The Punisher V2 (1980’s)

The Punisher ongoing series premiered in 1987. Initially by writer Mike Baron and artist Klaus Janson, it eventually ran 104 issues (July 1987 – July 1995) and spun off two additional ongoing series — The Punisher War Journal (80 issues, November 1988 – July 1995) and The Punisher War Zone (41 issues, March 1992 – July 1995), as well as the black-and-white comics magazine The Punisher Magazine(16 issues, November 1989 – September 1990) and The Punisher Armory (10 issues, no cover dates, starting 1990), a fictional diary detailing “His thoughts! His feelings! His weapons!” (as stated on the cover of issue #1). The Punisher also appeared in numerous one-shots and miniseries, and made frequent guest appearances in other Marvel comics, ranging from superhero series to the Vietnam War-era comic The ‘Nam.

During this era, the Punisher was assisted by his then-partner, Microchip. Serving as a Q type figure, he would supply the Punisher with high-tech vehicles and equipment such as armored combat “battle vans” specially built and customized.

Vengeance of the Moon Knight (2009)

Moon Knight returns to New York after faking his death with Jake Lockley as his dominant personality, but still struggles against his violent nature and is hounded by Khonshu in the form of a small imaginary tormentor resembling a man in the Moon Knight costume with a bird skull who goads him to kill. While trying to walk the path of a hero he makes a bold return taking on many criminals but killing none of them; now the people of New York begin to see him as a hero and not a murderous vigilante much to Norman Osborn’s disdain. Jake’s personality has been one of struggle against the inner demon trying to get him to kill while juggling sobriety.

Dr. Fate V2 (1988)

In 1988, DC Comics would release a Doctor Fate ongoing series focusing on 2 characters acting simultaneously as Doctor Fate, the first twenty-four issues written and drawn by J.M. DeMatteis and Shawn McManus. The series focused on magically aged up Eric and Linda acting as Doctor Fate under the guidance of Nabu, whom has inhabited and taken the identity of Kent Nelson. Despite their differences in personality and both Eric’s immaturity and true age, Linda is portrayed as having feelings for Erica which are mutual. The Eric Stauss character was seemingly killed off later in the run, making the Linda Strauss character the sole Doctor Fate for a time.

Universe X (2000)

With the Celestial embryo gone, the Earth’s mass is reduced, causing a shift in orbit and polarity as well as drastic worldwide climate changes. One-fourth of New York’s population dies as temperatures plummet. The Tong of Creel, a cult dedicated to reassembling the Absorbing Man, begins killing those who hold his fragments. Under Mephisto‘s influence, Pope Immortus founds a church advocating mutant dominance of the galaxy and the destruction of Reed’s Human Torches. Meanwhile, Mar-Vell is reincarnated as the child of the synthetic Him and Her, though his soul remains in the Realm of the Dead. Captain America becomes the Mar-Vell child’s guardian and embarks on a worldwide quest with his new ward to obtain various items in order to deal with Earth’s restless mutant population and prepare for an impending war in the Realm of the Dead. Arriving at Zero Street, the duo is attacked by the Night People, and Captain America sacrifices his life to save the Mar-Vell child.

Kabuki – Circle of Blood (1994)

Set in an alternate near-future Japan, a young woman codenamed “Kabuki”, acts as an agent and television law-enforcement personality for a clandestine government body known as “The Noh”. In the first volume of the series, The Noh’s nature and background is explained.

The Noh is controlled by a renowned World War II Japanese military man known as the General, who has achieved much power and status for being a brilliant military tactician during his many years of service. The agency itself exists as part of Japan’s strict police state, which hunts down and brutally executes criminals for their misdeeds under the veil of keeping the peace. Secretly the Noh also acts to maintain the balance of crime and order that ultimately benefits the national economy on both sides of the law and thus targets politicians, businessmen and certain underworld kingpins whose actions threaten this balance. Kabuki herself is one of eight masked assassins whom perform these secret executions under the General’s orders.

Infinity Wars (2018)

The premise involves the heroes and villains of the Marvel Universe deal with the outcome of the search for the new Infinity Gems (now renamed Infinity Stones). In Infinity Wars #3 (“Infinity Warps”), Requiem (Gamora) successfully gathers the Infinity Stones to use them in a more creative fashion than her father Thanos, reducing the universe’s lifeforms in half by combining any two given characters into one new individual. However, the result is unintended: only the reality around the heroes of Earth is warped and transported      inside Soulworld where Devondra, a cosmic entity dwelling at the heart of the Soul Stone, waits to feed.

Bone (1991)

Bone is an independently published comic book series, written and illustrated by Jeff Smith, originally serialized in 55 irregularly released issues from 1991 to 2004.

Smith’s black-and-white drawings were inspired by animated cartoons and comic strips, a notable influence being Walt Kelly‘s Pogo: “I was … a big fan of Carl Barks and Pogo, so it was just natural for me to want to draw that kind of mixture of Walt Kelly and Mœbius.” Accordingly, the story is singularly characterized by a mixture of both light-hearted comedy and dark fantasy thriller: Time has called the series “as sweeping as the Lord of the Rings cycles, but much funnier.” The series was published bimonthly with some delays from June 1991 to June 2004. The series was self-published by Smith’s Cartoon Books for issues #1 to #19, by Image Comics from issues #20 to #28, and back to Cartoon Books for issues #29 to #55.

Bone has received numerous awards, among them ten Eisner Awards and eleven Harvey Awards.

Runaways V1 (2003)

Runaways features a group of teenagers who discover that their parents are part of an evil crime organization known as “The Pride“. Created by Brian K. Vaughan and Adrian Alphona, the series debuted in July of 2003 as part of Marvel Comics’ “Tsunami” imprint. The series had been canceled in September 2004 at issue eighteen, but due to high numbers of trade collection sales, Marvel revived the series in February 2005.

Originally, the series featured a group of six kids whose parents routinely met every year for a charity event. One year, the kids spy on their parents and learn they are “the Pride”, a criminal group of mob bosses, time-travelers, dark wizards, mad scientists, alien invaders and telepathic mutants. The kids steal weapons and resources from their parents, and learn they themselves inherited their parents’ powers; Alex Wilder, a prodigy, leads the team while Nico Minoru learns she is a powerful witch, Karolina Dean discovers she is an alien, Gertrude Yorkes learns of her telepathic link to a dinosaur, Chase Steinsteals his father’s futuristic gloves, while young Molly Hayes learns she is a mutant with incredible strength. The kids band together and defeat their parents, and atone for the sins of their parents by fighting the new threats trying to fill in the Pride’s void. After being betrayed by Alex who was killed by the Gibborim (The Pride’s God) they are later joined by cyborg Victor Mancha, shape-shifting SkrullXavin, and plant-manipulator Klara Prast.

Penthouse Men’s Adventure Comix (1996)

Penthouse Men’s Adventure Comix was the first spin-off of the popular Penthouse Comix, and most of the stories were done by well known comic professionals.

Iron Man (1990’s)

Faking his death, Stark places himself in suspended animation to heal as Rhodes takes over both the running of Stark Enterprises and the mantle of Iron Man, although he uses the War Machine armor. Stark makes a full recovery by using a chip to reprogram himself and resumes the Iron Man identity. When Rhodes learns that Stark has manipulated his friends by faking his own death, he becomes enraged and the two friends part ways, Rhodes continuing as War Machine in a solo career.

The story arc “The Crossing” reveals Iron Man as a traitor among the Avengers’ ranks, due to years of manipulation by the time-traveling dictator Kang the Conqueror. Stark, as a sleeper agent in Kang’s thrall, kills Marilla, the nanny of Crystal and Quicksilver’s daughter Luna, as well as Rita DeMara, the female Yellowjacket, then Amanda Chaney, an ally of the Avengers. The “Avengers Forever” limited series retcons these events as the work of a disguised Immortus, not Kang, and that the mental control had gone back only a few months.[70]

Needing help to defeat both Stark and Kang, the team travels back in time to recruit a teenaged Anthony Stark from an alternate timeline to assist them. The young Stark steals an Iron Man suit in order to aid the Avengers against his older self. The sight of his younger self shocks the older Stark enough for him to regain momentary control of his actions, and he sacrifices his life to stop Kang. The young Stark later builds his own suit to become the new Iron Man, and, remaining in the present day, gains legal control of “his” company.