DeadPool Invades Marvel’s 75th Anniversary

Marvel Entertainment hits the 75-year mark in 2014, and what better way to celebrate three-quarters of a century than by reliving its high points, complete with snarky commentary by the company’s fictional Merc With a Mouth, Deadpool? (For those cynics who believe the answer to that question is “doing it without Deadpool,” don’t worry: They’re doing that as well.)

This October, 20 comics from the publisher &mdash including first issues of Bucky Barnes: The Winter Soldier and Guardians of the Galaxy tie-in Guardians 3000, as well as issues of Avengers, Amazing Spider-Man and Rocket Raccoon &mdash will be released with variant covers re-creating some of the most beloved cover images from Marvel’s history, complete with a cameo by Deadpool.

Among the artists taking part in the promotion are Gabrielle Dell’Otto, Mike McKone and Mike Perkins, with some of the covers being re-created including the first issue of 2004’s New Avengers, Uncanny X-Men No. 138 &mdash in which Cyclops left the team following the fan-favorite “Dark Phoenix Saga” storyline &mdash and 1960’s Tales to Astonish No. 13, which featured the first appearance of Groot from Guardians of the Galaxy.

“Seeing all these wonderful artists turn in these hilarious covers has been a blast, and we can’t wait for fans to get their hands on them,” Marvel senior vp sales and marketing David Gabriel said in a statement about the promotion, describing the variant covers as “something fun for our 75th anniversary.”

October 2014 has been declared the official anniversary for Marvel, with the first issue of Marvel Comics being published with an October 1939 date on its cover, introducing the world to the original Human Torch and Namor the Sub-Mariner, two characters who still appear in Marvel’s comic titles today. Both characters are unlikely to appear in Marvel Studios movies, however, with the rights to Namor being described as “complicated” by Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige, and the Human Torch &mdash at least, in his more familiar incarnation as one of the Fantastic Four &mdash being part of Fox’s FF movie package