In 1986, Marvel launched CLASSIC X-MEN, a series that reprinted the "All-New, All-Different X-Men" era — with a twist! All-new backup stories fleshed out the 1970s tales and delved deeper into the characters' lives — and new story pages were even inserted into the reprints, expanding on key moments and sowing the seeds for future storylines! Now, all this newly created material has been collected together — complete with comparisons and text pieces explaining what was changed, what was added and why! Friendships are forged, allies are mourned and lives are transformed in these rare tales that dance between the raindrops of some of the most revered X-Men comics of all time!Collects Classic X-Men #1-23.

    HULK: CHAMPIONS OF THE UNIVERSE 1-6

    Starlin stripped the Kree Captain to his core and then resurrected him as a truly cosmic hero. This may have been Starlin's first super-hero saga, but it introduced some of his signature characters: Mar-Vell's nemesis Thanos and the Guardians of the Galaxy's Drax make their first appearances and they continue to define the Marvel Universe today.COLLECTING: CAPTAIN MARVEL (1968) 25-34; IRON MAN (1968) 55; MARVEL FEATURE (1971) 12; MARVEL GRAPHIC NOVEL (1982) 1; MATERIAL FROM DAREDEVIL (1964) 105.

    Its editor, Vin Sullivan, also drew the debut issue's cover. It features the character "Fui Onyui" who served as the "yellow peril" villain (battled by Slam Bradley and his humourous sidekick Shorty Morgan).No Batman until issue #27.

    Untreated, they fester and grow into the diseases of fear, uncertainty and hopelessness. Unaided, the law is blinded by bureaucracy and bound to a justice bent toward the protection even of the criminal. The face of a kinder and gentler nation is destroyed, carved into a harlequin's mask; a grim skull. And the wielders of the scythe laugh, secure in the knowledge that their crimes will go without punishment.They are wrong. In the urban jungle, there is one who stands alone and apart; one who lives not for the law, but only to see justice done. The Punisher reaps a different harvest.Once, he was Frank Castle, loving husband and father. A tour in Vietnam had shown him what war was. Part of him died there, but a precious part stayed alive, determined to return to the family he loved, and the peace and freedom that was his America. Part of him held on to live, until his family died in a hail of mob gunfire, victims of the wrong place and wrong time.Daily, criminals greedily cut their portions from the souls of the weak and weary, the foolish and the frightened. One man senses how the guilty feed like parasites on the heart of the American Dream. One man hears when evil laughs at the law. One man sees clearly that the most powerful criminals have placed themselves above the law. One man has become their judge, their jury.One man has become their Punisher.

    Iron Man's nemesis, the Mandarin, has risen again, his ten rings of power more awesome than before! But the power in his hands hasn't kept him from being a puppet in someone else's, and war with his ironclad enemy may have to take a backseat against ten awakened dragons - one for each ring!

    HEAD TRIP, Part 1 of 6It's the Merc with two mouths! Deadpool travels to the Savage Land to retrieve the severed-but-still-hungry head of the Marvel Zombies Deadpool! Now, Deadpool must dodge Hydra operatives, dinosaurs, and zombie cavemen as he attempts to take his not-so-precious cargo back where it came from: the Marvel Zombies Universe.

    When a young girl goes missing on a Kansas farm, Bruce Banner gets the itch – the one that tells him gamma is on the loose. But this town doesn’t take kindly to strangers – especially the big, green, violent kind. Can the Hulk save a child before it’s too late, or is he about to take the blame for another massacre?

    Deadpool had better fi nd out what's going on before it mashes him into spider-paste! Then, inverted by the events of Axis, Deadpool puts down the guns...and goes Zen! So how can he possibly save his friends from an attack by the also-inverted X-Men?! In the aftermath, Deadpool takes a relaxing vacation to the Middle East, clashes with Omega Red, journeys into the Tomb of Scariness with Shiklah...and battles the revenge-crazed ULTIMATUM organization! Oh, and he dies at the end. Is that a spoiler? COLLECTING: DEADPOOL 35-44, 250

    Electro. The Black Widow. The Laughing Mask. The Blue Blade. Dynamic Man. Master Mind Excello. Mister E. The Fiery Mask. The Witness. Rockman. Captain Wonder. Laying dormant for sixty years, they awaken in a tormented world that needs them more than ever. But has the world grown beyond their brand of old-fashioned heroism? Writer J. Michael Stracyzynski (Babylon 5, The Amazing Spider-Man) and artist Chris Weston (The Invisibles, Fantastic Four: The First Family) present a post-modernist tale of sacrifice, betrayal, and human nature. Plus: Journey into the past to follow the death-defying exploits of the Phantom Reporter on the front lines of World War II - and witness his first encounter with history's greatest super heroes!COLLECTING: The Twelve 1-12, The Twelve: Spearhead

    But in the aftermath of Hydra’s takeover of the nation, Captain America is a figure of controversy, carrying a tarnished shield…and a new enemy is rising! Who are the Power Elite? And how do they intend to co-opt and corrupt the symbol that is Captain America?

    It's a new beginning as four time Eisner-nominated Best Writer Ed Brubaker makes his Marvel debut, joined by white-hot artist Steve Epting! As the new regular creative team, they will take Cap's life in directions fans will never see coming! In just this first issue, the Red Skull lays the groundwork for his most devastating attack ever on Captain America and the land he holds dear...and with the Cosmic Cube in his possession, how can Cap hope to stop him? Find out in the shocking twist-ending that will have everybody in the industry talking!

    Impossible shots. Impossible targets. Marvel's #1 soldier of fortune is back in an explosive new ongoing series! The product of a failed super-soldier program, Neena Thurman always made her own luck as the sharpshooting mercenary known as Domino… but what happens when her own powers betray her? The hunter becomes the hunted as every mercenary in the game smells blood in the water! Plus: A pair of beloved Marvel characters return!

    Swinging next to The Invincible Iron Man, The Mighty Thor and the All-New Captain America as a card-carrying member of the Avengers is an adventure, but it's not all fun and games for New York City's main Spider-Man! What happened in the eight month gap? It all starts in SPIDER-MAN #1!

    But when a mission brings her back to her childhood home in Mississippi, Rogue comes face to face with the demons in her past...and a terrible secret that has haunted her family since her birth! With Gambit on hand to help out, Rogue must discover her parents' fate! Then, when a photograph surfaces of Rogue and Mystique during their time in the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants - a photograph that Rogue has no memory of - her search for the truth takes her all the way to Japan!COLLECTING: Rogue (2004) 1-12