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Micronauts: Marvel Comics went into the Micro Verse

In 1977, Marvel Comics was not doing that well until the movie Star Wars helped propel the newly launched comics based on George Lucas’s creation to the top of the charts. It was such a massive hit that the company started looking into more licensed comics, from Godzilla to Hanna-Barbera cartoon adaptations, Edgar Rice Burroughs comics, and Battlestar Galactica. It represented 20% of Marvel Comics’ production and some fans were not too happy about that. But it was a commercial success and it was not going to stop any time soon.

Introduced in 1974 by Japanese toy maker Takara (also known as Tomy in English), Mircoman was included in the line “Henshin Cyborg” but was not an 8 or 12-inch action figure, as it was the standard back then, but was 3.75-inch tall. The marketing used the size to sell the idea that this miniature bionic alien came from a place called Micro Earth. It was so successful that Microman got his own line. Soon, the American company Mego started importing them into the US under the name Micronauts.

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Lady Mechanika Reading Order, A Guide to Joe Benitez’s Steampunk Comics

Created by comic artist Joe Benitez, Lady Mechanika is a steampunk-inspired comic book series that debuted in 2010 with the one-shot Lady Mechanika #0 (later subtitled “The Demon of Satan’s Alley“). Originally published by Aspen Comics, then later under Benitez Productions, the series is composed of multiple miniseries.

Set in a steampunk world full of advanced Victorian-era technology, alchemy, and supernatural elements, the Lady Mechanika comic book series follows the adventures of a woman with mechanical limbs who has no memory of her past. Lady Mechanika is a detective and adventurer who is using her skills to uncover mysteries, battle villains, face off against shadowy organizations, and piece together the story of her origins.

Called by the tabloids “Lady Mechanika,” she’s the only survivor of a mad scientist’s cruel experiments that gave her mechanical limbs. With no memory of her past or captivity, she started a new life as an adventurer and private investigator, solving cases others couldn’t or wouldn’t. Still, she never gave up searching for the truth about her past.

With the help of Mr. Lewis, her loyal engineer who assists her with gadgets and technology, and later the young Winifred “Winnie” Huxley, Lady Mechanika navigates a world rich with clockwork automatons, airships, and a blend of science and magic. Read More »Lady Mechanika Reading Order, A Guide to Joe Benitez’s Steampunk Comics

Hawkgirl Kendra Saunders Reading Order

There were other Hawkgirls before Kendra Saunders made her first appearance in 1999 in JSA: Secret Files #1 (by James Robinson, David Goyer, and Scott Benefiel). It’s part of being Hawkgirl, an immortal warrior following a reincarnation cycle that reunites her with her lover Hawkman (Carter Hall).

But unlike past Hawkgirls who fully embrace their process, she actively resists it, trying to forge her own path rather than be bound by fate. A troubled young woman, Kendra Saunders died by suicide. When she was found by her grandfather, Speed Saunders, her body was miraculously revived—but her soul had been replaced by that of her ancestor, Shiera Hall, the original Hawkgirl.

While she doesn’t initially remember her past lives, she struggles with the memories of them and is pushed by unforeseen events to reunite with Carter and fight alongside the Justice Society of America to survive. Kendra retains her own personality and memories, and refuses to be defined by a past she doesn’t remember living.

However, she unconsciously acquires Shiera’s fighting skills and instincts. Like other Hawk avatars, she wields weaponry made from the mystical Nth Metal, which grants her flight, enhanced strength, and durability.

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Gwen Stacy: Her Life, Her Death, Her Clones

Recently, Marvel Comics announced another storyline about Gwen Stacy, one of those characters who has been killed but never came back to life. At least, it was not the original Gwen who came back. Her death is probably one of the most iconic and well-known in the medium’s entire history, one that had such an impact on Spider-Man that touching it would be considered sacrilegious to many fans. This never stops the House of Ideas from trying to find a way around it, making Gwen Stacy a sensible subject. As a character, her life was short in comparison to many others, but her influence is still felt to this day.

The Creation of Gwen Stacy

Created by writer Stan Lee and artist Steve Ditko, Gwen Stacy first appeared in The Amazing Spider-Man #31 (1965). She was introduced as one of Peter Parker’s college classmates at Empire State University, alongside Harry Osborn. Initially, Gwen was a background character, but as Ditko departed the book and John Romita Sr. took over as the main artist, her role expanded.

Lee and Romita made Gwen a sophisticated and fashionable young woman. She became Peter Parker’s primary love interest, embodying an idealized romance often filled with drama, misunderstandings, and heartbreak. Being Spider-Man always complicated Peter’s relationships, and with Gwen, this often led to conflicts. Following the death of her father, NYPD Captain George Stacy, in The Amazing Spider-Man #90, Gwen blamed Spider-Man for the tragedy, not realizing Peter was behind the mask, and she decided to leave for Europe as a way to grieve far away from everything that reminded her of the tragedy. However, her love for Peter quickly brought her back to New York and they rebuilt their relationship.

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Static Shock Reading Order

Helped by a popular 4-season animated show titled “Static Shock” broadcasted between 2004 and 2004 on the WB Television Network’s Kids’ WB programming block, Static became the most popular superhero from the Milestone Comics imprint (distributed by DC Comics). Even before the show started, he was already one of the highlights of the line.

Created by Dwayne McDuffie, Denys Cowan, Michael Davis, Derek T. Dingle, and Christopher Priest, Static made his first appearance in a 3-page preview in Icon #1 before the launch of the ongoing Static comics series written by McDuffie and Robert L. Washington III and illustrated by John Paul Leon. The comic book would last 45 issues but the characters appeared in more comics from the Milestone line as it was part of the shared universe called the Dakotaverse.

Static is really Virgil Hawkins, an African-American teenager living in Dakota City who gains his superpowers during the “Big Bang.” The Big Bang happened when the police disrupted a gang conflict by using an experimental gas with catastrophic consequences. This gas gave many people in the area superhuman abilities.
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Marvel Gallery Editions: The Complete List

Jeph Loeb & Tim Sale Spider-Man Gallery Edition

You can buy your comics in multiple formats and collections, but not all editions are equal. People at Marvel Comics know comic book fans don’t have the same relationship with their books. Some comics are good to be read in bulk, some are made to be looked at for hours. For those last ones, Marvel Gallery Editions are perfect.

The Gallery Editions Marvel Comics is publishing are larger than standard comic books, typically measuring around 9.3 x 13.25 inches, which is bigger than any other editions put out by Marvel. The idea behind that format is to allow readers to appreciate the artwork’s fine details and to look at the pencil and ink work in the best possible condition–it’s a chance to take a closer look at the drawings of legendary creators like Sal Buscema, Jim Starlin, Bill Sienkiewicz, Todd McFarlane, Joe Quesada, Tim Sale, and others like you could not before.

Many Marvel Gallery Editions include introductions, essays, or behind-the-scenes insights, offering context about the creative process and significance of the works. They also sometimes reproduce pages directly from the original art boards, including annotations, corrections, and margin notes.

As those Marvel Gallery Editions are high-quality oversized hardcover collections, books that use premium paper and binding, they are also premium-priced.

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Romance Comics: The Rise, Fall, and Legacy of a Genre

Cover of Young Romance #150

Nowadays, comics are de facto synonymous with superheroes. In reality, it’s just one genre among many, but it’s the one that has constantly dominated the market for the longest time and it’s now hard to get away from it. This was not always the case. At some point, horror and crime comics were all the rage, and there was even a romance comics craze.

Post-war America was tired of superheroes. It was 1947 and the comic book market was forced to evolve. At Timely Comics (it was not Marvel Comics yet), Martin Goodman started reducing the number of superhero books and replacing them with humor titles. It was a trend that Archie Comics Publications started with his teenage-oriented comics. Others followed, bifurcating into teenage romances.

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Milestone Comics Reading Order (Hardware, Icon, Blood Syndicate, and Static)

In 1993, DC Comics launched two major lines: Vertigo and Milestone. The first was developed to cater to an older, more mature audience, than the regular DC Comics line. The second was historically more significant as Milestone Comics was the first minority-owned comic book company, cofounded by four African-Americans who wanted to introduce a more realistic cultural diversity in American Superhero comics.

Dwayne McDuffie, Derek T. Dingle, Denys Cowan, and Michael Davis made a deal with DC Comics. Milestone would control the copyrights, the characters, the merchandising, and the creative direction, while DC Comics would print, license, and distribute the comics for a share of the profits. And so, Milestone Comics was launched in February 1993 with the publication of Hardware #1 by Dwayne McDuffie and Jimmy Palmiotti. Then came Blood Syndicate by Ivan Velez Jr. and Chris Cross, Icon by McDuffie and M.D. Bright, and Static by McDuffie, Robert Washington III, John Paul Leon, and Steve Mitchell.

The launch was a total success, but it didn’t last long. Milestone Comics ceased regular publication in 1997 due to financial difficulties. Its cultural impact was nevertheless important (and still is) and its return was discussed for a long time. It finally happened in 2021 and came with a modernized take on the now-classic comics.

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White Tiger Reading Order (Hector Ayala, Angela del Toro, and Ava Ayala)

In 1974, Marvel Comics was in the business of publishing magazines. One of them was The Deadly Hands of Kung Fu, a black-and-white martial arts comics magazine that introduced in its first issue The Sons of the Tiger, a trio of crime fighters. Created by Gerry Conway and Dick Giordano, these characters each possessed an amulet (a tiger’s head and two tiger claws) that increased their fighting skills.

But this didn’t last and after many adventures, the three sons call it quits and throw away their amulets. However, in The Deadly Hands of Kung Fu #19, an issue from writer Bill Mantlo and artist George Pérez, they are found by a young Puerto Rican named Hector Ayala who combined them and gained the power that transformed him into the hero called White Tiger!

Like the three sons, Hector Ayala used martial arts but acted like a more traditional superhero with a costume and a secret identity. With The Deadly Hands of Kung Fu #33, the comics magazine ended, and the black-and-white adventures of White Tiger with it (his ended in #32 though). A few months later, he made his comeback, in color this time, in Peter Parker, The Spectacular Spider-Man #9 written by Bill Mantlo who kept using the character that way.

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The Rocketeer Reading Order, A guide to Dave Stevens’ cult comics and the IDW miniseries

First appearing as a backup feature in Starslayer #2, published by Pacific Comics in 1982, The Rocketeer is a now-cult comic book created by Dave Stevens (1955-2008) who was heavily inspired by the aesthetic of pulp magazines, early Hollywood serials, and vintage aviation.

Set in 1930s Los Angeles, the story of The Rocketeer follows Cliff Secord, a young and cocky stunt pilot trying to make a name for himself. Cliff’s life takes an unexpected turn when he discovers a mysterious rocket pack hidden in his hangar. This experimental device allows him to fly, making him a target at the same time as it was originally stolen by gangsters during a botched robbery and ends up in Cliff’s possession. They want it back, as does its creator, Howard Hughes. Soon, Cliff’s girlfriend, an aspiring actress and model named Betty, becomes entangled in Cliff’s adventures when villains attempt to use her to get to him. To make matters worse, the Nazis view the rocket pack as a potential weapon that could give them a significant advantage in their plans for world domination and want to get it for themselves.

A skilled storyteller and an exceptionally gifted artist, Stevens injected everything he liked in the comics. From his love of the iconic pin-up model Bettie Page to retro-futurism and aviation culture, the aesthetic of pulp magazines and early serials, and the glamour of the Golden Age of Hollywood.

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