In the late Sixties a fireball struck the town of Pederson, Illnois granting fantastic powers to the 113 children who were in utero at the time of impact. They grew up as the world watched. Labeled the Specials by the Media, their powers were monitored and catalogued by the United States Government. Public perception of them changed often. Were they the future of mankind? A scourge? A random occurrence? Heroes? Villains? Role models or simply caricatures? What would be their impact on culture and society? They were a waried as kids and adults ever are; some were more powerful, some less. As adults they became many things: a policeman, a corporate symbol, a singer, an assassin, a writer, a painter, a thief, a preacher. Some found celebrity, some notoriety, while others simply went to work and raised families like everyone else. But they all carried inside them a seed of something great. Something special. Something that made them stars. As their epic stories unfolded, there were other stories as well...of their lives and the lives of those around them. This book is about those stories. Collected here are the short stories about the Specials, a bit about their beginnings, a bit about their middles and just a little bit about their end.

    Octopus, the Vulture, Sandman and more classic characters - along with some new ones like Batwing and Bluebird - on his way to becoming Marvel's premiere super hero! Collecting AMAZING FANTASY (1995) #16-18; UNTOLD TALES OF SPIDER-MAN #1-25, #-1, ANNUAL 1996-1997 and STRANGE ENCOUNTER; and material from AMAZING SPIDER-MAN ANNUAL #37.

    Spider-Man is swept away from his everyday troubles into a fantasy world by an eternally 12-year-old sorceress who needs his encouragement that she has matured enough to advance in her profession.

    Strange as you've never seen him before: as an eye-patch-wearing wielder of black magic! See him take on the deadliest foes in any dimension: Khat, Erlik Khan, Shuma-Gorath, Enitharmon the Weaver and more! Guest-starring the Defenders, Valkyrie, Cloak and Dagger, and some of Strange's closest friends - including Rintrah, Topaz, Clea and Wong! Collecting the Dr. Strange stories from STRANGE TALES (1987) #1-19 and the Cloak & Dagger story from #7.

    Who will join Thanos' cause? Legacy? Terrax the Tamer? Jack of Hearts? What about Ganymede, last of the Spinsterhood and sworn enemy of Tyrant? And where do the loyalties of Morg, Herald of Galactus lie? COLLECTING: SECRET DEFENDERS 12-14, COSMIC POWERS 1-6

    Witness the evolution of Batman in some of his most signifigant tales from the 1940s to the present.Collects 17 of the Batman's greatest stories from 1940 to 1986 in a full color trade paperback. Intro by Martin Pasko, foreword by Mike Gold. Collects Batman #62, 76, 169, 190, 197, 256-257,345-346, 355; Detective Comics #203, 473, & 568; and Batman Annual #11.

    These gorgeous, painted pages originally appeared in Epic from 1979 to 1982, and introduced audiences to Vance Dreadstar and the other characters whose saga would be continued in the Dreadstar series.

    As his skills hve thrived, so too have his challenges.This collection contains material originally published in magazine form as Marvel Premiere #9-10 and #12-14 and Doctor Strange (Vol. 2) #1-2 and #4-5.

    Quickly becoming the underworld's most feared assassin, she terrorizes her targets with a seemingly inexhaustible lust for bloodshed. In service to the Kingpin, Mary sets her deadly sights on Daredevil, the heroic protector of New York's notorious Hell's Kitchen.With the Man Without Fear at her mercy, can she bring herself to strike the fatal blow? Collects Daredevil Vol. 1 #254-257, 259-263.

    But with no memory of their past lives together, Kendra wants nothing to do with Hawkman - that is, until she learns that the deaths of her parents years ago were actually murders, and she is forced to enlist Hawkman's help in unlocking the mystery and finding their killer!

    Penciled by GIL KANE, JOHN BUSCEMA, TOM SUTTON, BOB BROWN & HERB TRIMPE. Cover by GIL KANE. As the 1970s dawned, Marvel Comics marched into a new era. An era whose heroes increasingly reflected the turmoil and social unrest of the time. And as Marvel's heroic pantheon evolved, a newly christened hero debuted to herald that new era: Adam Warlock! Mixing super-hero action with equal parts social consciousness and allegory, writer Roy Thomas and artist Gil Kane, in some of the most accomplished work of his career, launched Warlock on a wild ride across the cosmos to Counter-Earth! Hastened by the High Evolutionary to be the savior of this parallel planet, Warlock, armed for the first time with his soul gem, must do battle with the evil Man-Beast for the very planet itself! Featuring guest-appearances by Dr. Doom, Reed Richards and no less than the Incredible Hulk, this volume of never-before-collected stories is one you won't want to miss, and you can bet your pet rock on that! Collecting MARVEL PREMIERE #1-2, WARLOCK #1-8 and INCREDIBLE HULK #176-178. 288 PGS.

    Desperate to raise his daughter's opinion of him, Ant-Man takes a job from local beekeepers only to uncover a global conspiracy that could topple the world order! No time to call the Avengers, this sounds like a job for - ANT-MAN?! Join the explosive creative team of Zeb Wells (NOVA) and Dylan Burnett (X-FORCE, COSMIC GHOST RIDER) as they take Ant-Man to all-new heights in this epic adventure!COLLECTING: ANT-MAN: WORLD HIVE (2020) 1-5

    Octopus and the Vulture! Guest-starring Dominic Fortune and the New Mutants! Collecting WEB OF SPIDER-MAN (1985) #1-18 and ANNUAL #1-2, and AMAZING SPIDER-MAN (1963) #268.

    Collects Thor #146-152, Amazing Adventures #1-10, Avengers #95, Marvel Super-Heroes #15, Not Brand Ecch #6, 12

    Then, a ghost from Luke's past takes him back to the Hero For Hire biz — and a classic street level team-up pits Luke, best pal Iron Fist, Daredevil, Moon Knight and Spider-Man against the Kingpin and Killgrave the Purple Man!