We are introduced to a new prestige format book (the aforementioned Versus books) that are $1.50. Alpha Flight becomes a Direct Market only title (announced Sep cover date).Ĭover prices remain steady at 75 cents.
A new ongoing Punisher series is launched by Mike Baron and Klaus Janson and Steve Englehart and Marshall Rogers begin a new Silver Surfer series. Bright begin fan favorite runs on Daredevil, Hulk, and Iron Man, respectively. Walt Simonson ends his run on Thor.Īnn Nocenti, Peter David/Todd McFarlane, and David Michelinie/Bob Layton/M.D. Stern also doesn't get to finish the X-Men vs. Roger Stern is fired from the Avengers this year (his final plotline will continue into next year), and he's also off Fantastic Four, replaced by Steve Englehart. Steve Rogers gives up being Captain America. Both weddings will eventually be reversed.
The Human Torch and Alicia Masters are also married. The Spider-books continue to rattle from the fall-out of Christopher Priest getting similarly forced out a little earlier, but Jim Salicrup does some housecleaning, and the Spider-books do have some significant events this year: Peter Parker and Mary Jane Watson's wedding and Kraven's Last Hunt. Shooter by his own admission had become less focused on the day to day due to the political battles he was fighting, while to hear the staff and freelancers to tell it, he had long since reached tyrannical levels of micromanagement. Of course there's no hint of the behind-the-scenes battles that came with that and the new owners, New World Pictures, but the notice does call Shooter "unquestionably one of the most talented creative people" in the industry and touts his innovations in new formats, new concepts, and new series. The Bullpen Bulletins in the Nov 87 cover date issues announce the end of Jim Shooter's reign and the replacement by Tom DeFalco.
However, Marvel is publishing a large quantity of New Universe, Epic, and Star books, plus GI Joe, Transformers, and other various things (e.g. And there's no mega-event this year, compared to last year's Secret Wars II or even something at the Mutant Massacre level. Wolverine) and the long-planned Fallen Angels mutant spin-off.
the Avengers, and Mephisto vs.) (there is also another "versus" oneshot: Spider-Man vs. The mini-series that we do have are more event driven: three "Versus" books (FF vs. Note that there are no in-universe licensed books at this time, and there are no minor character mini-series along the lines of Gargoyle or Balder the Brave that we've seen in the past few years. Strange and Cloak & Dagger into a single Strange Tales book, Marvel's regular output is really reduced to what you would think of as "core" books. After the cancellations that happened in 1986, this year might have the highest ratio of non-continuity to Marvel universe books.