CAPTAIN AMERICA #360

Cover shows strong gloss and sharp corners with no visible creases or color breaks. Spine appears tight with no stress lines visible in this photo. Book is in a protective sleeve which slightly obscures fine surface detail via glare; interior and back cover were not assessed.

Captain America #360, published by Marvel Comics with an October 1989 cover date, falls within the celebrated Mark Gruenwald run and forms part of the multi-issue "Streets of Poison" storyline, in which Steve Rogers confronts the pervasive drug trade and is himself exposed to a powerful narcotic called Ice. The arc is remembered as one of Gruenwald's more socially conscious extended stories, tackling addiction directly through its central hero, with Kieron Dwyer's angular, kinetic artwork defining the visual tone of the period. While the issue is not a first appearance, origin, or death, it is a representative chapter of a storyline frequently cited in retrospectives on the character's late-1980s direction.

Market data reflects a high-supply Copper Age title: census figures show 785 Universal copies graded out of 829 total, with the bulk clustering in the 9.0-9.6 range. Pricing is flat and modest through the mid-to-high grades, only escalating meaningfully at 9.6 and especially 9.8, where scarcity relative to the graded population drives a disproportionate premium. This pattern is typical of late-1980s direct-market Marvel product that was heavily preserved by speculators at the time, leaving abundant near-mint raw and slabbed material but comparatively few true gem-mint survivors.

Demand for this issue centers on Captain America completists and readers assembling the full Gruenwald-Dwyer run rather than speculative buyers chasing a key. Raw copies in low and mid grades trade as inexpensive fill for long boxes and represent minimal collector outlay, while CGC 9.8 examples command a real but modest premium reflecting genuine scarcity at the top of the grading curve rather than intrinsic character or historical importance. It is best positioned in the catalog as a well-regarded storyline issue for run collectors, not as an investment-grade key.