Stan Lee

Avengers: The Crossing is one of Marvel's most ambitious and divisive mid-90s storylines — a complex conspiracy narrative revealing that Iron Man had been a secret agent of Kang the Conqueror for years, manipulating events from inside the team. The storyline required the teenage alternate-universe version of Tony Stark to replace the compromised adult, a desperate editorial solution to the dead-end the Crossing's plot had created. Bob Harras coordinated a crossover that remains historically fascinating for how thoroughly it was reversed in subsequent years.

Avengers: The Gathering collects the material that Kurt Busiek and George Pérez used to set up their landmark Avengers run — the prelude issues, the Thunderbolts crossover material, and the gathering of heroes following the extended period when the main Avengers were missing after the Onslaught event. Busiek's preparatory work established the emotional and narrative foundation for one of the best-received Avengers creative runs in the team's history.

The first Avengers omnibus collects the founding of Marvel's premier super-team from their debut in 1963 — Stan Lee and Jack Kirby establishing the team concept, the first roster shuffles, and the foundational mythology that made the Avengers the umbrella concept for Marvel's entire publishing line. These early issues include the first appearances of classic Avengers antagonists, the Hulk's departure from the team, and the introduction of Captain America as the team's moral center.