*Marvel: A wonderful acquisition in our Slab Happy event this week! The debut of ‘Earth’s Mightiest Super-Heroes!’ – as they were straplined on their very first issue – is one of the most sought-after Marvel keys, as Thor, the Hulk, Iron Man, Ant-Man and the Wasp – inspired, doubtless, by the recent success of DC’s Justice League of America – came together to battle the threat of Loki in this Lee/Kirby extravaganza. This copy of Avengers #1 is a cents copy, no pence price or overstamp, and has been graded by the American CGC company as a 4.0 purple label indicating a Restored grade – an Apparent VG equivalent, but with a note that the bottom edge of the cover has been trimmed. As you can see from the picture, however, this does not impact on the cover image at all, and honestly, if you didn’t know what to look for, then in the words of a wise man, ‘You can’t see the join, Ern.’ The Avengers, of course, are the commercial juggernauts of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and the comics have generated thousands of issues and multitudinous spin-off series, all of which began from this ground-breaking premier issue. On sale at £1,350.