This new beginning for Marvel’s greatest heroes pits the team against giant gods from outer space...

(Panini Comics)

In the wake of the No Surrender epic, the Avengers have once again disbanded, but it isn’t long before events conspire to prove the need for a new line-up of Earth’s Mightiest Heroes, and who should be behind these machinations? None other than the god of mischief himself: Loki, the driving force behind the formation of the original Avengers team.

After a group of archaeologists discover a Celestial buried in a cavern deep below South Africa, which results in the arrival of the Final Host, Dark Celestials infected by the destructive Horde.

A new team of Avengers led by Thor, Iron Man and Captain America assembles to tackle the extinction-level threat, eventually learning how a prehistoric team of Avengers made up of Norse god Odin, magician Agametto, and versions of the Phoenix, Black Panther, Ghost Rider, Iron Fist and Star Brand had previously fought and defeated the deranged Celestial known as the Fallen, and it was them who buried it for millennia.

They also uncover the secret origin of the Earth and how its evolution was affected by the blood and rotting flesh of a dying Celestial. This biological time-bomb mixed with the primordial elements of the planet and made it a unique breeding ground for super-powered beings to come, who will eventually have the potential to act as an antidote to the Horde itself…

Jason Aaron, probably the strongest writer currently working for Marvel, teams up with artist Ed McGuinness to relaunch the Avengers in the tradition of his myth-making Thor run, spanning time and space and bringing together some of the flagship characters of the Marvel Universe.

There have been some remarkable Avengers runs over the years, with my personal favourite Steve Englehart/George Perez in the 1970s (showing my age there!), but also many which just haven’t delivered on expectations. Judging from this strength of this inaugural arc, we could be looking at one of those defining collaborations which will eventually become a comics legend.

An auspicious start to what will hopefully be a long run from Aaron.