The Avengers #52 for Sale - First Appearance of Eric Williams - Where to Buy

Identification plate

Series: The Avengers (Marvel, 1963 series)
Issue: #52
Publication date: May 1968
Key date: 1968-05-00
On-sale date: 1968-03-07
Indicia publisher: Vista Publications Inc.
Price: $0.12
Pages: 36
Rating: Approved by the Comics Code Authority

Match the book in your hand against this plate before paying an edition-specific price.

Why this issue matters

First appearance of Eric Williams - the earliest non-flashback appearance on record for this character.

First appearance of Grim Reaper - the earliest non-flashback appearance on record for this character.

The evidence

Claims here come from the story records for this issue, listed under Sources at the bottom of the file. Character hubs with full evidence tables are coming to this site.

Seq	Story	Type	Pages	Credits	Characters
0	The Grim Reaper! The Man Who Killed the Avengers!	cover	1	pencils: John Buscema; inks: John Buscema; letters: Sam Rosen	Clint Barton, Black Panther, Goliath, Grim Reaper First, Hawkeye, Pietro Maximoff, Wanda Maximoff, Hank Pym, Quicksilver, Scarlet Witch, T'Challa, Janet Van Dyne, Wasp, Eric Williams First
2	Death Calls for the Arch-Heroes	comic story	20	script: Roy Thomas; pencils: John Buscema; inks: Vince Colletta; letters: Sam Rosen	Natasha Romanoff, Clint Barton, Black Panther, Captain America, Goliath, Grim Reaper First, Hawkeye, Pietro Maximoff, Wanda Maximoff, Thor Odinson, Hank Pym, Quicksilver, Steve Rogers, Scarlet Witch
12	-	in-house column	1	script: Smiley	Hawkeye
13	-	letters page	2	script: Roy Thomas	Hawkeye; Goliath; The Wasp
14	-	promo (ad from the publisher)	1	pencils: Jim Steranko, Dan Adkins; inks: Jim Steranko, Dan Adkins	Nick Fury; Doctor Strange

Plus 11 pages of advertisements and other matter across 12 sequences, as published.

Where to read it

Collection	Year
Marvel Treasury Edition #7	1975	On eBay ›
Marvel Triple Action #44	1978	On eBay ›
Essential Avengers #3 ISBN 0-7851-0787-8	2001	On eBay ›
Marvel Masterworks: The Avengers #6 ISBN 0-7851-2079-3	2006	On eBay ›

Reading the story costs a fraction of owning the issue. Both routes are on every file.

Before you buy

Check spine ticks and cover gloss in the photos; silver-age Marvels chip at the edges easily.
Look for tanning at the page edges and transfer stains on the inside covers.
Confirm the cover price against the plate; higher prices can mean a later or foreign printing.

Series context

‹ #5152 of 402#53 ›

Sources

Grand Comics Database, issue record (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Found an error in this file? corrections@comicrecord.com