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DAREDEVIL (1964-98) #168
CGC NM/M: 9.8
(Stock Image)
SOLD ON:  Wednesday, 08/23/2023 8:33 PM
$3,450
Sold For
15
Bids
This auction has ended.
PUBLISHER: Marvel
COMMENTS: A 15% BUYER'S PREMIUM WILL BE ADDED TO THIS ITEM AT CONCLUSION OF THE AUCTION
white pages; Newsstand Edition
1st appearance of Elektra (w/ origin) by Frank Miller; COMIC BOOK IMPACT rating of 9 (CBI)
Highest Graded
Read Description ▼

DESCRIPTION
A 15% BUYER'S PREMIUM WILL BE ADDED TO THIS ITEM AT CONCLUSION OF THE AUCTION
white pages; Newsstand Edition
1st appearance of Elektra (w/ origin) by Frank Miller; COMIC BOOK IMPACT rating of 9 (CBI)
Highest Graded


Daredevil #168 is one of the most legendary books of the Bronze Age, with the first appearance of Elektra marking a massive change for the long-running title. For those comic book fans who were around when Frank Miller took the reins of the Daredevil series, it is remembered as a moment in the industry that was a certifiable game changer. Miller had previously been honing his craft as a bullpen artist for Marvel. After doing spot work on a variety of titles, he quickly came into his own as the main artist for the sagging Daredevil. From there, Miller took over the scripting and changed the landscape of comics forever. The introduction of Elektra also proved that Miller's ambitions didn't end with a brutal depiction of crimefighting. Instead, this issue marked the beginning of one of Comicdom's greatest romances. (That's despite the unceremonial start of Elektra being misspelled as "Elecktra" on the cover.)

Miller's sparse and emotional style lent itself to a wide palette of techniques. He played with panel design and employed a surreal manga-influenced approach while turning Daredevil into one of the hottest tickets of the late Bronze Age. Issue #168 introduces one of Miller's most enduring characters. The tragic and magnificent Elektra served as both love interest and deadly opponent of Matt Murdock, and originally lived for just a handful of issues before dying at the hands of Bullseye. From there, however, Elektra was resurrected, rebooted, retconned and reincarnated repeatedly. That includes 2024's crowd-pleasing appearance by Jennifer Garner reprising her live-action work as the character for Deadpool and Wolverine.
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Daredevil #168 features the origin and 1st appearance of Elektra!

Overstreet 2023 NM- 9.2 value = $450.

According to the CGC Census Report as of Tuesday, July 25, 2023, out of a total of 6,219 Universal copies graded, only 240 copies were graded in 9.8 with 0 copies graded higher!

With these statistics in mind, this represents an impressive RARITY FACTOR of ONLY 3.86% of the total population!

However, this is the much RARER Newsstand Edition Variant, which means that you can estimate that ONLY 2-4% of all 9.8s are Newsstand Edition copies!

Furthermore, this RARE GEM also received the CVA Exceptional sticker, which certifies that it presents much better than your typical CGC 9.8! In other words, IT’S THE CLOSEST EXAMPLE TO BEING A CGC 9.9 MINT COPY!

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What you are viewing is the Holy Grail of the Frank Miller Daredevil run!

This was Frank Miller’s 1st issue in which he took over the Daredevil title as the WRITER, as well as being the COVER & INTERIOR ARTIST! On top of that, he introduced us to a MAJOR Marvel character and one of the MAIN supporting characters in the Daredevil title—the beautiful and highly skilled ninja assassin Elektra!

SIDE NOTE: Like Daredevil #131, Daredevil #168 was also mass produced with a spelling error on the front cover; Elektra was misspelled as “Elecktra!”

Daredevil #168 is one of the most difficult issues to acquire with PERFECT COVER WRAP & CENTERING and A PERFECT CUT, as it is notoriously known to exhibit these manufacturing flaws from its production back in late 1980.

With that said, most copies offered in the open marketplace are poorly wrapped and centered, where you can typically see parts of the back cover from the front and vice versa. In addition, the Marvel Comics Group strip and the Comics Code Authority stamp are often angled or even cut off the cover due to off-centering and a poor production cut along the top and the sides.

I thought my former Daredevil #168 CGC 9.8 WP Direct Edition copy was the most perfect looking 9.8 copy I have ever owned, but I am telling you now…without a single doubt in my mind…this RARE CGC 9.8 WP NEWSSTAND EDITION GEM is the BEST-KNOWN COPY OF DAREDEVIL #168 ON THE PLANET!

I have NEVER seen a more pristine looking copy! Therefore, it took a final bid of $13,916 on 6/1/2022 at auction to win it! This is the current highest sale for this book to date!

Moreover, Elektra has been portrayed on the silver screen by actress Jennifer Garner in Marvel’s Elektra (2005). In more recent times, actress Élodie Yung embodied Elektra to perfection in the 2nd season of the critically acclaimed Marvel Daredevil Netflix TV Series (2015-2018)! Yung also reprised her role in the Netflix miniseries The Defenders (2017)!

With Daredevil: Born Again (18 episodes) scheduled to be released on Disney+ in the Spring of 2024, it’s more than likely that Elektra will return!

In closing, whoever ends up with the winning bid, will officially have BRAGGING RIGHTS in owning THE WORLD’S BEST-KNOWN COPY OF THIS CLASSIC BRONZE AGE KEY!

Happy Collecting & Enjoy the Hunt!

-Professor Pecora



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