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Essential Avengers #4
Essential Avengers, Vol. 4
Witness the triumphant travels of Earth's Mightiest Heroes through time, space and other dimensions - fighting the armies of two galaxies, and the heroes of other worlds and yesteryear, with stopovers in criminal territory from New York to the Southwest! Villains from street-level to cosmic! Kang and the Grandmaster! The Zodiac and the Sons of the Serpent! Arkon! The Grim Reaper and his Lethal Legion! The origin of the Black Panther! The Hulk shrunk to the size of an atom! And, believe it or not, more! Cross-Earth, wartime and western adventure! The Kree-Skrull War in its entirety! Also featuring the Invaders, the Squadron Supreme, the Red Wolf and Captain Mar-Vell!
Avengers #69-97, Incredible Hulk #140
Avengers #69-97, Incredible Hulk #140
640 pages, Paperback
First published March 10, 1972
4 people are currently reading
114 people want to read
About the author
Roy Thomas
4,480 books272 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 - 20 of 20 reviews
February 4, 2016
This volume really represents the beginnings of the transition between the original, '60s-tastic, Lee & Kirby style Avengers to the team that's recognisable as the modern era, roster-juggling, large-scale adventuring Avengers we have today.
There is some brilliant artwork on display here by Neal Adams and both the Buscemas, John and Sal. The standard of comicbook colouring was still pretty poor at the dawn of the 1970s but the joy of the Essential collections is that you get to see this great artwork in black and white.
The main event collected here is the now-legendary Kree/Skrull War, which closes out this volume. To be honest, compared to more recent stuff, like the Annihilation Wave for example, it feels more like a smallish skirmish than a full-blown war, but it's still great to see save the entire galaxy! Boy done good!
There is some brilliant artwork on display here by Neal Adams and both the Buscemas, John and Sal. The standard of comicbook colouring was still pretty poor at the dawn of the 1970s but the joy of the Essential collections is that you get to see this great artwork in black and white.
The main event collected here is the now-legendary Kree/Skrull War, which closes out this volume. To be honest, compared to more recent stuff, like the Annihilation Wave for example, it feels more like a smallish skirmish than a full-blown war, but it's still great to see save the entire galaxy! Boy done good!
September 8, 2018
Just as good as the first time I read it in the individual comics. There was a lot I forgot. Includes the Kree-Skrull war and Neal Adams artwork. Awesome!
April 29, 2025
There's a singular reason to own this book. Sure, if you've got volumes 1-3, you're going to want volume #4. But even if you weren't interested in the material of Essential Avengers Volume 1-3, if you are a fan of the Marvel universe, and you don't mind your reprints in black and white, you will want to own this book because of the Kree-Skrull War!
There have been several cosmic brouhahas in the multitude of pages coming from Marvel Comics. But to truly understand the origin of those conflicts, such as Annihilation, you've got to delve into the adventures of Earth's Mightiest Heroes from 1969-1971.
Never to be an Avenger Rick Jones finally gets a chance to be a hero. Only because of a strange twist of fate, the one time Hulk sidekick isn't allowed to be his own man. Instead, a pair of cosmically powered bracelets force Rick to become bonded to the Kree warrior Mar-vell. Whenever trouble arrives, Rick activates the bands and he switches places with Earth's newest hero, Captain Marvel- into the Negative Zone!
Jones and Mar-vell's occupation in that inter-dimensional Hell sparks the attention of the Negative Zone's tyrannical leader Annihilus. With the Fantastic Four away, it's up to the Avengers to monitor any disturbances in the Zone. As a result, Jones and Mar-vell's link is severed. Now both can exist on Earth-616 at the same time. This the wheels that will cause an intergalactic war between Kree and Skrull- with Earth in the exact center crosshairs- begin to turn.
Roy Thomas does it yet again! With art by Sal Buscema and Neal Adams, this really is a volume not to be missed. That is if you can find it.. Out of print for over a decade and highly sought after by collectors, the Essential Marvel books are increasing difficult to find. Especially for a good price. But if you happen to come across one in decent shape that's affordable, you should grab it without question! Though you might ask why the editors included an issue of The Incredible Hulk in this volume. While you are supposed to read that issue after a crossover of sorts in the pages of The Avengers, the super team don't even appear in the Hulk book except for a cameo in the recap section of the tale. A good story but really could have been avoided if they just included some sort of blurb that the Avengers didn't have any active role in the Hulk's adventure in a pocket universe in the sub- atomic realm.
There have been several cosmic brouhahas in the multitude of pages coming from Marvel Comics. But to truly understand the origin of those conflicts, such as Annihilation, you've got to delve into the adventures of Earth's Mightiest Heroes from 1969-1971.
Never to be an Avenger Rick Jones finally gets a chance to be a hero. Only because of a strange twist of fate, the one time Hulk sidekick isn't allowed to be his own man. Instead, a pair of cosmically powered bracelets force Rick to become bonded to the Kree warrior Mar-vell. Whenever trouble arrives, Rick activates the bands and he switches places with Earth's newest hero, Captain Marvel- into the Negative Zone!
Jones and Mar-vell's occupation in that inter-dimensional Hell sparks the attention of the Negative Zone's tyrannical leader Annihilus. With the Fantastic Four away, it's up to the Avengers to monitor any disturbances in the Zone. As a result, Jones and Mar-vell's link is severed. Now both can exist on Earth-616 at the same time. This the wheels that will cause an intergalactic war between Kree and Skrull- with Earth in the exact center crosshairs- begin to turn.
Roy Thomas does it yet again! With art by Sal Buscema and Neal Adams, this really is a volume not to be missed. That is if you can find it.. Out of print for over a decade and highly sought after by collectors, the Essential Marvel books are increasing difficult to find. Especially for a good price. But if you happen to come across one in decent shape that's affordable, you should grab it without question! Though you might ask why the editors included an issue of The Incredible Hulk in this volume. While you are supposed to read that issue after a crossover of sorts in the pages of The Avengers, the super team don't even appear in the Hulk book except for a cameo in the recap section of the tale. A good story but really could have been avoided if they just included some sort of blurb that the Avengers didn't have any active role in the Hulk's adventure in a pocket universe in the sub- atomic realm.
July 15, 2017
This is the second omnibus of AVENGERS comics I've read, so I was more prepared for what I found. And I liked what I saw for the most part.
From the Sons of the Serpent's white supremacy (an obvious KKK parallel) and Arkon's global nuclear warmongering (Cold War parallel) to Van Lunt's corporation manipulation (parallel to, well, real life corporate tactics), H. Warren Craddock's witch hunt for illegal aliens (parallel to McCarthy's communist witch hunt AND the loud yam's ruthless deportations) and Red Wolf's mission to oust his tribe's oppressors (reminiscent again of real life developer tactics & the #noDAPL movement), Stan Lee and Roy Thomas are not remotely in the area of messing around. These are the Avengers I would love to love, who stand up for minorities and the disenfranchised. They fight the the upper class and even the government itself. This was a good read for this time and place.
However, being a product of its time also includes a hefty amount of unacceptable racism, misogyny, and homophobia. Clint Barton's nicknames sometimes reveled in homoerotic subtext, but more times reveled in blatant sexism towards his female colleagues and racism towards T'Challa. Clint also had a weird moment of homophobia where he thought Thor was coming on to him because Thor sAVED HIM FROM DYING. Thankfully, Thor was as weirded out as me. The Lady Liberators storyline had all the female superheroes suddenly turning into radical feminists who wanted to kill all men. It was dealt with very poorly, not to mention cringe-worthy and cliche.
These bad moments were thankfully outweighed by the good ones, and I came off happier to have read it. My current favorite Avenger, Dane Whitman, aka the Black Knight, also featured in stories about Kang the Conquerer and the second battle with Arkon, where he had smexy smooch times with the Enchantress Amora. There's also a heaping of parallel, primordial, & pipsqueak world shenanigans and the Kree vs Skrull War. Overall, ESSENTIAL AVENGERS, VOL 4 seemed a solid installment in Avengers lore and good for any and all fans.
From the Sons of the Serpent's white supremacy (an obvious KKK parallel) and Arkon's global nuclear warmongering (Cold War parallel) to Van Lunt's corporation manipulation (parallel to, well, real life corporate tactics), H. Warren Craddock's witch hunt for illegal aliens (parallel to McCarthy's communist witch hunt AND the loud yam's ruthless deportations) and Red Wolf's mission to oust his tribe's oppressors (reminiscent again of real life developer tactics & the #noDAPL movement), Stan Lee and Roy Thomas are not remotely in the area of messing around. These are the Avengers I would love to love, who stand up for minorities and the disenfranchised. They fight the the upper class and even the government itself. This was a good read for this time and place.
However, being a product of its time also includes a hefty amount of unacceptable racism, misogyny, and homophobia. Clint Barton's nicknames sometimes reveled in homoerotic subtext, but more times reveled in blatant sexism towards his female colleagues and racism towards T'Challa. Clint also had a weird moment of homophobia where he thought Thor was coming on to him because Thor sAVED HIM FROM DYING. Thankfully, Thor was as weirded out as me. The Lady Liberators storyline had all the female superheroes suddenly turning into radical feminists who wanted to kill all men. It was dealt with very poorly, not to mention cringe-worthy and cliche.
These bad moments were thankfully outweighed by the good ones, and I came off happier to have read it. My current favorite Avenger, Dane Whitman, aka the Black Knight, also featured in stories about Kang the Conquerer and the second battle with Arkon, where he had smexy smooch times with the Enchantress Amora. There's also a heaping of parallel, primordial, & pipsqueak world shenanigans and the Kree vs Skrull War. Overall, ESSENTIAL AVENGERS, VOL 4 seemed a solid installment in Avengers lore and good for any and all fans.
September 19, 2023
Essential Avengers Vol. 4 contains a mix of good, really good and fantastic material from the late-60s and early-70s.
It starts off strong with a fun story featuring Kang the Conqueror, the Squadron Sinister, and the Grandmaster, before settling into a period of shorter, less impactful stories, featuring the likes of Zodiac, Sons of the Serpent, Arkon the Magnificent etc. These shorter stories aren't as memorable and sadly bring the quality of the book down a notch. Thankfully, however, the Squadron Sinister return as the Squadron Supreme for an entertaining two-part story, before the grand finale of this volume: the Kree-Skrull War. To me, this is one of the first really big event storylines in Marvel Comics, and it still holds up today.
The Buscema brothers art looks great, but then when Neal Adams shows up for select issues of the Kree-Skrull War storyline you realise how good comic book art can be! Those issues are absolutely gorgeous!
It starts off strong with a fun story featuring Kang the Conqueror, the Squadron Sinister, and the Grandmaster, before settling into a period of shorter, less impactful stories, featuring the likes of Zodiac, Sons of the Serpent, Arkon the Magnificent etc. These shorter stories aren't as memorable and sadly bring the quality of the book down a notch. Thankfully, however, the Squadron Sinister return as the Squadron Supreme for an entertaining two-part story, before the grand finale of this volume: the Kree-Skrull War. To me, this is one of the first really big event storylines in Marvel Comics, and it still holds up today.
The Buscema brothers art looks great, but then when Neal Adams shows up for select issues of the Kree-Skrull War storyline you realise how good comic book art can be! Those issues are absolutely gorgeous!
November 18, 2018
I'm going to go ahead and give this 5 stars because so much happend in this volume. Roy Thomas did a lot to set up an interesting future for the Avengers.
February 26, 2008
I hate to admit it, but by Volume 4 the comic is showing some rot. The Avengers have started to mean "old members who we felt like having show up" which opened the door to revolving door membership and in turn eventually to "okay, who's popular right now?" Which you can't really fault. Some fairly memorable stuff in the collection-the Kree-Skrull War, Clint Barton as Goliath, Hank Pym leaving again, then showing up again as Ant-Man, then leaving again, with his usual self-esteem issues. You can see where the weight of continuity is starting to pile up on Marvel here-going back to issue 2 of The Fantastic Four for plot points, etc.-that will only get worse with time. I also maintain that the whole "wife beater"=Hank Pym thing started because Pym was one of the few (only?) married supers back in the day and therefore the attitudes of the time get their worse showing in old Hank (plus he was an unpopular character compared to people like Iron Man and Cap). Still, there's no getting around stuff that the writers *PRE* more modern attitudes have him do things like when he punches out Jan in one issue so that she won't have to face the horrors ahead. Nice show old man. This set also features storylines about race (can you guess which Avenger shows up for this), nods to Lovecraft (yeah!), and the appearance of an Enchantress led group of female heroes on the war path called the Liberators. Oh, yeah, and a McCarthy style witch hunt. So ole' Marvel is clearly flexing it's social issues muscles here.
January 2, 2013
From glancing over other reviews, I tend to agree with most of them--there is some really fun stuff in here, but it still suffers from a lot of the same problems: everything is still very episodic, hurriedly solved in the last few pages. Everyone talks out loud about everything, all the time. And so on.
This book seems a little more culturally relevant, hitting on topics of feminism and equality, along with the witch-hunt mentality which reoccurs so frequently in America.
But this book does spend a lot of time on the B- and C- listers. The big 3 only appear occasionally, and Vision really seems like the main character through much of the book. This could be good, but most of the characters still haven't distinguished themselves--they all talk the same and act the same, and so on.
The Kree-Skrull War, at the end of the book, is kind of a tide change. The writer is finally willing to let something drag on and on. It's continuity-heavy, character-heavy, and overly busy--all things that have plagued Marvel's big events since--but it also has a good, sprawling sense of drama. Unfortunately, the finale is almost completely nonsensical. Thomas had the time to explain some of the plot points that were extremely coincidental, but not the time to explain what really happened--how did everything get wrapped up?
Anyway, a lot of the stories in this book have good foundations, and with a new coat of paint and some more time, they could still be good stories. But reading them now, they're only ok.
This book seems a little more culturally relevant, hitting on topics of feminism and equality, along with the witch-hunt mentality which reoccurs so frequently in America.
But this book does spend a lot of time on the B- and C- listers. The big 3 only appear occasionally, and Vision really seems like the main character through much of the book. This could be good, but most of the characters still haven't distinguished themselves--they all talk the same and act the same, and so on.
The Kree-Skrull War, at the end of the book, is kind of a tide change. The writer is finally willing to let something drag on and on. It's continuity-heavy, character-heavy, and overly busy--all things that have plagued Marvel's big events since--but it also has a good, sprawling sense of drama. Unfortunately, the finale is almost completely nonsensical. Thomas had the time to explain some of the plot points that were extremely coincidental, but not the time to explain what really happened--how did everything get wrapped up?
Anyway, a lot of the stories in this book have good foundations, and with a new coat of paint and some more time, they could still be good stories. But reading them now, they're only ok.
May 9, 2012
There was some really cool classic Marvel events in here: introduction of the Squadron Supreme/Sinister, the first Skrull/Kree War, Black Panthers battle with the Man Ape, The Vision and Wanda Maximofs budding romance.
The volume also saw the return of the original members of the team, joining together with the newer members which was a nice mix for the later Skrull/Kree war. Early on in the volume was a return of the Serpent Society as well as some pretty interested social/racial commentary. It wasn't in any way mind blowing as a modern day reader, but I have to imagine as a kid in 1970 it might have made me think of some things.
The artwork in this volume also felt WAY more dynamic and modern than in the last one. Far more details in the faces, better use of narration/dialog/action on "screen" as well as nontraditional screen placement on the page. All in all a solid read, even though every third story or so ended up being easily forgotten soon after.
The volume also saw the return of the original members of the team, joining together with the newer members which was a nice mix for the later Skrull/Kree war. Early on in the volume was a return of the Serpent Society as well as some pretty interested social/racial commentary. It wasn't in any way mind blowing as a modern day reader, but I have to imagine as a kid in 1970 it might have made me think of some things.
The artwork in this volume also felt WAY more dynamic and modern than in the last one. Far more details in the faces, better use of narration/dialog/action on "screen" as well as nontraditional screen placement on the page. All in all a solid read, even though every third story or so ended up being easily forgotten soon after.
October 10, 2020
To many things happen to go into to much detail. I read about the squadron supreme before, and had no idea they started out as a villain group. Other villain groups also give the Avengers a hard time this volume. A lot of development for the Black Panther (including his origin), making way for his inevitable switch from the Avengers to his own comic.
The highlight is the Skrull-Kree war. It is the first 'event' in the marvel continuity where almost every hero is involved in some way. This event really felt special, and was wrapped up before it overstayed it's welcome. The ending had a bit of an deux ex machina feel, but as a whole it did succeed (and there is a 'what if' comic somewhere that addresses this particular ending). These days there are more crossover events than not, making them feel like long drown out ordinary stories, that kill the passing in the regular mags. Modern comic editors from Marvel and DC should take notice of this overkill.
The highlight is the Skrull-Kree war. It is the first 'event' in the marvel continuity where almost every hero is involved in some way. This event really felt special, and was wrapped up before it overstayed it's welcome. The ending had a bit of an deux ex machina feel, but as a whole it did succeed (and there is a 'what if' comic somewhere that addresses this particular ending). These days there are more crossover events than not, making them feel like long drown out ordinary stories, that kill the passing in the regular mags. Modern comic editors from Marvel and DC should take notice of this overkill.
January 27, 2011
I picked these up lately as years ago I had to sell my own collection of silver age comics. Black and white but still the stories are here.
If you follow my reviews (not "essential" LOL) you may have noticed that I "skipped" Vol. 3 when I was buying the "Essential Avengers". I did this because in "Essential Avengers #3 Captain America leaves after the first issue. While I like (liked) the Avengers comics (Silver Age) I was really a Captain America fan. While originally I owned the issues I saw no point in buying the black and white versions.
Here we pick up Avengers issues 69 through 97 (and Incredible Hulk #140).
The cosmic as well as Earthly adventures continue with the Earths Mightiest Heroes. As noted before, still enjoyable and very nostalgic. Four stars only because of the black and white format.
If you follow my reviews (not "essential" LOL) you may have noticed that I "skipped" Vol. 3 when I was buying the "Essential Avengers". I did this because in "Essential Avengers #3 Captain America leaves after the first issue. While I like (liked) the Avengers comics (Silver Age) I was really a Captain America fan. While originally I owned the issues I saw no point in buying the black and white versions.
Here we pick up Avengers issues 69 through 97 (and Incredible Hulk #140).
The cosmic as well as Earthly adventures continue with the Earths Mightiest Heroes. As noted before, still enjoyable and very nostalgic. Four stars only because of the black and white format.
August 7, 2011
Reprints Avengers #69-97 and Incredible Hulk #140. The Avengers cross time and space and face off against enemies like the Lethal Legion and the Zodiac while also meeting Squadron Supreme, Red Wolf, the Invaders, and Captain Mar-vell. This stretch of the Avengers is pretty good. The issues are less episodic and feel like they are part of bigger story arcs. The book also contains the Kree-Skrull War and some great art by John Buscema.
April 18, 2012
This book reprints Avengers stories from the early '70s. The stories are all enjoyable. A nice mix of big scale adventures, such as the Kree/Skrull War, and smaller adventures focusing on the less powerful characters. Roy Thomas wrote all of the stories, and the characterization remains consistent. The stories feature artwork from a number of artists, including greats like Neal Adams and John Buscema. In the 20+ issues, each character gets a chance to shine.
July 21, 2012
Material so classic that Marvel's still mining it 35 years later :o)
Some filler, but it also includes the introduction of the Squadron Supreme and the Kree-Skrull war. Add in a team small enough to allow for proper character development and interaction, and some great art by Buscema and Adams and you've got a great Avengers book.
Some filler, but it also includes the introduction of the Squadron Supreme and the Kree-Skrull war. Add in a team small enough to allow for proper character development and interaction, and some great art by Buscema and Adams and you've got a great Avengers book.
February 16, 2011
The Kree-Skrull war: Epic! I love Scarlet Witch and Vision's ongoing love story, Black Panther's moral quandaries, and Thor's wise and florid comments ("The metal of the human spirit is forged upon the anvil of sorrow, Avenger. Thus hath it ever been -- thus shall it ever be.").
July 4, 2013
In questo volume siamo alla presenza di alcuni capolavori: dopo la già ottima raccolta dell'Essential Avengers 4, qui la qualità è ancora più alta sia come testi sia come disegni; è un crescendo continuo che culmina con la mitica guerra Kree-skrull!
July 27, 2015
Roy Thomas was one of the first writers to approach comics from a more "adult" perspective (along with Denny O'Neil) and this volume shows the improved storytelling of the early 70s Marvel Comics, culminating with the Kree-Skrull war. This paved the way for things like the Dark Phoenix saga.
April 11, 2011
Slowly this is becoming a great book not just about fighting. The last story arc is very good.
December 30, 2013
Great stories by Roy Thomas and Company, but better in the Marvel Masterworks full-color collections.
October 31, 2016
We got to see quite a bit of Black Knight, which was great, and a lot of casual misogyny, which is... less great. Overall a fun romp, though!
Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews