Marvel Feature #1
☆ Be the first to review + Add to your collection — Join freeMarvel Feature #1 is the founding document of the Defenders, Marvel's self-described 'non-team' — a deliberately unconventional grouping of Doctor Strange, the Sub-Mariner, and the Hulk that rejected the collegial structure of the Avengers or Fantastic Four in favor of loners united only by necessity. The concept introduced a new storytelling template for Marvel: a rotating, commitment-free alliance of anti-social powerhouses who bicker as much as they cooperate, which proved influential enough to sustain an ongoing series from 1972 through 1986 and inspire multiple revivals. The issue also restored Doctor Strange's identity and status quo after his own cancelled series had left him masked and renamed 'Stephen Sanders,' making it a pivotal moment in that character's publishing history. As the debut issue of Marvel Feature — one of Stan Lee's tryout anthology titles explicitly modeled on DC's Showcase — it also marks an important editorial strategy: test a new team in a low-stakes format before committing to a dedicated ongoing series.
In "The Day of the Defenders!", Sub-Mariner and Prince Byrrah clash with U.S. surface ships in the Arctic, setting the stage for a tense standoff. Written and drawn entirely by Bill Everett, this early tale explores the fragile peace between Atlanteans and humanity, sparked by a last-minute warning that saves Atlantis from a devastating explosion. The cover by Neal Adams and Marie Severin captures the moment's intensity, a striking visual that complements the story's pivotal turning point.
In "The Day of the Defenders!", the unlikely trio of Dr. Strange, Namor, and the Hulk must unite to stop Yandroth, the Omegatron, whose terrifying machine threatens to bring about the total destruction of Earth. With time running out and the planet’s fate hanging in the balance, these powerful heroes must set aside their differences and fight as one.
In "The Sub-Mariner and the Icebergs," the Atlantean warrior Namor faces off against U.S. surface ships in the Arctic, while Prince Byrrah, leader of a rival Atlantean faction, also takes up arms. As tensions rise, a warning from a U.S. expedition reveals a looming disaster, prompting a desperate evacuation that ultimately leads to an unexpected truce between the two Atlantean leaders.
ComicBooks.com Value
Show all 22 grades ▾
This exact issue on ebay
CGC 7.5 ▾ $185–$265 3 listings
CGC 6 ▾ $140–$172 2 listings
Raw — FN ▾ $56.25–$132 5 listings
Raw / ungraded ▾ $44–$170 11 listings
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
Writer Roy Thomas did not set out to create a new supergroup; according to his own 2008 introduction to Marvel Masterworks: The Defenders Vol. 1, he was simply resolving dangling threads from the cancelled Doctor Strange series when he first paired Strange with Sub-Mariner and Hulk in earlier issues. The genuine spark came from Sub-Mariner #34–35 (early 1971), where Thomas teamed Namor, the Hulk, and the Silver Surfer as the 'Titans Three,' and the sales response prompted Stan Lee to ask Thomas to develop the concept into a series — with two editorial mandates: swap in Doctor Strange for the Silver Surfer (Lee was protective of that character and refused to make him a regular), and use the name 'the Defenders' rather than Thomas's preferred 'Invaders.' The lead story was written by Thomas, penciled by Ross Andru, and inked by Sub-Mariner creator Bill Everett — a pairing that generated behind-the-scenes friction, as Thomas later recounted that Everett disliked inking Andru's deliberately unfinished pencil style. The cover was provided by Neal Adams, while the issue was padded to its 52-page, 25-cent square-bound format with a backup Doctor Strange solo strip (penciled by Don Heck, inked by Frank Giacoia) and a Golden Age Sub-Mariner reprint from Sub-Mariner #40 (1955), itself written and drawn by Everett.
Trivia · 8 facts
- First appearance and origin of the Defenders as a named team, comprising Doctor Strange, the Sub-Mariner (Namor), and the Hulk (Bruce Banner).
- Written by Roy Thomas, penciled by Ross Andru, inked by Bill Everett, with a cover by Neal Adams and lettering by Sam Rosen; edited by Stan Lee.
- Cover-dated December 1971 but released on newsstands in July 1971, due to its quarterly publication schedule.
- First appearance of the Omegatron, the nuclear doomsday machine built by the dying techno-wizard Yandroth, whose death triggers the device's five-hour countdown — the threat that forces the trio together.
- The Silver Surfer appears only in a brief cameo, shown helplessly colliding with the galactic barrier that traps him on Earth; Stan Lee refused to allow the character to become a regular Defender, which is why Doctor Strange was substituted as the third founding member.
- The issue's backup strip, 'The Return!' (script by Thomas, art by Don Heck and Frank Giacoia), restores Doctor Strange's secret identity: the Ancient One appears to him in a dream and strips away the 'Stephen Sanders' alias, definitively reverting him to Stephen Strange.
- A third story reprints a Golden Age Sub-Mariner tale from Sub-Mariner #40 (1955), written and drawn entirely by Bill Everett, featuring Namor, Namora, Emperor Thakorr, and Prince Byrrah.
- The lead story was reprinted in Marvel Treasury Edition #16 (1978) and has since been collected in Essential Defenders Vol. 1 (2005), Marvel Masterworks: The Defenders Vol. 1 (2008), the Defenders Omnibus Vol. 1 (2021), and the Defenders Epic Collection: The Day of the Defenders (2022); a complete Facsimile Edition was published in July 2019.
Cast · 12 characters
Full credits
Reprints
↩ Reprints Sub-Mariner #40 (1955)
Reprinted in Gli Albi dei Super-Eroi #1 (1973), The Mighty World of Marvel #48 (1973), Dracula #1 (1974), Etranges Aventures #35 (1974), Hulk E I Difensori #1 (1975), Marvel Treasury Edition #16 (1978), Marvel Super Adventure Winter Special #[nn] (1980), Marvel Superheroes and the Occult Winter Special #[nn] (1980), Selecciones Marvel #8 (2000), Day of the Defenders #1 (2001), Essential Doctor Strange #2 (2005), Essential Defenders #1 (2005), Marvel Masterworks: The Defenders #1 (2008), Marvel Masterworks: Doctor Strange #4 (2010), Marvel Firsts: The 1970s #1 (2011), Defenders: The Coming of the Defenders #1 (2012), Marvel Classic #8 (2012), Doctor Strange Epic Collection #3 (2016), Marvel. Официальная коллекция комиксов #82 (2016), Defenders: Marvel Feature No. 1 Facsimile Edition #[nn] (2019), Doctor Strange Omnibus #2 (2021), The Defenders Omnibus #1 (2021), Hulk: Grand Design Treasury Edition #[nn] (2022), Defenders Epic Collection #1 (2023) + 2 more
Key issues in Marvel Feature
Reviews
Reader reviews
No reader reviews yet.