Marvel’s recent announcement that Robert Downey Jr. will play Doctor Doom in the Marvel Cinematic Universe has led to an increase in buyer demand for comics featuring the character. And, one issue of Marvel Team-Up from 2005 recently sold for $250.

According to ComicBook.com, Marvel Team-Up #2 sold for $250 for a CGC 9.8 copy, well above its face value. The issue marks the first appearance of Iron Maniac, an evil version of Iron Man from Earth-5012. The character’s debut sees him wearing armor that heavily resembles Doctor Doom, with writer Robert Kirkman likely wanting fans to mistake the Iron Maniac for the character. A later issue revealed that it was not Doom but the multiverse variant of the evil Tony Stark, leading fans to wonder if this may be a hint at future stories to come in the MCU.

MARVEL TEAM-UP #2

Written by ROBERT KIRKMAN Art by SCOTT KOLINS Colors by STUDIO F Cover Art by SCOTT KOLINS

ComicBook.com also reported that Marvel Team-Up #3 saw a jump in price as well, with a high sale of $23 for a VG-graded copy. In the follow-up to issue #2, the evil multiverse Stark once again wears a mask and suit resembling Doctor Doom, with even The Fantastic Four mistaking him for the terrifying villain. In Marvel Team-Up #3, however, Tony openly reveals that he has no relation to Victor Von Doom and is instead named the Iron Maniac.

The Avengers Met a Terrible Fate in The Iron Maniac’s Universe

While the version of Tony Stark made to resemble Doctor Doom is hardly the first evil incarnation of the character, Iron Maniac’s backstory does have a sad connection to the rest of the Avengers. In Iron Maniac’s world, most of the Avengers have been killed after facing the Super Skrull Titannus, and the world is then devastated even further when its version of Reed Richards betrays the rest of Earth’s mightiest heroes.

After surviving an attack by the Human Torch, Tony Stark fled to Latveria to try and save the world from Richards. Unfortunately for him, Mister Fantastic managed to locate Stark and trapped him inside Earth-616’s timeline, where Stark took on the mantle of Iron Maniac. The character appeared in ten issues of Kirkman’s Marvel Team-Up series. For now, it remains to be seen just what the Marvel Cinematic Universe plans to do with Robert Downey Jr. back as Doctor Doom, and fans are eagerly theorizing about the many possibilities.

Robert Downey Jr. is set to star as Doctor Doom in the upcoming films Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars in 2026 and 2027 respectively.

Source: ComicBook.com