*Marvel: Following his debut in Fantastic Four #48, Norrin Radd, Herald of Galactus, gained popularity as a recurring guest star, and his status was confirmed when Marvel launched the Silver Surfer’s own series in the double-sized format in 1968. This premier issue featured, for the first time, John Buscema’s illustrations on the Surfer, a body of work generally acknowledged to be among his finest, and presented also for the first time a 38-page account of the Surfer’s origins, plus (in the back) a 13-page tale of the Watcher, detailing the reasons behind the Watcher’s oath of non-interference. The first run of the Surfer’s solo series has achieved cult status, with the first seven double-sized issues in particular being keenly sought out. This is a decent mid-grade copy, pence stamped, with rich colour and some gloss. The squarebound spine is intact, apart from an unobtrusive 3 cm split at the base. There is some wear to the right edge, slightly breaking colour, with a narrow 7 cm colour breaking crease across the top right corner down through the logo right border. Inside, the first wrap is not attached at the staple (Stapling on these is always a little hit and miss), but it is a clean flaw. Beautiful supple off-white page quality.
PICTURED: SILVER SURFER #1 VG/FN p £350