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The first volume of Marvel Comics Presents was released on a biweekly basis and lasted for 175 issues from September 1988 to March 1995. Each issue had four eight-page stories, of which generally two were episodes in ongoing serials and two were one-episode stories. The one-episode stories generally featured obscure or little-seen characters from the Marvel universe, and often featured work by creators previously unpublished in the comics field, including Scott Lobdell (later X-Men Writer) who started work under the editorship of Tom DeFalco.
The original plan was for the lead story to feature different members of the X-Men in solo adventures lasting between eight and ten episodes. The first ten issues featured Wolverine; others featured were Colossus, Cyclops, Havok, and Excalibur. From issue 39 onwards, Wolverine was featured as the lead story in all issues. Particularly notable was "Weapon X" in issues #72-84, which revealed Wolverine's origin, with story and art by Barry Windsor-Smith.
Later Ghost Rider was added to the series as "co-lead" feature, and the book adopted a "flip-book" format, thereby allowing each of the two characters cover billing. Eventually other characters, such as Man-Thing and Lunatik, got cover billing.
Several of the Wolverine storylines have since been collected and reprinted in trade paperback format. The first volume features Wolverine's first adventures in Madripoor, a fictional island that became Wolverine's second home during the late 1980s, as well as the "introduction" of Tyger Tiger.
Other notable highlights include the first appearance of Cyber (Issue 85, by Peter David and Sam Kieth), the first appearance of Damage Control (Issue 19), a Looney Tunes Spoof featuring Excalibur (issues 31- 38), an Incredible Hulk versus Hulk Hogan wrestling match (issue 45), and the first appearance of Nth Man: The Ultimate Ninja (Issue 25).
Other stories, feature an incredibly wide range of Marvel Comics characters.
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