Skip to main content
KISS #3 front cover
~9.2 AI-Estimated
Approximate
Condition Profile
KISS #3
DARK HORSE COMICS · 1/03 · DIRECT EDITION
UNIT ECA-010322

KISS #3

Dark Horse's licensed Kiss ongoing continues, direct edition

SIG 2/10 Available

// Unit specification

PublisherCover dateEraVariantKey attributeStatus
Dark Horse Comics 2003 Modern Direct Edition AVAILABLE

// Run position

Part of an unbroken run · #1–#13 · 13 issues View all 13 available issues of KISS →

// Condition analysis

⚠ AI-Estimated / Approximate Condition Profile

Cover shows strong gloss and sharp corners with no visible creasing or spine stress on the front cover. Edges appear clean with no chipping visible; the book is currently in a protective sleeve which limits full assessment. No writing, stains, or color breaks are visible on this side. Interior pages and back cover were not assessed, so grade is based solely on front cover appearance.

// Valuation — market reference

⚠ AI-Estimated values — approximate, not an appraisal · no market comps found — era-based estimate
BracketGradeEst. market valueMarker
LOW_RAW 0.5 – 1.5 $2
MID_RAW 4.0 – 6.0 $4
HIGH_CERT 9.8 SLAB $55

// Archive commentary

Kiss #3 is part of Dark Horse Comics' early-2000s ongoing series built around the rock band's stage personas, following in the tradition of earlier licensed Kiss comics that reimagined Gene Simmons, Paul Stanley, Ace Frehley, and Peter Criss as the Demon, Starchild, Spaceman, and Catman. The series continued the publisher's practice of pairing music-industry licensing with genre adventure storytelling, aimed squarely at the band's fan base and comic collectors interested in music tie-in properties rather than at readers following a shared superhero universe.

As the third issue of a licensed ongoing with no first appearance, landmark creative statement, or notable cover moment attached to it, the book has never registered meaningful aftermarket demand and carries no published fair-market value in standard guides. It trades as an inexpensive reader copy, its value driven almost entirely by Kiss fandom and completist collecting of the Dark Horse license rather than by broader comic-market speculation.

This is a book for Kiss collectors assembling a full run of the band's various comic incarnations, or for dealers filling out Dark Horse licensed-property boxes; it holds little appeal for general superhero or Modern Age key-issue buyers. Raw copies in any condition are readily available and inexpensive, while a graded 9.8 slab commands a modest premium mainly for the novelty of top-census condition rather than any inherent scarcity or story significance.

// Copies in archive

UnitGradeVariantStatus
ECA-010322 ~9.2 Direct Edition AVAILABLE

INQUIRE_ABOUT_THIS_UNIT

Institutional buyers, auction houses, and private collectors — direct line to the archive.