Avengers by Lee & Kirby (Penguin Classics Marvel Collection)

It is impossible to imagine American popular culture without Marvel Comics. For decades, Marvel has published groundbreaking visual narratives that sustain attention on multiple levels: as metaphors for the experience of difference and otherness; as meditations on the fluid nature of identity; and as high-water marks in the artistic tradition of American cartooning, to name a few. For the first time, these classic stories of some of the most iconic super heroes in the artistic tradition of American cartooning, to name a few. Starting in 1961, Stan Lee, Jack Kirby, and their collaborators transformed the super hero genre with a series of new creations, including the Incredible Hulk, The Mighty Thor, and The Invincible Iron Man. In 1963, Lee and Kirby brought these characters together for the first time in a new magazine called The Avengers—adding a revived Captain America shortly after. Over time the Avengers’ roster would frequently change, mirroring transformations in the Marvel Universe and the society that it reflected. This unique collection gathers key issues from the first few years of the series.