Holiday Heroes MARVEL TEAM-UP "Spider-Man and The Watcher in 'Small Miracles' " Conclusion

We Have Already Seen... 


...attending Aunt May's Christmas party, Peter Parker discovers one of her friends, Arthur Chekov, in despair because his granddaughter, Bette didn't show up, and he's worried about her since he's her only surviving relative.

Peter attempts to console him when the webslinger's Spider-Sense goes off!

Excusing himself from the party, Peter goes to the darkened backyard to find...The Watcher...who says nothing, but hands him a glowing gem showing an image...of Chekov's grandaughter, Bette!

Taking this as a portent, Peter, now in costume, attempts to track down Bette, but can't!
Ol' Web-Head doen;t know how to proceed, when none other than the Star-Spangled Avenger himself, returing home via the rooftoops, finds him and offers to help...

Written by JM DeMatteis, penciled by Kerry Gamill, and inked by Mike Esposito, this never-reprinted Yuletide tale from Marvel Team-Up #127 (1983) offers a bit of insight into why the enigmatic Watcher doesn't just observe, but violates his race's version of the non-interference Prime Directive time and again, sometimes during Earth-shaking events, sometimes in matters affecting those who others might consider "unimportant".

Holiday Heroes MARVEL TEAM-UP "Spider-Man and The Watcher in 'Small Miracles' " Part 1

It's Christmas Eve in the MCU...

and a never-reprinted Yuletide tale from four decades ago is about to unfold!

Pay attention, True Believer...

Will Spider-Man Bette in time?

Will the Star-Spangled Avenger pop up again?

Will The Watcher just stand around and watch?

The answers to these and other annoying questions will be found

TOMORROW!

(Because unless you read this story when it came out, or picked it up as a back issue, you don't know what happens!)

Holiday Reading Room WITHIN OUR REACH "Spider-Man in 'A Wolf at the Door' "

Here's a never-reprinted Yuletide classic starring the ol' Web-Head that very few of you have ever seen...

...since it didn't appear in a Marvel comic!

Plotted by David Ross, scripted by Roy and Dann Thomas, and illustrated by by Jeff (Green Hornet) Butler with assists by Gary Kato, this tale appeared in Star*Reach's Within Our Reach (1991), a Christmas charity benefit book with proceeds going equally to AmFAR and Sempervirens.

The cover was by Norm (Batman) Breyfogle, the only time, AFAIK, he's ever professionally-illustrated Spidey!

The book was also Star*Reach Publishing's final project under their own imprint.

The company continued as a packaging studio for various comics publishers through the 1990s.

SPIDER-MAN, STORM AND POWER MAN "vs SmokeScreen" Part 2: Where's There's Smoke...

We have Already Seen...

Luke Cage is mentoring a teen track team of kids representing every district in NYC.

He confides to photographer Peter Parker, who's covering the team for a human interest story, that one of them, Bret Jackson, isn't performing up to his previous levels.

But why?

As Spider-Man, Peter recruits the X-Men's Storm to trail a couple of suspicious fellows who are supplying cigarettes to Bret and other kids!

Though Ororo eludes detection by flying after the creeps, she's caught when entering their headquarters...

Now that the story's concluded, the comic presents the reader with a quandry...

What would you do, True Believer?

If you're still undecided, perhaps this back cover by John Romita Sr, will sway you...

And, as a final treat, here's the inside front cover with some background about the three heroes...

Penciled by Herb Trimpe and inked by Joe Giella, Marvel's Spider-Man, Storm and Power Man (1982) was commissioned by the American Cancer Society to discourage 'tween and teen smoking.

Oddly, the writer is unknown, but is suspected to be an ACS staffer.
Now here's where it gets wild...
Years later, the American Cancer Society reprinted the comic.
But, within a couple of months, it commissioned Marvel to re-do it...using the exact same script!

See the Result...

Tomorrow!

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SPIDER-MAN, STORM AND POWER MAN "vs SmokeScreen" Part 1

Here's a hard-to-find educational giveaway comic that was both reprinted several year later...

...then re-presented that same year!
(We'll go into that tomorrow...)

Between chapters is "Window Shopping Fun"...

The Story Concludes...

TOMORROW!

Penciled by Herb Trimpe and inked by Joe Giella, Marvel's Spider-Man, Storm and Power Man (1982) was commissioned by the American Cancer Society to discourage 'tween and teen smoking.

Oddly, the writer is unknown, but is suspected to be an ACS staffer.

Please Support Hero Histories!

Visit Amazon and Order...

Free Comics

Giveaways that Fought Commies, Sold Cars and Cigars, Showed How to Buy a TV and Avoid VD, and are now Saving Lives!