Coleccion Héroes Modernos presenta: Merlin el Mago Moderno
| Colección Héroes Modernos | |
 First Mandrake issue | |
| Country/language: |  Spain / Spanish
|
|---|---|
| Publishing company: | Editorial Dolar |
| Publishing years: | 1958-1959 |
| Issues: | |
| Format: | 30×20 cm, b/w |
Issue overview
Regular series
In 1958 "Editorial Dolar" started a new weekly series with two different figures: "Colección Héroes Modernos: Flash Gordon" and "Colección Héroes Modernos: El Hombre Enmascarado (The Phantom)". From issue 5 these two weekly series changed the titles to:
- "Colección Héroes Modernos Presenta: Flash Gordon y El Hombre Enmascarado" and
- "Colección Héroes Modernos Presenta: El Hombre Enmascarado y Flash Gordon.
On the back cover of "Flash Gordon" #30 "Editiorial Dolar" begins to advertise for other figures coming soon: "Tarzan"[footnotes 1]., "Merlín (Mandrake)", "Rip Kirby" and "Jorge y Fernando (Tim Tylers Luck)"; a few issues later also including "Ben Bolt" and "Julieta and Eva Jones".
After publishing 60 issues of both the "Flash Gordon" and "El Hombre Enmascarado" series "Editorial Dolar" had published most of the strips from the 50s and 40s. They started two new series with the same titles, but added a "0" in the numbering (eg. 01, 02 and on). The new series printed older material, from the 30s and on. The new series run for 40 issues for "El Hombre Enmascarado", and 30 for the "Flash Gordon". The regular "Flash Gordon" series had 10 more numbers[footnotes 2].
Inside "El Hombre Enmascarado" #034 there is an ad for the new titles:
- "Colección Héroes Modernos Presenta: Merlín el Mago Moderno",
- "Colección Héroes Modernos Presenta: Jorge y Fernando",
- "Novelas Gráficas Presenta en su Serie Azul: Rip Kirby",
- "Novelas Gráficas Presenta en su Serie Magenta: Julieta Jones",
- "Novelas Gráficas Presenta en su Serie Verde: Big Ben Bolt"
Ads for these above series
Back cover of ""El Hombre Enmascarado" issue #34
Ad presenting the figures featured in the series
Merlín el Mago Moderno
It was published in 1958-1959 with a total of 16 issues published by "Editorial Dolar". Each issue has a horizontal format of 30 x 20 cm and were printed in black & white except for the colored cover which is drawn by a Spanish artist. At the time, the contents – dailies strips, except for two issues – were recently stories.
Album de Lujo
When 5 issues of each series were released they were collected in albums entitled "Album de Lujo" with a new outer cover. "Flash Gordon" and "El Hombre Enmascarado" were released with 20 issues each. While "Jorge y Fernando" and "Merlín el Mago Moderno" were released with 3 issues each, both collecting 6 regular issues in their third "Album de Lujo".
Merlín el Mago Moderno
Libro de Oro
When 6 issues of each series of "Album de Lujo" were released they were collected in albums entitled "Libro de Oro". "Flash Gordon" and "El Hombre Enmascarado" were released with 2 issues each.
Note
- ↑ Although Tarzan is mentioned on each and every back cover no one has ever seen a "Colección Héroes Modernos Presenta: Tarzan" issue !
- ↑ The ads on the back covers from #64 and on are unique to these issues. For example, we see "Superman" at #64, which indicates that # 61-70 is among the last ones of the "Colección Héroes Modernos" series.
