Avengers Epic Collection: The Evil Reborn

After beginning his writing career on DC horror titles, David Michelinie moved to Marvel. He and co-writer/inker Bob Layton established Iron Man’s battle with alcoholism, use of specialized armor variants and vendetta against Doctor Doom, as well as other aspects of the character that endure to this day. Michelinie’s unique blend of action, suspense and humor distinguished not only Iron Man, but also Amazing Spider-Man. With artist Todd McFarlane, he introduced the vicious vigilante Venom; he also wrote the first Venom limited series, Lethal Protector. Michelinie’s run as Amazing writer was second in length only to that of Stan Lee himself, while he also authored tie-in titles Spectacular Spider-Man, Web of Spider-Man and Spider-Man. He moved from Marvel’s flagship character to DC’s with a stint on Superman’s Action Comics, later returning to the world of Tony Stark for writing collaborations with Bob Layton on Iron Man: Legacy of Doom and Iron Man: The End.

Steven Grant has written Captain America, Incredible Hulk, Master of Kung Fu, Spidey Super Stories and more. In 1985, he penned the first Punisher miniseries, revisiting the character in several Holiday Special stories and the graphic novel Return to Big Nothing. Grant has also written First Comics’ American Flagg, Shatter and his creator-owned Whisper.

Industry legend Chris Claremont is best known for his epic sixteen-year run on Uncanny X-Men. Claremont’s focus on the themes of prejudice and tolerance struck at the hearts of comics fans, and he built an unparalleled following during the next three decades. Under his pen, the X-Men franchise spawned a vast array of spin-offs, many of them written by Claremont himself. His other credits include Iron Fist, Ms. Marvel, Power Man and Spider-Woman. Claremont has returned to the X-Men universe in New Exiles, GeNext, X-Men Forever, Chaos War: X-Men and Nightcrawler.

Artist George Pérez made team titles his specialty with runs on Marvel’s Avengers and Fantastic Four, along with DC’s Justice League of America and New Teen Titans, the latter co-created with Marv Wolfman. The pair redefined the DC Universe in Crisis on Infinite Earths. In collaboration with writer Kurt Busiek, he returned to Avengers following the “Heroes Reborn” event. The pair surpassed expectations with JLA/Avengers, a 2003 crossover that featured nearly every member of both long-running teams.

John Byrne has worked continuously in the comics industry as both writer and artist since 1975. After he initially collaborated with writer Chris Claremont on Iron Fist, Byrne and Claremont moved on to X-Men for a run still regarded as one of the title’s finest. Byrne contributed an equally famed stint on Fantastic Four, earning comparisons to the original Lee/Kirby issues for his imaginative plotlines and dynamic artwork. He also spun Alpha Flight into its own title. In 1986, he revamped DC’s flagship hero, Superman, reimagining the Man of Steel in a historic project heralded by a Time magazine cover. His remarkable contribution to the Marvel Universe extends to memorable associations with virtually every major hero, including celebrated runs on Captain America, Iron Man, Sensational She-Hulk, Namor the Sub-Mariner and Thing. In the 21st century, Byrne’s considerable body of work includes IDW’s Star Trek and Angel.

Following Golden Age work at Marvel predecessor Timely Comics — as well as at Fawcett, Hillman and others — Carmine Infantino (d. 2013) made history at DC Comics, helping usher in the industry’s Silver Age with the reintroduction of the Flash, within whose title he cocreated the Elongated Man and several members of the hero’s famed Rogues’ Gallery. His 1961 story “Flash of Two Worlds,” which literally reshaped the DC Universe by introducing the Earth-1/Earth-2 concept, won Infantino two of his eventual 12 Alley Awards. After serving as DC’s art director and publisher, Infantino returned to penciling on several titles; for Marvel, he provided notable runs on Nova, Spider-Woman and Star Wars, along with brief stints on Daredevil, Ghost Rider and Iron Man. He also drew Superman vs. the Amazing Spider-Man, the historic first Marvel/DC crossover.