The Brave and the Bold #80

Oct 1968 · DC · 0.12 USD

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“And Hellgrammite Is His Name!”

★ 1st appearance — Hellgrammite

About this Issue

The Brave and the Bold #80 packs three significant debut-level events into a single Silver Age issue: it is the first appearance of Hellgrammite (Roderik Rose), a self-mutated entomologist-turned-insectoid villain who would go on to menace Superman, Green Arrow, and Black Canary across decades of DC continuity; it marks the first meeting between Batman and the Creeper, a pairing that seeded an important ongoing narrative thread — Batman's ethical discomfort with a hero who operates outside the law was subsequently revisited in Justice League of America #70; and it arrived at a creatively charged moment when Neal Adams was actively reshaping how Batman looked and felt on the page. The issue also spotlights the storytelling tension at the heart of the Creeper's short-lived existence: Jack Ryder helps catch the villain, yet must immediately flee to avoid arrest by the same authorities he just aided, a moral ambiguity rare in mainstream superhero comics of 1968.

writer Bob Haney · artist Neal Adams · inker Dick Giordano · letterer Ray Holloway · cover Neal Adams

ComicBooks.com Value

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Raw (VG) $10

CGC 9.8 · 6 in census $2,392

CGC 9.6 · 9 in census $344

CGC 9.4 · 28 in census $207

CGC 9.2 · 18 in census $204

CGC 9.0 · 20 in census $105

CGC 8.5 · 26 in census $64

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CGC 8.0 · 21 in census $64

CGC 7.5 · 9 in census $37

CGC 7.0 · 9 in census $35*

CGC 6.5 · 7 in census $35

CGC 6.0 · 6 in census $23*

CGC 5.5 · 3 in census $22*

CGC 5.0 · 3 in census $22*

CGC 4.5 · 6 in census $22*

CGC 4.0 · 2 in census $22

CGC 3.5 · 1 in census $20*

CGC 3.0 · 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 9.4 ▾ $400–$450 2 listings

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CGC 4 $49.99 1 listing CBCS 9 $180 1 listing Raw — MINT $69.98 1 listing Raw — VF $50 1 listing

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History

Writer Bob Haney scripted the story while Neal Adams penciled both the interior art and the cover, with Dick Giordano providing inks and Murray Boltinoff editing — the same core team that was redefining The Brave and the Bold as DC's premier Batman team-up showcase at the close of the Silver Age. The issue appeared on newsstands concurrent with the Creeper's own nascent solo series, Beware the Creeper — itself already struggling after just a few issues — which gave the team-up a sense of urgency; DC was clearly using the higher-profile Batman book to sustain interest in Steve Ditko's new creation at a moment when Ditko himself had already departed the character's solo title. The letters page of this issue includes a contribution from a then-aspiring comics writer named Tony Isabella, a detail noted in Grand Comics Database records.

Trivia · 8 facts

First appearance of Hellgrammite (Roderik Rose), created by writer Bob Haney and artist Neal Adams, cover-dated November 1968.
Hellgrammite is depicted as a criminal entomologist who subjected himself to a mutagenic process, transforming into a towering, grasshopper-like insectoid humanoid capable of generating near-impenetrable cocoons and converting captives into drone versions of himself.
This issue marks the first in-continuity meeting between Batman and the Creeper (Jack Ryder); the Creeper's ambiguous legal status — he is a wanted criminal — creates dramatic tension with the Gotham City Police Department throughout the story.
Batman and the Creeper ultimately defeat Hellgrammite in the Gotham City subway system using a fire extinguisher to block his breathing spiracles and the electrified third rail; the Creeper then escapes to avoid his own arrest, with Commissioner Gordon bringing Hellgrammite to justice.
Interior pencils by Neal Adams, inks by Dick Giordano, script by Bob Haney, edited by Murray Boltinoff; Neal Adams also composed the cover illustration.
The Batman-Creeper relationship established here was continued almost immediately: Batman raised the question of the Creeper's heroic status with the Justice League in Justice League of America #70 (March 1969).
The story has been reprinted multiple times, including in the Batman Illustrated by Neal Adams hardcover Vol. 1, the Showcase Presents: The Brave and the Bold Batman Team-Ups Vol. 1, and the Eaglemoss DC Comics – The Legend of Batman #26 (2018).
The letters page contains a contribution from Tony Isabella, who would later become a professional comics writer at DC and Marvel.