The stories are set in the shared Marvel Universe, and several long-running Marvel heroes made their debut in Marvel Spotlight - most notably the Ghost Rider, Spider-Woman and Werewolf by Night. Marvel Spotlight is also where the Son of Satan (Daimon Hellstrom) and Moon Knight first starred in their own solo stories, after their introduction as supporting characters in other comics.
Red Wolf, Werewolf by Night and Ghost Rider were each launched in their own solo series after their Marvel Spotlight tales ended, and The Son of Satan became the comic's new star, with a much longer run than any of the previous characters - as with the others, it ended with the launch of his own solo series.
At that point, though, Marvel Spotlight shifted away from long arcs - and also, for the most part, away from its previous horror themes. With the exception of a two-part Moon Knight tale, the comic's star now changed with every issue, ranging from super-spy Nick Fury to Thor's allies the Warriors Three and futuristic cyborg Deathlok. It was cancelled after a year or so of these stories. One of the final issues introduced Spider-Woman, an unexpected success who was also given her own solo series.
- Red Wolf (#1)
- Werewolf by Night (#2-4)
- Ghost Rider (#5-11)
- The Son of Satan (#12-24)
- The Seventh Voyage of Sinbad (#25)
- The Scarecrow (#26)
- The Sub-Mariner (#27)
- Moon Knight (#28-29)
- Warriors Three (#30)
- Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. (#31)
- The Spider-Woman (#32)
- Deathlok (#33)
The first issue was published in November 1971. The series ended with issue #33, released in January 1977.
A second Marvel Spotlight series was launched in 1979, this time with a science-fiction theme.
Marvel Spotlight provides examples of:
- Breakout Character: Whereas the early issues of Marvel Spotlight were actively trying to build an interest in new solo comics for the characters, the success of Spider-Woman was much more unexpected.
- Rotating Protagonist: All of the stories (with the possible exception of Sinbad) are set in the shared Marvel Universe, but the protagonist changes with each storyline. After moving on, the comic never returned to its previous protagonists.
- Scary Scarecrows: The Scarecrow is the protagonist of one issue.
