Description

Invasion! (DC Comics 1988)                       Comics Lot
Writers: Keith Giffen & Bill Mantlo
Artists: Keith Giffen, Todd McFarlane & Bart Sears
Inkers: Al Gordon, Todd McFarlane, P. Craig Russell, Joe Rubinstein w/ Tom Christopher, Dick Giordano & Pablo Marcos
Colorists: Carl Gafford & Gene D’Angelo
Letterers: Gaspar, John Costanza & Agustin Mas
Editors: Kevin Dooley & Andrew Helfer
All Covers by: Bart Sears

Invasion! was a massive crossover event in the DC Universe published in 1989, plotted by Keith Giffen. It features a massive Alien Alliance led by the war-like Dominators and Khunds intent on wiping out humanity to destroy all of Earth’s metahumans. This all-out assault on superheroes led to a war consuming the entire world, and ramifications throughout the universe. The story was primarily published in three core issues, with tie-ins appearing in all regular monthly titles at the time.

After extensive research, a coalition of super-scientist Dominators and their warlike allies the Khunds determine that humanity poses a threat to the rest of the universe. Although most other alien species are rather consistent and predictable, the amount of genetic diversity present in the human race has made them too powerful to allow continued existence. There is a strand in human DNA called the “meta-gene” that allows them to develop extraordinary powers under duress, and become superheroes, whose presence must be eradicated before it becomes unstoppable. An Alien Alliance is formed from many prominent civilizations on a number of worlds, all of whom agree that the metahuman threat must be wiped out. Dissenters are imprisoned in a great Starlag. Assembling a fleet of hundreds of warships, the Alliance travels to Earth and makes their message clear in a great invasion. All superheroes must be surrendered to them peacefully, or the nations of the world will be completely obliterated in the struggle to take them forcefully. United Nations representatives from across the world meet to deliberate on the Crisis, and never have they all agreed so forcefully or spoken with such a singular voice. They tell the aliens to drop dead.

In the First Strike, war rages across the world as heroes and villains alike fight to protect their homeland. Facing global genocide, many of the warriors are forced into a more serious and deadly arena of combat than ever before. Finally, a summit is held coordinating Earth’s superhuman forces. Captain Atom is the commander of all metahuman forces, Amanda Waller is in charge of intelligence and coordinating supervillains, Wade Eiling is placed in charge of the military and Maxwell Lord acts as official liaison to Justice League International. The tides turn in favor of the heroes, as this rallying point gets them organized enough to start kicking ass and hitting where it hurts. Rioting at Starlag led by Vril Dox and the Omega Men overthrows the guards at the cost of many casualties. Realizing that they are on the wrong side of the war, the Daxamites ally with earth command and turn on their collaborators, leading to a complete victory. It is a day of great triumph for our planet, as for once the many nations of the world were able to put aside their differences and unite against an external threat.

Story/Spoilers
In issue #1, “The Alien Alliance”, When a coalition of alien empires decide to invade planet Earth, the World’s Greatest Heroes unite! But against the power of the stars aligned against them, not even the World’s Greatest Heroes may be enough to save the planet this time.

Next in issue #2, “Battleground Earth”, Earth has been invaded by a coalition of alien empires and Australia has already fallen. Can out heroes mount a counterstrike before it’s too late?

Finally in issue #3, “World Without Heroes”, What happens when our heroes fail? Will planet Earth fall under the sinister rule of the alien Dominators? Don’t miss the exciting, pulse-pounding conclusion to the DC event of the year!

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The primary storyline was told throughout the eponymous miniseries Invasion! which consisted of three issues each of which were 80-Page Giants. This provides the backbone for the event with all of the important plot points, and can be read alone in its entirety to understand the story. The crossovers function as further insight into the story, providing a more detailed look at the actions of the individual characters and teams during the Crisis. Tie-in stories were divided into First Strike and Aftermath.

Core Issues
Invasion! #1 – The Alien Alliance
Invasion! #2 – Battleground Earth
Invasion! #3 – World Without Heroes

First Strike
Following the actual physical invasion that took place after the first issue, these stories strictly took place in between Invasion! #1 and Invasion! #2, providing a look at how heroes around the world were dealing with the Alien Alliance individually and in small groups before they actually got organized. These are the stories that the event is primarily known for, featuring the actual war themselves. Most of them end with the cease-fire, and the super-hero summit.

First Strike Tie Ins:
Adventures of Superman #449
Animal Man #6
Captain Atom (Volume 1) #24
Checkmate (Volume 1) #11
Daily Planet Special #1
Detective Comics #595
Doom Patrol (Volume 2) #17
Firestorm the Nuclear Man #80
Flash (Volume 2) #21
Justice League International #22
Manhunter (Volume 1) #8
New Guardians #6
Power of the Atom #7
Spectre (Volume 2) #23
Starman (Volume 1) #5
Superman (Volume 2) #26
Swamp Thing (Volume 2) #81
Wonder Woman (Volume 2) #25

Aftermath
These issues take place between Invasion! #2 and Invasion! #3 dealing with fallout from the main battle against the aliens. Although the heroes had recently made their victory, which appeared final at the time… they would still face the last ditch efforts of the Gene Bomb meant to completely decimate them. Aftermath tie-ins cleared up loose ends in the storyline before moving on to the conclusion of the event in the core issues. Interestingly, they still take place right after the technical middle of the story.

Aftermath Tie Ins:
Adventures of Superman #450
Captain Atom (Volume 1) #25
Checkmate (Volume 1) #12
Doom Patrol (Volume 2) #18
Firestorm the Nuclear Man #81
Flash (Volume 2) #22
Justice League International #23
Manhunter (Volume 1) #9
New Guardians #7
Power of the Atom #8
Starman (Volume 1) #6
Superman (Volume 2) #27
Wonder Woman (Volume 2) #26

Epilogues Tie Ins:
Blasters Special #1
Doom Patrol: Crawling from the Wreckage
L.E.G.I.O.N. ’89
Legion of Super-Heroes (Volume 4) Annual #2
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Comics lot contains: Invasion! (1988) Issues #1-3.  DC Comics

Comics are bagged & boarded and will be carefully / securely packaged then shipped via USPS Priority Mail to ensure that it arrives to you perfectly and quickly.

All First Printings
Publisher: DC Comics
Publication Date: 1988
Format per comic: FC, 80 pages, Comic, 10.25″ x 6.5″
UPC: 070989305687

Collectible Entertainment note: Comics 1,2,3 are in Fine condition. Nice Set!  Please See Scans!!  A must have for any serious Invasion! and/or DC Universe collector / enthusiast.  A fun & entertaining read.  Recommended. 

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