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Jack O’Lantern: Your Comic Guide to the many Marvel’s Pumpkin Heads

The Green Goblin. Doctor Octopus. Mysterio. Vulture. Electro. Scorpio. Rhino. Kraven the Hunter. Spider-Man has one of the most emblematic rogues galleries at Marvel Comics, and every one of them would not look out of place at a Halloween Party. But no one would fit more than Jack O’Lantern with his Pumpkin head, Pumpkin Bombs, explosive candy, and rocket-powered broomstick. 

Despite his cool design, Jack O’Lantern is still a C-list among Spider-Man villains, and a confusing one on top of that, as many different people have held the name Jack O’Lantern over the years.

To make things a little bit more complicated, there are two different types of Jack O’Lantern. While most of them use costumes, illusions, and conventional weaponry, two of them have sold their soul to Satan and were granted supernatural powers and the ability to turn into Jack at will.

From the first appearance of Jack O’Lantern in 1980 in Machine Man to the reinvention of the character as an archenemy of Venom, celebrate Halloween by discovering more about the many Jack O’Lanterns of Marvel Comics! 

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Where to Start Reading Wonder Woman Comics? A Beginner’s Guide for the Amazing Amazon

So, you want to read some Wonder Woman comics? Whether you’re completely new to comic books, a Marvel fan, or just haven’t given the Princess of Themyscira a chance yet, there’s a Wonder Woman comic out there for you. In fact, there’s a Wonder Woman comic for everyone! Still, with over 80 years of stories, reboots, and alternate timelines, getting started can feel overwhelming.

So, where should you start? There’s no single right or wrong answer. The old, good, and proven method used by long-time fans was to simply pick a comic, just like that! But we’re here to offer a little bit more, as there are several ways to discover the world of Diana and the Amazons, depending on your tastes. Whether you’re a fan of comic book history, prefer modern stories, or want to discover her modern adventures, there’s a perfect first story for you.

To celebrate Wonder Woman Day, here’s a curated beginner’s guide with several routes to help find the perfect place to start reading about the Amazing Amazon. 

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The Death of Captain Marvel, A Tragic And Impactful Event in the Marvel Universe

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In the world of comic books, death and resurrection have become commonplace. For a long time, there was a common saying amongst readers that was “everyone comes back except for Bucky Barnes, Jason Todd, and Uncle Ben.” Or a variation of it. However, this saying had to change after 2005, when both Jason Todd and Bucky Barnes came back.

Although the deaths of some superheroes have had a significant impact on the industry, few have had the emotional impact of The Death of Captain Marvel, which was written and drawn by Jim Starlin.

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36 Lovecraftian Horror Comics and Graphic Novels

Next to Edgar Allan Poe, H.P. Lovecraft (1890-1937) is one of the most influential American writers in the horror genre. Though largely unrecognized in his lifetime, his work in the genre of weird fiction went on to shape generations of horror writers and artists. His stories are built around themes of cosmic dread, forbidden knowledge, and humanity’s insignificance in an uncaring universe, and often center on incomprehensible alien entities, ancient gods, and the fragility of sanity.

This type of tale has come to be known as Lovecraftian horror, also referred to as “cosmic horror.” It emphasizes atmosphere and existential terror over gore or jump scares. The horror lies not in what is seen, but in what cannot be fully understood. Over time, this distinctive approach to fear has taken root in a wide range of media, including comics, where artists and writers have found rich material in Lovecraft’s mythos and mood.

There are two types of Lovecraftian comics. We have the direct adaptations of H.P. Lovecraft’s original works, and the comic books full of cosmic horrors inspired by the master of the genre.

Today, we invite you to explore the shadowy, unsettling world of Lovecraftian horror through our selection of comics. From quiet tales of creeping madness to confrontations with ancient, godlike beings, these works capture the essence of a genre where fear comes not from what is known, but from what can never be fully understood.

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Happy Birthday, Comic Book Treasury: 5 Years of Comic Book Reading Orders

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Comic Book Treasury was launched five years ago today. On the web, where some institutions and cultural websites have existed for decades, it can seem like a short period of time. At the same time, the web has undergone significant transformations, driven by legislation, numerous Google updates, and the economic crisis of the past five years. So much that surviving it can feel like a lifetime! 

Many events have taken place in the Comic Book World, and I’m not talking about the usual character deaths and quick resurrections. Over the past five years, Marvel Comics has released many new Omnibus and Epic Collections, recently announced putting on hold the long-running Masterworks line, unleashed Knull’s invasion of Earth, brought the Krakoa Era to an end, and introduced a new Marvel Ultimate Universe. DC Comics has relaunched three times, launched the Absolute Universe imprint, found success with its Compact Comics line and DC Finest line, and rolled out a soft reboot on the big screen. Meanwhile, Geoff Johns and others launched Ghost Machine; Robert Kirkman acquired the Hasbro licenses and built the Energon Universe; Kyle Higgins created the Massive-Verse; and the Valiant Universe was rebooted once again. Manga and webtoons have grown in popularity, while digital comics have expanded, with Marvel Unlimited surpassing 3 million subscribers in December 2024. And then came the AI boom with the release of ChatGPT, and debates over copyright protections and the role of generative AI in creative industries started a battle that is ongoing.

I’m sure there is more that I forget. During these five years, Comic Book Treasury has published almost 700 articles, most being reading orders to help you read and collect your favorite characters, explore major (and small) events, and famous runs. We have explored many parts of the DC Universe, the Marvel Universe, and beyond during those years, navigated between series with the same titles, and discovered many comic book series! Some guides are simple, others are like a jigsaw puzzle. More and more, as those worlds continue to expand, we are refreshing and updating those guides to stay up to date, including the new releases and/or new collections. Doing all that while still waiting for The Unwritten: Compendium Two, DC Comics, if you read me!

We are thankful for you readers, your words of encouragement, and your help to improve our guides! We have forgotten titles and made mistakes, and as we strive to deliver the best we can do, we are glad for the comments that help us improve our guides and make this website a fun place to be! 

And to properly mark the occasion, here is a selection of 10 articles we published during that time, a little sample of our work, articles, and guides that we enjoyed creating, make us proud, and also really help us (and that we still consult) in our reading journey.

Thank you for reading us! 

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Five Facts about Lois Lane, Daily Planet’s most iconic journalist and Superman expert!

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Created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster in 1938, Lois Lane is now one of the most iconic characters in comics, which is no small feat for a woman introduced as a counterpart and love interest to Superman and his alter ego Clark Kent.

Over the past 80 years, the character has endured numerous crises and evolved alongside her time. If she is famously known as one of the greatest reporters in the DC universe, she worked hard to have that title, beginning as a sob sister, having scoops stolen by Clark Kent, and at some times, confined to the role of the jealous girlfriend.

Lois Lane will rise to the challenge, helped by TV and movie adaptations, to go beyond what was expected of women of her time, to be an inspiring, tough, ambitious, fearless woman who never gives up. Here are a few facts about Lois Lane, from her creation to her prolific career on screen…

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Galactus Origin Story, The Creation of Stan Lee and Jack Kirby’s Devourer of Worlds

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One of Marvel Comics’ most powerful cosmic entities, Galactus was created by writer Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirby, and first appeared in Fantastic Four #48 (March 1966).

Initially, Galactus was just imagined as another super-villain that was to be bigger than the previous antagonists. But in order to differentiate him from the others and avoid delivering a stereotypical bad guy, Lee and Kirby decided to reimagine the character on a grander scale. The writer wanted him to be really evil. The artist went biblical. They wanted something new and created it. As a result, unlike typical antagonists, Galactus was not a villain in the traditional sense but a cosmic force of nature, an ancient being who consumes planets to sustain his existence.

This was different to the point of creating a shift in comic book storytelling at the time. But this article is not here to talk about Galactus’ impact on the medium, but to explain who he is as a Marvel character. As he is making another appearance on the big screen this summer, it’s the perfect moment to revisit his comic book origins.

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Comic Book Treasury is Going on a Summer Repeat

It will soon be five years that Comic Book Treasury has been launched, delivering new reading guides (and a few features) every week since then.

While I still love exploring the world of comic books and creating new guides to help both new and seasoned readers, things have been tough lately and I’m feeling a bit burned out. I love this website and I’m so thankful for everyone who visits, but navigating the ever-changing internet over the past few years has been a real challenge. I feel it’s time to slow down a bit.

For a little while, the site will be on a summer repeat, resurfacing refreshed and updated guides on the front page. With over 650 articles on Comic Book Treasury, there’s plenty of classic comic fun waiting to be rediscovered.

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Where to Start Reading Superman Comics? A Beginner’s Guide to the Man of Steel

So, you want to read some Superman comics? Whether you’re completely new to comic books, a Marvel fan, or just haven’t given Big Blue a chance yet, there’s a Superman comic out there for you. In fact, there’s a Superman comic for everyone! Still, with over 80 years of stories, reboots, and alternate timelines, getting started can feel overwhelming.

So, where should you start? There’s no single right or wrong answer. The old, good, and proven method used by many old timers was to simply pick a comic, just like that! But we’re here to offer a little bit more, as there are several ways to enter the Superman Universe, depending on your tastes. Whether you’re a fan of comic book history, prefer modern stories, or want to explore Superman’s personal life beyond heroics, there’s a perfect first story for you.

To celebrate Superman’s return on the big screen, here’s a curated beginner’s guide with several routes to help find the perfect place to start reading The Man of Steel! 

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Fantastic Four First Appearance: A Look Back at the First Family’s debut

Marvel’s First Family is making her first steps (again) this summer on the big screen with a new adaptation set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. While the MCU officially launched in 2008 with Iron Man, the Fantastic Four laid the groundwork for the Marvel Comics we know today.

Now is a good time to take a look back at the debut of the Fabulous Foursome in The Fantastic Four #1, which hit the shelves on August 8, 1961—64 years ago.

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