Customer Reviews:
Avengers Misassembled.......2007-06-27
Don't get me wrong - I'm a fan of the Avengers, but in stacking up with the other Essential collections, this one reveals a messy ride that never quite grabs me. The villains don't overwhelm me. Unlike the Fantastic Four who had Dr Doom and Galactus; or the X-Men who had the Sentinels - the Avengers never really had a strong nemesis (with the exception of Ultron). Baddies like Zodiac? They really don't cut it.
Also, why the Avengers collections work less well for me than the rest is the black and white print. The full range of colour we need to make these heroes rock, is sorely missing.
Never an easy team to write for, the artwork is fine but it's just not killer stuff that it would be with the colour. For some reason, I have less of a problem when reading other Essential collections.
Call me fussy, but the Avengers just ain't the same without colour.
Gorgeous stuff..........2005-09-15
I have to disagree with all of the previous reviewers - I find Roy Thomas' Avengers work to be consistently half-baked and trite; if you're looking for a good READ, go somewhere else, preferably the new stuff being put out today - Wanted, Ultimates, Promethea, or what have you. But if you love classic Marvel Super-Heroes, and love to see them exceptionally well drawn, then this book is a MUST-HAVE. Sal Buscema is competent, but the stars here are Squeal Adams and, my fave and TOTALLY underrated, the one-and-only John "tha Don" Buscema. Although inker Tom "the embalmer" Palmer is not my favorite choice over Adams, his work here with Big John is some of the best around.
Everyone talks about the Kree-Skrull War saga, which is contained in this volume - by modern day standards, its "ok." Most of these tales are throw away. I cannot emphasize enough that the attraction of this tome is the AMAZING ARTISTRY contained therein. Nobody does the Panther like Buscema, and Adams' Ant-Man is the best that character has ever looked - EVER, I say. No fooling, if you love comic book art and Marvel characters in particular, or know of a child or nephew, etc. that does, GET THIS BOOK - Highest Possible Reccomendation.
Note: Essential Avengers vol. 3 is outstanding as well - get both if you don't have them.
The Earth-Skrull War in this one makes it worth reading.......2005-05-02
When the Avengers started off they were not just Marvel's answer to the Justice League of America, they were a place to toss half of the characters that were sharing space in some of the company's titles. So you had Captain America and Iron Man from "Tales of Suspense," Giant Man & the Wasp along with the Hulk from "Tales to Astonish," and you might as well toss Thor from "Journey Into Mystery" into the mix as well. Of course, the Hulk was gone by the time Captain America showed up, and those began the revolving door that was the Avengers decades before the current dissembling and what not. Consequently, what you consider the glory days of the comic book has to begin with what lineup you like as well as who was writing and drawing the group at any given time.
That being said, I think the best days of the Avengers are represented in the comics collected in "Essential Avengers, Volume 4." This trade paperback has issues #69-97 and as a special bonus "Incredible Hulk" #140, which is the celebrated Harlan Ellison story "The Beast That Shouted Love at the Heart of the Atom" (the favor is returned in "Essential Hulk, Volume 3" which also has that story and "Avengers" #88, which sets it up). For me the Avengers have to be led by Captain America and have to have the Vision, who is the quintessential Avengers character, in the line-up. I also prefer to have Iron Man around but not Thor and never Giant-Man (to put a limit on the muscle). I can only stand so much of Hawkeye (and making him Goliath was just the worst of two worlds), and I would be a lot happier if the Scarlet Witch would stick around while Quicksilver was off pouting somewhere. So, I never really get to the idea Avengers lineup, but when we get to the end of this collection and we have Cap, the Vision, Iron Man, and Thor, and that makes me pretty happy.
By that point we also have Neal Adams showing up to do the artwork, which means the Avengers have never looked better. I can remember being excited that Adams was breathing some new life into the book, although I think his work on "X-Men" was even better in terms of drawing a superhero group. More importantly, Tom Palmer does most of the inking here, not only of Adams's work but of John Buscema's as well. Along with the work he did with Gene Colan on "Tomb of Dracula," Palmer is clearly my all-time favorite inker and he always makes the artwork look better.
Adams shows up for issue #93 in the middle of a solid story arc that has the Avengers stopping a Skrull invasion. Making things even more interesting is the appointment of H. Warren Craddock as the newly appointed head of the Alien Activities Commission who is out to get Captain Marvel and whipping up the common folk so that they attack the Avenger's mansion. At that point the group is made up of the Vision, Goliath, the Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver, which is why the original members of the Avengers show up to disband the group and then save the world. This one ends up in outer space by the time it is done and given some of the lame villains the Avengers had to deal with in earlier issues it is nice to see them out there letting lose for once. .
Before that it is basically a normal series of Avengers adventures. At the start the group is Yellowjacket, the Wasp, the Vision, Goliath and the Black Panther. They take on Kang the Conqueror (#69-71) and pick up the Black Knight as a new member. Then there are encounters with Scorpio (#72), the Sons of the Serpent (#73-74), Arkon the Magnificent (#75-76, 84), and the Lethal Legion (#78-79). Red Wolf pops up (#80-81) and then Daredevil (#82), followed by the Valkyrie and her Lady Liberators (#83) and then the Squadron Sinister (#85). Other battles are against Brain-Child (#86). We also have the origin of T'Challa revealed at last (#87), the attempt to help the Hulk (#88), and then the arrival of Captain Marvel signals the beginning of the big story arc that makes this collection worth having. That is a 5 star story, but the rest of the collection is above and below 4 stars, so we end up rounding down on the difference.
PERHAPS THE BEST RUN OF AVENGERS!!!.......2004-11-05
This period of the late 1960;s through early 1970's was I think the finest in Avengers history. Vol. 4 of the Essential Avengers is a 640 page trade that collects Avengers issues 69 - 97.
This was a time of Great Roy Thomas Stories and fantatic artwork by John Buscema and Neal Adams. Without a doubt the highlight of this book is the legendary Kree-Skrull war storyline featuring art by Neal Adams.
It is one of the most complex storylines EVER in Comics and has some classic Neal Adams covers, particularly #96 with the Vision just pummeling a Skrull.
Other issues of note is #83 with the Lady Liberators...perhaps the first story ever tackling the womens lib movement of the 1970's.
#87 features the Origin of the Black Panther.
#80 features the first appearance of the American Indian hero Red Wolf.
Damn good stuff!
If your a fan of John and Sal Buscema and art .............2004-10-16
This one has some of the best classic Avengers tales available to date. It has the Captain Marvel Saga with Neal Adams on the art chores. If you are a fan of Roy Thomas's writing, John and Sal Buscema art, then this is the book for you. Marvels finest talents are seen throughout this one. Why can't there be more artists and writers like this in todays versions of the characters?
Product Description
Giant-Man becomes Goliath! The Wasp returns! The team battles the Enchantress, Power Man, the Ringmaster, Kang, Doctor Doom, Attuma, the Collector, the Swordsman, and the Black Widow! Collects AVENGERS Vol. 1 #21-30
Customer Reviews:
Goliath rejoins the Avengers of Captain America, Hawkeye, Quicksilver and the Scarlet Witch.......2005-08-24
Volume 3 of "The Avengers" in the Marvel Masterworks series collects episodes 21-30 of the comic book, which is covers the second major lineup in the group's history. Led by Captain America, the group consists of Hawkeye, Quicksilver and the Scarlet Witch at the start of this volume with Goliath rejoining the team by the end of this volume, although it turns out that the former Giant-Man and former Ant-Man is now stuck in extra large size. As Cap says, "The most powerful Avenger...and yet...he's also the most tragic!" (This coming from a living legend who had been frozen in a block of ice since the final days of World War II). The original Avengers line-up was too powerful, with Thor and Iron Man, not to mention the Hulk at the very beginning. Then they went to skill over strength with a group consisting of a guy who throws a shield, a guy who shoots arrows, a mutant who runs fast, and a witch. When Hank Pym rejoined the team they could actually use a bit of strength without having the overkill of a Norse God. They were not that powerful of a group of superheroes, especially compared to the Fantastic Four (or the Justice League of America over at DC), but they could hold their own against the X-Men.
At this point "The Avengers" is still being written by Stan Lee, with Don Heck established as the book's artist. Now, I have made clear that Heck was my least favorite artist that Marvel used on a regular basis, but that being said, the issues where his pencils are being inked by Wally Wood (#20-22) are the best Heck's work ever looked (I was going to add issue #23 inked by John Romita, Sr. to that short list, but it really looks like a Romita drawn issue). Dick Ayers inks #25 and Frank Giacoia #26-30, which is right before the period where Heck did the pencils and ink (for the record, Chic Stone did the least to enhance Heck's art for this book). But you can make up you own mind about where Heck's artwork stands in the Marvel pantheon.
The collection gets off to a good start with the introduction of Power Man (who is he?) in #21. He defeats the Avengers and the city council orders the Avengers to disband. In #22 the Avengers try to find out who is helping Power Man (the Enchantress), and while they succeed and the City Council declares Avengers Day, Steve Rogers announces he has played straight man to these jokers long enough and he decides to split. However, Kang the Conqueror returns for a rematch in the next two-issues (note that #24 features a cover by Jack Kirby and Dick Ayers). If you thought that was bad, Dr. Doom shows up for #25, which means the Fantastic Four cannot be far behind. The Wasp has to be rescued from Attuma in #26, which means the Avengers have to assemble underwater in #27. Giant-Man is back in #28, only now he is known as Goliath, because the Wasp has still not been rescued; now the Collector has her. They rescue the Wasp, but then Goliath collapses and we find out why in #29, although the Black Widow and the Swordsman cause problems (you new that sooner of later a guy with a sword should show up to fight a pair of guys with a shield and arrows). Finally, in issue #30 the Scarlet Witch wants to resign because she has not been helping the group lately, so Cap lets her and her brother go on vacation while the Avengers that are left finish up with the Black Widow and the Swordsman.
There are no classic Avengers tales here, but you have to admit things are never dull in any superhero team that has both Hawkeye and Quicksilver on it because they are the two biggest malcontents around (in the pre-Wolverine era anyhow). Hawkeye always thinks he would be a better leader than Captain America, and Quicksilver is always complaining about humans hating mutants (although he is sending back a healthy dose of animosity in the other direction all by himself). The Scarlet Witch is the problematic character because if Wanda is hitting on all cylinders then she should be able to win every fight by herself (Do you see Doctor Strange fighting with a team? No, not until the Defenders anyway, but that is decades away at this point). But I had to admit I like the brother and sister act of Pietro and Wanda since it sibling bickering is more interesting than lovers/spouses bickering (to wit, Hank and Janet), plus they have the whole need for redemption since they used to be members of Magneto's Brotherhood of Evil Mutants. I really consider these stories just marking time until the Vision shows up, because that is when this comic book finally comes into its own.
Product Description
Burned under the magnifying glass of overwhelming demand, Mighty Marvel has given in to give you our smallest hero in his big Masterworks debut! Lee and Kirbys second hero creation, scientist Hank Pym, invented an amazing growth serum and a cybernetic helmet making him the Astonishing Ant-Man! Teamed up with the winsome Wasp, the tiny twosome battle a sensational array of mini- and maxi-sized menaces from the Scarlet Beetle to the Black Knight! And if thats not enough to occupy a man of science, hes also defending the good ol U.S. of As secrets from the commie hordes! But weve got more than just miniature mayhem for you, True Believer. You can look forward to the birth of the biggest Avenger there ever wasGiant-Manso run, dont walk, and reserve your copy today! Collecting TALES TO ASTONISH #27, 35-52. The Masterworks series presents a high quality hardcover collecting outstanding work from Marvel's first years in the Silver Age. Five-color dustjacket, foil stamped cover.
Customer Reviews:
Hank and Jan get their Masterworks turn - FINALLY........2006-08-17
The Avengers was Marvel Comics' 60's version of DC's Justice Society of the 1940's. Both had memberships comprised of characters from each publisher's "anthology" comics. Marvel's superteam initially was composed of Ant-Man and the Wasp (from Tales to Astonish), Thor (from Journey Into Mystery) and Iron Man (who was featured in Tales of Suspense.) The quality of the earlier Ant Man stories was uneven (as it was for Thor and Iron Man) but the Jack Kirby and Don Heck artwork is (for lack of an adequate superlative) spectacular - two legendary illustrators at the peaks of their respective careers. The quality of the stories picks up when Stan Lee (Oscar Hammerstein to Kirby's Richard Rodgers as comicdom's greatest collaborative team) takes a more active hand in scripting the stories, and introduces a partner for Ant-Man - the Wonderful Wasp. The verbal interplay between the two insect adventurers recalls the sophistication and wit of William Powell and Myrna Loy in the "Thin Man" movie series. The series then really "hit it's stride" when Lee tweaked Ant-Man into Giant Man. Unfortunately (perhaps because the writing may have been a little TOO sophisticated for teenage boys) circulation for Giant Man's showcase, Tales to Astonish, always lagged a little behind the sales of the titles featuring his fellow Avengers, Iron Man and Thor, and Lee the editor made the decision to replace Giant-Man with Prince-Namor, the Sub Mariner, after a 36 issue run. (Frustrated Giant-Maniacs had to wait 11 months before the character resurfaced, once again in the pages of The Avengers.) Thor and Iron Man, as well as the Hulk, the Sub-Mariner and Captain America have all had their earliest adventures chronicled in Masterworks editions. Finally this important Silver Age icon joins them. (And - hey Marvel - how 'bout not making us have to wait much longer for Volume Two?)
Enjoy the Master of Many Sizes in his glory days!.......2006-07-29
Marvel's most neglected core Silver Age hero, Giant Man, just won't go away! These stories have a playfulness and a comic-book spirit missing in some of the more deadly serious split book adventures (like Cap and Iron Man in Tales of Suspense). Some of these tales have never been reprinted anywhere--so give Hank and Jan a try, won't you? They're a special part of the Marvel Universe!
The man in the ant hill!.......2006-06-01
This book reprints the Ant-Man/Giant-Man stories from Tales to Astonish #27 to #52, in a high quality hardcover book in color. Ant-Man was the unsung hero of the early Marvel Comics. He didn't sell as well as the other heroes, so a female partner, the Wasp, was added to his comic. That didn't help sales too much, so he was changed from Ant-Man to Giant-Man. He still didn't catch on, so he was replaced by the Sub-Mariner in Tales to Astonish #70. But these comics are still historically important, since Ant-Man and the Wasp were founding members of the Avengers. Quality wise, the comics aren't as good as, say, Spider-Man or the Fantastic Four, but they are still quite enjoyable. Fans of early Marvel Comics should dig it.
Average customer rating:
- PERHAPS THE WORDIEST OF THE ESSENTIALS
- The quintessence of hackwork
- The Avengers keep assembling but not much is happening
- It's bad at worst, above average at best, mediocre overall.
- Wandering haphazardly
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Essential Avengers, Vol. 2 (Marvel Essentials)
Stan Lee
Manufacturer: Marvel Comics
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Essential Fantastic Four, Vol. 2 (Marvel Essentials)
ASIN: 078510741X |
Customer Reviews:
PERHAPS THE WORDIEST OF THE ESSENTIALS.......2007-03-16
The Essential Avengers, Volume 2 is an apt but not quite equal followup to the first volume. If fractions could be allowed, I would give Volume 2 three-and-a-half stars.
There are some great issues in the mix, especially those where just as Hawkeye is trying to get his Russian girlfriend, the Black Widow, to be voted in as an official member of the superhero fighting team, she is working for Shield where a primary mission is to act as a double agent and give the impression that she is on the Communist side of the Cold War, thus pitting her at odds specifically with The Avengers and, in general, with the free world.
Among the best stories are indeed the ones that strongly center around the Black Widow. The rest of the volume, by and large, has recurring themes of trying to regain or maintain lost superpowers. For instance, for a few issues, Hank Pym is doomed to remain ten feet tall as a result of a freak accident in one of his encounters and thus cannot alternate between his Ant Man and Giant Man states without endangering his health. Also prevalent and quite problematic are the issues focusing upon Quicksilver, with his declining speed, and The Scarlet Witch, with her weakened spell-casting abilities; in these storylines, nothing substantial explains why they were losing their powers from the start or how, after retreating back to their homeland, they were able to fully recover them.
To their credit, the writers did try to pose challenges that would make the Avengers seem more human, that is, where they have to use more ingenuity to remain a team, especially with Thor and Iron Man having already exited the picture for personal reasons. I do think that they got a bit carried away, but I believe that the series of storylines was their way of making Captain America seem, to the mind's eye, like a more relative and relevant leader and member of the Avengers.
So far, this bound volume has the most verbage of any of the Essential volumes I have read. There are several frames per page and in quite a few of them are at least four dialogue or thought balloons. At best, this inclusion does try to get the reader to understand the thought processes and proposals of each hero and villain. At worst, however, are the syrupy statements, worse than the cornball, Scout's Honor phrases that Hawkeye accuses Captain America of overutilizing; long before you reach the last issue will you be sick of the "my darling" accolades between Janet van Dyne, aka The Wonderful Wasp, and Hank Pym, aka The Giant Man, Goliath, Ant Man, etc.
All in all, this is a good volume but one with quite a bit of filler material. And it will take you a while to get get through each issue.
The quintessence of hackwork.......2004-11-22
It's pretty clear that Stan Lee had no real love for this series and was just grinding it out. None of the characters are sharply drawn, except Hercules. The villains are usually recycled, their villainous plots rarely interesting, and way the stories are finally resolved almost never make sense.
Most of the dialogue, in fact, is designed to try to explain the implausibility of the images we're looking at. Good God, how many times does some bad guy observe Captain America at work and cry out, "His speed is unbelievable" or "His shield is uncanny - it's like a part of him"? It's a pathetic attempt to justify the fact that Cap, who is just an acrobat and hand-to-hand fighter, is allowed to prevail over giant robots, or laser canons, or dozens of men with machine guns, or whatever happens to be that issue's menace. Cap was always to weak to be a member of this team, so Lee tried to make up for it by making the more powerful characters heap praise on him. It doesn't work and it's annoying.
Lee and Heck really should have tried to come up with foes who were more appropriate opponents for the team.
They never could decide what to do with Hank Pym either, so every few issues his powers keep changing. Every time they change, he delivers some wooden speech explaining exactly what he can and can't do. It's like reading the description of a character in a role playing game.
The Avengers keep assembling but not much is happening.......2003-12-02
Volume 2 of "The Essential Avengers" marks the point where the pendulum started to center for the series and Roy Thomas and John Buscema took over from Stan Lee and Don Heck. The Avengers started out as a group of super strong super heroes including the Mighty Thor, the Incredible Hulk, and Iron Man. This proved to be rather problematic with coming up with super villains who could plausibly give this group a stand up fight. So then the group went in the completely opposite direction and came up with a skill quartet of Captain America, Hawkeye, Quicksilver and the Scarlet Witch. That lasted until issue #28 when Giant Man came back (now called Goliath), bringing along the Wasp. This not only gave the new Avengers some muscle, but with Henry Pym back in the fold the group had its requisite scientist for those times when brains can help brawn and the ability to throw a shield, shoot an arrow, run really fast, or cast hexes. Then for brawn without the brains, Hercules joins the group.
Collected in Volume 2 are "The Avengers" #25-46 and Annual #1, which brings together the "original" Avengers with the Avengers of "today," against the Mandarin, Power Man, the Living Laser, the Swordsman, the Enchantress, and the Executioner. Thomas took over as writer with issue #35 and Buscema takes over as the primary artist with issue #41. The artistic improvement is obvious, especially for someone such as myself who was never enamored of Don Heck's artwork, but the more significant changes are coming from the writing. It was Thomas who brought Hercules into the mix, which upped the ante on the bickering in the group. In other words, with Hawkeye and Pietro vying for the role of the biggest malcontent in the group, always having to be slapped back into place by Cap, Hercules provides a joyful sense of having no regard for teamwork. Consquently, even more so than the Fantastic Four, the Avengers are the group that has to stop fighting itself to be able to fight the super villains.
However, we are still a year or two away from getting to some of the classic issues of "The Avengers." The group starts off fighting Dr. Doom, weathers an attack by the army of Attuma, and Hawkeye falls for the Black Widow. Then there is another giant conspiracy with the Serpents, the attack of the Ultroids, and a visit from the Sub-Mariner. Of the three volumes of "The Essential Avengers" out to date, this is the weakest of the trio, without a really memorable story in the bunch. Again, part of the problem is that we are dealing with characters who were considered strong enough to only carry half a comic (e.g., Captain America with "Tales of Suspense"), if even that (e.g., Giant Man as the former Ant Man), and a couple of ex-members of the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants (Wanda and Pietro). It was really not until the Avengers created their own characters (i.e., the Vision) that it really made it up to the next level in the Marvel Universe.
It's bad at worst, above average at best, mediocre overall........2001-11-01
This 'Essential' really doesn't have any exciting material, really. It's all just pointless, meandering filler. The characterization is nonexistent and the plots are very run of the mill. It's only worth seeing and reading as a sort of time capsule. It's not very good, but it's one example of how comics were like in the sixties.
Wandering haphazardly.......2001-06-10
The second volume reprinting this comic series is a bit of a mixed bag - the stories are of a fairly variable quality, some great, some quite poor, and the overall impression is of something moving along with no real plan.
I guess what we have here is fundamental proof that Stan Lee, at the height of his powers, had his limits - while turning out great stories in Fantastic Four and Spider-Man, this title suffered. Stan even appeared to realise that as, part of the way through this volume, a new writer was brought in: Roy Thomas.
Roy has shown himself to be a great writer of this form, but his first few stories don't really show him at his best. I believe that this was amongst his first published work.
On the plus side, however, the characterisation improves vastly, with some of the cast becoming easily distinguishable by their dialogue alone, a vast improvement from the period where all the characters spoke the same.
Not a showcase of the greatest Avengers issues, but of a period of transition. Things were better before this, and also improve after.
Average customer rating:
- good story with an offbeat ending
- Good, but not THAT good.
- Fun Story In A Great Package
- Golden Pages
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Agents of Atlas (Marvel Comics, New Avengers)
Jeff Parker
Manufacturer: Marvel Comics
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
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ASIN: 0785127127 |
Book Description
The spy. The spaceman. The goddess. The robot. The Gorilla. During the late 1950s, the U.S. government allowed FBI Special Agent Jimmy Woo to forge a team of unlikely heroes. Together, they stormed the fortress of a criminal mastermind to rescue President Eisenhower - but the group disbanded soon after. Now, almost 50 years later, an unauthorized S.H.I.E.L.D. mission goes down in flames - and from the ashes arise forces from the Golden Age of Marvel! Collects Agents of Atlas #1-6.
Customer Reviews:
good story with an offbeat ending.......2007-07-13
Just as was done in the Starman series by James Robinson, they take 2nd tier heroes and make them interesting with much better writing. The extras showing the first appearance of the heroes was fun.
Good, but not THAT good........2007-07-09
Five stars? Are most comics these days just so bad that the average ones seem to shine in comparison? This is a solid read, but by the end, the continuity-crazy story becomes little more than a pitch for an ongoing series that will never happen. It is a nice package, however, with the inclusion of the original source material and plenty of DVD-style extras. But don't go trading in your copy of Watchmen just yet...
Fun Story In A Great Package.......2007-06-07
During the 1950's, Atlas Comics (a name that Martin Goodman's pre-Marvel comic book line was known as) published many comics primarily in the genres of Westerns, Romance, Monsters and Horror. A few attempts were made to produce Adventure-type comics with recurring and mostly forgettable characters, like Venus, the villainous Yellow Claw, Marvel Boy and a female version of the Sub-Mariner, named Namora.
In the late 70s - Marvel did a one-shot comic featuring these forgotten characters plus a faux 50's type hero (3D Man) as well as 2 characters from Horror/Monster stories, Gorilla Man and M-11, the human robot (I can't make this stuff up!). The team was presented as sorta of a secret Avengers-type team that was soon forgotten.
Forgotten by most, but not writer Jeff Parker. Parker somehow convinced Marvel to allow him to do a six issue mini-series more or less flowing out of the events depicted in this esoteric comic. The series was very aptly named Agents Of Atlas.
Typically, second-banana or obscure characters from the pre-modern era are revived for a modern audience by discarding much of the silly and off-beat aspects of their earlier incarnation. Parker, however, embraces their past and makes it work in a contemporary setting, without abandoning the simpler almost nonsensical 50s style. It's a smash up of genres, pulp action hero mixed with spies and intrigues, camp monsters and a liberal dose of cheesy science fiction. Unbelievably, it works. Its not a deep, angst-filled exploration of anything, but a decent fun story that entertains and entertains without insult.
Leonard Kirk's artwork is not ground-breaking, but is more than adequate to match the needs of Parker's story-telling. It is at once very contemporary, yet at the same time very evocative of the peculiar style of 50ish comics.
Marvel outdid itself on this package, giving it all the extras that reminds one of the 2-disc Special Edition DVD of a favorite movie.
Recommended.
Golden Pages.......2007-05-29
I LOVED the original mini-series and was thrilled to hear that the compilation would include hard-to-find golden age tales featuring the main characters. Marvel has a hot property on its hands with Agents of Atlas. Here's hoping this is just the start--both of the reprints and of the new adventures.
Average customer rating:
- Great Book...
- GREAT, DIVERSE TEAMUP FROM THE EARLY MARVEL YEARS
- THE START OF A LEGEND
- Interesting Example of Marvel Silver Age
- The Avengers assembled and do their first reassembling
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Essential Avengers, Vol. 1 (Marvel Essentials)
Stan Lee ,
Jack Kirby , and
Don Heck
Manufacturer: Marvel Comics
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
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ASIN: 0785118624 |
Book Description
There came a day, unlike any other, when Earth's Mightiest Heroes found themselves united against a common threat. On that day, the Avengers were born -- to fight the foes no single hero could withstand. Featuring the formation of the Avengers, the revival of Captain America, and enemies such as the Sub-Mariner and Kang the Conqueror! Collects Avengers #1-24.
Customer Reviews:
Great Book... .......2007-04-29
Great book. Great Price. But I would pay more if you printed them on color newsprint. I like the cheapness of black and white but I can't afford the color Masterworks. Please print these on color newsprint in the future. I'm sure you'd sell way more printing them in color. People love these comics and want to share them with their kids. Pick up this book if you have any interest in classic comics. The art and writing is fantastic... but can't you print them in color... it can be color newsprint... I'd pay more and buy way more.
GREAT, DIVERSE TEAMUP FROM THE EARLY MARVEL YEARS.......2007-03-13
The Essential Avengers, Volume I is a noteworthy classic consisting of many great works from the early to mid-1960's. Despite their flaws, the reprinted comics in this bound volume contain several origins and cornerstones in helping establish the Lee and Kirby brainchild known as the Marvel Universe.
Had I not read the very early Fantastic Four comics, I would have probably issued a resounding five stars. However, I saw slightly better teamwork with Mr. Fantastic and gang and sensed more creative energy in the science fiction realm with this other title. Nevertheless, the revival of Steve Rogers thus Captain America is a priceless story that only this Essential volume contains.
Though the early days of The Avengers needed a little fine-tuning, that deficiency, in itself, was a strength. With the resurgence of Captain America, a superhero from a day and age that was twenty years before the names Giant Man, The Wasp and Iron Man surfaced, the very first Avengers titles presented recurring clashes between the ideas and ideals of younger and older generations and showed how the initially opposing forces were ultimately united to bring about change for the underlying yet all-encompassing goal of a safer and better world.
From the first issue to the last, it is apparent that The Avengers, despite their shortcomings in establishing a stable team at the start, thanks in large part to the Hulk, had the common goals that made their formation very sensible. Though they did not have a shared fate among them a la The Fantastic Four, they were professional enough to look past their differences and use their skills and powers to complement one another.
All in all, where the Fantastic Four was perhaps the best homogeneous grouping in the Marvel Universe, The Avengers was arguably the best in the heterogeneous domain. Not even the Defenders, with their super powers and talent, could quite live up to the same billing.
THE START OF A LEGEND.......2005-11-16
Essential Avengers #1 collects the first 24 issues of The Avengers, Earth's Mightiest heroes. The early Avengers issues were really a struggle to find their way in the Silver Age. With the Hulk as an original member (for at least a couple of issues) we certainly had a rather dysfunctional team. That would change when #4 reintroduced Captain America to the world who has been found frozen solid yet kept young and alive by the Super Soldier serum. Still changes abounded in these early issues as And-Man would become Giant-Man instead perhaps in a move to replace the power void left by the Hulk's departure, although power certainly was in no short supply with Thor and Iron man around. Issue #9 would introduce Baron Zemo's creation Wonder Man which in my mind has always been highly overrated as being a Silver Age key issue.
The early villains were a mixed bag of forgettable types like The Phantom and The Lava Men. Still some classic Avenger's villains came out of the period. The Masters of Evil including Baron Zemo, Black Knight, Enchantress, Executioner, The Melter and Radioactive Man became one of the Avengers most frequent early foes appearing in issues #6-7, 9-10, and 15-16 during this run and numerous times since with different line-ups over the years. One of the Avengers greatest and most enduring foes Kang the Conqueror made his first of many appearances in issue #8 (not #23 as the reviewer below mentions). Big changes took place with Avengers #16 as all of the members of the team would leave except for Captain America to be replaced by the brother/sister mutant duo of The Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver as well as Hawkeye. This has always struck me as one of the more confusing moves in Marvel history. Thor had his own title, Iron Man and Giant Man shared titles in Tales of Suspense/Tales to Astonish respectively. But of this new team only Cap was co-starring in his own title (Tales of Suspense). Thus it's rather curious as to why Marvel would team Cap with three rather unknown characters who had formerly been villains. Not to mention the fact that this was hands down the weakest lineup in the team's forty plus year history...
The Swordsman would join the team in #19 but was in reality an underling of the Mandarin's sent to infiltrate the team. Issues 21 & 22 would feature the first appearance of the pre-Luke Cage Powerman and Kang would return for issues 23 & 24. For my money, Avengers #24 had got to be about the most common silver Age issue in history. Jack Kirby provides the art for the first 8 issues of the series and then Don Heck would take over, or as I liked to call him, Don Hack. Heck was one of those old-time artists who had kicked around the industry for years working for Harvey, Quality, and Atlas before Stan Lee brought him back to the new Marvel comics. Heck wasn't horrible but compared to the dynamic work of other silver age artists like Kirby, Ditko, Romita, and Buscema, his work paled in comparison.
I've been an Avengers fan forever but for me the title would really begin taking off and become the best comic around once it got to around issue #50. The Roy Thomas/John Buscema issues are some of my all-time favorites. Still, for any Avengers fan you have to start at the beginning and Essential Avengers #1 does have some good reading in it.
Reviewed by Tim Janson
Interesting Example of Marvel Silver Age.......2005-10-27
The first couple of years were a mixed bag for the Avengers, which took longer than some of Marvel's early series to have truly classic stories. The exception to this is, of course, Avenger #4 (introduction of Captain America), and, to a lesser extent Avengers #9 (introduction and death of Wonder Man) and #16 (the new line-up with Scarlet Witch, Quicksilver, and Hawkeye led by Captain America). It is the wonderful artwork in the first number of issues by Jack Kirby that makes this collection so enjoyable, before the lesser work of Don Heck starts bringing the standard down. This is not Stan Lee's best work but that is partly due to the nature of the original Avengers, whose main stories and plot developments were left to their own series, and his over-reliance on inter-team squabbling for the new team, which become particularly annoying when seen in a collection of this sort. The introduction of a new team was a brilliant idea that would only be properly capitalized on in later years by different writers. It is wonderful to see the team as it first was before the chaos that it since become. A wonderful look back.
The Avengers assembled and do their first reassembling.......2004-09-12
Volume 1 of "The Essential Avengers" represents the weakest stories in the history of Marvel's answer to DC's Justice League of America. Collected in this volume are the first twenty-four issues of "The Avengers," which overs up the first two lineups to answer the call, "Avengers Assemble!" These two lineups represent the strongest and weakest Avengers lineups. Originally we have Thor, the Hulk, Iron Man, Ant-Man, and the Wasp, with the Hulk being replaced by Captain America and Ant-Man deciding being Giant-Man is more interesting (In other words, you basically have all of the Marvel superheroes who were not Spider-Man or the Fantastic Four). The initial problem is coming up with somebody to fight that could actually provide some sort of challenge to that particular group. The three issues offer Loki, the Space Phantom, and Namor the Sub-Mariner. After finding and thawing out Captain America in issue #4, the Avengers go for multiple enemies such as the Lava Men and Baron Zemo and his Masters of Evil. But even then, it is really hard to pretend that these are even contests.
After a year Stan Lee retooled the Avengers. At the end of issue #16 all of the original members leave and Captain America becomes the leader of the new quartet made up of Hawkeye, Quicksilver and the Scarlet Witch. The radical change is twofold, because not only do the Avengers trade an over abundance of strength for skill (the original group had four membes stronger than the new group combined), but except for Captain America, none of the new Avengers have their own comic books (or time-share comic books in the case of Captain American and "Tales of Suspense"). With the new lineup emphasizing skill the villain can be super-strong (e.g., the Minotaur) or super-skilled (the Swordsman) and it works a lot better.
Jack Kirby does the pencils on the first eight issues of "The Avengers," and then Don Heck takes over (except for #16, done by Dick Ayers). Since I was rather unimpressed by the new lineup and the contest between Pietro and Hawkeye to see who could be the bigger malcontent, having Heck, my least favorite Marvel artist, draw "The Avengers," made it my least favorite Marvel title during this period. To be fair, the three issues inked by Wally Wood are the best Heck drawn comics I have seen, and the one inked by John Romita, Sr. is pretty good as well. There is only one really classic story in these first two-dozen issues, #4 "Captain America Joins...the Avengers," but #23 "Once an Avenger," is the first appearance of Kang, who tends to become important now and then down the road.
These stories are so weak in comparison to what comes afterwards that I picked up volumes 2 and 3 of the "Essential Avengers" before I picked up this first one. But you know how a hole like that in my collection of black & white comic book reprints is going to drive me crazy. Volume 4 is out and it is the first of the "Essential Avengers" volumes to be supersized (more issues and more Avenger fun). But all things considered "The Avengers" just never clicked the way "The Fantastic Four" and "The X-Men" did when it came to Marvel supergroups.
Customer Reviews:
The Original Avengers . . . In Color!!!.......2006-07-09
Yes, for anyone who has been looking between Essentials and Marvel Masterworks, and can't see why the Masterworks series is so much shorter and more expensive, that is the reason: it's in color and hardbacked, versus the Essentials, which are black and white and paperbacked. If you're into plot and characters' speeches, you probably should steer more toward the Essentials series. If you like admiring the artwork and action packed battles of the early Marvel universe, and don't mind forking over a little extra dough for it, Marvel Masterworks are probably for you. Action sequences are generally harder to see and interpret in black and white because everything sorta gets mixed together.
Anyway, these early Avengers issues have their pros and cons. Most of the time, a comic book series gets weirder and weirder as time goes on, and this is certainly the case with the Avengers. So, if you are a fan of good ole' superhero comics, where the original members are still together, each issue has a new villian, and the good guys always win, then these early issues are ideal. True, the narration of the villians and the avengers is somewhat cheesy at this point in time, but you can choose to see it as classic or outdated depending on how you like your superheroes.
The villians faced in these 10 issues are as follows:
1. Loki, brother of Thor
2. The Space Phantom
3. Namor The Sub-Mariner and The Hulk
4. Sub-Mariner and his Elite Guard
5. The Lava-Men and The Hulk
6. Zemo, The Melter, Radioactive Man, The (original) Black Knight
7. Zemo, The Executioner, The Enchantress
8. Kang The Conqueror
9. Zemo, The Executioner, The Enchantress, Wonder Man
10. Immortus, Zemo, The Executioner, The Enchantress
Issue #3 is, in my opinion, one of the Avengers' best ever. Hulk and Namor team up to take on the Avengers in one of the longest regular Avengers issues to date: 25 pages of action. This is also the first issue where Iron Man ditches the old suit that made him look like some cheesy 50's sci-fi robot, and gets in his traditional red and gold. The Fantastic Four, Spider-Man, and The X-Men all make brief cameos in this issue as well.
Other odds and ends:
-The artwork is not so sophisticated at this point in time, and backgrounds are even left out entirely sometimes.
-Rick Jones and the Teen Brigade can begin to annoy you.
-Iron Man's suit gets progressively better looking.
-Wasp doesn't seem to have the ability to make a non-flirtatious comment.
-Iron Man has a brief soliliquy about his secret identity/heart problem virtually every issue.
-The original Avengers' costumes are entirely composed of Red, White, Blue, and Yellow.
-Zemo's massive ego, incessant whining, and cowl may remind you of . . . Cobra Commander ?
The Avengers could beat up the Fantastic Four easily.......2005-12-21
The Avengers have the Hulk, Thor, and Iron Man, so there's no question that they could beat up the Fantastic Four. I think the Hulk could beat them all up by himself, and with the help of Thor and Iron Man the Fantastic Four would have no chance at all. Ant-Man and the Wasp are also in the Avengers, but they're both weak and spend all their time playing with bugs. The Hulk should just beat them both up at once and throw them to the moon or something and then replace them with somebody strong and tough like the Thing or Spider-Man! The Avengers could also beat up the X-Men, but who couldn't? Even Daredevil, who is blind and has hardly any powers, could beat up the X-Men!
Eminently forgettable.......2004-11-22
The hulk joins the circus to escape from the Avengers (this is issue 1), and Ant-man shows up and defeats him by having his ants quickly dig a tunnel that causes the ground under him to collapse. What?
Then captain america is discovered imprisoned in a block of ice, where he is worshipped by Eskimos. Eskimos don't worship frozen human beings. And why is he still frozen, even though they've hauled him out of the water onto solid land?
"Immortus" has the power to bring historical figures into the present to fight the heroes. Why would these figures agree to fight, once they were brought here?
Then - get this - most of the Avengers decide to 'leave the team' and hire new heroes to replace them. Considering how loose-knit the group is (most of them don't live at the Mansion; and they already have their own adventures apart from the Avengers in their own books), what does it mean to 'resign from the Avengers'? They were obviously a pretty loose-knit team to begin with, since Thor, Iron Man, and Giant-Man frequently undertook adventures in their own books without summoning the others. It's not like they all lived at the Avengers mansion.
So to replace themselves, who do they pick? A bunch of super-villains who have just recently declared they are going to become good guys. Why believe them? This issue (16) is the worst in this book.
See where it all began. Marvel's answer to the JLA.......2004-10-16
It has been said that this was Marvel's answer to the Justice League. It was much more than that. We got to see the new version of Captain America. The Sub-Mariner even comes back from his World War II roots.
We get to see much more of the weakness and failures of the most powerful super team of the 60's and 70's. To me it was like the Fantastic Four with more super powered problems. We get to see the personal glimses of their lives when they were not super beings. Cap had to deal with what it was like to be out of touch with the world while he was frozen. Iron Man had a bad heart because of the shrapnel he got back in the war.
While I don't like the black and white format it is the most affordable format. Until Marvel releases the first 500 issues on CD ROM like they will with Spider-Man this is the most economical way to see them.
Avengers Vol. 1 Masterworks is a must have!.......2004-08-20
Avengers Vol 1 Masterworks (Avengers#1-10) is a must have book! this amazing Hardcover features the orginal avengers team! Thor,Ant-man, the Hulk, and Ironman. later The Avengers get a new leader, Captain America! and then Namor, the Submariner is introduced! this book also has Loki the God of Evil, Enhantress, Kang the Conqueror, the Lava Men, and Wonderman! This Hardcover reprints Avengers 1-10 by Marvel comics originally published in 1963! Marvel comic greats,Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, were classic creators of this wonderful Marvel Comic book featuring Earth's Mightest Heroes, The Avengers! I Love this book! It is so good I am giving it five stars! Highest possible Recommendation! Make Mine Marvel!
Average customer rating:
- Avengers Assembled
- Love it
- Essential Avengers, Vol. 5
- "Relevance" comes to the Avengers!
- Let the call ring out, Essential Avengers Assemble!
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Essential Avengers, Vol. 5 (Marvel Essentials)
Roy Thomas ,
Harlan Ellison ,
Chris Claremont ,
Steve Englehart ,
Steve Gerber ,
Barry Windsor-Smith ,
Rich Buckler ,
John Buscema ,
George Tuska , and
Jim Starlin
Manufacturer: Marvel Comics
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
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ASIN: 0785120874 |
Book Description
From the Sentinels and the Savage Land Mutates to Loki, Dormammu and Thanos, the Avengers prove the universe's worst is no match for their best! Magnetic mayhem and nuclear nostalgia! Featuring Golden Age guest-stars, mythic menaces and more! Plus: the Avengers-Defenders War and Hawkeye vs. Daredevil! Includes rare Marvel work by best-selling author Harlan Ellison! Collects Avengers (Vol. 1) #98-119, Daredevil (Vol. 1) #99, Defenders (Vol. 1) #8-11.
Customer Reviews:
Avengers Assembled.......2007-03-09
What is the greatest superhero team of all time? It's debatable, but certainly it comes down to an elite few: The Justice League is the best team in the DC Universe, but Marvel has a number of groups to choose from. If it's a matter of brains, I would go with the Fantastic Four, but for sheer muscle, I would go with Earth's Mightiest Heroes, the Avengers. The Avengers are the Marvel equivalent of the Justice League, featuring the all-stars who aren't already affiliated with other teams.
Volume 5 of the Essential Avengers series covers issues 98 to 119 (with one Daredevil and four Defenders to make sure certain stories are complete). The core lineup in this period include most of the big names in the group: Hawkeye, Iron Man, Thor, Captain America, the Vision and the Scarlet Witch. The only "classic" Avengers who are missing are the Wasp and her husband (Ant Man/Yellowjacket/Giant Man/Goliath). Also appearing are the Black Panther, Black Knight, Hulk, Swordsman and Mantis.
Since these are the elite heroes, they rarely battle third-rate villains. In these issues, they face such heavyweights as Ares, the Grim Reaper, Magneto, Dormammu, Loki and the Collector. In between battles, the principal story arcs involve the three members who don't have their own magazines. For the Vision and Scarlet Witch, they are finally admitting their love for each other, with all the problems an android/human relationship entail. For Hawkeye - who has his own designs on Wanda rebuffed - this leads to alienation from the team and a brief membership with the Defenders.
While most of the stories are pretty good, some are a bit on the weak side. Surprisingly, this also includes a single-issue story by Harlan Ellison, who is normally one of the best short story writers around. But even if the quality is occasionally erratic, overall this is another fun volume that once again evokes a somewhat simpler era of comic book tales.
Love it.......2007-01-10
the avengers were always my favorite comic book, it is great to have all of the information in one location
Essential Avengers, Vol. 5 .......2006-08-01
What's not to like? Ton's of stories for almost nothing, The return of a founder(Hulk), Hawkeyes new uniform, Barry Smith, Neal Adams, Big John Buscema and more avengers than you can shake a stick at!! Buy this title already!!!
"Relevance" comes to the Avengers!.......2006-03-16
This is a very interesting volume of Avengers reprints because (besides all the great talent involved) it takes place in a unique period of history. In the late sixties and early seventies, something comics fans like to call "relevance" came to the funny books. The most famous example of this is DC's "Green Lantern/Green Arrow", but even Spider-Man has his own controversial (if not quite so well remembered) "non-code" drug-abuse story. And over in the Avengers, perhaps the best-conceived of all "relevance" plots unfolds: the relationship between the Vision and the Scarlet Witch. Steve Englehart does a great job in handling the public response to the relationship.
The story was written at a time when black/white romances were just beginning to be accepted publicly, and that's very important to keep in mind because the story exists as an allegorical treatment of that issue. One ingenius move by Englehart was to make his bigots an interracial mixture, proving once again that such things are potentially inside us all, like it or not. His suicide bombers were remarkably prophetic and now seem timely, except for the ridiculous "plunger" that Brown put on their heads to detonate. Who knows? Maybe Marvel had to "camp it up" just a bit to get by the comics code?
Other highlights include several issues by a very raw Barry Windsor-Smith (whose work is spectacular even if the Avengers don't all look quite like they're supposed to), the Avengers' first "war in Olympus" (must reading if you enjoy the "sequel" Roger Stern wrote in the eighties), the beginnings of Hawkeye's wanderlust (the guy ended up all over the Marvel Universe over the next 30 years, including multiple stints back with the Avengers themselves), and the legendary Avengers-Defenders war (with Sal Buscema in particular doing yeoman's work on the "Defenders" side).
Hopefully we'll have volume 6 before long. To be honest, reading original newsprint color comics is the best way to enjoy these stories, but if that isn't possible, I prefer this "essential" format to slick color reprints. Modern, extra-bright colors distract from the art sometimes, in my opinion. And I'm a fan of the art itself, which is accentuated without color. Without the "crutch" of color, great artists look greater and poor artists look poorer; it's a more honest experience for the reader. In this volume in particular, the lack of color makes it easier to ignore Hawkeye's silly "no pants" costume from the Windsor-Smith issues. Also Bob Brown is one of those loose artists whose work doesn't always take well to color (the colors on Mantis were always clumbsy). Black and white avoids all those problems! Sure, it's not for everyone maybe, but give it a chance!
Recommended!
Let the call ring out, Essential Avengers Assemble!.......2006-03-09
Two summers ago, I had an absolutely wonderful time reading the Essential Avengers 4. Not only was the book the largest Essential at the time (at 640 big pages!), but it had utterly stellar tales like the duel with Kang and the Grandmaster, the introduction of Zodiac, the origin of the Black Panther, and (you probably knew I was getting to this) the Kree-Skrull War, a mix of relationship-forging drama, political commentary, and wall-to-wall action that has perhaps never been surpassed in the annals of the sequential art medium. After putting it down and breathing a few sighs of satisfaction, one of my first thoughts was that there would be little reason to hurry in printing a fifth volume. Heck, Marvel could just stop the Essential Avengers program right then and there, because you just couldn't ask for a more appropriate conclusion than the old K-SW.
Shows how much I know.
It looks like the release of the Ultimate Avengers animated movie as well as the alleged twenty-four volume order for new Essentials this year conspired to put the Essential Avengers 5 on my shelf. So that's why I'm here today to roll out the welcome wagon for Earth's Mightiest Heroes.
Our favorite men and women in spandex are brought together and torn apart by several factors between #'s 98 and 119. First up, Earth and Olympus fall under siege by Ares (the God of War, not the ram-headed guy from Zodiac) and it takes the combined forces of every single person who was ever called an Avenger to stop him (accounted in issue #100, naturally). The tumultuous love affair between the android Vision and the Scarlet Witch begins here, and Vizh is quickly tempted to end it by an attractive offer of normalcy made by his brother, the Grim Reaper (I mean he's not really his brother, he's ... all you Marvelites know what I mean, right?). Even without the Vision's compliance, the Reaper is still poised to slay the Avengers with some help from his new partner, the Space Phantom (whose personal motto might be "If the Tinkerer can return after a 100+ issue hiatus, so can I). In the midst of this battle, Captain America stumbles across a bizarre mystery that stems from his "death" back in issue #113 of his own mag (which is a great excuse to dust of your copy of Essential CA 2). Oh, I suppose I should also mention that the incomparable Avengers-Defenders War is here as well (As I articulated in my Essential Defenders review, `nuff said!). Finally, our heroes are once again threatened to be sealed in plastic cases and placed on the mantle of the Collector (he just can't settle for comics and action figures like the rest of us).
This book obviously speaks to Avengers fans first, but fellow X-fans can gleam a lot of enjoyment out of here as well. At this point in Marvel history, the Uncanny X-Men series was in the cooler. Thus, when the Sentinels return and launch their latest haywire we-must-protect-the-human-race-by-destroying-it plan, it's up to the Avengers to mount the offense. Our assemblers also face a skirmish with the Savage Land Mutates, the results of one of Magneto's stranger pet projects, and then after that (you'll never guess) ol' Mags himself rears his head. Mr. Lehnsherr takes the X-Men, Wanda, Cap, and Iron Man prisoner (I always assumed a fight between Magneto and Iron Man would end very quickly) and it's up to the rest of the team, along with a timely assist from Daredevil and the Black Widow, to affect a rescue. I could imagine that, if the Marvel brass had any less faith in their floundering X-Men franchise, this story would have been their best opportunity to have written off Xavier and his kids for good. Finally, while reading the story of the suicide-bombing bigots who were out to destroy the unnatural Vision-Scarlet Witch union, I must say I found it rather amusing that they bore no malice towards Wanda because she was "still a person". I guess the most horribly prejudiced demagogues of the world would have to wait until Claremont arrived before they realized that they hated mutants too.
There are certainly some impressive plateaus in this collection, but also some very, very deep pits. First up, celebrated sci-fi author Harlan Ellison, who gave us one of the Hulk's best stories ever in the last Avengers volume, drops a serious bomb here with a yarn about how the Watcher, Mr. Non-Interference, gives some random accountant ungodly powers and sends him to kill five innocent people ultimately for no reason. Oh well, even Ray Bradbury had that abysmal Twilight Zone episode about the robot nanny. Then some nine-foot tall billionaire shows up with a sinister scheme to send the state of California plunging into the Pacific just so this sunken ship that he wants to salvage will end up in international waters (Couldn't he have just dispatched a sub while the Coast Guard wasn't looking? Or would we not have had a story that month if he did?). Another new villain is the Lion God, who's a, um ... god of lions? His second appearance results in the Swordsman and Mantis joining the team, which is good, but their we're-allies-of-the-Lion-God-no-wait-now-we're-not storyline is, to put it mildly, bewildering. By the way, in one issue, a small band of inbred Neanderthals (who have, in their possession, rocks, gas, a horse-sized insect, and a big dark cave in which to hide) manage to bring the whole team to their knees (Oh lordy, lordy, lordy). Lastly, Hawkeye finally leaves his Goliath phase (Yay!) only to start wearing a Renaissance Festival-esque outfit complete with headband (Boo!).
I was lingering on the negative side for a while, but for all its faults, I feel that the good parts outweigh the bad. It's worth noting that the creative force behind the series changed at this time from Roy Thomas to then-newcomer Steve Englehart. Steve gave us a great number of memorable stories, although it took him a little while to find his footing. Overall, the early X-Men revival efforts and the Avengers-Defenders War (not to mention the sheer difficulty in following up the Kree-Skrull War) push this book into the upper echelons of Essentials in my opinion. So, if you're interested in seeing Thor, Iron Man, Vision, Hawkeye, the Black Panther, and the Scarlet Witch (largely without her brother as a chaperone) in action, then give Volume #5 a gander.
[Final Note: I just remembered this great early scene in which a mugger exclaims that he doesn't mind if his intended victim screams for help because "nobody's gonna come". Hey, buddy! You're in Manhattan! In the Marvel Universe! If you try to jaywalk, there'll be a line forming behind you of supers ready to pummel you into the ground. Do you ever wonder why more criminals don't relocate to a more under-represented city like Seattle or St. Louis? It would seem like a good career move to me.]
Book Description
Avengers Assemble. The second supplement to the Marvel Universe Role-Playing Guide delivers Earth's Mightiest Heroes in all their glory... and most of their lineups. You'll find dozens of new super hero and super-villain profiles, as well as a few surprises, including Character Variants for the Hulk, Thor, Giant-Man, and Iron Man. Add to your campaign with Aliens, demi-gods, super-villains, humanoids, androids and robots. Dive into detailed maps of the Avengers' Mansion and technical plans for the Quinjet. Explore new settings for your adventures, from Wakanda to Asgard. Plus a brand new Marvel Universe Adventure, complete with maps. · Marvel Universe Roleplaying Game Guide required to play
Customer Reviews:
A great addition!.......2004-05-21
This book is filled with more information about the Hulk and the Avengers then I could find on any online source. It has a lot of new profiles for heroes and villains encountered by both the Avengers and the Hulk, which naturally leads to a few villains and heroes that have encountered other Marvel characters like Scorpion and Shocker from Spiderman. It's also got a lot of new actions, options, modifiers, and a few advantages, disadvantages, and challenges. It's as big an upgrade to the game as the guide to the X-men was if not bigger. The only thing I thought I would get that I didn't was a better description of Asguard and other magical realms. Oh well, aside from that, it's a great upgrade.
If you're interested in the Avengers, find the old TSR books.......2004-03-29
Once again the people in charge of Marvel roleplaying books have made a blunder. Their inability to even give the complete Avengers roster shocked me! I intended to buy this book til I thumbed through it, and couldn't find updated stats for Hank Pym. If you're at all interested in Marvel roleplaying games go find TSR's old MSH system, while a bit old and out of date both Avengers Assembled and Avengers Coast to Coast are deeper and more worthwile!
Battle Ready!.......2004-02-14
The Avengers. Earth's Mightiest Heroes. With this, the third supplement from Marvel entertainment and Q.E.D. Games, you can take on the role of many Avengers. It's got a great list of stats fols. Great supplement for the best Super Heroes RPG on the market. If you have reservations, don't... buy this game.
Book Description
The Avengers continues to be one of the hottest selling titles in the comics industry. In thanks, we`ve given readers the opportunity to catch up on more of the classic stories that made them legends in The Essential Avengers Volume 3, with over two years worth of some of the greatest comic stories ever told at one of the best values ever!
See the Avengers fight their greatest adversaries: the Grim Reaper, Ultron and the new Masters of Evil! Thrill to the exploits of Earth`s Mightiest Heroes as they welcome the Black Knight, Yellowjacket and the Vision into their midst! Each Essential volume provides a hefty 500 page-plus page count at an affordable price!
Customer Reviews:
less than just Black + White.......2007-02-09
Yes they're super cheap, yes you get a ton of issues, and with the right volume a ton of classics. But all of these Essentials were originally drawn by the artist with a mind towards color. And these aren't just color comics muted to shades of gray. No. All color is removed. A bright yellow explosion: white. A dark blue, almost black background: white. One of the originals books I own, Avengers #61, is rendered unreadable by this process. Essential? Hardly. But I'll look at the glass as half full; I've just bought the worlds best coloring book.
Heroes and villains in the good old days.......2006-04-14
In the 1960s, there were three great Marvel superhero teams. The Fantastic Four were united primarily by family ties and the X-Men were technically classmates. The Avengers, however, were the all-stars, the equivalent to D.C.'s Justice League. In Volume 3 of the Essential Avengers, some of the "classic" Avengers may only be minimally present (Thor, Iron Man, Captain America), but that doesn't stop the team from being still the superhero elite.
Although the roster varies throughout the volume, the principal characters are Goliath, the Wasp, the Black Panther and Hawkeye. The Vision joins the group around midway into this book. Among the special things that happen in this volume are the first appearance of Ultron (who would wind up being one of the all-time great Avengers foes), the wedding of Hank Pym to Janet Van Dyne, the first real signs of Hank's fragile personality (when he becomes Yellowjacket), and Hawkeye's transformation to a new Giant-Man.
While not every story in here is a gem (either in writing or art), there is plenty in here that is fun. Nowadays, superhero comics are often much more sophisticated with more "human" characters; while this can be good, it is also nice to read comics that take place in a simpler universe of good vs. evil with storylines that are resolved in a couple of issues.
The Avengers become interesting once the Vision joins them.......2003-12-17
Volume 3 of "The Essential Avengers" is where the Marvel superhero group finally starts to grow up. Part of the reason is because John Buscema became the resident artist (through issue #62), marking the first time that the artwork was a strong selling point, but the more important reason was that the group finally came up with an original group member with the Vision. At that point the group really crystalized for me, so scripter Roy Thomas gets a big part of the credit.
This trade paperback collects issues #47-68 of "The Avengers," along with Annual #2. I first seriously started reading "The Avengers" with issue #53, which is where the Avengers battled the X-Men, who were my favorite Marvel group in the Sixties. At that point the lineup for the Avengers had, once again, changed. At that point it was Golaith, the Wasp, Hawkeye, and the Black Panther. Getting rid of Hercules and the mutant tag team of Quicksilver and the Scarlet Witch was a good move, although I can never really think of it as the Avengers unless Captain America is in charge (he bolts in the first issue here). But I never liked Hawkeye and thought making him the new Giant-Man and making Goliath into Yellowjacket, was ill-advised. The only reason I kept reading the book was because of the Vision, so that even when other Marvel superheroes who were incapable of sustaining their own books (e.g., the Black Knight) joined up it was the android that held my attention. .
The Vision first popped up in issue #57, created by Ultron-5 to defeat the Avengers. Instead, he became their most interesting member, although it would be a while before the whole backstory on his creation came to be. At this point the idea that he was "an android...with the amnesiac brain patterns of a murdered man," Simon Williams a.k.a. Wonder Man, was enough. On top of that I liked the way Buscema drew the Vision with his eyes always completely shadowed. Buscema leaves the book during these issues, but he was replaced by Gene Colan, always a favorite, and then Barry Smith came in for a couple of issues drawn in the distinctive style that was still evolving and about to explode when he and Thomas started "Conan the Barbarian."
The best one so far.......2002-03-29
Easily the best volume of the three Avengers Essentials to date, we now see Rascally Roy Thomas at the scripting helm, along with Awesome John Buscema doing most of the art chores. Say no more! This duo is one of the greatest in comics lore... and even demi-gods Barry [Windsor] Smith and Gene Colan show up to help out on art.
This collection contains the spectacular introduction of the Vision, the Avengers vs. the (old) X-Men, several battles with arch-foe Ultron, and the classic Avengers vs. Avengers thanks to the machinations of the time-spanning Scarlet Centurion. I'd give this compilation five stars, but the several issues featuring Hercules and the battles in god-ville are just plain dull. (Avengers #50 featured this crap? YEESH.) But don't let these few pages spoil the rest of the great fun.
Moving towards greatness.......2001-07-16
This third volume collecting the earlier issues of the Avengers sees the title emerging from the somewhat listless period on the last volume. Roy Thomas is now the writer, and is plainly undertaking the work with enthusiasm and a desire to create something very much worth reading.
This volume sees the membership of the team in flux, with characters being added and removed, and some not even officially joining the team. The stories themselves see members departing for personal reasons, and older members, who are technically off the team, dropping by.
It also sees the introduction of some elements that continue to have impact today: the first two conflicts with Ultron, the introduction of the Vision, Hank Pym taking up the identity of Yellowjacket, the Scarlet Centurion, the conflicts of loyalty that beset the Scarlet Witch and, in particular, Quicksilver...
Art-wise, we are generally in the safe and capable hands of John Buscema, although there are a couple of issues illustrated by Barry (Windsor) Smith, who will soon go on to greater things... Also present are Don Heck, Gene Colan and Sal Buscema.
The stories still show the elements of a relatively new writer working out what works and what doesn't in this format. However, they become increasingly self-assured towards the end, and Volume 4, when it is released, will show a far more mature writer...
Books:
- Fishing for Dummies
- Flotsam (Caldecott Medal Book)
- Forge of the Mind Slayers: The Blade of the Flame, Book 2 (The Blade of the Flame)
- Franny K. Stein's Crate of Danger (Boxed Set): Lunch Walks Among Us; Attack of the 50-Ft. Cupid; The Invisible Fran; The Fran That Time Forgot (Franny K. Stein, Mad Scientist)
- Freaks!: How to Draw Fantastic Fantasy Creatures (Fantastic Fantasy Comics)
- From Hard Knocks to Hot Stocks: How I Made a Fortune Through Smart Investing and How You Can Too
- Green Iguana: The Ultimate Owner's Manual
- Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (Book 7) (Deluxe Edition)
- History: Fiction or Science? (Chronology, No. 1)
- History: Fiction or Science? (Chronology, No. 1)
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Essential Fantastic Four, Vol. 4 (Marvel Essentials)
