DETECTIVE COMICS #326

Cover shows moderate wear consistent with a mid-grade Silver Age book: visible corner softening at top left and bottom right, light surface scuffing and small creases across the yellow background, and a faint vertical crease near the left edge. Spine area shows some stress but no major color break visible in this shot. The book is protected in a plastic sleeve which limits full edge inspection. Interior and back cover were not assessed.

Detective Comics #326 arrived in April 1964 as one of the last issues of the pre-"New Look" Batman era, immediately preceding the Carmine Infantino redesign that would reshape the character starting with issue #327. The issue is best remembered today as the final chapter of the long-running Martian Manhunter backup feature, which had appeared in Detective Comics continuously since the mid-1950s before J'onn J'onzz relocated to House of Mystery. The Batman lead story reflects the standard house style of the period, drawn under the Bob Kane studio credit with inking typically attributed to Charles Paris, while the Manhunter feature was illustrated by Joe Certa, the character's defining Silver Age artist.

Market data shows a comic that trades as a mid-tier Silver Age Batman issue rather than a recognized key. Certified sales cluster in a wide mid-grade band where fair market value flattens near fifty dollars across grades 4.0 through 6.0, indicating steady but unspectacular demand from completists and Batman run-builders rather than speculative key-issue buyers. Value accelerates only at the top of the census, where thin populations at 9.2 through 9.6 command meaningfully higher prices, a pattern typical of common Silver Age books where high-grade survivors are scarce regardless of story significance.

This issue suits collectors assembling complete Detective Comics or Martian Manhunter backup runs, or those seeking the immediate predecessor to the New Look Batman launch as a companion piece. Raw copies in low and mid grades move steadily at modest prices reflecting general Silver Age Batman demand rather than any first-appearance premium. High-grade certified copies, though rare on the census, appeal mainly to registry-set collectors chasing top-of-census Silver Age Batman material, and pricing at the summit remains speculative given the absence of any 9.8 sale to anchor it.