Madame Joy

Debuting in the pages of Marvel Comics Presents #7 in 1988, Madame Joy is a Copper Age creation from the formidable team of Chris Claremont and John Buscema — a pairing that defined some of Marvel's most atmospheric storytelling of that era. Her small but notable footprint in the catalog places her in remarkably charged company, sharing pages with Wolverine, Sabretooth, Silver Fox, and Jessica Drew, which tells you something about the shadowy, morally complex corners of the Marvel Universe she inhabits. Rare enough to earn a mention in the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe: Wolverine 2004 and collected in the prestigious Marvel Visionaries: John Buscema, she's the kind of supporting figure that serious Wolverine-era completists and Claremont devotees genuinely prize — a quiet piece of a rich, sprawling puzzle.