PLASTIC MAN #3
Third issue of DC's Silver Age Plastic Man revival, cover-dated April 1967.
// Unit specification
// Run position
// Condition analysis
Cover shows generally strong gloss and bright colors with no major creases or color breaks visible. Minor wear is noticeable at the top right corner, with a slight blunting and a small edge nick; there is also faint edge wear along the top and right border. No significant spine stress lines are visible in this rotated shot, though the spine itself is not clearly shown edge-on. Interior pages and back cover were not assessed, so overall grade could be higher or lower depending on those surfaces.
// Valuation — market reference
| Bracket | Grade | Est. market value | Marker |
|---|---|---|---|
| LOW_RAW | 0.5 – 1.5 | $15 | |
| MID_RAW | 4.0 – 6.0 | $50 | |
| HIGH_CERT | 9.8 SLAB | $275 |
// Archive commentary
Plastic Man #3 is part of DC Comics' short-lived Silver Age revival of the elastic hero originally created by Jack Cole for Quality Comics, whose characters DC had absorbed. Launched in 1966, this run reintroduced the pliable crimefighter to a new generation with a lighter, more comedic tone typical of the mid-1960s, riding the same wave of camp popularity that fueled the era's television-driven superhero boom. The issue sits in the early stretch of a series that never achieved the longevity of DC's flagship titles, making it a period curiosity rather than a cornerstone of the line.
The book's market profile is that of a modestly collected Silver Age issue with a shallow certified population and correspondingly thin trading. The census tops out in the mid-9.0 range, where prices hold to a flat plateau rather than climbing steeply, reflecting limited high-grade competition and a small but steady collector base. Sales activity is sparse across every tier, so pricing rests on a handful of transactions and reacts slowly, with little movement over the trailing periods.
Collectors drawn to this issue are typically Silver Age DC completists, Plastic Man specialists, and those assembling runs of the character across his Quality and DC incarnations. In lower and mid grades the book trades as an affordable run-filler, while high-grade certified copies command a premium driven more by scarcity than by broad demand. The absence of any 9.8 on the census means a top-graded example would be a genuine condition rarity, likely drawing outsized interest relative to the book's otherwise measured valuation.
// Copies in archive
| Unit | Grade | Variant | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| ECA-000624 | ~7.0 | — | AVAILABLE |
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