3.99 The New Normal Price for Marvel Comics?

I scanned the new DC Universe and Marvel Universe January solicitations and pulled out all the $3.99 cover price comics that are 32 pages long and Marvel had all of them.

WHY? They own 50% of the market and have higher average sales on their books, yet they are giving the least value to the consumer. I would love to hear why. The answer will be mini-series have lower print runs and we give cardstock covers - feels like an extra buck is being taken when they can.

Even though I'm not a big of fan of Marvel as I am DC, at least I feel like they are not trying to rip me off whenever they can.


SPIDER-MAN NOIR #2 (of 4)Written by DAVID HINE & FABRICE SAPOLSKYArt by CARMINE DI GIANDOMENICOCover by PATRICK ZIRCHERVariant Cover by DENNIS CALEROWith great power, come great responsibility...and a leather overcoat, and a revolver. It’s Spider-Man as you’ve never seen him before! Writers David Hine and Fabrice Sapolsky and artist Carmine Di Giandomenico descend into the seamy, trash-strewn underbelly of Depression-era New York, and soar to the bloated heights of corruption and greed, to tell the unfamiliar story of Peter Parker, a conscientious but powerless young man given the ability to take on the Goblin’s mob! Will the crusading photojournalist Ben Urich and the slinky femme fatale Felicia Hardy help him...or stick a knife in his back?32 PGS./Rated T+ ...$3.99

X-MEN NOIR #2 (of 4)Written by FRED VAN LENTE Art & Cover by DENNIS CALEROVariant Cover by DENNIS CALERO"Chief Detective Magnus had never seen Sebastian Shaw so angry before. The vein pulsating in the man's forehead threatened to burst as he swept one arm around what remained of his looted Hellfire Club. "'Look at this!' Shaw seethed. 'Just look! They stole everything that wasn't nailed down -- and then they took the nails out of the rest of it and stole that, too! "'If you can't catch these 'X Men,' Eric, I can just as easily shift my...support to someone who will..." 32 PGS./Parental Advisory ...$3.99

ADAM: LEGEND OF THE BLUE MARVEL #3 (of 6)Written by KEVIN GREVIOUXPenciled by MAT BROOMECover by JUAN DOEThe mystery of Marvel’s forgotten Golden Age guardian deepens! As Tony Stark – a.k.a. Iron Man, Director of S.H.I.E.L.D. – continues to dig, all he comes up with are more questions. Where is the Blue Marvel today? What unexpected agent has been monitoring him? And what exactly happened that day in space?32 PGS./Rated T+ ...$3.99

GHOST RIDER:DANNY KETCH #4 (of 5)Written by SIMON SPURRIERPenciled by JAVIER SALTARESCover by CLINT LANGLEYThat Dirty Rotten Rat: confronted at last! In a labyrinth of astral tunnels, with his mind unraveling and his life collapsing around him, Danny Ketch must risk his very soul to fulfill the tangled task of his Angelic master.Events race towards their skull-cracking climax, as Saltares and Spurrier serve-up the penultimate verse in the dirge of Danny Ketch...32 PGS./Parental Advisory ...$3.99

MARVEL ZOMBIES 3 #4 (of 4) Written by FRED VAN LENTE Penciled by KEV WALKER Cover by GREG LANDThe horror hit reaches its blood-curdling, skin-eating,gore-caked climax! Machine Man trapped in the Zombie-verse! A.R.M.O.R. overrun by the walking dead! The Marvel Universe mere seconds away from being completely consumed by cannibalistic superhumans! All this, plus - straight from the pages of AVENGERS: THE INITIATIVE - the hottie robot Jocosta! Be there for the finale of the series that IGN.com says "breathes new life" into the horror dynasty!32 PGS./Parental Advisory ...$3.99

MARVELS: EYE OF THE CAMERA #3 (of 4) Written by KURT BUSIEKPencils & Cover by JAY ANACLETOBlack and White Variant Also Available!The Punisher. Wolverine. Elektra. As the sequel to the classic Marvel series continues, Phil Sheldon watches the Marvel Universe get darker, more dangerous...at the same time as he faces devastating personal news. Can he make the public see the marvels for the heroes they are to him? Or is it a lost cause? Phil and Ben Urich run a desperate race through Manhattan to cover the news -- but for Phil, it may be the last time...32 PGS./Rated A ...$3.99

PUNISHER: WAR ZONE #5 & 6 (of 6)Written by GARTH ENNISPencils & Cover by STEVE DILLON“THE RESURRECTION OF MA GNUCCI,” CONCLUSIONThe latest offering from the red-hot Marvel Knights line reunites the seminal creative team of Garth Ennis and Steve Dillon for a special, weekly-shipping 6-part limited sequel to their legendary story arc, “Welcome Back, Frank.”She’s back and she wants payback. Ma Gnucci. Eighty-five pounds of hairless, armless, legless, supposed-to-be-dead evil. And that’s not the end of Frank Castle’s problems! It would appear that someone else Frank put six feet under is alive and kicking -- and wants dibs on the Punisher. Enter: Elite.32 PGS.(each)/Parental Advisory ...$3.99 (each)

SUB-MARINER: THE DEPTHS #4 (of 5)Written by PETER MILLIGANPencils & Cover by ESAD RIBICThe bottom of the ocean. The bottom of the Earth. The depths. Legendary adventurer Randolph Stein travelled here, into the dark belly of the Marianas Trench, to find a missing deep-sea expedition and refute a legend. What he’s found surpasses his wildest nightmares. A creature of indescribable power and fury has been waiting for him. Its name is Namor, and it has special plans for Stein. Special plans.32 PGS./Parental Advisory ...$3.99

X-MEN: KINGBREAKER #2 (of 4) Written by CHRISTOPHER YOSTPenciled by DUSTIN WEAVERCover by BRANDON PETERSONMarvel Girl, Korvus and Lilandra are the only resistance to Vulcan’s reign, but Vulcan aims to end their rebellion. With Havok, Polaris and rest of the Starjammers in prison, they don’t stand to get much help. The Shi’Ar Empire is expanding under Emperor Vulcan’s reign... Come see the road to the WAR OF KINGS!32 PGS./Rated T+ ...$3.99

X-INFERNUS #2 (of 4) Written by C.B. CEBULSKI Penciled by GIUSEPPE CAMUNCOLI Cover by DAVID FINCHDarkchilde comes calling to the X-Men’s doorstep—and she’s not leaving without her Soulsword. The next pulse-pounding issue by C.B. Cebulski (LONERS, Drain) and Giuseppe Cammuncoli (MS. MARVEL, Intimates) is here and it’s shaking up the X-Men in a big way.32 PGS./Rated T+ ...$3.99

X-MEN: WORLDS APART #4 (of 4)Written by CHRISTOPHER YOSTPenciled by DIOGENES NEVESCover by STEPHANE ROUXOn one hand, her husband. On the other, her teammates. While Storm races to save the lives of the Black Panther and the X-Men, she recognizes a third option: take down the one responsible for making her choose in the first place. And to do it, she just might get some help from an unlikely source...32 PGS./Rated T+ ...$3.99

X-MEN/SPIDER-MAN #3 (of 4)Written by CHRISTOS N. GAGEPencils & Cover by MARIO ALBERTIWe take you back to the days of grungy 90s as The X-Men and Spider-Man face off against Mr. Sinister and Carnage! But this Spidey isn't Peter Parker--it's Ben Reilly, the Spider-Clone! And Wolverine's claws are made of bone, not adamantium! It's radical...it's extreme...and if we coulda put a chromium cover on it, we would have! Put down your pogs and pick this up if only to feast your eyes on Mario Alberti's art! It'll make you say "Cowabunga, dude!"32 PGS./Rated A ...$3.99

X-MEN: MAGNETO TESTAMENT #5 (of 5)Written by GREG PAKArt by CARMINE DI GIANDOMENICOCover by MARKO DJURDJEVIC The boy survived Kristallnacht, the Einsatzgruppe, and the Warsaw Ghetto. But now Max Eisenhardt faces Hitler's Final Solution in the death camp known as Auschwitz-Birkenau. What will it take to endure? Who are the Sonderkommando? And will a vision of a girl named Magda bring hope – or horror? The definitive origin story of Magneto reaches its shattering conclusion. 32 PGS./Cardstock Cover/Parental Advisory ...$3.99

X-MEN: MANIFEST DESTINY #5 (of 5)Written by MIKE CAREY, FRANK TIERI & OTHERSArt by MICHAEL RYAN, TAKESHI MIYAZAWA & OTHERSCover by HUMBERTO RAMOSThe final issue of the hit X-Men anthology mini-series is here! See the pulse pounding conclusion of Mike Carey (X-MEN: LEGACY) and Michael Ryan’s (RUNAWAYS) Iceman story? What does Mystique want and why is she coming to Iceman? Also stories featuring the return of Avalanche and a rockin’ story starring your favorite glam-X-lady Dazzler!32 PGS./Rated T+ ...$3.99

PUNISHER: FRANK CASTLE #66Written by DUANE SWIERCZYNSKIPenciled by MICHEL LACOMBECover by DAVE JOHNSON“SIX HOURS TO KILL," PART 1The Punisher always knew he’d die on the job. But he didn’t know he’d have an expiration date. After busting up a slave ring in downtown Philadelphia, Frank Castle has been tricked, trapped, gassed, strapped to a table and injected with a serum that will turn him into a 220-pound corpse by dawn -- six hours from now. The people who grabbed him want him to do a simple little job and then they’ll give him the antidote -- simple, right? Guess again. The Punisher is nobody’s errand boy. There’s only one thing he wants to do before he dies: Take as many bastards as he can with him.32 PGS./Explicit Content ...$3.99

DEAD OF NIGHT FEATURING WEREWOLF BY NIGHT #1 (of 4)Written by DUANE SWIERCZYNSKIPencils and Cover by MICO SUAYANFor 28 days of the month, Jack Russell leads a normal life. He’s got a beautiful wife and a baby on the way. He’s the picture of happiness. On day 29, however, he turns into an uncontrollable, bloodthirsty monster. But as the saying goes, the best-laid plans of wolves and men...32 PGS./Cardstock Cover/Parental Advisory ...$3.99

They did it for Secret Invasion also - their highest selling book - 32 pages $4.