The Champions Classic, Vol. 2 (v. 2) [Paperback]

Bill Mantlo (Author), Jim Shooter (Author), George Tuska (Illustrator), Bob Hall (Illustrator), John Byrne (Illustrator)

Book Description

Grade Level: 4 and up

Demon-gods, alien monsters and killer bees - it only goes to show that Angel, Iceman, Hercules, Black Widow and Ghost Rider did more before #17 than some teams get done by #50! The short-lived super-team squeezed multiple mayhem into mere months of masked marvelry! Featuring the Stranger and the Stilt-Man! Magneto and Modok! The world reign of Doctor Doom! The Sentinels and the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants! Guest-starring Spider-Man and the Avengers! Plus: destined for the pages of Punisher War Journal... Rampage! Collects Champions #12-17, Iron Man Annual #4, Avengers #163, Super-Villain Team-Up #14 and Peter Parker, the Spectacular Spider-Man #17-18.

Product Details

• Paperback: 216 pages
• Publisher: Marvel (January 10, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 078512098X
• ISBN-13: 978-0785120988
• Product Dimensions: 1 x 1 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,012,649 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The Champions wrap it up on a bit of a down note, February 6, 2007

By 

Babytoxie (Dallas, TX USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Champions Classic, Vol. 2 (v. 2) (Paperback)

At last, we have CHAMPIONS CLASSIC VOLUME 2, the highly anticipated second round of reprints featuring perhaps the oddest team of Marvel heroes ever. Angel, Iceman, Hercules, Black Widow, and Ghost Rider aren't a grouping I'd normally consider worthwhile, but darn if The Champions didn't have some exciting stories during their run. In volume 2, Darkstar and Black Goliath assist the team against bizarre villains such as Stilt-Man and MODOK, cosmic entities such as the Stranger and Kamo Tharn, and Swarm - a guy made of killer bees. You'll also see more popular villains such as Magneto & the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants, Doctor Doom, and the Sentinels. Writer Bill Mantlo packs the pages full of action and wonder in the first several issues of this collection, but the later stories unfortunately slide downhill. I guess once the series was slated for cancellation, Mantlo didn't see the need to worry about any more of the series' signature creativity. As a result, he relies mainly on mind-control stories or other tired gimmicks that pit hero against hero. But overall, the stories are fun. The art from George Tuska and Bob Hall is okay, but you just can't beat the contribution of a young rising star by the name of John Byrne. There's no doubting Byrne's style, even in some of his earliest work. Even though it's only 4 issues worth, plus a additional issue with him finishing breakdowns, I'll take what I can get.

The book collects Champions #12-17, Iron Man Annual #4, Avengers #163, Super-Villain Team Up #14. and Peter Parker: The Spectacular Spider-Man #17-18... a broad representation of `70s Marvel goodness.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Nostalgic Appeal Only, March 24, 2009

By 

Daniel J. Mooney "Going Blind from Reading." (Columbia, SC) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Champions Classic, Vol. 2 (v. 2) (Paperback)

When I think of the Champions, the words that come to mind are "okay", "ehh", and "generic." If you ever had a group of heroes whose stories had so little impact, this would be them. They are the prime example of the generic super-team, and a cookie-cutter mentality. The characters really don't blend together well, or even seem plausible, and considering the history of their creation it's not surprising why.

When the Champions was first proposed in 1975, creator Tony Isabella wanted it to be a sort of buddy superhero comic between Iceman and The Angel. But Editor Len Wein disagreed and stated that every group comic needed at least 5 members. One of which who was strong, one had to be a woman, and at least one who had his own comic. Hence the additions, Hercules was the strong guy, Black Widow (recently having left Daredevil) was the female, and Ghost Rider was one of the few unattached superheroes with their own comic.

The series does hold some nostalgic appeal however, for those who grew up in the 70's era comics. Being generic, pretty much every comic cliché' of that time was in it. It certainly took me back to the old comics and brought back feelings of the old times, and joy I remember from reading them.

However for those younger readers, who didn't grow up reading the 70's era comics, you might want to give it a miss. It was written at the level of its key demographic, namely 12 year old boys, and the dialogue and situations do not go above that. If you really want to look at old school comics, they don't get more generic than this.

In short, it's a fun old comic, but contains nothing ground-breaking or of interest, beyond people beating each other up and yelling out ridiculous amounts of dialogue while in mid air.

4.0 out of 5 stars The end, September 2, 2007

By 

N. Durham "Big Evil" (Philadelphia, PA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Champions Classic, Vol. 2 (v. 2) (Paperback)

This second, and final, collection of The Champions finds the bizarre superhero team consisting of Ghost Rider, Black Widow, Hercules, Iceman, and Angel taking on some big time villains in the vein of Magneto and his Brotherhood of Evil Mutants, and even Doctor Doom. Like the issues in the first volume, The Champions works surprisingly well thanks to some surprisingly compelling set-ups and stories that usually feature a decent enough pay off to keep coming back. Not to mention the fact that there are contributions from then rising star artist John Byrne, whose considerable talents, even at such an early stage in his career, are of are a definite highlight. In these final issues, The Champions also take on Stilt-Man, MODOK, and Swarm; and there's appearances from Spider-Man and the mutant hunting Sentinels as well. All in all, if you enjoyed the first volume of The Champions, you'll definitely enjoy what you get here.