Avengers Epic Collection: The Final Threat (Avengers (1963-1996))

Possibly one of the best examples of Classic 70s Marvel I’ve read from creators that include George Perez, Sal Buscema, John Byrne and Jim Shooter. The focus is more on The Vision, Scarlet Witch and Wonder Man emphasising the ‘new line up’ of Avengers whilst mainstays such as Iron Man, Captain America and Thor taking a back seat.The stories mainly consist of The Avengers getting attacked in their mansion seemingly by a different villain every month. But it’s great pulp storytelling and I found it really enjoyable.

The Epic collection series is a great idea, this volume covers 1976-1977 just after I took a break from reading comics and there are some pretty good stories here.As has been noted there are no great story arcs but plenty of good tales starting with the announcement of a new team line-up being interrupted by the long believed dead Wonder Man followed by a voodoo filled trip to New Orleans.The volume also has Nuklo, Attuma (featuring the Whizzer, Sub-Mariner and Dr Doom), Graviton, The Lethal Legion, Count Nefaria, Grim Reaper, Ultron and ends with a crossover tale involving Thanos that stars Warlock, Captain Marvel, Spider-Man and The Thing. Wisely when stories crossed over into other titles they have been included.There's a few nice extras of original artwork at the end although not as much as some volumes have.The Epic series are a reasonably inexpensive way of catching up on a lot of the events I have missed, and in full colour.

This is the first of Marvel's new line of Epic Collections that I have purchased, and let me just say that so far, I'm very impressed. For years fans have wanted a proper line of collected back issues for their favourite series, and this one seems to have struck a perfect balance between quality and affordability (at least, here on Amazon; £20 or so is a very good price). The paper and binding quality is good, and the reprinted comics themselves are bright and colourful, and very sharp.Now, they are not releasing the ECs in chronological order, so don't be confused by this first book being Volume 9. The entire run will be collected eventually, but Marvel have chosen to release lesser-known and previously uncollected runs first, filling in the other volumes later. It's certainly a different strategy, but I feel that it works.The volume covers the years 1976-1977, and although there aren't any world-staggering story arcs included, this is still a very solid run for Earth's Mightiest Heroes. The writing, largely by Gerry Conway and Jim Shooter, is exciting and hip (for the time), and the art comes from a selection of renowned seventies creators: John and Sal Buscema, George Perez, Jim Starlin, and a particularly beautiful three-parter from John Byrne.The highlights include Wonder Man's return from the dead, the first appearance of Graviton, and Ultron's attempt to transfer the mind of the Wasp into the body of his robotic bride. Wonderfully, Marvel have very sensibly included extra material when the stories cross over into other titles; so when an Attuma/Doctor Doom tale continues in Super-villain Team-up, that issue is included. When Thanos's attempt to destroy the stars spreads into Marvel Two-in-One Annual #2, it's here. It helps everything read seamlessly and smoothly, and is very well thought-out.Now, it should be noted that my copy at least has a printing error; what appears as page 190 should actually appear between 194 and 195. It's not a deal-breaker, and it's fairly obvious how the story should read, but I figured it was worth the loss of a star. Otherwise, though, this is an excellent way of collecting Marvel's back-issues, and I can't wait to grab the others.