Collecting Guide to the Scarlet Witch: the complete method

This file is atypical and it is better to know this before starting: this major character has almost no number of which he is the value driver.

This is not a weakness of the character - he is one of his publisher's most consistent - but a consequence of his trajectory: born in the series of another franchise, married to a character with his own request, author of an event which belongs to another community of collectors.

The constant of the file: paying for others

This mechanism must be established from the outset, because it conditions each purchasing decision.

X-Men #4(1964) contains his first appearance — and that of a founding group of adversaries of the X-Men series. The price is set by this second, much broader demand.

Avengers #57(1968) introduces the Vision, whom she will marry. Major indirect key, carried by the request specific to this character.

Fantastic Four #94(1969) introduced her mentor to magic. Market number Fantastic Four.

House of M(2005) is his most important story — and it is sought after by collectors of the mutant franchise, whose fortunes he turned upside down.

Four essential numbers, four requests that do not belong to him. This corpus did not encounter such a systematically dependent record.

The practical consequence is twofold. On the one hand, these numbers won't depreciate no matter what happens to the character — their value is supported elsewhere. On the other hand, none of them will become accessible if the character goes out of fashion: you will never benefit from a gap.

The only segment that belongs to it

This is the central recommendation of this guide.

Both limited series from 1982 and 1985 — four issues then twelve — are the only titles where this character is the subject before 2015. No other request is superimposed on it.

They are old, little sought after, and complete each other for a modest budget. Sixteen booklets in total.

Above all, they contain what is missing everywhere else: the material of the character. Domestic life, the neighborhood, the question of children — that is to say precisely what the disasters of 2004-2005 would exploit twenty years later.

A collector who owns them owns more of the character than someone who would have purchased X-Men #4, for a fraction of the price.

The special issue of 1975

Le marriage appears in a special publication, a format which requires special precautions.

These numbers do not carry the series numbering. Three consequences:

They list incorrectly. Many sellers list the title and year without the exact format or number. Check exactly what we are offering you.

They keep poorly. Thicker format, more vulnerable edge, and separate storage — often less careful than that of a continued series.

They are under-recorded. Indexes are built around continuous numbering. A major event in a non-series format goes more easily unnoticed.

It is therefore, on this issue, one of the rare issues where the gap between importance and price works in favor of the buyer.

Disasters: maximum notoriety, zero rarity

The stories from 2004 and 2005 constitute the core of the modern character. They belong to a period of considerable print runs, with careful conservation from the beginning.

Three rules apply to this segment:

Only buy almost new. An average example from 2005 is worth next to nothing and will not appreciate in value. The additional cost towards the high grade is low, and it is the only one that counts.

Look for tie-ins. House of M has a very large number of them, scattered throughout all of the publisher's series. They remain priceless even though they belong to the most important story of his career.

Identify variations. There is plenty of alternative coverage of these events, with significant deviations in both directions.

Recognize a beautiful copy from 1964-1965

The old part of this collection belongs to the beginning of the silver age, the most demanding segment of the file.

Le paper from this period is fragile and browns quickly. A copy with truly clear pages is rare, and this rarity comes at a price.

THE staples rust, producing a halo that sometimes crosses the first pages. Invisible in a front photo: demand a close-up view.

THE undeclared restorations are common on keys of this level. An ultraviolet light reveals most color touch-ups and edge reinforcements.

In this segment, the professional grading is not an extra but a necessity: it authenticates, detects restorations, and makes the copy comparable to recent sales.

Should we graduate?

The answer varies greatly across the four periods in this collection, which deserves separate treatment.

X-Men #4 (1964): yes, definitely. Beginning of the Silver Age, highly sought-after key, frequent restorations: the three conditions which justify the gradation are met. It authenticates, detects alterations, and makes the copy comparable to recent sales — essential on an issue whose price is in the thousands.

Avengers #16 (1965): yes in most cases. Same period, same risks, with more reasonable amounts. Gradation remains recommended as long as the specimen is above average.

Limited series from 1982-1985: depending on condition. A copy clearly above average can justify it, but the operation rarely pays off on less sought-after numbers. Buy to read, not to certify.

2004-2005: yes, but only on key numbers. In a market saturated with fine examples, gradation is the only way to distinguish an issue. It is only justified where there is a demand to distinguish — that is to say on House of M #1 and Avengers #500, not on tie-ins.

Curate a collection spread across four franchises

A practical problem that this file poses more than the others.

The issues of this character come from series that have nothing to do with each other: a mutant series, a team series, a title dedicated to the Fantastic Four, two mini-series in his name, a transversal event.

A classification by title therefore scatters the collection into four different sections, and makes it unreadable.

This guide recommends a classification chronological, for three operational reasons.

It makes the trajectory visible. The interest of this character lies in a progression - from the adversary to the member, then from the member to the threat. Arranging by title completely erases this movement.

It makes it easier to spot missing items. The holes appear as periods rather than as isolated numbers, much more useful information when hunting in bins or in groups.

It avoids duplicate searches. Several issues in this file belong to series that one would not think to consult. Classified chronologically, they are in their place; classified by title, we forget them.

An additional but useful remark: provide a place identified with the number out of series from 1975. Not bearing the numbering of a series, it is systematically lost in a collection classified differently.

Three strategies depending on the budget

Tight budget — the segment that belongs to it. The two limited series from 1982 and 1985, complete. Sixteen booklets, modest budget, and the real material of the character.

Interim budget — add disasters. Avengers #500-503 and House of M #1-8, in high grade. You then have the complete trajectory: what it had, then what it destroyed.

Comfortable budget — go back to the origins. Avengers #16 (1965) first of all, the real narrative key and the most accessible of the old ones. Then, knowingly, X-Men #4 (1964) with professional grading.

Recognize tie-ins that matter

A skill specific to this file, because the character's central event produced a lot of them.

House of M has been deployed in a very large number of the publisher's series, in the form of linked issues. These tie-ins do not all have the same use value, and you have to know how to sort them.

“Alternative world” tie-ins show what this or that character becomes in the rewritten reality. They are numerous, often anecdotal, and concern the character only indirectly.

“Consequences” tie-ins, released after the event, document what the final decision produced in every corner of the catalog. These are the most interesting for this file: they measure the extent of what she did.

All of them are at the general price, which leaves you free to choose. This guide recommends favoring the second category — a dozen well-chosen numbers says more than an exhaustive collection of tie-ins.

What this file will never offer

A useful honesty so as not to seek what does not exist.

No hollows to exploit. This is the direct consequence of foreign requests. On a character whose key numbers are supported by other communities, a temporary lack of interest does not lower prices. Patience, so useful on other issues, pays nothing here.

No hidden deposits. Its most important numbers are perfectly identified — by others, but identified. There is no invisible category here like in certain files of this campaign.

No cheap indirect key. Each character around him has his own request, generally greater than his own.

The only real opportunity in the file remains the sixteen issues of the limited series. It's not much — but it's clear, and that's what makes this guide easy to apply.

Summary: the minimum list

• Vision and the Scarlet Witch(1982 and 1985) — sixteen issues, the only segment that belongs to it.
• Avengers #500-503(2004) — the destruction of the team.
• House of M #1-8(2005) — the most consequential story of his career.
• Avengers #16(1965) — the passage among the heroes, the real narrative key.
• The special issue of 1975— marriage, under-recorded and therefore accessible.
• Scarlet Witch #1(2015) — the first series continues in its name.
• X-Men #4(1964) — the first appearance, knowing what you're paying for.

Around forty numbers, only one of which is really out of range.

As always, condition and gradation determine value; relying on actual recent sales is strongly recommended before each purchase.

To learn more, see ourtier list of key issues, ourbest bowsand thecharacter universe.