Review- IRON MAN 2020

IRON MAN 2020 (Marvel, First Printing, 2013; Softcover)

Collects Amazing Spider-Man Annual #20, Astonishing Tales: Iron Man 2020 #1-6 webcomic, Death's Head #10, Iron Man 2020 #1, Machine Man #1-4, and the Iron Man 2020 story from What If... #53 (cover dates October, 1984- May 13, 2009)

Writers: Fred Schiller, Ken McDonald, Tom DeFalco, Simon Furman, Walt Simonson, and Daniel Merlin Goodbrey with Barry Windsor-Smith and Bob Wiaceck

Artists: Mark Beachum, Herb Trimpe, Barry Windsor-Smith, Btryan Hitch, Bob Wiaceck, William Rosado, Lou Kang, Manny Galan, Craig Yeung, and Jim Amash

The Iron Man of 2020 is Arno Stark, the cousin of Tony Stark from the far flung future of 2020. This seems amusing to me here in the future present of 2019, but back when I first encountered the character in Amazing Spider-Man Annual #20 in late July of 1986 I figured that we would be living on the moon by 2020. Then-13 year old me sat there and wondered what I would be like in the year 2020. Would I be married? Have kids? Would Judas Priest still be around? Turns out the answers are divorced, yes, and, most surprisingly, yes.

Even 13 year old me thought that the artwork in ASM Annual #20 sucked.

Aside from the four issue mini-series by Tom DeFalco with Herb Trimpe and Barry Windsor-Smith, this is all pretty forgettable stuff . A lot of this book is just this middle of the road, mediocre stuff which began to plague comics circa 1986. This seemed to be around the time when Marvel began stretching themselves thin with the New Universe and endless mini-series.

This is one of those collected editions which, on the surface, seem like a hodge-podge scattershot of issues compiled between two covers. Once you read it, though, you realize that it is indeed a seamless story, albeit one which was published over two dozen odd years. It's worth a read but won't change your life.

Junk Food For Thought rating: 2.75 out of 5.

The OCD zone- This is the part where I go into tactile sensations and materials used in physical media. Those with heart conditions, high blood pressure, or women who are pregnant should exit my blog at their earliest convenience, as their safety cannot be guaranteed beyond this point.

Linework and Color restoration: Very good linework restoration and a color palette faithful to the original issues.

Paper stock: The same matte coated stock found in softcover Masterworks, Epic, and Classic lines. This is my favorite paper stock in the world.

Binding: Perfect bound trade paperback.

Cardstock cover notes: Laminated cardstock cover.

Review- MARVEL MASTERWORKS: THE AVENGERS VOL. 11

MARVEL MASTERWORKS: THE AVENGERS VOL. 11 (Marvel, First Printing, 2011; Hardcover)

Collects Avengers #101-111 and Daredevil #99 (cover dates July, 1972- May, 1973)

Writers: Roy Thomas and Steve Englehart with Harlan Ellison, Chris Claremont, Stan Lee, and Steve Gerber

Artists: Pencilers- Rich Buckler, John Buscema, George Tuska, Jim Starlin, Don Heck, and Sam Kweskin; Inkers- Dan Adkins, Joe Sinnott, Jim Mooney, Dave Cockrum, Frank McLaughlin, Mike Esposito, Frank Giacoia, and Syd Shores.

In this volume we find The Vision and the Scarlet Witch become the focal point for the series. Thomas builds on The Vision's discontentment with his lack of humanity in #102 while introducing a foe who soon-to-be Avengers writer Steve Englehart would use quite often: The Grim Reaper. The Grim Reaper was the brother of the late Wonder Man, whom the Vision's android brain patterns were modeled after. The Grim Reaper offers The Vision his deceased brother's body, which is in a form of stasis, in exchange for him standing aside while he destroys the team to revenge his fallen brother.

While all of that is happening, we see the return of The Sentinels, who have returned to Earth to save humanity from the “threat” of mutantkind. I dig this aspect of Silver and Bronze Age Marvel. The true shared universe aspect, where one hero's villains turn up in another magazine. There didn't have to be some lame tentpole event series with umpteen crossover titles to make it feel that way, either. The shared universe wasn't just implied, it was successfully implemented in an organic way. The suspension of disbelief was easy during this era.

Roy Thomas hands the title off to Steve Englehart with issue 105 after his Sentinels three-parter. Unlike today's comics, The Avengers were left with no time to catch their breaths before being called into action again, this time to the Savage Land. Having scooped up the Black Panther and losing Quicksilver in the previous issue, the team fights another Thomas/Adams X-Men era foe: the Savage Land Mutates: Gaza, Barbarus, Equilibrius, Amphibius, Lupo, Lorelei, and Brainchild. These comics are so action packed and fun to read. Comics without a whiff of self awareness or irony are refreshing when compared to today's hamfisted soapboxes.

#106 is a reframed Captain America inventory story that ties up a dangling plotline from a few issues earlier: The Vision and his desire for humanity. In one of those convoluted, it makes sense because everyone was stoned back then kind of way, the Grim Reaper's partner is none other than the Space Phantom. What makes it even more bizarre is that they use the inventory story as an even more confusing backdrop, inserting the Space Phantom disguised as the head of Hydra for the time being because he was biding his time in order to destroy The Avengers. None of it makes any sense to me either, but it was a blast to read nonetheless.

This “arc” is resolved in #108, which also neatly ties up the Vision and his desire to be human. He and the Scarlet Witch profess their love for one another at the end of that issue, setting the stage for a bizarre human-synthezoid relationship that will culminate in The Celestial Madonna storyline. I read the old trade paperback of that a decade or so ago, and look forward to rereading it remastered in “high def” in the Masterworks. I already own that volume, but it's the whole finding time to read everything that is the challenge. My backlog is like fine wine, aging to perfection. The older and more out of print a book is, the more enjoyable it is to read.

#109 and 110 tie up the loose ends of the Savage Land adventure from a few issues earlier, revealing Magneto to be behind it all while bringing The X-Men into the proceedings as well. Remember, The X-Men were cancelled, with their title being relegated to a reprint series. Writers like Englehart kept them alive, limping along from guest spot to guest spot until Len Wein and Dave Cockrum would give rebirth to the series in 1975. These two issues lead into Daredevil #99, acting as a way to get rid of Hawkeye and bring back the Black Widow, who has been Daredevil's love interest and co-star in that series during that time. #111 wraps up the Magneto/X-Men/Savage Land saga nicely.

The writing is great, while the art is uneven. It starts out very strong. Rich Buckler, an underrated artist if ever there were one, nails the Marvel house style of the era. I'll take this aesthetic over what passes as comic art any day of the week. Jim Starlin and Dave Cockrum aid and abet, adding their polish to various issues. Things go south with the then over-the-hill Don Heck, who phones in weak artwork with weak inking by various folks. Don Heck did some solid work, it's just that this ain't it.

Forget ham-fisted “writers” who write endless pages of talking heads Avengers sitting around a breakfast table. These Avengers save the world on a daily basis, giving the bad guys a what for in the process. I urge folks to pick up some real Avengers comics and see for yourselves.

Junk Food For Thought rating: 4.5 out of 5.

The OCD zone- Marvel Masterworks remain my poison of choice. Indeed, they are the reason that I reentered this accursed hobby lifestyle.

Linework and Color restoration: Marvel Masterworks are the Criterion Blu-Rays of collected editions. Top shelf restoration and a color palette faithful to the original comic books, all lovingly restored to the highest standards. Make mine Marvel Masterworks!

Paper stock: Thick coated stock with a slight sheen.

Binding: Smyth sewn binding. Lays flat.

Dustjacket and Hardback cover notes: Dustjacket has a lamination as well as spot varnish. The hardback casewrap has a faux leather texture with dye foil stamping on the front cover as well as the spine. 

Review- CIVIL WAR

CIVIL WAR (Marvel, Twelfth Printing, 2015; softcover)

Collects Civil War #1-7 (cover dates July, 2006- January, 2007)

Writer: Mark Millar

Artists: Steve McNiven with Inking by Dexter Vines, John Dell, Mark Morales, and Tim Townsend

Colorist: Morry Hollowell

I bought this trade when it was originally released back in 2007 and loved it, so much so that I bought most of the crossover trades as well (Ms. Marvel, Punisher War Journal, Young Avengers & Runaways, Captain America, Fantastic Four, Front Line, Heroes For Hire, New Avengers, Road To Civil War, X-Men, Marvel Universe, and Spider-Man). This was one of the few crossovers that, for my money, actually worked. I have long since dumped most of these books on eBay to buy other books, as my collection swelled and I realized that I was never going to have time to reread them.

My son was a newborn when the original trade came out. Fast forward nine years later, and my son views this as a historically important Marvel event. He had never read this but has been fascinated by it, largely due to the fact that it has become attached to the third Captain America movie. He bought the True Believers line reprint of #1 for $1 at a local comic shop and asked me if I had the book because he wanted to read the rest. I informed my son that no, Daddy buys way too many books to keep them all. I checked this copy out my local library and read all seven issues in one sitting with my nine year old son.

He loved it. Absolutely loved it. While cynical me cringed at the endless, pointless swearing which added no value to the events, my son was pumped up and excited as things unfolded. I “edited” the cursewords out as I read it to him. Swearing in mainstream superhero comics makes me embarrassed for the medium, to be honest with you. It's a shame that my son cannot pick up mainstream Marvel Comics at age 9 like I did and read it without parental censorship. One cannot claim that Marvel Comics are intended solely for adults when their parent company pumps out endless toys and cartoons based on these characters to young children.

My son's favorite things about this story were, in his own words, that Captain America and Iron Man were fighting each other on two separate teams. His least favorite thing about it was all of the swearing because it makes parents look too closely at it. He particularly enjoyed it when Captain America fought Iron Man and Spider-Man in his Iron Spider armor.

I enjoyed this on the reread all of these years later. The writing and the artwork hold up, even if the overwhelming commercial and artistic success of this would help greenlight umpteen more lame crossovers, each one less interesting and more demanding of your discretionary income than the one before it. While those would go on to sour me on modern comics as a whole, I will take this opportunity to say that I did enjoy Civil War both then and now. I really enjoyed reading it with my son, who is budding into quite the little comic book fan himself. I understand that he is the future of the medium, so I will stand aside and make way for progress.

Junk Food For Thought rating: 4.5 out of 5.

The OCD zone- I was pleasantly surprised to see that this was a Twelfth printing. Marvel finally has an evergreen title to offer to the bookstore market.

Paper stock: Thick glossy coated stock.

Binding: Perfect bound trade paperback.

Cardstock cover notes: Laminated cardstock cover. 

Review- AVENGERS: THE TRIAL OF YELLOWJACKET

AVENGERS: THE TRIAL OF YELLOWJACKET (Marvel, First Printing, 2012; Softcover)

Collects Avengers #212-230 (cover dates October, 1981- April, 1983)

Writers: J.M. DeMatteis, Steven Grant, Bob Hall, David Michelinie, Don Perlin, Jim Shooter, Roger Stern, and Alan Zelentez

Artists: Pencilers- Mark D. Bright, Sal Buscema, Bob Hall, Alan Kupperberg Greg LaRocque, Al Milgrom, Don Perlin, and Alan Weiss

Inkers- Jack Abel, Brett Breeding, Vince Colletta, Frank Giacoia, Dan Green, Al Milgrom, Joe Rubinstein, Marie Severin, Joe Sinnott, Chic Stone, and Sal Trapani

This is one of the those thick chunky proto-Epic trades, where Marvel was playing with expanded page counts at higher price points before realizing that the market for complete runs in color sell like hotcakes. This book went out of print instantly and goes for stupid money on eBay and Amazon now. I am lucky that I grabbed it on the week of release.

Things begin with #212, which was the only one out of this particular run that I bought off of the stands when it was released back in July of 1981. I was pleased to see how well it held up nearly 35 years later. The third party narrative captions are a turnoff to many modern comic book fans, but then again, decompression is a turnoff to me. The amount of characterization that writers were able to cram into each and every issue back then is staggering when compared to how slowly things move now. High praise to everyone involved in the making of these comics, as this was handed off like a baton between creative teams and it didn't miss a beat.

Due to the events in issue 212, where Yellowjacket shot an opponent in the back after Captain America had talked her down, ol' Hank Pym (Yellowjacket to the uninitiated) faces a court-martial and is expelled from the team. This causes him to become unraveled. Pym has always shown signs of instability, as evidenced in his never-ending parade of identities (Ant-Man, Giant-Man, Goliath, and finally Yellowjacket) and his personality quirks. This book features the infamous scene where Pym beats his wife, The Wasp (Janet Van Dyne Pym). The Wasp divorces Pym, causing him to further plummet into the depths of despair. While there are multiple arcs the overall theme of these issues is the fall and redemption of Henry Pym. Things are nowhere near the same for him at the end of this run, though.

There is lots of goodness here, such as Hawkeye and Ant-Man (II, the Scott Lang version) taking on Taskmaster. Also enjoyable are Egghead's new Masters Of Evil and the short-lived romance between Tony Stark (Iron Man) and Janet Van Dyne (the Wasp). The latter was a great character development moment which was wrapped up in one issue. I could see a lesser writer (like, say, Brian Michael Bendis) milking that for an entire trade.

Roger Stern arrives with #227, kicking off one of the greatest runs in the history of The Avengers. While he handled a few issues before, those were pinch hitting. This was the beginning of his true run. The biggest difference between the beginning of Stern's run and the way that runs begin today is that Stern first had to clean house of all of the dangling subplots. Most new writers completely disregard what has come before. Stern not only honored what came before but built on it. He was just getting up to speed as this book ended. He brought the then-new Captain Marvel (Monica Rambeau, later Photon) and drops hints at the Black Knight and Starfox, both of who became staples of his run on the title The best is yet to come!

Junk Food For Thought rating: 4.25 out of 5.

The OCD zone- I like big books, and I cannot lie...

Linework and Color restoration: Very very good overall. I am certain that when this material receives the Marvel Masterworks treatment in a few years that things will be tightened up here and there. Most people won't notice but the trained eye will be able to spot differences. The original color palette is faithfully maintained.

Paper stock: Off white matte coated stock. This is the same stock found in softcover Masterworks, Classic line trades, and Epic line trades. It is my favorite paper stock for comics with flat coloring.

Binding: Perfect bound trade paperback.

Cardstock cover notes: Laminated cardstock cover.

Review- AVENGERS VS. THANOS

AVENGERS VS. THANOS (Marvel, First Printing, 2013; Softcover)

Collects Iron Man #55, Captain Marvel #25-33, Marvel Feature #12, Daredevil #105-107, Avengers #125, Warlock #9-11, 15, Avengers Annual #7, Marvel Two-In-One Annual #2, and the Thanos back-up story from Logan's Run #6 (cover dates February, 1973- Annual 1977)

Writers: Jim Starlin, Steve Gerber, Mike Friedrich, Steve Englehart, and Scott Edelman

Artists: Pencilers- Jim Starlin, Bob Brown, John Buscema, Don Heck, and Mike Zeck

Inkers- Jim Starlin, Sal Buscema, Dave Cockrum, Mike Esposito, Dan Green, Klaus Janson, Steve Leialoha, Pablo Marcos, Al Milgrom, Don Perlin, Joe Rubinstein, Joe Sinnott, Chic Stone, Sal Trapani, and Mike Zeck

If space aliens landed and asked me Hey Earthling, could you point out some good superhero comics for us to read?, I would hand them this book. While it would appear on the surface to be a scattershot collection of stories featuring Thanos and a mix of then-present and future Avengers in reality it is surprisingly cohesive and reads like one huge event.

I love the Bronze Age of comics. Modern fans accustomed to made for the trade six issue arcs bemoan the amount of dialogue and third party narrative caption boxes in these old comics but they allow so much more ground to be covered in much less space and time. I am of the mindset that modern comics are padded and bloated, with all of them breath and life sucked out of them in order to fit a calculated page count. Page after page of talking heads are not character development. Superheroes being snarky and self deprecating are not heroic.

Newcomers arriving to comics after seeing the movies would have their minds blown by the scope of this book. It starts out in Iron Man #55, a landmark issue which not only introduces Drax The Destroyer and the Blood Brothers but Thanos as well. Well...flashback Thanos and robot Thanos, but close enough for Rock and Roll. Things get kinda sorta convoluted but fun, as Captain Marvel (Mar-Vell) gets caught up in a scheme between the Skrulls, the Controller, and Thanos. Captain Marvel fights the Hulk and the Thing before he encounters Eon, who helps him destroy and then find himself as part of some grand cosmic scheme that eluded me. At least the end justified the means.

Drax The Destroyer and Iron Man reappear, as does the Thing. I enjoyed the Thing and Iron Man's battle with the Blood Brothers. The scene then shifts to San Francisco, where Daredevil and the Black Widow encounter Moondragon and Captain Marvel, leading us back to Captain Marvel's magazine with #31. The Avengers and Drax The Destroyer become involved as Thanos finally absorbs the power of the Cosmic Cube, essentially becoming one with the universe. This could well be the end of the book, as Thanos is defeated (I won't tell you how) and the day is saved.

Fortunately there is more, this time over in Warlock's series. Adam Warlock enters into an uncomfortable alliance with Thanos in order to defeat the Magus after Thanos' creation, Gamora, fails to assassinate him. There is all kinds of Bronze Age philosophy and timeslip psychobabble that works in the context of the era and the material but wouldn't make one iota of sense if you read it here.

The climax is a crossover with Avengers Annual #7 and Marvel Two-In-One Annual #2, where Thanos harnesses the power of the Soul Gem and intends to use it to destroy our sun, thus destroying all life in our solar system as an offering to the love of his life, the lady Death. This is Thanos at his most grim and gruesome, a completely evil creature that takes the combined might of The Avengers, Adam Warlock, Spider-Man, and the Thing to defeat. The battle scenes, especially those between Thor and Thanos, are incredible. This is how comics are supposed to be done, kids. Things end with a bang, and by the time that you are done this feels like a major league event, even though it took place across four years' worth of comics.

Jim Starlin pushed the limits of the cosmic epic, all before the world had ever heard of Star Wars. I am sure that Star Trek and 2001: A Space Odyssey were an influence on him but it is cool seeing a science fiction and superhero hybrid done before Star Wars, as the impact of that movie was so severe that nothing that came afterward was the same. His artwork and writing helped elevate the sophistication of comic books during this era. A few embarrassingly adolescent double entendres aside, this is adult stuff without being graphic or lewd.

So if you happen to encounter any space aliens or inter-dimensional travelers and they ask you to point out some good superhero comics, fork over a copy of this book.

Junk Food For Thought rating: 4.75 out of 5.

The OCD zone- I love these think chunky trade paperbacks. I cannot resist the lure of 400-500 page books with this paper stock.

Linework and Color restoration: Many of these issues use the files from the Marvel Masterworks (Captain Marvel, Warlock, etc.) and are excellent. The rest are very good overall.

Paper stock: Off white matte coated stock. This is the same stock found in softcover Masterworks, Classic line trades, and Epic line trades. It is my favorite paper stock for comics with flat coloring.

Binding: Perfect bound trade paperback.

Cardstock cover notes: Laminated cardstock cover.

Review- IRON MAN: ARMORED VENGEANCE

IRON MAN: ARMORED VENGEANCE (Marvel, 2013; Softcover)

Collects Iron Man Nos. 258.1-258.4 (cover dates July, 2013)

Writers: David Michelinie and Bob Layton

Artists: DaveRoss and Bob Layton

Colorist: Chris Sotomayer

Set outside of continuity, Iron Man: Armored Vengeance is more of a what if the creative team behind the classic Armor Wars arc did Armor Wars II? This arc was originally planned as a mini-series called Iron Man Forever. It was completed two years ago but was shelved when those Forever titles were axed. While there was an Armor Wars II, this arc is quite different than the excellent Armor Wars II. Justin Hammer had infected Tony Stark with nanites earlier on. Tony Stark had surgery on his spine around the time of the original issue 258 in 1990 and had a biochip implanted in it. The nanites have merged with the biochip and formed The Entity, which is set on taking over all computers and nuclear warheads and therefore the world.

It was nice to see old school creators bring their craft up to modern standards. I was thrilled to see old school touches like third party narration without being overly written. I enjoyed seeing Layton's artwork with modern coloring and with more room to breathe. This is the best of both worlds, and if you are a fan of their original runs or just want a cool Iron Man story then I would recommend this book.

Junk Food For Thought rating: 4 out of 5.

The OCD zone- This is one of those “buy it now or forget it” type of books. I doubt that the print run on this book was very large, nor do I believe that this material will be reissued in a hardcover or recompiled in some other collection in the near future.

DVD-style Extras included in this book: Iron Man #258.1 variant cover by Bob Layton and Marie Javins.

Paper rating: 4.5 out of 5. Decent weight semi-glossy coated stock.

Binding rating: 4.25 out of 5. Perfect bound trade paperback. These thinner trades feel like a fat periodical, which is cool.

Cardstock cover coating rating: 5 out of 5. Thick waxlike lamination which is resistant to scuffing with reasonable handling.

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Review- AVENGERS VOL. 3: PRELUDE TO INFINITY

AVENGERS VOL. 3: PRELUDE TO INFINITY (Marvel, 2013; Hardcover)

Collects Avengers Nos. 12-17 (cover dates July- October, 2013)

Writers: Jonathan Hickman and Nick Spencer

Artists: #12, 13- Mike Deodato; #14-17- Stefano Caselli with Marco Rudy and Marco Checchetto (#17)

Colorists: Frank Martin with Edgar Delgado (#15)

Jonathan Hickman has ramped up the cosmic angle this time out, with Captain Universe and these new New Universe versions of Starbrand and Nightmask looking like they are going to be center stage soon enough. I am not crazy about bringing the New Universe into the main Marvel Universe. The only good thing that could come out of this is maybe Warren Ellis could finish newuniversal or we could get follow up volumes to Star Brand, D.P.7, and Psi-Force Classic lines of trade paperback. Better still, a big fat Nightmask Ultimate Collection trade!

The Savage Land Children have caught the attention of the High Evolutionary. The Children are growing at an incredible rate, and will likely be incredibly powerful once they reach adulthood. I'll take a wait and see approach before I decide if I like the concept or not. So far, so good.

I was just about to criticize Hickman and Spencer's characterization of Spider-Man until I realized that this was the so-called Superior Spider-Man. For those not up to date, that means that while Peter Parker's body is still Spider-Man, it is Doctor Octopus' mind that is in control while sharing his brain...and for some reason he has decided to be a hero. No, it doesn't make a lot of sense to me, either. No, I don't see how this concept got green lit. And no, it doesn't mention anything about this anywhere in the book, which is a massive failure in terms of being new reader friendly. I know, I'm a naive, nostalgic romantic, but I'd like to think that there are kids picking this stuff up for the first time, becoming lifelong readers so that these characters can live on in print. In reality, 40 year olds like myself are sadly becoming the median age reader, which should scare the crap out of anyone who makes a living in this industry. 

So Iron Man can now just beam his mind into empty suits of armor from across the galaxy? I have a pretty healthy suspension of disbelief, and can buy into the fact that Tony Stark is a technological genius, but this just screams cop out to me. Howsabout just not having Iron Man appear in every single title? Nah.

Wolverine is a member of this team of Avengers as well? Can he beam his mind into a cloned body or something? Because he is in so many titles and on so many teams that I cannot buy it. Marvel used to have continuity that was as tight as a drum, with everything having a logical rhyme and reason. You could connect the dots from one story to the next. Nowadays it's like origami connect the dots. I can't make heads nor tails of any of this anymore, and worse still, I'm caring less and less.

Another groan inducing moment is the induction of the villains in the first arc of this series, Ex Nihlo and Abyss, into the ranks of the Avengers. Yes, I know that Hawkeye, Quicksilver, the Scarlet Witch, and the Black Widow started off as villains. Yes, I agree with you that this is probably a double standard on my part, but I still think that it totally sucks and is lame. 

I enjoyed this book quite a bit in spite of these gripes. For starters, anything Mike Deodato touches turns to gold. He is one of the bright spots in the current generation of artists at Marvel. Stefano Caselli is another solid craftsman whose work is easy on the eyes. Hickman seems to be a love/hate thing for folks. I can take him or leave him, but his writing here is solid and enjoyable in spite of the criticisms that I listed above. I am intrigued enough to buy Volume 4 as well as the forthcoming Infinity hardcover. Kill me.

Junk Food For Thought rating: 4 out of 5.

The OCD zone- The free digital copy code is no longer on a stiff piece of cardboard glued into the book block. It is now behind a sticker which must be peeled off. While still annoying because it “ruins” the book, it is less annoying than the card.

Hickman dictates to editorial that he wants the covers collected in the rear of the book in a cover gallery rather than in their proper “chapter marker” pages before each issue. There are chapter marker pages here, mind you, but they are plain white pages. I'm not sure about the reasoning for this practice. Does Hickman believe that folks will think that this is a “graphic novel” and not a compilation of material previously published in periodical format? Because I don't think that there are any mythological mainstream bookstore buyers who would be fooled into thinking so. Jonathan Hickman's practice results in an OCD -10% score.

DVD-style Extras included in this book: Avengers #12, 14, 16 Avengers 50th anniversary variants covers (2 pages)

Avengers #12-15 cover art (uncolored) thumbnails. (1 page)

Paper rating: 3.5 out of 5. Thinner, “wavy” glossy coated stock. The paper looks shriveled up, which annoys the piss out of me since all of my books are stored in a climate environment. I keep telling y'all that these US paper mills are using green trees and don't allow them time to properly cure, and this is what we get.

Binding rating: 4 out of 5. Glued binding. It lays pretty flat in one hand.

Hardback cover coating rating: 4.5 out of 5. The cover has the image printed directly on it, no dustjacket required. The coating is a somewhat odd feeling dull matte finish and is scuff resistant with reasonable handling.

Buy AVENGERS VOL. 3: PRELUDE TO INFINITY HC at InStockTrades!