THE AVENGERS: EARTH'S MIGHTIEST HEROES! (Disney XD, 2010-present)

The Avengers comic book created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby; The Avengers TV series developed by Ciro Nieli, Joshua Fine, and Christopher Yost; 26 episodes and counting (30 minutes each); action-adventure; ages 6 and up.

The animated series featuring Marvel Comics' most celebrated "all-star" superhero team begins by showing its individual heroes in action before they joined forces, with entire episodes focusing on Iron Man, Thor, the Hulk, and Ant-Man and Wasp. Later on in season one, Captain America, Hawkeye, and Black Panther join the existing team, which must round up all the supervillains who've escaped from four specially designed prisons during a mysterious breakout. Earth's mightiest heroes must learn on the job how to communicate effectively with each other while also building trust and respecting what each person brings to the team. But most importantly, they must remember to stay out of the Hulk's way when he's angry.

I like how The Avengers takes its time establishing the characters and their personalities. That way the viewer can see certain conflicts coming and therefore will anticipate the fallout between, say, Thor and the Hulk. The action seems fairly standard as far as animated superhero shows go, though both (minor) good guys and bad guys die, which was never the case on Super Friends 30 years ago. Fans of The Avengers are surely looking forward to the big-screen version of the comic book that opens next summer, but the animated series just may give it a run for its money in the storytelling department.

For further viewing, check out Ang Lee's 2003 version of Hulk, an underrated comic-book movie.