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Cover: John Romita

The Amazing Spider-Man #80

Name: The Amazing Spider-Man #80
Brand: Marvel
Availability: InStock

Jan 1970 · Marvel · 0.15 USD

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“On the Trail of... the Chameleon!”

About this Issue

Amazing Spider-Man #80 holds a distinctive place in the series as the Chameleon's first full solo return since his debut in ASM #1 (1963) — a gap of roughly seven years that underscores how long Lee and Ditko's original Spider-Man villain went without a spotlight. The issue is also a product of Marvel's brief 'no continued stories' editorial mandate of 1969, making it a self-contained done-in-one tale at a moment when ASM had been running multi-part arcs for years — a noteworthy structural experiment during the Silver-to-Bronze Age transition. The story's central conceit — that the Chameleon unmasks himself by impersonating the one person Spider-Man can know for certain is a fake, Peter Parker himself — is a clever inversion of the secret-identity trope that collectors and historians still cite as a highlight of the issue's otherwise compact narrative.

In "On the Trail of... the Chameleon!", Peter Parker finds himself tangled in a mystery when a string of high-profile art thefts stumps Captain Stacy—until Spider-Man sets a trap that leads to a shocking twist. With Harry bringing Flash to Peter’s apartment to clear up tensions with Gwen, the pair reunites just in time for a gala where the Chameleon strikes again, leaving only one clue: a familiar face in the shadows. Written by Stan Lee and illustrated by John Buscema with inks by Jim Mooney, this issue features a cover by John Romita, whose dynamic art captures the tension of a 15-cent adventure in 1970.

writer Stan Lee · artist John Buscema · artist, inker Jim Mooney · letterer Sam Rosen · cover John Romita

ComicBooks.com Value

Our Model is In Beta

Raw (Fine) $50

CGC 9.8 · 18 in census $3,036

CGC 9.6 · 31 in census $985

CGC 9.4 · 67 in census $558

CGC 9.2 · 77 in census $245

CGC 9.0 · 92 in census $213

CGC 8.5 · 102 in census $157

Show all 22 grades ▾

CGC 8.0 · 93 in census $125

CGC 7.5 · 89 in census $87

CGC 7.0 · 75 in census $84

CGC 6.5 · 84 in census $60

CGC 6.0 · 51 in census $60*

CGC 5.5 · 38 in census $53

CGC 5.0 · 25 in census $53

CGC 4.5 · 22 in census $53

CGC 4.0 · 15 in census $51

CGC 3.5 · 9 in census $50*

CGC 3.0 · 10 in census $45*

CGC 2.5 · 3 in census $34*

CGC 2.0 · 2 in census $30*

CGC 1.5 none in existence

CGC 1.0 · 1 in census $20*

CGC 0.5 · 2 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

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CGC 6.5 $110 1 listing Raw — NM- $3.99 1 listing

Raw — VF ▾ $4.5–$125 5 listings

VF $4.5 VF $7.45 VF $7.95 VF $74.99 VF $125

Raw — FN/VF $55.25 1 listing Raw — F/VF $95 1 listing

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FN+ $47.49 FN+ $74

Raw — FINE $47.9 1 listing Raw — VG+ $35 1 listing

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VG $8.06 VG $40.99 VG $47.99 VG $50 VG $59

Raw — VERY GOOD $49.99 1 listing

Raw / ungraded ▾ $1.5–$126 11 listings

Raw / ungraded $1.5 Raw / ungraded $1.5 Raw / ungraded $19.99 Raw / ungraded $24.99 Raw / ungraded $25 Raw / ungraded $29.99 Raw / ungraded $34.99 Raw / ungraded $45 Raw / ungraded $49.99 Raw / ungraded $69.99 Raw / ungraded $125.67

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History

The issue was written and edited by Stan Lee, with layouts by John Buscema and finished pencils and inks by Jim Mooney — a collaborative assembly-line process common to Buscema's ASM contributions across issues #72–81. The cover was painted by John Romita Sr., who remained the series' primary cover artist throughout this period. The book shipped in October 1969 with a January 1970 cover date, placing it squarely at the hinge point between the Silver and Bronze Ages. A brief backup letters and feature page ('The Spider's Web'), possibly scripted by Roy Thomas and featuring Curt Connors/Lizard art, rounds out the issue's 36 pages.

Trivia · 7 facts

Title story: 'On the Trail of…the Chameleon!' — written by Stan Lee, layouts by John Buscema, finished art by Jim Mooney, cover by John Romita Sr., lettered by Sam Rosen.
Cover date: January 1970; on-sale date: October 1969 (Marvel Database / League of Comic Geeks).
The Chameleon (Dmitri Smerdyakov) — Spider-Man's very first published super-villain, originally introduced in ASM #1 (March 1963) by Lee and Steve Ditko — makes his first full solo return appearance here after roughly seven years.
The issue contains two internal continuity errors: the story incorrectly attributes Spider-Man's first Chameleon encounter to ASM #2 (it was ASM #1), and Captain George Stacy is misnamed 'John Stacy' in the interior art.
This is one of only a handful of done-in-one stories produced under Marvel's brief late-1969 'no continued stories' editorial policy — the Chameleon issue in #80 was the first of three such single-issue experiments before ASM returned to multi-part arcs with #83.
A 2-page backup feature ('The Spider's Web' letters column) includes spot illustrations of Curt Connors/Lizard and is tentatively credited to Roy Thomas as scripter.
The issue has been reprinted in: Marvel Tales #61 (September 1975); Essential Spider-Man Vol. 4 (2000, black-and-white); The Amazing Spider-Man Omnibus Vol. 3 (2017); Amazing Spider-Man Epic Collection #5: The Secret of the Petrified Tablet (2019); IDW's John Romita's The Amazing Spider-Man Artist's Edition (December 2011) and Artisan Edition (March 2021).