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Avengers (1963)
Avengers (1963-1996) #5
The Avengers face the invasion of the Lava Men! Another epic in the annals of the strongest super-team of all! Starring: The Mighty Thor, Iron Man, Captain America, Giant-man and the Wonderful Wasp! An epic tale told with high drama and heroic dignity by Stan Lee and illustrated with deep sincerity and dazzling beauty by Jack Kirby.
24 pages, Kindle Edition
First published May 13, 1964
8 people are currently reading
33 people want to read
About the author
Jack Kirby
2,802 books473 followersJack Kirby (born Jacob Kurtzberg) was one of the most influential, recognizable, and prolific artists in American comic books, and the co-creator of such enduring characters and popular culture icons as the Fantastic Four, the X-Men, the Hulk, Captain America, and hundreds of others stretching back to the earliest days of the medium. He was also a comic book writer and editor. His most common nickname is "The King."
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
April 23, 2019
It’s the Avengers vs. the Lava Men, and somehow they end up fighting the Hulk yet again so that streak is still going. Thank god Rick Jones was there to…. I dunno why he’s in here actually. He even gets listed as part of the full roster at the start. I guess being Captain America’s teenage companion has perks.
The cool thing about this one is the way that Kirby drew some of the the Lava Men with monstrous oversized faces that look genuinely creepy.
Random Observations:
• Wasp actually comes through in a big moment, but then is miffed when she gets complimented on that instead of her beauty.
• I didn’t realize that it’s not generally known that Bruce Banner is the Hulk. Which makes General Ross and Betty seem pretty simple when they’re complaining about how Bruce just vanished after the gamma bomb incident.
Previous Issue: Avengers #4
Next Issue: Avengers #6
The cool thing about this one is the way that Kirby drew some of the the Lava Men with monstrous oversized faces that look genuinely creepy.
Random Observations:
• Wasp actually comes through in a big moment, but then is miffed when she gets complimented on that instead of her beauty.
• I didn’t realize that it’s not generally known that Bruce Banner is the Hulk. Which makes General Ross and Betty seem pretty simple when they’re complaining about how Bruce just vanished after the gamma bomb incident.
Previous Issue: Avengers #4
Next Issue: Avengers #6
October 30, 2023
LAVA MEN! THEY ARE INVADING! DON'T GET TOO CLOSE! A fun book! But I have a question: why hasn't the Mole Man contacted the Lava Men and combined forces to take over the surface world? That would be a team that would be hard to beat. Would love to see a 'retro' series where classic Marvel villains get together and take on Marvel heroes!
August 6, 2019
AVENGERS #1-10, JOURNEY INTO MYSTERY #103 (The Avengers' First Arc)
*Note: A nifty READING ORDER has been provided at the end of this review
Essentially, this series serves as a transition point between storylines; Here, Stan Lee
brings together EXISTING character arcs from 5 separate comic books and wraps them all up nicely...
while also setting up NEW character arcs for 5 separate comic books. Thus, effectively transitioning all the characters from one point to another, it works as a truly character driven narrative.
What's really interesting is what occurs around issue 4 of the storyline... which even non-readers almost universally know already, but I won't dare spoil it. It involves something of a huge achievement for comic book history, and a milestone moment in the careers of Jack Kirby and Stan Lee. It's a story that returns to the root of both their careers, providing a touching full-circle storyline for the character in question affected by what happens. Through this character, it also introduces the ongoing story-arc for these first 10 issues...
...Which is the introduction of "The Masters of Evil!" Essentially, they are the anti-Avengers; if the Avengers are the major heroes from the 5 separate comic books, the Masters of Evil are the major villains from each of the 5 separate comic books. Stan Lee actually took a major villain from each Superheroes storyline, and brought them together here. It provides an interesting philosophical contrast between the two teams, the battle between the heroes and villains providing a nice metaphor of the battle between good and evil.
In fact, that's essentially the thematic purpose of this comic book in general; a meta-commentary on superheroes and super-villains, using them to explore the deeper philosophical notions of good and evil, especially when the heroes are as morally grey as the villains are. Highly recommended.
READING ORDER:
-The Avengers #1
-The Avengers #2
-The Avengers #3
-The Avengers #4
-Journey Into Mystery #103
-The Avengers #5
-The Avengers #6
-The Avengers #7
-The Avengers #8
-The Avengers #9
-The Avengers #10
*Note: A nifty READING ORDER has been provided at the end of this review
Essentially, this series serves as a transition point between storylines; Here, Stan Lee
brings together EXISTING character arcs from 5 separate comic books and wraps them all up nicely...
while also setting up NEW character arcs for 5 separate comic books. Thus, effectively transitioning all the characters from one point to another, it works as a truly character driven narrative.
What's really interesting is what occurs around issue 4 of the storyline... which even non-readers almost universally know already, but I won't dare spoil it. It involves something of a huge achievement for comic book history, and a milestone moment in the careers of Jack Kirby and Stan Lee. It's a story that returns to the root of both their careers, providing a touching full-circle storyline for the character in question affected by what happens. Through this character, it also introduces the ongoing story-arc for these first 10 issues...
...Which is the introduction of "The Masters of Evil!" Essentially, they are the anti-Avengers; if the Avengers are the major heroes from the 5 separate comic books, the Masters of Evil are the major villains from each of the 5 separate comic books. Stan Lee actually took a major villain from each Superheroes storyline, and brought them together here. It provides an interesting philosophical contrast between the two teams, the battle between the heroes and villains providing a nice metaphor of the battle between good and evil.
In fact, that's essentially the thematic purpose of this comic book in general; a meta-commentary on superheroes and super-villains, using them to explore the deeper philosophical notions of good and evil, especially when the heroes are as morally grey as the villains are. Highly recommended.
READING ORDER:
-The Avengers #1
-The Avengers #2
-The Avengers #3
-The Avengers #4
-Journey Into Mystery #103
-The Avengers #5
-The Avengers #6
-The Avengers #7
-The Avengers #8
-The Avengers #9
-The Avengers #10
July 24, 2020
"How ironic it is! I'm the envy of millions, because of my wealth and my alleged good looks! There's hardly a man on earth who wouldn't want to be in my shoes! But how many would still feel that way if they knew that my life will last only as long as this chest device keeps my heart beating?! If they knew that I live every moment with the threat of sudden death due to the piece of shrapnel lodged in my heart!"
August 13, 2017
The Avengers battle the Lava Men. The Hulk makes an appearance as well.
April 17, 2019
The Lava Men? What? Sounds silly and ridiculous,right? The Avengers stop the Lava Men from infiltrating the world above, while The Hulk is still apart of the picture. This is an outstanding comic.
June 24, 2021
This series is definitely awesome.
January 26, 2023
Kinda ridiculous but also kinda of fun.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews