Marvel Unlimited, Marvel’s digital comics subscription service, is currently offering all fans free access to some of Marvel’s most iconic stories from recent years, including now-classic Marvel Comics events and critically acclaimed runs featuring the Avengers, Spider-Man, Black Widow, Captain America, Captain Marvel, and more.
With that in mind, I’ve decided to take a look back at these classic stories and maybe help you decide whether or not you would like to check them out. The first series up is a battle between two of the most beloved Marvel Comics superhero teams of all-time…
Avengers vs. X-Men
When you think of a comic book, you likely think of good guys vs. bad guys, but that’s not always the case. In fact, some comics aren’t even as black-and-white as good vs bad or right vs wrong. A lot of times there are shades of gray. That’s the case in this epic story arc that pits the Avengers against the X-Men. Or at least that’s the case for the beginning of the story.
Scott Summers, AKA Cyclops, is the leader of the X-Men, who now live on an island off the coast of San Francisco known at Utopia. The number of Mutants has been decimated ever since Wanda Maximoff lost control of her powers and caused roughly 90% of them to lose their powers. Still, Cyclops sees a ray of hope for Mutants in the form of, well, Hope Summers, who is destined to be the next host for the Phoenix and create a rebirth for Mutantkind.
Unfortunately for Cyclops and the X-Men, the rest of the world is aware that the Phoenix force is returning to Earth and they remember all to well what happened the last time it was there. Captain America, Iron Man and the rest of the Avengers decide they can’t allow Hope to become the Phoenix because of the potential danger it would bring to the planet. As you could imagine, when they confront the X-Men on the matter, things don’t stay civil for very long.
This is a great story for Marvel fans who are looking for something a bit different. Sure, you can read the Avengers’ fight against Thanos or the X-Men’s 100th fight against Magneto, but this story has more depth to it. Both sides believe they are doing the right thing to protect their people and at times, you may not know which side you’re on yourself.
This series also provides a whole lot of interactions and conflicts you don’t typically see in Marvel comics, like Captain America vs. Cyclops, the Red Hulk vs. Namor or even Spider-Man vs. Phoenix-powered Colossus and Magik. It’s a lot of fun to see so many of your favorite heroes brought together in ways you wouldn’t normally see them.
On top of that, this is a story that really centers on two very intriguing characters: Scarlet Witch and Hope Summers. The two of them are a couple of the most powerful and complex characters the Marvel Universe has to offer and they’re the keys to stopping the Phoenix force.
It’s also a great story that build a great deal on some other classic Marvel stories, namely “The Dark Phoenix Saga” and “House of M.” If you’re even remotely familiar with either of those stories, you’ll find some really cool moments throughout this 12-issue series that call back to those iconic storylines.
Even if you haven’t read the classic stories that came before “Avengers vs. X-Men,” you can still have a lot of fun reading this series. It’s loaded with the incredible, amazing and uncanny characters you know and love and will have you racing to get to the next issue each and every time.
You can read “Avengers vs. X-Men” for free now. And be sure to check back as we look back the rest of these classic Marvel Comics stories over the next several weeks.