Swing with Jazzy John! No, not with the spider guy. The devil guy…
Marvel’s “Hidden Gem” variants, generally made up of repurposed or perhaps unpublished or WIP art, are always a kick.
Well, there’s a groovy one coming with April’s Daredevil #8, by the late, great John Romita Sr. (whose birthday was this week).
Dig this cover for the issue marking the Man Without Fear’s 60th anniversary:
And here’s the solicitation, released Thursday by Marvel:
DAREDEVIL #8
SALADIN AHMED & MORE! (W) • AARON KUDER & MORE! (A)
COVER BY JOHN ROMITA JR. • VARIANT COVER BY SIMONE BIANCHI
VARIANT COVER BY FRANK MILLER • VIRGIN VARIANT COVER BY FRANK MILLER
HIDDEN GEM VARIANT COVER BY JOHN ROMITA SR. • VARIANT COVER BY TBA
VAMPIRE VARIANT COVER BY STEPHEN SEGOVIA
SPECIAL OVERSIZED ISSUE MARKING 60 YEARS OF DAREDEVIL! A dragnet is closing around Matt Murdock, A.K.A. DAREDEVIL! Police on both sides of the law are hunting him, something vicious with a deep connection to Matt’s very soul is hunting his friends and, in the midst of that chaos, an old foe with the blood of Matt’s closest allies on his hands returns…
88 PGS./Rated T+… $9.99
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A few thoughts:
— Here are two more covers released by Marvel: The main cover by John Romita Jr., and the “Vampire Variant” by Stephen Segovia:
JR JR
Segovia
— Frank Miller’s cover image hasn’t been officially released yet but those always cause a stir, so keep an eye out.
— The ish goes on sale April 11. (Daredevil’s 60th is Feb. 4, by the way.) Romita’s Hidden Gem cover is likely an incentive cover, so check with your local comics shop on pricing.
— It’s fitting that Romita gets this honor; he worked on Daredevil prior to his epic run on The Amazing Spider-Man. It’s where he cut his teeth on pencilling superheroes in the 1960s.
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MORE
— 13 JOHN ROMITA SPIDER-MAN COVERS to Make You Shimmy Like Mary Jane. Click here.
— X-MEN #130: The Dramatic Debut of the DAZZLER to Be Re-Released as a FACSIMILE EDITION in April. Click here.
January 25, 2024
Should have gone with late ‘60s trade-dress.