2000s Marvel Key Issues

MARVEL COMICS: 2000 KEY ISSUE CATALOG

ISSUE TITLE & NUMBER CREATORS WHY IT IS A KEY COVER DATE
Ultimate Spider-Man #1 Brian M. Bendis, Mark Bagley Origin and 1st appearance of Ultimate Spider-Man (Peter Parker); launch of the Ultimate Universe (Earth-1610). Oct 2000
The Sentry #1 Paul Jenkins, Jae Lee Origin and 1st appearance of The Sentry (Robert Reynolds) and The Void. Sep 2000
The Punisher #1 Garth Ennis, Steve Dillon Start of "Welcome Back, Frank"; redefined Punisher for the modern era (Marvel Knights). Apr 2000
Marvel Boy #1 Grant Morrison, J.G. Jones Origin and 1st appearance of Noh-Varr (Marvel Boy/Protector). Aug 2000
Spider-Woman #10 (Vol 3) John Byrne, Bart Sears 1st appearance of Charlotte Witter (the fourth Spider-Woman). Mar 2000
Uncanny X-Men #387 Chris Claremont, S. Larroca 1st appearance of the new Brotherhood of Mutants (Mystique, Toad, Sabretooth). Dec 2000
Incredible Hulk #12 (Vol 2) Paul Jenkins, Ron Garney 1st appearance of the Devil Hulk (manifestation of Banner's guilt). Mar 2000
X-Men #100 (Vol 2) Chris Claremont, Leinil Francis Yu 1st appearance of The Neo; Chris Claremont returns to ongoing writing duties. May 2000
Power Genix #1 Peter Milligan, Mike Allred 1st appearance of U-Go Girl; early X-Statix precursor concepts. Nov 2000
Gambit #13 Fabian Nicieza 1st appearance of Courier (Jacob Gavin). Feb 2000

MARVEL COMICS: 2001 KEY ISSUE CATALOG

ISSUE TITLE & NUMBER CREATORS WHY IT IS A KEY COVER DATE
Alias #1 Brian M. Bendis, Michael Gaydos 1st appearance of Jessica Jones; debut of the MAX imprint. Nov 2001
New X-Men #114 Grant Morrison, Frank Quitely Grant Morrison begins run; 1st appearance of Cassandra Nova; new team costumes. May 2001
Amazing Spider-Man #30 (Vol 2) J.M. Straczynski, John Romita Jr. 1st appearance of Morlun and Ezekiel Sims; introduction of "Spider-Totem" concept. June 2001
Origin #1 Jenkins, Quesada, A. Kubert Origin of Wolverine (James Howlett) fully revealed for the first time. Nov 2001
Ultimate X-Men #1 Mark Millar, Adam Kubert Origin and 1st appearance of the Ultimate X-Men (Earth-1610). Feb 2001
X-Force #116 Peter Milligan, Mike Allred Team revamp (X-Statix prototype); 1st appearance of Doop, Zeitgeist, and Anarchist. May 2001
Exiles #1 Judd Winick, Mike McKone 1st appearance of the Exiles team, Nocturne (Talia Wagner), and Morph (Earth-1081). Aug 2001
New X-Men #118 Grant Morrison, Ethan Van Sciver 1st appearance of the Stepford Cuckoos. Sep 2001
New X-Men #115 Grant Morrison, Frank Quitely 1st appearance of Negasonic Teenage Warhead; destruction of Genosha. June 2001
Uncanny X-Men #390 Scott Lobdell, Salvador Larroca Death of Colossus (Peter Rasputin) to cure the Legacy Virus. Mar 2001

MARVEL COMICS: 2002 KEY ISSUE CATALOG

ISSUE TITLE & NUMBER CREATORS WHY IT IS A KEY COVER DATE
The Ultimates #1 Mark Millar, Bryan Hitch 1st appearance of the Ultimate Avengers (Captain America, Iron Man, etc. of Earth-1610). Mar 2002
New X-Men #128 Grant Morrison, Igor Kordey 1st appearance of Fantomex (Weapon XIII) and E.V.A. Aug 2002
The Hood #1 Brian K. Vaughan, Kyle Hotz Origin and 1st appearance of The Hood (Parker Robbins). Jul 2002
Spider-Man: Blue #1 Jeph Loeb, Tim Sale Premiere of the "Blue" limited series; definitive modern retelling of Gwen Stacy's era. Jul 2002
New X-Men #134 Grant Morrison, Keron Grant 1st appearance of Kid Omega (Quentin Quire); start of "Riot at Xavier's." Nov 2002
Marvel Mangaverse: Spider-Man #1 Ben Dunn 1st appearance of Manga Spider-Man (Earth-2301) and the Spider-Clan. Mar 2002
Agent X #1 Gail Simone, Udon 1st appearance of Agent X (Nijo); spin-off following Deadpool's temporary "death." Sep 2002
X-Statix #1 Peter Milligan, Mike Allred Premiere issue of X-Statix (formerly X-Force); satirical superhero celebrity culture. Oct 2002
Hulk: The End #1 Peter David, Dale Keown Iconic one-shot depicting the final days of the Hulk in a post-apocalyptic future. Aug 2002
Captain America #1 (Vol 4) John Ney Rieber, John Cassaday Marvel Knights relaunch; deals directly with the aftermath of 9/11. Jun 2002

MARVEL COMICS: 2003 KEY ISSUE CATALOG

ISSUE TITLE & NUMBER CREATORS WHY IT IS A KEY COVER DATE
Runaways #1 Brian K. Vaughan, Adrian Alphona Origin and 1st appearance of The Runaways (Nico Minoru, Chase Stein, Karolina Dean, etc.). Jul 2003
Truth: Red, White & Black #1 Robert Morales, Kyle Baker Origin and 1st appearance of Isaiah Bradley (the first Black Captain America). Jan 2003
Marvel 1602 #1 Neil Gaiman, Andy Kubert 1st appearance of Earth-311 variants (Sir Nicholas Fury, Virginia Dare, etc.). Nov 2003
New Mutants #1 (Vol 2) N. DeFilippis, Keron Grant 1st appearance of the new squad: Elixir, Wallflower, Wind Dancer, Prodigy, and Surge. Jul 2003
NYX #1 Joe Quesada, Joshua Middleton Premiere of the NYX series; 1st appearance of Kiden Nixon. (Precursor to X-23's debut in #3). Nov 2003
Supreme Power #1 J.M. Straczynski, Gary Frank MAX reboot of the Squadron Supreme; 1st appearance of Mark Milton (Hyperion of Earth-31916). Oct 2003
Sentinel #1 Sean McKeever, Udon 1st appearance of Juston Seyfert and his repurposed Sentinel. Jun 2003
Venom #1 Daniel Way, Francisco Herrera Start of new ongoing series; 1st appearance of the Patricia Robertson clone. Jun 2003
Emma Frost #1 Karl Bollers, Randy Green First ongoing solo title for Emma Frost; delves into her origin story. Aug 2003
Spectacular Spider-Man #1 (Vol 2) Paul Jenkins, Humberto Ramos Relaunch of the title; start of "The Hunger" storyline featuring Venom. Sep 2003

MARVEL COMICS: 2004 KEY ISSUE CATALOG

ISSUE TITLE & NUMBER CREATORS WHY IT IS A KEY COVER DATE
NYX #3 Joe Quesada, Joshua Middleton 1st appearance of X-23 (Laura Kinney) in comic books. Apr 2004
Secret War #2 Brian M. Bendis, G. Dell'Otto 1st appearance of Quake (Daisy Johnson). Jul 2004
Venom vs. Carnage #2 Peter Milligan, Clayton Crain 1st full appearance of Toxin (Symbiote). Oct 2004
Astonishing X-Men #1 (Vol 3) Joss Whedon, John Cassaday Premiere of Whedon run; 1st appearance of Blindfold; Colossus returns. Jul 2004
Avengers #500 Brian M. Bendis, David Finch Start of "Avengers Disassembled"; Death of Ant-Man (Scott Lang). Sep 2004
Astonishing X-Men #3 Joss Whedon, John Cassaday 1st appearance of Abigail Brand and S.W.O.R.D. (Sentient World Observation and Response Department). Sep 2004
New X-Men #150 Grant Morrison, Phil Jimenez Death of Jean Grey; 1st appearance of Sublime (John Sublime). Feb 2004
Astonishing X-Men #4 Joss Whedon, John Cassaday 1st appearance of Armor (Hisako Ichiki). Oct 2004
Cable & Deadpool #1 Fabian Nicieza, Mark Brooks Premiere of the fan-favorite team-up series. May 2004
Ultimate Fantastic Four #1 Bendis, Millar, Adam Kubert Origin and 1st appearance of the Ultimate Fantastic Four (Earth-1610). Feb 2004

MARVEL COMICS: 2005 KEY ISSUE CATALOG

ISSUE TITLE & NUMBER CREATORS WHY IT IS A KEY COVER DATE
Captain America #6 (Vol 5) Ed Brubaker, Steve Epting 1st full appearance of the Winter Soldier (Bucky Barnes revealed). Jun 2005
Young Avengers #1 Allan Heinberg, Jim Cheung 1st appearance of Kate Bishop, Patriot, Hulkling, and Iron Lad. Apr 2005
New Avengers #1 Brian M. Bendis, David Finch Formation of the New Avengers (Luke Cage, Spider-Man, Wolverine, etc.); post-Disassembled era begins. Jan 2005
Black Panther #2 (Vol 4) Reginald Hudlin, John Romita Jr. 1st appearance of Shuri (T'Challa's sister). May 2005
New Avengers #7 Brian M. Bendis, Steve McNiven 1st appearance of The Illuminati (Iron Man, Professor X, Namor, Black Bolt, Dr. Strange, Mr. Fantastic). Jul 2005
House of M #1 Brian M. Bendis, Olivier Coipel Start of the "House of M" event; Scarlet Witch alters reality. Aug 2005
New Avengers #4 Brian M. Bendis, David Finch 1st appearance of Maria Hill. Apr 2005
Captain America #1 (Vol 5) Ed Brubaker, Steve Epting Start of Ed Brubaker's defining run; 1st cameo of Winter Soldier (arm only). Jan 2005
New Avengers #11 Brian M. Bendis, David Finch 1st appearance of Ronin (Maya Lopez/Echo). Nov 2005
Drax the Destroyer #1 Keith Giffen, Mitch Breitweiser Origin of Drax's modern "Kratos" look (red tattoos, knives) used in the MCU. Nov 2005

MARVEL COMICS: 2006 KEY ISSUE CATALOG

ISSUE TITLE & NUMBER CREATORS WHY IT IS A KEY COVER DATE
Civil War #1 Mark Millar, Steve McNiven Start of the "Civil War" event; 1st appearance of the Nitro explosion at Stamford. Jul 2006
Amazing Fantasy #15 (Vol 2) Greg Pak, Takeshi Miyazawa 1st appearance of Amadeus Cho (Mastermind Excello). Jan 2006
Incredible Hulk #92 Greg Pak, Carlo Pagulayan Start of "Planet Hulk"; 1st appearance of Korg and Miek. Apr 2006
Civil War #2 Mark Millar, Steve McNiven Spider-Man reveals his identity to the world ("My name is Peter Parker"). Aug 2006
Annihilation: Prologue #1 Keith Giffen, Scott Kolins Start of the "Annihilation" event; revitalization of Marvel Cosmic (Nova, Star-Lord). May 2006
X-Men: Deadly Genesis #1 Ed Brubaker, Trevor Hairsine 1st appearance of Vulcan (Gabriel Summers, the third Summers brother). Jan 2006
Marvel Zombies #1 Robert Kirkman, Sean Phillips Premiere of the first "Marvel Zombies" limited series. Feb 2006
Nextwave: Agents of H.A.T.E. #1 Warren Ellis, Stuart Immonen 1st appearance of The Captain; cult classic series begins. Mar 2006
Civil War #3 Mark Millar, Steve McNiven 1st appearance of Ragnarok (Thor Clone); death of Goliath (Bill Foster). Sep 2006
New Avengers: Illuminati #1 Brian M. Bendis, Alex Maleev Origin of the Illuminati; key backstory for Planet Hulk and Civil War. May 2006

MARVEL COMICS: 2007 KEY ISSUE CATALOG

ISSUE TITLE & NUMBER CREATORS WHY IT IS A KEY COVER DATE
Captain America #25 Ed Brubaker, Steve Epting Death of Captain America (Steve Rogers); aftermath of Civil War. Apr 2007
X-Men: Messiah Complex #1 Ed Brubaker, Marc Silvestri 1st appearance of Hope Summers (the Mutant Messiah baby). Dec 2007
World War Hulk #1 Greg Pak, John Romita Jr. Start of the "World War Hulk" event; Hulk returns to Earth for revenge. Aug 2007
Wolverine: Origins #10 Daniel Way, Steve Dillon 1st full appearance of Daken (Wolverine's son). Mar 2007
Annihilation: Conquest - Starlord #1 Keith Giffen, Timothy Green II Star-Lord assembles the proto-Guardians team (Rocket, Groot, Bug, Mantis) for the first time. Sep 2007
Thor #1 (Vol 3) J.M. Straczynski, Olivier Coipel Return of Thor after Ragnarok; debut of his modern chainmail costume; Asgard rebuilt in Oklahoma. Sep 2007
Thunderbolts #110 Warren Ellis, Mike Deodato Start of Warren Ellis run; new team roster (Venom, Bullseye, Penance, Norman Osborn). May 2007
The Immortal Iron Fist #1 Brubaker, Fraction, David Aja Start of the critically acclaimed run; introduced the mythology of the Seven Capital Cities of Heaven. Jan 2007
Amazing Spider-Man #544 J.M. Straczynski, Joe Quesada Part 1 of "One More Day"; leads to the controversial dissolution of Peter and MJ's marriage. Nov 2007
Avengers: The Initiative #1 Dan Slott, Stefano Caselli 1st appearance of the Initiative trainees (Cloud 9, Hardball, Komodo, MVP); post-Civil War landscape. Jun 2007

MARVEL COMICS: 2008 KEY ISSUE CATALOG

ISSUE TITLE & NUMBER CREATORS WHY IT IS A KEY COVER DATE
Hulk #1 (Vol 2) Jeph Loeb, Ed McGuinness 1st appearance of the Red Hulk (General "Thunderbolt" Ross). Jan 2008
Guardians of the Galaxy #1 (Vol 2) Abnett, Lanning, Pelletier Formation of the modern Guardians team (Star-Lord, Rocket, Groot, Drax, Gamora). May 2008
Captain America #34 Ed Brubaker, Steve Epting James "Bucky" Barnes becomes the new Captain America (Alex Ross costume design). Jan 2008
Wolverine #66 Mark Millar, Steve McNiven Start of the "Old Man Logan" storyline; 1st appearance of the Old Man Logan variant. Jun 2008
Secret Invasion #1 Brian M. Bendis, Leinil Francis Yu Start of "Secret Invasion" event; Skrulls revealed as replacing heroes. Jun 2008
Kick-Ass #1 Mark Millar, John Romita Jr. Premiere of the Kick-Ass series (Icon Imprint); 1st appearance of Dave Lizewski. Feb 2008
Amazing Spider-Man #546 Dan Slott, Steve McNiven Start of "Brand New Day"; 1st appearance of Mister Negative. Feb 2008
X-Force #1 (Vol 3) Craig Kyle, Chris Yost, C. Crain Premiere of the new "Black Ops" X-Force team (Wolverine, X-23, Warpath, Wolfsbane). Feb 2008
Invincible Iron Man #1 Matt Fraction, Salvador Larroca Start of Matt Fraction's definitive run; 1st appearance of Ezekiel Stane. May 2008
Skaar: Son of Hulk #1 Greg Pak, Ron Garney 1st full appearance of Skaar (Son of Hulk) in the mainstream Marvel Universe. Jun 2008

MARVEL COMICS: 2009 KEY ISSUE CATALOG

ISSUE TITLE & NUMBER CREATORS WHY IT IS A KEY COVER DATE
Dark Avengers #1 Brian M. Bendis, Mike Deodato 1st appearance of the Dark Avengers and the Iron Patriot (Norman Osborn). Mar 2009
Hulk #15 (Vol 2) Jeph Loeb, Ian Churchill 1st appearance of Red She-Hulk (Betty Ross). Nov 2009
Invincible Iron Man #10 Matt Fraction, Salvador Larroca 1st appearance of Pepper Potts in the "Rescue" armor (Mark 1616). Apr 2009
Captain America: Reborn #1 Ed Brubaker, Bryan Hitch Return of Steve Rogers (revealed to be trapped in time, not dead). Sep 2009
Secret Warriors #1 Bendis, Hickman, Caselli Premiere of the Secret Warriors ongoing; Nick Fury discovers HYDRA controls SHIELD. Apr 2009
War of Kings #1 Abnett, Lanning, Paul Pelletier Start of major cosmic event; Vulcan (Shi'ar) vs. Black Bolt (Inhumans/Kree). May 2009
New Avengers #53 Brian M. Bendis, Billy Tan Jericho Drumm (Brother Voodoo) becomes the new Sorcerer Supreme. Jul 2009
Ultimate Comics: Spider-Man #1 Brian M. Bendis, David Lafuente Post-Ultimatum relaunch; Peter Parker works at the Daily Bugle online. Oct 2009
Black Widow: Deadly Origin #1 Paul Cornell, Tom Raney Definitive modern origin story of Natasha Romanoff; establishes the Red Room lore. Jan 2009
Deadpool #10 Daniel Way, Paco Medina Bullseye appears as Hawkeye (Dark Avengers); fight against Deadpool. Jul 2009