Here is one recent reprint volume from Mighty Marvel which caught my attention. There are a ton of classic Marvel debuts included here and they are in chronological order. That's always a neat way to read these old tales, it gives a neat historical perspective to how the ideas unfolded back then. What really drew me to this volume, since I also own Fantastic Firsts from about a decade ago, is the inclusion of the Western stars among other less well known Marvel characters.
The cover was derived from this vintage Marvel ad, a neat bit of retro coolness all by itself. 
Here are the covers of the comics included in this volume either in whole or part. Another neat thing is that between stories, other books of note are given a call out with a bevy of cover galleries.
A beautiful collection of grand stories in glorious color. With this collection you can really get a sense of the sweep of the Marvel Universe as it developed and matured. The inclusion of relatively unsuccessful series such as the Watcher and Captain Savage, really allows a broader view of what was going on at the time. When companies only reprint their hits, it makes it seem like no experimentation was going on. There was quite a bit going on at Marvel in the Silver Age, and this collection does a grand job of showcasing it. The cover galleries do a good job of filling the gaps for genre books like Millie the Model and such.
Marvel has two volumes upcoming this year focused on the 1970's, and at this point I need to plan to add them to the collection.
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Words can't describe how much I want these books.
ReplyDeleteI picked this volume up and put it down a few times. The price point (thirty bucks) was a bit of a problem, but I got a discount the day I bought it, so that helped.
ReplyDeleteThe heft of the volume and the paper stock are perfect (sometimes it's too thick) as far as I'm concerned. If the 70's volumes are as good as this I'll have to find a way to add them.
I wish you well in your search.
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Got the 60s volume for Christmas and am loving it--though I can't figure out why the Guardians of the Galaxy were left out...
ReplyDeleteBig surprise--I'm REALLY looking forward to the two 1970s volumes. ;D
Happy New Year, Rip! Keep on truckin', baby!
The loss of the Guardians was a big disappointment for me too. But the Inhumans were ignored also. I accept that everything cannot be put in, but having that Guardians tale in a quality trade would have been sweet.
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I've got the hardbound, slip-case edition of Fantastic Firsts, but I have to say that the Marvel Firsts: The 1960s volume has used better quality proofs than its predecessor. A must-have for any true Marvelite.
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