Micronauts: The Original Marvel Years Omnibus #1
☆ Be the first to review + Add to your collection — Join freeThis omnibus collects the debut of one of Bronze Age Marvel's most fully realized world-building projects: the January 1979 Micronauts series, which introduced the entire core cast — Arcturus Rann, Marionette, Acroyear, Bug, Biotron, Microtron, Baron Karza, Prince Argon, the Time Traveler/Enigma Force, and the Coffin family — in a single landmark issue, and went on to weave the subatomic Microverse permanently into Marvel continuity. Bill Mantlo's politically charged space opera transcended its toy-license origins, earning the 1979 Eagle Award for Favourite New Comic Title, while Michael Golden's kinetic, scale-conscious artwork pushed Bronze Age visual storytelling in new directions. The series further distinguished itself by threading real Marvel characters — the Fantastic Four, Nick Fury and S.H.I.E.L.D., Man-Thing, and Scott Lang's Ant-Man — through the narrative in ways that deepened both the Micronauts' world and the broader Marvel Universe. Because the licensed material was out of print for nearly four decades after the original run ended, the 2024 Omnibus represents the first-ever comprehensive hardcover restoration of this material, finally making it accessible to modern readers.
"Homeworld!" kicks off the Micronauts: The Original Marvel Years Omnibus #1 with a thrilling return to the Microverse, as Commander Rann awakens after a millennium to discover his world has changed beyond recognition—Baron Karza now rules, thanks to the invention of the Warp Drive. Written by Bill Mantlo and brought to life by Michael Golden’s dynamic art and Joe Rubinstein’s inks, the story unfolds in the Pleasure Pits, where Rann’s escape is masterminded by a group of unlikely allies who will soon form the core of the Micronauts. The cover by Dave Cockrum and Al Milgrom captures the epic scale of this cosmic rebirth.
In "Homeworld!", Commander Rann awakens after a millennium in suspended animation to discover the Microverse has changed beyond recognition—Baron Karza now rules, thanks to the invention of the Warp Drive. Captured and imprisoned in the brutal Pleasure Pits, Rann’s escape is quietly arranged by a group of unlikely allies, setting the stage for a new resistance.
In "A Hunting We Will Go!", Slug ventures into the eerie Body Banks in search of Prince Argon, while the Micronauts track down Bug at the Coffin residence—unaware that Bug is already there, hiding among the family. With the remains of a Wing Fighter in tow, the Coffins deliver them to Phillip Prometheus at the Human Engineering Life Laboratories, setting off a chain of events that pulls all their fates deeper into the mystery.
In "The Prometheus Pit!", the Micronauts face off against the enigmatic Phillip Prometheus, a cyborg whose mysterious Prometheus Pit serves as a gateway to the Microverse. Meanwhile, on Homeworld, Prince Argon transforms into a centaur to challenge Baron Karza, only to be overpowered, and the Baron selects Slug as the new vessel for Duchess Belladonna.
In the swamps of the Everglades, Steve Coffin and the Micronauts find themselves hunted by the Man-Thing, their retreat suddenly shattered. As danger closes in, Baron Karza discovers Earth through the Prometheus Pit and begins his journey to the planet, drawn by its unknown potential.
In the aftermath of a hard-fought victory over Prince Shaitan and his Battle Cruisers at a sunlit skateboard park, the Micronauts regroup on Earth, their focus shifting to the urgent mystery of their missing teammate, Bug. With the air still thick with the echoes of battle, the team scans the wreckage and the open sky, searching for any sign of their comrade—only to find silence where they expected answers.
ComicBooks.com Value
Find on ebay
Where to buy
Read it digitally
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
The series originated on Christmas 1977, when writer Bill Mantlo's son Adam unwrapped a set of Mego Corporation's Micronauts action figures; Mantlo immediately envisioned the toys as inhabitants of a microscopic parallel universe and persuaded editor-in-chief Jim Shooter to acquire the comics license. Because Mego's Japanese-derived toy line came with no established backstory, Mantlo and artist Michael Golden — who had just left DC Comics amid the 'DC Implosion' — were largely free to invent the mythology from scratch, including creating entirely new characters such as Bug, who had no direct toy counterpart. Marvel editorial rejected an early version of the first story, so the team reworked it before launch, with Golden departing after thirteen issues and being succeeded by Howard Chaykin, Pat Broderick, and others through the run's end in August 1984. The licensing status of the property made any omnibus collection impossible for decades; it was only after Marvel re-acquired the publishing rights from Hasbro in May 2023 that the 2024 Omnibus — billed by Marvel itself as a collection 'you thought could never happen' — could finally be assembled.
Trivia · 9 facts
- First published: Micronauts #1 (Marvel, January 1979); the Omnibus collects issues #1–29, Annuals #1–2, and material from the Micronauts Special Edition (1983) #1–5, spanning 744 pages in hardcover.
- Omnibus release date: April 16, 2024 (cover date April 2024); published by Marvel Comics following the May 2023 Hasbro licensing agreement, representing the first-ever collected reprint of the original Marvel run.
- First appearances collected within: the entire core Micronauts team (Arcturus Rann, Marionette, Acroyear, Bug, Biotron, Microtron), Baron Karza, Prince Argon, the Coffin family (Steve and Ray Coffin), and the Time Traveler/Enigma Force — all debuting in Micronauts #1 (Jan. 1979).
- Creator credits — primary: writer Bill Mantlo; artist Michael Golden with inker Joe Rubinstein on the inaugural story 'Homeworld!'; cover on the original #1 by Dave Cockrum and Al Milgrom. The Omnibus main cover is also by Dave Cockrum; variant covers include art by Michael Golden, Butch Guice, and Steve Ditko.
- Additional art contributors across the collected issues: Howard Chaykin, Pat Broderick, Steve Ditko, Rich Buckler, and others; collection edited by Cory Sedlmeier.
- Marvel Universe crossovers contained in the collected issues include encounters with Nick Fury and S.H.I.E.L.D., Man-Thing (and the backstory of Ted Sallis), and Scott Lang (Ant-Man) in issues #19–20, where Lang teams with the Micronauts against the villain Odd John.
- The series won the 1979 Eagle Award for Favourite New Comic Title.
- Micronauts (along with Moon Knight and Ka-Zar the Savage) became one of Marvel's first ongoing series sold exclusively through direct/comic-shop distribution beginning with issue #38 (Feb. 1982) — issues before that threshold are included in this first Omnibus volume.
- The Microverse concept from the original series was later adapted into the Marvel Cinematic Universe as the Quantum Realm, most prominently featured in the Ant-Man films.
Cast · 14 characters
Full credits
Reprints
↩ Reprints FOOM Magazine #22 (1978), Micronauts #1 (1979), Micronauts #2 (1979), Micronauts #3 (1979), Micronauts #4 (1979), Micronauts #5 (1979), Micronauts #6 (1979), Micronauts #7 (1979), Micronauts #8 (1979), Micronauts #9 (1979), Micronauts #10 (1979), Micronauts #11 (1979), Micronauts #12 (1979), Micronauts Annual #1 (1979), Micronauts #13 (1980), Micronauts #14 (1980), Micronauts #15 (1980), Micronauts #16 (1980), Micronauts #17 (1980), Crazy Magazine #63 (1980), Micronauts #18 (1980), Micronauts #19 (1980), Micronauts #20 (1980), Micronauts #21 (1980), Micronauts #22 (1980), Micronauts Annual #2 (1980), Micronauts #23 (1980), Micronauts #24 (1980), Micronauts #25 (1981), Micronauts #26 (1981), The Defenders #92 (1981), Micronauts #27 (1981), Micronauts #28 (1981), Micronauts #29 (1981), Micronauts Special Edition #1 (1983), Micronauts Special Edition #2 (1984), Micronauts Special Edition #3 (1984), Micronauts Special Edition #4 (1984), Micronauts Special Edition #5 (1984)
Variants (3)
Reviews
Reader reviews
No reader reviews yet.