In early 1963, the foundations for the Marvel Age were laid. After introducing the comic world to the Fantastic Four in 1961, the Amazing (Spider-Man), the Astonishing (Ant-Man), the Strange (Doctor Strange), the Incredible (Hulk), the Invincible (Iron Man), and the Mighty (Thor) followed. Nevertheless, Marvel's editor-in-chief Stan Lee was convinced that even more was possible. "I wrote these characters and thought it would be funny to unite them into a team," he recalls.

So, Lee and artist Jack Kirby brought together Iron Man, Ant-Man, The Wasp, Thor, and Hulk to form the Avengers. From the very beginning, it was clear that this team was different. While the Fantastic Four were a family, the Avengers were coworkers who had not chosen each other. Not everyone got along – the Hulk had trouble with everyone – but when they worked together, they could defeat the strongest supervillains that Marvel had to offer, such as Loki, Kang the Conqueror, the Masters of Evil, and Immortus.

The lineup changed repeatedly – the Hulk left the team, Captain America joined, and Ant-Man grew into Giant-Man. Then again, the villains Hawkeye, Quicksilver, and the Scarlet Witch became heroes – and Avengers – while the founding members of the group departed. They left Captain America behind to lead the new heroes.

Experience the classic adventures of the Avengers issues 1–20 in this compact edition. TASCHEN presents these issues in the best possible form, just as they were first published. In close collaboration with Marvel and the Certified Guaranty Company, the most flawless copies were photographed. Each page has been reproduced exactly as it was printed more than half a century ago.