Spidey Super Stories #17
Published and © by Marvel and The Electric Company characters © Children’s Television Workshop, July 1976
Title: “A Bicentennial Adventure!”
Synopsis: Spider-Man and Captain America travel back in time to witness the nation’s founding and wind up battling an annoyed Kang.
Writer: Jim Salicrup
Penciler: Win Mortimer
Inker: Mike Esposito and Tony Mortellaro
Review: As a precocious reader, Little Me was not a fan of Spidey Super Stories. In hindsight, this easy-reader title is quite serviceable for its target audience. This simple tale engages youngsters in U.S. history and the Bicentennial, though Kang lacks any real character motivation and the story ends abruptly.
•••
Title: “Spidey Meets the Stomper”
Synopsis: Spider-Man battles an annoying jerk named the Stomper – unsurprisingly, he stomps things – then serves up hotdogs at a picnic.
Writer (story): Thad Mumford
Writer (script): Pat Thackray
Penciler: Win Mortimer
Inker: Mike Esposito and Tony Mortellaro
Review: While not truly villainous, the story’s antagonist is a grade-A jerk. His self-centered antics would fit right in today’s world.
•••
Title: “The Once and Future Kang”
Synopsis: Kang makes another play at disrupting the Bicentennial but Spidey and Cap save the day once more.
Writer: Jim Salicrup
Penciler: Win Mortimer
Inker: Mike Esposito and Tony Mortellaro
Review: Oh, there’s the rest of the lead story. Not sure why it was split up but, hey, there’s the conclusion.
Grade (for the entire issue): C
Second opinion: “If you collect appearances of Iceman, Doctor Strange, Hulk, Thor or Kang, you need it.” – Martin Lock, Bemusing Magazine #9, May 1976
Cool factor: Get ’em reading history while they’re young!
Not-so-cool factor: A one-page origin recap misstates Cap’s motivation. It wasn’t that he “wanted to be in a secret project to create a super-strong man”; Steve Rogers just wanted to serve his country!
Notable: Guest-starring Captain America. … Cameo appearances by Doctor Strange, Falcon, Iceman, Hulk, Lockjaw, Medusa and Thor, as well as Samuel Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson and other Founding Fathers. … Also includes a one-page recap of Captain America’s origin, a “Who Is Kang?” one-pager and a pinup of Spider-Man and Cap at the signing of the Declaration of Independence.
Collector’s note: According to MyComicShop.com, there is a Mark Jewelers variant of this issue.
Character quotable: “Bah! This Bicentennial bugs me!” – Kang, unpatriot
Editor’s note: This review was written June 23, 2026.
