THE HUNT FOR MAGNETO: PREFACE
PURPOSE:
The primary purposes of this guide are twofold: to record every appearance of Magneto in Marvel comics, no matter how small or tangential; and to chronicle Magneto's development as a comic book character. Readers will quickly notice that the annotations are somewhat idiosyncratic. I tend to focus on topics of personal interest. For example, I devote much more attention to issues relating to Magneto's personality and personal history than to discussions of his powers, how they work, or how strong they might be.
REQUEST FOR ASSISTANCE:
This guide has been more than two years in the making, in part because I keep getting sidetracked along the way. It still needs a fair amount of work, but I thought it was time to get an "alpha test" version out there for public reaction.
I am not foolish enough to think I've found every Magneto appearance. If anyone knows of some I missed, please let me know. I am especially interested in Magneto parodies. I am certain that I have missed some in Marvel's various spoof titles, but I also suspect he may appear in some non-Marvel parodies, such as Mad magazine.
Another area containing gaps relates to reprints. I have tried to indicate all issues which reprint a story, but with all the Trade Paperbacks issued in the past few years, I'm sure I missed a few.
I am also certain that the guide still contains mistakes. I've been over it many times, but every time I proof it, I discover others. In similar fashion, each time I reread one of the issues, I discover details I overlooked. Once again, please let me know about any factual mistakes, as well as any interpretations you disagree with.
CREDITS:
Special thanks go to Heather Richards, who provided advice, encouragement, copy editing, and research assistance from start to finish. Heather also came up with the title, "The Hunt for Magneto," which I like a lot.
ORGANIZATION:
Presently, the Hunt for Magneto consists of more than 120 pages of text. The Guide is organized into two unequal parts: a brief, unannotated list; and a massive, annotated one. The shorter segment lists every Magneto appearance by book title. It is designed to help collectors quickly identify issues which they do not own.
The longer, annotated appearance list provides extensive descriptions and commentary on each issue. It is divided into four main sections, by type of appearance: regular continuity (including flashbacks); alternate realities; robots, simulacra, dream sequences, and similar "substitute" beings; and parodies.
Within each of these sections, issues are listed chronologically by *publication date*. I did not want to deal with the problem of interweaving the many flashback appearances in Marvel-time. I also thought it would be interesting to see a "real world" retrospective of Magneto's development, illustrating when we, the readers, first learned about important events in his history.
To facilitate electronic transfer, the Guide has been divided into 12 smaller files, excluding this preface:
Part 1: UXM 1 - Avenger 53 (1963 - 1968)
Part 2: UXM 62 - Capt. America Annual 4 (1969 -78)
Part 3: UXM 111 - UXM 188 (1978 - 1984)
Part 4: New Mutants 23 - X-Factor 9 (1985 - 1986)
Part 5: UXM 211 - New Mutants 54 (1986 -1987)
Part 6: New Mutants 55 - Avengers W. Coast 56 (1987 - 90)
Part 7: Wolverine 23 - X-Men Unlimited 2 (1990 - 1993)
Part 8: X-Men 25 - X-Men 58 (1993 - 1996)
Part 9: Magneto 1 - current (1996 +)
Part 10: Robots, Simulacra, etc.
Part 11: Alternate Realities
Part 12: Spoofs and Parodies
CONVENTIONS USED:
The following section headings are used in the annotated entries:
Title: As it appears on the title page, not the cover.
Credits: To save space, I list the plotter, scripter, penciler, and inker only. In some cases, I have missed co-plotting credits. Some day I'll go back and double check these.
Story: A brief synopsis of the plot, plus any relevant subplots.
Cameo: Indicates Magneto appears in one or two panels only, with no impact on the story or his own character development.
Brief appearance: Distinction from cameo is necessarily arbitrary. Generally, more than one or two panels, but fewer than two pages. This can be sequentially, or intermittently through the issue. May have important impact on the story or on Magneto as a character.
Behind-the-Scenes: Again, somewhat arbitrary. Magneto is involved directly in the story, but does not appear on-panel. Excluded from this are issues where characters mention his name, but he has no role in the story and his actual image does not appear. Also excluded are issues where it seems clear that Magneto is "lurking about" but is not shown. For example, some issues of the New Mutants imply that Magneto is somewhere nearby, but he does not appear, nor does he have any impact on the story. Issues where Magneto appears briefly in shadow (whether identified or not) are listed as cameos or brief appearances. In a few instances, b/t/s entries are listed which do not involve Magneto at all, but which depict important facts about his personal history (e.g., his early life with Magda).
Flashback: Any depiction of events which took place prior to the events in the main story, or which relate events from the past. Textual mention of a past event does not count as a flashback unless accompanied by related artwork. "Old" flashbacks relate events which have been revealed before. "New" flashbacks indicate stories which reveal new information about Magneto's past. Certain issues show Magneto only as a photograph or video image being viewed by the characters in the story. Rather than create a new category for "photos," I have treated these as cameo flashbacks.
Character exposition: Events, dialogue, or narrations which reveal significant facts about Magneto's attitudes, beliefs, personality, or behavior.
Notes: Events or comments in the story which provide additional background information on the story, including those revealed in later issues.
Comments: My own interpretation or reaction to the issue. I tried to keep these to a minimum.
Errata: Clear mistakes of fact or continuity.
Pin-Ups: Issues which include Magneto artwork which does not appear as part of a story. This includes cover art for reprint issues, for lack of anywhere else to put them.
Reprints: Indicates where the original issue has been reprinted. Please note that the reprint issues themselves do not have their own entries unless the reprint contains some new material (story and/or artwork). Also note that issues which retell an old story are counted as flashbacks rather than reprints. Examples of the latter include "Marvel Saga" and "Professor X and the X-Men."
Profile: Encyclopedia-type articles appearing in such titles as "Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe" or the "Xavier School Alumni Yearbook."
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revised 8/9/97
On to "The Hunt For Magneto: Brief Listing"
On to "The Hunt For Magneto: Annotated Listing":
Part 1: UXM 1 - Avenger 53 (1963 - 1968)
Part 2: UXM 62 - Capt. America Annual 4 (1969 -78)
Part 3: UXM 111 - UXM 188 (1978 - 1984)
(no other parts published yet)