npm package: @mseep/marvel-mcp
Description: Marvel APIs MCP Server demo
Author: Dan Wahlin
Latest version: 1.6.4

<div align="center">

<img src="./images/captain-america.jpg" alt="" align="center" height="96" />

# Marvel MCP Server

[![Open project in GitHub Codespaces](https://img.shields.io/badge/Codespaces-Open-blue?style=flat-square&logo=github)](https://codespaces.new/danwahlin/marvel-mcp?hide_repo_select=true&ref=main&quickstart=true)
![Node version](https://img.shields.io/badge/Node.js->=20-3c873a?style=flat-square)
[![smithery badge](https://smithery.ai/badge/@DanWahlin/marvel-mcp)](https://smithery.ai/server/@DanWahlin/marvel-mcp)
[![License](https://img.shields.io/badge/License-MIT-yellow?style=flat-square)](LICENSE)

[Features](#features) • [Tools](#tools) • [Setup](#setup) • [Configuring an MCP Host](#configuring-an-mcp-host)

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MCP Server for the [Marvel Developer API](https://developer.marvel.com/documentation/getting_started), enabling interaction with characters and comics data. *The main goal of the project is to show how an MCP server can be used to interact with APIs.*

> **Note**: All data used by this MCP server is fetched from the [official Marvel API](https://developer.marvel.com/documentation/getting_started) and owned by Marvel. This project is not affiliated with Marvel in any way.

<a name="features"></a>
## 🔧 Features

- **List Marvel Characters**: Supports filters like `nameStartsWith`, `limit`, `comics`, `series`, etc.
- **Fetch a Marvel Character by ID**: Get detailed info on any character using their `characterId`.
- **Fetch Comics for a Character**: Get a list of comics featuring a specific character, with various filters like `format`, `dateRange`, etc.
- **Tool-based MCP integration**: Register this server with Model Context Protocol (MCP) tools (VS Code, Claude, etc.).
- **Environment Configuration**: Use `.env` file to manage environment variables like `MARVEL_PUBLIC_KEY`, `MARVEL_PRIVATE_KEY` and `MARVEL_API_BASE`.

<a name="tools"></a>
## 🧰 Tools

### 1. `get_characters` 🔍🦸‍♂️
- **Description**: Fetch Marvel characters with optional filters.
- **Inputs**:
  - `name` (optional string): Full character name.
  - `nameStartsWith` (optional string): Characters whose names start with the specified string.
  - `modifiedSince` (optional string): ISO 8601 date string to filter characters modified since this date.
  - `comics`, `series`, `events`, `stories` (optional string): Comma-separated list of IDs to filter by related entities.
  - `orderBy` (optional string): Fields to order the results by, such as `name` or `-modified`.
  - `limit` (optional number): Maximum number of results to return (1–100).
  - `offset` (optional number): Number of results to skip for pagination.
- **Returns**: JSON response with matching characters. See `CharacterDataWrapperSchema` in `src/schemas.ts` for details.

### 2. `get_character_by_id` 🆔🧑‍🎤
- **Description**: Fetch a Marvel character by their unique ID.
- **Input**:
  - `characterId` (number): The unique ID of the character.
- **Returns**: JSON response with the character's details. See `CharacterDataWrapperSchema` in `src/schemas.ts` for details.

### 3. `get_comics_for_character` 📚🎭
- **Description**: Fetch comics featuring a specific character, with optional filters.
- **Inputs**:
  - `characterId` (number): The unique ID of the character.
  - Optional filters:
    - `format`, `formatType` (string): Filter by comic format (e.g., `comic`, `hardcover`).
    - `noVariants`, `hasDigitalIssue` (boolean): Flags to exclude variants or include only digital issues.
    - `dateDescriptor` (string): Predefined date ranges like `thisWeek`, `nextWeek`.
    - `dateRange` (string): Custom date range in the format `YYYY-MM-DD,YYYY-MM-DD`.
    - `title`, `titleStartsWith` (string): Filter by title or title prefix.
    - `startYear`, `issueNumber`, `digitalId` (number): Numeric filters.
    - `diamondCode`, `upc`, `isbn`, `ean`, `issn` (string): Identifier filters.
    - `creators`, `series`, `events`, `stories`, `sharedAppearances`, `collaborators` (string): Comma-separated list of related entity IDs.
    - `orderBy` (string): Fields to order the results by, such as `title` or `-modified`.
    - `limit`, `offset` (number): Pagination options.
- **Returns**: JSON response with comics featuring the specified character. See `ComicDataWrapperSchema` in `src/schemas.ts` for details.

### 4. `get_comics` 📖🕵️‍♂️
- **Description**: Fetch lists of Marvel comics with optional filters.
- **Inputs**:
  - `format` (optional string): Filter by the issue format (e.g., `comic`, `digital comic`, `hardcover`).
  - `formatType` (optional string): Filter by the issue format type (`comic` or `collection`).
  - `noVariants` (optional boolean): Exclude variants (alternate covers, secondary printings, director's cuts, etc.) from the result set.
  - `dateDescriptor` (optional string): Return comics within a predefined date range (`lastWeek`, `thisWeek`, `nextWeek`, `thisMonth`).
  - `dateRange` (optional string): Return comics within a custom date range. Dates must be specified as `YYYY-MM-DD,YYYY-MM-DD`.
  - `title` (optional string): Return only issues in series whose title matches the input.
  - `titleStartsWith` (optional string): Return only issues in series whose title starts with the input.
  - `startYear` (optional number): Return only issues in series whose start year matches the input.
  - `issueNumber` (optional number): Return only issues in series whose issue number matches the input.
  - `diamondCode`, `digitalId`, `upc`, `isbn`, `ean`, `issn` (optional string): Filter by various identifiers.
  - `hasDigitalIssue` (optional boolean): Include only results which are available digitally.
  - `modifiedSince` (optional string): Return only comics which have been modified since the specified date (ISO 8601 format).
  - `creators`, `characters`, `series`, `events`, `stories`, `sharedAppearances`, `collaborators` (optional string): Comma-separated list of IDs to filter by related entities.
  - `orderBy` (optional string): Order the result set by a field or fields. Add a "-" to the value to sort in descending order (e.g., `title`, `-modified`).
  - `limit` (optional number): Limit the result set to the specified number of resources (default: 20, max: 100).
  - `offset` (optional number): Skip the specified number of resources in the result set.
- **Returns**: JSON response with matching comics. See `ComicDataWrapperSchema` in `src/schemas.ts` for details.

### 5. `get_comic_by_id` 🆔📘
- **Description**: Fetch a single Marvel comic by its unique ID.
- **Input**:
  - `comicId` (number): The unique ID of the comic.
- **Returns**: JSON response with the comic details. See `ComicDataWrapperSchema` in `src/schemas.ts` for details.

### 6. `get_characters_for_comic` 🦸‍♀️📖
- **Description**: Fetch Marvel characters appearing in a specific comic.
- **Inputs**:
  - `comicId` (number): The unique ID of the comic.
  - Optional filters:
    - `name` (optional string): Filter characters by full name.
    - `nameStartsWith` (optional string): Filter characters whose names start with the specified string.
    - `modifiedSince` (optional string): ISO 8601 date string to filter characters modified since this date.
    - `series`, `events`, `stories` (optional string): Comma-separated list of related entity IDs to filter by.
    - `orderBy` (optional string): Fields to order the results by, such as `name` or `-modified`.
    - `limit` (optional number): Maximum number of results to return (1–100).
    - `offset` (optional number): Number of results to skip for pagination.
- **Returns**: JSON response with characters appearing in the specified comic. See `CharacterDataWrapperSchema` in `src/schemas.ts` for details.

<a name="setup"></a>
## 🛠️ Setup

Sign up for a [Marvel Developer API](https://developer.marvel.com/documentation/getting_started) account and get your public and private API keys. 

If you want to run it directly in an MCP host, jump to the [Use with Claude Desktop](#use-with-claude-desktop) or [Use with GitHub Copilot](#use-with-github-copilot) sections.

### Run the Server Locally with MCP Inspector

If you'd like to run MCP Inspector locally to test the server, follow these steps:

1. Clone this repository:

    ```bash
    git clone https://github.com/DanWahlin/marvel-mcp
    ```

1. Rename `.env.template ` to `.env`.

1. Add your Marvel API public and private keys to the `.env` file.

    ```bash
    MARVEL_PUBLIC_KEY=YOUR_PUBLIC_KEY
    MARVEL_PRIVATE_KEY=YOUR_PRIVATE_KEY
    MARVEL_API_BASE=https://gateway.marvel.com/v1/public
    ```
1. Install the required dependencies and build the project.

    ```bash
    npm install
    npm run build
    ```

1. (Optional) To try out the server using MCP Inspector run the following command:

    ```bash
    # Start the MCP Inspector
    npx @modelcontextprotocol/inspector node build/index.js
    ```

    Visit the MCP Inspector URL shown in the console in your browser. Change `Arguments` to `dist/index.js` and select `Connect`. Select `List Tools` to see the available tools.

<a name="configuring-an-mcp-host"></a>
## Configuring an MCP Host

### Use with Claude Desktop

Add the following to your `claude_desktop_config.json`:

```json
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "marvel-mcp": {
      "type": "stdio",
      "command": "npx",
      // "command": "node",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "@codewithdan/marvel-mcp"
        // "/PATH/TO/marvel-mcp/dist/index.js"
      ],
      "env": {
        "MARVEL_PUBLIC_KEY": "YOUR_PUBLIC_KEY",
        "MARVEL_PRIVATE_KEY": "YOUR_PRIVATE_KEY",
        "MARVEL_API_BASE": "https://gateway.marvel.com/v1/public"
      }
    }
  }
}
```

#### Installing via Smithery

To install Marvel MCP Server for Claude Desktop automatically via [Smithery](https://smithery.ai/server/@DanWahlin/marvel-mcp):

```bash
npx -y @smithery/cli install @DanWahlin/marvel-mcp --client claude
```

### Use with GitHub Copilot (VS Code Insiders)

> **Note**: If you already have the MCP server enabled with Claude Desktop, add `chat.mcp.discovery.enabled: true` in your VS Code settings and it will discover existing MCP server lists.

If you want to associate the MCP server with a specific repo, create a `.vscode/mcp.json` file with this content:

   ```json
   {
     "inputs": [],
     "servers": {
        "marvel-mcp": {
            "command": "npx",
            // "command": "node",
            "args": [
                "-y",
                "@codewithdan/marvel-mcp"
                // "/PATH/TO/marvel-mcp/dist/index.js"
            ],
            "env": {
                "MARVEL_PUBLIC_KEY": "YOUR_PUBLIC_KEY",
                "MARVEL_PRIVATE_KEY": "YOUR_PRIVATE_KEY",
                "MARVEL_API_BASE": "https://gateway.marvel.com/v1/public"
            }
        }
     }
   }
   ```

If you want to associate the MCP server with all repos, add the following to your VS Code User Settings JSON:

   ```json
  "mcp": {
    "servers": {
        "marvel-mcp": {
            "command": "npx",
            // "command": "node",
            "args": [
                "-y",
                "@codewithdan/marvel-mcp"
                // "/PATH/TO/marvel-mcp/dist/index.js"
            ],
            "env": {
                "MARVEL_PUBLIC_KEY": "YOUR_PUBLIC_KEY",
                "MARVEL_PRIVATE_KEY": "YOUR_PRIVATE_KEY",
                "MARVEL_API_BASE": "https://gateway.marvel.com/v1/public"
            }
        },
    }
  }
   ```

> **Note**: If you don't want to put keys directly in your JSON file, check out the [VS Code documentation to learn about using inputs](https://code.visualstudio.com/docs/copilot/chat/mcp-servers). Inputs let you define custom placeholders for configuration values, avoiding hardcoding sensitive information.

### Using Tools in GitHub Copilot

1. Now that the mcp server is discoverable, open GitHub Copilot and select the `Agent` mode (not `Ask` or `Edits`).
2. Select the "refresh" button in the Copilot chat text field to refresh the server list.
3. Select the "🛠️" button to see all the possible tools, including the ones from this repo.
4. Put a question in the chat that would naturally invoke one of the tools, for example:

    ```
    List 10 marvel characters.

    What comics is Wolverine in?

    Give me details about villains in the Marvel universe.
    
    Which characters appear in the Avengers comics?

    What characters are in the Hedge Knight II: Sworn Sword (2007) comic?

    List 10 characters from Ant-Man comics.
    ```

    > **Note**: If you see "Sorry, the response was filtered by the Responsible AI Service.", try running it again or rephrasing the prompt.