''Lockjaw and the Pet Avengers'' is a four-issue

comic book A comic book, comic-magazine, or simply comic is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panel (comics), panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are often accompanied by descriptive prose and wri ...

limited series In the field of comic books, and particularly in the United States, a limited series is a comics series with a predetermined number of issues. A limited series differs from an ongoing series in that the number of issues is finite and determined ...

published by

Marvel Comics Marvel Comics is a New York City–based comic book publishing, publisher, a property of the Walt Disney Company since December 31, 2009, and a subsidiary of Disney Publishing Worldwide since March 2023. Marvel was founded in 1939 by Martin G ...

from July to October 2009. It was followed up by the four-issue limited series ''Lockjaw and the Pet Avengers Unleashed'' from May to August 2010. Both series were written by

Chris Eliopoulos Chris Eliopoulos (born September 30, 1967) is an American cartoonist and letterer of comic books. Early life Eliopoulos attended the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York City from 1985 to 1989. He majored in graphic design and minored in ...

with art by Ig Guara.

Plot

Fantastic Four The Fantastic Four, often abbreviated as FF, is a superhero team appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The team debuted in '' The Fantastic Four'' #1 ( cover-dated November 1961), helping usher in a new level of realism i ...

member

Mister Fantastic Mister Fantastic (Reed Richards) is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. He was created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby. The character is a founding member and the leader of the Fantastic Four. Richards has a mast ...

visits

Attilan The comic book stories published by Marvel Comics since the 1940s have featured several noteworthy concepts besides its fictional characters, such as unique places and artifacts. There follows a list of those features. Places Certain places fe ...

, city of the

Inhumans The Inhumans are a superhuman race of super beings appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The comic book series has usually focused more specifically on the adventures of the Inhuman Royal Family, and many people associat ...

, seeking the six

Infinity Gems The Infinity Gems (originally referred to as Soul Gems and later as Infinity Stones) are six fictional gems appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, named after and embodying various aspects of existence. The gems can grant ...

(each an artifact of great power). Lockjaw, an oversized

dog The dog (''Canis familiaris'' or ''Canis lupus familiaris'') is a domesticated descendant of the gray wolf. Also called the domestic dog, it was selectively bred from a population of wolves during the Late Pleistocene by hunter-gatherers. ...

and pet of the Inhuman Royal Family, finds the Mind Gem, which increases the animal's intelligence. Using

telepathy Telepathy () is the purported vicarious transmission of information from one person's mind to another's without using any known human sensory channels or physical interaction. The term was first coined in 1882 by the classical scholar Frederic ...

to read Mr. Fantastic's mind, Lockjaw decides to find the remaining Gems. The pet encounters and recruits a number of other animal companions to heroes, including the

cat The cat (''Felis catus''), also referred to as the domestic cat or house cat, is a small domesticated carnivorous mammal. It is the only domesticated species of the family Felidae. Advances in archaeology and genetics have shown that the ...

Hairball A hairball is a small collection of hair or fur formed in the stomach of animals, and uncommonly in humans, that is occasionally vomiting, vomited up when it becomes too big. Hairballs are primarily a tight elongated cylinder of packed fur, but ...

, the diminutive

dragon A dragon is a Magic (supernatural), magical legendary creature that appears in the folklore of multiple cultures worldwide. Beliefs about dragons vary considerably through regions, but European dragon, dragons in Western cultures since the Hi ...

Lockheed, the

falcon Falcons () are birds of prey in the genus ''Falco'', which includes about 40 species. Some small species of falcons with long, narrow wings are called hobbies, and some that hover while hunting are called kestrels. Falcons are widely distrib ...

Redwing The redwing (''Turdus iliacus'') is a bird in the thrush family, Turdidae, native to Europe and the Palearctic, slightly smaller than the related song thrush. Taxonomy and systematics This species was first described by Carl Linnaeus in his 1 ...

, the

frog A frog is any member of a diverse and largely semiaquatic group of short-bodied, tailless amphibian vertebrates composing the order (biology), order Anura (coming from the Ancient Greek , literally 'without tail'). Frog species with rough ski ...

Throg Throughout the stories published in Marvel Comics since his first appearance in ''Journey into Mystery'' #83 (Aug. 1962), the Thor (Marvel Comics), Thor character has accumulated a number of recognizable supporting characters. Like Thor, many of ...

and the puppy Ms. Lion (actually a character from the animated series ''

Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends ''Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends'' is a 1981–1983 American animated television series produced by Marvel Productions, considered to be a crossover series connected to the 1981 ''Spider-Man'' series. The show stars already-established Marve ...

''). Courtesy of Lockjaw's ability to teleport, the group visit the prehistoric

Savage Land The Savage Land is a fictional prehistoric land that features in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. It is a tropical preserve, hidden in Antarctica. It has appeared in many story arcs in '' Uncanny X-Men'' as well as other relate ...

and acquire the Time Gem and the aid of the

sabretooth tiger ''Smilodon'' is an extinct genus of felids. It is one of the best known saber-toothed predators and prehistoric mammals. Although commonly known as the saber-toothed tiger, it was not closely related to the tiger or other modern cats, belongi ...

Zabu, and the ''

Tyrannosaurus rex ''Tyrannosaurus'' () is a genus of large theropoda, theropod dinosaur. The type species ''Tyrannosaurus rex'' ( meaning 'king' in Latin), often shortened to ''T. rex'' or colloquially t-rex, is one of the best represented theropods. It live ...

Devil Dinosaur Devil Dinosaur is a character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by Jack Kirby, the character first appeared in ''Devil Dinosaur'' #1 (April 1978). Devil Dinosaur is depicted as resembling an enormous, crimson '' ...

. The Space Gem is found in the past, and after an underwater encounter and being swallowed by the whale-like

Giganto Giganto () is the name of two monsters appearing in American comic book An American comic book is a thin periodical literature originating in the United States, commonly between 24 and 64 pages, containing comics. While the form originated ...

, the group collect the

Soul Gem The Infinity Gems (originally referred to as Soul Gems and later as Infinity Stones) are six fictional gems appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, named after and embodying various aspects of existence. The gems can grant ...

and the Reality Gem. The animal team converge on the final Gem, the Power Gem, which is in the possession of the

President of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president directs the Federal government of the United States#Executive branch, executive branch of the Federal government of t ...

' dog, Bo. The Titan

Thanos Thanos () is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer-artist Jim Starlin, the character first appeared in '' The Invincible Iron Man'' #55 (cover date February 1973). An Eternal– Devia ...

, a previous owner of all six Gems when united as the

Infinity Gauntlet ''The Infinity Gauntlet'' is an American comic book storyline published by Marvel Comics. In addition to an eponymous, six-issue limited series written by Jim Starlin and pencilled by George Pérez and Ron Lim, crossover chapters appeared in ...

, intervenes and kills Ms. Lion. The other animals are angered by this act and use the Gems to strand Thanos in an alternate dimension and subsequently revive their comrade. Retrieving the final Gem, the group decides to separate, but not before Throg advises that they now share a

psychic A psychic is a person who claims to use powers rooted in parapsychology, such as extrasensory perception (ESP), to identify information hidden from the normal senses, particularly involving telepathy or clairvoyance; or who performs acts that a ...

link and will reunite if needed. Ms. Lion (resurrected by Hairball via the Soul Gem) dubs the group the Pet Avengers. The series concludes with Lockjaw presenting the Gems to a surprised Mr. Fantastic.

Reception

The first series received mixed reviews, with

IGN ''IGN'' is an American video gaming and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa district and is headed by its former e ...

rating the first issue a 6.5 out of 10. The first issue sold out and went to second printing. The story of the team continued in a second series, ''Lockjaw and the Pet Avengers: Unleashed'' (May – August 2010), followed by a third limited series ''Avengers vs. the Pet Avengers'' (December 2010 – March 2011) and a guest appearance in the ''

Power Pack Power Pack is a superhero team consisting of four young siblings appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Louise Simonson and artist June Brigman, they first appeared in their own series in 1984, which las ...

'' all-ages miniseries title ''Thor and the Warriors Four'' (April 2010). They also appeared with

Rocket Raccoon Rocket Raccoon is a character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Bill Mantlo and artist Keith Giffen, the character first appeared in ''Marvel Preview'' #7 (July 1976). He is an intelligent anthropomor ...

and

Cosmo Cosmo may refer to: Business and media * ''Cosmopolitan'' (magazine), a magazine for women, sometimes referred to as "Cosmo" * ''Cosmo'' (book), 2012 short story collection * Cosmo On-Line, a Brazilian generic Internet portal * Cosmo Radio, ...

of the

Guardians of the Galaxy The Guardians of the Galaxy are a fictional superhero team appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Comic book teams 1969 team The 1969 version of the Guardians of the Galaxy (1969 team), Guardians of the Galaxy were the origi ...

in ''

Guardians Team-Up The Guardians of the Galaxy are a fictional superhero team appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning formed the team from existing and previously unrelated characters created by a variety of write ...

'' #5 (June 2015).

Collected editions

The stories have been collected into two trade paperback volumes: * ''Lockjaw and the Pet Avengers'' (collects ''Lockjaw and the Pet Avengers'' #1-4, the ''Tails of the Pet Avengers'' digital comic, and the ''Marvel Pets Handbook''), 176 pages, May 2010, (hardcover, November 2009, ) * ''Lockjaw and the Pet Avengers Unleashed'' (collects ''Lockjaw and the Pet Avengers Unleashed'' #1-4, the ''Tails of the Pet Avengers: The Dog Days of Summer'' one-shot issue, and a ''Hulk-Pet Avengers'' single-page story), 120 pages, February 2011, (hardcover, September 2010, ) * ''Avengers vs. Pet Avengers'' (collects ''Avengers vs. Pet Avengers'' #1-4 and ''Spider-Man Family'' #6), 128 pages, July 2011, Previous appearances by the animals have also been collected into trade paperback: * ''Pet Avengers Classic'' (collects ''

Thing Thing or The Thing may refer to: Philosophy * An object * Broadly, an entity * Thing-in-itself (or ''noumenon''), the reality that underlies perceptions, a term coined by Immanuel Kant * Thing theory, a branch of critical theory that focuses ...

'' #4, ''

Captain America Captain America is a superhero created by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby who appears in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character first appeared in '' Captain America Comics'' #1, published on December 20, 1940, by Timely C ...

'' #220, '' Ka-Zar the Savage'' #14-15, ''

X-Men Unlimited ''X-Men Unlimited'' is the name of several comic book titles published by Marvel Comics. An anthology title, it features stories that focus less on the main continuity and more on peripheral events occurring with the X-Men characters. The first t ...

'' #43, ''

Marvel Comics Presents ''Marvel Comics Presents'' is an American comic book anthology title that was published in three series by Marvel Comics: from 1988 to 1995; 2007 to 2008; and in 2019. Volume 1 The first volume was released on a bi-weekly basis and lasted for ...

'' #72, '' Speedball'' #6, '' Marvel Tales'' #100, '' Marvel Super-Heroes'' #8, ''

Amazing Fantasy ''Amazing Adult Fantasy'', retitled ''Amazing Fantasy'' in its final issue, is an American comic book anthology series published by Marvel Comics from 1961 through 1962, with the latter title revived with superhero features in 1995 and in the 20 ...

'' #15, ''

'' #94, ''

New Defenders The Defenders are a set of superhero groups with rotating membership appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. They are usually presented as a "non-team" of individualistic "outsiders" who, in their prior adventures, are known ...

'' #150, ''

New Mutants The New Mutants are a group of fictional mutant superheroes appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, generally in association with the X-Men. Originally depicted as the teenaged junior class at the Xavier Institute, sub ...

Annual'' #4, '' Franklin Richards: Happy Franksgiving'', ''

New Warriors The New Warriors are a fictional superhero team appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. They traditionally consisted of teenage and young adult heroes, and were often seen to serve as a junior counterpart to Avengers (comics) ...

'' #2, and ''

Journey into Mystery ''Journey into Mystery'' is an American comic book series initially published by Atlas Comics, then by its successor, Marvel Comics. Initially a horror comics anthology, it changed to giant-monster and science fiction stories in the late 1950s ...

'' #57), 208 pages, October 2009,

In other media

Video game

* The Pet Avengers are playable in ''

Marvel Avengers Academy ''Marvel Avengers Academy'' was a freemium mobile game for iOS and Android, based on the characters featured in Marvel Comics. It was released on February 4, 2016. The game was shut down three years later. Despite the name, the game was not re ...

''. This team also includes

Firebird Firebird and fire bird may refer to: Mythical birds * Phoenix (mythology), sacred firebird found in the mythologies of many cultures ** Fenghuang, sometimes called Chinese phoenix * Vermilion bird, one of the four symbols of the Chinese constella ...

, Zabu, and

Howard the Duck Howard the Duck is a character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character was created by writer Steve Gerber, based very loosely on his college friend Howard Tockman, and artist Val Mayerik. Howard the Duck firs ...

References

External links

* * * {{Avengers publications Animal superheroes Avengers (comics) titles Comics about anthropomorphic dogs Comics about talking animals 2009 comics debuts 2009 comics endings