American Update: Spider-Mania meets Mighty Marvel Firsts: Amazing Spider-Man #3 – the Debut of Doctor Octopus
*Marvel: While early issues of the Amazing Spider-Man are always popular (and growing in value rapidly!), the debuts of his major villains are the hot-button items, and this is one of the hottest. Issue #3 of Spider-Man’s series saw the first appearance of Doctor Otto Octavius, a.k.a. Doctor Octopus, the villain who, perhaps jointly with the Green Goblin, is regarded as our hero’s definitive nemesis. Doc Ock (as he’s familiarly known) has been the bête noire of Spidey for decades, but this is where the vendetta began. This copy of #3 is an apparent VG/FN, with significant eye appeal, tight, bright and glossy, with vibrant cover colour. This is a cents copy, with no UK overstamp or price marking; interior pages off-white and flexible, with no brittleness or browning. The reasons that this is an apparent VG/FN, rather than a much higher grade, are a small (2″) lower spine split, and at some point a previous owner has made two attempts at amateur restoration/preservation; the solid black at the cover’s lower right corner has been filled in, very lightly in a couple of tiny spots, and the book has been restapled at the centrefold, presumably as reinforcement, as the original staples are perfectly sound. However, these minor amendments do not detract from the comic’s overall appeal, presenting beautifully, and they have been taken into account when calculating the price. App. VG/FN cents on sale at £1,000. Front and back covers are illustrated below, together with the splash page; high resolution images are available on request. SORRY, THIS HAS NOW SOLD