From the Dust Bin: 1963 (Image Comics)

1963 was a six-issue comic book limited series written by Alan Moore in 1993, with art provided by his frequent collaborators Steve Bissette, John Totleben, and Rick Veitch; plus other contributors including Dave Gibbons, Don Simpson, and Jim Valentino. The six issues hearkened back to the Silver Age of comics (particularly, early Marvel Comics), and featured spoof advertisements on the rear covers.

Moore's homage to Marvel cliches included fictionalizing himself and the artists as the "Sixty-Three Sweatshop", describing his collaborators in the same hyperbolic and alliterative mode Stan Lee used for his "Marvel Bullpen"; each was given a Lee-style nickname ("Affable Al," "Sturdy Steve," "Jaunty John," etc.—Veitch has since continued to refer to himself as "Roarin' Rick"). The parody was not entirely affectionate, as the text pieces and fictional letter columns contained pointed inside jokes about the business practices of 1960s comic book publishers, with "Affable Al" portrayed as a tyrant who claimed credit for his employees' creations. Moore also made reference to Lee's book Origins of Marvel Comics (and its sequels) when Affable Al recommended that readers hurry out and buy his new book “How I Created Everything All By Myself” and “Why I Am Great”. Funny stuff!

Issue one introduced Mystery Incorporated, a Fantastic Four surrogate featuring Crystal Man, Neon Queen, Kid Dynamo and The Planet. Issue two featured The Fury; based on Spider-Man, as well as Sky Solo, Lady of L.A.S.E.R., a female version of Nick Fury. Issue three, an anthology comic called Tales of the Uncanny, featured USA, Ultimate Special Agent based on Captain America, and Hypernaut, who was based on Iron Man. Issue four, another anthology comic called Tales From Beyond, introduced readers to the Unbelievable N-Man, based on The Incredible Hulk, and Johnny Beyond, a beatnik version of Doctor Strange. Issue five was devoted to Horus, Lord of Light, based on The Mighty Thor. Issue six told the story of the Tomorrow Syndicate, based on the Avengers. This comic brought together Horus, Lord of Light, Hypernaut, N-Man, and USA, and also introduced Infra-Man and Infra-Girl, based on Ant-Man & the Wasp.