The Marvel Cinematic Universe has long discussed a new reboot of the Blade movies. This is a film series, originally starring Wesley Snipes as the vampire hunter, performed rather well for their theatrical releases. Comic book collectors know that upcoming movie releases can drive comic book prices higher. That has Tomb of Dracula #10 under the spotlight as Blade’s first comic book appearance.

The new film has been speculated upon for quite some time. It was first publicly announced in July 2019 at the San Diego Comic Con, and runblings have been out since 2016 or so. Unfortunately, COVID-19 shutdowns and a bad economy kept much of the movie industry at home for a year or more. In fact, some film releases have still been kept “in the can” for a year or two so that the releases would be timed for peak cost recovery and potential profits.

Mahershala Ali is currently the only actor that is confirmed in the all new cast according to Marvel’s site. However, with filming scheduled to begin in 2022 new names in the cast should be announced periodically.

Collectors Dashboard wanted to explore what a new film will do for Tomb of Dracula #10 from July 1973. Again, this is the first appearance issue of Blade is a Bronze Age comic book.

According to the GoCollect.com site, Heritage Auctions sold two CGC 9.8 graded issues of the comic in 2021. First was on June 17, 2021 for $28,800.00 after 25 bids, and the next of that grade to sell was on September 9, 2021 for $48,000.00, again after 25 bids. The CGC 9.8 is the second highest graded example which is a rare statement to make.

The website ComicLink.com sold the sole example of a CGC 9.9 for $106,350.00 on February 25, 2021. Here is a minute by minute auction record for how investors and fans battled it out for the chance of owning the highest known example of the issue. Who wants to bet whether or not this prized comic won’t be shopped around for $200,000 or more in 2022 or later?

Collectors Dashboard evaluates high-end collectibles as an alternative asset class. This means collectibles are attracting the same capital that could have been invested into stocks or bonds. Many collectibles now cost thousands of dollars (or much more). Collectors with a passion to own a collectible for years frequently have to compete directly against investors whose only desire is to make a profit in the future.

If Tomb of Dracula #10 sales go handily above $10,000 in anticipation of the coming movie franchise, this will be an investment replacement by some of those who invest in collectibles. (Image courtesy of Heritage Auctions)

With an issue that is from 1973, there are collectible populations of high grades. The CGC grade 9.8 has 50 examples according to CGC, two of which are signature series. The most collectible grade is CGC 8.5 with a population of 377, with 13 of those listed as signature series.

Here are recent eBay sales of the issue:

• CGC 9.6 sold for $8,815.00 on August 26, 2021 after 47 bids.
• CGC 9.2 sold for $4,550.00 on August 1, 2021 after 19 bids.
• CGC 9.2 sold for $3,749.99 on August 8, 2021 after 41 bids.
• CGC 8.5 sold for $2,950.00 on August 12, 2021 after 55 bids.
• CGC 8.0 sold for $2,651.00 on September 5, 2021 after 63 bids.

Hake’s Auction had these two realized sales:

• CGC 8.0 sold for $3,050.30 on September 2, 2021 after 33 bids.
• CGC 7.5 sold for $2,466.20 on June 30, 2021 after 13 bids.

One of the signature series CGC 9.8 examples was sold by Heritage Auctions in 2020:

• CGC 9.8 signature series sold for 12,000.00 on November 19, 2020 after 30 bids.

The rest of the Heritage Auctions are as follows:

• CGC 9.8 sold for $10,200.00 on July 12, 2020 after 29 bids.
• CGC 9.8 sold for $12,000.00 on April 30, 2020 after 22 bids.
• CGC 9.8 sold for $3,824.00 on November 18, 2017 after 19 bids.

With a new movie in the works from Marvel and new actors coming onboard to play the roles, it’s easy to imagine more frequent news to be coming for the Blade franchise. Current news will give more attention to the first comic book introduction of its main character and collectors will continue to compete for a piece of the action.

A CGC 9.9 comic example is a very exciting population spot to fill in the collectibles realm. Collectors Dashboard looks forward to the updates ahead be it for the new movie or Tomb of Dracula #10.

While much of the interest was there for Blade, the vampire’s own first comic book release just isn’t as big of a driver despite having a smaller graded population. GoCollect lists the Tomb of Dracula #1 as Dracula Lives! was given a fair value of just $1,850 in realized sales in 2021. That comic also has over 2,300 graded examples, versus 3,400 total graded examples for the #10 Blade introduction comic book.

As a reminder for all comic book buyers, don’t be fooled by the facsimile editions. GoCollect had a price of $48 for a CGC 9.8 of that comic book, which isn’t even worth writing about beyond the warning.