Uncanny X-Men #168: 1st Appearance of Madelyne Pryor
When was the last time you ever heard anyone talk about Uncanny X-Men #168? Exactly -- it's a rarely discussed minor key issue. I argue that it's important because it has the first appearance of Madelyne Pryor, a tragic figure who would go on to become of the X-Men and X-Factor's greatest villains: the Goblin Queen.
Madelyne Pryor / the Goblin Queen wasn't a flavor of the week villain; first introduced in 1983, her evolution into the Goblin Queen was yet another masterful slow burn from Chris Claremont. We wouldn't see Madelyne's story climax until the massive Inferno crossover event in1989.
Interestingly, this issue has somewhat defied recent comic book market trends. Take a look at the value of a CGC 9.8 copy of this issue (the most common grade on the Census) over time; if you ignore the "comic boom" that occurred in 2021 and 2022 (as you should since that was a historical outlier), you generally see the value of this rising substantially over the long-term.
Even though few people talk about this issue on YouTube, and it doesn't appear on any "hot lists," the market data seems to suggest this is a pretty solid investment if you're willing to hold onto it long-term.
Uncanny X-Men #155: 1st Appearance of the Brood
Another familiar villain for the X-Men, but not often discussed, is the Brood. The X-Men and the Brood have been involved in several epic battles, including my personal favorite storyline in Uncanny X-Men #232-234 when the Brood infect several mutants who then battle the X-Men in Denver.
That story includes this amazing cover from Marc Silvestri in Uncanny X-Men #234 (and forget for a minute that Wolverine's skull couldn't change in the manner depicted below due to his adamantium skeleton):
There isn't anything "key" about this issue other than this stellar cover. Interestingly, according to GoCollect, the FMV of a CGC 9.8 copy of this issue ($160) is virtually identical to the FMV of Uncanny X-Men #155 ($170) which contains the first appearance of the Brood which makes it a key issue. In fact, the 30-day average of a 9.8 copy of UXM #155 is virtually the same as it was in late 2019 -- just prior to the "comic boom."
In other words, in spite of rampant inflation in recent years, this book's value has barely risen at all if you ignore what occurred during the comic boom. This could be an indicator that this book is undervalued or has overcorrected. It's certainly fairly inexpensive for a 9.8 copy of a first appearance of a major, re-occurring, and popular X-Men villain.
I also think we have good reason to believe the Brood will appear during the upcoming "Mutant Saga" of the MCU. I find it unlikely that Kevin Feige will rely heavily on Magneto and Dark Phoenix as villains and more likely to turn to other great villains in the X-Men's rogue gallery including Mr. Sinister, the Marauders, and the Brood.
In addition, Marvel has already rolled out comic stories of Marvel superheroes battling the Xenomorphs from the Aliens franchise. Could Disney, which also owns the Aliens IP, be conducting some low-cost market validation work?
Would you invest in either the first appearance of the Goblin Queen or the Brood? Let our community know in the comments section below!
