Publisher

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Characters

Spawn

Spawn
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Creation & Design

Spawn was created by Todd McFarlane and first appeared in 1992. The character was designed to be a dark anti-hero, exploring themes of redemption and the battle between good and evil.

Early Years

Al Simmons was a highly skilled assassin who was betrayed and killed. He made a deal with the devil to return to Earth, only to find himself in a hellish existence as Spawn.

Character Development

Over the years, Spawn has evolved from a vengeful anti-hero to a more complex character grappling with themes of redemption, morality, and the consequences of power.

Cultural Reception

Spawn has received critical acclaim for its storytelling and art, becoming one of the best-selling independent comics of all time.

Character Details

Real Name:
Al Simmons
Aliases:
Hellspawn, The Violator, The Redeemer
Species:
Human
Gender:
Male
Affiliations:
The Hellspawn, The Army of Hell, The Violator
Abilities:
Superhuman strength, Regeneration, Teleportation, Necroplasm manipulation
Equipment:
Cape, Chains, Hellspawn armor
Weight:
200lbs
Height:
6' 0"
Eye Color:
green
Hair Color:
black
Styx Publications Feb 1992

Up 'N Coming Magazine #15

Up 'N Coming Magazine #15
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Interior illustration of Spawn in a comic book solicitation catalog and first time the name Spawn is seen in print
Mailing date: February 3, 1992
According to spawnworld.com, only one other image of Spawn is known to exist prior to the mailing of Up 'N Coming #15 and it was in an ad for "Stan Lee Presents: The Comic Book Greats" a VHS with Spawn on the outer sleeve (December 1991), though Spawn was not named or discussed in the video
Value unknown
Dynapubs Feb 1992

Comics Buyer's Guide #953

Comics Buyer's Guide #953
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First printed images of Spawn in a U.S. publication, Mailing date: February 5, 1992
Front page advertisement of Spawn, preceded all comic book advertisements in Malibu comic books that were published between March/April 1992
Interior black and white, textless cover art for Spawn #1
Only two other images of Spawn are known to exist prior to the mailing of Comics Buyer's Guide #953: the sleeve of a VHS tape titled "Stan Lee Presents: The Comic Book Greats" and a comic book solicitation magazine, Up N' Coming #1, Mailing date: February 3, 1992
Value unknown
Diamond Mar 1992

Previews #3-1992

Previews #3-1992
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First published images of Spawn in full color
Interior pin-up advertisement for Spawn #1 in full color
McFarlane reveals details about Spawn in an interior article
Malibu Mar 1992

Torg #2

Torg #2
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First printed image of Spawn in an actual comic book (advertisement)
One of two comics published in March 1992 that included the advertisement, the other being Robotech II: The Sentinels #13
Earlier images of Spawn have been printed in various catalogs and fanzines
Eternity Mar 1992 Vol 2

Robotech II: The Sentinels Book 2 #13

Robotech II: The Sentinels Book 2 #13
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First printed image of Spawn in a comic book (advertisement)
One of two comics published in March 1992 that included the advertisement, the other being Torg #2
Earlier images of Spawn have been printed in various catalogs and fanzines among other publications
Adventure Publications Apr 1992

Rust #1

Rust #1
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⚠ Misconception: incorrectly cited as the first published image of Spawn in an advertisement
The same advertisement appeared in multiple comics that went on-sale in April 1992: Re-Animator #2, Rocket Ranger #3, Rust #1, The Southern Squadron: Freedom of Information #4, Torg #3
In March 1992, one month prior to Rust #1, Spawn advertisements were printed in two comic books: Robotech II The Sentinels #13 and Torg #2
Prior to the publication of Robotech II #13 and Torg #2, Spawn appeared in numerous catalogs and fanzines
Character Search "Spawn" for more information on early appearances
Malibu Apr 1992

Rocket Ranger #3

Rocket Ranger #3
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Interior black and white advertisement for Spawn, released in April, prior to Spawn #1 but after other comics that contained promotional Spawn ads
Adventure Publications Apr 1992

Rust #1

Variant Limited: 10,000
Rust #1
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Variant cover with gold foil
Advertisement of Todd McFarlane's Spawn
Eternity May 1992

Evil Ernie #5

Evil Ernie #5
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Conclusion of limited series that introduced Lady Death and Evil Ernie
Interior black and white advertisement for Spawn, released prior to Spawn #1 but after other comics that contained promotional Spawn ads
Image May 1992

Spawn #1

Spawn #1
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1st appearance of Spawn
1st appearance of Sam & Twitch
1st appearance of Malebolgia
1st cameo appearance of Jason Wynn
Pin-up of Pitt.
Comic Shop News May 1992

Comic Shop News #255

Comic Shop News #255
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Early cover appearance of Spawn
Comic Shop News is a free publication, printed on newsprint paper, given away at comic book stores
Image Jul 1993

Spawn #12

Spawn #12
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Death of Al Simmons, in a flashback
Origin of Spawn, where it is discovered that Chapel was his murderer
1st full appearance of Jason Wynn, previously appeared in multiple cameos
Image Jul 1993

Todd McFarlane's Spawn

Hardcover
Todd McFarlane's Spawn
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Unreleased 200-page hardcover collection of Spawn #1 - #12
Distributed to employees, family and friends of the McFarlane company
There are eight similar hardcover editions that collect up to issue #96, Curse of Spawn #1- #29 and a mini-series collection which will be added when there is sales data
Image Dec 1993

Spawn #16

Spawn #16
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Jason Wynn becomes Anti-Spawn aka the Redeemer, in final panel
1st appearance of Major Vale
First artwork on the Spawn title by Greg Capullo
Todd Toys Jan 1995

Spawn Alley Playset / Game #1

Promo
Spawn Alley Playset / Game #1
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12-page promotional comic book, distributed with the Spawn board game by Pressman
Interior story titled Dead End featuring Spawn, Violator and Overtkill with four additional pages of game instructions
Image Jun 1995

Angela Special #1

1:25
Angela Special #1
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Variant cover art by Brad Gorby
1st cover appearance of Cut Throat, the pirate Spawn
16-page retailer incentive delivered with orders of Spawn #32 (1995)
Image Sep 1997

Spawn #1

1:50
Spawn #1
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Reprint of Spawn #1 in black and white
Comic shops qualified to receive one copy of this variant for every 50 copies purchased of Spawn #65
Image Feb 1998

Spawn: The Book of Souls #1

Promo
Spawn: The Book of Souls #1
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BET (Black Entertainment Television) exclusive giveaway to promote the Spawn film
Reprint of the Spawn Bible (1996)
As of February 2024 there exist only three copies of this exclusive in 9.8
Image Jul 1998

Total Eclipse #1

Total Eclipse #1
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One-shot that features character biographies from Spawn and Eclipse, a defunct publisher whose properties were purchased by McFarlane in 1996
Cover art by Todd McFarlane
Image Apr 2001

Hellspawn #7

Hellspawn #7
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1st full appearance of Mike Moran in the Spawn Universe, the alter ego of Miracleman
1st appearance of Raven Spawn, a Malebolgia Death Knight
Image Aug 2002

Spawn #119

Spawn #119
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1st team appearance of a Hellspawn Army
1st cameo appearance of Gunslinger Spawn, first full appearance occurred 6 years later
Cameo appearance of an unknown She-Spawn and a few other distinctly different characters that could be developed at some point in the future
Copies ordered by retailers: 45,953
Image Oct 2005

Spawn #150

Spawn #150
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1st appearance of Disciple, the final and weakest of twelve heavenly warriors
1st appearance of The Man of Miracles, a powerful being responsible for creating God and Satan in the Spawn mythos
The Man of Miracles was meant to be Miracleman until a lawsuit rescinded McFarlane's ownership of the character
Image Nov 2005 Vol 2

Ant #3

Ant #3
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Cover art featuring Ant and Spawn
Copies ordered by retailers: 8,903
Image Feb 2007

Spawn #165

Spawn #165
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1st appearance and origin of Mandarin Spawn, originally a fan-favorite McFarlane Toy that crossed-over into comics
Copies ordered by retailers: 24,518
Image Jan 2008

Spawn #174

Spawn #174
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1st appearance of 'Gunslinger' Spawn, a friend of Al Simmons' great-grandfather in the 19th century
Inspired by 'The Man in Black' from the Stephen King 'Dark Tower' series
Spawn is misspelled along the spine on all copies
Copies ordered by retailers: 22,649
Image Feb 2008

Spawn #175

Spawn #175
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2nd appearance of 'Gunslinger' Spawn
Conclusion of the two-issue stories
Copies ordered by retailers: 22,324
Image Jun 2008

Spawn #179

Spawn #179
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1st appearance of War Spawn, a man who fought alongside his son in World War I and exchanged his life and soul so that his son could live
Copies ordered by retailers: 19,751
Image Oct 2008

Spawn #185

Variant
Spawn #185
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Variant sketch cover art by Whilce Portacio
In 2013 CGC had graded a total of 15 copies of this variant, growing to 23 copies in 2018 and 33 copies in 2023. There are 8 copies in 9.8 and 6 copies in 9.6. These totals lead us to believe the genuine scarcity of this issue to be real.
Image Nov 2009

Image United #1

Image United #1
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Collaborative series by Image founding fathers bringing all their characters into one story
Cover connects to a series of five other covers to produce one overall picture
Image Nov 2009

Image United #1

Variant
Image United #1
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1st cover and cameo appearance of Omega Spawn
Variant cover art by Jim Lee
Image United brought together the original founders for a crossover event featuring their independent characters
Image May 2017

Spawn

Thank You
Spawn
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Cover art inspired by The Amazing Spider-Man #300
Retailer appreciation edition, one per store
25th Anniversary special with silver foil title text
Black and white gallery of past Spawn covers illustrated by Todd McFarlane, numbered THX
Image Jun 2017

Spawn #275

Convention Exclusive
Spawn #275
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Variant cover art by Todd McFarlane
Amazing Comic Con 2017 exclusive
Image Nov 2019

Spawn #302

Variant
Spawn #302
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Variant cover art by Todd McFarlane
1st cover appearance of She-Spawn, Jessica Priest
Image Aug 2021

King Spawn #1

King Spawn #1
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Premiere issue of the first ongoing Spawn title in 30 years
1st appearance of Komox, a protective entity
[July 2024 - the Spawn movie is titled King Spawn but it has been reported that it will not have any relation to this series]

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