Something to keep in mind - particularly when it comes to the fantasy titles - is that there are three very distinct periods within what we call the "Atlas Era."

Pre-Code Atlas
Post-Code Atlas/Atlas Implosion
Pre-Hero Marvel

Honestly, that last period has never been considered part of the Atlas Era, hence the name. The Atlas logo had been consumed by the Implosion. But, from a marketing perspective, including the ToS/TtA lines under the "Atlas Era" banner makes perfect sense, so I don't really mind.

Anyway, that brings us to World of Fantasy, an interesting title as it was the only short-run fantasy book to survive the Implosion. In fact, it was one of only two fantasy books (along with Strange Tales) to be published regularly during 1958. At that point however, Stan was mainly just burning off inventory stories. He was commisioning very little new work.

So the launch of a brand new title (Strange Worlds) in December 1958, with new stories from Kirby and Ditko, was a bold move for the struggling company. (ToS and TtA would debut the next month.)

World of Fantasy #15 also hit the stands in Dec. '58, with a new Kirby/Rule cover, but still containing only inventory stories (as it had for the previous six issues). New stories began appearing in #16, as WoF fell in line with the rest of the pre-hero fantasy books.

You see, there's a stark difference between the pre-code/implosion WoFs and the pre-hero ones, starting in earnest with #16 (but I say throw #15 right in along with them).

So, my recommendation stands, Strange Worlds 1-5/World of Fantasy 15-19 would make for a great Masterwork and a perfect companion piece to the ToS/TtA volumes, the AA/AAF Omnibus, and the relevant ST/JiM books once we get there. That way you could assemble a neatly focused pre-hero Marvel collection.

The short run post-code fantasy books, including World of Fantasy 1-14, need to be dealt with separately. I'll try to post some ideas for those a little later.


Last Edited By: logan five Dec 14 09 12:55 AM. Edited 1 times.