🏅#9 on the Hot 10
Transactions from this week that sold for higher than the previous twelve-month average:
NEWSSTAND 9.8 sold for $3,600 vs the average $2,843 (+27%)
9.6 sold for $520 vs the average $484 (+7%)
9.4 sold for $676 vs the average $462 (+46%)
9.2 sold for $450 vs the average $385 (+17%)
Those who were paying attention during the secondary market boom of 2021/2022 will recall this issue being one of the select modern Key Issues that skyrocketed during the unprecedented time
Oddly, sales data in any grade do not even appear prior to October 2019
In other words, there were zero graded copies sold in the 10 year span between the issue's publication and October 2019
This may seem implausible but by October 2019, there were only 28 copies total, in all grades, of this issue registered to the CGC Census
Then rumors began to circulate that Ahsoka would appear in live-action Star Wars
Early speculators chanced a copy in 9.8 for as low as $250
By June 2020, there were 102 graded copies (56 in 9.8)
That's 74 copies added to the Census in just six months - which 3x the number of copies graded in all the previous 10 years
The rumor of Ahsoka's live-action debut marinating for six months raised the price in 9.8s to $1,500 while the Census total rose from 102 to 400 graded copies (170 in 9.8)
By the time Dawson appeared as Ahsoka in episode 5 in November 2020, issues in 9.8 were selling for $2,000
Shortly after the end of season 2, Disney announced an Ahsoka solo series and by March 2021, copies in 9.8 were selling for $2,500 - $3,500 in 9.8
Graded copies trickled in over the next year and by December 2021, there were 943 copies on the census - a relatively small number compared to, let's say Harley Quinn's current total of 10,466 graded copies
One year later in December 2022, that number jumped to 1,411
Prices began to show signs of supply catching up with demand as 9.8s dropped below $2,000
At the time the Ahsoka series premiere in August 2023, copies in 9.8 were selling for $1,500
By December 2023 there were 1,719 graded copies with 596 in 9.8
Today there are 1,975 graded copies with 685 copies in 9.8 selling on average for $800
Over the course of five years, graded copies went from 100 to 1,900 copies
This week's spike in interest occurred after it was announced that Ahsoka season 2 is nearing the end of production with an expected premiere sometime in 2026
