Marvel Boy #1
☆ Be the first to review + Add to your collection — Join freeMarvel Boy #1 marks the first appearance of Noh-Varr, the genetically engineered alternate-reality Kree warrior who would go on to serve in the Dark Avengers, the Avengers proper, the Young Avengers, and the Guardians of the Galaxy — making this the debut of one of the more durably active Marvel characters introduced in the 2000s. The issue also introduced Doctor Midas, Exterminatrix (Oubliette Midas), the Plex intelligence, and the concept of Earth-200080 as a pocket alternate reality that Morrison deliberately designed as a structural analog to the DC Universe, a meta-textual wrinkle baked into the very foundation of the story. As the opening chapter of Grant Morrison's first Marvel Comics work, it announced a distinct creative sensibility — blending Lee/Kirby-style high-concept adventure with countercultural edge and formally adventurous page design — that directly prefigured their landmark New X-Men run. Critics at the time recognized it as an unusually ambitious piece of superhero craft, and its influence on how Marvel handled young, morally ambiguous cosmic characters is traceable through more than two decades of subsequent publishing.
ComicBooks.com Value
Show all 9 grades ▾
This exact issue on ebay
CGC 9.8 ▾ $69.99–$345 6 listings
CGC 9.6 ▾ $49.99–$70 3 listings
CGC 9.4 ▾ $45–$72.25 3 listings
Raw — MINT ▾ $11.18–$14.99 2 listings
Raw — NM- ▾ $12–$55 3 listings
Raw — VF/NM ▾ $7.99–$56.24 5 listings
Raw — VF+ ▾ $10.5–$25 3 listings
Raw / ungraded ▾ $5.32–$190 30 listings
More listings for this title
Sell my copy
Have this issue — or a whole collection? Get a fair offer from us, skip the marketplace fees and the hassle.
We Buy Collections ▸History
Marvel Boy was the project that brought Grant Morrison to Marvel Comics after a long, celebrated run at DC, a move that the ComicBook.com retrospective (2025) traces partly to a dispute over DC's handling of the Wachowskis' use of The Invisibles as Matrix inspiration. Morrison was matched with artist J.G. Jones — who handled both pencils and inks throughout the series — and colorist Matt Milla of Avalon Studios, whose video-game-influenced lighting palette was something Morrison specifically highlighted in a 2000 interview as central to the book's identity. The series was published under Marvel's Marvel Knights imprint, then the publisher's prestige line, with Joe Quesada listed as editor; Morrison was drawn to that home partly because their Vertigo background made them a natural fit for Knights' more mature, auteur-friendly approach, and partly because the bigger Marvel titles they might otherwise have inherited were already occupied. The six-issue miniseries ran from August 2000 to January 2001, with issue #1 carrying a June 7, 2000 release date; it has since been collected in a trade paperback and a Marvel Knights hardcover edition.
Trivia · 8 facts
- First appearance of Noh-Varr (later known as Marvel Boy, Captain Marvel, and Protector), created by writer Grant Morrison and artist J.G. Jones; cover-dated August 2000, released June 7, 2000.
- First appearance of Doctor Midas and his daughter Oubliette Midas / Exterminatrix, as well as the Plex (the Kree ship's artificial intelligence) and the 18th Kree Diplomatic Gestalt crew including Merree and Captain Glory — all introduced in this single issue.
- First appearance of Earth-200080, the alternate-reality Kree home dimension that Morrison intentionally designed as an analog of the DC Comics Universe.
- Noh-Varr is depicted as a pink-skinned Kree from Earth-200080 who has been genetically enhanced with cockroach DNA, granting him superhuman speed, durability, and regenerative ability; his saliva carries nanotech that can trigger hallucinations and mind control.
- The series was published under the Marvel Knights imprint with J.G. Jones serving as both penciler and inker; Matt Milla of Avalon Studios provided the coloring, and Joe Quesada edited.
- Marvel Boy #1 was the 21st best-selling comic in June 2000 according to Diamond Comic Distributors, signaling a strong commercial debut for Morrison's first Marvel work.
- The miniseries ran six issues (August 2000 – January 2001) and was the launching pad for Morrison's tenure at Marvel, which continued with their celebrated New X-Men run.
- The complete series has been collected multiple times, including a Marvel Knights trade paperback edition and a 2018 Marvel Knights hardcover; it is also available in full on Marvel Unlimited.
Full credits
Reprints
Reprinted in Avengers #31 (2000), Marvel Boy #[nn] (2001), Marvel Boy [Second Edition] #[nn] (2014), Colección Extra Superhéroes #68 (2016), Marvel Knights Marvel Boy by Morrison & Jones #[nn] (2018)
Variants (1)
Reviews
Reader reviews
No reader reviews yet.