MARVEL COMICS: 1970 KEY ISSUE CATALOG
| ISSUE TITLE & NUMBER | CREATORS | WHY IT IS A KEY | COVER DATE |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conan the Barbarian #1 | Roy Thomas, Barry Windsor-Smith | Origin and 1st appearance of Conan the Barbarian in Marvel Comics. | Oct 1970 |
| The Amazing Spider-Man #86 | Stan Lee, John Romita Sr. | Black Widow debuts her new, sleek black costume and red hair (modern look). | Jul 1970 |
| The Amazing Spider-Man #90 | Stan Lee, Gil Kane | Death of Captain George Stacy (Gwen Stacy's father). | Nov 1970 |
| The Avengers #83 | Roy Thomas, John Buscema | 1st appearance of Valkyrie (Enchantress disguise) and the Lady Liberators. | Dec 1970 |
| The Avengers #80 | Roy Thomas, John Buscema | 1st appearance of Red Wolf (William Talltrees), Marvel's first Native American superhero. | Sep 1970 |
| Astonishing Tales #1 | Stan Lee, Jack Kirby, Wally Wood | Premiere issue featuring Doctor Doom and Ka-Zar solo stories. | Aug 1970 |
| Fantastic Four #102 | Stan Lee, Jack Kirby | Jack Kirby's final issue of his original, legendary run on Fantastic Four. | Sep 1970 |
| Amazing Adventures #1 | Gary Friedrich, John Buscema | Premiere issue featuring the Inhumans and Black Widow solo stories. | Aug 1970 |
| Chamber of Darkness #4 | Roy Thomas, Barry Windsor-Smith | 1st appearance of Starr the Slayer; early Sword & Sorcery prototype before Conan. | Apr 1970 |
| The Avengers #76 | Roy Thomas, John Buscema | Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver rejoin the Avengers. | May 1970 |
MARVEL COMICS: 1971 KEY ISSUE CATALOG
| ISSUE TITLE & NUMBER | CREATORS | WHY IT IS A KEY | COVER DATE |
|---|---|---|---|
| Amazing Spider-Man #101 | Roy Thomas, Gil Kane | 1st appearance of Morbius the Living Vampire. First issue written by someone other than Stan Lee. | Oct 1971 |
| Marvel Feature #1 | Roy Thomas, Ross Andru | Origin and 1st appearance of The Defenders (Hulk, Doctor Strange, Namor). | Dec 1971 |
| Savage Tales #1 | Stan Lee, John Buscema | Origin and 1st appearance of Man-Thing. (Magazine format). | May 1971 |
| Amazing Spider-Man #96 | Stan Lee, Gil Kane | Historic "Drug Issue" published without the Comics Code Authority seal of approval. | May 1971 |
| The Incredible Hulk #141 | Roy Thomas, Herb Trimpe | 1st appearance of Doc Samson (Leonard Samson). | Jul 1971 |
| Amazing Spider-Man #100 | Stan Lee, Gil Kane | Anniversary issue; "Six-Arm Saga" begins. | Sep 1971 |
| Sub-Mariner #34 | Roy Thomas, Sal Buscema | 1st appearance of the "Titans Three" (Pre-Defenders team of Hulk, Namor, Silver Surfer). | Feb 1971 |
| The Avengers #87 | Roy Thomas, Frank Giacoia | Origin of the Black Panther (T'Challa). | Apr 1971 |
| Astonishing Tales #6 | Gerry Conway, Barry Smith | 1st appearance of Barbara "Bobbi" Morse (later becomes Mockingbird). | Jun 1971 |
| Kull the Conqueror #1 | Roy Thomas, Ross Andru | 1st appearance of Kull in his own solo title. | Jun 1971 |
MARVEL COMICS: 1972 KEY ISSUE CATALOG
| ISSUE TITLE & NUMBER | CREATORS | WHY IT IS A KEY | COVER DATE |
|---|---|---|---|
| Marvel Spotlight #5 | Gary Friedrich, Mike Ploog | Origin and 1st appearance of Ghost Rider (Johnny Blaze). | Aug 1972 |
| Luke Cage, Hero for Hire #1 | Archie Goodwin, George Tuska | Origin and 1st appearance of Luke Cage (Power Man), Diamondback, and Comanche. | Jun 1972 |
| Marvel Spotlight #2 | Gerry Conway, Mike Ploog | Origin and 1st appearance of Werewolf by Night (Jack Russell). | Feb 1972 |
| The Tomb of Dracula #1 | Gerry Conway, Gene Colan | 1st appearance of Dracula (Marvel version) and Frank Drake. | Apr 1972 |
| Marvel Premiere #1 | Roy Thomas, Gil Kane | 1st appearance of Adam Warlock (formerly 'Him') and the High Evolutionary (re-design). | Apr 1972 |
| The Defenders #1 | Steve Englehart, Sal Buscema | Premiere issue of the ongoing team series (Hulk, Dr. Strange, Sub-Mariner). | Aug 1972 |
| Marvel Team-Up #1 | Roy Thomas, Ross Andru | Premiere issue; Spider-Man teams up with the Human Torch. | Mar 1972 |
| The Cat #1 | Linda Fite, Marie Severin | Origin and 1st appearance of Greer Grant Nelson as The Cat (later becomes Tigra). | Nov 1972 |
| Shanna the She-Devil #1 | Carole Seuling, George Tuska | Origin and 1st appearance of Shanna the She-Devil. | Dec 1972 |
| Werewolf by Night #1 | Gerry Conway, Mike Ploog | Premiere issue of the first ongoing Werewolf by Night solo series. | Sep 1972 |
MARVEL COMICS: 1973 KEY ISSUE CATALOG
| ISSUE TITLE & NUMBER | CREATORS | WHY IT IS A KEY | COVER DATE |
|---|---|---|---|
| Iron Man #55 | Jim Starlin, Mike Friedrich | 1st appearance of Thanos, Drax the Destroyer, and the Blood Brothers. | Feb 1973 |
| Amazing Spider-Man #121 | Gerry Conway, Gil Kane | The Death of Gwen Stacy; major turning point in the Silver Age. | Jun 1973 |
| Tomb of Dracula #10 | Marv Wolfman, Gene Colan | 1st appearance of Blade the Vampire Slayer. | Jul 1973 |
| Amazing Spider-Man #122 | Gerry Conway, Gil Kane | The Death of the Green Goblin (Norman Osborn). | Jul 1973 |
| Ghost Rider #1 | Gary Friedrich, Tom Sutton | 1st issue of solo series; 1st cameo appearance of Daimon Hellstrom. | Sep 1973 |
| Strange Tales #169 | Len Wein, Gene Colan | 1st appearance and origin of Brother Voodoo (Jericho Drumm). | Sep 1973 |
| Avengers #112 | Steve Englehart, Don Heck | 1st appearance of Mantis; 1st appearance of the Lion God. | Jun 1973 |
| Jungle Action #6 | Don McGregor, Rich Buckler | 1st appearance of Erik Killmonger; start of the "Panther's Rage" storyline. | Sep 1973 |
| Marvel Spotlight #12 | Gary Friedrich, Herb Trimpe | Origin and 1st full appearance of Daimon Hellstrom (Son of Satan). | Oct 1973 |
| Doctor Strange #1 | Steve Englehart, Frank Brunner | Premiere issue of second solo series; 1st appearance of Silver Dagger. | Jun 1973 |
MARVEL COMICS: 1974 KEY ISSUE CATALOG
| ISSUE TITLE & NUMBER | CREATORS | WHY IT IS A KEY | COVER DATE |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Amazing Spider-Man #129 | Gerry Conway, Ross Andru | 1st appearance of The Punisher (Frank Castle) and the Jackal. | Feb 1974 |
| The Incredible Hulk #181 | Len Wein, Herb Trimpe | 1st full appearance of Wolverine (James "Logan" Howlett). | Nov 1974 |
| The Incredible Hulk #180 | Len Wein, Herb Trimpe | 1st cameo appearance of Wolverine (Last page). | Oct 1974 |
| Marvel Premiere #15 | Roy Thomas, Gil Kane | Origin and 1st appearance of Iron Fist (Danny Rand). | May 1974 |
| Astonishing Tales #25 | Doug Moench, Rich Buckler | Origin and 1st appearance of Deathlok (Luther Manning). | Aug 1974 |
| Captain America #180 | Steve Englehart, Sal Buscema | 1st appearance of Steve Rogers as Nomad (abandoning the Captain America identity). | Dec 1974 |
| Daredevil #111 | Steve Gerber, Bob Brown | 1st appearance of Silver Samurai (Kenuichio Harada). | Jul 1974 |
| Marvel Premiere #19 | Doug Moench, Larry Hama | 1st appearance of Colleen Wing. | Nov 1974 |
| Man-Thing #1 | Steve Gerber, Val Mayerik | 1st issue of Man-Thing's second ongoing solo series. | Jan 1974 |
| Giant-Size Super-Stars #1 | Gerry Conway, Rich Buckler | Classic Hulk vs. The Thing battle cover; series becomes Giant-Size Fantastic Four. | May 1974 |
MARVEL COMICS: 1975 KEY ISSUE CATALOG
| ISSUE TITLE & NUMBER | CREATORS | WHY IT IS A KEY | COVER DATE |
|---|---|---|---|
| Giant-Size X-Men #1 | Len Wein, Dave Cockrum | 1st appearance of the new X-Men (Storm, Nightcrawler, Colossus, Thunderbird); 2nd full appearance of Wolverine. | May 1975 |
| Werewolf by Night #32 | Doug Moench, Don Perlin | Origin and 1st appearance of Moon Knight (Marc Spector). | Aug 1975 |
| X-Men #94 | Chris Claremont, Len Wein, Dave Cockrum | The new X-Men team begins their ongoing series; Chris Claremont begins his legendary 16-year writing run. | Aug 1975 |
| Amazing Spider-Man #149 | Gerry Conway, Ross Andru | 1st appearance of the Spider-Man Clone (Ben Reilly). | Oct 1975 |
| The Champions #1 | Tony Isabella, Don Heck | Origin and 1st appearance of The Champions (Angel, Iceman, Hercules, Black Widow, Ghost Rider). | Oct 1975 |
| Iron Fist #1 | Chris Claremont, John Byrne | 1st issue of Iron Fist's solo ongoing series; early Claremont/Byrne collaboration. | Nov 1975 |
| X-Men #95 | Chris Claremont, Len Wein, Dave Cockrum | Death of Thunderbird (John Proudstar). | Oct 1975 |
| X-Men #96 | Chris Claremont, Dave Cockrum | 1st appearance of Moira MacTaggert. | Dec 1975 |
| Marvel Premiere #25 | Bill Mantlo, Frank Robbins | 1st appearance of the Legion of Monsters. | Oct 1975 |
| The Defenders #28 | Steve Gerber, Sal Buscema | 1st appearance of Starhawk (Stakar Ogord). | Oct 1975 |
MARVEL COMICS: 1976 KEY ISSUE CATALOG
| ISSUE TITLE & NUMBER | CREATORS | WHY IT IS A KEY | COVER DATE |
|---|---|---|---|
| Marvel Preview #4 | Steve Englehart, Steve Gan | 1st appearance of Star-Lord (Peter Quill). | Jan 1976 |
| Howard the Duck #1 | Steve Gerber, Frank Brunner | Premiere issue of Howard's first ongoing solo series; 1st appearance of Beverly Switzler. | Jan 1976 |
| Daredevil #131 | Marv Wolfman, Bob Brown | Origin and 1st appearance of Bullseye. | Mar 1976 |
| Marvel Preview #7 | Bill Mantlo, Keith Giffen | 1st appearance of Rocket Raccoon (Rocky Raccoon). | Jun 1976 |
| The Eternals #1 | Jack Kirby | 1st appearance of The Eternals (Ikaris, Makkari, Sersi) and The Deviants (Kro). | Jul 1976 |
| Nova #1 | Marv Wolfman, John Buscema | Origin and 1st appearance of Nova (Richard Rider) and Rhomann Dey. | Sep 1976 |
| X-Men #101 | Chris Claremont, Dave Cockrum | Origin and 1st appearance of Phoenix (Jean Grey transformation); 1st appearance of Black Tom Cassidy. | Oct 1976 |
| Captain Britain #1 | Chris Claremont, Herb Trimpe | Origin and 1st appearance of Captain Britain (Brian Braddock). | Oct 1976 |
| Amazing Spider-Man #162 | Len Wein, Ross Andru | 1st appearance of Jigsaw. | Nov 1976 |
| Peter Parker, The Spectacular Spider-Man #1 | Gerry Conway, Sal Buscema | Premiere issue of the second ongoing Spider-Man title; 1st appearance of Edward Lansky. | Dec 1976 |
MARVEL COMICS: 1977 KEY ISSUE CATALOG
| ISSUE TITLE & NUMBER | CREATORS | WHY IT IS A KEY | COVER DATE |
|---|---|---|---|
| Star Wars #1 | Roy Thomas, Howard Chaykin | 1st appearance of Luke Skywalker, Darth Vader, Princess Leia, and C-3PO (Movie Adaptation). | Jul 1977 |
| Iron Fist #14 | Chris Claremont, John Byrne | 1st appearance of Sabretooth (Victor Creed). | Aug 1977 |
| Ms. Marvel #1 | Gerry Conway, John Buscema | 1st appearance of Carol Danvers as Ms. Marvel. | Jan 1977 |
| Marvel Spotlight #32 | Archie Goodwin, Sal Buscema | Origin and 1st appearance of Spider-Woman (Jessica Drew). | Feb 1977 |
| Avengers Annual #7 | Jim Starlin | Death of Adam Warlock, Gamora, and Pip the Troll; 1st time all six Infinity Gems appear together. | Aug 1977 |
| Uncanny X-Men #107 | Chris Claremont, Dave Cockrum | 1st full appearance of the Starjammers and the Imperial Guard (Gladiator). | Oct 1977 |
| Black Panther #1 | Jack Kirby | Premiere issue of Black Panther's first solo ongoing series (written/drawn by Jack Kirby). | Jan 1977 |
| What If? #1 | Roy Thomas, Jim Craig | Premiere issue; "What If Spider-Man Joined the Fantastic Four?" | Feb 1977 |
| Uncanny X-Men #108 | Chris Claremont, John Byrne | John Byrne begins his legendary run as penciler; Revitalization of the Phoenix Force. | Dec 1977 |
| Godzilla #1 | Doug Moench, Herb Trimpe | 1st appearance of Godzilla in the Marvel Universe (Earth-616). | Aug 1977 |
MARVEL COMICS: 1978 KEY ISSUE CATALOG
| ISSUE TITLE & NUMBER | CREATORS | WHY IT IS A KEY | COVER DATE |
|---|---|---|---|
| Star Wars #7 | Roy Thomas, Howard Chaykin | First original "Expanded Universe" story (non-movie adaptation); introduces Crimson Jack. | Jan 1978 |
| Daredevil #150 | Jim Shooter, Carmine Infantino | 1st appearance of Paladin (Paul Denning). | Jan 1978 |
| X-Men #109 | Chris Claremont, John Byrne | 1st appearance of Weapon Alpha (James Hudson), later Vindicator/Guardian. | Feb 1978 |
| Devil Dinosaur #1 | Jack Kirby | 1st appearance of Devil Dinosaur and Moon-Boy. | Apr 1978 |
| Spider-Woman #1 | Marv Wolfman, Carmine Infantino | Premiere issue of the first Spider-Woman ongoing series. | Apr 1978 |
| Power Man #50 | Chris Claremont, John Byrne | Title becomes "Power Man and Iron Fist"; the duo formally teams up. | Apr 1978 |
| Machine Man #1 | Jack Kirby | Premiere issue of Machine Man's first solo series. | Apr 1978 |
| Ms. Marvel #16 | Chris Claremont, Jim Mooney | 1st cameo appearance of Mystique (Raven Darkholme). | May 1978 |
| Ms. Marvel #18 | Chris Claremont, Jim Mooney | 1st full appearance of Mystique (Raven Darkholme). | Jul 1978 |
| What If? #10 | Don Glut, Rick Hoberg | 1st appearance of Jane Foster as Thor (concept later canonized in 2014). | Aug 1978 |
| The Incredible Hulk #228 | Roger Stern, Sal Buscema | 1st appearance of Moonstone (Karla Sofen). | Oct 1978 |
MARVEL COMICS: 1979 KEY ISSUE CATALOG
| ISSUE TITLE & NUMBER | CREATORS | WHY IT IS A KEY | COVER DATE |
|---|---|---|---|
| Iron Man #118 | David Michelinie, John Byrne | 1st appearance of James "Rhodey" Rhodes (became War Machine). | Jan 1979 |
| X-Men #117 | Chris Claremont, John Byrne | 1st appearance of the Shadow King (Amahl Farouk); Origin of Professor X. | Jan 1979 |
| Micronauts #1 | Bill Mantlo, Michael Golden | 1st appearance of the Micronauts, Bug, and Baron Karza. | Jan 1979 |
| Marvel Premiere #47 | David Michelinie, John Byrne | 1st appearance of Scott Lang as Ant-Man; 1st appearance of Cassie Lang. | Apr 1979 |
| X-Men #120 | Chris Claremont, John Byrne | 1st cameo/team appearance of Alpha Flight (Vindicator, Sasquatch, Shaman, Snowbird, Aurora, Northstar). | Apr 1979 |
| X-Men #121 | Chris Claremont, John Byrne | 1st full appearance of Alpha Flight. | May 1979 |
| Daredevil #158 | Roger McKenzie, Frank Miller | 1st artwork on Daredevil by Frank Miller. | May 1979 |
| Micronauts #8 | Bill Mantlo, Michael Golden | 1st appearance of Captain Universe (the Uni-Power). | Aug 1979 |
| Fantastic Four #211 | Marv Wolfman, John Byrne | 1st appearance of Terrax the Tamer (Herald of Galactus). | Oct 1979 |
| Iron Man #128 | David Michelinie, Bob Layton | Iconic "Demon in a Bottle" cover and storyline; Tony Stark confronts alcoholism. | Nov 1979 |
| Rom #1 | Bill Mantlo, Sal Buscema | 1st appearance of Rom the Spaceknight. | Dec 1979 |