Wrapping up my 2018 Christmas comics that I need to review is this tabloid sized comic.
For many collectors who grew up reading comics in the 70s and 80s, this book is a Holy Grail. I count myself as one of those collectors. I spent years trying to find a copy in decent shape, with a cover still intact AND not filled with colored-in pages.
If this book was to get a grade by CGC or some other company, I highly doubt it would get anything higher than a 3.5. But that's okay! I paid a fair price and I was able to read it without fear that it was going to come apart in my hand.
Compared to it's 1974 predecessor, The Marvel Giant Holiday Grab-Bag, this is not really a Christmas comic. That 1974 book had at least one story that was Christmas themed. Here, the framing story throughout the entire issue is holiday themed. It starts with a charity snowball fight between the Avengers and the Fantastic Four.
During this frosty battle, The Thing reflects on a recent team-up with Spider-Man against The Puppet Master and the Thinker. Then The Vision reflects on his origin and how he became a member of the Avengers.
A passing visit from the Silver Surfer leads The Hulk to recall the first time he ever met the former herald of Galactus. The scene then shifts to Hell's Kitchen where Matt Murdock remembers a time when he had to choose between two lovers: Karen Page or The Black Widow. Finally, we learn that Black Widow is thinking of the same occasion as the action winds up in L.A. during the Christmas festivities of The Champions!
Normally, I would get very upset of spending time and money to find a Christmas special and the book wind up being anything but. But I got to thinking: DC and Marvel both didn't really do very many Christmas comics during the 50s or 60s. Heck, I don't think Marvel did holiday themed stuff during the 40s or 50s while operating as Atlas or Timely; whereas that was a regular thing at the time for DC to do.
1969's Nick Fury: Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. #10 and 1973's Hero For Hire #7 are the only examples of early Marvel books that were set at Christmas that I can come up with. And both of those tales were reprinted in the Christmas themed Marvel Treasury Edition #8. (That book was also a Giant SuperHero Holiday Grab-Bag, debuting before this issue but I have yet to add one to my collection or read. Thus why I don't mention it as a predecessor earlier in this review.)
With the success of these giant sized treasuries, Marvel AND DC started putting out more Christmas themed issues and they were big sellers. Since Marvel wanted to cash in on the success of other tabloids of Christmas reprints, they went ahead with another Christmas classic. Unfortunately, the House of Ideas didn't have anymore holiday stories yet to reprint. So Marvel went ahead and used the framing plot device to add some element of holiday cheer to this issue.
I guess based on all that evidence, I can find Marvel Not Guilty. At least they tried. One might wonder why Marvel didn't put out all-new material in these over-sized collections. The answer comes down to money. Since most artists and writers never received royalties for reprints, the less overhead spent on new material the better.
When I was little, I would have plotzed to have found one of these books under my tree. But not on Christmas Day. This would have been my Christmas Eve present. Something to read on that magic night right before Santa was to visit. That was the perfect Christmas moment and the main reason I love Christmas comic books so much.
I can't wait until next December 1st to get reading on my holiday comic stash I've amounted over the next 12 months of hunting. Here's to a great 2019, folks!
Worth Consuming!
Rating: 8 out of 10 stars.
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