Swimsuits Are Big Business…Even in Comics

Long before the bad swimsuit specials of the 1990s, Archie Comics characters graced our favorite media attired in swimsuits. Some of these Archie covers have become increasingly collectable in recent years due to the swimsuit covers and sometimes-unfortunate modern double entendres, as when Archie had to “beat off” three other guys (Betty & Me #16, 1968) or Veronica wanted a “pearl necklace” (Archie #271, 1978) — we agree that some of these covers appear to have been submitted just to try to sneak them past the censors.

Marvel was perhaps the first to cater to the idea of a special swimsuit pin-up magazine featuring their sexiest characters. Marvel in the 1990s, however, was not an eye-candy publisher, not the likes we see today in 2023 anyway. Their swimsuit issues were B-A-D. Many of the pages didn’t make any sense. The scenes lacked coherence and challenged readers’ willing suspension of disbelief, they were so bad. Their characters, however, were in swimsuits.

Some characters wear a “swimsuit” all the time, such as Red Sonja; Sheena, Queen of the Jungle; Lady Death; and Vampirella to name a few. Many of those covers appear here as well.

More info coming soon.

Sources: “Marvel Swimsuit Special: An In-Depth Analysis” Part I & Part II by Comic Book Candy