Hey, folks! Following up on information first discussed in the Back To Press With Marvel Masterworks Editor Cory Sedlmeier interview from a few months back, I wanted to make special mention of the final order cut-off date and other information surrounding the reprint of the first volume of Amazing Spider-Man, indeed, the first volume in the Marvel Masterworks series ever from way back in 1987!
First off, the FOC (final order cut-off) date for Marvel Masterworks: Amazing Spider-Man Vol. 1 is November 28, about nine days from the posting date of this article. The on-sale date for this volume is May 10, 2023. Get your order in now from your retailer of choice if you want this volume for a few reasons. One being, if you want the book, it’s your guaranteed that you’ll get a copy. It’s likely that the print runs will be low, and particularly for buyers of the numbered variant editions, you don’t want to miss out on them. (There’s also the standard, unnumbered regular edition.) Another reason is that for those of us who want to see this BTP initiative succeed, it’s important to buy by way of pre-orders, to show confidence in their ongoing potential. As discussed in the interview, the plan currently is to see a new BTP edition every month, in the original chronological order of the Masterworks library, and I definitely want to see this line continue for a good long while. (I really want to get my hands on Sub-Mariner Vol. 1 in hardcover, for instance!)
For the best reason of all, though, I’ll copy over what Cory Sedlmeier posted in a thread at our forums:
“I’ve had the opportunity to do a deep dive into Marvel’s archives. The restoration of ASM #1 and #5 has never satisfied me. For this new printing, we’re (doing) a new restoration of those issues after assessing every source option in existence. It’s the first time I’ve had another go (at) these issues in well over a decade. This new edition also boasts 60 pages of bonus material including essays from classic collections like Origins of Marvel Comics, the complete original art to Spidey’s AMFAN #15 debut as well as additional original art extras, unused covers, house ads, covers from Marvel Tales (both the 1960s and 1980s issues that reprinted the Lee/Ditko era), Marvel Collectors Item Classics, Spider-Man Classics, the Essentials, the Masterworks TPBs and GNs and on and on.”
Cory also tipped his hand at upgrades to other volumes in the offing. Check out the interview for the full scoop (plus a priceless story about Steve Ditko and his original art), but I’m going to outline a few notes here of valuable information:
Marvel Masterworks: Fantastic Four Vol. 1 HC
• 20 additional pages sourced directly from original art
• Expanded bonus section
• Variant and regular editions
• FOC: December 19, 2022
• On-Sale: June 14, 2023
Marvel Masterworks: X-Men Vol. 1 HC
• Complete restoration of X-Men #1, much of it sourced from original art
• Complete restoration of X-Men #7, all of it sourced from original art
• Variant and regular editions
• FOC: January 30, 2023
• On-Sale: July 12, 2023
Marvel Masterworks: Avengers Vol. 1 HC
• Variant and regular editions
• FOC: February 27, 2023
• On-Sale: August 9, 2023
• …..more information to come!!!
I’ll be keeping an eye on info for the ReMasterworks series of BTP editions in the coming weeks and months and will post about it here. But keep your eyes on the forums as well. Breaking news often hits there first!
