Marvel annuals used to be truly special in the early days, but there came a time when someone at Marvel came up with the "neat idea" to monetize them by linking them together in a massive "event" to "force" readers to buy them all. For me, the "gold standard" (for DC as well Marvel) has always been Fantastic Four Annuals #1-6.
ANNUAL #1: "Sub-Mariner Versus the Human Race!"
"At Last! Sub-Mariner finds his long-lost race!" - "The longest uniterrupted super-epic of its kind ever published!!"
The Sub-Mariner is (arguably) Marvel's first hero of the Golden Age, and, having been reintroduced in Fantastic Four #4 after a seven-year absense, he was in right at the start of the Silver Age as well. By the time he was featured in FF Annual #1, he had already appeared in four of the first 14 issues (plus one of Strange Tales); only Doctor Doom (with five appearances at that point) had appeared more often. In addition to the main story, readers also got a six-pager expanding upon the first meeting the the FF and Spidey from Spider-Man #1, eleven pin-ups of villains from the first 17 issues, and several other special features as well.
This was no ordinary issue. Ironically, 26 years later, this annual would spawn one of the lamest of those crossover "events" I alluded to above.
ANNUAL #2: "The Final Victory of Dr. Doom!"
By the time of the second annual, Doom had appeared one additional time bringing his grand total of previous FF appearances up to six. In addition to the main story, readers were also treated to "the never-before revealed 'Origin of Dr. Doom'... in all its pulse-pounding suspense, plus six additional pin-ups of villains from #18-30 plus five of the team plus Alicia as well. Regarding the main story, there is one scene which has been discussed quite frequently (including on this board) over the years: the face-to-face meeting of Dr. Doom and Rama Tut. In it, neither one is quite sure but they both admit the possibility the one might be the other's future self. That is patentently absurd on the face of it. In a (much) later story, Roger Stern even attempt to account for this scene by explaining that Doom was still disoriented from his ordeal in FF #23 and that Rama Tut was just playing him along. John Byrne later established exactly who Rama Tut is, but upon rereading the scene in question, it is certainly possibly to interpret that they obviously discussing alternate timelines, but both men are so brilliant they don't both to condescend to each other what they're talking about. Was that what Lee/Kirby intended? Certainly not, but the scene can be read that way.
ANNUAL #3: "The Wedding of Sue and Reed!"
If FF Annuals #1-6 are those by which all other annuals are to be judged, then certain FF Annual #3 is the Gold Standard of which by which all comic book wedding issues are to be judged. 'Nuff said.
ANNUAL #4: "The Torch That Was!"
If Sub-Mariner was not Marvel's first hero of the Golden Age, then the Human Torch certainly was. It had been 12 years since the original Human Torch had appeared in present day continuity, and it would be another 23 until he was seen again. Annual #4 was released during what I consider to be the peak period of the Fantastic Four, truly the best of the best.
ANNUAL #5: "Divide... And Conquer!"
Continuing through the peak period of the Fantastic Four.The cover blurb pretty much says it all: "Featuring: The Inhumans! The Black Panther! And a most surprising ANNOUNCEMENT from Mr. Fantastic!" In Annual #3 Reed and Sue got married. Do I really have to tell you what Mr. Fantastic's "surprising announcement" is? this issue also introduces the Psycho-Man. Plus pin-ups of the Inhumans and the team, and a three-page "behind-the-scenes" humor feature about how Stan and Jack go about plotting a typical issue of FF. All that as well as a Silver Surfer solo lead-in to his own upcoming series.
ANNUAL #6: "Let There Be... LIFE!"
"Featiuring: The Glory of BIRTH, 'Neath the Shadow of DEATH!"
In order to save Sue's life, Mr. Fantastic, the Thing and the Torch must travel into the Negative Zone, where they encounter Annihilus. In #3 Red and Sue were married, in #5 he announnced she was pregnant, and in #6 she gave birth, a series of events unique to the realm of comic books at that time. Unfortunately, that's where the creativity stopped for a while, as far as the annuals were concerned. With #7 they became vehicles for reprints, but for a time these annualls could not be beat! They are all good, but I, personally, am particularly fond of the last three: #4 introduces Quasimodo, his story continues in the Silver Surfer back-up in #5, and of course I've already mentioned how the announcement of Sue's pregnancy in #5 led to her giving birth in #6.
I'll tell what I'd like to see: a hardcover collection of the original material of just these six annuals.
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I first read Fantastic Four Annual #4 (1966) when it was reprinted as a fill-in in #189 (D'77). By that point, I had already seen the Golden Age Human Torch in both the Human Torch reprint series and The Invaders.
Sadly, the character was brought back (haphazzardly IMHO) just to solidify Marvel's claim to him. And his creator, Carl Burgos, was working for Marvel at the time! He was not happy about it!
While Stan & Jack revived Jim Hammond for legal reasons and to end his story, Roy Thomas constantly used him out of love!
My understanding is that Carl Burgos was preparing to take ownership of the android Human Torch, since at that point he hadn’t been used for many years by Marvel. Stan Lee (who was not the boss) was ordered my Martin Goodman to write this story to retain ownership. It was reported that Carl Burgos was so upset that he destroyed all of his original art and comic books.
(On-sale dates from Mike’s Amazing World)
ANNUAL #1: "Sub-Mariner Versus the Human Race!" (on sale July 2, 1963)
Fifteen-year-old me was delighted with this annual and everything between its covers.
ANNUAL #2: "The Final Victory of Dr. Doom!" (on sale July 2, 1964)
My short-lived break from comics was between Jan ’63 and Sep ‘63, so I bought both annuals 1 and 2 off the rack.
When I first experienced the Fantastic Four in FF #5, I was impressed that the villain created in that issue used a combination of science and magic. Also, without digging into all of the preceding Dr Doom stories, I’m pretty sure this was the first Latveria story. Turning Doom into the ruler of a mysterious country was a major, positive change.
ANNUAL #3: "The Wedding of Sue and Reed!" (on sale July 1, 1965)
I’m pretty sure that this story had every Marvel character, good and bad, that existed at the time, including the latest appearance of Stan and Jack, faceless, in wedding attire. Crazy, but enjoyable.
ANNUAL #4: "The Torch That Was!" (on sale August 2, 1966)
I had just graduated from high school. Two months after the on-sale date, I started working in County elections, from which I would eventually retire.
This was actually the first “Special” instead of “Annual.” Sporting a cover date, it was now considered a periodical. Up until then, annuals were taxed and periodicals were not in my state (and probably others). DC’s solution was worse, assigning actual issue numbers from the run of the title. Being a Special, Marvel could now justify more than one such in a calendar year. I think they may have on Spider-Man.
If Sub-Mariner was not Marvel's first hero of the Golden Age, then the Human Torch certainly was.
I haven’t read as many of the Golden Age stories as many of you on the board, but I’m pretty sure that the Torch was a hero from the start. Sub-Mariner was a villain until Pearl Harbor, after which he became a hero and fought the Axis along with all the Timely heroes.
ANNUAL #5: "Divide... And Conquer!" (on sale August 1, 1967)
This annual didn’t make a lasting impression on me. Possibly this is because I’ve never been very excited about the Inhumans. Also, the look of Psycho Man is off-putting to me. Kirby’s overly complex costumes, as time went on, became just ugly.
ANNUAL #6: "Let There Be... LIFE!" (on sale August 13, 1968)
Twenty-year-old me probably bought this one at a newsstand in Washington, DC. I had just gone to my first assignment just outside of there, after army basic training, having been drafted in April. The County gave me credit for my army time as if I was there.
I never warmed up to the Negative Zone, Annihilus or (later) Blastaar. Monster antagonists are never as interesting as non-monster ones. This is probably similar to the way I preferred Green Lantern stories set on Earth.
Typo alert: …the announcement of Sue's pregnancy in #5 lead to her giving birth in #5.
This was actually the first “Special” instead of “Annual.” Sporting a cover date, it was now considered a periodical. Up until then, annuals were taxed and periodicals were not in my state (and probably others).
Huh. I did not know that.
Torch was a hero from the start. Sub-Mariner was a villain until Pearl Harbor
I wasn't referring to his role within the Marvel Timely universe at that point so much as his status as the (arguably) first super-powered character. Arguments in favor of the Torch are that, like Superman, he was featured on the cover of Marvel Comics #1 (and most of the covers thereafter) as well as the lead spot in the anthology. But Bill Everett's work was so far beyond Carl Burgos' (IMO) and the Sub-Mariner plays such a prominent role throughout Marvel Comics' history, there's no question in my mind that Prince Namor is "first." YMMV
I never warmed up to the Negative Zone, Annihilus or (later) Blastaar.
Blastaar first appeared in FF #62 (May '67) and Annihilus in Annual #6 (1968). Or did you mean later for you?
Typo alert
Corrected (both of them).
It's funny how some things stick in your memory. In the summer of 1963 our family took a road trip from Detroit to Ottawa Canada where my father grew up. I had just started reading comic books a few months earlier and I had a few with me to read along the way - mostly Superman related titles.
One early morning my Dad took me for a walk before anyone else in the family was awake. We passed a drug store along the way. The store had a spinner rack in the window and I remember stopping and staring at the comics. I don't remember any of the comics on display except one - FF Annual #1. Something about that cover obviously made a big impression on me. Unfortunately the store hadn't yet opened otherwise I'm sure I would have picked up my first ever issue of the Fantastic Four.
I have never looked at these annual covers in a group before. What that jumps out at me is all the blurbs and arrows and boxes and vignettes and exclamation points. These were busy, busy covers telling you how special and amazing the insides were with every tool at their disposal. It isn't until #6 that the modern approach creeps in, with a single scene and just a single sentence. I kinda miss all that hype. But then, I miss everything from when I was young, because I'm not any more. I'm sure a modern audience would be turned off by all that breathless puffery.
Also, it's obvious every annual included some important character debut or continuity bit. If you were a Fantastic Four reader, you had to buy the annuals to keep up. A less cynical way to look at it is that they were, indeed, special.
This was actually the first “Special” instead of “Annual.” Sporting a cover date, it was now considered a periodical. Up until then, annuals were taxed and periodicals were not in my state (and probably others). DC’s solution was worse, assigning actual issue numbers from the run of the title.
This is amazing information that I am today years old learning! It explains so much! The Li'l Capn was annoyed that some annuals were Annuals and some were Specials, as they were all obviously Annuals. As a result of my annoyance, I didn't bother to memorize which was which, and do not know off-hand to this day. That'll teach 'em! If it's OK with y'all, I'll just keep calling them "annuals," regardless of their official designation.
As for DC, their annuals were always reprint, and -- as you say, Richard -- incorporated into the numbering of the series, so I didn't really think of them as annuals. Or think about them much at all. Many of them came out the same month as a regular issue of the series (although cover dates/numbers would be different) so they didn't even interrupt my steady diet of whatever it was. I did like seeing older stories I'd have no other way of reading.
And DC was weird anyway, with so many books on an 8-times-a-year schedule, vs. Marvel's steady monthly or bi-monthly. Come to think of it, I don't have an official explanation for that, either. Were they publishing fewer books in the winter months, when kids were in school or involved in holidays? That was always my assumption, since the 8-timers seemed to never skip June, July and August, which is when the annuals seemed to come out, too. If they were heavy in summer, then it suggests they'd be light in winter, by whatever logic they were using.
One early morning my Dad took me for a walk before anyone else in the family was awake. We passed a drug store along the way. The store had a spinner rack in the window and I remember stopping and staring at the comics. I don't remember any of the comics on display except one - FF Annual #1. Something about that cover obviously made a big impression on me. Unfortunately the store hadn't yet opened otherwise I'm sure I would have picked up my first ever issue of the Fantastic Four.
Wow. That's a great memory. And a wistful one. "Of all sad words of tongue or pen, the saddest are these, 'It might have been.'"
Sadly, the character [Human Torch] was brought back (haphazardly IMHO) just to solidify Marvel's claim to him.
I've read this somewhere, but I didn't know it when I read FF Annual #4. I was pretty hyped, because I knew the original Human Torch had a long run before I was born, and I don't think I'd ready any Golden Age reprints yet. I wanted to learn all about him! But ...
Stan & Jack revived Jim Hammond for legal reasons and to end his story.
My reaction was, "Aw, man!" They brought him back and then buried him before I learned much of anything. What a waste! Of course, adult me realizes that the prevailing wisdom at the time was having more than one character with the same name was adjudged to be confusing to the youngsters presumed to be reading the books. Eventually the publishers realized that we could handle two Captain Americas, several Flashes and approximately a bajillion Green Lanterns from Earth.
It was reported that Carl Burgos was so upset that he destroyed all of his original art and comic books.
I can understand that. It looks crazy to us now, and it is self-destructive, but consider that back issues and original art weren't as lucrative then as now, and were probably taking up a lot of room at Burgos' house. And it was something he could control, whereas Marvel's legal moves were not. So he made a statement. And it sorta worked, since we're still talking about it.
Similarly, my reaction to the November election was to delete all news apps from my devices, remove the TV from the Cave, stop watching any and all news channels and close my subscriptions to The New York Times and the Washington Post. This is similarly self-destructive, as I won't know what's going on and it won't change anything. But I have made a statement, at least to myself. I have controlled what I can control. And my mental health will improve. Besides, I'll find it all out eventually -- possibly from my fellow inmates when I'm put in a camp -- and I don't need to be disappointed in my country multiple times every day.
I'm sure I'll reverse course eventually, but right now I'm enjoying the silence. In the house, and between my ears.
Fifteen-year-old me was delighted with this annual [FF Annual #1] and everything between its covers.
And I have no doubt it was a revelation at the time. I had a different experience, in that I read annual #2 before I read #1, and "The Final Victory of Dr. Doom!" was so awesome that "Sub-Mariner Versus the Human Race!" was a bit of a let-down. But then, I liked Doctor Doom a whole lot more than Sub-Mariner back then. (Still do.)
But don't let my subjective experience change an iota of yours. I'm delighted to hear that it was a big splash (ha!) when it first came out. I wish I'd read them in the correct order.
Turning Doom into the ruler of a mysterious country was a major, positive change.
Since I was reading those stories out of order, Doom had always been the ruler of Latveria to me, so I didn't see it the way you did: As a major upgrade of the character. And you're right, that's major and positive. Being a head of state elevates Doom above petty super-villains and justifies (to a degree) his enormous self-regard, grandiosity and referring to himself in the third person (or using the royal "we").
As you can probably tell, Richard, I love hearing about you experiencing these stories in a linear fashion -- as they were supposed to have been read -- since I did not.
I’m pretty sure that this story ["The Wedding of Reed and Sue"] had every Marvel character, good and bad, that existed at the time, including the latest appearance of Stan and Jack, faceless, in wedding attire. Crazy, but enjoyable.
It was, indeed, and I loved every bit of it. Patsy and Hedy were there too, weren't they?
Forgotten amid the melee is that Reed Richards won by overpowering Doctor Doom mentally. That put an end to the intellectual competition for the reader, but von Doom kept saying he was superior, even after decisive evidence to the contrary. To this reader, it didn't sound like a question or a sincere belief any more -- it sounded like jealousy, and a certain river in Egypt.
This annual [#5] didn’t make a lasting impression on me. Possibly this is because I’ve never been very excited about the Inhumans.
Same.
Also, the look of Psycho Man is off-putting to me. Kirby’s overly complex costumes, as time went on, became just ugly.
I took his outfit to be a riff on the Apollo space suits, which would have been in the news at the time. But I wasn't a huge Kirby fan at the time (I have since grown more appreciative), so I probably echoed your thoughts about the ugliness.
I never warmed up to the Negative Zone, Annihilus or (later) Blastaar. Monster antagonists are never as interesting as non-monster ones. This is probably similar to the way I preferred Green Lantern stories set on Earth.
I didn't care one way or the other about the Negative Zone. But what set FF apart from other titles to young me was the element of discovery. I was disappointed that the FF went back to the same well, instead of creating a new one.
The Sub-Mariner is (arguably) Marvel's first hero of the Golden Age ...
I’m pretty sure that the Torch was a hero from the start. Sub-Mariner was a villain until Pearl Harbor
I wasn't referring to his role within the Marvel Timely universe at that point so much as his status as the (arguably) first super-powered character.
You're both right. But I'm surprised that nobody has brought up that Sub-Mariner actually was published first, before Marvel Comics #1, in the failed Motion Picture Funnies Weekly #1.
Captain Comics said:
And DC was weird anyway, with so many books on an 8-times-a-year schedule, vs. Marvel's steady monthly or bi-monthly. Come to think of it, I don't have an official explanation for that, either. Were they publishing fewer books in the winter months, when kids were in school or involved in holidays? That was always my assumption, since the 8-timers seemed to never skip June, July and August, which is when the annuals seemed to come out, too. If they were heavy in summer, then it suggests they'd be light in winter, by whatever logic they were using.
I don’t think I’ve ever seen mention of this before today. My assumption always was that DC believed that kids had more time to read comics and other fun things when they were on Summer vacation. I guess it worked for DC or they would have abandoned it earlier.
Of course, adult me realizes that the prevailing wisdom at the time was having more than one character with the same name was adjudged to be confusing to the youngsters presumed to be reading the books. Eventually the publishers realized that we could handle two Captain Americas, several Flashes and approximately a bajillion Green Lanterns from Earth.
Maybe they got a single letter expressing confusion? Or was it that the older editors were confused? Readers were supposedly confused by multiple Earths. The only one that seemed confused about this was Bob Haney.
It turns out that I was mistaken about Amazing Spider-Man having more than one “Special” per year. Just one in the Summer.
At DC, they hit it harder with their “Giants” (1966-70). AFAIK, these were 100% reprints:
Action Comics was one per year, on sale in January
Superman was two per year, on sale in April and October
Batman was three in 1966 and two per year on sale in May and November from 1967 to 1970
Detective Comics had no Giants
(I didn’t look at other DC titles)
Flash, Superboy, Jimmy Olsen, Lois Lane and Justice League of America had Giants during that period!
Do you want to look up the details?
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