Marvel Masterworks

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Marvel Masterworks is an American collection of hardcover, full-color comic book reprints published by Marvel Comics, featuring various series in chronological order.

The collection started in 1987 with volumes reprinting the first issues of The Amazing Spider-Man, The Fantastic Four, The X-Men, and The Avengers. Approximately 10 issues are reprinted in each volume, which as of 2008 number over 90 volumes. The line has expanded from such reprints of the 1960s period that fans and historians call the Silver Age of Comic Books to include the 1930s-1940s Golden Age; comics of Marvel's 1950s forerunner, Atlas Comics; and even some reprints from the 1970s period called the Bronze Age of Comic Books.

There is also a black-and-white trade paperback line, Essential Marvel, with approximately 25 comics per volume, and the full-color, oversized, hardcover Omnibus line, each volume of which reprints the equivalent of three to four Masterworks.

Rival DC Comics began publishing its similar DC Archive Editions two years later, though because DC has produced new volumes more consistently, about twice as many Archives are available as Masterworks.

Contents

[edit] History

The first Masterworks program from Marvel started in 1987 and continued until 1994, covering 27 volumes. Each volume, which carried a suggested retail price of approximately US$50, had a marble-look dustjacket of varying colours, and was printed with a number on its spine representing the order in which the volumes were released; The Amazing Spider-Man: Vol. 1 was #1, The Fantastic Four: Vol. 1 was #2, and so on. Volumes typically contained 10 issues plus any annuals, and were about 220-260 pages each. Some volumes had fewer pages, such as The Invincible Iron Man: Vol. 1 (197 pages), The Incredible Hulk: Vol. 1 (150 pages), and The Uncanny X-Men: Vol. 1-3 (each under 200 pages) and carried a US$10 lower suggested retail price to compensate.

Some volumes have had multiple printings, such as The Amazing Spider-Man: Vol. 1, with seven.[1]

Also during the original Marvel Masterworks run, between 1992-1993, Marvel Comics had published lower-priced trade paperback editions of selected volumes in the Masterworks line, but these versions only reprinted half of the contents compared to the hardcover editions. These were:

  • The Amazing Spider-Man Masterworks: Vol 1 (March 1992) - reprinted Amazing Fantasy #15 and Amazing Spider-Man #1-5 (ISBN 0-87135-902-2)
  • The Avengers Masterworks: Vol 1 (October 1993) - reprinted Avengers #1-5 (ISBN 0-87135-983-9)
  • The Uncanny X-Men Masterworks: Vol 1 (March 1993) - reprinted The Uncanny X-Men #1-5 (ISBN 0-87135-964-2)
  • The All-New, All Different X-Men Masterworks: Vol 1 (Aug. 1993) - reprinted Giant-Size X-Men #1, The Uncanny X-Men #94-97 (ISBN 0-87135-988-X)

Even though on the cover each book was labeled a 'Volume 1', no subsequent volumes were ever published for these trade paperbacks. Marvel would not try out trade paperback versions of the Masterworks again until 2002.

From 1994-1996, no new Masterworks were published and existing volumes did not go back to print.[2] Following this, from 1997 to 2002, some of the original 27 went back into print with a new style of dustjacket and without the chronological numbering on the spine; instead, the line used the number of the volume for each particular comic-book series. Additionally, four new Masterworks were published from 2000 to 2002, bringing the total to 31.

With The Sub-Mariner: Vol. 1, the 32nd Masterwork, Marvel relaunched the line with silver dustjackets in 2003. From 2002 to 2004, Marvel brought the 31 now out-of-print volumes back into print, all with the new silver dustjackets. Like the other releases from 1997 on, these dustjackets do not have the chronological numbering. Upon their initial release, however, a limited print run was produced with variant dustjackets that used the original marble-look style and retained the absolute chronological numbering. These carried a $5 higher suggested retail price than the regular editions.

Some changes were made for the new second editions, with some issues/covers recolored, previously unreprinted pin-up pages added, and some issues were moved between volumes (Annual issues were amongst the changes made, as Marvel wanted to do a more accurate chronological reprinting of their history than the Masterworks series had previously attained).

In 2002, Marvel partnered with Barnes & Noble to produce lower-priced trade paperback versions of selected Masterworks volumes. Twelve were produced, sans dustjacket, and they utilized the silver cover scheme.

Starting with the 33rd volume, The Amazing Spider-Man: Vol. 6 (April 2004), Marvel started producing new Masterworks once again, continuing monthly from August 2004. These new books have also been printed with both regular and variant/original cover styles.

[edit] Golden Age Masterworks

In October 2004, Marvel released its first Golden Age collection, Golden Age Marvel Comics: Vol. 1, launching a new line of Masterworks. This 1939 and 1940s line reprints material by Timely Comics, Marvel's Golden Age predecessor. It is differentiated from the 1960s Silver Age line by the words "Golden Age" on each title, and with the regular dustjacket colored gold rather than silver. From Golden Age Captain America: Vol. 1 (February 2005), these volumes have been released quarterly.

[edit] Atlas Era Masterworks

In January 2006, with Atlas Era Tales to Astonish: Vol. 1, Marvel began publishing a third line of Masterworks, reprinting 1950s and early 1960s comics of Marvel forerunner company Atlas Comics. The regular editions of these volumes each have red dustjackets instead of silver. The comics reprinted, originally produced during a lull in superhero popularity, are primarily science-fiction/fantasy stories, particularly featuring drive-in movie-style monsters. Marvel started publishing the Alas Era Masterworks volumes semi-annually.

[edit] Cover styles gallery

Below are the various types of covers used in the Marvel Masterworks line, with The Amazing Spider-Man: Vol. 1 as example.

[edit] Alphabetical list of Marvel Masterworks

Golden Age (13)

Atlas Era (7)

Silver/Bronze Age (83)

[edit] Table of Marvel Masterworks

This list is sorted by the order of first publication. Note that while the Uncanny X-Men volumes are from the Bronze Age of comic books, they are listed as being Silver Age as per Marvel's categorization. When the variant- and the regular-cover volume are published on different dates, the regular-edition date or scheduled publishing date is listed. When issues have been moved between volumes for later editions, the later-edition placement is listed. The 'B&N?' category asks as to whether a Barnes & Noble paperback is available or not. The ISBN listed is that of the first-published regular/silver editions.

Age/
Era
Volume Name Issues Collected 1st Edition 2nd Edition Pages B&N? ISBN
1 Silver The Amazing Spider-Man: Vol. 1 Amazing Fantasy #15,
The Amazing Spider-Man #1-10
November 1987 9 July 2003 248 Yes ISBN 0-7851-1256-1
2 Silver The Fantastic Four: Vol. 1 The Fantastic Four #1-10 November 1987 29 June 2003 251 Yes ISBN 0-7851-1181-6
3 Silver The X-Men: Vol. 1 The X-Men #1-10 November 1987 21 June 2003 241 Yes ISBN 0-7851-0845-9
4 Silver The Avengers: Vol. 1 The Avengers #1-10 September 1988 1 October 2003 216 Yes ISBN 0-7851-0883-1
5 Silver The Amazing Spider-Man: Vol. 2 The Amazing Spider-Man #11-20 October 1988 27 August 2003 248 Yes ISBN 0-7851-1256-1
6 Silver The Fantastic Four: Vol. 2 The Fantastic Four #11-20,
Annual #1
October 1988 30 July 2003 295 No ISBN 0-7851-0980-3
7 Silver The X-Men: Vol. 2 The X-Men #11-21 November 1988 9 July 2003 240 No ISBN 0-7851-0983-8
8 Silver The Incredible Hulk: Vol. 1 The Incredible Hulk #1-6 September 1989 7 May 2003 150 Yes ISBN 0-7851-1185-9
9 Silver The Avengers: Vol. 2 The Avengers #11-20 September 1989 3 December 2003 224 No ISBN 0-7851-1178-6
10 Silver The Amazing Spider-Man: Vol. 3 The Amazing Spider-Man #20-30,
Annual #2
October 1989 15 October 2003 261 Yes ISBN 0-7851-1188-3
11 Silver The Uncanny X-Men: Vol. 1 Giant-Size X-Men #1,
The X-Men #94-100
November 1989 12 November 2003 167 Yes ISBN 0-7851-1192-1
12 Silver The Uncanny X-Men: Vol. 2 The X-Men #101-110 August 1990 7 January 2004 181 Yes ISBN 0-7851-1193-X
13 Silver The Fantastic Four: Vol. 3 The Fantastic Four #21-30 September 1990 24 September 2003 234 No ISBN 0-7851-1182-4
14 Silver Captain America: Vol. 1 Tales of Suspense #59-81 October 1990 4 June 2003 272 No ISBN 0-7851-1176-X
15 Silver The Silver Surfer: Vol. 1 The Silver Surfer #1-6,
The Fantastic Four Annual #5
June 1991 18 June 2003 260 Yes ISBN 0-7851-1187-5
16 Silver The Amazing Spider-Man: Vol. 4 The Amazing Spider-Man #31-40,
Annual #3
August 1991 10 December 2003 216 Yes ISBN 0-7851-1189-1
17 Silver Daredevil: Vol. 1 Daredevil #1-11 September 1991 10 December 2003 256 Yes ISBN 0-7851-1257-X
18 Silver The Mighty Thor: Vol. 1 Journey Into Mystery #83-100 October 1991 16 July 2003 280 No ISBN 0-7851-1267-7
19 Silver The Silver Surfer: Vol. 2 The Silver Surfer #7-18 December 1991 20 August 2003 272 No ISBN 0-7851-1177-8
20 Silver The Invincible Iron Man: Vol. 1 Tales of Suspense #39-50 September 1992 5 November 2003 197 No ISBN 0-7851-1186-7
21 Silver The Fantastic Four: Vol. 4 The Fantastic Four #31-40,
Annual #2
November 1992 26 November 2003 264 No ISBN 0-7851-1183-2
22 Silver The Amazing Spider-Man: Vol. 5 The Amazing Spider-Man #41-50,
Annual #3
December 1992 18 February 2004 232 No ISBN 0-7851-1190-5
23 Silver Doctor Strange: Vol. 1 Strange Tales #110-111, 114-141 December 1992 6 August 2003 272 No ISBN 0-7851-1180-8
24 Silver The Uncanny X-Men: Vol. 3 The X-Men #111-121

(Note: The first printing of this volume only included issues 111-120.)

September 1993 10 March 2004 197 No ISBN 0-7851-1194-8
25 Silver The Fantastic Four: Vol. 5 The Fantastic Four #41-50,
Annual #3
October 1993 28 January 2004 197 No ISBN 0-7851-1184-0
26 Silver The Mighty Thor: Vol. 2 Journey Into Mystery #101-110 January 1994 10 September 2003 218 No ISBN 0-7851-1191-3
27 Silver The Avengers: Vol. 3 The Avengers #21-30 February 1994 4 February 2004 216 No ISBN 0-7851-1179-4
28 Silver The Fantastic Four: Vol. 6 The Fantastic Four #51-60,
Annual #4
25 October 2000 17 March 2004 240 No ISBN 0-7851-1266-9
29 Silver Daredevil: Vol. 2 Daredevil #12-21 17 October 2001 25 February 2004 224 No ISBN 0-7851-1265-0
30 Silver The Mighty Thor: Vol. 3 Journey Into Mystery #111-120,
Annual #1
14 November 2001 19 November 2003 256 No ISBN 0-7851-1268-5
31 Silver The X-Men: Vol. 3 The X-Men #22-31 ??? 2002 4 September 2003 224 No ISBN 0-7851-1269-3
32 Silver The Sub-Mariner: Vol. 1 Tales to Astonish #70-87 1 May 2002 14 January 2003 224 No ISBN 0-7851-0875-0
33 Silver The Amazing Spider-Man: Vol. 6 The Amazing Spider-Man #51-61,
Annual #4
27 April 2004 N/A 304 No ISBN 0-7851-1362-2
34 Silver The Fantastic Four: Vol. 7 The Fantastic Four #61-71,
Annual #5
25 August 2004 N/A 304 No ISBN 0-7851-1584-6
35 Silver The X-Men: Vol. 4 The X-Men #32-42 22 September 2004 N/A 240 No ISBN 0-7851-1607-9
36 Golden Golden Age Marvel Comics: Vol. 1 Marvel Comics #1,
Marvel Mystery Comics #2-4
20 October 2004 N/A 272 No ISBN 0-7851-1609-5
37 Silver The Uncanny X-Men: Vol. 4 The X-Men #122-131,
Annual #3
27 October 2004 N/A 224 No ISBN 0-7851-1630-3
38 Silver The Avengers: Vol. 4 The Avengers #31-40 10 November 2004 N/A 224 No ISBN 0-7851-1638-9
39 Silver The Incredible Hulk: Vol. 2 Tales to Astonish #59-79 29 December 2004 N/A 266 No ISBN 0-7851-0795-9
40 Silver The Uncanny X-Men: Vol. 5 The X-Men #132-140,
Annual #4,
Bizarre Adventures #27,
Phoenix: The Untold Story #1
19 January 2005 N/A 312 No ISBN 0-7851-1698-2
41 Silver Daredevil: Vol. 3 Daredevil #22-32,
Annual #1
16 February 2005 N/A 304 No ISBN 0-7851-1696-6
42 Silver The Fantastic Four: Vol. 8 The Fantastic Four #72-81,
Annual #6
16 March 2005 N/A 272 No ISBN 0-7851-1694-X
43 Golden Golden Age Captain America: Vol. 1 Captain America Comics #1-4 23 March 2005 N/A 264 No ISBN 0-7851-1619-2
44 Silver The Amazing Spider-Man: Vol. 7 The Amazing Spider-Man #62-67,
Annual #5,
The Spectacular Spider-Man (Magazine) #1-2
27 April 2005 N/A 320 No ISBN 0-7851-1636-2
45 Silver The Invincible Iron Man: Vol. 2 Tales of Suspense #51-65 25 May 2005 N/A 240 No ISBN 0-7851-1771-7
46 Silver Captain America: Vol. 2 Tales of Suspense #82-99,
Captain America #100
29 June 2005 N/A 240 No ISBN 0-7851-1785-7
47 Golden Golden Age Sub-Mariner: Vol. 1 Sub-Mariner Comics #1-4 22 June 2005 N/A 280 No ISBN 0-7851-1617-6
48 Silver The X-Men: Vol. 5 The X-Men #43-53,
The Avengers #53,
Ka-Zar #2-3,
Marvel Tales #30
13 July 2005 N/A 304 No ISBN 0-7851-1787-3
49 Silver Dr. Strange: Vol. 2 Strange Tales #142-168 14 September 2005 N/A 304 No ISBN 0-7851-1737-7
50 Silver Captain Marvel: Vol. 1 Marvel Super Heroes #12-13,
Captain Marvel #1-9
21 September 2005 N/A 240 No ISBN 0-7851-1178-6
51 Golden Golden Age Human Torch: Vol. 1 Human Torch #2-5A 26 October 2005 N/A 280 No ISBN 0-7851-1624-9
52 Silver The Mighty Thor: Vol. 4 Journey Into Mystery #121-125,
The Mighty Thor #126-130
9 November 2005 N/A 240 No ISBN 0-7851-1880-2
53 Silver The Fantastic Four: Vol. 9 The Fantastic Four #82-93,
Annual #7
23 November 2005 N/A 272 No ISBN 0-7851-1846-2
54 Silver The Avengers: Vol. 5 The Avengers #41-50,
Annual #1
21 December 2005 N/A 288 No ISBN 0-7851-1848-9
55 Golden Golden Age All-Winners: Vol. 1 All-Winners Comics #1-4 28 December 2005 N/A 253 No ISBN 0-7851-1884-5
56 Silver The Incredible Hulk: Vol. 3 Tales to Astonish #80-101,
The Incredible Hulk #102
18 January 2006 N/A 288 No ISBN 0-7851-2032-7
57 Atlas Atlas Era Tales to Astonish: Vol. 1 Tales to Astonish #1-10 25 January 2006 N/A 272 No ISBN 0-7851-1889-6
58 Silver Sgt. Fury: Vol. 1 Sgt. Fury and His Howling Commandos #1-13 15 February 2006 N/A 320 No ISBN 0-7851-2039-4
59 Silver Ant-Man/Giant-Man: Vol. 1 Tales to Astonish #27, 35-52 15 March 2006 N/A 288 No ISBN 0-7851-2039-4
60 Golden Golden Age Marvel Comics: Vol. 2 Marvel Mystery Comics #5-8 29 March 2006 N/A 272 No ISBN 0-7851-1609-5
61 Silver The X-Men: Vol. 6 The X-Men #54-66 26 April 2006 N/A 320 No ISBN 0-7851-2056-4
62 Silver The Fantastic Four: Vol. 10 The Fantastic Four #94-104 24 May 2006 N/A 272 No ISBN 0-7851-2061-0
63 Silver Rawhide Kid: Vol. 1 Rawhide Kid #17-25 June 2006 N/A 256 No ISBN 0-7851-2117-X
64 Silver Captain America: Vol. 3 Captain America #101-113 July 2006 N/A 288 No ISBN 0-7851-2063-7
65 Silver The Invincible Iron Man: Vol. 3 Tales of Suspense #66-83,
Tales to Astonish #82
23 August 2006 N/A 256 No ISBN 0-7851-2067-X
66 Silver The Human Torch: Vol. 1 Strange Tales #101-117,
Annual #2
20 September 2006 N/A 272 No ISBN 0-7851-2070-X
67 Silver The Amazing Spider-Man: Vol. 8 The Amazing Spider-Man #68-77,
Marvel Super-Heroes #14
11 October 2006 N/A 240 No ISBN 0-7851-2074-2
68 Atlas Atlas Era Tales of Suspense: Vol. 1 Tales of Suspense #1-10 25 October 2006 N/A 272 No ISBN 0-7851-2406-3
69 Silver The Mighty Thor: Vol. 5 The Mighty Thor #131-140,
Annual #2
22 November 2006 N/A 256 No ISBN 0-7851-2076-9
70 Silver The Avengers: Vol. 6 The Avengers #51-58,
Annual #2,
The X-Men #45
13 December 2006 N/A 256 No ISBN 0-7851-2079-3
71 Golden Golden Age All-Winners: Vol. 2 All-Winners Comics #5-8 28 December 2006 N/A 280 No ISBN 0-7581-2406-3
72 Silver Warlock: Vol. 1 Marvel Premiere #1-2,
Warlock #1-8,
The Incredible Hulk #176-178
10 January 2007 N/A 288 No ISBN 0-7851-2411-X
73 Atlas Atlas Era Heroes: Vol. 1 Marvel Boy #1-2,
Astonishing #3-6,
Young Men #24-28
24 January 2007 N/A 304 No ISBN 0-7851-2408-X
74 Silver Daredevil: Vol. 4 Daredevil #33-41,
The Fantastic Four #73
28 February 2007 N/A 224 No ISBN 0-7851-2072-6
75 Silver Doctor Strange: Vol. 3 Doctor Strange #169-179,
The Avengers #61
14 March 2007 N/A 256 No ISBN 0-7851-2410-1
76 Golden Golden Age USA Comics: Vol. 1 U.S.A. Comics #1-4 28 March 2007 N/A 280 No ISBN 0-7851-2478-0
77 Silver The Invincible Iron Man: Vol. 4 Tales of Suspense #84-99,
Iron Man & Sub-Mariner #1,
The Invincible Iron Man #1
11 April 2007 N/A 256 No ISBN 0-7851-2678-3
78 Silver The Incredible Hulk: Vol. 4 The Incredible Hulk #103-110,
Annual #1
9 May 2007 N/A 240 No ISBN 0-7851-2682-1
79 Silver The Sub-Mariner: Vol. 2 Tales to Astonish #88-101,
Iron Man & Sub-Mariner #1,
The Sub-Mariner #1
27 June 2007 N/A 240 No ISBN 0-7851-2688-0
80 Silver The Mighty Thor: Vol. 6 The Mighty Thor #141-151 July 2007 N/A 224 No ISBN 0-7851-2691-0
81 Golden Golden Age Sub-Mariner: Vol. 2 Sub-Mariner Comics #5-8 August 2007 N/A 280 No ISBN 0-7851-2247-8
82 Silver Captain Marvel: Vol. 2 Captain Marvel #10-21 29 August 2007 N/A 272 No ISBN 0-7851-2430-6
83 Silver Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D.: Vol. 1 Strange Tales #135-153,
Tales of Suspense #78,
The Fantastic Four #21
September 2007 N/A 288 No ISBN 0-7851-2686-4
84 Silver The Avengers: Vol. 7 The Avengers #59-68,
Marvel Super-Heroes #17
17 October 2007 N/A 256 No ISBN 0-7851-2680-5
85 Atlas Atlas Era Strange Tales: Vol. 1 Strange Tales #1-10 31 October 2007 N/A 272 No ISBN 0-7851-2771-2
86 Silver The Amazing Spider-Man: Vol. 9 The Amazing Spider-Man #78-87 28 November 2007 N/A 224 No ISBN 0-7851-2462-4
87 Silver Rawhide Kid: Vol. 2 Rawhide Kid #26-35 19 December 2007 N/A 272 No ISBN TBA
88 Golden Golden Age Human Torch: Vol. 2 Human Torch Comics #5B-8 27 December 2007 N/A 280 No ISBN 978 -0-7851-2250-0
89 Golden Golden Age Daring Mystery: Vol. 1 Daring Mystery #1-4 23 January 2008 N/A 280 No ISBN 978 -0-7851-2476-4
90 Silver The Uncanny X-Men: Vol. 6 The X-Men #141,
The Uncanny X-Men #142-150
20 February 2008 N/A 256 No ISBN TBA
91 Silver Ant-Man/Giant-Man: Vol. 2 Tales to Astonish #53-69 20 February 2008 N/A 304 No ISBN 978 -0-7851-2911-0
92 Atlas Atlas Era Heroes: Vol. 2 Men's Adventures #27-28,
Captain America #76-78,
Human Torch #36-38
27 February 2008 N/A 240 No ISBN 978- 0-7851-2460-3
93 Silver Captain America: Vol. 4 Captain America #114-124 19 March 2008 N/A 240 No ISBN 978- 0-7851-2936-3
94 Atlas Atlas Era Tales to Astonish: Vol. 2 Tales to Astonish #11-20 26 March 2008 N/A 272 No ISBN 978- 0-7851-2913-4
95 Silver Captain Marvel: Vol. 3 Captain Marvel #22-33,
The Invincible Iron Man #55
16 April 2008 N/A 288 No ISBN TBA
96 Silver The Mighty Thor: Vol. 7 Thor #153-162 21 May 2008 N/A 224 No ISBN 978- 0-7851-2924-0
97 Silver Sgt. Fury: Vol. 2 Sgt. Fury and His Howling Commandos #14-23,
Annual #1
18 June 2008 N/A 240 No ISBN 978- 0-7851-2928-8
98 Atlas Atlas Era Tales of Suspense: Vol. 2 Tales of Suspense #11-20 25 June 2008 N/A 272 No ISBN 978- 0-7851-2959-2
99 Golden Golden Age Captain America: Vol. 2 Captain America Comics #5-8 23 July 2008 N/A 280 No ISBN 978- 0-7851-2959-2
100 Silver Defenders: Vol. 1 Sub-Mariner #34-35,
Marvel Feature #1-3,
The Defenders #1-6
30 July 2008 N/A 256 No ISBN 978- 0-7851-2932-5
101 Silver The Amazing Spider-Man: Vol. 10 The Amazing Spider-Man #88-99 Aug 2008 N/A 256 No ISBN 978- 0-7851-2959-2
102 Golden Golden Age Marvel Comics: Vol. 3 Marvel Comics #9-12 Aug 2008 N/A 272 No ISBN 978- 0-7851-2472-6

[edit] References

Languages