#mark evanier

MARVEL PREMIERE was something of a mixed bag as a comic book purchase. While early on it had been dedicated to the adventures of Iron Fist, and before that Doctor Strange, it had turned over time into a SHOWCASE-style try-out series for new concepts (and occasionally a place to wrap up outstanding plotlines from a series that had come to an end, as in the case of the Man-Wolf issues.) I had begun…

Mister Miracle Special: No Escape from Destiny

by Mark Evanier; Steve Rude; Mike Royer; Anthony Tollin and Todd Klein

On this day in 1982, Eclipse Comics published Destroyer Duck #1. The anthology featured a main story starring the title character by Steve Gerber and Jack Kirby, as well as back-up features like Groo the Wanderer -- who made his first appearance in the first issue.

The book was a way for Gerber to raise money for his lawsuit against Marvel Comics, who he sued over the ownership rights of Howard the Duck -- one of the first highly publicized cases of a creator suing a company over a character they had created. Gerber eventually settled with Marvel and even wrote the character again for Marvel in 1989, when he guest-starred in a She-Hulk story arc.

Groo the Wanderer by Sergio Aragones and Mark Evanier would go on to be published for more than 40 years (and counting) by publishers like Pacific, Eclipse, Marvel's Epic imprint, Image and Dark Horse. Here's some artwork from his first appearance in Destroyer Duck:

[PREVIEW] Groo: The Prophecy #1 (April 1, 2026)

writer(s): Sergio Aragonés and Mark Evanier | artist [penciller & inker]: Sergio Aragonés | colorist: Carrie Strachan | letterer: Stan Sakai | cover artist: Sergio Aragonés | publishing company: Dark Horse Comics