The Avengers #78

The Avengers issue number 78, published in July 1970, arrived during a period of transition and experimentation for Marvel Comics. Written by Roy Thomas with cover art by John Buscema and interior art by Sal Buscema, the issue features the team battling the Squadron Sinister, a pastiche of DC Comics' Justice League created to challenge the Avengers. This narrative choice reflected a playful inter-company rivalry and a broader trend of Marvel using its platform to comment on the tropes of superhero team dynamics.

The issue is noted by collectors for its exploration of the team's internal vulnerabilities and its role in expanding Marvel’s cosmic and multiverse-adjacent lore. While it remains a staple of the Silver Age Avengers run, it is frequently cited for the dynamic, kinetic layouts typical of the Buscema brothers' tenure, which helped define the visual language of the Marvel Universe during the early 1970s. It stands as a representative example of the era's focus on character-driven conflict within high-stakes, multiversal adventures.