Are you the type that finds yourself geeking out at every Comic-Con when you pass a stall boasting a pristine, never-been-touched-by-human-fingers edition of your favorite Marvel superhero comic book? Do you find yourself wishing you could peruse its contents, finally seeing first-hand how everything all started?
Well, you’re in luck. The fantastical team behind all of those stories, Marvel Entertainment, wants to put those issues in your hands. Sort of.
Okay, so Marvel isn’t hand-delivering some secret stockpile of debut comic issues that it’s been hoarding in a secret warehouse for decades. But, according to TG Daily, it is making around 700 digital versions of its comics available to fans for the low, low price of … nothing. Most of its debut issues for comic book series are totally free.
Witness first-hand how Spiderman got his web-slinging abilities; see the introduction of the X-Men; watch as Iron Man first dons his metal, crime-fighting suit. All on your computer or iOS and Android devices.
Best part? (Besides the whole free thing, that is.) No need to worry about fingerprints bringing down the value of your newest comic acquisitions. But if you want to take advantage of the offer, you’ll have to act really fast. The comics will only be free until tomorrow, Tuesday, March 12, at 11 p.m. ET. After that, the comics will still be available for download, but will cost you anywhere from $2 to $4. Not too bad, considering scoring a print version of many of these could set you back a cool million dollars, if not more.
You may have to practice some patience while trying to grab all your top picks; while reporting this story, we noticed a lot of difficulty accessing the Marvel Comics Store, which is disappointing, but simultaneously not all that surprising, considering the vast popularity of these comics among a very dedicated fan base.
The deal isn’t just a way for Marvel to show some fan appreciation. It is also a way to promote its newest soon-to-be feature with new comic downloads: accompanying music.
So even if you can’t access the store right now, keep trying. There’s still another full day to get your hands on so many incredible origin stories.