Fantastic Four? X-Men? What Marvel Series Would You Pick?

Given those 3 choices, the first thing I would do is eliminate one, without any hesitation. First 100 X-Men...gone. Remember you are not really getting 100 X-Men stories, only 73 are original. Issues 67-93 were all reprints. Why would I want 27 issues of reprints when I could get 100 original stories in the other two?

ASM vs FF? Not as easy to decide. If value, popularity, re-sale and enduring are important than it is very difficult to argue against ASM. However, if originality, diversity of stories and characters is more important then you would have to go with FF. I guess it really comes down to do you like Spider-man enough to read 100 issues of him or do would you prefer 100 issues that focus on 4 characters?

Or do we say that even in the first 100 issues Peter Parker was a full fledged, three dimensional character with flaws and relatability that the FF could not match. Reed is your typical super-genius that has been completely normalized in Marvel stories, Johnny is your typical carefree spirit, Sue was there as the token female (remember we are talking first 100 issues only). Ben was the most interesting and tragic of all and had the most interesting character development. But their individual growth was limited as there were four to focus on instead of one.

Finally, and this is definitely a generalization but, do you prefer local stories or spacey stories?

I guess, for me, ASM wins it. There is a reason that ASM has been the flagship title all these years, it had the best stories that were grounded in a relatable New York, Peter had problems the reader could identify with, and while there may be a certain repetitiveness to those stories, because it was just one character, Peter could develop and grow and did not need to share the spotlight with three others...oh and MJ...Face it tiger, Marvel hit the jackpot with her.

• Thanks for the comments. Your deduction and reasoning are very stout.
  I prefer spacey stories over local ones.
  Isn't it weird how there are so many heroes "saving new york"?

There is also a minor character named Black Panther in the FF run ;)

• Based on your comment; Are you leaning towards selecting Fantastic Four as the series to pick?

Another "What If???..." question. It is a difficult decision. Being a huge Iron Man fan (and having been so since 6th grade in the 1970s) I have them all, including 1-100 and within those almost every variant/version/variation that I know to exist (newsstand / direct / diamond / price change / international pricing / etc.), though I am still working on the Mark Jewelers, National Diamond, and other "insert" variants, as well as other language versions (and there are surprisingly many of those, at least for the more current issues). I'm not going to give an answer, but the question really has to include a second part: Would you want this 1-100 run for an investment or simply because you like the run / characters / art / etc. The answer to that question makes for very different answers.

• Interesting comments and warranted. Nice Iron Man collection, by the way.
  To answer your "loaded question, it would be a combination of both. So which series would you choose?

Mike, for me to pick just one series I feel it would be the one that would apply more to my life situations as I believe that's what made Marvel so popular during those early years. Am I a loner who is not part of the "in crowd" at school, then maybe I can relate to Peter Parker. Am I part of a team who works together to get thing accomplished against all odds then maybe I can relate more to the FF. Am I an outcast so to speak and so are my closest friends then maybe I can relate more to the X-Men. For me growing up I chose Spider-Man as I identified more with Peter and his daily trials & tribulations. Next for me would be the X-Men especially the early issues. Fantastic Four although not my 1st pick is without a doubt an important & historical time for Marvel & comics in general that has many ardent & loyal followers with easily some of the most iconic artwork by Kirby. I've had the pleasure of owning some of all three series at one time or another during my collecting years and have enjoyed them all but I've settled on old 'Spidey in the end. Cheers!

• I really like how you can make decisions about your personal life. Your answers are very genuine and concise.
  Do you have a favorite Spider-Man issue?

  • Actually have been going back and reading 1 thru 10 currently thru the Marvel Tales reprints from the 80's and really enjoyed #8. It's a quirky story with an out-of-control robot as the bad guy, but I really like the back & forth banter of Peter & Flash Thompson & their boxing match in the gym in which Peter pulls his punch but knocks Flash clean out of the ring! Also the backup story draw by Kirby and inked by Ditko, involving the Torch & cameo by the FF is great fun.
    One of the first 10 issues that I believe is finally coming into it's own.

    • Nice comments Phil. Why do you think there is no love for X-Men?

      • Although a great idea and plot unfortunately in my opinion it simply came down to the two acts it had to follow. Started out strong but just didn't have the staying power and loyal readers ASM & FF had. Then the reboot with the new team breathed new life into the series and has made it a top contender again.

        • Interesting comments. I thought maybe there was more love from the 90s animated series that brought kids to watch cartoons.

Nice article. You can't go wrong with any of these three titles. The X Men run in the late 70's, early 80's by Byrne and Claremont are some of the best comics ever written. Spider-Man is easily one of my favourite comic characters. The first 50 issues of Amazing Spider Man are some of the most creative early issues of a character ever. However if I had my choice, I would choose the Fantastic Four.

To me, those first 60 issues of the Fantastic Four are quite simply, the most important comics that Marvel has ever produced. Everything in their universe started from there. Those comics set the blue print for the future of what Marvel Comics would be. Not just as a company, but the standards of greatness that they wanted to live up to. I don't think that those 60 issues get enough credit for how they revolutionized the comic industry.

A bone of contention for me, has always been that I don't even think that Marvel realizes that. Look at some of the run of the mill creative teams in the mid 1970's to the early 1980's. Thankfully for us, John Byrne saw this and brought the Fantastic Four Back to Basics with issue #232.

• Nice analysis and it is good to see your explanation.
  Since I have to put you on the spot; which series would you choose for the first 100 issues?

FANTASTIC FOUR!! --I had to shout it just because it is "The World's Greatest Comic Magazine". Marvel's first is still the best to own due to the fact that is SO full of key issues. Stan & Jack were on top of their game for this series. Growing up with this comic in it's heyday was -well- FANTASTIC! New characters & wild situations abounded issue after issue. The inventiveness humor & pathos made this book stand out of the crowd! I would re-read an issue many times, so much so that I made it a personal goal to eventually have a nice run of these, 1-103 complete, which was a daunting task then. I had a spotty run from 29-120 at that point. But perseverance pays off with the proper amount of focus. Having the first 20 issues in 3.0 to 6.5 range was not my first choice when I set my goal, but one finds that you have to be somewhat realistic to achieve the final payoff. After all, having the remaining run in 6.5 to 9.6 is not too shabby considering how the keys from 21-77 have skyrocketed in the past 10-15 years, Seeing things like issue #52 go from a $200 NM- book to a $13,500 Mega-key is truly gratifying!! The great thing is that there are so many examples to list, like #36 #45 #46 #48 #49 #50 #51 #55 #65 #66 #67 #72 that have had great increases. Plus the early issues in lower grades like #4 in 3.0 now @ $1700 or #5 in 5.5 @ $9750 especially when I purchased it for under $600 in 2003. When Disney tackles the FF in the cinematic universe expect more gains to come! Truly a Win Win owning a Fantastic Four run!!

• Fantastic answer! I am glad you can relate your choice based on your own personal experience in collecting the series.
  Which series would you choose as the 2nd choice?

Another vote for FF. Especially from a value/investment standpoint. If Spidey's first appearance had been in ASM, then ASM woulda been a no-brainer. But 1st FF, 1st Doom, 1st Galactus, 1st Black Panther? Whoa.

• Your perspective makes a good point. From an investment standpoint, you are confirming Fantastic Four is the series to choose.
  Would that be the same if we were choosing the series from a creative standpoint?

I lost interest in X-men after King Kirby stopped doing the art so it's easy to say Spidey gets the nod for 2'nd place. Always loved Ditko's wonderful quirky art style. It really suited the character so well. -A little offbeat just like the hero being presented. Would like to get the first 5 issues to button up my silver age run, but they have been very spendy books for quite a while!!

• That is cool that you only need 5 more issues to finish up your silver age run. What could be done for X-Men to be a series to recognize as the best?

Fantastic Four for me would always be first. Followed by Amazing Spider-Man as a close second. X-Men would bring up the rear.

• Those are good choices. It seems to be Fantastic Four as the top choice between the three. Any other series that I did not mention that might have consideration?