Amazing Adventures

featuring The Beast

(X-Men)

12-17

Believe it or not, there once was a time when the X-Men couldn't support their own book. Despite a wonderful run, capped off by some classic Roy Thomas-Neal Adams issues, X-MEN had died and gone to reprint heaven. But Roy thought maybe a series starring one of the X-Men, with the others guest-starring, would work. Gerry Conway kicked it off, in AMAZING ADVENTURES #11, and then the series was handed over to a brand-new writer for his very first superhero. Over the next year I wrote the only X-MEN there was.

I couldn't sell them, either, but those who read this series liked its quirky nature, and Marvel was happy to give me more work. Next up: THE DEFENDERS.

PS. Don't confuse this title with AMAZING HIGH ADVENTURE.

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IWritten by Gerry Conway
Written by Len WeinI
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ICollection: contains AMAZING ADVENTURES 12-17 & HULK 161I
ICollection: contains AMAZING ADVENTURES 12-17 & HULK 161I

COMICS


NOTES:

12: Due to mind manipulation, the Beast truly believes he killed Iron Man. I wanted to put a blurb on the cover saying "And he's not lying!" or something like that, but Stan, overseeing this brand-new writer, thought that was going too far and put what's there. I also colored the cover and the interior story.

13: Patsy Walker, previously part of Marvel's romance line, enters the superhero world for the first time (she had appeared in a crowd scene at Reed and Sue's wedding in FANTASTIC FOUR). Patsy would later become Hellcat in AVENGERS.

15: Since the book wasn't selling, Marvel changed the Beast's color to make him more striking.

16: I was pals with Gerry Conway, who wrote THOR, and Len Wein, who wrote JUSTICE LEAGUE, and somehow we decided to plot a story that ran through all three books - even though JLA wasn't from Marvel, and even though their books were much bigger than mine. Gerry, Len, Len's then-wife Glynis, and I appear in all three plotlines, each of which stands on its own but also fits into one larger story. (They came out at the same time but Marvel's cover dates were a month ahead of DC's.)

17: The series was actually shut down with #16, but its replacement in AMAZING ADVENTURES was late so I whipped out a mostly-reprint issue, stringing together the Beast's origin story from a serial in the earlier X-MEN book with some new bridging material. Since #16 left us in mid-story, I concluded it a few months later in THE INCREDIBLE HULK #161.