Thunderbolts is the name of severalcomic book titles featuring the team theThunderbolts and published byMarvel Comics, beginning with the originalThunderbolts comic book series which debuted in 1997.
The Thunderbolts were first presented, both to readers and to theMarvel Universe, as a group of super-powered figures who became heroes to help protect the world when theAvengers were declared dead after the events of the 1996 "Onslaught" crossover. The final page of the first issue of their comic book, however, revealed that the Thunderbolts were actually theMasters of Evil in disguise, a surprise twist carefully guarded by Marvel.[2]
Themes of redemption and the nature of heroism are often featured in Thunderbolts comics.[citation needed] The book has also garnered critical praise for its use of secondary characters from other Marvel Comics and its use of continuity-themed storytelling.[citation needed]
The Thunderbolts was an original concept created for Marvel by Busiek and Bagley.[citation needed] Most of the characters used in the final concept were reimagined versions of existing Marvel characters, with additional original characters for the series developed by Busiek and designed by Bagley.[citation needed] The pair also created the new heroic identities for the Masters of Evil. Busiek recalled:
The actual origin ofThunderbolts came when I used to live in New Jersey and drive to New England to visit my parents. To keep myself awake, I'd give myself books to write, and work out about two to three years of continuity. One trip, I assigned myselfAvengers, and came up with the plan that the Masters of Evil would ultimately conquer them by posing as new heroes and slowly replacing them. At the time, I thought it was a neat idea, and filed it away.[3]
While Busiek's original reluctance was because he deemed readers would not have liked replacing the established characters and then having the new ones being villains – "doing that with one character, like whatMarv Wolfman did withTerra, made a great sting, but doing it on a team-wide scale wouldn't work" – seeing a world devoid of many heroes following "Onslaught" made him revive the concept.[4] The Thunderbolts first appeared as a team inThe Incredible Hulk (vol. 2) #449 (January 1997), written byPeter David and illustrated byMike Deodato. Originally intended to be a similar team known as the "Echelon", the synchronization of the plans led to the Thunderbolts being used instead as a "teaser" for their own series. No mention was made of the connection between the Thunderbolts and the Masters of Evil in this appearance, save perhaps for the Hulk almost recognizing Meteorite's voice (having foughtMoonstone before). The team also appeared in a one-shot calledTales of the Marvel Universe. The twist was not revealed until the first issue of their own series.
Soon after the publication ofThe Incredible Hulk (vol. 2) #449, the team's own series premiered. The first issue,cover dated April 1997, was played largely as a straight superhero story, until the revelation of the Thunderbolts' true nature on the last page of the comic. This is considered one of the most well-conceivedplot twists in the history ofAmerican comic books, withWizard magazine readers voting it "Comics' Greatest Moment of 1997" and later, in 1998, placing it at #11 on a list of "The 25 Greatest Comic Moments Ever".[5] Marvel managed to keep the secret of the Thunderbolts' true villainous identities tightly under wraps before the book launched. When word got out, the first issue sold out so quickly that Marvel not only offered a second printing, but also did a "mini-trade paperback" collecting the first two issues.[6] Fabian Nicieza replaced Busiek in issue #34. Patrick Zircher, after a couple of fill-ins, replaced Bagley in issue #51.
Despite critical acclaim, the book was reformatted withThunderbolts #76 (March 2003), removing the entire cast and creative team and replacing it with a brand new set of characters, along with a new writer,John Arcudi.[7] The move was done in part due to Marvel Editor-in-ChiefJoe Quesada's desire to emulate the success he had withX-Force, which was reformatted with a new cast of characters and status quo that was successful in sales and popularity. However, the new direction for the series—an underground fighting circuit that employed predominantly newly created super-villain characters—was a commercial failure[citation needed] and canceled after six issues.
In 2004, Marvel Comics launched alimited series titledAvengers/Thunderbolts, which continued one year after the events of issue #75.[citation needed] The limited series ran for the same number of issues as the reformatted Thunderbolts arc.
Soon after the completion ofAvengers/Thunderbolts, Marvel Comics launched a second series featuring the characters withNew Thunderbolts #1 (January 2005). The storyline continued the events fromAvengers/Thunderbolts as well as the fall-out of "Avengers Disassembled" and returned to the original series concept, though with a roster that lacked many fan favorites (such as Baron Zemo, Moonstone, andTechno). With the combination of the eighty-one issues of the first series and the first eighteen issues ofNew Thunderbolts, the series reverted to its original numbering withThunderbolts #100.
Thunderbolts #110 saw another change to the direction of the series, with writerWarren Ellis introducing a new team of Thunderbolts,[8][9] villains working for the government, tasked with capturing unregistered superheroes. Ellis has stated that he chose to approach the series "gently, but directly from a political agenda"[10] and the relaunch was closely tied to Marvel's commercially successfulCivil War event, with the team serving as a dark reflection of the event's controversial ending.[11]
Ellis stepped aside in issue #121 and was replaced byChristos Gage, who wrote threeone-shots[12] and a four-issue tie-in withSecret Invasion.[13][14] At the 2008San Diego Comic-Con,Andy Diggle was announced as the new ongoing writer,[15] starting in issue #126 (November 2008) with a two issue story "Burning Down the House" which cleared the way for the introduction of a new team line-up.[16][17] This team debuted inThunderbolts #128-129, a story that dealt with "Dark Reign", the Secret Invasion aftermath,[17][18] which was followed by "Magnum Opus", a 4-issue crossover withDeadpool (vol. 2).[19][20][21] Miguel Sepulvida took over art duties withThunderbolts #133[22] andJeff Parker became the new writer with issue #138.[23] Parker then piloted the title through the end of "Dark Reign", featuring a crossover with theAgents of Atlas team he was also writing,[24] and into "Siege", following which the team was revamped again. Parker announced that "the status quo of the team undergoes a major overhaul for the new era to come. It's going to synthesize a lot of what readers like about recent history and re-instill some elements from the early days of the book."[25]
TheHeroic Age team debuted inThunderbolts #144 with a new main artist,Kev Walker.[26][27][28] The title crossed over withAvengers Academy in issue #147, which was bookended byAvengers Academy #3 and #4.[29] The series then went on to cross over with theDaredevil storyline "Shadowland" in issues #148-149, with artistDeclan Shalvey stepping in for the two issues.[30][31][32] The series then crossed over with the "Fear Itself" storyline in issues #158-163.[33][34]
TheThunderbolts comic book was renamedDark Avengers beginning with issue #175, but the creative team remained unchanged.[35][36] Dark Avengers ended with issue #190.[37]
As part ofMarvel NOW!, a new Thunderbolts series was launched featuring a new team.[38] This series ended in October 2014 with issue #32.[39]
In July 2023, a newThunderbolts series was announced for a December release and will be written by Collin Kelly and Jackson Lanzing and illustrated by Geraldo Borges.[40]
The Thunderbolts' stories have been collected in a number of Marvel Omnibus oversized hardcovers andtrade paperbacks:
Marvel Omnibus
Thunderbolts Omnibus:
Volume 1 (collectsThunderbolts (1997) #0, 1-33,Thunderbolts Annual 1997,Thunderbolts: Distant Rumblings (1997) #-1,Incredible Hulk (1968) #449,Spider-Man Team-Up (1995) #7,Heroes For Hire (1997) #7,Captain America & Citizen V Annual 1998,Avengers (1998) #12, and the Thunderbolts story fromTales of the Marvel Universe (1997) #1)
Volume 2 (collectsThunderbolts (1997) #34-63,Thunderbolts Annual 2000,Avengers (1998) #31-34,Avengers Annual 2000,Thunderbolts: Life Sentences (2001) #1,Thunderbolts: From the Marvel Vault (2011) #1,Citizen V and the V-Battalion (2001) #1-3,Citizen V and the V-Battalion: The Everlasting (2002) #1-4)
Volume 3 (collectsThunderbolts (1997) #64-75 and #100-109,Avengers/Thunderbolts #1-6,New Thunderbolts #1-18 andThunderbolts Presents: Zemo - Born Better #1-4)
Thunderbolts: Uncaged Omnibus (collectsThunderbolts (2006) #144-174 and #163.1,Dark Avengers #175-190, and the Thunderbolts story fromEnter the Heroic Age #1)
Epic Collection
Vol. 1: Justice, Like Lighting -Thunderbolts #1-12, -1,Thunderbolts '97 Annual,The Incredible Hulk #449,Spider-Man Team-Up #7,Heroes For Hire #7, and material fromTales of the Marvel Universe special
Vol. 2: Wanted Dead of Alive -Thunderbolts #13-25, 0; Captain America and Citizen V Annual 1998, Avengers #12
Thunderbolts: First Strikes (collectsThunderbolts #1-2, 48 pages, softcover, December 1997,978-0-7851-0577-0)
Thunderbolts: Justice Like Lightning... (collectsThunderbolts #1-4,Thunderbolts '97 Annual,The Incredible Hulk #449,Tales of the Marvel Universe special andSpider-Man Team-Up #7, 224 pages, softcover, December 2001,0-7851-0817-3)
Thunderbolts Classic:
Volume 1 (collectsThunderbolts #1-5,Thunderbolts: Distant Rumblings #-1,Thunderbolts '97 Annual,The Incredible Hulk #449,Tales of the Marvel Universe one-shot andSpider-Man Team-Up #7, 296 pages, April 2011,0-7851-5309-8)
Volume 1: The Nefaria Protocols (collectsThe Avengers #31-34 andThunderbolts #42-44, 184 pages, softcover, March 2004,0-7851-1445-9)
Volume 2: Best Intentions (collectsAvengers/Thunderbolts #1-6, 144 pages, softcover, November 2004,0-7851-1422-X)
The "Fightbolts" era
Thunderbolts: How to Lose (byJohn Arcudi, collectsThunderbolts #76-81, 120 pages, softcover, November 2003,0-7851-1248-0)
The New Thunderbolts era
New Thunderbolts:
Volume 1: One Step Forward (collectsNew Thunderbolts #1-6, 144 pages, softcover, June 2005,0-7851-1565-X)
Volume 2: Modern Marvels (collectsNew Thunderbolts #7-12, 144 pages, softcover, November 2005,0-7851-1794-6)
Volume 3: Right of Power (collectsNew Thunderbolts #13-18 andThunderbolts #100, 184 pages, softcover, June 2006,0-7851-1832-2)
Civil War: Thunderbolts (collectsThunderbolts #101-105, 120 pages, softcover, May 2007,0-7851-1947-7)
Thunderbolts: The Guardian Protocols (collectsThunderbolts #106-109, 96 pages, July 2007,0-7851-2246-X)
Thunderbolts Presents:Zemo - Born Better (by Fabian Nicieza, collects 4-issue mini-series, 96 pages, August 2007,0-7851-2621-X)
The post-Civil War era
Thunderbolts by Warren Ellis and Mike DeodatoUltimate Collection (collectsThunderbolts #110-121 and material fromCivil War: The Initiative one-shot, 296 pages, softcover, September 2011,978-0-7851-5849-3) covers the same core series issues as:
Thunderbolts: Faith in Monsters (collectsThunderbolts #110-115, "Thunderbolts: Desperate Measures",Civil War: Choosing Sides andCivil War: The Initiative, 192 pages, hardcover, September 2007,0-7851-2568-X, softcover, January 2008,0-7851-2566-3)
Thunderbolts: Caged Angels (collectsThunderbolts #116-121, 144 pages, hardcover, September 2008,ISBN0-7851-2635-X, softcover, December 2008,0-7851-2567-1)
Thunderbolts:Secret Invasion (collectsThunderbolts: Breaking Point one-shot,Thunderbolts: International Incident one-shot,Thunderbolts: Reason in Madness andThunderbolts #122-125, 168 pages, Marvel Comics, softcover, March 2009,0-7851-2394-6)
Thunderbolts: Burning Down The House (collectsThunderbolts #126-129 and 132, 112 pages, hardcover, August 2009,0-7851-3152-3, softcover, November 2009,0-7851-3166-3)
Dark Reign:Deadpool/Thunderbolts (collectsThunderbolts #130-131 andDeadpool vol. 2, #8-9, 96 pages, softcover, July 2009,0-7851-4090-5)
Thunderbolts: Widowmaker (collectsThunderbolts #133-137, premiere hardcover, 120 pages, December 2009,0-7851-4006-9, softcover, May 2010,0-7851-4091-3)
Siege: Thunderbolts (collectsThunderbolts #138-143, 144 pages, premiere hardcover, September 2010,ISBN0-7851-4373-4, softcover, January 2011,0-7851-4374-2)
^Brevoort, Tom; DeFalco, Tom; Manning, Matthew K.; Sanderson, Peter; Wiacek, Win (2017).Marvel Year By Year: A Visual History. DK Publishing. pp. 282–283.ISBN978-1465455505.
^Brady, Matthew (August 1997). "Delivery Room".Wizard. No. #72. pp. 56–60.
