Review- AVENGERS INFINITY CLASSIC

AVENGERS INFINITY CLASSIC (Marvel, First Printing, 2013; Softcover)

Collects Avengers Infinity #1-4 (cover dates September- December, 2000)

Writer: Roger Stern

Artists: Sean Chen (Penciler) and Scott Hanna (Inker)

Colorist: Steve Oliff

Roger Stern's return to writing The Avengers happened while I was on sabbatical from the hobby. A bunch of heavy hitter Avengers alumni team up to do some galactic avenging in the far reaches of space. Thor, Photon (the second Captain Marvel), Quasar, Moondragon, Starfox, Tigra, and future Avenger Jack of Hearts form an ad hoc space Avengers.

This is an epic cosmic adventure, with The Avengers taking on the Infinites, beings that are so powerful that the stars themselves are mere playthings to them. Even Eternity is dwarfed by their power.

The writing and artwork are solid and this a satisfying read. It seems silly to see such a sprawling, fate of the universe type tale confined to a mere four issues, as this would be pimped out in a major crossover today. That seems to be the problem for both Marvel and DC these days. Their sales are in the tank, propped up by gimmick variant covers that dealers order X number of copies to achieve the “incentive cover”, which they flip on eBay for more money than if they sold all of the copies that they order. The rest wind up in the $1 box at conventions. The next bubble is about to burst. When it does, maybe they will go back to making more self-contained reads like this.

Junk Food For Thought rating: 4 out of 5.

The OCD zone- Nothing unusual or remarkable to report.

Linework and Color restoration: These comics were made during the digital era, so no restoration is required.

Paper stock: Good eight glossy coated stock.

Binding: Perfect bound trade paperback.

Cardstock cover notes: Laminated cardstock cover.