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Cover: John Romita

The Amazing Spider-Man #48

Name: The Amazing Spider-Man #48
Brand: Marvel
Availability: InStock

May 1967 · Marvel · 0.12 USD

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“The Wings of the Vulture!”

About this Issue

Amazing Spider-Man #48 is the first appearance of Raniero 'Blackie' Drago, the second character to wield the Vulture identity in the Marvel Universe — an early example of Marvel's Silver Age habit of passing a villain's mantle to a successor and testing reader loyalty to the original. Stan Lee's stated reason for creating Drago was a genuine storytelling concern: he felt Spider-Man came across as a bully pummeling an elderly, frail Adrian Toomes, so he recast the role with a younger, more physically credible threat. The experiment backfired — reader mail made clear the audience preferred Toomes — and the editorial reversal that followed actually cemented Toomes as one of the definitive recurring Spider-Man villains rather than a character who might have quietly faded. The issue also contains a transitional character moment for Gwen Stacy, whose hairstyle is visibly redesigned here toward what would become her classic look, a small but durable continuity detail.

writer Stan Lee · artist, inker Johnny Romita · letterer Sammy Rosen · cover John Romita

ComicBooks.com Value

Our Model is In Beta

Raw (VG) $35

CGC 9.8 · 18 in census $4,219

CGC 9.6 · 56 in census $1,185

CGC 9.4 · 98 in census $613

CGC 9.2 · 129 in census $441

CGC 9.0 · 165 in census $381

CGC 8.5 · 189 in census $245

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CGC 8.0 · 185 in census $212

CGC 7.5 · 165 in census $212

CGC 7.0 · 139 in census $144

CGC 6.5 · 122 in census $112

CGC 6.0 · 139 in census $112

CGC 5.5 · 96 in census $86

CGC 5.0 · 90 in census $86

CGC 4.5 · 59 in census $80

CGC 4.0 · 51 in census $56

CGC 3.5 · 30 in census $45

CGC 3.0 · 23 in census $36*

CGC 2.5 · 9 in census $35*

CGC 2.0 · 4 in census $27*

CGC 1.5 · 2 in census $22*

CGC 1.0 none in existence

CGC 0.5 · 4 in census $20*

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CGC 9.8 ▾ $48.99–$375 3 listings

CGC 9.8 · Virgin $48.99 CGC 9.8 · Virgin $69.99 CGC 9.8 · Signed · Virgin $375

CGC 9.4 $500 1 listing

CGC 8.5 ▾ $282–$425 2 listings

CGC 8.5 $281.79 CGC 8.5 $425

CGC 7.5 $272 1 listing CGC 6.5 $170 1 listing CGC 6 $175 1 listing CGC 4.5 $80.99 1 listing CGC $136 1 listing Raw — NM+ $505 1 listing

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Raw / ungraded ▾ $3–$194 22 listings

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History

Written and edited by Stan Lee with full pencil, ink, and cover art by John Romita Sr., the issue carries a cover date of May 1967 and was released in February 1967. Lettering was by Sam Rosen, while coloring is credited to Stan Goldberg; Heritage Auctions records note that the original inker credit (Mike Esposito) was later corrected to John Romita Sr. The issue is the second chapter of a three-part arc running through issues #47–49, set against a wintry New York City backdrop that Romita renders with particular energy in his action sequences. Lee's conscious desire to give Spider-Man a more age-appropriate aerial adversary drove the character's creation, though the negative reader response Lee received would prove equally influential in shaping how editorial handled villain retirements going forward.

Trivia · 8 facts

First appearance of Raniero 'Blackie' Drago (Earth-616), created by Stan Lee and John Romita Sr., making his debut as the second character to assume the Vulture identity.
Lee's editorial motivation for introducing Drago was his concern that Spider-Man looked like a bully fighting a wizened old man when battling the elderly Adrian Toomes — corroborated across multiple sources.
Reader mail responding negatively to Drago caused Lee to reverse course and restore Adrian Toomes as the Vulture, making this a documented instance of fan feedback shaping Marvel editorial decisions.
The issue is part 2 of the 3-part 'Kraven the Hunter & the New Vulture' arc (ASM #47–49); Kraven the Hunter also appears, setting up the following issue's three-way battle.
Gwen Stacy appears with a noticeably redesigned hairstyle — acknowledged in-story by Harry Osborn comparing it to Mary Jane's look — marking an early step toward her eventual 'classic' visual design.
Peter Parker's professor Dr. Miles Warren appears in a classroom scene, part of his ongoing background presence in the supporting cast years before his later transformation into the Jackal.
The issue was reprinted in Marvel Tales (1966 series) #188 (June 1986), making the story accessible to a later generation of readers.
The Blackie Drago incarnation of the Vulture — referred to on-screen as 'Vulture Man' — appeared in the 1967 Spider-Man animated series, voiced by Gillie Fenwick, demonstrating how quickly Marvel's television partners adapted the new character.