Why This Set Matters
Comic Images would become the dominant force in Marvel cards between 1986 and 1990. Their first set established the template.
Rachel Summers / Phoenix II, Longshot, Magik, Warlock, Cannonball, Sunspot, and Shadowcat all appear.
Spider-Man appears in this set in his iconic black symbiote suit — the first trading card appearance of Black Suit Spider-Man anywhere. The alien symbiote costume had debuted in Amazing Spider-Man #252 (May 1984) and was one of the most talked-about visual changes in Marvel history. This set captures the black suit era before the symbiote was revealed to be Venom.
Deep Dive
The 1986 Comic Images Marvel Universe Stickers represent the beginning of what would become the most productive era of pre-Impel Marvel card production. Comic Images was a small operation with deep Marvel knowledge, and it shows in every aspect of this set.
What distinguishes Comic Images from earlier manufacturers is the seriousness of purpose. Rather than joke captions, the backs of these stickers provided actual character information — first appearances, real names, affiliations.
| Character | Format | Card | Language |
|---|---|---|---|
| Annihilus First English | Sticker | 68 Group | English |
| Ant-Man True Rookie First English First Solo | Sticker | 55 Solo | English |
| Aurora First Solo | Sticker | 62 Solo | English |
| Box True Rookie First English First Solo | Sticker | 63 Solo | English |
| Cannonball First Solo | Sticker | 26 Solo | English |
| Cloak True Rookie First English First Solo | Sticker | 18 Solo | English |
| Dagger True Rookie First English First Solo | Sticker | 18 Solo | English |
| Elektra True Rookie First English First Solo | Sticker | 19 Solo | English |
| Havok True Rookie First English First Solo | Sticker | 9 Solo | English |
| Hobgoblin True Rookie First English First Solo | Sticker | 67 Solo | English |
| Lockheed True Rookie First English First Solo | Sticker | 7 Solo | English |
| Longshot True Rookie First English First Solo | Sticker | 12 Solo | English |
| Magik True Rookie First English First Solo | Sticker | 27 Solo | English |
| Magma True Rookie First English First Solo | Sticker | 24 Solo | English |
| Mockingbird True Rookie First English First Solo | Sticker | 37 Solo | English |
| Moon Knight First Solo | Sticker | 17 Solo | English |
| Northstar First Solo | Sticker | 62 Solo | English |
| Rachel Summers / Phoenix II True Rookie First English First Solo | Sticker | 5 Solo | English |
| Shadow Cat (Kitty Pryde) True Rookie First English First Solo | Sticker | 11 Solo | English |
| Shaman First Solo | Sticker | 57 Solo | English |
| Spider-Man (Black Suit) True Rookie First English First Solo | Sticker | 28 Solo, 29 Solo, 33 Solo | English |
| Sunspot First Solo | Sticker | 23 Solo | English |
| Warlock (New Mutants) True Rookie First English First Solo | Sticker | 25 Solo | English |
| Wolfsbane First Solo | Sticker | 22 Solo | English |
| Wonderman True Rookie First English First Solo | Sticker | 39 Solo | English |