Avengers Vs. Thanos Paperback – January 1, 2013

Thanos is probably the single most enigmatic, most emotionally conflicted, and most feared villain in the Marvel Universe (MU) who was not only able to rock the MU to its basest core, but also paint a gray hue of what is a villain and what is not. Doctor Doom comes second best, in my opinion, but in the grand scheme of things only Thanos remains.So who is this Thanos, you might ask?He is the creation of maestro Jim Starlin in the Bronze Age of American comics (1970s). Thanos' name is derived from `Thanatos', the Greek God of Death. But in the MU, he is the embodiment of the nihilistic Titan who worships Death.He has appeared in numerous Marvel books and graphic novels spanning almost four decades. His most important role came in 1991 when he wielded the Infinity Gauntlet and killed one-half of all living beings in the universe with but a snap of his finger that led to his waging a cosmic war against the MU's Celestial Forces. After that debacle, his infamy grew into legend. And while precious few writers plainly understood what goes on in this character's mind and made him an intelligent and cunning force to be reckoned with, others portrayed him as a hulking travesty. Alas, as time went by his popularity dimmed and dwindled until Joss Whedon decided to give the devil his due. Thanos's 3 second silver screen cameo debut as an epilogue to the Marvel's The Avengers movie (2012) resurrected fans' interest to this one-of-a-kind villain.In the hands of Starlin Thanos becomes the Omega to the Marvel Heroes' Alpha. This is by far the best collection of classic Thanos reprint issues (of the 70's) any Marvel fan would want to own! Aside from Jim Starlin, Steve Englehart, Mike Friedrich, Steve Gerber, et al. contribute their fair share of storytelling talents in this book.And though it seems there is no linear narrative to the story as some of the individual comics in this collection were not written in sequential form, the story remains straightforward, cohesive, and enjoyable thanks in big part to the 'introductory texts' written between chapters that bridge the gap.So sit back, relax, and witness the Mad Titan as he musters his alien armada to wreak havoc across the universe; schemes to defeat fellow villain the Magus; and opposes the might of Iron Man, Captain Marvel (Mar-Vell of Kree), Adam Warlock, and the Avengers in his quest to obtain the Cosmic Cube and the Soul Gem for universal domination, become a Mad God, and, most of all, be noticed (in vain) by his one, true paramour: Mistress Death.Thanos is here. Let the Heavens tremble.

Wow! I'm surprised of how good this book was!!I'm paving my way to Infinity Gauntlet, so it was only logical to get several Jim Starling stories. To be honest, I bought this collection because of the price and length of the book. And I won!!The best part for me was to get to know more of characters I never read before such as Thanos, Adam Warlock, Moondragon, Drax the Destroyer, Captain Marvel, etc. This is a GREAT collection to start since many important events happen here. I could even call this book "Infinity Gems: Beta Testing Stage", since Thanos is already scheming to get the Infinity Gems to make his "girlfriend" happy.You might get bumped because this is not an Avengers book per se. Is more of a collection of different individuals (Captain Marve, Thanks, etc) in which Thanos is the main threat. I found the narrative of the book very linear. At no point I felt lost, so if you are a beginner, take the word of a beginner... you can enjoy this book just fine. But be aware, as good as this book is, I find it great because of the "what has happen before" value if you are going to keep reading more of these collections.This is a list of what I've read and where I'm going with this:Avengers: Kree/Skrull WarAvengers vs. ThanosAvengers Epic Collection: The Final ThreatThe Korvac SagaThe Death of Captain MarvelThe Trial of YellowjacketAvengers: Absolute Vision Book 1Secret WarsSilver Surfer: Rebirth of ThanosInfinity GauntletI think is a short list that will pave your road well until Infinity Gauntlet. Good read, and, best of all, your going to be more in tune with characters you might have not read before.I'm extremely pleased with my purchase, so I recommend it to fans who wants to get a bit more cosmic with the Avengers, and want to know more of Thanos and his entourage.Cheers!!!

While not all of the comics here included have aged that well, this is still a fun volume for fans and collectors that want to see the origins of the main Marvel baddie Thanos. This volume mostly focused on the major Captain Marvel led arc wherein Thanos gains the Cosmic Cube. It also includes the arc where Thanos and Warlock battle the latter's evil twin the Magus only for Thanos to gain the Soul Gem. While these stories aren't necessary to understand the main event (Infinity Gauntlet) they are still fun in their own right. Just what the hell was going on with Magus' whiteafro though?