Marvel Omnibus is a line of large format, high quality, full color, hardcover graphic novel omnibuses published by Marvel Comics. They often contain complete runs, either by collecting multiple consecutive issues, or by focusing on the works of a particular writer or artist.
The first omnibus released was Fantastic Four Vol. 1 in June 2005. It was 848 pages, and collected the first 30 issues and an Annual of the comic.
Senior vice president at Marvel, David Gabriel, told the New York Times the idea came from “trying to come up with a product tie-in for the Fantastic Four film to be released that summer — ‘something to get the extreme collector excited‘.”[1]
The book “sold out in a few weeks” and Kuo-Yu Liang, a vice president for Diamond Comic Distributors, said that trend for larger, more-expensive books: “reflects the demographics of the consumer, who is both older and more affluent.”[1]
After that success, four omnibuses followed in 2006: Alias (March), Uncanny X-Men Vol.1 (May), Eternals (July), and New X-Men (December). The line has seen enormous growth, with 12 omnibuses released in 2009; 19 in 2014; 33 in 2019; and 89 in 2024.
The creation of an omnibus allows Marvel to improve its overall process of releasing collected editions. Gabriel said: “[Material has] been allowed to go out of press, say Secret Wars, in order for us to create a special Omnibus Edition which also allows us to gather new extras, redo files that need fixing and get the best possible re-creation available for all the pages. This process in turn allows us to then put out a better version of the paperback and keep that one in stock.”[2]
- ^ a b Joseph V. Tirella (2 Dec 2007). "The Comic Book Is Back, in Luxe Coffee-Table Form". New York Times. Archived from the original on 29 Apr 2018. Retrieved 30 October 2024.
- ^ "Interview with Marvel's David Gabriel--Part 3". ICV2. 7 February 2012. Archived from the original on 7 December 2023. Retrieved 30 October 2024.