1972 was a year of transitions for Marvel Comics as Stan Lee was being promoted, he started to hand over to his protégé Roy Thomas his management responsibilities, making him the new editor-in-chief of the company. It was also the time when Marvel finally passed DC in overall sales. And it was a time when superheroes were not that hot. Their popularity was not as strong and Marvel bet on diversification in order to stay relevant.
Taking advantage of the loosening of the Comics Code, Marvel launched new horror titles like The Tomb of Dracula, Ghost Rider, The Man-Thing, and Werewolf by Night, of course. Back then, Roy Thomas was trying a lot of new concepts.
It was not the first time Marvel published a Werewolf by Night story, as the title was already used once in 1953. Back then, it was just a short story collected in Marvel Tales #116. The 1970s Werewolf by Night was, however, something new, based on an idea by Roy Thomas who worked with co-plotter Jean Thomas, writer Gerry Conway, and artist Mike Ploog.
This new character was then introduced to the readers in an anthology book—like most new ones were back then—, Marvel Spotlight #2 (February 1972). The story was in three parts and, after Marvel Spotlight #4, the monster got his own ongoing series launched in September 1972. He even opened the gate for more monsters.
The Origins of Werewolf by Night
Roy Thomas’s idea for Werewolf by Night was a cross between Spider-Man and the 1957 B-Movie “I Was a Teenage Werewolf.” Plus, he envisioned the story narrated by the hero himself.
Thomas’s original idea for the title was “I, Werewolf,” but Stan Lee didn’t like it and suggested calling it “Werewolf by Night.” Thomas went with it and started to co-plot the origin of the character with Jean Thomas, and then gave it to Gerry Conway and Mike Ploog, the creative team in charge of the book.
The story goes like this: On his 18th birthday, Jack Russell discovers that he has inherited his father’s curse. He suffers from lycanthropy, the werewolf disease. Every full Moon night, he turns into a werewolf. Jack discovers that his mother, Laura, fell in love with a mysterious man while abroad in Transylvania for her studies. His family was cursed and Jack would try to find a cure for him and for his younger sister Lissa, before she experienced the same transformation herself.
Jack Russell spent the next few years as a traveler and finally learned of the Darkhold, a book that could help him put an end to his curse. During his travels, Jack fought bikers, demons, a group of businessmen called “the Committee,” and all sorts of criminals. He also met heroes like Spider-Man, Spider-Woman, Ghost Rider, Iron Man, Tigra, Frankenstein’s Monster, and Moon Knight. He even joined the Legion of Monsters.
Werewolf by Night Publication History
After his short run in Marvel Spotlight, Jack Russell came back with the first volume of Werewolf by Night. This ongoing series lasted for 43 issues, the last one being published in 1977.
After that, the Werewolf guest-starred in Moon Knight, Spider-Woman, West Coast Avengers, and Doctor Strange: Sorcerer Supreme, before getting a storyline in the pages of the comic book anthology Marvel Comics Presents. He later became a supporting character in Morbius: The Living Vampire during the 1990s.
The second volume of Werewolf by Night was published in 1998. It only lasted 6 issues before being canceled. The story continued in Strange Tales that was also quickly canceled. After a one-shot titled “Legion of Monsters: Werewolf by Night” in 2007, Jack Russell came back in 2009 with the four-issue limited series Dead of Night Featuring Werewolf by Night, and later did a storyline in Franken-Castle as a member of the Legion of Monsters—as we see it again in the Legion of Monsters 2011 miniseries and other series as a guest star.
In 2020, Marvel launched the third volume of Werewolf by Night, but with a new werewolf named Jake Gomez. This has nothing to do with Jack Russell.
Werewolf by Night Reading Order: Collected Editions
This is not a detailed or even complete Werewolf by Night Reading Order, but a selection of the essential books to read with the character.
- Werewolf By Night: The Complete Collection Vol. 1
Collects Marvel Spotlight (1971) #2–4, Werewolf By Night (1972) #1–15, Marvel Team-Up (1972) #12, Tomb of Dracula (1972) #18.- Also available in Marvel Masterworks: Werewolf by Night Vol. 1.
- Werewolf By Night: The Complete Collection Vol. 2
Collects Werewolf By Night (1972) #16–30, Giant-Size Creatures #1, Giant-Size Werewolf #2–4, and material from Monsters Unleashed (1973) #6–7. - Werewolf By Night: The Complete Collection Vol. 3
Collects Giant-Size Werewolf #5; Werewolf By Night (1972) #31–43; Marvel Premiere #28; Spider-Woman (1978) #6, #19 And #32; Marvel Team-Up (1972) #93; Ghost Rider (1973) #55; Moon Knight (1980) #29 (A Story) And #30; And Material From Marvel Premiere #59. - Legion Of Monsters
Collects Legion of Monsters: Werewolf by Night #1 and Legion of Monsters: Morbius #1, Legion of Monsters: Man-Thing #1, Legion of Monsters: Satana #1 - Dead of Night Featuring Werewolf by Night
Collects Dead Of Night Featuring Werewolf By Night #1–4, Tomb Of Dracula #18 And Werewolf By Night #15. - Punisher, Vol. 3: Franken-Castle
Collects Dark Reign: The List—Punisher, Punisher (2009) #11–16, Franken-Castle #17–21, Dark Wolverine #88–89 - Legion of Monsters
Collects Legion of Monsters (2011) #1–4.