Spidey-Stash Episode 3: Model Kits

There have been several model kits made featuring our favorite hero over the years.  Have you ever put one together?  If so, please share some photos of your artistic efforts!

The very first Spider-Man model kit was produced way back in 1966 by Aurora.  There were a total of three Marvel kits available (Captain America and The Hulk were the other two).  A fourth kit (“ more of the Fantastic Four”) was hinted at in advertisements, but no more were produced.

The artwork on the box of the 1966 kit was done by Neal Adams.  The pose selected is that of Spidey perched on a railing of a set of stairs, shooting a web down upon a defeated Kraven The Hunter who is laying on the floor.  A piece of the kit which really doesn’t “match” is a pistol near Kraven’s hand on the floor.  Kraven was not known to use pistols in the comic books.

The 1966 kit has a high dollar value at this point.  Finding one sealed (the box wrapped in cellophane) could set you back upwards of $1500.  Also, “factory built” kits (which were sent to hobby shops for display purposes) are very sought after by collectors.  Original advertising posters are also super hard to find available for sale.

The next Spider-Man kit was produced in 1974.  Aurora re-released a whole slew of 1966 superhero model kits with new box art and the added name, “Comic Scenes”, on the box.  The Spider-Man kit featured a couple of differences from the 1966 kit:  molded in red plastic (compared to tan for the original); no gun, and no “Spider-Man” name plate on the main post of the stairwell.

All of the Comic Scenes model kits also came with a cool 8-page comic book story (written to include the model kit “scene” into the story).   The comic book also contained instructions on how to assemble the kit, and a full-page “backdrop”, which you could cut out and use behind your finished model (basically the background art as featured on the box art).  John Romita did the artwork for the book (as well as the box art), and collectors often try to get the book into their collection.

In 1977 and 1978 some “Spider-man based” kits were released by the model company known as MPC.  Two versions of a “Spider-Van” (the only difference was the artwork for the side decals)  and a figural kit which featured glo-in-the-dark eyes and sticky pads to attach the figure to a wall.  All the MPC kits were Snap-together (no glue needed).

It was another ten years before more kits came out.  In 1988 the Horizon company produced a set of models, including Spider-Man.  These kits were mainly available through comic book shops.  Horizon kept going strong for another six years, releasing the following kits:  1992 Venom, 1993 Carnage, 1994 Green Goblin, Spider-Man 2099, and another Spider-Man (crawling pose).

Toy Biz (who had been producing tons of Marvel toys) jumped in with some models in 1996 (Spider-Man snap together), 1998 Rhino (snap together) and 1998 Spider-Man (glue together).

The Polar Lights company decided to do reproductions of the Aurora kits.  In 2003 they reproduced the 1966 kit in a slightly larger scale, molded in white.  In 2011 they reproduced the 1974 Comic Scenes, with a bit of a “mash up” of the 1974 and 1966 kits:  it came with a gun, name plate, and comic book, and was molded in red plastic.

2009 saw the Moebius company produce a Spidey and a Green Goblin kit.  They were sold individually and as a set (together they formed one “scene”).

A reproduction of the 1978 figural snap-together kit came about in 2012.  The company was Round2.  It is unclear whether the eyes glo-in-the-dark with this kit.

The last kit I want to mention is the 2013 Polar Lights Spider-Man Volkswagen Beetle.  It is also a snap together kit. Is it a step up or a step down from the Spider-Vans?

Do you have any memories of these model kits?  Questions?  Please comment below!  Check out the video and photos for more details.  You can never get too much Spidey-Stash!