Cable First Appearance: The New Mutants #87 and How to Identify It

Cable first appeared in The New Mutants #87 (cover date March 1990), published by Marvel, by Louise Simonson, Rob Liefeld. The source puts it this way: "The character's first appearance as the adult warrior Cable was at the end of The New Mutants #86 (Feb. 1990)... This was followed by a full appearance in The New Mutants #87 (March 1990).".

• Interior cameo in prior issue: his first appearance as the adult warrior Cable was a brief scene at the end of The New Mutants #86 (February 1990).
• Distinct earlier identity (infant Nathan Summers): the same character, as the infant Nathan Summers, had already appeared years earlier in Uncanny X-Men #201 (January 1986), created by writer Chris Claremont.
• CGC certified-comic record confirms cover date: CGC's certified-comic database record independently confirms the issue date as 3/90.

• Indicia: the small print on the first page or inside cover gives the issue number, date and publisher; reprints usually say so there.
• Cover price and barcode: a price or barcode format that did not exist in the year printed means a later edition.
• Paper and staples: decades-old newsprint is tan at the edges; bright white pages on an old date are a warning sign.
• Restoration: color touch, trimmed edges and married covers are common on expensive keys; a grading service can detect them.

Shoot the front cover flat, straight on, in even light, then the indicia page and the back cover. Include the top edge and staples in one frame. The app reads the title, issue number and cover and matches it against the checks above; the indicia photo settles most reprint questions.