"Paranormal Activity" Part 1 of 2. Plot by Terry Kavanagh and Ben Raab. Script by Ben Raab. Pencils by Mike Deodato. Inks by Tom Palmer. Cover by Mike Deodato and Tom Palmer.
After the shocking events of The Crossing, Earth's Mightiest Heroes finally have a chance to settle down and look forward to the future. But the air of mistrust created by Iron Man's betrayal still lingers inside their Fifth Avenue townhouse. When a mysterious cyborg prowls the mansion's hallways late at night, the tension among the heroes only rises! Who is picking off the Avengers one by one? Could it be Madame Masque? Or perhaps another rogue teammate? In the meantime, Deathcry (and Hercules) blast off towards the moon in hopes of finding a way back home!
32 pages. Cover price $1.50.
"Trust Part 2 of 2. Plot by Terry Kavanagh and Ben Raab. Script by Ben Raab. Pencils by Mike Deodato. Inks by Tom Palmer. Cover by Mike Deodato and Tom Palmer.
Benedict stalks the hallways of Avengers Mansion! Who? A bizarre robotic construct thats knocking out one avenger after another! Wanda, Pietro, and the Vision are down! And Thor and Crystal are missing! So whos left to bear down on Benedict? The Black Widow and Masque corner the strange creature in the sub-basement and try to discover its secret! Meanwhile on the moon...after surviving their close encounter, Deathcry and Hercules decide to continue their journey to Shiar throneworld!
32 pages. Cover price $1.50.
"History Repeats Itself" Double-size issue. Script by Mark Waid. Art by Mike Wieringo (breakdowns) and Tom Palmer (finishes). Wraparound cover by Mike Deodato and Tom Palmer.
It's the quadricentennial anniversary celebration of Earth's Mightiest Heroes! And appropriately the villain from issue number one is back for issue 400! Under the guise of a young time traveler, the Lord of Lies stops by Avengers Mansion to visit Jarvis! While Loki and the Avengers' butler talk, super-villains from the Avengers' past pop up all over Manhattan! Earth's Mightiest Heroes valiantly battle their enemies all over town and eventually rendezvous at Avengers Park for the final showdown vs. Loki! The classic lineup: Cap, Shell-head, Thor, Wanda, the Vision, Giant-Man, and the Wasp vs. the devious deity who started it all! Avengers Assemble!
48 pages. Cover price $2.50.
"Sins of the Father!" Onslaught Phase 1. Guest-starring Rogue and Gambit. Script by Mark Waid. Art by Mike Deodato (breakdowns) and Tom Palmer (finishes). Cover by Mike Deodato and Tom Palmer.
Story continues from Uncanny X-Men 335. Earth's Mightiest Heroes and Gambit depart Avengers Mansion in search of the Master of Magnetism! The Avengers have questions about Onslaught, and Magneto may have the answers! In the old dominion state, the heroes discover the X-Men's long-time foe (alongside Rogue)...and then attack! The Vision and Thor clash with Rogue; while Quicksilver, Shell-head, and Cap challenge Magneto! However during the mêlée Gambit and the Scarlet Witch realize that there's something different about this Master of Magnetism. Is Magneto a changed man? And is he willing to fight with the Avengers against Onslaught? Story continues in X-Men 55.
32 pages. Cover price $1.50.
"End of the Line" Onslaught Impact 2. Final issue of the series. Script by Mark Waid. Art by Mike Deodato (breakdowns) and Tom Palmer (finishes). Painted cover by Tom Palmer.
Story continues from Uncanny X-Men 336. It's the final issue of the Avengers 1st series! And thanks to Onslaught, Earth's Mightiest Heroes find themselves in the middle of chaos on the streets of Manhattan! The Avenges try to restore order, but the crisis shifts from bad to worse when Post and Holocaust savagely attack! However Cap assembles the Avengers one more time (in their 1st series) for a dynamic donnybrook against Onslaught's deadly agents! Can Earth's Mightiest Heroes complete their 402-issue run with another classic victory? Story continues in X-Men 56 and (the one-shot) Onslaught Marvel Universe.
32 pages. Cover price $1.50.
"The Sting of the Serpent" Part 1 of 2. Script by Roy Thomas. Pencils by Frank Giacoia. Inks by Sam Grainger. Cover by Marie Severin and Sam Grainger. The Sons of the Serpent prowl New York City once again! And the venomous hate group has a new target! An up-and-coming singer named Monica Lynne! But fortunately for the talented vocalist, she has a guardian angel or perhaps better yet…a guardian panther!
"Yearning to Breathe Free!" Guest-starring Puma. Script by Danny Fingeroth. Art by Rich Buckler (breakdowns) and Tom Palmer (finishes). Cover by John Buscema and Tom Palmer.
In their civilian identities, Steve Rogers, Sigurd Jarlson, and Gilgamesh tour historic Ellis Island. The three avengers' visit to the island is proceeding normally until it's interrupted by Thomas Fireheart! Wow, where did Puma come from? And who is he chasing through the Great Hall? Apparently one of the maintenance workers is a former member of Puma's tribe! And he has the awesome ability to open portals to other dimensions!
"There is a Fire Down Below" Part 2 of 3. Script by John Byrne. Art by Paul Ryan (breakdowns) and Tom Palmer (finishes). Cover by Paul Ryan and Tom Palmer.
While swimming into Upper New York Bay, the Sub-Mariner is ambushed by a legion of Lava Men! However, Prince Namor has plenty of company at the bottom of the bay! Namely his fellow avengers! Trapped within a rocky sphere, the Avengers desperately try to break free before suffocating!
"Blood Wraith" Script by Glenn Herdling. Pencils by Mike Gustovich. Inks by Ariane Lenshoek. Cover by Steve McDaniel and Hector Collazo.
An invasion by 6th century marauders interrupts a peaceful evening at Avengers Mansion! Out of the blue medieval warriors attack Crystal, Hercules, and the Vision! What do these men from the Middle Ages want? Only the most important object from their time…the Black Knight's ebony blade! But the bloodthirsty blade is not to be found at the Avengers headquarters! It's at Whitman Manor near the nation's capital! Once Sersi and the Black Widow repel the invaders in New York, the Avengers rush to Washington D.C. to protect the dangerous artifact! However another pair of 6th century robbers are already there! When the menacing duo subdues Victoria Bentley and Seth Dolan, the Black Knight's squire has no choice but to brandish the ebony blade himself! And in that split second the Bloodwraith is born! Can Earth's Mightiest Heroes contain the savage Bloodwraith? Or will the cursed ebony blade begin a new rampage in the 20th century? First appearance of the Bloodwraith. Appearances by Lockjaw, Luna, Marilla, Chandu, Le Sabre, Maha Yogi, and Mongu. Avengers Lineup: Black Knight, Black Widow, Crystal, Hercules, Sersi, and the Vision. Second feature: One-page pin-up of Crystal vs. the Anti-Vision by Michael Avon Oeming. Third feature: One-page pin-up of Magdalene by Michael Avon Oeming. Fourth feature: One-page pin-up of the Anachronauts by Dan Panosian. Fifth story: "A Gamble With Time" Script by Roy Thomas, Jean-Marc Lofficier, and Randy Lofficier. Pencils by Al Milgrom. Inks by Mark Steckbauer. Terminatrix and the Anachronauts travel back to the 6th century to correct an anomaly in the time-space continuum involving the ebony blade. Flashback cameos by Merlin and Kang the Conqueror. (Notes: Elements of the plot continue from the Black Knight Limited Series (1990). The Bloodwraith returns in Avengers 366 (second story). Splash page art by Mark Pacella and Dan Panosian. The polybagged version includes a Bloodwraith trading card.) 64 pages.
Cover price $2.95.
"Strangers on an Astral Plane" Script by Roy Thomas. Art by John Buscema. Cover by John Buscema.
Two eternal enemies of the Prince of Asgard and the Lion of Olympus join forces! The ancient gods, Pluto and Loki, devise a new scheme in which each one will destroy the other's long-time foe! So Zeus won't be able to blame Pluto, and Odin won't be able to blame Loki for the deaths of their beloved sons! A brilliant plan! And the god of lies and mischief is up first! Loki descends into Tartarus and frees Typhon, the immortal enemy of the Olympians! And without wasting any time, Typhon (and his helpers from Tartarus) ambush Hercules in a Manhattan restaurant! By the time Earth's Mightiest Heroes arrive, Typhon has already defeated Hercules and taken him to Hades! But they don't stay for long as the banished Olympian (with Hercules in tow) moves onto to his final destination…majestic Olympus! With a bold stroke, Typhon extinguishes the Promethean flame and the gods of Olympus disappear! Is that it? Have Loki and Typhon triumphed? Not quite! Once Thunderstrike transports the Avengers to home of the gods, the donnybrook among the deities begins! Can the star-spangled avenger and the Prince of Power overcome Typhon? While Crystal and Thunderstrike try to relight the Promethean flame? For the sake of Olympus…they must! Cameo appearances by Zeus and Persephone. Avengers Lineup: Captain America, Crystal, Giant-Man, Hercules, Thunderstrike, and the Vision. Second story: "Master of His Own Density" Script and art by Al Milgrom. While sitting on monitor duty and surfing cyberspace, the Vision accidentally exposes his synthezoid mind to an internet virus! And this virus is actually a super-villain called Glitch! So Giant-Man helps the Vision eliminate the Glitch! (Notes: Elements of the story continue in Thor Annual 19. Typhon previously appeared in Avengers 163. This is the final annual associated with the 1st series of the Avengers title (1963-1996). Splash page art by John Buscema.)
64 pages. Cover price $2.95.
"No Final Victory!" Guest-starring the Whizzer. Story by Gerry Conway. Pencils by George Perez. Inks by Mike Esposito, John Tartaglione, and Duffy Vohland. Cover by Jack Kirby and Dan Adkins.
Story continues from Avengers 153. It's an action-packed annual as Earth's Mightiest Heroes face one crisis after another! First, a wounded Scarlet Witch returns to Avengers Mansion following her battle against the Living Laser. Then while Jarvis and the Vision summon a doctor for Wanda, the Whizzer regains consciousness and explains his bizarre behavior to the Wasp and Yellowjacket. Meanwhile, a confused Wonder Man wanders the streets of Manhattan. And furthermore the sinister Serpent Crown remains unaccounted for somewhere in the United States! Wow, where do the Avengers begin? Fortunately, Iron Man is able to track the radio-active aura of the crown to Southern California. And inside a west coast army outpost, six avengers plus Wonder Man and the Whizzer fight to the finish against the Living Laser, a renegade army general, and Nuklo! Back up story: "Night Vision!" Script by Scott Edelman. Art by Herb Trimpe. The Vision battles the Whirlwind one-on-one. (Note: Nuklo previously appeared in Giant-Size Avengers 1.)
48 pages Cover price $0.50.
Cover pencils by Jack Kirby, inks by Dick Ayers. "From the Ashes of Defeat - !", script by Stan Lee, pencils by Don Heck, inks by Dick Ayers.
Kang's troops advance on the city as Kang escapes. Although hopeless, the Avengers decide to put up a fight against the never-ending army.
