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Avengers (2010)
Avengers, Vol. 1
There came a day! A day unlike any other...where two of Marvel's top creators teamed up for the very first time to create a bombastic new story that not only ushers in the Heroic Age of Marvel Comics but unleashes onto the world the most blockbuster Avengers team ever! Who will answer the call? And
will they assemble just in time...because Kang the Conqueror is here from the future. And wait till you find out why...!
COLLECTING:
Avengers #1-6 (2009)
will they assemble just in time...because Kang the Conqueror is here from the future. And wait till you find out why...!
COLLECTING:
Avengers #1-6 (2009)
144 pages, Hardcover
First published July 1, 2010
34 people are currently reading
828 people want to read
About the author
Brian Michael Bendis
4,415 books2,580 followersA comic book writer and erstwhile artist. He has won critical acclaim (including five Eisner Awards) and is one of the most successful writers working in mainstream comics. For over eight years Bendis’s books have consistently sat in the top five best sellers on the nationwide comic and graphic novel sales charts.
Though he started as a writer and artist of independent noir fiction series, he shot to stardom as a writer of Marvel Comics' superhero books, particularly Ultimate Spider-Man.
Bendis first entered the comic world with the "Jinx" line of crime comics in 1995. This line has spawned the graphic novels Goldfish, Fire, Jinx, Torso (with Marc Andreyko), and Total Sell Out. Bendis is writing the film version of Jinx for Universal Pictures with Oscar-winner Charlize Theron attached to star and produce.
Bendis’s other projects include the Harvey, Eisner, and Eagle Award-nominated Powers (with Michael Avon Oeming) originally from Image Comics, now published by Marvel's new creator-owned imprint Icon Comics, and the Hollywood tell-all Fortune and Glory from Oni Press, both of which received an "A" from Entertainment Weekly.
Bendis is one of the premiere architects of Marvel's "Ultimate" line: comics specifically created for the new generation of comic readers. He has written every issue of Ultimate Spider-Man since its best-selling launch, and has also written for Ultimate Fantastic Four and Ultimate X-Men, as well as every issue of Ultimate Marvel Team-Up, Ultimate Origin and Ultimate Six.
Brian is currently helming a renaissance for Marvel’s AVENGERS franchise by writing both New Avengers and Mighty Avengers along with the successful ‘event’ projects House Of M, Secret War, and this summer’s Secret Invasion.
He has also previously done work on Daredevil, Alias, and The Pulse.
Though he started as a writer and artist of independent noir fiction series, he shot to stardom as a writer of Marvel Comics' superhero books, particularly Ultimate Spider-Man.
Bendis first entered the comic world with the "Jinx" line of crime comics in 1995. This line has spawned the graphic novels Goldfish, Fire, Jinx, Torso (with Marc Andreyko), and Total Sell Out. Bendis is writing the film version of Jinx for Universal Pictures with Oscar-winner Charlize Theron attached to star and produce.
Bendis’s other projects include the Harvey, Eisner, and Eagle Award-nominated Powers (with Michael Avon Oeming) originally from Image Comics, now published by Marvel's new creator-owned imprint Icon Comics, and the Hollywood tell-all Fortune and Glory from Oni Press, both of which received an "A" from Entertainment Weekly.
Bendis is one of the premiere architects of Marvel's "Ultimate" line: comics specifically created for the new generation of comic readers. He has written every issue of Ultimate Spider-Man since its best-selling launch, and has also written for Ultimate Fantastic Four and Ultimate X-Men, as well as every issue of Ultimate Marvel Team-Up, Ultimate Origin and Ultimate Six.
Brian is currently helming a renaissance for Marvel’s AVENGERS franchise by writing both New Avengers and Mighty Avengers along with the successful ‘event’ projects House Of M, Secret War, and this summer’s Secret Invasion.
He has also previously done work on Daredevil, Alias, and The Pulse.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 183 reviews
March 10, 2017
The Dark Reign crossover event is over!!!
Yay!!!
Norman Osborn is in the loony bin where he belongs and the Dark Avengers have been dissembled and H.A.M.M.E.R. has been hammered into submission. So it’s up to Steve Rogers to start up the Avengers from scratch and he’s got lots of choices…
…but his first choice is frenemy (go read Marvel’s Civil War, kids or better yet wait for the movie), Tony Stark.
One can only ponder that one.
Before anyone can say, “Jarvis, peel me a grape,” everyone’s favorite time tripping ass-hat, Kang comes along and starts monologuing.
It seems that some of the Avengers’ bastard children end up killing him (for monologuing) in the future and messing with that thing we lovingly call the “time stream”. Cuz time is a linear river that’s like a snake that eats its own tail, thus making its past the future that only exists in the present, so beware the viper with a forked tongue for whichever path you take, time will break in two.
Jeff, that made no sense whatsoever.
Sure it does. Read it backwards from the future.
So with the help of Noh Varr (who the team lovingly calls “Alien Boy”) the Avengers start building their very own time machine, but the time line starts to disintegrate…
…and as even crazier stuff unfolds, the Avengers journey to the future to give their bastard kids a spanking, a lecture or something.
Bottom Line: Bendis seems to have a knack for making the time travel story bearable and an even bigger knack for character interaction, dialogue and humor (love the Spidey zingers); however, looking at Romita’s art is like looking at that burrito stain in the back seat of the car, after a while I don’t even notice how terrible it is.
The Avengers ask Mr. Ultron for a favor…
Yay!!!
Norman Osborn is in the loony bin where he belongs and the Dark Avengers have been dissembled and H.A.M.M.E.R. has been hammered into submission. So it’s up to Steve Rogers to start up the Avengers from scratch and he’s got lots of choices…
…but his first choice is frenemy (go read Marvel’s Civil War, kids or better yet wait for the movie), Tony Stark.
One can only ponder that one.
Before anyone can say, “Jarvis, peel me a grape,” everyone’s favorite time tripping ass-hat, Kang comes along and starts monologuing.
It seems that some of the Avengers’ bastard children end up killing him (for monologuing) in the future and messing with that thing we lovingly call the “time stream”. Cuz time is a linear river that’s like a snake that eats its own tail, thus making its past the future that only exists in the present, so beware the viper with a forked tongue for whichever path you take, time will break in two.
Jeff, that made no sense whatsoever.
Sure it does. Read it backwards from the future.
So with the help of Noh Varr (who the team lovingly calls “Alien Boy”) the Avengers start building their very own time machine, but the time line starts to disintegrate…
…and as even crazier stuff unfolds, the Avengers journey to the future to give their bastard kids a spanking, a lecture or something.
Bottom Line: Bendis seems to have a knack for making the time travel story bearable and an even bigger knack for character interaction, dialogue and humor (love the Spidey zingers); however, looking at Romita’s art is like looking at that burrito stain in the back seat of the car, after a while I don’t even notice how terrible it is.
The Avengers ask Mr. Ultron for a favor…
April 5, 2023
This was the first time I’ve read a comic book *gasp* shocking ik but I loved it. And not to mention marvel is superior so ofc I had to start with them.
I had no idea who some of the characters were but I am HERE for the conflict.
I had no idea who some of the characters were but I am HERE for the conflict.
November 14, 2011
Brian Michael Bendis seemingly ended the Avengers as a super team back in 2004 with his Avengers: Disassembled storyline which promptly led to about 73 different titles starting up in place of the old one. Somewhere after Young Avengers, New Avengers, The Mighty Avengers and Dark Avengers I started losing count and worried that it was a matter of days before we got Geriatric Avengers and The Avengers: Iceland. So it’s kind of fitting that Bendis is the one bringing back a version somewhat close to the classic Avengers line-up.*
*And I’m sure that big budget movie coming out in 2012 with Iron Man, Captain America, Thor etc. had absolutely nothing to do with it.
Steve Rogers is running superhero related matters these days, and he’s been forming Avengers team to help him manage things. This one is the closest thing to a classic Avengers line-up that we’ve seen in a while with Iron Man, Thor, Hawkeye and the replacement Captain America on the team. Plus they threw in Spider-Man and Wolverine for sales purposes and Spider-Woman because…. Well, I’m not really sure about that one. Maybe because Wasp is dead and Black Widow is already on the Secret Avengers and they needed a woman who looks good when drawn in skintight outfits? That’s my best guess.
No sooner is the team formed than they get a visit from old Avenger's enemy and evil time traveler Kang. But Kang isn’t on the attack. Instead he pulls a Doc Brown and warns the Avengers that their kids are ruining the future. Soon enough time itself seems to be breaking down and while some of the team stay behind to try and deal with the chaos, some of the others go to the future and learn some disturbing things about their fates.
There’s a lot of fun stuff in including some good banter and crazy action. I also liked that there’s still a lot of tension brewing between Steve Rogers and Tony Stark over that little civil war they had that led to Steve getting killed for a while. The overall time travel story was kind of a rehashed version of the X-Men classic Days of Future Past and a lot of it seemed more like set-up for a future event than a story concerned with relaunching the title. (Beware the upcoming crossover!). Plus, I am not a fan of John Romitia Jr.’s art. All of his characters are so blocky that they always remind me of Legos.
Still it was good having a version of the Avengers close to the one I grew up with back in action, and I’ll check out more of the title.
*And I’m sure that big budget movie coming out in 2012 with Iron Man, Captain America, Thor etc. had absolutely nothing to do with it.
Steve Rogers is running superhero related matters these days, and he’s been forming Avengers team to help him manage things. This one is the closest thing to a classic Avengers line-up that we’ve seen in a while with Iron Man, Thor, Hawkeye and the replacement Captain America on the team. Plus they threw in Spider-Man and Wolverine for sales purposes and Spider-Woman because…. Well, I’m not really sure about that one. Maybe because Wasp is dead and Black Widow is already on the Secret Avengers and they needed a woman who looks good when drawn in skintight outfits? That’s my best guess.
No sooner is the team formed than they get a visit from old Avenger's enemy and evil time traveler Kang. But Kang isn’t on the attack. Instead he pulls a Doc Brown and warns the Avengers that their kids are ruining the future. Soon enough time itself seems to be breaking down and while some of the team stay behind to try and deal with the chaos, some of the others go to the future and learn some disturbing things about their fates.
There’s a lot of fun stuff in including some good banter and crazy action. I also liked that there’s still a lot of tension brewing between Steve Rogers and Tony Stark over that little civil war they had that led to Steve getting killed for a while. The overall time travel story was kind of a rehashed version of the X-Men classic Days of Future Past and a lot of it seemed more like set-up for a future event than a story concerned with relaunching the title. (Beware the upcoming crossover!). Plus, I am not a fan of John Romitia Jr.’s art. All of his characters are so blocky that they always remind me of Legos.
Still it was good having a version of the Avengers close to the one I grew up with back in action, and I’ll check out more of the title.
May 9, 2019
Still on my Avengers high here from Endgame, so reading through Bendis Avengers and New Avengers now.
So this takes place when it was almost like a "Reborn" stage in Marvel. After Siege this was to start fresh. Don't worry, New Avengers is still being made at the time, which is more street level type heroes. This is where all the big wigs come in. Cap (Who is still Bucky here), Iron-man, Thor and more. Kang the conquer comes back to let the heroes know that time is all fucked up. Oh yay, this is like Endgame where the heroes have to fix time. Oh wait, no, not back in time! To the future with their kids!
This was pretty fun. I mean got the gang mostly back together, a new leader in maria hill, and got Tony back who is not a complete and utter tool. I also enjoyed some of the big fights like thor verse galactus. So there's some funny moments, badass moments, and overall good pacing. There's also a little too much banter at times, too much of the same time story and none of it matters thing going on, and the art can be really bad at points. Romita are works for me on small scale but not so much here.
Overall pretty fun. Nothing magical like his first volume of New Avengers back in 2005 but it works. A 3 out of 5.
So this takes place when it was almost like a "Reborn" stage in Marvel. After Siege this was to start fresh. Don't worry, New Avengers is still being made at the time, which is more street level type heroes. This is where all the big wigs come in. Cap (Who is still Bucky here), Iron-man, Thor and more. Kang the conquer comes back to let the heroes know that time is all fucked up. Oh yay, this is like Endgame where the heroes have to fix time. Oh wait, no, not back in time! To the future with their kids!
This was pretty fun. I mean got the gang mostly back together, a new leader in maria hill, and got Tony back who is not a complete and utter tool. I also enjoyed some of the big fights like thor verse galactus. So there's some funny moments, badass moments, and overall good pacing. There's also a little too much banter at times, too much of the same time story and none of it matters thing going on, and the art can be really bad at points. Romita are works for me on small scale but not so much here.
Overall pretty fun. Nothing magical like his first volume of New Avengers back in 2005 but it works. A 3 out of 5.
October 22, 2012
Not sure I'm liking the so-called Heroic Age stuff - seems a bit too earnest and deliberate for my taste. Unlike the Dark Reign which had a natural protagonist and tons of ripple effects, the Heroic Age has an... absence of something cohesive. Must be why it feels like it's finding its feet.
All that said, this book is still funny as Bendis, and well-written. However it also feels a bit *too* action - action scenes tripping over each other before they've even played out. Not enough time to catch our breath and watch the characters react & interact. There's enough plot jammed in for twice the comics, and it's hard to keep up. Best part of it is this is another long payoff plot that Bendis is setting up.
All due respect to Romita Jr, the pencils put me off to the tune of a star or two rating this. It's like JRJR got stuck in the 70s and never advanced his craft. The ink and colour try to spiff it up but don't have enough baseline to pull it off.
My plot spoiler notes:
All that said, this book is still funny as Bendis, and well-written. However it also feels a bit *too* action - action scenes tripping over each other before they've even played out. Not enough time to catch our breath and watch the characters react & interact. There's enough plot jammed in for twice the comics, and it's hard to keep up. Best part of it is this is another long payoff plot that Bendis is setting up.
All due respect to Romita Jr, the pencils put me off to the tune of a star or two rating this. It's like JRJR got stuck in the 70s and never advanced his craft. The ink and colour try to spiff it up but don't have enough baseline to pull it off.
My plot spoiler notes:
September 22, 2021
This was a pretty good volume.
When Kang the Conqueror from the future arrives in the present its upto Avengers to stop him but he warns them of things to come and their children behind it. And that begins the time travel mysteries and all but the main thing being with what they hint at is coming. then facing off against Wonder man and then Apocalypse and his horsemen from future, its a time crisis and they go to the future to stop the war between Ultron and Kang!
Its an epic story with so many twists and turns and will give one headache with time travel shenanigans but the way its written is so awesome, one will love it! Plus I like the way Romita draws these Avengers and can feel odd sometimes but I am used to his art plus it flows smoothly with Bendis writing. I also like how he focuses on Tony and sets the stage for Age of ultron from here only. Its an epic story with so many characters and all and is a must read.
When Kang the Conqueror from the future arrives in the present its upto Avengers to stop him but he warns them of things to come and their children behind it. And that begins the time travel mysteries and all but the main thing being with what they hint at is coming. then facing off against Wonder man and then Apocalypse and his horsemen from future, its a time crisis and they go to the future to stop the war between Ultron and Kang!
Its an epic story with so many twists and turns and will give one headache with time travel shenanigans but the way its written is so awesome, one will love it! Plus I like the way Romita draws these Avengers and can feel odd sometimes but I am used to his art plus it flows smoothly with Bendis writing. I also like how he focuses on Tony and sets the stage for Age of ultron from here only. Its an epic story with so many characters and all and is a must read.
August 9, 2011
3.5
The storyline wasn't incredible, but I think this could be the start of something cool. Or not. Time will tell, I suppose.
Normally I'm not a fan of time-travel, but I thought this was one of the few times it didn't suck. Maybe it's because I have a soft spot for the Avenger's kids (I must have had to watch that movie The Next Avengers with my boys about 50 times).
Can't say I loved the art, though.
The storyline wasn't incredible, but I think this could be the start of something cool. Or not. Time will tell, I suppose.
Normally I'm not a fan of time-travel, but I thought this was one of the few times it didn't suck. Maybe it's because I have a soft spot for the Avenger's kids (I must have had to watch that movie The Next Avengers with my boys about 50 times).
Can't say I loved the art, though.
October 22, 2012
This is a time travel story so be prepared for lots of “but won’t that affect the timestream?” and “didn’t we do this already?” and “but if that happened then what about...?” and so on. Brian Michael Bendis brings the Avengers together to go forth into what Marvel are calling “the Heroic Age”. In this opening book, Kang aka Immortus, appears from the future to warn the Avengers of a world about to be destroyed by their children who have harnessed Ultron’s power without fully understanding it. Iron Man, Wolverine, Captain (Bucky) America and Noh-Varr head into the future to do the necessary while the rest of the Avengers deal with the disrupted timestream throwing all kinds of villains and nasties into the present, all ready to wreck New York.
Which brings up the question, why is Avengers Tower in the middle of the most densely populated city in the world? The Avengers are such a magnet for all kinds of destructive forces, it seems a tad irresponsible to place said magnet into the midst of millions of peoples’ lives. Anyway.
It’s not a bad story despite the usual confusion when jumping backwards and forwards in time with various strands seeming resolved only for another to crop up and so on. I’m sorry, I just don’t care for time travel books, especially in superhero stories where they’re likely to be (as they are here) mere ploys for dramatic covers and a large splash fight scene before fizzling back to normal.
I think John Romita Jnr’s artwork is sketchy at best. I agree that it doesn’t look very flashy and seems a bit dated - all his faces and hands seem blocky and his Ultron looks unimpressive. Bendis’ writing is alright but he has a lot more Avengers cracking jokes than just Spidey which felt a bit out of character for some. Plus the storyline just left me bored.
It’s a decent first volume but I wish Bendis had worked with a different artist and steered clear of the overplayed time-travel trope (hey it’s Marvel, you gotta have alliteration!). I’ll read Vol 2 to see where he takes this new team next but don’t expect too much from this first volume.
Which brings up the question, why is Avengers Tower in the middle of the most densely populated city in the world? The Avengers are such a magnet for all kinds of destructive forces, it seems a tad irresponsible to place said magnet into the midst of millions of peoples’ lives. Anyway.
It’s not a bad story despite the usual confusion when jumping backwards and forwards in time with various strands seeming resolved only for another to crop up and so on. I’m sorry, I just don’t care for time travel books, especially in superhero stories where they’re likely to be (as they are here) mere ploys for dramatic covers and a large splash fight scene before fizzling back to normal.
I think John Romita Jnr’s artwork is sketchy at best. I agree that it doesn’t look very flashy and seems a bit dated - all his faces and hands seem blocky and his Ultron looks unimpressive. Bendis’ writing is alright but he has a lot more Avengers cracking jokes than just Spidey which felt a bit out of character for some. Plus the storyline just left me bored.
It’s a decent first volume but I wish Bendis had worked with a different artist and steered clear of the overplayed time-travel trope (hey it’s Marvel, you gotta have alliteration!). I’ll read Vol 2 to see where he takes this new team next but don’t expect too much from this first volume.
September 23, 2012
I'm not entirely sure, but I have the vague feeling I wasted a half hour.
Somewhere in this jumble of ideas and dialogue there may be a good story, but it wasn't strong enough to fight its way free.
The Avengers put together a new team, which looks almost exactly like the old team, and then we learn time itself may be broken, there's a couple pointless fights, we get a new member, who has the power to do any weird sci-fi thing the plot requires, Wonder man acts out of character, we travel to a couple potential futures and may have saved the future or we may have just wasted our time on a story that is just the set up to another 'big, epic event!'
and we talk about every single thing that's going on a lot, but we all do it in witty sound bites of dialogue, so almost no one has a distinctive voice.
It's also very funky, busy and timey-whimey, but I think that's more to distract us from how pointless the story is than Bendis being a clever writer.
John Romita's art is very nice, couple great scenes that almost make you forget the pages of people standing around talking, but in the end it wasn't much fun and felt like Bendis was trying too hard.
Bendis just isn't a very good super hero writer, so putting him in charge of the Avengers for a decade has resulted in stories like this.
I didn't hate this story, is about as high of praise as I can give him.
He really needs a writing partner, someone that 'gets' super heroes.
I know I'm a grumpy old fanboy, but I can't help but think that Roger Stern could have done this story in half the issues and I would have enjoyed it more.
Somewhere in this jumble of ideas and dialogue there may be a good story, but it wasn't strong enough to fight its way free.
The Avengers put together a new team, which looks almost exactly like the old team, and then we learn time itself may be broken, there's a couple pointless fights, we get a new member, who has the power to do any weird sci-fi thing the plot requires, Wonder man acts out of character, we travel to a couple potential futures and may have saved the future or we may have just wasted our time on a story that is just the set up to another 'big, epic event!'
and we talk about every single thing that's going on a lot, but we all do it in witty sound bites of dialogue, so almost no one has a distinctive voice.
It's also very funky, busy and timey-whimey, but I think that's more to distract us from how pointless the story is than Bendis being a clever writer.
John Romita's art is very nice, couple great scenes that almost make you forget the pages of people standing around talking, but in the end it wasn't much fun and felt like Bendis was trying too hard.
Bendis just isn't a very good super hero writer, so putting him in charge of the Avengers for a decade has resulted in stories like this.
I didn't hate this story, is about as high of praise as I can give him.
He really needs a writing partner, someone that 'gets' super heroes.
I know I'm a grumpy old fanboy, but I can't help but think that Roger Stern could have done this story in half the issues and I would have enjoyed it more.
July 13, 2011
One of my fellow geeks lent this to me because she thought I might like it. Upon reading it, I now know why. Lately I've been pretty into time-travel related stories, and HOLY COW this book has mind-bending time travel! As always, amazingly dynamic art, and it has certainly made me even more excited for the movies coming out this summer!
On a last note, there is one point that Captain America says "A man who fancies himself the lord of time needs a kingdom..." and as a Doctor Who fan, I couldn't resist this one:
On a last note, there is one point that Captain America says "A man who fancies himself the lord of time needs a kingdom..." and as a Doctor Who fan, I couldn't resist this one:
Read
May 11, 2019i... don’t know how to rate comic books yet.
August 21, 2022
Leider nichts für mich. Irgendwie war mir die ganze Handlung zu konfus und es passierte alles auf einmal
September 12, 2018
I thought was pretty good. I liked that they used certain villains more and I liked that they showed the future, that was pretty cool
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 1, 2018
The Avengers' entry point into the Heroic Age and a solid arc with a good team, and a plot with a lot of time travel and very many familiar villain names. Bendis' dialogue is very... Bendis, and I am not a big fan of the arc, but, hey, it's fun.
May 20, 2012
Anything with Thor in it pretty much automatically gets 3 stars. Anything else cool that happens bumps it up, but only a bit.
I'm re-reading this in the trade form and I like it much more than I did when I read them as single issues. This rebuilding of the Avengers from the ground up wastes absolutely no time in getting things going in a big way- with Kang the Conqueror showing up in the first few pages. From there it gets... well, weird. Bendis sometimes has the unfortunate knack of coming up with BIG golden-age styled ideas and then not being able to execute them in a way that makes much sense. This book suffers from schizophrenia, but mostly its not a bad start. The art by Romita Jr is pretty damn solid, even if the colors get a little wacky at times.
The Avengers is a book that deserves BIG BIG ideas and story lines. But it also needs to balance that with characterization and personalization. Sometimes Bendis abandons one for the other and I just wish he could find a happy medium.
I'm re-reading this in the trade form and I like it much more than I did when I read them as single issues. This rebuilding of the Avengers from the ground up wastes absolutely no time in getting things going in a big way- with Kang the Conqueror showing up in the first few pages. From there it gets... well, weird. Bendis sometimes has the unfortunate knack of coming up with BIG golden-age styled ideas and then not being able to execute them in a way that makes much sense. This book suffers from schizophrenia, but mostly its not a bad start. The art by Romita Jr is pretty damn solid, even if the colors get a little wacky at times.
The Avengers is a book that deserves BIG BIG ideas and story lines. But it also needs to balance that with characterization and personalization. Sometimes Bendis abandons one for the other and I just wish he could find a happy medium.
February 4, 2013
I will be the first to admit I have generally been apathetic (at best) or loathed (at worst) Bendis' work in the Marvel Universe, particularly on Avengers. I had called the era and storylines "Brian Michael Bendis Destroys the Marvel Universe."
Well, this latest turn in the Avengers saga sets aside much of the serious problems I had with those other stories. The story here is fun, and no too convoluted by the standards of a time travel story. JR Jr's art is spectacular.
If I still have problems with the continuity and legacy of older stories, Bendis thankfully does not include them heavily in this story. You can pick this up with little knowledge of anything going on in the MU for the last decade. Which is great, since I haven't picked up a Marvel book on a regular basis since Bendis disassembled the Avengers and added Wolverine and Spidey to the team.
This is a strong volume and a good jumping on point for both new readers and old readers (like me) who might like to give Avengers another try.
Well, this latest turn in the Avengers saga sets aside much of the serious problems I had with those other stories. The story here is fun, and no too convoluted by the standards of a time travel story. JR Jr's art is spectacular.
If I still have problems with the continuity and legacy of older stories, Bendis thankfully does not include them heavily in this story. You can pick this up with little knowledge of anything going on in the MU for the last decade. Which is great, since I haven't picked up a Marvel book on a regular basis since Bendis disassembled the Avengers and added Wolverine and Spidey to the team.
This is a strong volume and a good jumping on point for both new readers and old readers (like me) who might like to give Avengers another try.
January 20, 2013
Future Young Avengers defeat/destroy Kang the Conquerer, and the timeline is destroyed causing problems in the present. This was a fun and interesting story that featured characters from alternate timelines. In the end it just circles in on itself.... so it starts all over again.
December 7, 2018
The always-adept Brian Michael Bendis throws multiple balls in the air on this epic and manages to juggle them all without dropping a single one. It's a complicated story but you've got to admire how it all unfolds and continues to hold your interest throughout. It's a time-travel saga so don't think about it overmuch or risk the confusing consequences. I'm not a huge fan of time travel stories in comics but I had fun with this one.
This is another re-boot of the Avengers (I lost count) following the Dark Avengers period when evil Norman Osborne was in charge of the team and everything else. This Avengers beginning heralds the "Heroic Age" for Marvel, trying to get back to a more simple core mythology with purer characters and epic themes (back in 2010). It does, but like everything else at Marvel it didn't last -- plus they spun off three more Avengers team books from this one. That too-often reoccurring event is the prime reason I don't follow the Avengers books much anymore. (And the plethora of re-booted X-Men titles is just absurd!)
But enough of my rant on superhero books, back to the Avengers review. I'll summarize the plot briefly. A future Kang The Conqueror travels back in time to warn the present Avengers that the Young Avengers will kill him (back in the future), setting off cataclysmic events that end the world. He wants them to time-travel and prevent it from happening. They don't succeed initially, but due to time travel they keep replaying the battle in an effort to achieve a more positive outcome. Bendis even references the Groundhog Day movie, and indeed there is a light-hearted touch to the way he handles the proceedings instead of the usual doom and gloom. You've got to smile a little at his machinations- I think Bendis was mocking time travel stories in a respectful way.
There are too many characters in this story to bore you by listing them all by name here. Bendis manages to touch base with every one of them, and reveals their character traits and quirks through the snappy and often funny dialogue. Artist John Romita does a commendable job of squeezing all the multiple players into the panels, aided by the half-page and spread out format. There are multiple epic battle here, worth spending some time to marvel (ha). Romita's blocky art style takes some getting used to, but I've learned to appreciate it.
There are several twists and turns in the story but it all works out. Bendis engages in foreshadowing several times, and weaves in some plot threads for later stories. Before this is over, he introduces the Young Avengers, a future Hulk and Tony Stark, Noh-Varr the Protector,and yet another iteration of Ultron.
If you've got a craving to read some Avengers books, you can't go wrong with this one. However, if you'd prefer to read the best of the best, then search out Avengers Forever by Kurt Busiek and Avengers Disassembled, also by Brian Michael Bendis.
This is another re-boot of the Avengers (I lost count) following the Dark Avengers period when evil Norman Osborne was in charge of the team and everything else. This Avengers beginning heralds the "Heroic Age" for Marvel, trying to get back to a more simple core mythology with purer characters and epic themes (back in 2010). It does, but like everything else at Marvel it didn't last -- plus they spun off three more Avengers team books from this one. That too-often reoccurring event is the prime reason I don't follow the Avengers books much anymore. (And the plethora of re-booted X-Men titles is just absurd!)
But enough of my rant on superhero books, back to the Avengers review. I'll summarize the plot briefly. A future Kang The Conqueror travels back in time to warn the present Avengers that the Young Avengers will kill him (back in the future), setting off cataclysmic events that end the world. He wants them to time-travel and prevent it from happening. They don't succeed initially, but due to time travel they keep replaying the battle in an effort to achieve a more positive outcome. Bendis even references the Groundhog Day movie, and indeed there is a light-hearted touch to the way he handles the proceedings instead of the usual doom and gloom. You've got to smile a little at his machinations- I think Bendis was mocking time travel stories in a respectful way.
There are too many characters in this story to bore you by listing them all by name here. Bendis manages to touch base with every one of them, and reveals their character traits and quirks through the snappy and often funny dialogue. Artist John Romita does a commendable job of squeezing all the multiple players into the panels, aided by the half-page and spread out format. There are multiple epic battle here, worth spending some time to marvel (ha). Romita's blocky art style takes some getting used to, but I've learned to appreciate it.
There are several twists and turns in the story but it all works out. Bendis engages in foreshadowing several times, and weaves in some plot threads for later stories. Before this is over, he introduces the Young Avengers, a future Hulk and Tony Stark, Noh-Varr the Protector,and yet another iteration of Ultron.
If you've got a craving to read some Avengers books, you can't go wrong with this one. However, if you'd prefer to read the best of the best, then search out Avengers Forever by Kurt Busiek and Avengers Disassembled, also by Brian Michael Bendis.
December 22, 2025
After the siege of Asgard and the defeat of Norman Osborn, Steve Rogers sets out to rebuild the Avengers once more. The team's first mission begins when Kang the Conqueror calls on them for help in preventing damage to the timeline caused in the future by the children of the Avengers themselves.
I can't be the only reader who's tired of seeing the Avengers rebuilt.
Time and time again Marvel (and Bendis in particular) have milked story tension from the Avengers being disassembled, only to immediately reform them straight afterwards. Within a few short years they gave us the New Avengers, the Mighty Avengers, the Dark Avengers and now, once again, just the Avengers. It has been done so much that the rebuilding of the Avengers is all but meaningless at this point.
On top of that, this relaunched series tries to get off to an epic start by throwing Kang, Ultron, Maestro and Apocalypse into the mix, not to mention alternate reality versions of the Avengers and future versions of the Avengers. Ultimately, rather than feeling epic, it just feels like a mess.
Time travel shenanigans are always a challenge to sell convincingly and here Bendis fails spectacularly.
The only reason I didn't rate this book lower is because there is actually some solid character work within it, particularly the developing friendship between Spider-Man and Spider-Woman.
* More reviews here: https://fsfh-book-review2.webnode.page *
I can't be the only reader who's tired of seeing the Avengers rebuilt.
Time and time again Marvel (and Bendis in particular) have milked story tension from the Avengers being disassembled, only to immediately reform them straight afterwards. Within a few short years they gave us the New Avengers, the Mighty Avengers, the Dark Avengers and now, once again, just the Avengers. It has been done so much that the rebuilding of the Avengers is all but meaningless at this point.
On top of that, this relaunched series tries to get off to an epic start by throwing Kang, Ultron, Maestro and Apocalypse into the mix, not to mention alternate reality versions of the Avengers and future versions of the Avengers. Ultimately, rather than feeling epic, it just feels like a mess.
Time travel shenanigans are always a challenge to sell convincingly and here Bendis fails spectacularly.
The only reason I didn't rate this book lower is because there is actually some solid character work within it, particularly the developing friendship between Spider-Man and Spider-Woman.
* More reviews here: https://fsfh-book-review2.webnode.page *
November 13, 2019
Another day, another power hungry, time traveling megalomaniac doing something so awful it breaks the time stream and ripples out through all of time and space to threaten everything that ever was or will be.
No really. This kind of thing happens A LOT in comics.
And these kinds of stories are always just a mess.
But this one- at least- was a fun mess. The tension was high, the humor was on point, and the characters were all written well. All the makings of a good superhero team book.
No really. This kind of thing happens A LOT in comics.
And these kinds of stories are always just a mess.
But this one- at least- was a fun mess. The tension was high, the humor was on point, and the characters were all written well. All the makings of a good superhero team book.
May 6, 2019
3.5 stars
Steve Rogers puts a new gang of Avengers together, not including himself, run by Maria Hill. As soon as the group gathers shenanigans happen.
We follow Iron Man, Wolverine, etc. as they travel to the future to "fix" things. While at the same time Spiderman, Thor, etc. stay behind to hold down the fort.
Interesting enough plot and good art.
Steve Rogers puts a new gang of Avengers together, not including himself, run by Maria Hill. As soon as the group gathers shenanigans happen.
We follow Iron Man, Wolverine, etc. as they travel to the future to "fix" things. While at the same time Spiderman, Thor, etc. stay behind to hold down the fort.
Interesting enough plot and good art.
October 16, 2023
I found it dull but it had a very good moment towards the end. A moment that brought the story together. I really appreciate a good ending.
February 16, 2026
Weak start, gets better in the last two issues.
July 29, 2015
A new era with an expanded franchise of titles emerged from Siege, with the flagship book once again simply The Avengers. As the head of S.H.I.E.L.D., Steve Rogers assembled a roster that included Thor, Iron Man, Captain America (Bucky), Wolverine, Spider-Woman, Spider-Man, Hawkeye and Protector (formerly Marvel Boy). Maria Hill was on hand to coordinate the team’s efforts. Avengers villain Kang arrived from the future with a warning about genocidal robot Ultron finally succeeding in taking over the planet and obliterating most life. Until the children of the Avengers found a way to defeat him and took over his empire. The team dealt with the anger of former member Wonder Man, who insisted that re-forming the Avengers was a mistake, his protest turning violent. A future version of Apocalypse and his horsemen (who resembled various Avengers) popped up to attack. They were followed by futuristic hero Killraven, pursued by alien invaders and incursions from other time periods. Iron Man, Captain America, Wolverine and Protector traveled into the future to figure out why time was unraveling. They met future versions of Iron Man and Hulk, as well as several Avengers’ descendants. The battle in the present grew more dire while the heroes in the future worked on a plan to save time. Iron Man’s desperate ploy with Ultron restored the integrity of time, but left the team facing an uncertain future.
After years of focusing on the grittier New Avengers, Brian Michael Bendis wanted to demonstrate he could handle a classic, widescreen Avengers epic. He pulled in lots of classic Avengers elements and gave the new team a suitably massive challenge to tackle. The arc struggled with pacing at some points, but overall provided a lot of action. There was so much going on plotwise that characterization often took a backseat and the Wonder Man sub-plot seemed to come out of nowhere. Still, the new line-up was a strong one and Bendis crafted some nice interactions. And after being treated as the villain of the Marvel Universe for a couple years, it was nice seeing Iron Man get a central heroic role. The re-launch came with a superstar art team, penciler John Romita, Jr. and inkers Klaus Janson and Tom Palmer. This wasn’t the subtlest work of Romita’s career and the characters had an exaggerated angularity that didn’t always look quite right. But the artists had a way with big action scenes, creating some impressive splash pages and action sequences. Colorist Dean White was a key contributor, surrounding the art with bright, bold colors that fit the “go big” ethos of the re-launched book. This volume may not have been a timeless classic, but it was still very entertaining and worth reading for any Avengers fan.
A version of this review originally appeared on www.thunderalleybcp.com
After years of focusing on the grittier New Avengers, Brian Michael Bendis wanted to demonstrate he could handle a classic, widescreen Avengers epic. He pulled in lots of classic Avengers elements and gave the new team a suitably massive challenge to tackle. The arc struggled with pacing at some points, but overall provided a lot of action. There was so much going on plotwise that characterization often took a backseat and the Wonder Man sub-plot seemed to come out of nowhere. Still, the new line-up was a strong one and Bendis crafted some nice interactions. And after being treated as the villain of the Marvel Universe for a couple years, it was nice seeing Iron Man get a central heroic role. The re-launch came with a superstar art team, penciler John Romita, Jr. and inkers Klaus Janson and Tom Palmer. This wasn’t the subtlest work of Romita’s career and the characters had an exaggerated angularity that didn’t always look quite right. But the artists had a way with big action scenes, creating some impressive splash pages and action sequences. Colorist Dean White was a key contributor, surrounding the art with bright, bold colors that fit the “go big” ethos of the re-launched book. This volume may not have been a timeless classic, but it was still very entertaining and worth reading for any Avengers fan.
A version of this review originally appeared on www.thunderalleybcp.com
June 22, 2011
Brian Michael Bendis - writer
John Romita Jr. - illustrator
4.5/5 stars
After the Siege crossover, when Norman Osborn was soundly defeated and exposed as an insane maniac, the Marvel Universe is ushered into a new period of storytelling that focuses more on grand, heroic adventures and less on gritty realism and hazy moral distinctions -- an era in comic books dubbed "The Heroic Age." Bendis' Avengers is one of the first forays into this new "age" of comics, and if this story is any indication of what is to come comic book fans are in for a treat. Steve Rogers, back from the dead and no longer bearing the mantle of Captain America, takes over for the deposed Norman Osborn as the head of whatever they're calling the super-hero police agency these days (S.H.I.E.L.D.? H.A.M.M.E.R.? S.W.O.R.D.? W.H.O.C.A.R.E.S.?) and promptly reforms the Avengers. His team includes the new Captain America (AKA Bucky Barnes AKA Winter Soldier), Spider-Man, Wolverine, Iron Man, Thor, Spider-Woman and Hawkeye. Just as the team is assembled Kang the Conquerer shows up and issues a dire warning to the team: "Your children will destroy the world!" Thor then punches him through several buildings. Sweet.
The art on this collection is top notch, which is to say it is par for the course for the talented and prolific Mr. Romita Jr. The writing is gripping, fast-paced, informed by nostalgia and is a real treat for old-school comics fans. Old, long forgotten villains are brought back and revamped for this new "age", but in a way that is true to the history and personality of the characters. All throughout the story there are references to past events and appearances by old characters, all serving to inform and drive a really cool story. New, interesting characters are introduced but do not dominate the story. In the end, everything comes full circle to a very satisfying conclusion that still leaves open the possibility of a continuiation of this particular plot. If this is a sign of things to come in "The Heroic Age" then comic fans are in for a roller-coaster ride of thrills and excitement. Farewell (and good riddance) to Dark Reign, Civil War et al. Long live The Heroic Age! If it wasn't clear from my review - highly recommended.
John Romita Jr. - illustrator
4.5/5 stars
After the Siege crossover, when Norman Osborn was soundly defeated and exposed as an insane maniac, the Marvel Universe is ushered into a new period of storytelling that focuses more on grand, heroic adventures and less on gritty realism and hazy moral distinctions -- an era in comic books dubbed "The Heroic Age." Bendis' Avengers is one of the first forays into this new "age" of comics, and if this story is any indication of what is to come comic book fans are in for a treat. Steve Rogers, back from the dead and no longer bearing the mantle of Captain America, takes over for the deposed Norman Osborn as the head of whatever they're calling the super-hero police agency these days (S.H.I.E.L.D.? H.A.M.M.E.R.? S.W.O.R.D.? W.H.O.C.A.R.E.S.?) and promptly reforms the Avengers. His team includes the new Captain America (AKA Bucky Barnes AKA Winter Soldier), Spider-Man, Wolverine, Iron Man, Thor, Spider-Woman and Hawkeye. Just as the team is assembled Kang the Conquerer shows up and issues a dire warning to the team: "Your children will destroy the world!" Thor then punches him through several buildings. Sweet.
The art on this collection is top notch, which is to say it is par for the course for the talented and prolific Mr. Romita Jr. The writing is gripping, fast-paced, informed by nostalgia and is a real treat for old-school comics fans. Old, long forgotten villains are brought back and revamped for this new "age", but in a way that is true to the history and personality of the characters. All throughout the story there are references to past events and appearances by old characters, all serving to inform and drive a really cool story. New, interesting characters are introduced but do not dominate the story. In the end, everything comes full circle to a very satisfying conclusion that still leaves open the possibility of a continuiation of this particular plot. If this is a sign of things to come in "The Heroic Age" then comic fans are in for a roller-coaster ride of thrills and excitement. Farewell (and good riddance) to Dark Reign, Civil War et al. Long live The Heroic Age! If it wasn't clear from my review - highly recommended.
March 21, 2015
I didn't really care for this. I'm just so tired of time travel stories that follow the same formula: introduce some idea of a dystopian future, have the heroes go to that future, have heroes travel back in time to the precise moment when that future begins and stop it, have everything go back to normal making the story kind of pointless. How many times has this been used in comics?
This collection was at the beginning of Marvel's Heroic Age, which was Marvel trying to do brighter and more fun stories after several years of downer and dark storylines. I can see how they are trying to bring a bit more fun into the comic by having things like dinosaurs running around New York, but for some reason it just came off feeling lifeless to me. How long had Bendis been working on the Avengers by then? He must have been getting pretty tired of it.
The art is really hit or miss. I love JRJR's work. His figures are often quite blocky, but I don't really mind. In fact, I think that's what I love about his art. But in this book there are some really weak spots. JRJR just can't seem to draw Spider-Man from the side, which is kind of bizarre since he has spent so much time working on that character. Think of a JRJR drawing in your head and nine times out of ten, I'll bet your thinking of him drawing Spider-Man. You would think he could draw the guy in his sleep by now. He also seems to have a hard time drawing characters moving. Early on there is a shot of Ultron where he is flying and firing energy, but he looks really stiff. Later on we see him simply standing on a hill and he looks imposing as hell. It's kind of weird to think an artist would be stronger at showing a character just standing there?
The production quality of this book is also lousy. There are several pages where dialogue is cut off because it goes too far off the page. There is also a few pages where you can tell the art is titled, but it's not supposed to be. Part of the panel goes outside the page, but then just magically reappears further down. If Marvel is going to be charging people 20 bucks for a book, they could at least get there shit together on producing them.
Honestly, I would not recommend this book.
This collection was at the beginning of Marvel's Heroic Age, which was Marvel trying to do brighter and more fun stories after several years of downer and dark storylines. I can see how they are trying to bring a bit more fun into the comic by having things like dinosaurs running around New York, but for some reason it just came off feeling lifeless to me. How long had Bendis been working on the Avengers by then? He must have been getting pretty tired of it.
The art is really hit or miss. I love JRJR's work. His figures are often quite blocky, but I don't really mind. In fact, I think that's what I love about his art. But in this book there are some really weak spots. JRJR just can't seem to draw Spider-Man from the side, which is kind of bizarre since he has spent so much time working on that character. Think of a JRJR drawing in your head and nine times out of ten, I'll bet your thinking of him drawing Spider-Man. You would think he could draw the guy in his sleep by now. He also seems to have a hard time drawing characters moving. Early on there is a shot of Ultron where he is flying and firing energy, but he looks really stiff. Later on we see him simply standing on a hill and he looks imposing as hell. It's kind of weird to think an artist would be stronger at showing a character just standing there?
The production quality of this book is also lousy. There are several pages where dialogue is cut off because it goes too far off the page. There is also a few pages where you can tell the art is titled, but it's not supposed to be. Part of the panel goes outside the page, but then just magically reappears further down. If Marvel is going to be charging people 20 bucks for a book, they could at least get there shit together on producing them.
Honestly, I would not recommend this book.
August 30, 2021
Steve Rogers re-assembles a team of Avengers in the aftermath of the Civil War and Secret Invasion storylines. He's passed the Captain America shield on to Bucky Barnes, so Tony Stark as Iron Man has an easier time joining the team (considering the bad blood between Tony and Steve after Civil War). Thor is on board, as is Spider-man, Spider-Woman, Wolverine, and Hawkeye. They aren't together for long before time traveler Kang the Conqueror comes with a dire threat--the children of the Avengers have teamed up with a future iteration of Ultron and turned the Earth into a wasteland. If that wasn't bad enough, the space-time continuum has been disrupted and different villains from different periods keep showing up for short periods of intense battle with the current day Avengers. A small group of the Avengers travel to the future to set things right.
As with most time travel stories, the plot is a little more convoluted and unbelievable than it needs to be. The frequent random battles are a nice distraction as is Bendis's knack for good dialogue. Romita's art has a nice, classical feel that doesn't look dated and captures the action well. I'm not entirely sold on the series but will try another volume.
Mildly recommended.
As with most time travel stories, the plot is a little more convoluted and unbelievable than it needs to be. The frequent random battles are a nice distraction as is Bendis's knack for good dialogue. Romita's art has a nice, classical feel that doesn't look dated and captures the action well. I'm not entirely sold on the series but will try another volume.
Mildly recommended.
October 29, 2016
*Book source ~ Library
Kang the Conqueror has traveled from the future to beg the Avengers to go to the future and stop their children from screwing up Earth. As in big time capital A-pocalypse, screw it up. The Avengers are all like, what?! Kids?! What kids?! Anyway, the timeline is all jacked up and things from the past are coming forward and destroying shit in the present timeline. So, the Avengers Assemble, a small team, and go to the future to smack the shit out of their kids while the rest of them stay back to handle timeline clean up duty. But surprise! No, I’m not saying what the surprise is. You gotta read it to see.
Anyway, I’m not a fan of time travel. It hurts my head. Also, this is the 1st Avenger graphic novel I’ve ever read, so I’m a little out of the loop on bad guys both past and present. A bit lost there. Other than that, I love the dialogue and the artwork is fantastic. I wouldn’t be averse to picking up more of this series.
Kang the Conqueror has traveled from the future to beg the Avengers to go to the future and stop their children from screwing up Earth. As in big time capital A-pocalypse, screw it up. The Avengers are all like, what?! Kids?! What kids?! Anyway, the timeline is all jacked up and things from the past are coming forward and destroying shit in the present timeline. So, the Avengers Assemble, a small team, and go to the future to smack the shit out of their kids while the rest of them stay back to handle timeline clean up duty. But surprise! No, I’m not saying what the surprise is. You gotta read it to see.
Anyway, I’m not a fan of time travel. It hurts my head. Also, this is the 1st Avenger graphic novel I’ve ever read, so I’m a little out of the loop on bad guys both past and present. A bit lost there. Other than that, I love the dialogue and the artwork is fantastic. I wouldn’t be averse to picking up more of this series.
May 10, 2020
I'm liking the new angle the Avengers are taking in this series. The Sci-fi storyline and new recruits are all positives and even the non-stop fighting that defines an Avengers story works well. The artwork is good and - unlike so many other projects - is actually consistent throughout. That's all good but I did find myself getting a little confused about the events - especially those drawn from other story arcs. There are a lot of characters in this book and I recognized hardly any of them and some of the group fight scenes were just bizarre. I was never sure why they were fighting. But these were not key plot points so I got by them quickly as I read. There is good potential in this series - which is saying a lot for an Avengers book for me - and I really want to see how the story progresses. All in all I found this book to be one of the best Avengers stories I've read in a long time.
June 7, 2012
As much as I love superheroes, I usually shy away from graphic novels. I grew up with funny comics, such as Garfield and Archie, and I couldn't see myself getting into any Marvel or DC storylines, unless they were in literary prose or cinematic form. After reading this collection of Avengers comics, I have to say I was wrong. Between the amazing artwork, the fun story, the humorous quips, and...well, everything else, I think I've found a new form of art to love. Content-wise, as bad as it gets is some profanity and violence that is occasionally bloody.
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