Kirby in a whole bunch of Marvel releases for May 2005, in a variety of formats. The most interesting is ESSENTIAL THOR v2, almost 600 pages of Kirby, most not reprinted in 30 years. Some good stuff in the BEST OF THE FF book, even some of the non-Kirby stuff which makes up the bulk of the book. And it’s good to see those two Tuk stories, although I still think the MARVEL MILESTONE selection is a bit unfocused. The MAXIMUM FF book is a bit odd to see. I suspect Evanier will post more on his site, and I’ll link to that when he does.

ESSENTIAL THOR VOL. 2 TPB
AVENGERS: KANG – TIME AND TIME AGAIN TPB (one story)
BEST OF THE FANTASTIC FOUR VOL. 1 HC (five stories)
GIANT-SIZE X-MEN #3 (two stories)
MARVEL MILESTONES: WOLVERINE, X-MEN AND TUK THE CAVE BOY (two short stories)
MAXIMUM FANTASTIC FOUR (see details below)
MARVEL MASTERWORKS: THE INVINCIBLE IRON MAN VOL. 2 (covers of the ToS issues)

ESSENTIAL THOR VOL. 2 TPB
Written by STAN LEE
Penciled by JACK KIRBY
Cover by JACK KIRBY
Witness classic cosmic clashes between the God of Thunder and his evil stepbrother, Loki; the Absorbing Man, the Destroyer; and more of his most fearsome foes! Plus: Thor’s first journey into the Black Galaxy and a reporter’s firsthand account of Asgard! Guest-starring the Avengers and featuring the first appearance of Hercules! Collects THOR #113-136 and Annual #1-2.
584 PGS./ALL AGES/BLACK & WHITE …$16.99
ISBN: 0-7851-1591-9)

AVENGERS: KANG – TIME AND TIME AGAIN TPB
Written by STAN LEE, ROY THOMAS & ROGER STERN
Penciled by JACK KIRBY, SAL BUSCEMA, HERB TRIMPE & JOHN BUSCEMA
Cover by JOHN BUSCEMA
The super-villainy of Kang the Conqueror…unleashed at last! You’ve seen his true colors in YOUNG AVENGERS; now, see what came before! In a classic contest, the Grandmaster and Kang pit the Avengers against the Squadron Sinister and the wartime Invaders! And when the self-proclaimed “Ultimate Kang” sets outs to conquer his alternate-reality counterparts, only one force can possibly halt his mad march: himself!? Plus: Kang takes on Thor and the Hulk! Collecting AVENGERS #69-71 and #267-269, THOR #140, and HULK #135.
176 PGS./MARVEL PSR …$19.99
ISBN: 0-7851-1820-9

BEST OF THE FANTASTIC FOUR VOL. 1 HC
Written by STAN LEE, ARCHIE GOODWIN, ROY THOMAS, JOHN BYRNE, KARL KESEL, MARK WAID, BARRY WINDSOR-SMITH & ROBERTO AGUIRRE-SACASA
Penciled by JACK KIRBY, JOHN BUSCEMA, GEORGE PEREZ, JOHN BYRNE, STUART IMMONEN, MIKE WIERINGO, BARRY WINDSOR-SMITH & STEVE MCNIVEN
Follow the FF from their original adventure to the height of their success! Caught in a mental maelstrom of alien enemies! Trips into the Negative Zone, Subterranea and the soul of Ben Grimm! The triumph and tragedy of Mr. Fantastic! The Thing vs. the Thing! And who will be the last hero standing in the ultimate war…of practical jokes? Featuring Dr. Doom, Dr. Octopus, the Impossible Man, Daredevil and more! Collects FANTASTIC FOUR #1, #39-40, #51, #100, #116, #176, #236, and #267; FANTASTIC FOUR (Vol. 3) #56 and #60; MARVEL FANFARE #15; MARVEL TWO-IN-ONE #50; and MARVEL KNIGHTS 4 #4.
360 PGS./MARVEL PSR …$29.99
ISBN: 0-7851-1782-2

GIANT-SIZE X-MEN #3
Written by JOSS WHEDON
Pencils by DAVE COCKRUM
New Cover by DAVE COCKRUM
Featuring Classic Reprints by STAN LEE, JACK KIRBY & WERNER ROTH
In celebration of the 30th anniversary of 1975’s GIANT-SIZE X-MEN #1 and #2 comes a colossal collection of the X-Men’s greatest team-ups – plus a brand-new untold tale of the All-New, All-Different X-Men by JOSS WHEDON and DAVE COCKRUM! The X-Men tangle with the FF in FANTASTIC FOUR #28 (July 1964), the Might Avengers guest-star in X-MEN #9 (January 1964) and along comes a Spider-Man in X-MEN #35 (August 1967)!
80 Pgs/ Marvel PSR… 4.99

MARVEL MILESTONES: WOLVERINE, X-MEN AND TUK THE CAVE BOY
Written by CHRIS CLAREMONT, JOE SIMON & JACK KIRBY
Penciled by JOHN BUSCEMA, RICK LEORNARDI, JOE SIMON & JACK KIRBY
Cover by WALTER SIMONSON
Celebrating 65 years of titanic tomes from the House of Ideas, MARVEL MILESTONES makes its triumphant return to the comics scene! Experience the highs, lows and in-betweens of Marvel’s finest — monthly — in full color! This issue: In a special preview of next month’s MARVEL COMICS PRESENTS: WOLVERINE VOL. 1 TPB, Logan makes his first foray as Patch into Madripoor — an island nation where anything goes, and everything is for sale — in a story from MARVEL COMICS PRESENTS #1! Plus: Storm and Cyclops battle for leadership of the X-Men in UNCANNY X-MEN #201, and Tuk the Caveboy stars in stories from the Dark Ages from CAPTAIN AMERICA COMICS #1 and #2.
48 PGS./Marvel PSR …$3.99

MAXIMUM FANTASTIC FOUR
Introduction and afterword by WALTER MOSLEY
Commentary by MARK EVANIER
Designed by PAUL SAHRE
FANTASTIC FOUR #1 Written by STAN LEE & Illustrated by JACK KIRBY
Ushering in momentous change in comic-book illustration and ingenuity, Jack Kirby’s immense artistic contribution to FANTASTIC FOUR #1 revolutionized visual storytelling and brought the art of reality to the extraordinary lives of super heroes. The ripple effects of that single issue continue to influence comic-book art to this day. As a tribute to Kirby’s rendering of Marvel’s First Family and their first adventure, MAXIMUM FANTASTIC FOUR re-presents FANTASTIC FOUR #1 AS YOU’VE NEVER SEEN IT BEFORE – highlighted by a super-size, digitally remastered, panel-by-panel exploration of the entire issue that captures every single detail and nuance of Kirby’s groundbreaking artwork. The book also contains a substantial introduction and afterword by bestselling author and comic-book enthusiast Walter Mosley; art commentary by Kirby expert Mark Evanier; the stunning design of Paul Sahre; and a scale-sized, high-resolution reproduction of FF #1. This immaculately packaged coffee-table masterpiece is must-have for any Jack Kirby enthusiast, Fantastic Four fanatic, or sequential art fan!
224 PGS./All Ages …$49.99
Format: Jacketed hardcover
Trim size: 8 7/8″ x 11 7/8″
Special effects: four-color matte lamination, spot UV gloss jacket with embossing and foil, four-color matte lamination, spot UV case.
ISBN: 0-7851-1792-X

MARVEL MASTERWORKS: THE INVINCIBLE IRON MAN VOL. 2
Written by STAN LEE
Penciled by DON HECK
Cover by DON HECK
Marvel’s Man of Metal makes his triumphant return to the Masterworks! Yes, it’s time to fess up and Face Front, True Believers: After a thirteen-year vacation, the iron-clad Avenger’s back with his sophomore effort at long last. But it’s guaranteed to be one harrowing homecoming!
This tome’s classic tales pit Tony Stark against a virtual who’s who of adversaries in the mighty Marvel manner that could only be brought to you by Stan Lee and the lavish pen of “Dashing” Don Heck! There’s the return of Iron Man’s arch-nemesis, the Mandarin, and said vile villain’s origin, followed up by the first appearance of the long-loved Avenger, Hawkeye — but he’s not playing on the side of angels here. No, he’s teamed-up with the Black Widow against ol’ Iron Boots! And finally, Iron Man must test his mettle against no less than Captain America and his own Iron Man armor as the new Iron Man fights the old! It’s a slam-bang barrage of Marvel classics with drama galore and a little ’60s Russkie “Red Scare” that can’t be beat. Reserve your copy today! Collecting TALES OF SUSPENSE #51-65.
240 PGS./ALL AGES …$49.99
ISBN: 0-7851-1771-7