Editing Miracleman (character) (section)

==Publication history==
===1954–1963===
{{main|Marvelman}}
Due to the backlog of Fawcett material Miller already had the company was able to prepare readers for the upcoming change. ''Captain Marvel'' #19, dated 19 December 1953, featured an in-character letter from 'Batson' to readers, telling them he planned to lead an ordinary life and would be handing over his duties to Marvelman; #24 featured the modified title ''Captain Marvel - the Marvelman'' and from #25 the title was renamed ''Marvelman'', with the new character taking over. A similar process would take place on sister title ''Captain Marvel Jr.'', which would become ''[[Young Marvelman (comic)|Young Marvelman]]''. The result was well-received by readers, and sales of ''Marvelman'' were actually larger than those of its predecessor. Anglo initially wrote and drew the strips himself; later other Gower Studio artists would work on the character, including [[James Bleach]], [[Norman Light]] and [[Don Lawrence]]. Marvelman would also occasionally appear in the pages of ''Young Marvelman'' and later starred the additional monthly title ''[[Marvelman Family]]'', which also featured [[Kid Miracleman|Kid Marvelman]]. However by 1961 sales were declining as imported American comics began to arrive on the British market, featuring full-colour strips rather than the black-and-white adventures of Marvelman. Miller switched ''Marvelman'' to a monthly reprint title, causing Anglo to unsuccessfully attempt to set up his own Anglo Features label after turning down an offer to work for Miller's son Arnold on his own venture. ''Marvelman'' finally ended in 1963, and the character went into obscurity.<ref name=MMClassic1TMS/>

===1982–1985===
{{main|Miracleman}}
In 1981 [[Dez Skinn]] opted to revive the character for anthology ''Warrior''. After his preferred choices turned him down, he became aware of Alan Moore's similar interest in reviving the character and requested a proposal. Impressed by the writer's ideas, Skinn commissioned Moore as writer for the strip, which debuted in the first issue of ''Warrior'' in March 1982.<ref name=KDS>{{cite book |last=Khoury |first=George |author-link= |date=2001 |title=Kimota! The Miracleman Companion |url= |location= |publisher=TwoMorrows Publishing |page= |isbn=9781605490274|chapter=Reign of the ''Warrior'' King}}</ref> Moore would later relate that he was drawn to the character's resemblance of the concept of the [[Übermensch]] from the writings of [[Friedrich Nietzsche]], a concept that would be frequently drawn on in this revival.<ref name=MMUS02>{{cite comic|title=[[Miracleman (Eclipse)|Miracleman]]|issue=#2|date=October 1985|publisher=[[Eclipse Comics]]|writer=[[Alan Moore|Moore, Alan]]|story=M*****man: Full Story and Pics}}</ref> After others had demurred, [[Garry Leach]] was assigned to draw the strip. He modelled the revised Marvelman on actor [[Paul Newman]] and redesigned the chest insignia into a more modern style. Leach and Moore opted for a graceful look for the character in contrast to the more common musclebound superhero archetype.<ref name=KGL>{{cite book |last=Khoury |first=George |author-link= |date=2001 |title=Kimota! The Miracleman Companion |url= |location= |publisher=TwoMorrows Publishing |page= |isbn=9781605490274|chapter=The Architect of Miracleman}}</ref>

The strip was a critical success, winning Favourite Comic Character (UK) at the 1984 [[Eagle Awards]],<ref name=Eagles>{{cite web|url=http://www.eagleawards.co.uk/category/previous-winners/1984/ |title=1984 |website=[[Eagle Awards]]|url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120314223905/http://www.eagleawards.co.uk/category/previous-winners/1984 |archive-date=March 14, 2012 }}</ref> and continued to be a success when [[Alan Davis]] took over as artist. Vintage Gower Street material would also be reprinted in the one-off ''Marvelman Special'', with the conceit it presented imaginary adventures of the character. However, creative differences between Moore<ref name=KAM/> and Davis would lead to the strip stalling in 1985; while [[Grant Morrison]] was eager to take over ''Marvelman'' the dispute would prevent the strip from returning before ''Warrior'' was cancelled in 1985 after its losses became unsustainable for Skinn.<ref name=KDS/>

===1985–1993===
The story was eventually picked up by American publisher Eclipse Comics in 1985. To avoid legal attention from Marvel Comics the series and its leads were renamed Miracleman; Moore had previously suggested this as an alternate title in his original proposal as a substitute name should the editor decide against reviving Marvelman,<ref name=KOP>{{cite book |last=Khoury |first=George |author-link= |date=2001 |title=Kimota! The Miracleman Companion |url= |location= |publisher=TwoMorrows Publishing |page= |isbn=9781605490274|chapter=Alan Moore's Original Proposal}}</ref> and had also used it in print for the name of a proxy version of the character that had featured briefly in his parallel work on [[Marvel UK]]'s ''[[Captain Britain]]'' strip. Those involved do not appear to have been aware of the name being previously considered by Anglo, or its use as the name given to a series of British reprints of the artist's Spanish-market ''[[Superhombre]]''. Moore was initially resistant to the name change due to Marvelman having predated the establishment of Marvel Comics but eventually agreed, though he would air his dissatisfaction with the issue in an essay printed in the second issue of the title.<ref name=MMUS02/> Eclipse began by printing coloured, relettered versions of the ''Warrior'' material before ''Miracleman'' #7 (cover dated April 1986) saw the story continue with new material. The series continued its critical success, and was by Eclipse's standards a sizeable commercial success. Initially [[Chuck Austen]] (then using his birthname Chuck Beckum) drew the new adventures before [[Rick Veitch]] continued the work. From ''Miracleman'' #11, [[John Totleben]] became regular artist until #16, which was also the final issue of Moore's run.<ref name=KMI>{{cite book |last=Khoury |first=George |author-link= |date=2001 |title=Kimota! The Miracleman Companion |url= |location= |publisher=TwoMorrows Publishing |page= |isbn=9781605490274|chapter=Miracleman Index}}</ref>

Moore then passed over the title to [[Neil Gaiman]], having completed the stories he had planned for the character. Gaiman and new artist [[Mark Buckingham (comic book artist)|Mark Buckingham]] planned three six-issue storylines for the character, and opted for an anthology approach for the initial arc. As such "The Golden Age" focused more on Miracleman's impact on Earth than the character himself, who was more felt than seen across ''Miracleman'' #17-22, largely featuring in cameos by various literary devices such as flashbacks, imaginary sequences and fictions-within-fictions. Meanwhile Gaiman found that numerous other creators were interested in working on the character; to harness this and expand their revenue, Eclipse produced the three-issue limited series ''[[Miracleman: Apocrypha]]'', featuring contributions by the likes of [[Alex Ross]], [[Kurt Busiek]], [[Matt Wagner]], [[James Robinson (writer)|James Robinson]] and [[Darick Robertson]]. Gaiman and Buckingham provided a framing story for the series which established it as a collection of imaginary stories. Miracleman returned to being more central in the creative team's second arc, "The Silver Age". However, after only two issues of the storyline had been published Eclipse went bankrupt; this also prevented the publication of another spin-off mini-series called ''Miracleman Triumphant'', written by Fred Burke and drawn by [[Mike Deodato]] and taking place between Gaiman's first two arcs.<ref name=KNG>{{cite book |last=Khoury |first=George |author-link= |date=2001 |title=Kimota! The Miracleman Companion |url= |location= |publisher=TwoMorrows Publishing |page= |isbn=9781605490274|chapter=Ages of Gold, Silver and the Darkness}}</ref>

===1995–2008===
{{see also|Ownership of Miracleman}}
Gaiman mistakenly believed at the time he owned a one-third share of the rights to the Miracleman characters, with the other two-thirds residing with Eclipse. As such he reached an arrangement with [[Charlton Media Group (Canada)|Roger Broughton]] to continue the series once the Canadian publisher purchased Eclipse's rights. However at the 1996 liquidation auction Broughton was outbid by [[Todd McFarlane]], who had collaborated with Gaiman on various ''[[Spawn (character)|Spawn]]'' spinoffs.<ref name=KWH>{{cite book |last=Khoury |first=George |author-link= |date=2001 |title=Kimota! The Miracleman Companion |url= |location= |publisher=TwoMorrows Publishing |page= |isbn=9781605490274|chapter=Whatever Happened to Our Miracleman?}}</ref> Gaiman began legal action while McFarlane remained sure he owned the character,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.comicbookresources.com/?page=article&id=122 |title=The Devil You Know…: An interview with Todd McFarlane |website=Comic Book Resources |date=2001-06-15 |access-date=2013-10-15}}</ref> and produced Miracleman merchandise. A reimagined Mike Moran, now a principled journalist at the ''New York Daily Times'', was added to the supporting cast of ''[[Hellspawn (comics)|Hellspawn]]'', a dark spin-off title of ''Spawn'', in February 2001.<ref>{{cite comic|title=[[Hellspawn (comics)|Hellspawn]]|issue=#6|date=February 2001|publisher=[[Image Comics]]|writer=[[Steve Niles|Niles, Steve]]|artist=[[Ashley Wood|Wood, Ashley]]|story=The Big League}}</ref> Artist [[Ashley Wood]] released teaser images of Miracleman ahead of his planned debut in ''Hellspawn'' #12. However, Wood left the book after ''Hellspawn'' #11 and the storyline was abandoned<ref name=KMI>{{cite book |last=Khoury |first=George |author-link= |date=2001 |title=Kimota! The Miracleman Companion |url= |location= |publisher=TwoMorrows Publishing |page= |isbn=9781605490274|chapter=Miracleman Index}}</ref> when Gaiman sued McFarlane in 2002.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.icv2.com/articles/news/1057.html |title=Miracleman Heads to Court |publisher=ICv2 |date=2002-01-27 |access-date=2013-10-15}}</ref> In-universe, the appearances were subsequently ascribed to the character [[Man of Miracles (comics)|Man of Miracles]], whose aspect is shaped by the perceptions of others.

===2009–present===
Since 2001, Marvel editor-in-chief [[Joe Quesada]] had been among the major industry figures to support Gaiman in the dispute.<ref name="press conference">{{cite web| last= Weiland| first= Jonah |date=2003-06-27 |url=http://www.comicbookresources.com/news/newsitem.cgi?id=2406|title= Marvel's '1602' Press Conference|publisher=[[Comic Book Resources]]| access-date= 2008-02-18}}</ref> Marvel eventually discovered in 2009 that the rights to the Marvelman characters had resided with Anglo all along, having never been officially purchased by Skinn (who believed the character was in the public domain, and reached a private agreement with Anglo) in 1981. Marvel licensed the characters from Anglo directly and in 2010 began a series of reprints of classic material under the Marvelman name.<ref name=Bleeding1>{{cite web|url=https://bleedingcool.com/comics/recent-updates/marvel-to-publish-mick-anglos-marvelman-and-they-own-it/|website=Bleeding Cool|title=Marvel To Publish Mick Anglo's Marvelman – And They Own It|author=[[Rich Johnston]]|date=24 July 2009 }}</ref> In 2014 after further legal rights were secured, Marvel began to reprint the revival material, now named ''Miracleman'' once again.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/nycc-marvel-reprint-classic-alan-648083 |title=NYCC: Marvel to Reprint Classic Alan Moore, Neil Gaiman 'Miracleman' |publisher=Hollywoodreporter.com |date=2011-11-17 |access-date=2013-10-15}}</ref> Marvel published new material with the character in 2015,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.comicbookresources.com/?page=article&id=55283 |title=Marvel Announces New "Miracleman" from Morrison, Quesada, Milligan & Allred |website=Comic Book Resources |date=2014-09-04 |access-date=2015-04-29}}</ref> and Miracleman's logo was featured in the one-shot ''Timeless'' in 2021, foreshadowing his introduction to the [[Marvel Universe]].<ref>{{cite web |last=Rabiroff |first=Zach |date=2021-12-29 |title=Marvel's Timeless teases a surprising new addition to the Marvel Universe |url=https://www.polygon.com/22857488/marvel-timeless-kang-miracleman-marvelman-alan-moore-neil-gaima |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211230154007/https://www.polygon.com/22857488/marvel-timeless-kang-miracleman-marvelman-alan-moore-neil-gaiman |archive-date=2021-12-30 |access-date=2021-12-30 |website=Polygon |language=en}}</ref>

In October 2022, Gaiman and Buckingham continued The Silver Age storyline after a hiatus of nearly 30 years.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Neil Gaiman and Mark Buckingham 'Miracleman' Series Returns |url=https://www.marvel.com/articles/comics/miracleman-series-returns-neil-gaiman-mark-buckingham |access-date=2023-04-29 |website=Marvel Entertainment}}</ref>