๐ข 3/2021: I’ve updated this list! click here for the latest version!
January 13, 2017
A List Of Important Comics From the 2000s
Key Comics From 2000
Key Comics From 2001
Key Comics From 2002
Key Comics From 2003
Key Comics From 2004
Key Comics From 2005
Key Comics From 2006
Key Comics From 2007
Key Comics From 2008
Key Comics From 2009
Key Comics From 2010
Key Comics From 2011
Key Comics From 2012
Key Comics From 2013
Key Comics From 2014
Key Comics From 2015
Key Comics From 2016
[ Special Note: for this decade, we see newsstand rarity estimates in the single digit percentages for Marvel. If you are not already in-the-know about the difference between newsstand and direct edition comics see the following: Comic Book Newsstand Editions: Understanding The Difference ]
And at the end of the prior decade, there was a decision by Marvel to “walk away” from the newsstand model โ this would quickly put the newsstand percentages down to single digits as we enter the 2000’s with newsstand rarity estimates of 5% by 2000, and a BPA audit revealing newsstand sales of 4.25% by 2003. By 2005 we see a newsstand rarity estimate of 2%, and by sometime around 2011 Marvel starts to end newsstand sales in stages, with certain bookstore partners being the last to carry them. Against this backdrop, we see newsstand cover price variants including an entire CGC-recognized “window” during which their newsstand comics were priced $1 higher than their direct edition counter-parts.
For this page, rather then cover 2000-2009, I’m going to let the end date span out to 2016. There are many “top lists” out there covering important or “key” comics from the 2000s, but the ones I’ve seen are all either based upon individual judgment calls or the high sale prices observed in the marketplace. Judgment calls are great, but not necessarily comprehensive. Meanwhile, high sale prices could just as easily be reflective of, say, a CGC 10 Gem Mint Signature Series copy signed by Stan Lee, versus reflective of the underlying comic being of any great importance.
One surefire way to “tease out” a list of important comics is to consider how many copies have been sent in to CGC to be graded โ the more important the comic, the more likely its owner will want to have it graded and slabbed, right? So by ranking comics simply by the number of copies submitted to CGC โ removing any judgment call or sales price information โ I’d argue we can get to a pretty good list of important key comics! Of course, there are flaws to this exercise which should be kept in mind: for one thing, this submission data is from one snapshot in time (year-end 2016) and there could be plenty of important comics that aren’t recognized as such until some future development gives them renewed attention. And another flaw is that any very-high-value comics that simply didn’t have many copies printed, will naturally sort themselves off of the bottom of a list like this as well.
So please don’t anybody think of these lists as a “rank” of importance or as being an all-encompassing list… all we’re ranking here is the sheer number of copies that have passed through CGC’s doors as of year-end 2016 and presenting the top fifty. That’s it! This data should give us a very interesting list, but this list is no replacement for judgement and no replacement for pricing data โ it is simply one more tool for our tool-belt as we study interesting and rare comics like the ones I enjoy writing about on this blog! With that caveat stated, without further ado, here is a list of 50 important comics from the 2000s. [ I’ve also posted more lists of key comic books by year including other decades; special thanks goes to Greg Holland whose research website was the tool that made these pages possible to assemble ].
A List Of Important Comics From The 2000s:
(Census data as of year-end 2016)
Rank | CGC Count | Issue | Date | Publisher |
---|---|---|---|---|
1. | 4,963 | Amazing Spider-Man v2 #36 | 12/01 | Marvel Comics |
2. | 4,080 | Outcast #1 | 6/14 | Image/Skybound |
3. | 3,022 | Amazing Spider-Man #700 | 2/13 | Marvel Comics |
4. | 2,900 | Wolverine: The Origin #1 | 11/01 | Marvel Comics |
5. | 2,739 | NYX #3 | 2/04 | Marvel Comics |
6. | 2,617 | Walking Dead #1 | 10/03 | Image Comics |
7. | 2,555 | Saga #1 | 3/12 | Image Comics |
8. | 2,249 | Edge of Spider-Verse #2 | 11/14 | Marvel Comics |
9. | 2,095 | X-Men 1 Sketch Cover | 9/10 | Marvel Comics |
10. | 2,041 | Batman #608 | 12/02 | D.C. Comics |
11. | 2,017 | Captain America 25 Variant Edition | 4/07 | Marvel Comics |
12. | 1,948 | All Star Batman & Robin, the Boy Wonder #1 | 9/05 | D.C. Comics |
13. | 1,909 | The Marvels Project 1 Sketch Cover | 10/09 | Marvel Comics |
14. | 1,774 | Thief of Thieves #1 | 2/12 | Image Comics |
15. | 1,754 | Walking Dead #19 | 6/05 | Image Comics |
16. | 1,689 | Walking Dead #108 | 3/13 | Image/Skybound |
17. | 1,619 | Wolverine: The Origin #2 | 12/01 | Marvel Comics |
18. | 1,504 | Amazing Spider-Man #529![]() |
4/06 | Marvel Comics |
19. | 1,483 | Captain America 25 Wizard World 2007 Con Edition | 4/07 | Marvel Comics |
20. | 1,472 | Superman #204 | 6/04 | D.C. Comics |
21. | 1,464 | Amazing Spider-Man 583 Variant Edition![]() |
3/09 | Marvel Comics |
22. | 1,449 | Walking Dead #27 | 4/06 | Image Comics |
23. | 1,393 | Ultimate Spider-Man 1 Variant Cover | 10/00 | Marvel Comics |
24. | 1,367 | East of West #1 | 3/13 | Image Comics |
25. | 1,326 | Wolverine: The Origin #3 | 1/02 | Marvel Comics |
26. | 1,320 | Amazing Spider-Man 648 Sketch Edition | 1/11 | Marvel Comics |
27. | 1,293 | Star Wars #1 | 3/15 | Marvel Comics |
28. | 1,285 | Ultimate Spider-Man #1/2 | 2002 | Marvel-Wizard Pub. |
29. | 1,248 | Ultimate Spider-Man 79 Wizard World 2005 Con Editi | 9/05 | Marvel Comics |
30. | 1,236 | Walking Dead 100 Chromium Edition | 7/12 | Image/Skybound |
31. | 1,235 | Fallen Son: The Death of Captain America 3 Sketch | 7/07 | Marvel Comics |
32. | 1,218 | Batman #612 | 4/03 | D.C. Comics |
33. | 1,185 | Walking Dead #2 | 11/03 | Image Comics |
34. | 1,184 | Civil War 3 Variant Cover | 9/06 | Marvel Comics |
35. | 1,174 | Wolverine: Origins 1 Wizard World 2006 Con Edition | 6/06 | Marvel Comics |
36. | 1,166 | Walking Dead #100 | 7/12 | Image/Skybound |
37. | 1,145 | Walking Dead #127 | 5/14 | Image/Skybound |
38. | 1,125 | Wolverine: Origins 6 Wizard World 2006 Con Edition | 11/06 | Marvel Comics |
39. | 1,125 | Batman 0 We Can Be Heroes Edition | 11/12 | D.C. Comics |
40. | 1,113 | Superior Spider-Man #1 | 3/13 | Marvel Comics |
41. | 1,091 | Revival #1 | 7/12 | Image Comics |
42. | 1,086 | Spider-Gwen #1 | 4/15 | Marvel Comics |
43. | 1,053 | Ultimate Fallout #4 | 10/11 | Marvel Comics |
44. | 1,037 | Death of Wolverine #1 | 11/14 | Marvel Comics |
45. | 1,037 | Detective Comics #1 | 11/11 | D.C. Comics |
46. | 1,032 | Superman/Batman #1 | 10/03 | D.C. Comics |
47. | 1,028 | Alias #1 | 11/01 | Marvel Comics |
48. | 1,020 | Wolverine: The Origin #4 | 2/02 | Marvel Comics |
49. | 1,011 | Civil War 1 Variant Cover | 7/06 | Marvel Comics |
50. | 1,007 | Walking Dead #3 | 12/03 | Image Comics |
51-100. Another 50 key comics from the 2000’s ยป | ||||
ยซ the 1990’s |
More Important Comics Of The 2000s:
Key Comics From 2000 [ just Marvel; just D.C.; just other ]
Key Comics From 2001 [ just Marvel; just D.C.; just other ]
Key Comics From 2002 [ just Marvel; just D.C.; just other ]
Key Comics From 2003 [ just Marvel; just D.C.; just other ]
Key Comics From 2004 [ just Marvel; just D.C.; just other ]
Key Comics From 2005 [ just Marvel; just D.C.; just other ]
Key Comics From 2006 [ just Marvel; just D.C.; just other ]
Key Comics From 2007 [ just Marvel; just D.C.; just other ]
Key Comics From 2008 [ just Marvel; just D.C.; just other ]
Key Comics From 2009 [ just Marvel; just D.C.; just other ]
Key Comics From 2010 [ just Marvel; just D.C.; just other ]
Key Comics From 2011 [ just Marvel; just D.C.; just other ]
Key Comics From 2012 [ just Marvel; just D.C.; just other ]
Key Comics From 2013 [ just Marvel; just D.C.; just other ]
Key Comics From 2014 [ just Marvel; just D.C.; just other ]
Key Comics From 2015 [ just Marvel; just D.C.; just other ]
Key Comics From 2016 [ just Marvel; just D.C.; just other ]
See other lists of key comic books by year, including the 1970โs, 1980โs, and 1990โs.