FANTASTIC FOUR #282

Cover shows strong gloss and vibrant color with sharp, unblunted corners and no visible spine stress lines or ticks in this photo. No creases, tears, or color breaks are apparent, and the image is bright with no noticeable fading or staining. The book is sleeved in protective plastic, which limits full assessment of edge wear, and the interior and back cover were not examined, so the grade reflects front-cover appearance only.

Fantastic Four #282 (September 1985) arrived during John Byrne's celebrated writer-artist run on the title, a stretch widely regarded as one of the strongest sustained creative tenures in the book's history. Titled "Interlude," the issue is a quieter, character-driven entry that steps back from the cosmic-scale storylines Byrne had been running to examine Sue Storm's history and emotional state in the aftermath of her miscarriage, a plot thread that would resurface later in the acclaimed "Malice" arc. It is not a first appearance or origin issue, but it is representative of Byrne's willingness to use the Fantastic Four format for introspective, soap-opera-inflected storytelling alongside the superheroics.

Market data shows a comic that trades as a mid-tier Copper Age Byrne collectible rather than a genuine key. The census is substantial, with 173 Universal copies recorded, and pricing stays modest through the mid grades before spiking sharply at 9.8, where recent sales average well above the 90-day and longer-term trend, then cooling in the most recent 30-day window. That pattern is typical of a well-liked but non-key issue: demand is concentrated almost entirely on pristine, top-census copies sought by Byrne-run completists, while mid- and low-grade copies see little competitive bidding.

This is a book for Fantastic Four and John Byrne run collectors building toward a complete set of #232-293, rather than a speculative or investment-grade key. Raw copies in low and mid grades are inexpensive and plentiful, trading close to cover price with little urgency. The real action is concentrated at the CGC 9.8 tier, where supply is naturally limited by the fragility of thin Copper Age paper stock and glossy covers, and where price swings can be pronounced given the relatively thin sales volume even at the top of the census.