The Fantastic Four debuted in The Fantastic Four #1 (Nov. 1961), which helped to usher in a new level of realism in the medium. The Fantastic Four was the first superhero team created by writer-editor Stan Lee and artist/co-plotter Jack Kirby, who developed a collaborative approach to creating comics with this title that they would use from then on. As the first superhero team title produced by Marvel Comics, it formed a cornerstone of the company’s 1960s rise from a small division of a publishing company to a pop culture conglomerate.
Fantastic Four #38 G $24Fantastic Four #41 FN+ $60Fantastic Four #58 CGC 8.0 White Pages $195Fantastic Four #59 VF+ $125Fantastic Four #60 VF- $74Fantastic Four #61 VF- $75Fantastic Four #66 FN $95Fantastic Four #77 VF $70Fantastic Four #78 VF+ $75Fantastic Four #83 VF- $30
The first series started in 1975 with two giant-size issues before starting as a regular series, and was mostly bi-monthly during its existence. It initially teamed up Doctor Doom and the Sub-Mariner, who had lost his own series, from which it picked up the unresolved plots, especially that of the comatose Atlanteans. After a succession of writers and artists and a crossover with The Avengers, the plot gets resolved in issue #13 when Dr. Doom revives the Atlanteans, thus dissolving his alliance with the Sub-Mariner.
Issue #14 (Oct. 1977), which featured Magneto and Dr. Doom, was billed as the final issue of the series, and its plotline was resolved in The Champions #16. The following year, SVTU continued with issue #15 (Nov. 1978), a reprint of Astonishing Tales #4-5. Issues #16 (May 1979) and #17 (June 1980) featured the Red Skull and the Hate-Monger. The irregular publishing frequency of the final three issues was due to a legal maneuver to prevent DC Comics from trademarking the term “super-villain”.
The series saw the death of the Sub-Mariner’s 1940s sweetheart Betty Dean and the death of her murderer, Dr. Dorcas. Steve Englehart created The Shroud, a character partly inspired by Batman, shortly before he started to work for DC Comics on Detective Comics.
The “Dark Phoenix Saga” in 1980 led to a change in the line-up of the team, with the death of Phoenix (Jean Grey), and Cyclops leaving the team to mourn for her. Comics writers and historians Roy Thomas and Peter Sanderson observed that “‘The Dark Phoenix Saga’ is to Claremont and Byrne what ‘the Galactus Trilogy‘ is to Stan Lee and Jack Kirby. It is a landmark in Marvel history, showcasing its creators’ work at the height of their abilities.” The storyline also saw the introduction of recurring antagonists the Hellfire Club, and its Inner Circle consisting of Sebastian Shaw, Emma Frost, Harry Leland, Donald Pierce, along with Mastermind, previously a member of Magneto’s Brotherhood. The new teenage mutant Kitty Pryde was introduced in #129 (Jan. 1980) and joined the X-Men in #139. The Dazzler, a disco-singing, roller-skating mutant, was introduced in #130 (Feb. 1980), but did not join the team, instead headlining her own solo title.
A new Brotherhood of Evil Mutants, led by Mystique, was introduced in the “Days of Future Past” storyline (#141-#142, Jan–Feb 1981) in which a time-travelling Kitty Pryde tried to avert a dystopian future caused by the Brotherhood assassinating Presidential candidate Senator Robert Kelly. Byrne plotted the story wanting to depict the Sentinels as a genuine threat to the existence of the mutant race. He then left the series after #143, being replaced by a returning Cockrum, who in turn was succeeded by Paul Smith and John Romita Jr.
Jonathan Hickman wrote a story arc in the Avengers and New Avengers comic, ending in the 2015 crossover Secret Wars. His return was announced in March 2019. Some days later, it was detailed that he would write two comic books, House of X and Powers of X, with penciling by Pepe Larraz and R.B. Silva. Marvel Editor in Chief C. B. Cebulski said that “We are excited to have Jon back with the Marvel family, and we could not have asked for a better creative team to help usher the X-Men into a whole new era”
Both comics were released as a company wide relaunch of the X-Men. All the ongoing X-Men comics were cancelled: Uncanny X-Men, Mr. and Mrs. X, X-Force, X-23, and the Age of X-Man tie-in miniseries.
Powers of X #1 NM $6Powers of X #2 NM $6Powers of X #2 3rd Print NM- $5Powers of X #3 NM $6Powers of X #3 2nd Print NM $5Powers of X #4 NM $6Powers of X #5 NM $6Powers of X #5 Variant NM $6Powers of X #5 Variant NM $6Powers of X #6 NM $6
Ms. Marvel also plays a significant role in the 2008 storyline “Secret Invasion“, in which members of the shapeshifting alien race, the Skrulls, are revealed to have secretly infiltrated Earth by impersonating humans. She befriends Captain Marvel’s Skrull impostor and proves to him that she is not a Skrull by revealing intimate details about their life together. At the conclusion of the war with the Skrulls, Norman Osborn is placed in charge of the registered Avengers team. Refusing to serve under Osborn, Ms. Marvel flees Avengers Tower, and joins the New Avengers, becoming second-in-command. Osborn appoints former Thunderbolt member Moonstone (Karla Sofen) as the “new” Ms. Marvel to his Dark Avengers team; Moonstone wears a variation of Ms. Marvel’s original costume. Osborn engineers a battle that results in Danvers’s powers overloading, causing her apparent death. The character Moonstone takes over the title role in the ongoing Ms. Marvel series. Danvers returns with the aid of the New Avengers, a group of MODOKembryos (creations of the organization Advanced Idea Mechanics [AIM]), and a character known as the “Storyteller” and reclaims the title of Ms. Marvel from Karla Sofen.
The increased use of Carol Danvers as a prominent character in many story arcs throughout this decade eventually prompted one commentator to note that “she’s now the House of Ideas’ premier heroine”
Spider-Man ran for 98 issues from 1990 to 1998. The series was re titled Peter Parker: Spider-Man with issue #75, but only on the covers, the series was still under its original Spider-Man title in the comic’s legal indicia, printed on the title page, from #75 to #98; the comic book would not officially be titled Peter Parker: Spider-Man until the volume 2 series relaunch.
The series originally was conceived as a showcase for Todd McFarlane. McFarlane, who until then had only been known as an artist, was hugely popular at the time and the series was created by editor Jim Salicrup so that McFarlane could pencil, ink, and write a Spider-Man title of his own, starting with the “Torment” storyline.
The series was a massive sales success with over 2.5 million copies printed. McFarlane stayed on the title until issue #16 (November 1991) in which the story was printed in a landscape format. He would go on to create the character Spawn and help found Image Comics in 1992. He was succeeded on the title by Erik Larsen, who had succeeded McFarlane on The Amazing Spider-Man two years earlier, and would later join him in the founding of Image. Larsen wrote and drew the six-issue story arc “Revenge of the Sinister Six” (#18–23). Writer Don McGregor and artist Marshall Rogers crafted a two-part story in issues #27–28 dealing with gun violence.
In January 2022, it was announced that writer Zeb Wells and John Romita Jr. would be working on a relaunched The Amazing Spider-Man, bringing the number of volumes for the title to its sixth, with the series beginning in April 2022. The relaunch encompasses both a legacy numbering of #900 as well as the 60th anniversary for the character. It included the crossover event, Dark Web, with Chasm having teamed up with Madelyne Pryor to bring limbo to Earth.
Iron Man left two lives behind when he vanished, but can he avoid his former mistakes in his new one? The armored Avenger takes on Hydra, Heralds and the Hulk – and the eyes of the Marvel Universe are upon him in the form of Loki, the Watcher and Onslaught himself! Featuring Doc Samson and… or rather as …the Abomination! Plus: Rebel O’Reilly, later of Thunderbolts fame!
Iron Man V2 1A NM $4Iron Man V2 1B NM $4Iron Man V2 #2 NM $4Iron Man V2 #3 NM $3Iron Man V2 #4 NM $3Iron Man V2 #5 NM $3Iron Man V2 #6 NM $3Iron Man V2 #6 NM- $2Iron Man V2 #7 NM $3Iron Man V2 #8 NM $3Iron Man V2 #9 NM $3Iron Man V2 #10 NM $3Iron Man V2 #11 NM- $9
Shortly after the publication of the treasury edition, Kirby continued to explore the concepts of 2001 in a monthly comic book series of the same name, the first issue of which was dated December 1976. In this issue, Kirby followed the pattern established in the film. Once again the reader encounters a prehistoric man (“Beast-Killer”) who gains new insight upon encountering a monolith as did Moon-Watcher in the film. The scene then shifts, where a descendant of Beast-Killer is part of a space mission to explore yet another monolith. When he finds it, this monolith begins to transform the astronaut into a star child, called in the comic a “New Seed”.
Issues #1-6 of the series replay the same idea with different characters in different situations, both prehistoric and futuristic. In #7 (June 1977), the comic opens with the birth of a New Seed who then travels the galaxy witnessing the suffering that men cause each other. While the New Seed is unable or unwilling to prevent this devastation, he takes the essence of two doomed lovers and uses it to seed another planet with the potential for human life.
In issue #8 (July 1977), Kirby introduces Mister Machine, who is later renamed Machine Man.Mister Machine is an advanced robot designated X-51. All the other robots in the X series go on a rampage as they achieve sentience and are destroyed. X-51, supported by both the love of his creator Dr. Abel Stack and an encounter with a monolith, transcends the malfunction that destroyed his siblings. After the death of Dr. Stack, X-51 takes the name Aaron Stack and begins to blend into humanity. Issues #9 and 10, the final issues of the series, continue the story of X-51 as he flees destruction at the hands of the Army.
2001 A Space Odyssey 1 CGC 9.6 Off White to White Pages $792001 #1 FN $82001 #2 VF- $52001 #3 VF- $52001 A Space Odyssey #5 VF- $52001 A Space Odyssey #7 VF+ $72001 A Space Odyssey #10 VF- $5
