Back Again To 1956

The year 1956 is significant for yet another reason. Although both Marvelman and Young Marvelman had long runs, from 1954 to 1963, the team book, Marvelman Family, co-starring MM and YM together with the newly introduced Kid Marvelman, ran for only three years - but it started in 1956.

Thus, Michael Moran tells Liz:

"In 1956 we were joined by Johnny Bates. He was a little kid of maybe seven or eight. When he said my name he became Kid Miracleman. They called us the Miracleman Family."

- Miracleman, no 1 (New York, 2014), p. 23.

Dates of fictitious events as remembered by Moran exactly correspond to dates of publication. The word "Family" is used rather loosely. There is no suggestion that the three are related. And, indeed, being all male, they could hardly have been a family unit as such. However, it was thought that the young male readership would not have welcomed a Marvelwoman who, of course, was added during the Eclipse run, as Miraclewoman. (And Michael and Liz's super-powered daughter, far from being "Miraclebaby," named herself Winter Moran.)

Marvelman Family stories were rare both because of the relative shortness of the run and because, at least in the annual(s?), I understand that a single Family story was followed by MM solo stories. In the fifties, I did hear of, although I never got hold of, Marvelman Family and therefore imagined that I was missing out on something special whereas it is evident that MF stories were no more special than any of the many solo MM or YM stories.