What came to be know as "The Marvel Age of Comics" begins HERE in the "pre-superhero" Marvel comics created, primarily by Jack Kirby and secondarily by Steve Ditko (and tertiarily by Don Heck), with the inking assists of Dick Ayers, George Bell and others, and with Stan Lee and Larry Leiber filling out the scripts. These comics provided form and color to the unconscious cold war anxieties that lurked benearth the surface of every sentient American during the years – 1957 - 1962 – that led up to the Cuban Missle Crisis, allowing readers to finally face their fears, and, eventually, after getting to know them through the comics collected here, at last turn, confront and challenge them in the pages of Fantastic Four #1. The 822 pages of this collection – the second of two – contain many a great tale, and page after page (after page!) of amazing art all drawn by the one and only Jack Kirby. The editors claim that between this volume and the first the entirety of Kirby's pre-superhero – as well as the pair of late, post-superhero comics that Kirby penned in 1970 (for Chamber of Darkness #4 & #5), just prior to departing to DC to create the Fourth World – will be collected. There are also a lucky 13 pages pf origial art reproduced, along with a cover gallery of homage covers and illos by the likes of Steve Ditko, Mike Mignola, et al. These are the comics that (may well have) saved the world!
