The Amazing Spider-Man Annual #27
☆ Be the first to review + Add to your collection — Join freeAmazing Spider-Man Annual #27 is the birthplace of Annex (Alex Ellis), a Gulf War veteran turned cyborg hero who became one of only two characters introduced across Marvel's line-wide 1993 Annual initiative to earn his own solo limited series — a remarkable distinction in a publishing experiment that produced dozens of new faces, most of whom vanished immediately. The issue also arrived on newsstands carrying a cover gallery of textless preview images for the then-imminent Maximum Carnage crossover, making it a tangential touchstone for one of the most commercially ambitious Spider-Man events of the decade. Beyond its debut content, the annual is a product snapshot of a specific editorial philosophy: Marvel's deliberate effort in 1993 to seed new characters through the annual format, polybagging each issue with a trading card, in direct competition with DC's concurrent Bloodlines initiative.
In "Prepare Yourself for...Annex," the Black Cat takes on a high-stakes museum heist with a twist—her target isn’t just a stolen painting, but a dangerous secret tied to a terrorist group. Written by Eric Fein and illustrated by Scott Kolins, with inks by Bud LaRosa and colors by John Kalisz, this 1993 annual introduces a volatile clash between the Black Cat and a mysterious new threat, as Solo finds himself caught in a deadly game. Tom Lyle’s cover captures the tension perfectly, setting the stage for a confrontation that leaves more questions than answers.
In "Dead Reckoning," the Black Cat takes on a high-stakes heist for a museum, racing against time to recover a stolen painting from a terrorist group. Amid the chaos, Solo arrives with his own mission—only to be ambushed by the enigmatic Deathstorm, who vanishes just as the fight turns deadly.
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We Buy Collections ▸History
The issue was edited by Danny Fingeroth under editor-in-chief Tom DeFalco, with Mike Lackey serving as assistant editor, and went on sale March 2, 1993. The lead story — scripted by Jack C. Harris with pencils by Tom Lyle and inks by Scott Hanna — was part of a coordinated Marvel publishing initiative in which every 1993 annual was tasked with introducing at least one new character, each issue polybagged with a collectible trading card of that debut character. Harris would go on to write every subsequent Annex appearance through the character's 1994 four-issue limited series, giving the character an unusually consistent creative voice for a second-tier hero of the era.
Trivia · 8 facts
- First appearance and origin of Annex (Alexander 'Alex' Ellis), a Desert Storm veteran who lost his left leg in combat and becomes a cyborg hero through the experimental Bio-Regenerative Energy Well (BREW) suit developed by Dr. Hillman Barto of the Adarco Corporation.
- Created by writer Jack C. Harris, penciler Tom Lyle, and inker Scott Hanna; cover also by Tom Lyle; edited by Danny Fingeroth under editor-in-chief Tom DeFalco.
- Part of Marvel's coordinated 1993 Annual publishing initiative in which every annual introduced at least one new character; each copy was polybagged and included a collectible Annex trading card.
- The issue contains four distinct stories: the lead Annex debut ('Prepare Yourself for…Annex'), a Black Cat and Solo team-up ('Dead Reckoning,' written by Eric Fein, penciled by Scott Kolins) that also marks the first appearance of villain Deathstorm, a Lizard-on-trial backup story ('The Lizard Must Be Destroyed'), and a John Jameson story ('Estrangements and Reunions') in which Jameson acquires new battle armor.
- A pin-up section of textless cover previews for the upcoming Maximum Carnage crossover is included, featuring characters such as Venom, Carnage, Shriek, Doppelganger, Deathlok, Demogoblin, Morbius, and Black Cat — none of whom actually appear in the issue's stories.
- Annex went on to appear next in Spider-Man Unlimited #3 (1993), then starred in the four-issue limited series Annex #1–4 (1994), and eventually resurfaced as a recurring member of the Avengers: The Initiative program (beginning issue #13), being assigned to New Mexico's Initiative team, the Mavericks, after the Secret Invasion.
- On-sale date was March 2, 1993; the issue was later collected in Amazing Spider-Man Epic Collection #24: Invasion of the Spider-Slayers (2022).
- Annex is among only two characters debuted across the entire 1993 Marvel Annual initiative to receive his own solo comic series — cited by multiple retrospective sources as making him one of the most enduring creations of that publishing event.
Cast · 25 characters
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Reprints
Reprinted in Amazing Spider-Man Epic Collection #24 (2022), Spider-Man by Michelinie & Bagley Omnibus #2 (2025), Die Spinne #239
Key issues in The Amazing Spider-Man Annual
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