Review of "The Avengers: The Ultimate Guide to Earth’s Mightiest Heroes," by Scott Beatty et. al.

Review of

 The Avengers: The Ultimate Guide to Earth’s Mightiest Heroes, by Scott Beatty et. al. ISBN 9780241186565

Five out of five stars

History of the greatest team of heroes

  Originally assembled in 1963 by the brilliant team of Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, the Avengers group of superheroes has undergone dramatic changes in the last fifty years. Their first foe was the Norse God of Evil Loki and the original members were the Hulk, Thor, Iron Man, Ant-Man and the Wasp. From this beginning many members have joined, left, switched sides, gone mad and re-joined. They have battled foes with origins on Earth to the farthest reaches of our universe, other universes and even across time. One would be hard-pressed to find a Marvel superhero that was not at one time an Avenger. 

 This book is an atlas that tracks many of the changes that have taken place in the group, including the West Coast Avengers and the occasional appearance of the Great Lakes Avengers. The range of superpowers of the members of the Avengers is great, providing for a very large range of creative options and at times increasing the number of potential opponents for the Avengers.

 As even the author of this book concedes, the number of heroes and storylines in the Avenger saga are so large, one needs some form of scorecard to keep track of it all. This book is one with beautiful pictures of the powerful heroes. It also allows you to see how the depictions of the heroes have changed over time.