UPON FURTHER review is a new feature on GoCollect. Fans of the NFL know about coaches throwing a red flag to request an official’s review of a play. This blog will look from a reader’s perspective at the intent of the blog and if the author was correct with their advice. I want our readers to know I have the benefit of time on my side in this review. No reviewer can be perfect all the time. So let us throw a red flag on…. MIKE W'S UNDERRATED MARVEL KEYS PART 2.

1st Review Issue...General Information

Purpose

Mike focuses on upcoming phases for the Marvel Cinematic Universe and the potential for hidden sleepers.

Did he get his feet down?

I read this article and was exposed to some inexpensive Marvel issues that may pay off in the future.  Mike W puts the spotlight on books that many hobbyists have ignored.  I must admit that except for one issue selected, I would have not thought of any of these books to collect or invest in.  That is the reason that Mike selected these books.  They go beyond the normal factors people use to buy issues.

I read this article a year ago and thought, what is this guy thinking with some of his selections? But not in a bad way.  Instead, I needed to put myself in his shoes because if he thought that way, then how many other people may feel the same way as him?

In my analysis, Mike W was on solid ground with this article.

2nd Review Issue...Examples Cited

Purpose

Mike focuses on a few books as keys to review for possible purchase.  He had mentioned the character of Ironheart and Riri Williams in a previous post, so he chooses Invincible Iron Man #12 as his underrated key for her. Mike then picks two separate books from two different titles to possibly pay off from a Marvel Cinematic Universe bounce.  Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur #1 and  Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur #32 are his first tag team pick of books.  Then he mentions Ghost Rider #28 and Ghost Rider #31 as additional underrated books.

Did he catch the Ball?

I always look for the reason certain books are mentioned as key issues in which to place my investment or collection dollar.  Mike gives me a few first appearances to choose from in possible books, and I love first appearances. Mike then gives us a recommended  "first meeting" issue key because he already told readers to look at the first appearance of Riri Williams.  These to me are always riskier, but again he told us these books were underrated, so I gave him the benefit of the doubt.  Let us now review each book to see if he picked them cleanly.

First Selection

Mike tried to give readers "two for one"  with his column.  His first selection mentions the first appearance of Riri Williams again as a book he still believes in. I will ignore that book for our purposes here.  The "second" Riri Williams book he mentions is Invincible Iron Man #12.  This Marvel book has the first meeting between Tony Stark and Riri Williams. His theory is that this book could become important if Tony Stark or an A.I. version of him, ala JARVIS, returns to the Marvel Cinematic Universe.  That idea is not that far-fetched because it would be great publicity while providing the actor a nice payday.

Mike mentions that at the time he wrote his article no copies of the book had been graded.  No copies are graded roughly one year later.  I did check and found two books that were being sold raw on eBay.

Second Selection

Mike then goes back to a familiar reason that investors buy books for his next two choices.  The first appearance of a title's main character is always a good choice, and Mike hits it solidly here.   The first appearance of Moon Girl is a good selection when you are writing about underrated characters, so he did his homework here.

He then mentions Princess Fisk as a possible villain in the series.  If she did appear as a villain, then this book would be vastly underrated.  Everyone knows the Kingpin, but who knows about Princess?

Third SelectionMarvel

Mike states that in the future the MCU is going a bit darker with the Blade film announcement.  If you need a supernatural superhero team, then one has to look no further than the Midnight Sons.

This is a solid pick for underrated books.  I am a big fan of this team, although there may be some issues with bringing one of them to the MCU. Still, they could have an altered lineup.  As a result, these books should be drawing more attention on hobbyist's radar.  Currently, these books have been vastly ignored by the general hobbyists.

Conclusion

Mike said he would mention books that were underrated and he did just that with these selections.

Final Review Issue...Do the numbers back him up?

MarvelPurpose

Mike wrote this article to highlight some UNDERRATED books that people may not consider when thinking of the MCU.

Did he complete the process?

This was not an article specifically looking at UNDERVALUED books.  Mike mentions that he thought the first appearance of Riri Williams was UNDERVALUED.  At the time, he was probably correct.  Those Marvel books are probably undervalued.  The rest of the article though is pretty much void of any numbers.  The one number he did mention was that the FMV of the first appearance of Moon Girl in Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur #1 was $140 for a 9.8.  The current FMV for that book is $325.  That is an increase of almost 57%!  That book then was severely undervalued.

Mike wanted to bring readers examples of interesting stories that were underrated that may have some legs in the MCU.  Think like the "Secret Invasion" storyline or the Infinity Stone Saga.  Mike puts forth ideas that may differ from the mainstream speculative choices people invest in because his choices are underrated.

I want to say that Mike never jumbled the ball and held it soundly for this article.  It was actually one article that was dead on sight. He points to books that underrated and all the stories are in fact underrated.  This question of does underrated translate to undervalued is what was left for readers to decide. Mike set the table, but readers then needed to review the numbers.

Rule Changeslun-201x300 Underrated Marvel Keys Part 2

Readers should pay attention to the article's writer.  Did you read Mike W.'s curriculum vitae? The Latin translation for curriculum vitae is roughly translated to "the course of one's life".  This means the writer's education, life experiences, and other qualifications. That bio is very important in revealing the views of the writer. It is the first thing GoCollect readers should know before they read the articles.

I have followed Mike W.'s articles long before I started to write for GoCollect.  He is solid on the numbers and suggesting books that do have investment potential.  Where I see him shining above all others on this site is in his dedication to write about books that may not get mainstream attention.  If you read Mike W's bio at the bottom of the page he says how he loves to go digging for books.  His reasoning of why some of these stories may have investment potential is beyond great.

It should be noted that every investment should have some degree of speculation.  These are books that cost very little and yet have massive potential if they hit.  If you review his recommendation for Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur #32 you will see that ALL the 9.6 and higher grades sales occurred after the article was posted.  The story was underrated, but that also can mean the issue was undervalued. A 9.8 copy of the first appearance of Princess Fisk has an FMV of $90 at the time I write this article.

Final Call

MarvelGoCollect writers all have individual strengths.  One of the strengths that I have found in the articles of Mike W is his ability to provide worthy speculative picks that predate internet hype.  It is difficult is to research quality stories and then find them in stores and on internet sites that have drawn no attention.  That is difficult, but difficult tasks, though, have benefits.

If you read and study articles such as this one, they can lead collectors to keys they may not have considered important. It also provides investors with those lottery-type speculative picks that could pay off in the long run.  Prices on these books can be relatively small when compared to other books. GoCollect readers should read more articles like this about underrated books and then study the GoCollect data and ask yourself...Are these Marvel books only underrated, or are they also undervalued?  Knowing that answer could lead you to great profits if you dig hard enough.

Visit Regie and the gang Behind the Blog for even more in-depth speculation!

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