THE TOP 5 GREATEST BATTLES OF THE AVENGERS

THE TOP 5 GREATEST BATTLES OF

THE AVENGERS

BY

John "THE MEGO STRETCH HULK" Cimino

THE AVENGERS

Created by: Stan Lee and Jack Kirby  First Appearance: THE AVENGERS #1 (1964)

When you speak of Earth's Mightiest Heroes, you speak of The Avengers! Originally consisting of Thor, Iron Man, Wasp, Ant-Man and the Hulk, the team didn't get its unity and heart and soul until Captain America joined the group in The Avengers #4 (1964). Since then an ever evolving rotating roster and sub-teams have become the hallmark. While Cap, Iron Man and Thor have become the highest-esteemed and most valuable team members, no matter who is within its ranks, the team lives by the credo; "And there came a day, a day unlike any other, when Earth's Mightest heroes found themselves untied against a common threat! On that day, the Avengers were born, to fight the foes no single superhero can withstand." And they are lead forth by the battle cry of "Avengers Assemble!"

Today, the Avengers are bigger and badder than ever due to blockbuster movies and best-selling merchandise everywhere you look. But long before the mass-media had given them widespread acceptance, the Avengers have been fighting the biggest and most dangerous battles that the Marvel Universe had to offer. And that's something they will continue to do despite their world-wide claims to fame. The Avengers are simply the last line of defense for planet Earth! Even intergalactic races, war-mongers and cosmic beings throughout the universe respect and fear them.

As "Greatest Battles" go, none are bigger or have more at stake than the ones that the Avengers are usually in. No matter what major event, crossover, saga, or all-powerful villain comes on the scene to threaten the Marvel Universe (and your limited comic book money), you can bet that the Avengers will be somewhere in the thick of it fighting the good fight with gusto and glory. Simply put; if it's a big-deal, then step back and watch the Avengers handle the situation as only they can!

The 5 battles I listed here are those such events and situations that changed the face of comics and kept us coming back for more. Enjoy the greatness of superhero action at its finest because that's what the Avengers are all about...

5.) THE AVENGERS #19 - 22 (1999)

 

Writer: Kurt Busiek  Artists: George Perez and Al Vey

"ULTRON UNLIMITED"

Made from pure Adamantium, the insane, robotic organism known as Ultron is ready for world domination. He recreates all of the previous Ultrons as well as hundreds of new bodies, many whom are made of secondary Adamantium. With this unstoppable army programmed to do his bidding, they completely obliterate the Eastern European nation of Slorenia. When the Avengers arrive on the scene, they battle through legions of Ultron's army and are almost completely overwhelmed. Thor, Captain America, Iron Man, Black Panther and Firestar manage to press on, finally getting to Ultron himself. As the battle rages, the Avengers cannot manage to hurt their impregnable foe. But once they are given Vibranium when Jutsice shows up, they are finally able to hurt and defeat Ultron.

4.) JLA/AVENGERS #1 - 4 (2003/2004)  

Writer: Kurt Busiek  Artist: George Perez

"THE JLA MEET THE AVENGERS"

Krona, the Maltusian from the DC Universe travels to the Marvel Universe to seek the truth of creation. There he meets the Grandmaster, who proposes they test their universes against one another. Should Krona win, the Grandmaster will lead him to Galactus, the only being in the Marvel Universe to witness the creation of existence. Should Krona lose, he is to spare the Marvel Universe from entropic destruction. Krona accepts and picks the Avengers to represent him as the Grandmaster picks the Justice League of America to represent him. The JLA and Avengers eventually encounter each other in a fanboy's dream slugfest of the ages. They each have to fight for the twelve artifacts of power and the winner is the team who collects the most of them. Various teams of Leaguers and Avengers travel across the two universes and battle it out to retrieve them. In the end, both teams meet up in the Savage Land (dead-even in artifacts collected) for an all out slugfest for the Cosmic Cube. After a battle royal of epic proportions, the JLA wins when Captain America tells the Avengers to stand down as he and Batman discovered that they are all just pawns in a big cosmic game. Losing in the outcome, Krona refuses to keep his end of the bargain, summons Galactus and attempts to force the knowledge out of the World-Devourer. Galactus is saved by the remaining strength of the Grandmaster, who manages to merge the two universes into a single reality. Of course this makes the two teams join together and eventually avert the crisis as every single hero who was ever a member of both the JLA and Avengers defeat Krona and restore reality.

3.) THE AVENGERS #270 - 274, THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #283, CAPTAIN AMERICA #324, THE WEST COAST AVENGERS #16, and THE AVENGERS #275 - 277 (1986/1987)

Writers: Roger Stern, Tom DeFalco, Mark Gruenwald and Steve Englehart  Artists: John Buscema, Ron Frenz, Paul Neary, Al Milgrom, Tom Palmer, Vince Colletta, Joe Sinnott and Bob Layton

"UNDER SIEGE"

Baron Helmut Zemo bands together the largest Masters of Evil formation ever to destroy Captain America once and for all. His plan is so great that it becomes one of the Avengers' darkest hour in their entire history. The Masters of Evil will ambush the team in Avengers mansion, take them hostage and totally abuse them (especially on a personal level). They beat up Jarvis the butler (this scene made me afraid of Mr. Hyde as a kid), and nearly kill Hercules, putting him in a coma. This leads other less powerful Avengers to come to the forefront and battle on while desperately trying to gather up more forces. Despite how foolproof Baron Zemo's plan had been, you can never count out Earth's Mightest Heroes! They manage to regroup stronger than ever and overcome the insurmountable odds to defeat the Masters of Evil with Cap and Zemo slugging in out in the final confrontation.

2.) THE MIGHTY THOR ANNUAL #6, THE AVENGERS # 167, 168, 170 - 177 (1977/1978)

 

Writers: Jim Shooter, David  Michelinie, Roger Stern and Len Wein  Artists: Sal Buscema, David Wenzel, Pablos Marcos, Win Mortimer, Bob McLeod, Joe Rubinstein, Dan Green, Rick Bryant, Klaus Janson, Joe Sinnott and Ricardo Villamonte

"THE KORVAC SAGA"

The cyborg Michael Korvac travels back in time and manages to absorb a portion of the Power Cosmic from Galactus. From this, Korvac now becomes a near omnipotent being who wants to transform the Earth into a utopia. Misinterpreting his intentions, the Avengers (teaming with the Guardians of the Galaxy) are sent into action and into a deadly battle with Korvac and his mate, Carina (who is the daughter of the Cosmic Elder, the Collector). This battle proves to be one of the toughest the Avengers will ever engage in with many team members going down in brutal fashion. In the end, it's Korvac who commits suicide because he sensed that his beloved Carina was beginning to doubt his intentions. This angers her as she attacks the surviving heroes, until she is finally slain by Thor thus ending the battle. The entire fight was being watched by Moondragon, who realizes that Korvac only wanted to help mankind, with his dying act being to restore the life of the fallen Avengers and Guardians of the Galaxy.

1.) THE AVENGERS #89 - 97 (1971/1972) 

Writer: Roy Thomas  Artists: Sal Buscema, Neal Adams, John Buscema, Sam Grainger, George Roussos, TomPalmer, and Alan Weiss

"THE KREE-SKRULL WAR"

The Avengers greatest battle is also their most cosmically cataclysmic! Never before was a saga played out this grand in scope with such an enormous cast of characters and with so much hanging in the balance. When both the Kree and the Skrull extraterrestrial races attempt to establish ports on Earth in order to gain a tactical advantage over the other in their long-running intergalactic conflict, the Avengers stand before them. As the defenders of humanity, they interject by taking to the stars and attempt to put an end to the war and bring peace to the races. The epic is widely considered the highlight of its era and has been a major influence in all the sweeping story arcs that have come thereafter. Only in the Avengers could anything be this big and only the Avengers are big enough to stop it.

Agree? Disagree? Let's hear it fanboys!

Check out other "THE TOP 5 GREATEST BATTLES OF..." here:

Captain Marvel (SHAZAM!)

http://hero-envy.blogspot.com/2012/07/the-top-5-greatest-battles-of-captain.html

Spider-man

http://hero-envy.blogspot.com/2012/08/the-top-5-greatest-battles-of-spider-man.html

Wolverine

http://hero-envy.blogspot.com/2012/08/the-top-5-greatest-battles-of-wolverine.html

The Sub-Mariner

http://hero-envy.blogspot.com/2012/09/the-top-5-greatest-battles-of-sub.html

Batman

http://hero-envy.blogspot.com/2012/09/the-top-5-greatest-battles-of-batman_21.html

The Thing

http://hero-envy.blogspot.com/2012/11/the-top-5-greatest-battles-of-thing.html

Superman

http://hero-envy.blogspot.com/2012/12/the-top-5-greatest-battles-of-superman.html

Thor

http://hero-envy.blogspot.com/2013/03/the-top-5-greatest-battles-of-thor.html

Iron Man
http://hero-envy.blogspot.com/2013/05/the-top-5-greatest-battles-of-iron-man.html

Juggernaut
  http://hero-envy.blogspot.com/2013/12/the-top-5-greatest-battles-of-juggernaut.html

Hyperion

http://hero-envy.blogspot.com/2016/08/the-top-5-greatest-battles-of-hyperion.html 

Wonder Woman
http://hero-envy.blogspot.com/2016/10/the-top-5-greatest-battles-of-wonder.html

John Cimino

John Cimino is a Silver and Bronze Age comic, cartoon and memorabilia expert that runs a business called "Saturday Morning Collectibles." He buys, sells, appraises and gives seminars on everything pop culture, so if you got something special, let him know about it. He contributes articles to ALTER EGO, RETROFAN, BACK ISSUE and THE JACK KIRBY COLLECTOR from TwoMorrows Publishing, runs the Roy Thomas Appreciation Board on Facebook and has appeared on the AMC reality show Comic Book Men. He also represents some of comicdoms biggest stars and brings them to a Comic Con near you. John likes to think he's the real Captain Marvel, people just don't have the heart to tell him he's just an obsessed fanboy that loves to play superheroes with his daughter Bryn. Contact him at johnstretch@live.com or follow him on Instagram at megostretchhulk.

FANTASTIC FOUR ANNUAL #2 (1964)

OUT OF THE BACK ISSUE BIN

Views and Reviews of Comic Books from the Past

By

John "THE MEGO STRETCH HULK" Cimino

FANTASTIC FOUR ANNUAL #2 (1964)

 Written by: Stan Lee

Drawn by: Jack Kirby

Inked by: Chic Stone

This is a king-size issue dedicated to the mighty, majestic, master of Marvel malice himself; Dr. Doom! Yes, this second annual for The Fantastic Four is absolutely packed with "72 BIG PAGES" of superhero goodness. The first part starts off with the bread and butter of the issue, a full-blown origin story of Doctor Doom told for the first time. Then a reprint of Doom's debut in Fantastic Four #5 follows, along with 11 pages of pin-ups. Ending everything off is a brand new Fantastic Four/Dr. Doom story - which means that this "double length epic" is chock full of action and adventure as only Stan Lee, Jack Kirby and the Mighty Marvel Bullpen can bring you. How could any red-blooded kid resist such a magnificent issue during the summer of 1964??

Simply put: They couldn't!!

This 12 page story is what makes this comic so memorable. First off, the title itself is enough to get my mouth to start salivating. Doom's origin story is one of my all time favorites for a fictional character. It has a very Gothic-type-fairy-tale quality to it, beginning when he was but a wee young lad, the son of a gypsy healer in the Bavarian Alps. When the local baron's wife falls deathly ill, he has his men take the older Von Doom by force, demanding that he save her with his healing arts (or else). Von Doom is unable to do so, however - she's simply too far gone - and he is thus hounded through the woods, doing whatever he can to protect his boy, and eventually dying from the strain. The young Victor Von Doom swears vengeance (but of course) so it progresses rather nicely when he discovers that his dead mother had been a sorceress. He then finds a strange chest containing all manner of magical artifacts and paraphernalia. Using these magics and his own mechanical genius, he soon begins a campaign of swindling the upper class through a variety of tricks and potions, nobly giving all his ill-gotten gains to the poor. These such actions gave the character such depth that many might find it incredible that Marvel's greatest villain of all first began as a strange sort of Robin Hood, waging class warfare against the aristocracy!

Before long, Doom's numerous inventions bring him to the American attentions of State University, who offer him a scholarship on the spot. There he meets (and instantly dislikes) a young Reed Richards, who instead becomes fast friends with football star Ben Grimm. One day, Reed stops in at Doom's dorm room while he's out, and reads over Doom's notes about his newest invention, having to do with "matter transmutation" and "dimension warps" (kid's got some big ideas). When Doom appears at the door, Reed tries to point out a few mathematical errors, but the arrogant Doom banishes Reed from his room, and goes on to try the experiment anyway. The machine explodes, disfiguring Doom's face and causing his expulsion. Subsequently turning his back on the world, he goes into seclusion, tracking down and then training with a hidden group of secret Tibetan monks. Months later they address Doom as master and he has them create an ominous suit of armor... now fully garbed, he is ready to finally take his leave and return to the world as Doctor Doom!

 

There have been a few theories regarding the initial accident, and the status of Von Doom's face. Doom is said to be horribly scarred in the explosion, which is why he had to go into hiding (as Stan Lee's dialogue describes). However, Jack Kirby would later say that the explosion only gave him a slight scar. And Doom being possibly the most vain character in the Marvel Universe, witnessing this imperfection declared himself unfit to be seen by the world. Later Doom instructs the monks to set the iron mask upon his face while it was still red-hot (notice the steam from the mask while it was being placed on his face in the picture above) and disfiguring it even further. This makes the story much more compelling in my eyes, while making Doom's horribly scared face the result of his ego and pride.

With another epic title, the main story opens with the Thing losing control of the Fantasti-car and he is forced to bring the rest of the Fantastic Four in for a rough landing on the Manhattan streets. As they crash into a car, the owner jumps out and starts laying into the Thing, yelling about damages and remuneration and the like. Up walks another man, however, introducing himself as an art dealer and offering to buy it from the driver on the spot. As soon as the cash trades hands, he asks the Thing to bust up the auto even more, claiming he'll sell it as an original "Clobber Creation!" (Who says this isn't the World's Greatest Comic Magazine)

Meanwhile Doctor Doom (who was last seen drifting off into deep space at the end of Fantastic Four #23) is picked up by the time-traveling pharaoh, Rama-Tut. At first, Rama-Tut claims that Doctor Doom is clearly his ancestor who created the time machine which the Pharaoh's own time traveling sphinx was based on. But then they get to wondering if the two of them might actually be the same man, at different points in his life: Does Doom eventually travel to the 25th century and start calling himself Rama-Tut? Or, alternately, will the Pharaoh take a visit to the past and become the gypsy who would one day call himself Doctor Doom? It's really a very bizarre conversation. The time logic gets even weirder, in fact. Rama-Tut suggests that the two of them team up to take down the FF, which has now defeated them both, but Doom says that they can't attack together - because if they're the same person, and the younger version is slain, the older version will die too. So Rama-Tut instead just drops Doom back on Earth, to pursue their vendetta on his own, and goes to live his conquering life back in the 25th century. (Yeah, I don't get it either but hey, it's all about the fantasy... right? ... Right??)

As the plot gets underway, our heroes receive an invitation to a gala at the Latverian embassy, honoring them with a scientific fellowship A few panels later we see them at the event, where Sue comments, "Reed, I'm rusty on my current events! Who is the actual ruler of Latveria?" Well that question will be answered later as the Fantastic Four's drinks are drugged and they quickly hallucinate and turn on each other before discovering Doom as the culprit.

Knowing Doom's grudge is mainly with him, Mr. Fantastic comes face-to-face with his arch-nemesis, has a toast to their upcoming battle (which is a great scene) and whips out a crazy device he invented called: The Encephalo-Gun (nice Stan Lee name and Jack Kirby design right there)! This device, pits both of the combatants' willpower against each other, and whoever loses... is sent away to a timeless limbo forevermore (yup, you read that right). In what could be the mind vs mind battle of the century readers are subsequently shocked to see Doctor Doom actually win, gloat over Reed's disappearing form, and then walk away satisfied. Sue is quite confused at Doom's actions, and asks Reed for an explanation - now seen casually leaning against the door - who points out that the gentleman's toast which Reed offered Doom before their duel was spiked with the same drug that had been used against them earlier that night, causing Doom to merely imagine his final victory against his foe (Huh??).

HERO ENVY REPORT CARD

Story: 5

Art: 5

Action: 3

Flow: 3

Reread Factor: 5

Overall Grade: 4

(grading numbers 1 thru 5, with 5 being the highest)

I absolutely adore the early Marvel annuals, especially when they had the different colors on the title letters. Something about it screamed Supa-Dupa-fun to me! That only enhances the incredible Jack Kirby cover that shows the FF struggling in the grip of this magnificently terrifying foe... Dr. Doom! While Doom's origin was flawlessly scripted, it was the second story that hurt the overall flow of the issue. I sometimes had to check out of the story to scratch my head due to some of the strange scenes; the convoluted interaction between Dr. Doom and Rama-Tut, the bizarre Encephalo-Gun, and the final ending with liquid hallucinogenics involved (hey, it's the 60's). But this is what the Silver Age of Comics was all about. Outlandish scenes and events mixed in with fantastical characters that grabbed our imaginations and took us on a magical ride. I always return to these type of stories and you should too...

Agree, disagree? Let's hear it fanboys!

OTHER "OUT OF THE BACK ISSUE BIN" REVIEWS

AVENGERS #164, 165, 166 (1977)

http://hero-envy.blogspot.com/2012/01/avengers-vol1-164-165-166-1977.html

FROM HELL (1989)
http://hero-envy.blogspot.com/2015/11/from-hell-1989.html  

THE COMING OF THE AVENGERS (1963-1965)
http://hero-envy.blogspot.com/2016/03/the-coming-of-avengers-marvels-first.html

John Cimino

John Cimino is a Silver and Bronze Age comic, cartoon and memorabilia expert that runs a business called "Saturday Morning Collectibles." He buys, sells, appraises and gives seminars on everything pop culture, so if you got something special, let him know about it. He contributes articles to ALTER EGO, RETROFAN, BACK ISSUE and THE JACK KIRBY COLLECTOR from TwoMorrows Publishing, runs the Roy Thomas Appreciation Board on Facebook and has appeared on the AMC reality show Comic Book Men. He also represents some of comicdoms biggest stars and brings them to a Comic Con near you. John likes to think he's the real Captain Marvel, people just don't have the heart to tell him he's just an obsessed fanboy that loves to play superheroes with his daughter Bryn. Contact him at johnstretch@live.com or follow him on Instagram at megostretchhulk.