FANTASTIC FOUR #21

Cover shows sharp corners, glossy unbroken surface, and strong color with no visible fading. No spine ticks or stress lines are apparent along the visible spine edge, and there are no creases, tears, or stains on the front cover. The book is in a protective sleeve which limits full assessment of edge wear and interior/back cover condition, so a conservative near-mint estimate is given.

Fantastic Four #21 (Volume 2, cover-dated September 1998) arrived during the second incarnation of the flagship Marvel team's series, launched in the wake of the Heroes Reborn event and later folded back into Marvel's core continuity. By this point in the run the book was being written by Chris Claremont with art from Salvador Larroca, part of a period of the title often overshadowed by the more heavily collected Lee/Davis launch issues and the eventual Waid/Wieringo relaunch that followed. The issue features the core team of Reed Richards, Sue Storm, Johnny Storm, and Ben Grimm, but carries no first appearance, origin story, or other event typically cited in price guides.

The certified population for this issue is small, with only a handful of CGC Universal copies recorded and no 9.8 yet graded, but that scarcity reflects low submission volume rather than genuine demand pressure. The lone meaningful data point, a 9.6 fair market value in the mid-teens, indicates this is a book collected mainly as part of a complete Volume 2 run rather than sought individually. Sales activity is sparse across every grade band, consistent with a late-1990s Direct Edition superhero comic that saw ample print runs and little speculative interest at release.

This is a filler-tier back-issue for Fantastic Four completists and Volume 2 run-builders rather than a target for grade-chasing investors. Raw copies in low and mid grades move for a few dollars in bulk lots or long boxes, while a submitted 9.8 would likely command a modest premium purely on account of being a census first, not because of any inherent story significance. Collectors assembling the full Claremont-era run, or dealers filling out Fantastic Four Volume 2 sets, are the primary market for this issue.