To read Kraven's Last Hunt in French, where it is titled La Dernière Chasse de Kraven, the 160-page hardcover album in the Marvel Must-Have collection (May 2021) collects the six 1987 issues and nothing else. The 536-page volume of November 2023 adds the stories tied to the character. Fans of the first release will look for the Best of Marvel volume of August 2004. The volume in the anniversary collection (2022) serves as a lighter version.
This Spider-Man story has had at least six documented editions in France, all under the same title. That is the trap: their page counts range from one to three times each other, and their contents are not always what you think.
As always in this guide, only verified information (creators, issue numbers, dates) is stated as fact; the analysis is our own, with no reproduction of protected art or dialogue.
The original edition in brief
The original story, Kraven's Last Hunt, runs six chapters published in fall 1987 in the three monthly series devoted to Spider-Man: Web of Spider-Man, The Amazing Spider-Man and Peter Parker, the Spectacular Spider-Man. J.M. DeMatteis writes, Mike Zeck draws, Bob McLeod inks and Rick Parker does the lettering. The covers of the first three chapters bear the date October 1987, those of the last three November.
As for the single issues, they are numbers 31 and 32 for Web of Spider-Man, 293 and 294 for Amazing, 131 and 132 for Spectacular. The American collection that gathered them circulated for a long time under the title Fearful Symmetry. For the exact reading order of the single issues and the meaning of the plot, our reading guide to the arc remains the reference; here, we only discuss what was published in French.
An epilogue exists: Amazing Spider-Man: Soul of the Hunter, a single issue from 1992. It does not belong to the 1987 arc, but some French editions shelve it alongside, and that is one of the reasons why the contents of a volume must be checked before buying.
The French editions, in order of release
August 2004: the Best of Marvel, first dedicated volume
The first album we could document with certainty was released on August 19, 2004, under Panini's Marvel France label, in the Best of Marvel collection (number 1 of the series). It has 192 pages and gathers the six issues of the saga, with their original covers, an introduction by Stan Lee and exclusive material. This is the edition that fans of the first French album seek out, and the French title it carries is the one the later volumes reuse.
May 2012: a big 352-page volume
A new Panini release dates from May 16, 2012 and runs 352 pages. The six issues are included. With this page count, it is the thickest of the albums devoted to the arc alone, and the one that leaves the most room for bonus material.
May 2021: the Marvel Must-Have hardcover
On May 26, 2021, the Marvel Must-Have collection welcomed the title as a 160-page hardcover album. Its content is limited to the arc: the two issues of Web, the two of Amazing and the two of Spectacular, that is, the six chapters. To read the story in its original form, no more and no less, it is the most readable volume of the lot.
March 2022: volume 4 of the anniversary collection
On March 2, 2022, Panini published a 152-page volume, flagged as the fourth of the ten volumes of the Spider-Man anniversary collection and listed in the catalog under Marvel Hors Collection. The translation is by Geneviève Coulomb. Its page count makes it a short volume, designed as an entry point into the anniversary series.
November 2023: the 536-page volume
On November 2, 2023, a 536-page softcover volume came out, presented by Panini as a limited edition in the Giant-Size format. It gathers the 1987 arc and stories that orbit around Kraven. Web of Spider-Man appears there through issues 31 and 32; Amazing Spider-Man through issues 15, 293, 294 then 634 to 637; Spectacular Spider-Man through 131, 132 then 249 to 253. To these are added Marvel Team-Up 128, Soul of the Hunter, a Sensational Spider-Man annual, What If...? 17 and What The...? 3.
The appeal is twofold: the volume places Kraven's first appearance (Amazing Spider-Man 15) ahead of the arc that closes his story, and it continues with much more recent stories. It is for the reader who wants the character, not just the masterpiece.
July 2026: a pocket version
A 288-page book, in Panini's Marvel Poche collection, is announced for July 8, 2026 on the occasion of the release of the film Spider-Man: Brand New Day. Its page count, well above that of the 2021 album, makes it a separate volume, to compare with the others before buying.
Original / French edition correspondence
| French edition | Date | Pages | Original issues collected |
|---|---|---|---|
| Best of Marvel (Marvel France / Panini) | August 19, 2004 | 192 | The six issues of the arc |
| Panini volume | May 16, 2012 | 352 | The six issues of the arc |
| Marvel Must-Have, hardcover | May 26, 2021 | 160 | The six chapters: two of Web, two of Amazing, two of Spectacular |
| Limited edition Giant-Size, softcover | November 2, 2023 | 536 | The arc, plus Amazing Spider-Man 15, 634-637, Spectacular Spider-Man 249-253, Marvel Team-Up 128, Soul of the Hunter, and other related stories |
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Which edition to choose for your profile
The reader who wants the story and nothing else should take the 2021 Must-Have album: it fits in one hand, contains the six chapters and can be rebought without particular difficulty. Anyone hesitating over budget can look at the volume in the anniversary collection or the pocket version, two lighter formats to compare with each other.
The collector interested in the figure of Kraven will rather choose the 2023 volume, which goes well beyond the arc by providing the hunter's first appearance, continuity stories and more recent tales. It shelves like a brick and reads differently from a 150-page album.
Finally, the fan of the first French edition will aim for the 2004 album, which is the only one to bear the mark of the original Best of Marvel collection and its introduction by Stan Lee. To find DeMatteis again much later on the series, read our collection guide to issue 1000.
Pitfalls and points to watch
First pitfall: the same title for very different objects. Between 152 and 536 pages, between a 2004 album and a 2023 edition that compiles eight American series, the cover title barely changes. Always read the list of American issues on the back or on the publisher's page before buying.
Second pitfall: the collection label. The same edition can be filed under several labels depending on the shop or the catalog (Best of, Must-Have, Hors Collection, Poche). For the 2026 version, sources disagree on the collection. Trust the content and the page count, not the banner.
Third pitfall: translations. The 2022 volume is translated by Geneviève Coulomb. For the other editions, nothing indicates that the translation was reused or redone; so do not bet on a "revised" version to justify a repurchase.
Fourth pitfall: closely spaced reissues (see also the history of French comics publishers). Panini put this story out again in 2021, 2022 and 2023 in competing formats. Each reprint reduces the scarcity of the previous ones a little; one more reason to be wary of listings that present a recent album as impossible to find.
What these editions are worth to collectors
This story is a classic, and it shows in the persistence of demand. Supply is abundant: six documented releases in about twenty years weigh on the recent albums, and several were widely distributed in bookstores. The copies that keep collector interest are those whose supply is drying up or whose print run was announced as limited, like the 2023 volume.
To estimate a copy, compare completed sales for the same edition, in the same condition, with or without dust jacket or original cover. Then relate the observed price to the new catalog price rather than to an average drawn from all editions combined: the gap between new and secondhand is the best indicator of real scarcity.
If you also hold the 1987 American single issues, they follow another market, far more sensitive to condition and grading. Our article on the arc in single issues details that side; the French edition is judged like a book: condition of the spine and edge, no creases at the corners.
To buy smart, first decide the use. If you want to reread the arc every year, a 160-page hardcover album withstands handling better than a 536-page softcover whose spine flexes. If you want to complete a Spider-Man shelf, look at the height and thickness of the volumes: the big 2023 volume takes up the space of several albums.
Finally, keep a record of what you already own. A collection that contains all six chapters makes buying a second identical album pointless, whereas an expanded volume is mainly justified if you do not yet have Kraven's first appearance. Note for each purchase the publisher, the collection, the date and the list of American issues: it is the only way to avoid a duplicate when the cover titles are identical.
Two simple habits complete this method. First, note the barcode of each purchase: it unambiguously identifies which of the six editions you are holding, whatever the cover title. Second, shelve the arc with your 1987 single issues if you own them, but on a shelf separate from the albums: the two formats are not preserved in the same way and are not compared on the same scale.
One last benchmark on the original side, useful for checking a French edition: the story was published in six chapters spread across three American series dated October and November 1987, Web of Spider-Man #31 and #32, Amazing Spider-Man #293 and #294, Spectacular Spider-Man #131 and #132. A complete collection must therefore contain these six issues, in this reading order.
Frequently asked questions
It is the Best of Marvel of August 19, 2004, from Marvel France / Panini, with 192 pages, the six issues, their original covers and an introduction by Stan Lee. The later reissues all reused the same French title.
The 160-page hardcover album in the Marvel Must-Have collection, released on May 26, 2021, collects only the six chapters of the arc, two per series. The 2004 Best of Marvel also gathers them with an introduction by Stan Lee.
It adds to the 1987 arc Kraven's first appearance in Amazing Spider-Man 15, issues 634 to 637 of the same series, Spectacular Spider-Man 249 to 253, Marvel Team-Up 128, Soul of the Hunter, a Sensational Spider-Man annual, What If...? 17 and What The...? 3.
In the single issues, you have to alternate Web, Amazing then Spectacular, twice in a row. A collection is designed to spare you this treasure hunt, and logic dictates that it arranges the chapters in story order. If in doubt, flip through the copy while following our reading guide.
Soul of the Hunter is a single issue from 1992, outside the 1987 arc, which revisits the character after his death. It appears in the 2023 French edition, according to the list of issues published for that volume. It is not necessary to understand the main story, but it is a supplement for anyone who wants to extend the reading.
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