Review # 173: "Avengers Assemble by Kurt Busiek Vol. 5"

"The Kang Dynasty" may be the most refreshing Kang story out there. After decades of complicated schemes where he tries to trap the Avengers in android bodies or marry Mantis or kill his counterparts from other universes, the Conquerer finally says "F*** it," blows up the United Nations building because he can, and sets all these armies he's always talking about on Earth in a global war.

Review # 125: "Avengers West Coast - 'Vision Quest' and 'Darker Than Scarlet'"

Talk about a great Comiccon find: the out-of-print "Avengers West Coast" run with John Byrne as writer/artist for 30 bucks. I like ordering online, but there's something to be said about shelf-diving.

Review # 117: "Avengers: Absolute Vision Book 2"

At its heart, "Absolute Vision" is a pretty darn good - if basic - story. It has a slow burn that keeps you guessing, and paints Vision - a major character - in a way that makes him difficult to figure out. One moment he's stoic and robotic, the next he's smiling and speaking like a first-class politician. The synthezoid is clearly up to something, and while it's pretty easy to figure out on your own, reading as the Avengers clue in is entertaining.

Review # 88: "Avengers Assemble by Kurt Busiek Vol. 1"

Marvel was in a funk in the late 90s after the collector market bottomed out and the company narrowly avoided bankruptcy. They had just shipped many of their flagship titles to Image for a reboot to get a new audience on board. Unfortunately, it was a creative and commercial flop and left Marvel at square one.

Review # 68: "'Avengers by Brian Michael Bendis Vol. 5' and 'New Avengers by Brian Michael Bendis Vol. 5'"

And so Brian Michael Bendis' time with the Avengers comes to an end. Not with a bang, but with a whimper.

Review # 4: "Operation: Galactic Storm"

The early-to-mid 90s were a weird time for The Avengers. Thor was replaced with a human imbued with his power; Iron Man was possessed by a villain, died, and was replaced with a teenage version of himself; Wasp became half-woman, half-insect; then, in 1996, they were all "killed off" and handed over to the folks at Image Comics (Jim Lee, Rob Liefeld et al. who quit in order to theoretically make more money by having full control of their own characters) to rebuild their, well... image. The truth was the series just wasn't on the same level as the X-Men sales-wise and Marvel was pulling out all the stops to try to get people to buy in.