The Avengers, Vol. 1 #272A (Marvel Comics 1986)

Open Volume 1 Issue 272A to access the opening chapter of Marvel’s 1986 Avengers and Alpha Flight crossover, “Assault on Atlantis.” Written by Roger Stern with layout sketches by John Buscema and finishes by Tom Palmer, this thirty-six-page issue functions as Part One of a three-part narrative arc that bridges directly from Alpha Flight #39 and advances continuously into issue #40.

Prince Namor coordinates a deep-ocean offensive against Attuma’s seized throne, leveraging Avengers reinforcement to fracture the tyrant’s military hold. Once the core roster arrives and links with Alpha Flight units, Northstar and the supporting fighters breach the outer guards, neutralize Attuma’s first defensive wave, and extract the captive Marrina from her submerged holding cell. The physical engagement resolves rapidly, but the editorial pivot concentrates on a permanent physiological alteration affecting Marrina following her detention, establishing a sustained storyline thread that dictates subsequent Atlantean character dynamics across both titles.

This printing reproduces the complete sequence with the original Buscema and Palmer cover design intact. Readers evaluating crossover timelines will find explicit continuity markers, direct character callouts, and fully color-separated interior panels that clarify the sequential handoff between the flagship Avengers publication and the Canadian-focused Alpha Flight series. Collectors target this volume to map Roger Stern’s ensemble scripting techniques, track the structural rollout of 1980s Marvel roster expansions, and secure a definitive reference point for Namor’s political campaigns beneath the Atlantic.