sonotadream

Let’s meet Marvel’s no. 2 team (until the X-Men take off)! This section of the list alternates between 4 series written in 3 different time periods (and I didn’t read them in the right order), so forgive me if things are a bit jumbled.

Avengers (1963) #1-3- Stan Lee/Jack Kirby

So, what brings the Avengers together? Loki!

He’s imprisoned in the Isle of Silence and wants to lure Thor, so they can fight and Loki can escape. He takes a look around Earth and sees the Hulk, who is perfect for his purposes. Loki sends him a mental image of a bomb in a train track. Hulk leaps to grab it, but accidentally destroys the tracks, just as a high speed train is approaching. He avoids a train wreck, but still gets the blame.

His buddy, Rick Jones, calls on his team - the Teen Brigade - for help. If the Hulk is innocent, he’ll need help to prove it; if he’s guilty, he’ll need to be stopped. The teens figure only the Fantastic Four are up to the task and send them a message on the radio. Loki interferes with the radio waves to prevent the FF from hearing the message, but making sure it reaches Dr. Blake. Iron Man, Ant-Man and the Wasp - who gets credited on the splash page, but not the cover, btw - also get the message and make their way to the Brigade’s base in New Mexico.