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Avengers Epic Collection
Avengers Epic Collection, Vol. 3: Masters of Evil
Collects Avengers (1963) #41-56, Annual (1967) #1-2; X-Men (1963) #45; material from Not Brand Echh (1967) #5, #8. Earth's Mightiest Heroes are matched with two of comics' mightiest talents - Roy Thomas and John Buscema - for one of the greatest creative periods in Avengers history! It's cover-to-cover watershed Captain America mixes it up with the Russian Red Guardian, all-new Masters of Evil make the scene and the sinister Ultron debuts!
496 pages, Paperback
First published May 1, 2017
21 people are currently reading
112 people want to read
About the author
Roy Thomas
4,517 books273 followersRoy Thomas was the FIRST Editor-in-Chief at Marvel--After Stan Lee stepped down from the position. Roy is a longtime comic book writer and editor. Thomas has written comics for Archie, Charlton, DC, Heroic Publishing, Marvel, and Topps over the years. Thomas currently edits the fanzine Alter Ego for Twomorrow's Publishing. He was Editor for Marvel comics from 1972-1974. He wrote for several titles at Marvel, such as Avengers, Thor, Invaders, Fantastic Four, X-Men, and notably Conan the Barbarian. Thomas is also known for his championing of Golden Age comic-book heroes — particularly the 1940s superhero team the Justice Society of America — and for lengthy writing stints on Marvel's X-Men and Avengers, and DC Comics' All-Star Squadron, among other titles.
Also a legendary creator. Creations include Wolverine, Carol Danvers, Ghost Rider, Vision, Iron Fist, Luke Cage, Valkyrie, Morbius, Doc Samson, and Ultron. Roy has also worked for Archie, Charlton, and DC among others over the years.
Also a legendary creator. Creations include Wolverine, Carol Danvers, Ghost Rider, Vision, Iron Fist, Luke Cage, Valkyrie, Morbius, Doc Samson, and Ultron. Roy has also worked for Archie, Charlton, and DC among others over the years.
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
December 13, 2017
Gee - if there is one thing these Epic collections are teaching me is a) Roy Thomas is no Stan Lee and b) these comics do not hold up well. Yes the art by John Buscema still holds up pretty well but the stories are blah and the character interactions are dumb. Roy thinks "this scene is too dull - let's get the heroes to swing punches at each other for no reason!" The worst subplot actually had Jarvis the butler betraying the Avengers for some money for his mom's operation!! then they forgave him "no worries Jarvis - try not to get us killed the next time you are $1000 short." We do see Ultron for the first time BUT it isn't the Ultron we know and love and just a random robot at this point in his history.
The inconsistency of the characters really bugs me. Hawkeye loves Black Widow and then...oh forget about that plot. Quicksilver is recruited by Magneto who he knows is a bad guy but...then Quicksilver thinks it is okay to join Magneto and betray the Avengers.
Really not one memorable story in the lot of them. Even the X-Men crossover devolves into a misunderstanding where the two teams fight.
Pass.
The inconsistency of the characters really bugs me. Hawkeye loves Black Widow and then...oh forget about that plot. Quicksilver is recruited by Magneto who he knows is a bad guy but...then Quicksilver thinks it is okay to join Magneto and betray the Avengers.
Really not one memorable story in the lot of them. Even the X-Men crossover devolves into a misunderstanding where the two teams fight.
Pass.
March 4, 2024
Avengers #41-42 - This volume starts with a pair of baddies from the pages of the Fantastic Four as Diablo and the Dragon Man threaten the world. (2/5)
Avengers #43-44 - Next up is a wrap up for the long running Black Widow arc and the introduction of the Red Guardian. (2/5)
Avengers Annual #1 - The Mandarin is back and this time he’s got the Enchantress, the Executioner, the Living Laser, The Swordsman, the original Power Man, and Ultimo to attack the Avengers with. But the Avengers beef up their ranks with house guest Hercules and the return of Iron Man and Thor. This should have been a blockbuster, instead it comes across as petty and lackluster. (2/5)
Avengers #45 - Avengers celebration day in Central Park and the Super-adaptoid chases the party. Nothing particularly special here other than in the inclusion of the full compliment of the Avengers. This also offers the first vocalizations of Quicksilver’s growing dissatisfaction with humans and thus his resentment of the Scarlet Witch’s growing away from him. Unfortunately, it feels very contradictory to how Quicksilver had been previously portrayed. (2/5)
Avengers #46 - Whirlwind strikes! This is a kind of epilogue to the Ant-Man/Wasp/Giant-Man stories from Tales to Astonish. And it lands just about as well as hokey, clunky adventures. And Quicksilver’s racism increases. (2/5)
Avengers #47-50 - Everything changes. Everything! Magento arrives! Quicksilver & the Scarlet Witch arencaptured and forced to rejoin the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants! A new Black Knight! Hercules heads for Olympus! Captain America quits the team! Hank Pym’s chronic sense of inadequacy, his undiagnosed bipolar disorder, continues to increase! The Avengers are falling apart! Leaving Hawkeye and the Wasp left trying to keep things together. Yep, it’s one big steaming pile of mess. At least the art by John Buscema is an improvement over departing Don Heck. (2/5)
Avengers #51-52 - First off, the Collector is back and up to his usual tricks of acquiring the Avengers for his collection. Thor and Iron Man show up and Goliath gets his full-range of size-changing abilities back yet again. Although it should be clear to everyone that this guy isn’t quite right in the head. Then the Grim Reaper is introduced in his attempt to gain revenge on those he feels killed his brother, the Avengers. And another new member joins Earth’s Mightiest Heroes, the Black Panther. (2/5)
X-Men #45 & Avengers #53 - This crossover event begins with a battle between Quicksilver and Cyclops, but it quickly explodes as the Avengers rescue the X-Men from the clutches of Magento, but fail to reduce their own captured teammates, Quicksilver and the Scarlet Witch. Not the greatest crossover event, but it’s still fun. (3/5)
Avengers #54-55 - The Masters of Evil are back, under new leadership, with a new roster. And it’s a mess. Between traitorous Jarvis and the Crimson Cowl and the motivations of the various villains - none of this makes any sense. Roy Thomas basically hits rock bottom here, throwing anything and everything against the wall, desperately hoping something, anything, will stick. Part of the problem is Hank Pym, trying to make this deranged lunatic a coherent hero has always been a disaster, but a lot of it is the decision to remove all of the interesting characters like Captain America, Iron Man, Thor, Hercules, and Scarlet Witch, and leave us with Hawkeye and the Wasp to try and handle keeping things together. Nothing against either of these two, they’re great and they’ll both have their eras in the history of the Avengers to more than shine, but neither of them are at their best in these issues. Thomas turns Jarvis into a petty two-faced liar, after turning Quicksilver into a rampant racist who’s little better than Magento, Hawkeye was finally coming out of his loud-mouth, trouble-maker attitude only to double down on it again, and Black Panther comes in being depicted as little more than a token who even alters his sacred name (initially going as The Panther in these pages) and costume to help prove that the Avengers aren’t racist (sure let’s throw away hundreds of years of Wakandan religion, ceremony, and tradition just to try and prove a point). (2/5)
Avengers #56 & Avengers Annual #2 - More retroactive continuity changes from Thomas? Or is this merely a pointless story where the events get erased because time is rewritten? Cap confirms Becky’s death. It’s original line-up Avengers vs the new Avengers. Except as time is being rewritten, Bucky may not have actually died now. Thomas inadvertently (and laughably) lays the groundwork for the Winter Soldier. (1/5)
Plus Avengers parody material from Not Brand Echh #5 & #8. Yep. There it is.
Most of this volume is filled with inconsistent characterizations and waffling motivations on both the part of the heroes and villains. There are certainly some great sequences here, but the glaring inconsistencies make it kind of a slog. And it really helps hammer home just how great team Jack Kirby and Stan Lee really were.
Avengers #43-44 - Next up is a wrap up for the long running Black Widow arc and the introduction of the Red Guardian. (2/5)
Avengers Annual #1 - The Mandarin is back and this time he’s got the Enchantress, the Executioner, the Living Laser, The Swordsman, the original Power Man, and Ultimo to attack the Avengers with. But the Avengers beef up their ranks with house guest Hercules and the return of Iron Man and Thor. This should have been a blockbuster, instead it comes across as petty and lackluster. (2/5)
Avengers #45 - Avengers celebration day in Central Park and the Super-adaptoid chases the party. Nothing particularly special here other than in the inclusion of the full compliment of the Avengers. This also offers the first vocalizations of Quicksilver’s growing dissatisfaction with humans and thus his resentment of the Scarlet Witch’s growing away from him. Unfortunately, it feels very contradictory to how Quicksilver had been previously portrayed. (2/5)
Avengers #46 - Whirlwind strikes! This is a kind of epilogue to the Ant-Man/Wasp/Giant-Man stories from Tales to Astonish. And it lands just about as well as hokey, clunky adventures. And Quicksilver’s racism increases. (2/5)
Avengers #47-50 - Everything changes. Everything! Magento arrives! Quicksilver & the Scarlet Witch arencaptured and forced to rejoin the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants! A new Black Knight! Hercules heads for Olympus! Captain America quits the team! Hank Pym’s chronic sense of inadequacy, his undiagnosed bipolar disorder, continues to increase! The Avengers are falling apart! Leaving Hawkeye and the Wasp left trying to keep things together. Yep, it’s one big steaming pile of mess. At least the art by John Buscema is an improvement over departing Don Heck. (2/5)
Avengers #51-52 - First off, the Collector is back and up to his usual tricks of acquiring the Avengers for his collection. Thor and Iron Man show up and Goliath gets his full-range of size-changing abilities back yet again. Although it should be clear to everyone that this guy isn’t quite right in the head. Then the Grim Reaper is introduced in his attempt to gain revenge on those he feels killed his brother, the Avengers. And another new member joins Earth’s Mightiest Heroes, the Black Panther. (2/5)
X-Men #45 & Avengers #53 - This crossover event begins with a battle between Quicksilver and Cyclops, but it quickly explodes as the Avengers rescue the X-Men from the clutches of Magento, but fail to reduce their own captured teammates, Quicksilver and the Scarlet Witch. Not the greatest crossover event, but it’s still fun. (3/5)
Avengers #54-55 - The Masters of Evil are back, under new leadership, with a new roster. And it’s a mess. Between traitorous Jarvis and the Crimson Cowl and the motivations of the various villains - none of this makes any sense. Roy Thomas basically hits rock bottom here, throwing anything and everything against the wall, desperately hoping something, anything, will stick. Part of the problem is Hank Pym, trying to make this deranged lunatic a coherent hero has always been a disaster, but a lot of it is the decision to remove all of the interesting characters like Captain America, Iron Man, Thor, Hercules, and Scarlet Witch, and leave us with Hawkeye and the Wasp to try and handle keeping things together. Nothing against either of these two, they’re great and they’ll both have their eras in the history of the Avengers to more than shine, but neither of them are at their best in these issues. Thomas turns Jarvis into a petty two-faced liar, after turning Quicksilver into a rampant racist who’s little better than Magento, Hawkeye was finally coming out of his loud-mouth, trouble-maker attitude only to double down on it again, and Black Panther comes in being depicted as little more than a token who even alters his sacred name (initially going as The Panther in these pages) and costume to help prove that the Avengers aren’t racist (sure let’s throw away hundreds of years of Wakandan religion, ceremony, and tradition just to try and prove a point). (2/5)
Avengers #56 & Avengers Annual #2 - More retroactive continuity changes from Thomas? Or is this merely a pointless story where the events get erased because time is rewritten? Cap confirms Becky’s death. It’s original line-up Avengers vs the new Avengers. Except as time is being rewritten, Bucky may not have actually died now. Thomas inadvertently (and laughably) lays the groundwork for the Winter Soldier. (1/5)
Plus Avengers parody material from Not Brand Echh #5 & #8. Yep. There it is.
Most of this volume is filled with inconsistent characterizations and waffling motivations on both the part of the heroes and villains. There are certainly some great sequences here, but the glaring inconsistencies make it kind of a slog. And it really helps hammer home just how great team Jack Kirby and Stan Lee really were.
May 26, 2025
The main problem with this book is that the series never finds its footing in these issues. Members come and go and most of the time the team is made up of three people. It does pick up near the end with the Masters of Evil story and new Avengers vs the original team. The art is good though. Buscema knows how to make villains menacing. Only a must-read for the biggest Avengers fan.
August 17, 2023
Avengers Epic Collection Vol. 3: Masters of Evil really turns a page in Avengers history.
The decision to make John Buscema the comic book's primary artist was a stroke of genius. His art is just so striking, big, bold and on a whole other level than previous artist Don Heck's. The only things I don't like are how Buscema depicts Magneto (he looks like a crazed brute!) and the Grim Reaper's multicoloured costume (he would get his awesome black one before long!) Speaking of Don Heck, replacing him with Buscema must have sparked some kind of rivalry, as the three issues he returns for (Issue 45, Annual 1 and Annual 2) are among his best work. They are gorgeous!
As for Stan Lee replacement, Roy Thomas, well let's just say he really finds his footing in this volume. He weaves multi-layered stories unseen in the Avengers before now. No longer is it a case of "Avengers are resting at mansion. Villain arrives. Avengers battle villain. The end." Different characters are in different places, doing their own thing, collecting information etc. that eventually leads to a thrilling finale involving everyone else. There's just so much more intrigue and depth to the plots and characters.
Notable highlights: To be honest, I enjoyed all of this. Special mention, however, goes to the storyline featuring Hercules at Mount Olympus, starting at #47 and ending at #50, the Grim Reaper and Black Panther's first appearances in #52 and the Return of the Masters of Evil in issues #54 & #55.
The decision to make John Buscema the comic book's primary artist was a stroke of genius. His art is just so striking, big, bold and on a whole other level than previous artist Don Heck's. The only things I don't like are how Buscema depicts Magneto (he looks like a crazed brute!) and the Grim Reaper's multicoloured costume (he would get his awesome black one before long!) Speaking of Don Heck, replacing him with Buscema must have sparked some kind of rivalry, as the three issues he returns for (Issue 45, Annual 1 and Annual 2) are among his best work. They are gorgeous!
As for Stan Lee replacement, Roy Thomas, well let's just say he really finds his footing in this volume. He weaves multi-layered stories unseen in the Avengers before now. No longer is it a case of "Avengers are resting at mansion. Villain arrives. Avengers battle villain. The end." Different characters are in different places, doing their own thing, collecting information etc. that eventually leads to a thrilling finale involving everyone else. There's just so much more intrigue and depth to the plots and characters.
Notable highlights: To be honest, I enjoyed all of this. Special mention, however, goes to the storyline featuring Hercules at Mount Olympus, starting at #47 and ending at #50, the Grim Reaper and Black Panther's first appearances in #52 and the Return of the Masters of Evil in issues #54 & #55.
July 24, 2020
Roy Thomas provides a much stronger plotting hand on this run of Avengers books than the Lee/Heck team did in the previous volume. There are multiple continuity touches showing what various characters are doing in their own series, the introduction of Ultron and a couple of really good arcs (the final one, involving Bucky's death and an alternate timeline where the original Avengers went bad is a personal favorite).
But Thomas is surprisingly sloppy at times (inexperience? Pressed for time?). The Avengers meet the new Black Knight, then two issues later they forget he's not the original. The Black Widow has a great plotline, then Thomas reduces her to a rather whiny girlfriend. The Avengers butler has a plot twist that while effective doesn't make much sense. I still enjoy them, despite being conscious of their flaws, but as usual with Silver Age books YMMV.
But Thomas is surprisingly sloppy at times (inexperience? Pressed for time?). The Avengers meet the new Black Knight, then two issues later they forget he's not the original. The Black Widow has a great plotline, then Thomas reduces her to a rather whiny girlfriend. The Avengers butler has a plot twist that while effective doesn't make much sense. I still enjoy them, despite being conscious of their flaws, but as usual with Silver Age books YMMV.
April 27, 2024
While it's not intriguing enough to make my X-Men headcanon, this is a fun, cheesecake factory level comic romp. While most of the volume is just random Avengers adventures with major character inconsistencies and over-the-top writing, the latter third starts to involve X-Men characters. It starts with Magneto returning from the space prison he was kidnapped to in the pages of the X-Men. And eventually we get to see an actual crossover where the X-Men and the Avengers battle before realizing they should be working together.
Is it the best crossover you've ever read? Certainly not. Is it a thousand times better than the 2010s Avengers vs X-Men fiasco. Hell. Yes.
If you enjoy silver age comics and are an X-Men fan, this Avengers collection is worth picking up. If you're an Avengers fan, you can pretty much skip this one. The non X-Men storylines are a mess.
Is it the best crossover you've ever read? Certainly not. Is it a thousand times better than the 2010s Avengers vs X-Men fiasco. Hell. Yes.
If you enjoy silver age comics and are an X-Men fan, this Avengers collection is worth picking up. If you're an Avengers fan, you can pretty much skip this one. The non X-Men storylines are a mess.
August 20, 2020
Overall a solid range of stories from Thomas and Buscema. Quality does vary, with: the opening Diablo story; the Annuals - which have a nice idea but fail a bit in execution, and; the rogue X-Men issue, being the weakest. Still there's some nice things here: Herc joining the team for their adventures early on; Pietro feeling alienated to set up the fun Magneto arc; Black Panther fitting seamlessly into the team; Dane Whitman's introduction; the Grim Reaper.
Has anyone questioned Roy's love of robots also? We have: Dragon Man; Ultimo; Super-Adaptoid; robots controlled by Magneto; a robot summoned by The Collector; Zemo having a robot, and; of course the introduction of Ultron.
Has anyone questioned Roy's love of robots also? We have: Dragon Man; Ultimo; Super-Adaptoid; robots controlled by Magneto; a robot summoned by The Collector; Zemo having a robot, and; of course the introduction of Ultron.
June 8, 2017
The Avengers reach their milestone fiftieth issue, and gues stars abound, including The Fantastic Four and Magneto. Captain America is officially removed from the roster, and inspite of some pretty ropy villains, including The Whirlwind, The Black Knight and Dragon Man, these stories still make for a great collection, including the first appearances of Ultron and the revelation as to where he came from! Plus a crossover story with X-Men issue 45 in a desperate attempt to boost their sales as Marvel reprints The Avengers issues 11 to 56 and the second annual.
March 14, 2023
While the front half wasn’t as exciting for me by the end I can say I’ve started to get into what Roy Thomas is putting out. The next volume has a lot more going for it but I liked the masters of evil stories at the end and bringing Red Guardian into the mix was kind of fun. Either this volume or the end of the last seems to be where the Avengers find their footing.
March 8, 2018
Interesting look at the past of The Avengers. The writing is quite dated and in these "woke" times would more than likely be considered -ist/-phobic (racist, sexist, homophobic, Islamophobic). Still it's an mildly entertaining look back at the early days of "Earth's Mightiest Heroes".
September 23, 2024
This book was ok didn’t like how in two of the issues avengers just randomly showed up without an explanation of how they got there and I get quicksilver didn’t want to protect humans anymore but I don’t understand why him and scarlet witch went back with magneto
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 14, 2018
Roy Thomas still hasn't really hit his stride with these issues, but they're better than the last batch, and we get some of John Buscema's amazing artwork.
September 17, 2018
50 years' old stories - but still engaging!
July 13, 2020
Classic Avengers at its best
October 2, 2021
The continuing saga of the early years of the MCU and is very intriguing indeed.
November 26, 2022
Gave this one an extra star for including the Avengers Specials. They were indeed special back in the day!
October 6, 2024
Solid book, I didn't feel like it was any better or worse than the other two. It introduced one of my favorite villains in Ultron but he doesn't get much time or have much going for him quite yet.
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews