Just a few days ago, numerous news outlets reported that Emilia Clarke would be joining the cast of the MCU's upcoming Secret Invasion. While the news didn't reveal which character she would be playing, many have speculated that she'll take on the role of Veranke, the Skrull Queen, the main villain in the Secret Invasion storyline. And who else better to play a Skrull Queen than the Queen of Dragons herself?

New Avengers #40 (2nd Printing): 1st Appearance of Veranke in Skrull Form

You might think you'd be ahead of the curve by speculating on the first appearance of an unknown villain more than a year ahead of the release of the show. However, when Marvel announced Olivia Colman would join the Secret Invasion cast, investors speculated that she would play Veranke, leading to spike in Vernake's first appearances.

We're starting to seeing another spike in Veranke appearances with the announcement related to Emilia Clarke. Although Veranke has several first appearances, the second printing of New Avengers #40 is the issue that the market has gravitated towards. In this gorgeous wraparound cover drawn by Jim Cheung, we see a regal Veranke for the first time in her Skrull form.

According to the CGC Census, this book is rare; CGC has graded only 19 copies of this book. This may explain why the book is already relatively expensive even though Marvel hasn't yet confirmed Veranke will appear in Secret Invasion. On April 20, a CGC 9.8 copy of this book sold for $399 on eBay, approximately a 133% increase over a 9.8 that sold in December 2020. Raw, high-grade copies of this comic have recently sold for around $100 to $125 on eBay. If Marvel confirms that Emilia will portray Veranke, this book will likely climb, but I question the long-term value of the first appearance of a relatively unknown Modern Age villain.

If the second printing is out of your reach, consider the first printing. According to the CGC Census, CGC has only grade 10 copies of this book; accordingly, there's very little sales data. Raw, high-grade copies, however, have recently sold on eBay for around $25 to $35.

New Avengers #1: 1st Chronological Appearance of Veranke (Disguised as Spider-Woman)

If you're looking for another affordable alternative to the second printing of New Avengers #40, consider New Avengers #1. This is the actual first appearance of Veranke, but she's disguised as Spider-Woman throughout the issue. CGC 9.8 copies of this book remain highly affordable; a 9.8 sold on eBay on March 24 for only $51. Furthermore, the value of 9.8s has only risen by 3.3% over the past three years. In this bull market, this book is definitely underperforming. In other words, this one is flying under the radar, is low risk, and has a lot of upsides. You can buy raw, high-grade copies of this book on eBay for $15 or less.

Would you invest in any of these Veranke first appearances? Please let us know your opinions in the comment section below!

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