New Avengers #1

History

Written by Brian Michael Bendis and penciled by David Finch, the issue shipped on December 1, 2004, carrying a January 2005 cover date — placing it in the immediate wake of Bendis's own Avengers Disassembled arc, which had disbanded the classic team. Editor Tom Brevoort shepherded the launch alongside editors Nicole Wiley, Molly Lazer, and Andy Schmidt, with inking by Danny Miki and colors by Frank D'Armata. The issue was notable enough that Marvel almost immediately released a Director's Cut edition that reprinted the full story alongside the Bendis script, alternate covers by Joe Quesada and Steve McNiven, and a detailed villain-identification spread identifying every breakout prisoner on the Raft's two-page splash; a second printing with a Finch variant cover also followed, underscoring the strong initial reader response.

Trivia · 8 facts

• Written by Brian Michael Bendis, penciled by David Finch, inked by Danny Miki, colored by Frank D'Armata, and edited by Tom Brevoort; cover-dated January 2005 but released December 1, 2004.
• First appearance of The Raft, the 'maximum-maximum security' super-powered criminal facility depicted as an underwater wing of Ryker's Island — a location that became a recurring Marvel setting.
• The 'Spider-Woman' (Jessica Drew) appearing throughout this issue is retroactively established to be Skrull Queen Veranke in disguise, making this her first (disguised) appearance in Marvel continuity — a reveal that did not come until New Avengers #40 and the 2008 Secret Invasion event.
• The Sentry (Robert Reynolds) is reintroduced to the modern Marvel Universe here as a voluntary prisoner at the Raft who believes he murdered his wife — his first major role in a mainline ongoing series.
• Electro triggers the mass breakout that brings the core cast together; over 40 super-powered criminals escape the Raft during the chaos, including the U-Foes (X-Ray, Vapor, Ironclad, Vector), Armadillo, the Brothers Grimm, Controller, Jigsaw, and the Purple Man (Killgrave) among others.
• Matt Murdock (Daredevil), Foggy Nelson, and Luke Cage are present at the Raft on legal business — visiting Murdock's client, the Sentry — when the breakout begins, giving Bendis an unconventional, street-level entry point into what would become a superhero ensemble.
• The issue launched with multiple first-printing variants including a Steve McNiven cover, a Joe Quesada cover, and a Director's Cut edition containing the full Bendis script and a villain-identification key for the breakout splash pages.
• The 'Breakout' arc spanning issues #1–6 was later adapted as a prose novel by Alisa Kwitney (2013, Marvel Prose Novel series), with the cast significantly altered to feature Hawkeye and Black Widow in place of Wolverine and Sentry to align with the 2012 Avengers film.

Cast · 31 characters

Full credits

Key issues in New Avengers

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#11 1st appearance — Ronin

#1★

#1 Key event — Ben Grimm

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#16 1st appearance — Michael Pointer

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#58 1st appearance — Alisa Jones

Variants (4)