Werewolf by Night

The Werewolf by Night (also known as the Werewolf) is the name of two werewolves appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The first incarnation of Werewolf by Night, Jack Russell, first appeared in Marvel Spotlight #2 (February 1972). The second incarnation, Jake Gomez, first appeared in Werewolf by Night #1 (October 2020). The Jack Russell incarnation of Werewolf by Night appeared in the Marvel Cinematic Universe feature Werewolf by Night TV special, portrayed by Gael García Bernal. Publication history Prior to the formation of the Comics Code Authority in 1954, Marvel's predecessor Atlas Comics published a five-page short story titled "Werewolf by Night!" in Marvel Tales #116 (July 1953). With the relaxation of the Comics Code Authority's rules in 1971, it became possible for the first time to publish code-approved comic books with werewolves. The Jack Russell version of Werewolf by Night first appeared in Marvel Spotlight #2 (February 1972) and was based on an idea by Roy Thomas. The series name was suggested by Stan Lee and the initial creative team was Gerry Conway and Mike Ploog, who worked from a plot by Roy and Jeanie Thomas for the first issue. Readers have often pointed out that the lead character's name, Jack Russell, is also a breed of dog. Conway has said that while he cannot remember how he came up with the name, it is unlikely that he was making this canine reference consciously, since he did not own a dog and never lived with one growing up. After the test run in Marvel Spotlight #2-4, the character graduated to his own eponymous series in September 1972. Conway described working on the series as "a lot of fun" because the horror genre made a refreshing change from the superhero stories that had been the staple of mainstream comics for years. Werewolf by Night was published for 43 issues and ran through March 1977. During the series' run, the editorship could not resist the opportunity to assign one of their most popular writers, Marv Wolfman, to write some stories for the series with a playful note: "At last -- WEREWOLF -- written by a WOLFMAN."