SUPER SPECIAL ELUSIVE #7

Side Quest - Marvel Super Special #10

My comic journey began in the best decade, the '80’s. Most summers were spent at the “shore” on the boardwalk in Ocean City, New Jersey. The benefits of being a kid on the boardwalk included quick access via bike to the dollar candy store and a discount book store with 50% off on overstock comics. I was able to quickly acquire a number of Spidey’s, Star-lord, Avengers, and Silver Surfer comics. My favorite comics have always centered around galaxy exploration & sci-fi. While my friends were diving into X-Men, I was building out a great collection of Silver Surfer and Star Lord titles. Marvel Super Special #10 to this day is one of my favorite comics.

Fast forward 4 decades and I’ve found enjoyment in building out the rest of the Super Special set with a focus on NM quality covers in the 9.0-9.8 range. There is a TON of 1970’s & 1980’s nostalgia built into this 41-issue set. Marvel's showcase magazine is a great slice of Americana that will have you downloading various movies for weeks as you re-live some great memories.

Just in time for Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, my family watched Raiders of the Lost Ark and The Temple of Doom. The opening scene instantly had my kid's attention as a boulder tried to turn Indy into a pancake. My kids were seriously debating Indiana's judgement as he reaches to save his hat despite the risk to life and limb.

Raiders of the Lost Ark was the highest grossing film of 1981, is considered one of the greatest films ever made, and one of the great collaborative efforts of George Lucas and Steven Spielberg. With all of the film and TV series adaptations in this collection there is plenty of material to reminisce over.

Real Kiss Blood! Marvel Super Special #1

KISS, the stars of the 1st Marvel Comics Super Special, added their blood into the ink for the 1st issue as a publicity stunt. The premiere issue features the band battling Doctor Doom and Mephisto.

Let me be clear – there is no better comic magazine on the planet. Immediately mortgage your home or sell your golden age comics and go buy a copy of KISS. Where else are you going to capture a double-sized mag, actual ink-entombed DNA of the band members, interviews, a historical discography, and pics of the band?

Marvel and Kiss went on to sell over 500,000 copies and Marvel Comics Super Special also served as the entry point for Marvel into the rock magazine genre. Steve Gerber was employed by Stan to write and via the rock ‘n roll process met with Alan Miller, group promotions, and Bill Aucoin, group manager.

Marvel Super Specials faced a multitude of licensing hurdles, film and TV contracts, and ever-changing writers. As a result, the quality, quantity, and artwork varies greatly. Ultimately, there are issues that are clear “winners” and some that are rather lack-luster. As a completionist, I’ll continue to collect & slab until I have all 41 issues graded 9.0 or better by CGC.

Labor of Love

The beginnings of a great collection are found in the thrill of the hunt, from memorable associations with friends or family, in the fantastic comic art, and from the back stories of the writers and artists involved in production of the comics. The Marvel Super Special set produced Treasury size magazines, book size versions, and lots of posters adding to the depth and complexity of this particular set. The next photo highlights some of the Treasury size versions as well as the VF/NM copies I've compiled for CGC grading to complete the set.

More Marvel Magic

Marvel leveraged their magazine to showcase The Empire Strikes Back, and 3-years later, Return of the Jedi. The artwork for the cover, by Bob Larkin, was also used in a number of other books including a super-large comic and coloring book. The magazine and movie hit the shelves and movie screen in the spring of 1980. The same story and artwork from the magazine was utilized by Marvel in the Marvel Star Wars comic issues 39-44 later that year.

Al Williamson illustrated Marvel Super Special 16 and the magazine includes some wonderful one-page illustrations and a pin-up poster. George Lucas had seen Williamson's artwork with EC Comics and Flash Gordon. Williamson's prior work made him Lucas’ top choice to be an illustrator for the Star Wars comics. Lucas specifically requested Williamson for the job, Williamson finally accepted, and he went on to illustrate Blade Runner and the Return of the Jedi adaptations for Marvel as well as the Star Wars comic strip in 1981.

Another great cover in this set is Jaws 2. The Daily Jaws said it best, “Back in 1978, there was no home video, no Netflix or Prime, so the only way you could relive the magic of Jaws 2 was to see it until it vanished from cinema screens. Jaws 2 Marvel Super Special was full color and larger format than normal comics, but most importantly, it was full of killer shark action that you could relive again and again until Jaws 2 was re-released or wound up on television.” The comic magazine was an adaptation, but in this case based on the original script of John Hancock. Hancock was removed from the film and replaced. The final version of the film had late rewrites that differ from the magazine script.

One of the best features of this Marvel set is the diversity of creative work. You can jump into a cult classic like Buckaroo Banzai, a magical fantasy with Weirdworld, or pick your favorite sci-fi title. One of the better adaptations across the series is Dune. Dune is an adaptation of the movie, which is an adaptation of the books. Bill Sienkiewicz hits a homerun with his artwork for Dune. Prior to quality CGI, movies often struggled to capture scale; great artwork often did a better job. Dune is a great example of solid artwork and I'd encourage you to pick up a worn out copy to enjoy, as well as a quality copy to slab.

Best, Fantastic Firth