The Avengers are, of course, one of the mightiest groups of heroes in the modern Marvel Universe. Several Invaders, including Cap, Torch, and Namor eventually joined the Avengers. Although the Avengers weren't formed until 1963, four of the members actually had direct contact with the Invaders in the '40s. How is this possible, you may be asking? Well, due to Nazi science and a little cosmic time-travelling. The Invaders first came into contact with the Mighty Ones in 1942, when Avengers members Vision, Yellowjacket, and Black Panther (on the left, from the top) were sent back in time as part of the Grandmaster's cosmic "chess game" with Kang the Conquerer. Kang had chosen the Avengers as his champions, and the Grandmaster picked Captain America, the Sub-Mariner, and the original Torch as his combatants. Althought the Avengers knew that they had been sent back in time as part of this contest, the Invaders were unaware of the futuristic happenings. Assuming the Avengers to be super-powered Nazis, the Invaders fought but were defeated by foes who had studied their every move. Suddenly, the Avengers explained what was going on as they were pulled back into the present. The disbelieving Invaders were then confronted by the Grandmaster, who confirmed the Avengers' story. Many years later, due to memory loss, Cap and Namor wouldn't recall their previous run-in with the Avengers.

The Invaders would also forget their encounter with another charter member of the Avengers: Thor. Their battle with Thor happened a few years after the Invaders met the other Avengers. Thor was not pulled through time, but through space. Due to a Nazi device, Hitler was able to reach into Asgard itself and pull Thor into Nazi Germany. Hitler used his manipulation prowess to convince Thor to fight for the Germans and sent him to kill Joseph Stalin. Thor was battled by the Invaders and pretty much defeated them (c'mon, give 'em a break--the guy is the God of Thunder, after all!--eric). However, he then learned that Hitler was truly evil and had deceived him. The Thunder God apologized to the Invaders and then returned to Asgard (not to return for another 20 years). He erased the memory of his existence from the Invaders' minds, so that mortal men would not yet know of Asgard. This explains why Cap and Sub-Mariner didn't recognize Thor in the '60s.

Invaders Appearances for Black Panther, Yellowjacket, and Vision: INVADERS ANNUAL #1 (1977) (The first part of this story was originally told from the Avengers' point of view in AVENGERS #71, also scripted by Roy)

Invaders Appearances for Thor: INVADERS #32-33 (1978)

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