It's morning in America again -- at least, the country in which Marvel characters such as Spider-Man, Iron Man and the Avengers live.

For a couple of years in Marvel comics, Norman Osborn -- the Green Goblin -- has been America's top cop. He was head of the Avengers (which he staffed with murderous supervillains) and the black-ops/intelligence agency S.H.I.E.L.D. (which he renamed H.A.M.M.E.R. and staffed with thugs). This was on the heels of a "civil war" between superheroes, and a debilitating invasion by shape-shifting Skrulls from outer space. The bad guys were in charge, the real Avengers were on the run and Captain America was (temporarily) dead. Grim days.

And then Osborn invaded Asgard.

That event, called "Siege," proved a step too far, and the president revoked Osborn's authority. A little late, as the Shining City came crashing down in Norman, Okla., and thousands -- including Norse and Greco-Roman gods -- lay dead.

But now, according to Marvel's top editor, Tom Brevoort, "Thor, Captain America and Iron Man stand united together for the first time in many years, at the center of a reorganized Avengers, so that's setting a particular tone for this moment."

It's a new day, one formally titled "The Heroic Age," which affects all of Marvel's superhero titles.

"It's a time in which the heroes are back on top, and there's a renewed sense of optimism," Brevoort said.

The whole tapestry of "Heroic Age" will unfold over time. But four Avengers books are launching from "Siege," and the team's Big Three are getting attention right away:

Avengers Prime: A five-issue miniseries shows how Thor, Tony Stark and Steve Rogers learn to trust each other again.

Iron Man: "He's back at square one," writer Matt Fraction said, "in mind, body, soul and professional life. No armor to his name, no company to run ... living in a motel in Oklahoma. We spent two years taking away everything he has and now ... we get to watch him rebuild his entire life."

Thor: Asgard's destruction leaves a hole in the "Nine Worlds" of Norse mythology, and what replaces it is very old -- and very scary. Thor will be "terrified," Fraction said.

Captain America: The original, Steve Rogers, has a new miniseries coming, as well as an ongoing role in "Secret Avengers" with a "new set of objectives," Brevoort said. As to the current Captain America, former sidekick Bucky Barnes, he "will be dealing with the returned threat of Baron Zemo," he said.

It might be a Heroic Age, but it obviously won't be one without complications.