The Art of Widget

In 1992, Marvel Entertainment commissioned Jim Lee, the young superstar penciller behind X-Men (vol. 2) no. 1, the bestselling single-issue comic book of all time, to create all of the art for a new set of 105 trading cards - a set that would go on to become one of the most celebrated in Marvel history and the gold standard for non-sports trading-card artwork and design. Lee was the first artist to create all of the original artwork for a Marvel card set; his dynamic character portraits, battle scenes, team shots, and innovative nine-card Danger Room puzzle cards helped fuel both the '90s boom of comic-book trading cards and the general public's mania for all things X-Men. Fans of the chart-topping comics could turn to the cards for further insight into their favorite characters, as Marvel writers and editors-inspired by classic baseball cards-included bios, stats, and trivia for each hero and villain. The Uncanny X-Men Trading Cards' collects, for the first time, the front and back of each collectible card in the set-including Wolverine, Storm, Cyclops, Magneto, and Deadpool-alongside select scans of Lee's original and digitally remastered art. It also includes interviews conducted by author and set editor Bob Budiansky, with the Marvel staff who helped commission, design, and create these iconic trading cards.--