Between 2012 and 2015, Jonathan Hickman built across the pages of Avengers and New Avengers the most ambitious Marvel story since Stan Lee and Jack Kirby invented the multiverse. His 77-issue run (Avengers #1-44 + New Avengers #1-33) is a cosmic science fiction work exploring themes that superhero comics had never tackled at this depth: the end of the universe, the cost of collective survival and the steady corruption of heroes who decide they're above ordinary moral law.
Between 2012 and 2015, Jonathan Hickman built across the pages of Avengers and New Avengers the most ambitious Marvel story since Stan Lee and Jack Kirby invented the multiverse. His 77-issue run (Avengers #1-44 + New Avengers #1-33) is a work of cosmic science fiction that explores themes superhero comics had never tackled at this depth: the end of the universe, the cost of collective survival and the gradual corruption of heroes who believe they're above ordinary moral law.
This run fed directly into Secret Wars 2015, the most complex crossover event in Marvel history, which temporarily fused every Marvel universe into a single patchwork world. For any serious Avengers collector, this run is essential — and its key issues, still affordable in 2026, represent a rare collecting and investment opportunity. This guide walks through the must-have key issues, the optimal reading order and current market values.
Why the Hickman run is the most important Avengers run of the modern era
Hickman had already transformed Fantastic Four with an epic run from 2009 to 2012 (FF #570-588, Fantastic Four #570-611) before arriving on Avengers. When Marvel handed him both Avengers titles simultaneously in December 2012, he made a radical choice: treat the two series as a single story with two voices, each exploring a different side of the same cosmic crisis.
Avengers follows Steve Rogers rebuilding the team into an oversized roster (18 founding members, then more) to face macro-scale threats. It's the "big-picture" book — planets, galactic civilizations, gods.
New Avengers follows the Illuminati (Iron Man, Reed Richards, Black Bolt, Black Panther, Namor, Beast, Doctor Strange, briefly Captain America) discovering the Incursions: collisions between parallel universes that destroy one of the two on contact. To save their universe, they sometimes have to destroy others. It's the "intimate" book — agonizing moral decisions, betrayals, the erosion of ideals.
The two series converge in the "Time Runs Out" arc (Avengers #35-44 / New Avengers #25-33, 2014-2015), set eight months in the future, which shows the consequences of every prior decision and sets up Secret Wars 2015 directly.
New Avengers, the essential key issues
New Avengers #1 (2013), the foundational issue of the run
New Avengers #1 (January 2013, Jonathan Hickman / Steve Epting) is the most important issue of the entire Hickman run. This is where Black Panther witnesses the first Incursion: two parallel Earths (his and another) closing toward each other, fated to mutually annihilate. After alerting the Illuminati, T'Challa finds himself forced to choose between his absolute morality and the survival of his universe. In 22 pages, the opening issue sets up the ethical tension that will structure the next 33 installments.
It's also the issue that introduces the concept of the Incursions — a concept now being used directly in the MCU (Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, The Marvels, Loki season 2). In 2026, New Avengers #1 trades between $28 and $90 raw in Near Mint. A CGC 9.8 can reach $170 to $400. Still undervalued relative to its conceptual importance.
MCU connection: The Incursion concept (collision between parallel universes with one destroyed) introduced in New Avengers #1 is exactly the mechanism used in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness and Loki season 2. If this concept keeps getting developed in the MCU — likely with Avengers: Secret Wars — New Avengers #1 should move significantly.
New Avengers #3 (2013), the Illuminati's pact and the break with Captain America
New Avengers #3 contains one of the most defining scenes in the run: the Illuminati decides to wipe Captain America's memory after he refuses to endorse their plan to destroy parallel Earths. This issue is the moral hinge of the run — the moment the "heroes" cross a line Steve Rogers won't cross, and decide to make him forget it. A moment that still reverberates through Marvel continuity.
New Avengers #3 trades between $18 and $45 raw in 2026. Affordable and fundamental to understanding the run.
New Avengers #8 (2013), the Great Society and the absolute moral dilemma
New Avengers #8 is the issue critics most often cite as the run's peak. The Illuminati discovers an Incursion will destroy their universe... except a group of heroes on the parallel Earth (the "Great Society," analogues of the Justice League) propose collaborating to find a non-lethal solution. Black Swan stops them. The issue examines the purest moral dilemma of the run with devastating efficiency.
New Avengers #8 trades between $14 and $40 raw. A must-have if you're collecting the decisive moments of the run.
Avengers, the essential key issues
Avengers #1 (2012), the new alignment under Steve Rogers
Avengers #1 (December 2012, Jonathan Hickman / Jerome Opeña) launches the series with a massive new roster around Steve Rogers. This first issue is graphically stunning — Opeña draws some of the best pages of his career — and lays out Rogers's philosophy: the Avengers need to be bigger and stronger to face the threats of the Hickman era. It's a key issue for the series but its high print run tempers its scarcity potential.
In 2026, Avengers #1 (Hickman/Opeña) trades between $18 and $55 raw. Variants are slightly more sought-after. An excellent entry point into the run.
Avengers #3 (2013), the introduction of Cannonball and Sunspot
Avengers #3 introduces Cannonball and Sunspot as official Avengers members and, more significantly, introduces the "Machine" concept (the A.I.M. program that will play a central role in the second half of the run). Often overlooked but a solid secondary key issue for modern Avengers collectors.
Avengers #18 (2013), the Builders War and the galactic turning point
Avengers #18 is the climax of the "Infinity" tie-in inside Avengers. The Builders War — the alien invasion running in parallel with the Infinity event — hits its breaking point, with a coordinated counter-attack from the galactic forces behind Captain America. One of the run's most spectacular action issues, drawn by Leinil Francis Yu.
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Start 14-day free trial, no commitmentTime Runs Out, key issues of the final phase (2014-2015)
The "Time Runs Out" arc (Avengers #35-44, New Avengers #25-33) is the final phase of the Hickman run, published from September 2014 to May 2015. Hickman jumps eight months forward, showing the consequences of every prior decision: the Illuminati are split, Steve Rogers is hunting his former friends to bring them to justice, and the multiverse is careening toward extinction.
Avengers #35 (2014), the time jump
Avengers #35 opens "Time Runs Out" with the eight-month jump and introduces the new dynamic. Steve Rogers, in iron armor, hunts his former friends. Tony Stark and his faction try to solve the Incursion crisis by extreme means. The issue recontextualizes everything that came before and is a key issue for the final phase.
Avengers #35 trades between $14 and $40 raw in 2026.
New Avengers #25 (2014), start of "Time Runs Out" in New Avengers
New Avengers #25 is the counterpart to Avengers #35 in the parallel title. It shows the same time jump from the Illuminati's perspective — now a divided group, some having become enemies of the Avengers — and sets up the final dynamic that leads into Secret Wars. Often considered the strongest issue of "Time Runs Out."
New Avengers #25 trades between $14 and $40 raw in 2026.
Avengers #44 / New Avengers #33 (2015), the conclusions
Avengers #44 and New Avengers #33 are the two final issues of the Hickman run, published in May 2015 just before Secret Wars #1. These issues show the destruction of Earth-616 by the final Incursion and the final decisions of Iron Man, Captain America and the Illuminati in the face of apocalypse. They're the closing issues of the most important modern Avengers run — worth owning and preserving with care.
In 2026, Avengers #44 trades between $18 and $45 raw. New Avengers #33 between $14 and $40. Both easy to find in great shape.
The Infinity (2013) connection and essential tie-ins
In 2013, Hickman also developed the Infinity crossover (#1-6 + tie-ins in both Avengers titles), which takes place in the middle of his run and significantly enriches the overall narrative. Infinity #1 introduces the Builders (an ancient civilization destroying uninhabited planets to "cleanse" the cosmos) and Thanos attacking Earth while the Avengers are away.
- Infinity #1 (2013), opening issue of the crossover: $18 to $45 raw
- Infinity #3: first appearance of Thane (son of Thanos), important key issue: $22 to $65
- Infinity #6: event conclusion, $18 to $40
- New Avengers #9: tie-in with Black Swan and the Incursions, $14 to $35
Infinity #3 and the first appearance of Thane: Thane, son of Thanos, first appears in Infinity #3 (2013). In 2026, this issue trades between $22 and $65 raw. If Thane is adapted into the MCU — possible in the run-up to Avengers: Secret Wars — this issue would see a significant bump.
Why the Hickman run is the most important Avengers run of the last 20 years
Before Hickman, the Avengers were a team of superheroes who beat up villains. After Hickman, they became the fragile and morally compromised guardians of a multiverse heading toward extinction. That transformation is irreversible and has permanently shaped the entire Avengers line — and the MCU itself.
Three elements set this run apart:
The ambition of the scale. Hickman isn't telling a terrestrial or even galactic threat — he's telling the end of existence itself, the destruction of every parallel universe one by one. No Avengers run had ever dared operate at this scale.
Three years of narrative coherence. Every one of the 77 issues that make up the run is a brick in a coherent structure. Hickman knew the destination from the start (Secret Wars 2015) and built the whole run accordingly. That level of planning is unique in superhero comics history.
The ethical dimension. The run poses moral questions with no easy answers: Can you destroy a universe to save another? Can you erase a friend's memory to prevent him from opposing your plan? These questions resonate well beyond superhero comics and make this run a standalone work of science fiction. For a deeper look at how Hickman's themes landed, check our Secret Wars 2015 key issues guide.
Complete checklist, Hickman Avengers run
Key issues, 2026 price ranges (raw NM)
- Avengers #1 (2012, Hickman/Opeña): $18 to $55
- New Avengers #1 (2013, Hickman/Epting): $28 to $90
- New Avengers #3 (Cap memory wipe): $18 to $45
- New Avengers #8 (Great Society): $14 to $40
- Infinity #1 (2013 crossover): $18 to $45
- Infinity #3 (1st app. Thane): $22 to $65
- Avengers #35 (Time Runs Out): $14 to $40
- New Avengers #25 (Time Runs Out): $14 to $40
- Avengers #44 (finale): $18 to $45
- New Avengers #33 (finale): $14 to $40
How to collect the Hickman run strategically
Start with New Avengers #1
New Avengers #1 is the foundational issue in both narrative importance and collecting value. Acquire it first, ideally in Near Mint. If possible, have it graded in CGC to protect the long-term investment.
Read both series in alternation
Avengers and New Avengers are two threads of the same story. Optimal reading alternates between the two in publication order. Use a reading order guide (easily found online) to avoid missing the connections.
Pick up Infinity as a bundle
The 6 main Infinity issues (2013) are often sold as a lot on eBay. That's the most economical way to acquire them. Look for "Infinity #1-6" Near Mint lots for a controlled budget.
Complete "Time Runs Out" last
The 18 issues of "Time Runs Out" (Avengers #35-44 + New Avengers #25-33) are easy to find in lots and still very affordable. It's the final phase — read and understand everything that comes before to fully appreciate the impact.
FAQ, Hickman Avengers / New Avengers run
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