If you were a fan who grew up during the Bronze Age of Comics, you probably have some memories of both receiving comics as gifts during the holiday season and of Marvel’s Treasury Editions.
Long before you could buy a graphic novel collection of your favorite hero’s adventures, the Treasury Editions collected a variety of stories in the 10″ x 14″ format, presenting Spider-Man, the Hulk, the Avengers, Captain America, Conan the Barbarian and others in the biggest format ever seen by fans at the time.
The large, somewhat sturdier collections were a sight to behold for kids of the era, and for three years in a row in 1974, 1975, and 1976, Marvel would marry the format with a holiday (Christmas) theme, making the ultimate gift for Marvel fans.
The original Treasury Edition Special, and the first to feature the “Giant Superhero Holiday Grab-Bag” moniker, included reprinted holiday-themed stories with “Have Yourself a Sandman Little Christmas” (Marvel Team-Up #1 by Roy Thomas, Ross Andru, and Mike Esposito featuring Spider-Man, the Human Torch, and the Sandman), “In Mortal Combat with the Sub-Mariner” (Daredevil #7 by Stan Lee and Wally Wood), “”…And to all a Goodnight” (Amazing Adventures #5 by Thomas, Gene Colan, and Bill Everett featuring the Black Widow), and “The Hulk vs. the Thing” and “The Avengers take Over” (Fantastic Four #25-26 by Lee, Jack Kirby, and George Bell), proving that a Hulk vs. Thing battle always gets top billing! The 98-page holiday smash-up would have set you back $1.50 in 1974.
Marvel followed up the first Holiday Grab Bag with another the following year in 1975 (and the first to enter the Marvel Treasury Edition series with issue #8). 1975’s “Giant Superhero Holiday Grab-Bag” reprinted “Twas the Night before Christmas” (Nick Fury Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. #10 by Gary Friedrich, Frank Springer, and Johnny Craig), “Spidey goes Mad” (Marvel Tales #19 by Lee and Steve Ditko), “Jingle Bombs” (Luke Cage, Hero for Hire #7 by Steve Englehart, George Tuska, and Billy Graham), “Heaven is a Very Small Place” (Incredible Hulk #147 by Thomas, Herb Trimpe, and John Severin), and “Eternity, Eternity” (Dr. Strange #180) by Thomas, Gene Colan, and Tom Palmer). This edition was a little smaller than the previous year’s, with 82 pages for the same $1.50 price tag.
Marvel finished off their first foray into Holiday collections with 1976’s Marvel Treasury Edition #13, notable as the first “Grab-Bag” to feature a new story starring the Fantastic Four, Spider-Man, and the Avengers entitled “Tis the Season” by Roger Stern, George Tuska, and Don Perlin and featuring one heck of a snowball fight. Reprints in the edition included “As Those Who will not See” (Marvel Team-Up #6 by Gerry Conway, Gil Kane, and Mike Esposito featuring Spider-Man and the Thing versus the combined might of the Puppet Master and the Thinker), “Even an Android can Cry” (Avengers #58 by Thomas, John Buscema, and George Klein), “He Who Strikes the Silver Surfer” (Tales to Astonish #93 by Lee, Marie Severin, and Frank Giacoia featuring another misunderstanding between future Defenders teammates the Hulk and the Surfer), and “Once Upon a Time, the Ox” (Daredevil #8 by Conway, Colan, and Palmer. Once again, the “Grab-Bag” weighed in at 82 pages for $1.50.
If you’re feeling a little nostalgic for these bygone “treasures”, don’t worry, as all three can be found at conventions, your local comic shop, and online for between $30-$50 each.
Happy holidays from Conskipper and thanks for taking this trip down memory lane with us!