TARZAN LORD OF THE JUNGLE #3

Cover shows strong gloss and vivid color with sharp corners; slight waviness/wrinkling visible across the cover surface (likely from the protective sleeve) but no visible creases or color breaks. A faint vertical line/crease may be present near the spine but is hard to distinguish from sleeve wrinkling under glare. No stains, tears, or writing are visible on the front. Interior pages and back cover were not assessed, so grade is based solely on this front cover photo.

Tarzan Lord of the Jungle #3 continues Marvel's 1977 licensed adaptation of Edgar Rice Burroughs' character, following the short-lived loss of the newsstand rights from Gold Key/DC. Scripted by Roy Thomas with art and cover by John Buscema, this issue sends Tarzan into the ruined vaults of Opar in "The Altar of the Flaming God," pitting him against the Beastmen of Opar and La of Opar after Albert Werper's scheming triggers an earthquake that strips Tarzan of his civilized veneer. The Thomas/Buscema pairing gave the license a consistent, well-regarded creative voice for its run, but the issue itself introduces no new characters and carries none of the historical weight of a first appearance, origin, or landmark cover.

Market demand for this title tracks the broader Bronze Age Tarzan/ERB collecting niche rather than mainstream superhero speculation: buyers are largely ERB completists, John Buscema art collectors, and Tarzan fans filling out the Marvel run, with limited crossover interest from general key-issue investors. Because the series never developed a breakout single issue comparable to a first-appearance book, values stay flat across most of the run, and #3 does not command any premium over its siblings. As a standard newsstand printing rather than a scarcer variant, it sits at the low end of what collectors will pay even in top grade.

Expect this book to trade as a bulk or fill-in item in low and mid grades, moving through dealer boxes, online lots, and casual eBay sales rather than major auctions. High-grade CGC 9.8 copies surface only occasionally and appeal mainly to registry-minded Tarzan or Buscema specialists willing to pay a modest premium for census-top examples; absent that narrow demand, the book has little presence at Heritage or ComicConnect. Overall it is best positioned as an affordable, well-illustrated piece of licensed Bronze Age adventure comics rather than a speculative or investment-grade key.