Avaitor's Top 25 Marvel Stories

[Avaitor]

10-

Thor #348-353 "The Surtur Saga"

Imagine seeing Thor, Loki and Odin team up together to take on one unstoppable threat. It shouldn't be that odd of a thought, but it took a while for the three to team up, and when they did, boy was it glorious. Here they take on this beast in an epic battle that only Simonson could have imagined, and we don't get a very happy ending. Sick stuff.

9-

Silver Surfer #3 "The Power and the Prize"

In this introduction to Mephisto, the MU's very own Devil views the Surfer from his abyss. The Surfer's never-ending quest for philosophical being and his warm intentions disgust Mephisto, which lead to his plan to obtain Norrin Radd's freewill. Mephisto finds Shalla Bal, Radd's estranged love from his home Zenn-La, and begins his ploy.

When the Silver Surfer arrives in Mephisto's lair, the supposed form of Satan makes a compromise with Radd- he can reunite with Shalla Bal, provided that he makes an alliance with Mephisto, or Shalla will be sent back to their home planet and will forever be lost to Radd. Nothing is spared in this double-length story, with Mephisto pulling out all the stops against the Surfer, with some extraordinarily rich dialogue battered between the two powerful beings. A tragic tale with a tragic hero.

8-

Avengers #273-277 "Under Siege"

Shit goes down in this arc. For a while in the comics, Baron Zemo has been planning his own Avengers of super-villain, the Masters of Evil, to take on Earth's Mightiest Heroes. And when they're ready, they take on the heroes in their own mansion when they least expect it. The mansion gets attacked, the heroes barely hold their own, even Jarvis gets his ass handed to him.

The sadistic part is that this goes on for DAYS, and even Hercules, the Greek god himself, nearly gets killed. Some serious damage happens to the team after this, and until the major reforming a couple of years ago, they're still paying them off.

7-

Web of Spider-Man #31 & 32, The Amazing Spider-Man #293 & 294, Spectacular Spider-Man #131-132 "Kraven's Last Hunt"

Poor, poor Kravinoff. He finally succeeds in what he's been aiming to do for all these years, slay the Spider, and he goes crazy right after.

Granted, it seems like he was always crazy to begin with. Just before his attack, Kraven jumps into a pit of live spiders, nude, and eats them, to taste the blood of his victim. And right after killing Spider-Man, Kraven dons a copy of his black suit and takes on the place of the webbed wonder.

While he does this, Vermin, a rat-like creature that Spidey and Captain America took down earlier, strikes in the slums of Manhattan. It is Kraven, who as Spider-Man has been uncharacteristically killing off his opponents, to take on Vermin. Just as this happens, Peter Parker, still in his black suit, returns from the dead to exact vengeance on Kraven for all he's done.

This isn't all that much about Spider-Man, although there's a sweet little subplot about him and MJ, who recently got married. This is Kravinoff's tale, and gets deep into his psyche throughout, leading right into his needed death. I hope I didn't spoil too much for you, but there isn't really any other way that I could have wrote this.

6-

Daredevil #168, 174-182, 187-190 "The Elektra Saga"

I sure hope that the movie didn't leave a sour taste in your mouth regarding this storyline, since this is easily Frank Miller's best work.

Here we get to meet Elektra, the first and foremost woman of Matt Murdock's dreams. It's a tragic love story, right down to its bitter end. Pretty much any reinterpretation of Daredevil attempts to tackle this at one point or another, and it's easy to see why. You'll narily catch DD in a more vulnerable scenario.

[gunswordfist]

I mean, crossovers aren't exactly new, and there are always exceptions to the rule, but I know what you mean. People like Bendis ruin things for everyone.

I liked Bendis' work on early USM. What's he doing wrong?

Spider-Man, Wolverine and Doctor Strange are Avengers.

And besides what Insommy mentioned, Civil War was partially his fault.

New Avengers felt wrong to me...and I've never even read an Avengers comic before.

[gunswordfist]

And besides what Insommy mentioned, Civil War was partially his fault.

I always hear about how bad Civil War is, but I've never read it. What makes it so awful?

Ugh, I forgot all the name dropping. I do like the part when she tells Captain America that America is full of shit unlike what he remembers. So true.

[Spark Of Spirit]

I think the point is that someones opinion isn't worthless because of their lack of knowledge on pop culture-the most trivial and ever changing aspect of the modern world. For instance, check out the MySpace reference. How relevant is that?

Her argument is weak at best.

Anyway, that Kraven story sounds nuts. I mean, he was obviously always off his rocker, but that definitely takes the crazy cake.

[Dr. Insomniac]

I do like the part when she tells Captain America that America is full of shit unlike what he remembers. So true.

Yeah, an America where civil rights was out of the question, being gay was considered a trip to the asylum, and lobotomies were viewed as an acceptable medical procedure is absolutely better than what we have now.

But back to comics, I'm seeing a noticeable lack of stuff from up to 10 years ago. I know that no one's a fan of the Quesada era, but there's still some gems, like Marvel 1602.

[Avaitor]

But back to comics, I'm seeing a noticeable lack of stuff from up to 10 years ago. I know that no one's a fan of the Quesada era, but there's still some gems, like Marvel 1602.

There's some definite gold in them hills, true, but I always go back to the 60's-80's for Marvel in my mind. I might just make another list for some great modern Marvel stories after I'm done with this one.

But I will say, there are 5 slots left, so who knows what'll make it in.

[Spark Of Spirit]

Clone Saga, One More Day, Onslaught Saga, and possibly something to do with wife beating.

[Dr. Insomniac]

Clone Saga, One More Day, Onslaught Saga, and possibly something to do with wife beating.

Don't forget One Moment In Time.

[Spark Of Spirit]

Clone Saga, One More Day, Onslaught Saga, and possibly something to do with wife beating.

Don't forget One Moment In Time.

Top 5 leaked.

[Avaitor]

#1 is going to be the Transformers comic where a random bum finds Megatron in pistol form and uses it to become the next Tony Montana.

[Lord Dalek]

Wot? No Howard the Duck?

[Avaitor]

It's time for the top 5.

5-

Deadpool #11

I made it through 20 spots without a Deadpool story? What is wrong with me?

This has got to be one of the funniest stories the Merc with a mouth has appeared in. Deadpool and Blind Al arrives in an old Lee and Romita, Sr. Spider-Man comic, and attempts to find his way out of it. And boy, is this fucking hilarious. You can tell that Joe Kelly and crew are big fans of the original comics, since they treat the universe with plenty of respect, but at the same time, aren't afraid to pick out its flaws by knocking on the cheesy dialogue and dated fashions.

The amazing thing is that everything still rings true to the original story, no matter how far Deadpool and Blind Al's wit goes against the characters, and the comic even comes with a reprint of the original story to prove it. And I'll just say that Deadpool's reactions to the Osborn's hairdos alone make it top 5 material.

4-

Fantastic Four #48-50 "The Galactus Trilogy"

These 3 comics introduce 3 of the most important characters in the MU and put one of the biggest fights of all to Earth. With some of Jack Kirby's most vibrant artwork and Lee's biggest writing, this remains one of their greatest triumphs.

The Watcher, an all-seeing, all-encompassing divine being, comes to Earth to warn the Fantastic Four of Galactus, a planet-devouring giant, whose goal is to eat our planet. He has seen Galactus do this to other planets time and time again, and refuses to sit idly by as he devours yet another planet, which is why he warns Richards and his clan. The Watcher sens the Human Torch to Galactus' home world to take charge of things, as the other 3 stay on here to fend off against the all-mighty being if and when he shows up.

Around the same time, Galactus' herald, the Silver Surfer, arrives on Earth, riding through the planet to see if it's fit for his master. After a fatal attack by the Thing and a meeting with Ben Grimm's own girl, Alicia Masters, we see the Surfer become humbled. He's reminded of his Shalla Bal and memories of Zenn-La, and comes to realize that Galactus' will must not be done.

Epic in every sense of the word, the second Fantastic Four movie tried to tackle this plot, but failed ever-so-horribly (GALACTUS CLOUD!!!!). The original story is still the best.

3-

Uncanny X-Men #129-138 "The Dark Phoenix Saga"

Yet another story where the movie adaptation absolutely rapes the original tale. Let's just get this out of the way and forget that X3 exists, okay?

Well anyway, Jean Grey's transformation to Phoenix has been something going on in the pipeline for years up to this point, but the rise of Jean's evil side happened all at once, shocking comic-reading audiences the world over when it occurred. Mastermind, the head of the prestigious and mysterious Hellfire Club, invites Phoenix to join as their Black Queen, in contrast to Emma Frost, their glorious White Queen. All seems to be going well, except that Cyclops doesn't approve of the Hellfire Club and takes on Mastermind for Jean's honor and safety. When it seems like Mastermind has killed Summers in their fight (it was only his psychic image- this wasn't a real fight, but rather, a psychic brawl), Phoenix snaps, and unleashes her full potential as the Dark Phoenix.

Phoenix takes on the entire X-Men in a fit of rage, and even attacks a star, killing billions of its inhabitants in the balance. It's an intense storyarc with a shocking conclusion, in which Jean Grey pays for her actions in a way that comic readers were not accustomed to at the time- with her life. The stakes couldn't have been higher for the X-Men, and nary a better story with the mutants has been told.

2-

Amazing Spider-Man #121 & 122 "The Night Gwen Stacy Died"

Something you guys need to realize is that Norman Osborn lived a very tragic life during his last few years. He has repeatedly gained and regained the memory of his alter ego, the Green Goblin, and all of the turmoil that he has caused and have been caused to him by Spider-Man, alias Peter Parker. It's also worth reminding that Harry, his son, had been suffering through a drug addiction in the past couple of years.

After a tragic relapse causing Harry to be in a fatal state, Norman has come to the conclusion that Harry's roommate, the person who is supposedly the most responsible for all of these issues, must die. The Goblin arrives to Peter and Norman's apartment, only to find Gwen Stacy, his girlfriend. The Goblin takes Stacy up himself, and finds a way to tell Spidey to meet him on top of the George Washington Bridge. He does, just as Gobby drops Gwen to the water. Spidey spins a web to pull Gwen back up, but it's too late. She's dead, and there's nothing Spider-Man can do but obtain vengeance.

Spider-Man has lost many of his loved ones over the years, but Gwen's death might just be the most tragic, besides possibly his Uncle Ben. For one thing, Gwen was his first true love. Sure, Peter had a bit of a schoolboy fling with Betty Brant, but in hindsight, it wasn't too serious and was ultimately doomed from the beginning- the two had nothing in common, were too far apart in age, and had other true loves to pursue. While Peter and Mary Jane would eventually tie the knot, Gwen was and forever will be Peter's first. For another, just before the death of Captain Stacy, Gwen's father told Peter, whom he secretly knew was Spidey the entire time, to keep a close watch after Gwendolyn. Sadly, Parker wasn't able to complete this man's, who was somewhat of a father figure to him, final request.

And the most tragic part of all is that Spider-Man was partly responsible for her death. While Gwen would have still died even if Spidey didn't spin a web to save her from falling off the bridge, if you notice the panel where his web catches her leg, you can notice that her neck snapped. Maybe if he spun a web a little sooner or a little later, or built a harness for Gwen to fall on, or even jumped in himself and flew back up, Spider-Man could have still saved her. But no. Peter Parker will forever have to live with the fact that he broke Gwen Stacy's neck.

Spidey gets his vengeance in the following issue, which is why I included it in, but the fact still remains that Gwen Stacy is dead, and nothing, no clone or scandal or whatever came up ever since, can bring her back to life. The idea behind the amazing Spider-Man was that nothing ever goes right in Peter Parker's life, no matter how much he tries to do good in this world. When it seemed like things were going too well for Parker in the past few years, Gerry Conway and Gil Kane decided to pull out this story to remind us of why Spider-Man is one of the most endearing characters in all of fiction. Even the first movie took a couple of cues from these two issues, primarily with the climax between Spidey and Mary Jane (although MJ gets to live) and the Goblin's death.

And #1....

We already had our jokes, so let's get down to the real deal, k?



Avengers Annual #10 "By Friends- Betrayed!"

I had a hard time ranking the rest of the list, but I knew right from the beginning that this would be my #1. It just had to be.

It starts off with Spider-Woman saving a woman from falling off the Golden Gate Bridge, who happens to be Carol Danvers, a big name to the Avengers. As Spider-Woman hung up with the X-Men from an earlier phone convo to get some ideas, Professor X reads into her mind, telling her that Danvers' mind has been wiped clean from a mutant by the name of Rogue, in her comic debut.

Meanwhile, we see Captain America crash into Rogue's trap in New York, as the rest of the Avengers get ambushed by Mystique and the Brotherhood of Evil Mutant in their mansion. Rogue comes over and takes on Earth's Mightiest Heroes alongside the Brotherhood. This is a bittersweet reunion for the Scarlet Witch, who was a member of the Brotherhood before reforming and joining the Avengers, but there isn't much time to dwell on this. After a brief but awesome fight, the Avengers tell Spider-Woman an abridged history of their time with Carol Danvers, and why they weren't expecting to see her again. This will come up later, but for now, the heroes take on the Brotherhood again, in an even more epic fight than before.

Just as you'd expect the comic to end, the real meat of the story arrives. Carol regains consciousness and full memory while chilling at the Xavier Mansion, as the Avengers show up to talk to her, until she snaps and tells them what really happened. I couldn't possibly give away this side of the story, but I can say this. Did you ever see Rosemary's Baby? Well, Carol Danvers had a somewhat similar story to Rosemary, but even more fucked up, and the Avengers, who were by her side the entire time, did nothing to help her in even the slightest. In fact, they ignored and betrayed her more than anything.

This story attempts to say that for all of the times that our heroes do good and save the day, there's always one or two times where they end up doing far more damage than they could imagine. The sad thing is that these heroes still mean well, but don't have the time to reflect on everything they do, or whose lives may be hurt. Carol Danvers' psyche will forever be fucked, and Earth's Mightiest Heroes are at fault for it.

This comic reminds me of why I love the Avengers. Why I love old-school Marvel. Why I love comics. For all of the good our favorite heroes cause, they're still capable of faults, and can hurt people, even their loved ones, on a regular basis. Tragedy at its best.

Well there's my list! Comments?

[Foggle]

YES DEADPOOL #11 ILU

By far one of my favorite comic issues. Now I just have to read the rest of your list!

[Spark Of Spirit]

I really like classic X-Men. All the stuff you mentioned, the Phoenix saga (and Dark Phoenix), Days Of Future Past... Most of the stuff up to Onslaught, anyway. The X-Men were the ultimate underdogs who always tried to do the right thing, they all had their differences, but at heart they were a family. Once they started throwing in betrayal and conspiracy (major comic cliches), they sort of ruined what made X-Men work.

That said, good list. I don't read comics anymore, but the classics do have some good stories to them.

[Dr. Insomniac]

Yeah, after scouring through Dark Age and Modern Age books, I feel like I've been neglecting the previous eras. And this list might help me find something good out of them.