Posted in: Comic Connect Sponsored, Comics, Dark Horse Comics | Tagged: auction, hellboy, john byrne, mike mignola, next men
Early Hellboy Goes To Auction – John Byrne's Next Men #21 9.0 Vs 9.6
Both published by Dark Horse Comics at the time, Mike Mignola's Hellboy made one of his earliest appearances in John Byrne's Next Men #21, albeit it a fictionalised version of himself, before Dark Horse published Hellboy #1. As a result, it has become quite the collectible over the years. On Wednesday, at the ComicConnect Auctions, this comes to a head as two copies will be auctioned simultaneously, one at a grade of CGC 9.6 and another at 9.0 from CBCS. Now, of course, the 9.6 will sell for more – but how much more? It's all to play for…
At the time of writing, the 9.0 has 12 bids and sits at $50. The 9.6 copy, however, has had 20 bids, raising it to a $125 as it stands. Both are likely to go considerably higher.
Hellboy first appeared in San Diego Comic-Con Comics #2 in August 1993 (although there is some debate over whether the Dime Press #4 counts), and has since appeared in many miniseries, one-shots, and intercompany crossovers. The character has appeared into three live-action movies starring Ron Perlman in 2004 and 2008 and David Harbour in 2019. Summoned from Hell to Earth by Nazi occultists, he was rescued and taken in by Professor Trevor Bruttenholm, who would go on to found the United States Bureau for Paranormal Research and Defense (B.P.R.D.) with Hellboy working for them and going up against threats from Nazis, witches, demons, ogres, goblins and whatever else may threaten the world this Wednesday. As a result, he has become one of the best-known comic book creations worldwide – especially one not created for and owned by a big multimedia conglomerate like Marvel or DC. Mike Mignola still owns Hellboy and continues to profit from every sale – okay, not these ones, but you know what I mean.
The auctions both close on Wednesday and is part of ComicConnect's Event Auction #43. Session 3.