Avengers Vs. Composite Superman

 

If you were wondering where the rest of the Totalitarians were while Super-Skrull was battling Metamorpho a few days ago, well here is a partial answer to that question.  Let's hope that teamwork from Earth's Mightiest Heroes wins the day!

Martian Manhunter and The Avengers

 

This all-Kirby classic required some prep work before I could add in J'onn J'onzz.  Here's a look at the behind the scenes process:

Avengers and The Teen Titans in "Mad March of the Mega-Men!"

 

I've had the Avengers meet The New Teen Titans on the blog - first in STF #1250, and then again in STF #3179, but for this Anniversary Issue, I thought it would be cool if Earth's Mightiest Heroes had an epic adventure with the original Teen Titans team.  With two such powerful teams, I needed to find adversaries that could give them a run for their money, and that's where the classic Kirby monsters come in!

Here are larger images of the individual stories:

Starman joins The Avengers

I think the Prince Gavyn Starman would have fit right in with the Bronze Age Avengers line up here.  I used to like when they would get into cosmic situations with the likes of Mar-Vell or the Guardians of the Galaxy, and his presence would provide a gateway to more epic storylines like those.  

 

The Avengers Vs. Poison Ivy

 

It may seem like a lopsided match at first - But if Ivy was on her turf with the ability to turn an Avenger or three to her will through mind controlling spores or something, she just might give Earth's Mightiest Heroes a run for their money.  It would be fun to watch play out at any rate!

The Avengers and The Omega Men

 

I really thought that the Omega Men were going to be the next big thing when they were introduced.  They were launched out of the red hot New teen Titans, after all.  Despite their roster of cool characters, they never really caught on, though - even in later revival attempts.  Maybe starting out as a direct only title hurt their chances of finding a wider audience?  I know I was still only getting my comics from the newsstand when their series was first published.

The Avengers meet Phantom Stranger & Swamp Thing

It still seems crazy to me that the new Swamp Thing series was cancelled before a single episode aired.  Even if that was the case you would think a cancellation announcement would have been held until it had its complete run.  It's too bad other accommodations could not be made for filming, from the little I have seen it looked like a pretty cool show. One of these day's I'll have to binge watch the whole thing.

Swamp Thing met the New Avengers in STF #1241...

Green Arrow and The Wasp & Yellowjacket

There has been a lot of speculation about what the next cinematic team of Avengers will look like.  If it was up to me, I'd give the team a rest and instead have Hulk and Valkyrie join Doctor Strange in introducing Namor and The Silver Surfer for a proper Marvel Defenders team.  But more Avengers movies are an inevitability, so when they return there's only one character that I feel needs to be on the team - The Wasp!  She really should have been introduced in the first Avengers film, as she was a founding member in the comics not to mention the leader of the team for a good long stretch.  I know it's Hope Pym in the movies and not Janet Van Dyne currently operating as The Wasp, but I still want her to be a part of whatever new line up Marvel Studios comes up with.

Yellowjacket and Guy Gardner

I really hope that we will see a bit more of Hank Pym in his prime and in action with the original Wasp when Ant-Man and The Wasp hits the theaters.  I loved the brief glimpse we got the first time around and I hope we get more.  I've hear rumors that the plot will feature attempts to save Janet Van Dyne from the Microverse (with Sharon Stone in the role?), and that would be great to see.

Wildcat and The Avengers

I remember thinking Wildcat was cool when I was young, but he didn't seem to fit in sometimes.  He was basically a really good boxer amongst heroes of incredible power in the JSA.  I am glad that he later found his niche as a mentor and trainer to many younger crimefighters.  It gives him added depth and a unique place among DC's pantheon of heroes.

The Flash Vs. Yellowjacket

I saw Ant-Man this weekend and was thoroughly entertained.  I liked the smaller-scale (pun intended) that this movie had, with the dual father/daughter relationship stories playing out.  I expected the shrinking action to be cool and inventive and Director Peyton Reed definitely delivered there.  What I didn't expect were two great scenes that thankfully were not spoiled for me before hand.  The ultra-cool opening sequence and Ant-Man's encounter with another Marvel hero were great surprises and the audience I was with loved those moments as well.  The cast was great all around and I hope to see Paul Rudd, Evangeline Lily and Michael Douglas return in a sequel.

Superman and The Avengers

It's images like this that remind me why Superman needs an "S" shield on his cape.  For some reason or other, designers want to keep it off the costume and I feel that it just makes him look a little more generic.  It started with Superman: The Animated Series and on into Justice League and Justice League Unlimited.  OK, those shows got just about everything else right, so I can give them a pass and accept the reasoning that it was too hard to animate (although somehow they managed it on Super Friends, decades earlier).  But then the live action movies decided to drop it - first on Superman Returns and now on Man of Steel.  I just don't get how in this era of CGI that it would be a problem and again, it works so well design-wise to keep the shield.  The worst cut was in DC New 52 costume redesigns, where now it is gone even in the comics!  I can understand the reasoning behind losing the red trunks but this omission I just don't get.  Add in the fact that they changed the color of his belt to red, and you now have hardly any yellow on the costume at all.  The overall result is that the uniform just looks like it's missing something.

The Atom and Yellowjacket

Hank Pym has had a lot of identities (Yellowjacket, Ant-Man, Giant-Man, Goliath, The Wasp) and just as many costumes.  I have to say my favorite look of his is the Yellowjacket costume.  It looked cool and sleek and I loved the big vibrating shoulder wings.  Unfortunately, this is the outfit he was wearing when the ill-advised the decision to have him have a breakdown and smack his wife, so it has been since associated with the abusive, unhinged Pym.

I have always liked Gil Kane's design for The Atom's costume, but I do admit it looks a bit dated.  I thought that the Justice League Unlimited cartoon had a great take on it - they kept the overall design but had the costume made from a shiny material and gave him Batman-like whited out eyes.  It stayed true to the classic look but gave it a nice modern feel.

Green Lantern and the Avengers

The Marvel Studios produced films have been pretty successful so far, so I am really looking forward to The Avengers, the film everything has been leading up to.   Joss Whedon is a great choice for director as he has had success writing for comics as well as handling ensemble pieces on film.  Sure there will be costume changes I would like to make and some other tweaks, but the fact that all these characters will on the big screen sharing an adventure together tells me I won't have too much to complain about.

I wish Green Lantern had fared better at the box office.  There was a lot to like about the film, but it was ultimately done in by a weak script, shoddy editing and a lackluster villain in Hector Hammond.  Warner Brothers has announced a sequel - but they said that for Superman Returns, too, so that may just be studio posturing.  I would like to see another attempt made utilizing lessons learned from the first outing, because I still think there is great potential in the franchise.