Were the 1980s the Greatest Decade for Marvel?

The 1970s was a decennary of much upheaval for Marvel Comics. Although plentifulness of large characters and storylines were introduced successful that period, specified arsenic “The Night Gwen Stacy Died” oregon Doctor Strange gathering God, the opening of the 1980s saw galore of Marvel’s all-time top creators turning successful landmark runs connected their astir fashionable books. This is the clip of Frank Miller’s Daredevil, John Byrne’s Fantastic Four, David Michelinie’s Iron Man and the tallness of Chris Claremont’s X-Men, with Roger Stern’s Amazing Spider-Man and Walt Simonson’s Thor close astir the corner. If you privation to cognize however these characters person endured to the existent day, those names are large reasons why.

When looking astatine the afloat past of the Marvel Universe, the 1980s whitethorn precise good beryllium the company’s existent aureate age. Join america for Part 7 of our look astatine the indispensable issues of Marvel!

The Dark Phoenix Saga and Other All-Time X-Men Stories

Chris Claremont’s franchise-defining tally connected X-Men started successful 1975, but possibly its 3 top stories were each published during the aboriginal ‘80s. The archetypal is the Dark Phoenix Saga successful X-Men #129-137, assuredly the astir well-known X-Men communicative of each time, and for bully reason. After years of Jean Grey being the Phoenix, the cosmic entity corrupts her property (alongside immoderate assistance from the villainous Hellfire Club), temporarily turning her into the Dark Phoenix and 1 of the X-Men’s top enemies. This cosmic abstraction opera, pencilled and co-plotted by John Byrne, isn’t conscionable an unthinkable story, but it besides features the archetypal appearances of Kitty Pryde aka Shadowcat, Emma Frost, and adjacent Dazzler (really). The sacrifice of Jean Grey aft she regains her faculties is 1 of the astir heartbreaking moments successful the X-Men pantheon, adjacent if you’re alert she volition yet return. The communicative has been adapted galore times, including successful X-Men: The Last Stand and Dark Phoenix, though astir fans would hold neither movie did the communicative justice. Cartoons person done a amended job, with the saga appearing successful afloat successful X-Men: The Animated Series and successful an abridged mentation successful Wolverine & the X-Men.

The adjacent iconic communicative was lone a fewer issues later, with Days of Future Past successful X-Men #141-142. The astir celebrated communicative involving the Sentinels, the mutant-hunting robots first introduced by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby successful 1965, features an big Kitty Pryde going backmost successful clip to forestall the assassination of Senator Robert Kelly by Mystique and her Brotherhood of Evil Mutants, an lawsuit that triggers an apocalyptic aboriginal wherever Sentinels regularisation North America. Despite being lone 2 issues, this arc is 1 of the X-Men’s astir famous, and the Days of Future Past world has been revisited by different creators down the line. The communicative was adapted successful the 2014 movie X-Men: Days of Future Past, and was besides utilized arsenic the ground for the play arc of Wolverine & the X-Men.

Rounding retired the champion X-Men stories from this play is X-Men #150, wherever a conflict betwixt the X-Men and Magneto that astir leads to Kitty Pryde’s decease causes the villain to uncover that he’s a Holocaust survivor. This backstory has been acceptable successful chromatic ever since, and is the foundational crippled crook that would trigger his aboriginal improvement into a much morally ambiguous figure.

X-Men #150

The First Appearances of Rogue, She-Hulk, and the New Mutants

There were inactive immoderate large characters yet to beryllium introduced until the 1980s, including immoderate of Marvel’s astir notable pistillate heroes. For example, that includes Rogue, 1 of the astir fashionable members of the X-Men, though you mightiness not cognize she started disconnected arsenic a villain! Marvel’s Southern Belle made her archetypal quality successful Avengers Annual #10 arsenic a subordinate of Mystique’s Brotherhood of Evil Mutants, and was said to beryllium Mystique’s foster daughter. Mystique had Rogue drain Carol Danvers aka Ms. Marvel of her powers, everlastingly altering the people of some characters. This contented besides featured Carol rebuking her erstwhile allies the Avengers due to the fact that they didn’t bash thing to prevention her from Marcus Immortus, the antheral who raped and impregnated her arsenic revealed successful Avengers #200 (one of the worst Marvel issues of each time). Carol would go much of an X-Men affiliated quality for years until she yet made up with the Avengers. It would beryllium excessively thorny to adapt, but Avengers Annual #10 is simply a captious infinitesimal successful Marvel past each the same.

Rogue... arsenic a atrocious feline successful Avengers Annual #10.

Another large Marvel heroine debuted successful her ain bid with Savage She-Hulk #1. The past quality Stan Lee co-created during his archetypal tenure astatine Marvel, Jennifer Walters aka She-Hulk was established arsenic Bruce Banner’s lawyer relative who took connected akin powers aft an exigency humor transfusion erstwhile Jennifer was astir killed by a mobster. Her archetypal solo publication wasn’t precise good, but She-Hulk became a amended quality erstwhile she joined up with the Avengers and Fantastic Four. Tatiana Maslany would spell connected to play She-Hulk successful her self-titled MCU show, of course.

This play besides saw the archetypal X-Men spin-off series, The New Mutants, who debuted successful Marvel Graphic Novel #4 earlier transitioning to their ain book. The archetypal lineup of teenage mutant students since the archetypal X-Men included Cannonball, Sunspot, Karma, Wolfsbane, and Dani Moonstar, who aboriginal took up the moniker Mirage. Illyana Rasputina aka Magik, the younger sister of Colossus, would articulation the radical successful contented #15, with galore of her biggest stories happening during her clip connected the team. This lineup sans Karma was utilized successful the 2020 New Mutants film, with Anya Taylor-Joy playing Magik.

Iconic Storylines for Daredevil, Iron Man, and Captain America

If you privation to spot an contented that changed a quality forever, look nary further than Daredevil #168. The archetypal contented of Frank Miller’s writer-artist tally connected the publication (he pencilled the erstwhile 10 issues but didn’t constitute them) saw the instauration of Elektra, arsenic good arsenic Miller’s extremist reinvention of the Man Without Fear’s mythology. For the adjacent 2 years, Miller wove an epic saga of gritty realism and transgression noir that saw Kingpin became Matt Murdock’s caller nemesis, the summation of the unsighted sensei Stick to Matt’s backstory, his archetypal conflict with the Punisher, and the iconic contented #181 wherever Bullseye kills Elektra with her ain sai (she was resurrected successful #190, but without Matt’s knowledge). Let’s beryllium real: If you work Daredevil, you’ve already work this run. But if you don’t work comics and privation to cognize wherever some the 2003 movie and the 2015 Netflix bid (set to beryllium continued with the MCU amusement Daredevil: Born Again aboriginal this year) got their inspiration from, beryllium definite to cheque retired Miller’s definitive enactment successful Daredevil #168-191.

Two large Avengers besides saw large storylines during the aboriginal ‘80s. The past masterwork from David Michelinie and Bob Layton’s archetypal tally connected Iron Man is Doomquest successful Iron Man #149-150. This communicative features Iron Man’s archetypal solo conflict with Doctor Doom (he’d antecedently fought him alongside his Avengers pals before, but ne'er by himself), which results successful the brace being sent backmost to the clip of Arthurian legend. Iron Man joins forces with King Arthur portion Doom allies with the evil witch Morgan le Fay, and though the 2 villains don’t succeed, Doom and Morgan would reunite arsenic co-conspirators and adjacent lovers successful aboriginal stories. This arc made Doom an authoritative member of Iron Man’s rogues gallery, adjacent if Doom’s #1 foe volition ever beryllium Mr. Fantastic.

Captain America #253

Another large arc, albeit 1 that’s a spot little well-known, is Captain America’s conflict with Baron Blood successful Captain America #253-254. The champion communicative from Roger Stern and John Byrne’s little tally connected the title, this 1 involves Cap confronting John Falsworth aka Baron Blood, a Nazi vampire with ties to Cap’s clip with the WWII ace squad the Invaders. A overmuch darker communicative than was emblematic for Captain America’s book, it’s a large work with stellar artwork and a brutal finale.

Moon Knight Becomes a Hero and Marvel Helps Create the G.I. Joe Mythology

Rounding retired the astir influential comics from this play are 2 much #1 issues, Moon Knight #1 and G.I. Joe #1. Any Moon Knight instrumentality worthy their brackish tin archer you that the Fist of Khonshu archetypal appeared successful Werewolf by Night #32, but the Doug Moench and Don Perlin instauration wasn’t afloat himself conscionable yet, formed arsenic an antagonist to Jack Russell aka the Werewolf. After immoderate backup stories successful assorted titles, Moon Knight received his ain bid that firmly established him arsenic a heroic figure, told his afloat backstory, and introduced his alternate personalities Steven Grant and Jake Lockley. All of Moon Knight’s aboriginal stories built disconnected the changes made to him successful this issue.

G.I. Joe #1

As for G.I. Joe, though the franchise isn’t owned by Marvel, the House of Ideas is the crushed astir each of their characters exist. The Real American Hero artifact enactment was advertised with a tie-in Marvel comic starting successful 1982, with Marvel exertion Archie Goodwin coming up with the conception for Cobra, and bid writer Larry Hama fleshing retired the immense bulk of the quality roster, including icons similar Scarlett, Snake Eyes, Storm Shadow, Lady Jaye, and the Baroness. Hama’s beardown plotting and characterization made G.I. Joe 1 of Marvel’s most fashionable titles successful the mid-‘80s, and Hama said successful interviews that the comic was a large deed with women readers due to the fact that the pistillate members of the Joe squad were treated arsenic to the men. If you emotion G.I. Joe, past you beryllium Larry Hama and Marvel a indebtedness of gratitude.

Carlos Morales writes novels, articles and Mass Effect essays. You tin travel his fixations connected Bluesky.