Their collaboration on Spider-Man couldn't last forever, but Stan Lee and Steve Ditko 's five-year partnership was remarkable enough to create an iconic superhero story that has touched generations of fans. It features never-before-seen nemeses like Scorpion, Molten Man, and the Crime-Master; reunions with Kraven the Hunter and the Green Goblin ; and the three-part "Master Planner Saga," which reignited an old feud with an iconic, mysterious villain. Many critics have declared it the greatest superhero story of all time .

Beyond the dangers Spider-Man had to face, all expertly choreographed by master artist Steve Ditko, Peter Parker's maturation through a decade of social upheaval also played a role. Peter graduated from high school, entered college, and was promptly confronted with a myriad of problems , just as his adolescent readership would have been expected. Stan Lee told the story with his own blend of soap opera and sensitive finger on the pulse. Peter was no longer a scrawny teenager. Stan Lee and Steve Ditko expanded his network of real and fake friends, introducing Gwen Stacy, Harry Osborn, and, in a series of hilarious cameos, Mary Jane Watson. They all developed into the most important roster of strong supporting players in comics history. Harry's father, Norman Osborn, also made his first appearance here: a short-tempered industrialist who, as it turned out, became Spider-Man's most feared enemy. All this while Peter's volatile romance with Betty Brant reached its climax, changing them both forever.

The format of this XXL volume corresponds to the proportions of the original artboards. The templates come from the collection of Bob Bretall, holder of the Guinness World Record for the largest comic book collection . The individual pages were then digitally retouched using modern retouching technology to correct imperfections in the printing technology of the time. A paper specially developed for this series simulates the feel and color reproduction of the original issues. The combination of the old-school reading experience of old comics and a luxury book has die-hard comic book collectors singing their praises, and the Marvel Comics Library won the Eisner Award for Best Publication Design, a coveted award in the book industry .

The volume is rounded off by a concise, entertaining essay by British TV and radio commentator Jonathan Ross. Original drawings, photos, and contemporary documents from Marvel's archives illustrate the text.