Celebrate The Avengers for Free Comic Book Day!

Today is Free Comic Book Day, a yearly event that started back in 2002 when comic shops across the country invite new readers and old into their stores with special promotions and sales in addition to a special selection of free comic books printed specifically for FCBD.

If you find yourself in a comic shop after seeing the Avengers, you may find yourself all geared up with an interest in comics based on the characters in the film. In addition to the free Avengers comic, here’s a quick guide for some great collections that you may want to flip through.

Currently, the monthly Avengers books are going through a transitional period, so they aren’t exactly new reader-friendly, but Thor, Captain America and Iron Man are solid and the new Captain America and Hawkeye series has gotten good press. The staff of your local comic shop should be happy to help, but here’s the beginning of a guide.

(In addition, MarvelComics has a few sweet deals going as well here)

The Avengers

The Avengers: Volume One – Heroes Assemble!

The Avengers: Volume Two – Captain America Reborn!

The Avengers: Volume Three – Iron Man Unleashed

Avengers: Under Siege

Avengers: Assault on Olympus

Avengers Prime

Hulk

The jade Goliath of rage, the Hulk is one of Marvel Comics’ oldest creations. Bruce Banner was a mild-mannered scientist who yearned to hold Betty Ross in his arms, but working on an Army base run by her father General Thaddeus ‘Thunderbolt’ Ross made that all but impossible.

The gamma radiation transformed Banner into the Hulk, an indestructible creature driven by anger never before seen. Many things have been learned about the Hulk over the years, but nothing has changed the fact that he is the strongest there is and his rage is endless.

The Hulk’s life has been a whirlwind of nightmarish changes as he changed color and visited other worlds only to find the same situation over and over… no one would leave him be. Finally the combined members of a superhuman Illuminati shot the Hulk into space to spare humanity from his destructive rages. Landing on an alien hostile world, the Hulk fought through a sea of trouble with only the the thought of revenge in his mind.

The collections below showcase some of the most popular and tumultuous stories of the past five years.

Incredible Hulk: Planet Hulk

World War Hulk

Incredible Hulks: Fall of the Hulks

Incredible Hulks: World War Hulks

Captain America

The star-spangled hero of WWII, Captain America embodies the peak of the human condition. Even though the Super Soldier Serum turned the frail Steve Rogers into the sentinel of liberty, it is his inner moral compass and belief that people have it in them to overcome adversity and realize their true potential that makes him so special.

Armed with a shield baring a brilliant star surrounded by red and white stripes, Cap fights the enemies of freedom. The shield is made of  a unique unbreakable alloy and Cap is able to hurl it through the air with an unparalleled precision. In the last days of WWII, Captain America was frozen in the ice for decades. A man out of time, Rogers was unfrozen into a world he never knew.

One of the elder statesman of the Marvel Comics Universe, Captain America is respected by almost every hero from Spider-Man to Wolverine and even the Punisher. The collections below showcase some of the best of the modern series.

Captain America: The New Deal

Captain America: Winter Soldier Ultimate Collection

Captain America and Bucky: The Life Story of Bucky Barnes

Captain America: Reborn

Iron Man

Inventor Tony Stark is a futurist, able to predict the path that human society will take and the role that technology will play in that world to come. After becoming wounded in a war zone by weapons that he designed, Stark’s mind turned to developing his inventions toward a suit of armor capable of magnificent feats.

Iron Man and Tony Stark have become more closely merged in recent years as the technology that made him a superhero merged with him. Neither human nor robot, Tony Stark is an entirely new kind of human being. Somewhat reckless and often egocentric, Stark faces his problems head on (with varying results).

The collections below consist of some beloved stories from the 1980’s and 90’s as well as the knock-out modern series.

Iron Man: Armor Wars Prologue

Iron Man: Armor Wars

Invincible Iron Man Omnibus, Vol. 1

Invincible Iron Man, Vol. 2

Thor

God of Thunder, Thor is an Asgardian warrior far off Asgard. When he came into contact with Earth, he discovered their true worth and became their defender. An unending wave of villains have risen to take him down, but none have succeeded.

Able to command the weather itself, Thor also uses his uru hammer Mjolnir to fly through the air and strike back at his enemies. Possessing incredible strength, a limitless endurance and courage that enables him to proudly fly into the jaws of destruction many times over, there are none like the noble Thor.

Thor has recently been revived in a new series The Mighty Thor that is incredible and highly recommended. Along with that series, I recommend the Walt Simonson run and the animated feature.

The Mighty Thor, Vol. 1

Thor: Tales of Asgard

Thor: Ragnarok

Avengers Disassembled: Thor

Thor: Ages of Thunder

Thor Omnibus

Thor: Tales of Asgard

Thor by Walter Simonson Omnibus

Hawkeye

A former circus performer, Clint Barton realized that he had an ability to fire arrows with an uncanny precision. Seeing the world gawp at the exploits of heroes such as Iron Man, Barton designed a costume and took to the rooftops as a hero… with unpredictable results. The sharp-eyed archer Hawkeye has stood shoulder-to-shoulder with giants, gods and superhuman beings with only a quiver of trick arrows as his weapons. One of the most cocksure and brave Avengers, Hawkeye is also the boldest and snarkiest. Grounding the Avengers with his street-level approach, he is a resourceful hero to be reckoned with.

There are several collections of Hawkeye that showcase his origins, exploits as a solo hero and as the leader of the West Coast Avengers. In recent years, Hawkeye has (understandably) become more of a high profile and currently leads the Secret Avengers which I also recommend.

Black Widow

Despite her youthful (and supple) appearance, the deadly super spy Natasha Romanov has been active the Cold War. Raised to be a perfect weapon by the KGB, Romanov has no true past as her memory has been replaced and rewritten to suit the needs of her job. Defecting to US, Black Widow has become a member of SHIELD as well as an Avenger.

A master of close quarters combat as well as various armaments, the Black Widow also uses her specially designed ‘sting’ mounted on each of her bracelets. An expert gymnast and martial artist, the Black Widow daringly launches herself into battle with very little protecting her aside from her wits and skill.

The collections below reflect her early years as well as some more recent adventures.

Buy Black Widow: The Sting of the Widow

Buy Black Widow: Web of Intrigue

Buy Black Widow: Deadly Origin Premiere

Buy Black Widow by Devin Grayson, Greg Rucka and J.G. Jones

I hope that these recommendations and summaries are useful and that you have a great Free Comic Book Day! Support your local comic shop and happy reading!

What’s the deal with the Hulk?

The many faces of the green Goliath have challenged fans of the comic book hero and the movie-going public unfamiliar with the man-monster known as the Hulk. Each time he has appeared on screen, the Hulk’s face has been modeled after the actor playing Bruce Banner. The latest model seen in the 2012 Avengers trailer is based on Mark Ruffalo and appears brutish.

Each time the Hulk appears, the audience has to re-evaluate his look. Is he a brutish primitive, a gentle giant, a muscle-bound ogre or something entirely different? It sounds like I’m splitting hairs here, but look at the images in this post and you’ll how different the Hulk can look.

2012 Hulk in The Avengers

Mark Ruffalo

The previous Hulk from 2008’s film bore a resemblance to Edward Norton’s intense facial expressions.

2008 Incredible Hulk

Edward Norton

The most controversial Hulk could be the soft-faced model based on Eric Bana, star of the divisive 2003 Hulk movie.

2003 Hulk

Eric Bana

Perhaps most damning of the Ang Lee film is this footage of an abandoned animatronic Hulk… Ah, what could have been.

Of course the most familiar face of the Hulk for ages was seen in the TV series starring Lou Ferrigno. Green body paint, a wig and prosthetic brow made the actor into the popular creature.

1978-1982 Incredible Hulk

The common complaint in these live action Hulks is that it bares no resemblance to the ‘real Hulk’ seen in the printed page. With so many artists’ interptretations of the Hulk, that’s impossible to realize… but here are a few that may show just how different the Hulk can appear.

2009 Modern Hulk by Djurdjevic

2005 Modern Hulk by Lee Weeks

Hulk by Sal Buscema

Hulk by John Byrne

Hulk by Paul Pelletier

Hulk by Todd McFarlane

Hulk by Ed McGuinness

Hulk by Gabriel Hardman

Hulk by Dale Keown

1963 era Hulk by Jack Kirby

One more from the King

Quick review: Incredible Hulk #1

Incredible Hulk #1

Incredible Hulk #1 variant by Ladronn

By Jason Aaron and Marc Silvestri

The latest Hulk series has come to a close amid controversy and major success. A planet ruled by the Hulk brought in new readers while the red-skinned ‘replacement’ has been both embraced and rejected by fandom. Several multi-part stories and crossovers later and the monthly book starring Bruce Banner expired in a Hellish vision of destruction. It was quite a ride and will be difficult to top. The Hulk has an extremely devoted and passionate fanbase that does not shrink from making their opinions known. So how can a new ongoing series by a new creative team succeed?

The plan has been to introduce a new spin on an old idea by splitting up Hulk and Banner. In the coda of Fear Itself #7, Hulk expelled Banner from their union in some mysterious fashion that confused even his human self. Walking off to finally be left alone, Hulk trod into the distance in much the same manner as we had seen his puny alter ego several times over.

The new issue opens with Hulk living the life of a hero underground with the moloids (denizens of the deep often utilized by the Mole Man). Fighting savage monsters that would not look out of place on the distant planet Sakaar, Hulk shows some kind of pity and compassion for the creature, acknowledging that this is a somewhat somber and brooding persona of the Hulk, far more sophisticated that we usually see. He has also grown out his hair and is sporting a beard, confirming that some time has past since we last saw him in print.

Hulk by Marc Silvestri

Despite the accolades and devotion of the moloids, Hulk remains aloof and distant, refusing to take part in the revels celebrating his victories against the threats of the underworld. He knows that trouble is coming for him. The law of averages holds up this sentiment that trouble always finds him and this time is no different. Sure enough, as soon as Hulk lowers his guard and relaxes several high-powered mechanized attackers assault the dwelling along with a drilling machine that pierces their defenses.

After a few fists are thrown and machines smashed, one of the attackers sheds her armor to reveal that they are not here to hurt Hulk but ask for his help against something only he can defeat, Banner. In a far away jungle setting, generically modified creatures round up subjects for their master, the clearly insane Bruce Banner.

Even though I am a fan of the Hulk, I was reluctant to get invested in a new series. I enjoy Aaron’s writing on the whole and am a fan of Silvestri’s from his X-Men work back in the day, but… another Hulk comic? I wasn’t sold. The new issue is rather remarkable in that in a short number of pages it shakes up the status quot, shows us sides of Banner and Hulk we had not seen before and delivers the smashing action that readers long for.

The artwork by Silvestri is not to everyone’s taste and I can dig that. His linework is very scratchy and thin leading to a more cartoonish look that is far more abstract that many readers are used to. In my opinion, it suits the horror element perfectly and works with the mood quite well. It may look dated as well to some, but there’s a reason why Silvestri is a renowned artist and I think subsequent issues will prove why.

If you were holding out on this series because you were either unsure of a new take on the Hulk or just exhausted from over-exposure of the green goliath, you should give this a try. If you are a newcomer, this is a great jumping on point as it does not rely on any backstory (so far, anyway).