Lost Marvels No. 1: Tower of Shadows

Lost Marvels #1

by Neal Adams, Wallace Wood (Writer/Artist), Jim Steranko

In 1969, with its revolutionary superhero line well established, Marvel took a chance on the kind of supernatural, EC-style anthology series that had been banned since the formation of the Comics Code in the 1950s. Tower of Shadows featured a staggering array of artists and writers, including Neal Adams, Jim Steranko, Barry Windsor-Smith, John Buscema, Gene Colan, Wally Wood, Stan Lee, Roy Thomas, John Romita, Johnny Craig, Marie Severin, Gerry Conway, and Bernie Wrightson, to name a few. Freed from the conventions of the superhero adventure, these creators brought their storytelling skills to a more quietly sinister genre, producing atmospheric gems of twisted suspense and sardonic horror.Not only do these nine issues feature Marvel’s best creators working at their peak, but Tower of Shadows is one of the lost, never-collected Marvels. In the first of a new series of Lost Marvels, Fantagraphics and Marvel join forces to introduce these pages to a new generation of readers and restore this series to its rightful place in comics history. This gorgeous volume brings every Tower of Shadows story and cover to life in vivid color and features background and analysis by comics journalist Michael Dean.

Genres: Comics, Horror, Marvel, Graphic Novels

176 pages, Hardcover

Published April 29, 2025

About the author

Neal Adams was an American comic book and commercial artist known for helping to create some of the definitive modern imagery of the DC Comics characters Superman, Batman, and Green Arrow; as the co-founder of the graphic design studio Continuity Associates; and as a creators-rights advocate who helped secure a pension and recognition for Superman creators Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster.

Adams was inducted into the Eisner Award's Will Eisner Comic Book Hall of Fame in 1998, and the Harvey Awards' Jack Kirby Hall of Fame in 1999.

Librarian Note:
There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.

Reviews

[Kris Shaw · Rating 4 out of 5]

The cover image on Goodreads is not accurate.

I've been waiting decades for Marvel to reprint this series. Instead, they kick it over to Fantagraphics, which is fine because they always do good work. The problem is, Fantagraphics omitted the H.P. Lovecraft adaptations, even though they are in the public domain in the US and Europe.

Another problem is the 1950s Atlas reprint portions of the later issues and Annual are omitted. This is an incomplete presentation and becomes all the more frustrating because this is likely the only chance we had of getting this series reprinted. Another odd choice is the fully restored version of the Jim Steranko story found in #1, pulled from a 2008 trade Paperback. The rest of the series are cleaned up scans. The difference is jarring.

Another missed opportunity in this book was including Steranko's rejected cover to #1 along with his color guide for the cover. They show his cover in the introduction, but it is reduced to the size of a postage stamp, which is absurd.

The stories themselves are good. The series starts out very strong but runs out of steam by the end, devolving into sword and sorcery type material.

The book is value priced and is worth picking up in spite of it's glaring omissions and being an incomplete collection.

[Christopher Geraghty · Rating 4 out of 5]

In 1969-1970, when Tower of Shadows was published, the direct market comic book specialty stores that are so prevalent today were just coming into existence.

So I purchased my comics off spinner racks and shelves at local newstands, which didn't always carry every title. Wednesday was also not New Comic Book Day.

As a result, I missed many titles and issues. Thus, Tower of Shadows was truly a "Lost Marvels" to me.

I was familiar with the title because of the synopses of most issues in the monthly Mighty Marvel Checklists.

Three issue covers I distinctly remember seeing in Marvel Comics house ads were issues #'s 1 ("At The Stroke of Midnight!"), #2 ("The Menace of the Hungry One!"), and #6 ("Pray For the Man In the Rat Hole!")

There were many reasons why I always wanted to read that last story:
1. the awesome cover by Marie Severin
2. I was a big fan of the superhero Ant Man
3. the Saturday morning cartoon Fantastic Voyage
4. the TV show Land of the Giants and
5. the movie The Incredible Shrinking Man.

So you can imagine my disappointment when I found that the story "The Man in the Rat-Hole" was not reprinted in this volume.

Editor and comics historian Dr. Michael Dean explained in his introduction that even though it's the lead story in issue #6, it's not a story original to Tower of Shadows. Rather, it's a reprint from Strange Tales #78 and thus does not belong in this collection.

He explained that two other great stories adapted from the pen of H.P. Lovecraft had to be cut at the last minute as well due to legal concerns: "The Terrible Old Man" in issue # 3 and "Pickman's Model" in issue #9. I remember watching that story on TV when it was adapted as an episode of Rod Serling's Night Gallery.

All that being said, Lost Marvels Volume 1: Tower of Shadows is a beautiful hardcover book filled with great stories. My favorite was "Time Out!" which was the last story in issue #5. I thought the story was powerful, and the ending was poignant.

I understand that future volumes of Lost Marvels will feature other classic Marvel Comics of the 1960s and 1970s that have never been collected in an archival format. If they are as well done as this volume, I will definitely buy them.

[Little Timmy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nice collection of these early Silver age Marvel horror/supernatural books. Recommended

[Paul Sutter]

Once more Fantagraphics rises to the forefront with the release of another compilation of comics from yesteryear. Working in collaboration with Marvel comeS the release of TOWER OF SHADOWS LOST MARVELS NO. 1.
While Marvel mainly concentrated on their super-heroes, they decided to step into the horror zone with Tower of Shadows. They were trying to rekindle the magic and interest that EC had in the 1950’s with supernatural tales, the likeS of which had not been seen for over a decade.
Marvel assembled some top names in the business such as Jim Steranko, Wally Wood, Neal Adams, Gerry Conway, Bernie Wrightston, John Romita, and so many more. They created issue after issue of the sort of terror tales the way we used to like them in EC’s heyday.
The book opens with A Tour of the Tower written by Dr. Michael Dean, who explores the history of horror, and those who contributed to the Tower of Shadows over the various issues.
The covers of issues 1 through 9 are reproduced along with many of the stories that made the issues must-read. There are many standouts in the book including: One Hungers, Witch Hunt, Time Out, To Sneak Perchance To Scream, Midnight In The Wax Museum, Flight Into Fear, Look Out Wyatt…Automation’s Gonna Get Your Job, and enjoyable others.
Marvel was always keen on creating the best in their comics, and they pulled out all the stops in TOWER OF SHADOWS. Fantagraphics showcases that so precisely here, giving lovers of the unusual
a bird’s eye seat to a tower we only too happy to enter.

[Rick Ray · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another archival edition of old Marvel titles lovingly restored by Fantagraphics. This new line, entitled as Lost Marvels, collects the nine issues of the 1969 Marvel title - Tower of Shadows. Released at the tail end of the tyranny imposed by the Comics Code Authority, Marvel's Tower of Shadows feels the heft of the censorship on the medium of horror comics, whereby violence and gore is replaced solely by schlocky monster horror. Though the standards of the Comics Code is loosening at this point, the stories here maintain most of the campiness of horror comics of this era.

An anthology title that utilizes a similar design as the various EC horror titles, complete with their own version of the "Crypt Keeper" (here, a gravedigger named "Digger", who would later go on to become a character within the Marvel universe), the Tower of Shadows calling card was the immense talent that worked on the title. Marv Wolfman and Gene Colan - the creators of Marvel's legendary Tomb of Dracula - both make appearances here, as does a very green Barry Windsor-Smith. Other titans of the medium like Jim Steranko, John Buscema, Wally Wood, Johnny Craig, John Romita, Bernie Wrightson and many more make substantial contributions to the title, and are joined by Marvel's top writing talent of the time in Stan Lee, Roy Thomas, Gerry Conway and more.

Sure, the stories have a bit of a disposable quality to them, but the pulpy sensibilities and stellar artwork make the various short comics here quite enjoyable. The clean archival reproduction of the comics along with a plethora of extra material continues to put Fantagraphics at the top of the industry with respect to these types of collected editions. Fans of classic horror and early Marvel Comics will definitely enjoy this first volume of Lost Marvels, and the upcoming titles in this line seem just as intriguing.

[Skjam! · Rating 4 out of 5]

The “Lost Marvels” series of books reprints Marvel Comics publications that have not been previously collected in reprint volumes, looking to be mostly short-run series and one-offs that match a theme. This first volume reprints most of a horror anthology series, Tower of Shadows.

Per the editorial introduction, by the late 1960s, the Comics Code Authority had unofficially lightened restrictions on the horror genre in comics. (They’d officially modify the code in 1971.) DC Comics had been doing well with spookier stories in House of Mystery and House of Secrets, and Marvel Comics decided to follow suit with their own anthology titles, Tower of Shadows and Chamber of Darkness in 1969.

For various reasons, sales were not as good as hoped, and the series was repurposed under the title Creatures on the Loose with a more action-oriented feel. Marvel would have more success with horror-action ongoing characters like Ghost Rider.

Unlike some of the other reprint collections I’ve reviewed, this one is not the issues as originally presented. Stories that were already reprints of earlier Marvel monster comics have been skipped, and two H.P. Lovecraft adaptations had a murkier legal status than publisher Fantagraphics felt comfortable with. The latter is a pity, because I am told those were really good adaptations.

So, let’s see what did get into this volume.

The lead story in the first issue is “At the Stroke of Midnight” by Jim Steranko. A quarreling couple investigate the spooky manor they’ve inherited from a missing-presumed-dead uncle. It turns out that he’s not quite as dead as they’d hoped, but they soon might be. The story’s most notable for Steranko’s art style, which is very distinctive and carries the reader through the paneling.

Behind the scenes was a certain amount of drama. Editor in chief Stan Lee rejected Steranko’s cover, changed the title to be more punny, and did some petty dialogue changes Steranko didn’t like. The writer/artist was so angry that he never wrote a story for Marvel again, though he returned to do some covers.

Also introduced here was “Digger”, a wisecracking gravedigger who acted as the anthology’s host. He didn’t last long, being temporarily replaced by mortician Headstone P. Gravely, before the series turned to just having pictures of the artist or writer introducing stories.

The final story reprinted here is “Sanctuary!” by Wally Wood. It’s a blend of horror and the sword & sorcery subgenre. King Hamand has conquered ancient Cybernia, but his enemies are many, and not all of them human. It seems that in order to claim “rightful” rulership, Hamand had to fetch the Dragoncrown from the crypt where it lay, and the ghost within the crypt swore vengeance.

In order to fend off his foes both natural and supernatural, the king and his court wizard Abarac have built a castle, and a tower within the castle, fortified with stone and magic so that absolutely nothing may enter to harm the king. But is this actually sanctuary…or something else?

Some other standouts include–

“One Hungers” by Neal Adams, told from the perspective of a creature that eats sound…including human screams. If you liked A Quiet Place this has some similarities.

“Evil is a Baaaaad Scene” by Allyn Brodsky and Don Heck. Two hippies allow a dark sorcerer to use their pad to summon a demon. This turns out to be a bad idea all around, the sorcerer goes to the bad place, and the hippies go to Suburbia, trapped in the lives of squares.

“One Little Indian!” by Marvin Wolfman and Gene Colan has a ruthless businessman told he will die in the presence of “an Indian.” I love the Colan art, but the joke here relies on how much Native American iconography has been preserved in stereotypes completely independent of the actual people. Not everyone will dig the humor.

“The Demon That Devoured Hollywood!” by Roy Thomas and Barry Windsor-Smith also has some fine art. Arrogant actor Jason Roland has shot up to the top of the A-List by playing monsters, but is looking to move into “straight” roles as a leading man. His success has come at least partially from his mysterious makeup artist who creates the looks for the monsters. Jason stiffs the man, refusing to make his final payment. As you might expect, this time the makeup doesn’t come off.

This story would much later get folded into the regular Marvel Universe, as Jason Roland turns out to be the guy taking over a group of horror-themed villains/antiheroes (including Digger!) in a West Coast Avengers story.

“The Scream of Things” by Allyn Brodsky and Barry Windsor-Smith has inks by Vince Colletta. which don’t go as well with Barry’s art. A professor is investigating a supposedly cursed house, and gains the assistance of a young woman desperate to escape life in the small village nearby. Interesting imagery, a bit confusing (I had to reread one section a few times to grasp what the curse actually was) and unfortunate “gypsy” stereotypes.

And three other sword and sorcery tales from Wally Wood that I won’t spoiler, but are all good.

The book also has a fairly detailed biography section for all the creators involved to fill it out.

None of these stories are essential, but they do have some decent writing and excellent art, and haven’t been reprinted much so are worth revisiting. Pity about the Lovecraft adaptations.

Recommended primarily to fans of Marvel’s horror comics.

[Nicholas Kaufmann · Rating 4 out of 5]

A "lost" Marvel title, TOWER OF SHADOWS, a horror anthology, was short-lived but fun. Its stories are modeled after the classic trio of EC horror comics--TALES FROM THE CRYPT, THE VAULT OF HORROR, and THE HAUNT OF FEAR--but, in my opinion, they're not quite as good. A lot of them don't make sense, but then, they don't really have to. Reading cheesy horror stories of supernatural comeuppance is half the fun. The other half is the art, which I found to be excellent and sufficiently lurid.

It's interesting to note that a few issues into the run, TOWER OF SHADOWS jettisons its horror hosts Digger (a ghoulish gravedigger) and Headstone P. Gravely (a top-hatted mortician) in favor of having the artists and writers introduce the stories themselves, often represented visually on the first page just as Digger and Headstone were. I find that fascinating, although I can't help but wonder if TOWER OF SHADOWS would have been more successful had it continued to feature a horror host that could have caught on the way the Crypt Keeper did.

Two H.P. Lovecraft adaptations, "The Terrible Old Man" and "Pickman's Model," which originally ran in the comic, are omitted here, apparently due to some rights concerns. It's a shame, as I suspect they would have been the standouts.

I greatly enjoyed reading this volume, even if many of the stories left me scratching my head instead of shivering with goosebumps. Horror anthology comics have a special place in the hearts of many horror fans, including me, and I ultimately found TOWER OF SHADOWS well worth exploring.

[Ángel Javier · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesantísima recopilación de episodios jamás antes reimpresos de Tower of Shadows, uno de los intentos más serios por parte de una major de recuperar el espíritu de la añorada EC. Los guiones, sin ser nada del otro mundo, trataban de conservar el clásico «giro final» que hizo tan populares a los cómics de la antedicha editorial, y los dibujantes era de lo mejorcito que se podía encontrar en el panorama comiquero de la época, excepción hecha de curritos como Don Heck y Syd Shores que, sin embargo, dan lo mejor de sí mismos en este volumen.

Sin embargo, la información dada por Fantagraphics sobre este tomo es inexacta, aunque, al parecer, por motivos ajenos a la editorial: resulta que las dos historias basadas en relatos del gran H. P. Lovecraft no están incluidas en el libro por algún asunto relacionado con los derechos de los mismos, lo cual me parece confuso, puesto que Lovecraft permanece al dominio público desde el año de la pera. Los mismos editores se muestran confusos al respecto, y esperan que en futuras compilaciones (probablemente en la de Chamber of Darkness) se puedan incluir. En fin, hasta entonces, atesoraremos como corresponde este Lost Marvels, que contiene historias dibujadas por Steranko (una auténtica maravilla), Barry Smith, Neal Adams, John Buscema, Gene Colan, Tom Sutton... casi na, oigan.

[Artur Coelho · Rating 4 out of 5]

A leitura perfeita para passar um serão chuvoso de noite de todos os santos, a invocar os espíritos do terror clássico nos comics. Esta tentativa da Marvel em entrar no mercado da EC Comics e da Warren não nos legou clássicos, mas não significa que tenha sido má. O título evoluiu com os gostos do mercado para algo ligado à sword and sorcery, mas os primeiros números eram puro terror em banda desenhada, naquele tom clássico que é tão marcante.

Sabemos a fórmula - ambientes góticos (mesmo se passados na modernidade), histórias de ironia negra, e a conjugação de maldições, assombrações, remorsos criminosos ou outras coisas que nos assustam no escuro. Combine-se isso com os talentos gráficos de desenhadores como Jim Steranko, Wally Wood, Neal Adams ou Barry Windsor-Smith, entre outros, e o resultado é puro deleite estético, dentro dos limites quadricrómicos dos comics.

[Drew Canole · Rating 4 out of 5]

Basically EC horror but watered down in the Marvel way. But there's lots of variation and some incredible artists.

Marvel needs to get Fantagraphics to do all their Silver age reprints. The color is fantastic here, looks like the original newsprint but cleaned up. The only unfortunate thing about this collection is Fantagraphics skipped the HP Lovecraft adaptations, worried about copyright.

Some of the stories are pretty generic, couple in the rain stop and seek shelter in an abandoned mansion style stuff. But there's lots of variation. Wallace Wood's stories are more fantasy than horror. Barry Windsor-Smith has a couple of his early tales reprinted here. Johnny Craig is here, although he's not able to do anything has horrific as he did in EC.

[Michael · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fascinating that nearly 20 years after EC's line ended, the entire concept of horror comics still revolved around echoing their style and approach.

These stories aren't nearly as good as EC's line, but the stories are generally solid - a handful were very good (that Steranko tale is a storytelling gem!). Still, I would recommend reading only one or two stories per sitting. The charms wear thin quick if you take too much.

[Matthew DeLeon · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 ⭐️

There are some great original stories in here, there are also a few mediocre stories as well. The artwork is consistently great.

Unfortunately the publisher was unable (or unwilling) to include reprinted stories and those that are Lovecraft adaptations. Here's hoping a future volume will contain the full issues with all the stories.

[Ben · Rating 4 out of 5]

Probably not as good as Creepy or Eerie overall, and definitely more PG-friendly, but interesting to see Marvel's version of the horror comics that were popular at the time. If nothing else, Fantagraphics has once again put out a quality volume with plenty of contextual info.

[Egghead · Rating 3 out of 5]

some marvels perhaps
should stay lost- comic fun but
sticks to camp horror

[Kushal Biswas · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent old school horror anthology.