Peak FF — by Lee, Kirby and Sinnott!
By now you’ve probably figured out just how much we dig Facsimile Editions, those wonderful full-on reprints that include ads, backups, letters and whatnot.
They’re like little time machines that deliver not just a classic, or at least noteworthy, story but also provide the context in which they were originally presented. Is it exactly like reading an actual back issue? Of course not. But it’s the next best thing, especially when you consider that so many Facsimile Editions reproduce issues that are unrealistically expensive for most collectors.
One of the best of them is headed your way Jan. 29: The Fantastic Four Annual #6 Facsimile Edition, which features the debut of Annihilus — thus tying into the House of Ideas’ current Annihilation mini-event (click here) — and the birth of Franklin Richards, thus tying into the new X-Men/Fantastic Four miniseries that has the powerful youngster at its center.
The biggest selling point, though, is that this is prime, Grade A Stan Lee, Jack Kirby and Joe Sinnott.
Check out this INSIDE LOOK — including some of the 1968 issue’s groovy ads:
Inside cover
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And now some of those ads:
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A few thoughts:
— That Kirby montage knocks your socks off — but I’m also really taken by the panel that sets it up. And that first shot of Annihilus’ ship. And how the opening splash page leads into the following panel. Love it, love it, love it.
— Dig that ad for The Spectacular Spider-Man #2, with its standard illustration as opposed to the actual painted cover — which just happened to make our ranking of THE TOP 13 JOHN ROMITA SPIDER-MAN COVERS. (Click here.) It’s also different from the version used for 1973’s The Amazing Spider-Man Annual #9.
— Price comparison time: A high-grade, unslabbed copy of Fantastic Four Annual #6 recently sold on eBay for $1,550. The Facsimile Edition? Five clams.
— “IT’S BRAND NEW!! MARVEL’S SWINGIN’ INFLATABLE PLASTIC PILLOWS!”
— Wanna see the original art from this issue? Jack Kirby’s Fantastic Four Artisan Edition is coming from IDW. Click here.
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MORE
— Landmark FANTASTIC FOUR ANNUAL #6 to Be Re-Released as Facsimile Edition. Click here.
— 13 COVERS: Jack Kirby’s FANTASTIC FOUR. Click here.
January 25, 2020
You can’t go wrong with artwork from the legendary Jack Kirby. 🙂
January 25, 2020
I wish Marvel would start using the same type of paper that DC used for their facsimile editions, but other than that they’re pretty awesome. And I’ll definitely be picking up this one.
January 26, 2020
Excelsior!!!