Marvel Comics Library. Spider-Man. Vol. 1. 1962–1964

When Stan Lee first proposed his idea for Spider-Man in 1962, his boss countered with a cascade of objections: people hate spiders, teenagers don't take leading roles—they're just sidekicks, and a hero needs to be classy and successful, not a socially awkward nerd. However, Stan persisted, and Martin Goodman eventually allowed him to test his hero in Amazing Fantasy, a title that was already slated for cancellation.

With Spider-Man on the cover, issue 15 became Marvel's best-selling comic that year—and the rest is history. The Amazing Spider-Man, released seven months later, broke the mold of comics. Peter Parker lived in the unglamorous neighborhood of Queens, broke, always worried about his elderly Aunt May, unlucky in love, and bullied by his boss, the editor-in-chief of the Daily Bugle, J. Jonah Jameson. 

Spider-Man had the wit and confidence Parker lacked, but learning to use his powers didn't come without setbacks. He often seemed on the verge of defeat by the plethora of villains he faced at the onset: the Vulture, Dr. Octopus, Sandman, Lizard, Electro, Kraven the Hunter, and the Green Goblin. Spider-Man owed much of his glory to his editor and artist Steve Ditko, who was gifted at depicting teenagers and their struggles.

His work endowed Spider-Man with a laid-back energy, and despite the aversion the creature might inspire in most people, Ditko made swinging between New York skyscrapers seem like the coolest adventure possible. Close to the original format of the creations, this XXL collector's dream brings together the first 21 adventures of the world's most famous web-slinger, classic tales published between 1962 and 1964.

Rather than recolor the originals (as has been common for many years with reproductions of these classics), TASCHEN wanted to offer readers an ideal vision of these issues as they were produced for their first publication. The best-preserved original pages were meticulously unearthed and photographed in close collaboration with Marvel and the Certified Guaranty Company.

Each page was photographed as it was printed over half a century ago, then digitally remastered using modern retouching methods to correct imperfections due to the cheap, imperfect printing techniques of the time—giving the impression of freshly coming off the ultra-sophisticated presses used by Marvel in the 1960s. Three different types of paper, including an uncoated wood-free paper, were specially developed for this collection to simulate the texture of the original comics.

Thanks to the detailed historical essay by Marvel editor Ralph Macchio, the introduction by king collector David Mandel, original artworks, rare photos, and other treasures it contains, this dizzying 698-page volume will excite your Spidey senses, however deeply buried they may be.

Publication Date: 12/08/2021

Publisher: Taschen

Format: Coffee Table Book

Presentation: Hardcover

Number of Pages: 698 pages

Weight: 5.423 kg

Dimensions: 32.1 cm × 47.0 cm × 7.7 cm

EAN: 9783836582339

ISBN: 978-3-8365-8233-9