Asgard isn’t real, and never was. The Gods never soared in our skies, never stood with our heroes, never fought for kindness or justice. It was all just a story. Nobody’s coming to help us. But somewhere in the city… a man is waking up. A man with a hammer.
As the name implies, this series premiere features the rebirth of Thor as a human. It has Al Ewing on the script and Pasqual Ferry on art. With these two juggernauts on the cover, this one is pretty desirable.
Universal Monsters: The Invisible Man #1
Jack Griffin has always been invisible to the people around him — at least in his own mind. But when an experimental breakthrough presents a path to make his dreams of invisibility a reality, no one — not even the woman he loves — will stand in his way.
Witness Griffin’s legendary descent into madness as his humanity fades away and the monster inside is revealed, leaving only… The Invisible Man!
They’re billing this one as “The Horror Dream Team” with James Tynion IV and Dani partnering up. No lie detected.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder #1
As a dark new power rises from the shadows of New York, so does a much darker power return to the city’s streets… for revenge. One of the most terrifying villains in the history of comics is back — and more deadly than ever!
Returned forever changed by a maddening ordeal beyond imagining, the Shredder is a man out of time, betrayed by all around him, without the Foot Clan, and quite possibly insane. When one of his former Foot prodigies forms their own rival clan with infernal designs on New York, a recovering Shredder must quest deep into the criminal underworld, where enemies both old and new will discover what defiance will bring them at the end of the Shredder’s blades.
This one features two first appearances, a rogue foot soldier and an underworld boss that has gained mythic status.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder #1 1:100 Stjepan Šejić Variant
Incentivized at 1:100, this one already qualifies as a collectible, but also, look at that image. LOOK.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #11 Cover C Juan Ferreyra Variant
With the Ninja Turtles on trial for a murder they didn’t commit, Casey Jones fighting for his life in a devastating coma, and the city overrun by Foot Patrol thugs, New York has but one hope to turn the tide: April O’Neil?
This is an open order variant, so it’s easier to get your hands on than some of the others this week. It features a first cover appearance of April O’Neil as Casey Jones.
