Marvel Comics Library
THE COMICS
The majority of the comics included in these volumes were
photographed from the collection of Bob Bretall. An avid comic book reader
and collector, Bretall is the current holder of the Guinness World Record
for the largest individual comic book collection. Bretall’s first comic was
Amazing Spider-Man No. 88, cover dated July 1970, and every month since
then he has bought all of his comics “off the rack,” distinguishing his collection
from those of comic book dealers who have added to their collections
through bulk buys of new comics or by purchasing other people’s
entire collections. With more than 132,000 comics bought
brand new or as individual back issues since 1970, Bretall is
proud to have read the vast majority of them — though
his “to read” pile currently spans eight short boxes!
He is a lover of the art of comics and reads and
collects comics of every genre, from every
publisher: Bretall’s focus is on the
stories, characters, and art, not
how much money they may be
worth. His optimistic philosophy
is that there is
something to enjoy
in (almost) all
of them!
THE
CGC
Most of the
comic books
photographed for
these volumes were evaluated
and graded by the
Certified Guaranty Company
LLC. When it was founded in 2000,
CGC revolutionized the comic book
marketplace by providing clear, objective,
and impartial assessments of authenticity and
grade. Each comic was encased in a CGC state-of-the-art holder, which combines superior optics and
advanced archival materials to provide the best in display
and preservation. A tamper-evident seal and numerous security
features provide an even higher level of confidence. Today CGC
is the world’s largest and most trusted third-party grading service for
comics, trading cards, magazines, concert posters, and related collectibles.
THE REPRODUCTIONS
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, we made
super-high-resolution photographs of each page as printed more than half a
century ago, then used 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 fourcolor
printing, and correction of thick/thin lines resulting from the flexible
plates’ “smudging.” The end result are finished products — as if hot off of
a world-class printing press, produced without economic or time-pressure
constraints — that we are confident readers, fans, artists, and collectors
alike will love.
