I’m happy to be back again bringing you the latest quarterly installment of Undervalued Comics in 2022. Books that, in this high-priced and news-sensitive market, actually seem to hold strong future value potential. If you missed any of the previous iterations of Undervalued Comics, you can find them here. With all eyes laser-focused on all things Spider-Man and Multiverse tight now, what books are slipping through the cracks to the point of being undervalued as we move into 2022? Let's find out.

Marvel Preview #2 and Daredevil #183

Here are a couple things we know now that December 2021 has come and gone (SPOILERS AHEAD for Hawkeye and Spiderman: No Way Home). We now have confirmation that two characters from the Netflix Marvel universe are alive and well in the MCU. Well, Kingpin might not be "well," but you get what I mean. Daredevil and Kingpin are in our lives now.

If those two are around, others can't be too far around. That means The Punisher. We all know about Amazing Spider-Man #129 and its iconic Bronze Age status. There is nothing undervalued or under the radar about that book. But Marvel Preview #2 is criminally underrated as a magazine-style offering that is the first book to dive into Frank Castle's classic origin story. There are very few on the CGC blue-label census, just under 600 to be exact. Even so, nine of the last 10 CGC 9.4 grades sold for between $400 and $500. The latest 9.6 sold for less than $1,100.

Looking a little lower, you could get an 8.0 for around $200 just a couple months ago. Considering the power and popularity of this character, that seems like stealing.

Daredevil #183 is one of those popular Copper Age books that everyone seems to have a couple of in their collection.  It's the first battle between Daredevil and Punisher. But perhaps because the raw copies are so prevalent, the CGC 9.8s (of which there are hundreds) only run for less than $400 in recent sales. That low number typically gives books like this room for upward momentum and would spike if some Daredevil/Punisher collaboration were to be confirmed.

Green Lantern #87 and #116

I wish I could remake the rules of why certain books spike in value and why some languish in forgotten boxes, but I can't. Any new property or project from either the MCU or the DCEU has an impact on the relevant books or source materials. The next two books in the DC universe likely to be impacted will be Green Lantern #87 and #116.

Issue #87 features the second appearance of Guy Gardner and the first appearance of John Stewart. Both of these men will eventually take up the Green Lantern mantle, and their early appearances intersect in this classic book. Issue #116 is the first time Gardner steps in for Hal Jordan as Green Lantern. These can be had for next to nothing, with 9.8 copies selling for under $250 the past year.

The new HBO Max Series focusing on Green Lantern is already in development and is supposed to be "sprawling" and "epic" according to actor Finn Wittrock. Wittrock has already confirmed to play Guy Gardner so that is directly from the horse's mouth. But delays have slowed down the production and right now that means no one knows the release date.

That news has caused some stagnation and even some deflation for this book. Case in point: in July 2021, a CGC 9.2 copy of #87 was running investors about $2,000. Since then, however, no copy has sold for more than $1,750 with the latest sale coming in at $1,634.

I personally love #87 in the mid-grade (it is from 1971, after all) and was sad to see a CGC 5.5 copy in January slip through my fingers for just $476. The same book sold seven months earlier for $100 more. To me, that qualifies it as one of the undervalued comics of the season.

Avengers #11

I do also like to talk about other books that are not tied to on-screen properties. Other than the recent hype surrounding all things Spider-Man, there isn't anything drawing attention to Avengers #11 other than the fact that it is simply an awesome book. It's an early Avengers key that features the first time Spidey appears on their pages. We know that Spider-Man would over the years appear in various iterations of the Avengers so this first collision with them is quite the momentous team-up. And for an early Silver Age key, it's comparatively inexpensive.

For example, a CGC 7.0 (only about 100 of them in the world) sold last month at Heritage Auctions for just $480. A 7.5 sold for $528 last month. Of the first 10 issues of the Avengers original run, only issue #10 has a recent lower fair market value than Avengers #11.

And if you needed more motivation to find a copy of this book, just look at the murderer's row of Marvel legends who worked on it: Stan Lee, Jack Kirby, Dick Ayers, Don Heck, and Sam Rosen. There are multiple raw copies available on eBay right now in the VG to VF- range for under $200. Go grab one.

What Are You Finding?

What are you buying these days? Which book seems like one of the most undervalued comics to you right now, if such a thing actually exists anymore? Let me know what you’re investing in down in the comments!

*Any perceived investment advice is that of the freelance author and does not represent advice on the behalf of GoCollect.