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Cover: George Tuska & John Romita & Sal Buscema

Captain Marvel #12

Name: Captain Marvel #12
Brand: Marvel
Availability: InStock

Apr 1969 · Marvel · 0.12 USD

📊 ~27,696 copies sold its debut month

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“The Moment of -- the Man-Slayer!”

★ 1st appearance — Man-Slayer

About this Issue

Captain Marvel #12 marks the first appearance of the Man-Slayer, a bio-plastic android created by the Mad Thinker, making it the debut of a villain who has since resurfaced in 21st-century Avengers storylines. The issue is also a meaningful chapter in Carol Danvers' pre-Ms. Marvel history, showing her actively hunting both 'Doctor Lawson' and Captain Marvel in her role as Cape security chief — a characterization that retroactively reads as the earliest stages of the destiny she would eventually claim. Structurally, the story functions as a crossover node in the late-1960s Marvel Universe, feeding directly into Avengers #63–65 and cementing the book's place within the era's tightly interlocked continuity. It also represents Arnold Drake's final issue on the title, closing the turbulent early creative chapter of a series that would soon be overhauled entirely by Roy Thomas and Gil Kane.

writer Arnold Drake · artist Dick Ayers · inker Syd Shores · letterer Jean Izzo · cover George Tuska, John Romita, Sal Buscema

ComicBooks.com Value

Our Model is In Beta

Raw (VG) $6

CGC 9.8 · 2 in census $929

CGC 9.6 · 10 in census $302*

CGC 9.4 · 22 in census $143

CGC 9.2 · 20 in census $90*

CGC 9.0 · 13 in census $61*

CGC 8.5 · 16 in census $38

Show all 18 grades ▾

CGC 8.0 · 14 in census $32*

CGC 7.5 · 9 in census $24

CGC 7.0 · 4 in census $21*

CGC 6.5 · 4 in census $20*

CGC 6.0 · 7 in census $20

CGC 5.5 · 2 in census $20*

CGC 5.0 · 3 in census $20*

CGC 4.5 none in existence

CGC 4.0 · 2 in census $20*

CGC 3.5 · 3 in census $20*

CGC 3.0 none in existence

CGC 2.5 · 1 in census $20*

* estimate — limited direct-sales data at this grade

Our model’s value — refined as new sales data arrives · CGC census counts shown where available

This exact issue on ebay

CGC 5.5 $130 1 listing Raw — NM+ $9.5 1 listing Raw — NM $3.59 1 listing Raw — VF/NM $1.49 1 listing

Raw — VF+ ▾ $5.49–$10.99 2 listings

VF+ $5.49 VF+ $10.99

Raw — VG+ $11.95 1 listing Raw — VG $7.99 1 listing

Raw / ungraded ▾ $2–$40 9 listings

Raw / ungraded $2 Raw / ungraded $7.99 Raw / ungraded $8.99 Raw / ungraded $10 Raw / ungraded $10.99 Raw / ungraded $12.68 Raw / ungraded $25.2 Raw / ungraded $28 Raw / ungraded $40

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2nd print $5.99 VF $24.99

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History

Issue #12 was written by Arnold Drake — best known for co-creating Deadman and the Doom Patrol at DC — who had taken over scripting duties on Captain Marvel after Roy Thomas's five-issue run, with Stan Lee editing throughout. Drake's tenure coincided with a period of pronounced creative instability on the title: Gene Colan had already handed pencil duties to Don Heck, and by #12 Dick Ayers was at the drawing board with Syd Shores inking, itself a third artistic team in barely a year. The cover carries a notable production wrinkle: sources confirm that John Romita Sr. redrew the Captain Marvel figure on the final printed cover, a quiet but telling sign of the editorial anxiety surrounding the series at the time. This issue went on sale January 9, 1969, with an April 1969 cover date.

Trivia · 8 facts

First appearance of the Man-Slayer, a bio-plastic android remotely controlled by the Mad Thinker, whose mission is to destroy the Moon Rocket at Cape Canaveral.
Written by Arnold Drake (pencils by Dick Ayers, inks by Syd Shores, edited by Stan Lee); this is Drake's final issue on the series.
The Mad Thinker appears only as a shadow/silhouette in this issue — his identity as the Man-Slayer's creator is not yet revealed to the reader.
Black Widow (Natasha Romanoff) plays a co-starring role, operating on a S.H.I.E.L.D. mission that was established in Avengers #57; the story feeds directly into Avengers #63, where the captive Widow links up with the Mad Thinker, Egghead, and Puppet Master.
Carol Danvers appears in her recurring role as Cape security chief, actively seeking to arrest both Walter Lawson and Captain Marvel — an early building block of the character who would become Ms. Marvel.
The Zo subplot advances: Mar-Vell uses Zo-granted illusion powers for the first time in the field; Zo is later retroactively revealed to be Kree Prime Minister Zarek, who was manipulating Mar-Vell in a coup plot against the Kree Supreme Intelligence.
John Romita Sr. redrew the Captain Marvel figure on the published cover; sources note the pencil credit for the original cover layout is disputed between Romita/Sal Buscema and Tuska/Buscema.
The issue is collected in Marvel Masterworks: Captain Marvel Vol. 2, which reprints Captain Marvel (1968) #10–21, as well as the Captain Mar-Vell Omnibus (2022) and the Mighty Marvel Masterworks: Captain Marvel series.