Marvel and DC to republish lost Justice League/Avengers crossover epic

In partnership with the Hero Initiative, Marvel and DC Comics will re-release a comic most readers probably thought they’d never be able to buy a hard copy of again: Kurt Busiek and George Pérez’s JLA/Avengers. The book, first published 2003, was the final crossover between the DC and Marvel comics Universes.

With the limited release, says a joint Marvel, DC, and Hero Initiative news release, “Hero Initiative is honoring one of George Pérez’s seminal bodies of work and his long-time support of Hero.” Proceeds will go toward a general fundraiser for the Initiative.

Pérez is a founding member of the board of directors of the Hero Initiative, a charitable organization that assists comics creators with medical and other quality-of-life expenses. He had a long and distinguished career that included stints with both Marvel Comics and DC Comics. During this time, his work helped to redefine and revitalize characters such as Wonder Woman and the Avengers for future generations. In December, Pérez announced that he had been diagnosed with stage three pancreatic cancer and had decided to forgo radiation therapy in favor of spending his limited time with loved ones.

Reprinting JLA/Avengers is just one example of an outpouring of support from all sides of the comics industry — Pérez is one of the few comics creators where it’s actually not that surprising that Marvel and DC were motivated to work through all the complications of a joint Warner Bros. and Disney partnership to pay tribute.

For contrast, even in 2003, Pérez and Busiek’s JLA/AvengersThe road to publication was not easy. Originally scheduled for release in 1983 — from the combined talents of writers Gerry Conway and Roy Thomas and Pérez’s art — the project fell apart over editorial disputes. Two decades later, however, it was revived, and Pérez was teamed with Busiek for an all new story in which DC’s Krona (an alien scientist obsessed with observing the formation of the universe) played a game with Marvel’s Grandmaster (like, from Thor: Ragnarok?) For the fate and future of the Marvel Universe. They were represented by the Justice League of America (the Avengers) and the Justice League of America (the Justice League of America).

Between 2003 and 2004, the series was printed in four issues. The Walt Disney Corporation purchased Marvel Entertainment in 2009 and Marvel/DC crossovers were a thing of the past. JLA/AvengersThis comic has been unavailable on online comics retailers such as Comixology and subscription services like Marvel Unlimited, DC Universe Infinite or Marvel Unlimited.

Image: George Pérez/Marvel Comics, DC Comics, The Hero Initiative

This is the reprint JLA/AvengersThere will be 288 pages. This includes 64 extra pages. The new limited edition will only be printed in 7000 copies and each copy will retail for $29.99. Diamond is expected to distribute the book in March.