The Avengers #3
Avengers #3 is the first comic book meeting of the Hulk and Sub-Mariner, two of Marvel's most powerful and emotionally volatile characters, and their adversarial alliance against the Avengers represents one of the richest 'enemy of my enemy' premises of the Silver Age. Just as importantly, the scene in which Iron Man uses a remote image projector to simultaneously contact the Fantastic Four, the X-Men, and Spider-Man for help is now recognized as one of the earliest and most deliberate demonstrations of the Marvel shared universe in action — the moment when casual continuity nods gave way to a fully populated, cross-title world. The issue also crystallizes a key turning point in Hulk's characterization: his gamma-ray-machine-dependent transformations give way to stress-triggered changes outside his control, a biological metaphor that would define Bruce Banner's tragedy for decades. Its Hulk-and-Namor partnership was so resonant that Stan Lee briefly contemplated turning it into a permanent team, and the pairing eventually provided the emotional template for the Defenders when that non-team debuted in 1971.
In "The Avengers Meet... Sub-Mariner!", the team grapples with the fallout of the Hulk’s departure, only to face him again—this time in conflict. When the Sub-Mariner learns of the Hulk’s presence, an unlikely alliance forms between the two giants against their former foes. Written by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, with art by Jack Kirby and inks by Paul Reinman, this pivotal 1964 issue features a cover by Jack Kirby and Paul Reinman.
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The issue was written by Stan Lee and pencilled by Jack Kirby — the same creative duo responsible for every issue of the title's first run — with inks by Paul Reinman and lettering by Sam Rosen. It went on sale November 5, 1963 with a January 1964 cover date, placing it in the very earliest bi-monthly phase of the series, when Marvel was still publishing The Avengers every other month. Notably, this is the first time Kirby drew Spider-Man entirely on his own, without Steve Ditko's involvement, reflecting the logistical challenge of depicting the entire existing Marvel hero roster in a single issue on a tight Silver Age production schedule.
Trivia · 8 facts
- Cover date: January 1964; on-sale date: November 5, 1963. Published by Marvel Comics under the bi-monthly schedule the title maintained through issue #6.
- Creative team: Written by Stan Lee, pencilled by Jack Kirby, inked by Paul Reinman (credited as P. Reinman), lettered by Sam Rosen (credited as S. Rosen).
- First meeting and team-up of the Hulk and Sub-Mariner (Namor), who form an uneasy alliance against the Avengers at the Rock of Gibraltar, each secretly planning to betray the other once their goal is achieved.
- Iron Man uses an image-projector device to contact the Fantastic Four, the X-Men, and Spider-Man in search of the fugitive Hulk — one of the earliest and most explicit cross-title demonstrations of the Marvel shared universe.
- Establishes a pivotal shift in Hulk's condition: his involuntary transformations are now triggered by stress alone, with the gamma-ray machine needed only to revert to Banner — a mythology-defining change from the first six issues of his solo series.
- Both the Hulk and Sub-Mariner attempt to lift Thor's hammer, Mjolnir, and both fail — an early use of the hammer's worthiness test as a storytelling device.
- Jack Kirby's first solo rendition of Spider-Man, drawn without Steve Ditko's involvement, appears briefly during the cross-title roll call scene.
- Reprinted in black and white in Essential Avengers Vol. 1 and in restored color in Marvel Masterworks: The Avengers Vol. 1, which collects issues #1–10.
Cast · 21 characters
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Reprints
Reprinted in Spellbound #54 (1965), Los Vengadores #2 (1969), Marvel Super-Heroes #21 (1969), The Avengers Annual #4 (1971), Il Mitico Thor #8 (1971), Eclipso #18 (1972), The Mighty World of Marvel #48 (1973), Die ruhmreichen Rächer #3 (1974), The Incredible Hulk #[nn] (1978), De Vergelders #1 (1979), Die Rächer #1 (1979), Los Vengadores #3 (1981), Les Vengeurs Color #1 (1982), The Marvel Saga the Official History of the Marvel Universe #12 (1986), Marvel Masterworks #4 (1988), Strange Spécial Origines #244 hors série (1990), Avengers Masterworks #1 (1993), The Avengers Log #1 (1994), Marvel Masterworks: The Avengers #[1] (1997), Biblioteca Marvel: Los Vengadores #1 (1999), Marvel Klassik #5 (1999), Essential Avengers #1 (1999), Marvel Masterworks: The Avengers #1 (2002), Marvel Masterworks: The Avengers - Barnes & Noble Edition #1 (2003) + 23 more
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