Doctor Strange Key Issues: the Comics Every Collector Should Know

Doctor Strange is a Silver Age creation: his first appearance dates to July 1963, well before the Bronze Age. Created by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko in the pages of Strange Tales — a shared title that also featured the Human Torch and Nick Fury — Stephen Strange did not receive his own comic until 1968 with Doctor Strange #169, which continued the Strange Tales numbering. After a hiatus, the character was relaunched in the Bronze Age through Marvel Premiere #3 (1972) and then his second solo series from 1974. The MCU adaptation starring Benedict Cumberbatch reinforced collector interest: Doctor Strange (2016) grossed $677.8 million worldwide, and Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022) reached $955.8 million worldwide.

Important disclosure: our eBay estimator does not index the Strange Tales, Doctor Strange, or Marvel Premiere series. Every value cited in this guide comes exclusively from documented specialist sources (Heritage Auctions, sellmycomicbooks.com, GoCollect, Overstreet, LiveAuctioneers). No figure is invented; where no record exists, this guide stays qualitative.

Doctor Strange key issue overview (real data, June 2026)

The Strange Tales, Doctor Strange, and Marvel Premiere series all fall outside the scope of our eBay estimator. Every value below comes from specialist web sources; the documented record column cites only publicly verifiable auction results.

Sources: Heritage Auctions, sellmycomicbooks.com, GoCollect, LiveAuctioneers, Overstreet Price Guide, active eBay listings.

Strange Tales #110 (1963): the Silver Age first appearance

Published in July 1963, Strange Tales #110 contains the first appearance of Doctor Strange — along with the Ancient One, Nightmare, and Wong. The creation is by Stan Lee (script) and Steve Ditko (art); the cover is by Jack Kirby and Dick Ayers, but it is Ditko who draws the Doctor Strange backup inside. This is a Silver Age comic: Doctor Strange was born in 1963, and the Silver Age keys for this character are entirely legitimate.

The high-grade market tells the story clearly: a CGC 9.6 sold for $66,000 at Heritage Auctions in 2014, and the same grade brought $60,000 in 2016. A CGC 9.4 reached $55,200 in 2020, and a CGC 9.2 brought $42,500 in 2023. In the mid-grade range, a CGC 8.5 trades around $19,000 and a CGC 5.0 around $7,700. At the accessible end, a CGC 2.0 now trades around $800 — far above the pre-MCU era figure of around $100 but down from its 2016 peak near $1,000. According to sellmycomicbooks.com, high-grade copies (CGC 9.6 and above) are "notoriously tough to find." The book has corrected from its pandemic peak but remains the most in-demand Doctor Strange key on the market.

Strange Tales #115 and #126: the origin and the first Dormammu

Strange Tales #115 (December 1963) tells the complete origin of Doctor Strange: the car accident that destroys the surgeon's hands, the encounter with the Ancient One, the transformation into the Sorcerer Supreme. It is the narrative foundation that would underpin every Doctor Strange story that followed, including the 2016 MCU film. In low grade (CGC 1.8), a copy sold for $450 in January 2025 (LiveAuctioneers); high-grade auction records are not publicly documented to date.

Strange Tales #126 (November 1964) introduces two characters central to the Doctor Strange mythology: Dormammu, the great cosmic villain, and Clea, who would become Strange's companion. In CGC 8.0, active eBay listings place copies around $995. Less celebrated than #110 but essential for any Doctor Strange-focused collection, this issue remains accessible in mid-grade condition.

Doctor Strange #169 (1968) and Marvel Premiere #3 (1972): the relaunches that matter

When Marvel gained the ability to expand its line-up in 1968, Strange Tales ended with #168 and Doctor Strange inherited his own title starting with #169 (June 1968), continuing the Strange Tales numbering — standard practice at the time. The series ran just fifteen issues (#169-183, 1968-1969), but this #169 remains a late-Silver Age key: the Overstreet Price Guide values a NM− (9.2) copy at $1,400.

Four years later, in July 1972, Marvel Premiere #3 relaunched the character in the Bronze Age with a script by Stan Lee and art by Barry Windsor-Smith. From issue #9 onward, Steve Englehart and Frank Brunner took over the series for one of the most celebrated runs in the character's history. Values for Marvel Premiere #3 are not supported by publicly documented auction records and remain qualitative.

Doctor Strange: Sorcerer Supreme #1 (1988) and Doctor Strange #1 (2015): the modern series

Doctor Strange: Sorcerer Supreme #1 (November 1988) opens the third solo series, written by Peter B. Gillis and drawn by Richard Case. The series ran for 90 issues through 1996. As a key issue, it is a modest one: no major documented auction record exists, and ungraded copies remain very affordable. Its collector value is primarily symbolic — the launch of the series that accompanied the Sorcerer Supreme for nearly a decade.

More recently, Doctor Strange #1 from October 2015 — written by Jason Aaron and drawn by Chris Bachalo — relaunched the character with a modern sensibility. The issue contains the first appearance of Zelma Stanton and the Imperator. Printed in large quantities and released a year before the 2016 MCU film, it does not command rarity-driven premiums: CGC 9.8 copies trade above $100 but no major auction record is publicly documented. Its collector appeal rests primarily on the quality of the run, which is widely collected in trade paperback and omnibus format.