TASCHEN and Marvel Entertainment Announce ‘The Marvel Comics Library’;
Spider-Man. Vol. 1. 1962–1964 To Kick Off Long-Term Collaboration Today
New Series Reproduces Marvel’s Rarest Comics in Extra-Large Format.
New York, NY – December 7, 2021 – ‘The Marvel Comics Library’, an exclusive, long-term collaboration between TASCHEN and Marvel, was announced today. Over the next decade, Marvel’s rarest classic comics, including Spider-Man, Avengers and Captain America will be reproduced in their original glory, in extra-large format. The library offers collectors a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to lay their hands on the world’s most desirable comics.
The inaugural volume of ‘The Marvel Comics Library’, Spider-Man. Vol. 1. 1962–1964, features the first 21 stories of everybody’s favorite web slinger, meticulously honoring the original vision of Spider-Man creators Stan Lee and Steve Ditko. An in-depth historical essay by Marvel editor Ralph Macchio, an introduction by uber-collector David Mandel, original art boards, rare photographs, and other never-before-seen gems make this book the ultimate tribute to the teen who redefined what it meant to be a hero, right ahead of Spider-Man’s 60th birthday.
TASCHEN’s extra-large format, close in size to the original artworks, reveal startling new details in the work of Marvel’s most acclaimed artists. For each title in the series, the most pristine pedigreed comics (from the collection of our own SHELTON DRUM!) have been cracked open for reproduction in close collaboration with Marvel and the Certified Guaranty Company. Rather than recolor the original production artwork (as has been done in previous decades’ reprints of classic comics), TASCHEN has attempted to create an ideal representation of these books as they were produced at the time of publication. Beginning with high grade, top-quality comics sourced with the assistance of the CGC, super-high-resolution photographs of each page were made as printed more than half a century ago, using modern retouching techniques to correct problems with the era’s inexpensive, imperfect printing. This included improved and balanced ink densities and color matching, proper registration of the four-color printing and correction of thick/thin lines resulting from the flexible plates “smudging.” The end result is a finished product — as if hot off a world-class printing press produced without economic or time-pressure constraints – tailored for readers, fans, artists and collectors alike.
Each volume features an essay by a comic book historian alongside hundreds of photos and artifacts. The books use three different paper stocks, including an uncoated and wood-free paper exclusively developed for this series that simulates the feel of the original comics.
The first 5,000 copies of Spider-Man. Vol. 1 will be numbered and released as a ‘Famous First Edition’. The book is also available as a Collector’s Edition, limited to 1,000 copies featuring an aluminum print cover tipped into a leatherette-bound spine, foil embossing, and housed in a slipcase. Each book is individually numbered. The inaugural purchase of the Collector’s Edition entitles the collector to the selection of a personal favorite number between 1 and 1,000 on a first-come-first-serve basis. This will also secure a preemptive right to reserve a copy with the identical edition number for all forthcoming Collector’s Edition titles in ‘The Marvel Comic Library’.
The next titles in ‘The Marvel Comics Library’ series will be Avengers. Vol. 1. 1963–1965, Fantastic Four. Vol. 1. 1961–1963 and Captain America, all scheduled for release in 2022 and 2023.
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Shelton granted exclusive and unprecedented access to some of his most prized and beloved comics, and art, to assist in the creation of this comics tome.
“Working with TASCHEN and the CGC on these books has been an honor. The finished product FAR EXCEEDS any pre-conceived expectations I may have held! I just opened the box with the book, and I know the word might be overused, but it is AMAZING! The production quality is awesome. I love it!”
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The Marvel Comics Library. Spider-Man. Vol. 1. 1962–1964
Hardcover, 11 x 15.6 in., 10.62 lb, 698 pages
US$ 200.00
Famous First Edition: First printing of 5,000 numbered copies
Will ship in January 2022
Also available in a Collector’s Edition of 1,000 numbered copies
Hardcover with ChromaLuxe aluminum print cover tipped into a leatherette-bound spine.
11 x 15.6 in., 5.05 kg (11.13 lb), 698 pages, in a slipcase
Please inquire about availibility.
US$ 600.00
JUSTIN’S PICK :: SPIDER-MAN AND WOLVERINE BY WELLS AND MADUREIRA HC: I’m just gonna come out with it: in comics, Joe Madureira is to the 90s what Michael Golden was to the 80s; that is, Mad’s relatively modest body of work is comparatively massive in its influence. Traces of his kinetic, amped-up brand of storytelling are all over the stands today. With his stint on Uncanny X-Men, Mad conquered the comic book world. And while I am a bit disappointed he’s forgone proper inkers on his past few projects, the results have still been pretty great. This volume collects Mad’s yarns with scribe Zeb Wells, originally aired in the pages of Avenging Spider-Man (which I blabbed about 
