By Matt Tuck
Did a Spider-Man 3 set photo reveal a new villain for the movie? Time to get your hands on Amazing Spider-Man #546 because prices are about to balloon.
Cinemablend has reported that Mr. Negative/Martin Li was spotted on the set of the third MCU Spider-Man film. Nothing has been confirmed, but it will not slow the speculation market for his debut. Here’s more.
WHO IS HE?
Martin Li was a Chinese immigrant who became a New York crime lord. After Silvermane used him as a guinea pig in a science experiment, Li’s personality split in two. On one side is Martin, who represents the light side and is good and kind. Then there is Mr. Negative, Li’s dark alter ego with energy powers and can use his dark energy to corrupt and control others.
WHAT TO BUY:
Before the Mr. Negative hysteria sweeps across the collecting world, here are the two issues that should be at the top of your wish list.
THE FIRST CAMEO APPEARANCE:
It is not often, but sometimes those free issues can be profitable. If the story pans out and Mr. Negative becomes part of the MCU, this once-free comic will be red hot in no time. As the news spreads across the internet, look for it to balloon by this time next week.
The bonus for getting your hands on this comic is that you also get the first appearances of the second Jackpot, Sara Ehret, and Overdrive. It was reported last summer that Jackpot will star in her own Sony movie, so this could be a wise investment for the long term.
Looking for a copy? Head over to eBay, and you will find plenty of options. Generally speaking, the “raw” copies have been selling in the $20 neighborhood, so getting one of your own should not be difficult. Plus it completes the Mr. Negative set with that all-important...
THE FIRST FULL APPEARANCE:
AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #546
Lucky for you, the standard cover has not caught on quite yet. The last graded 9.8 to swap owners online was for $41 on January 24. A day prior, another 9.8 had sold for $89. Overall, sales are down for this issue, so now is your time to buy.
For the past 90 days, it has a fair market value of $80, which is down from its 2020 average of $140. That could be a steal if either Jackpot or Mr. Negative ends up on the big screen.
That standard edition is by far your cheapest option. Going up the FMV ladder, we have the sketch edition, which saw a bump from its 2019 average of $121 to $288 at the end of 2020.
Following that upward trajectory has been the variant edition. Back in 2019, a 9.8 averaged $64, but 2020 saw that number balloon to $133. There have not been any recorded sales of graded copies since June, at least not at the 9.8, but those should be coming soon.
THE NEXT HYDRO-MAN?
Remember when ASM #212 absolutely exploded a couple years ago? Remember how that went? This could be round two.
Just like our Mr. Negative rumor, fans thought they spotted Hydro-Man in a set photo for Spider-Man: Far From Home, and speculators drove his first appearance through the roof. Of course, Hydro-Man did not appear in the movie, at least not the comic Hydro-Man, and those investments fell flat.
That being said, if you can’t get in the Mr. Negative action early, you may want to hold your dollars to see if things will pan out for the villain.