And there came a day, a day unlike any other, when Earth's mightiest heroes found themselves united against a common threat! On that day, the Avengers were born, to fight the foes no single super hero could withstand!
Avengers: Age of Ultron hits theaters this month, and as we all know, some new characters will be jumping off the printed page to partake in the big-screen adventures of Earth’s Mightiest Heroes. And that’s the thing about the Avengers: Much like their fellow superhero team at Marvel Comics, the X-Men, there have been so many characters on the roster over the course of the Avengers’ 50-plus year history.
Be Sure to Also Check Out Every X-Man Ever
But we’ve accessed the Avengers computer (and a ton of old comics) to put together this rundown of both the team’s history and the most complete (comics only) membership that we could. Watch the video above for the full experience, or read on if you prefer. And of course… Avengers assemble!
The Avengers were created in 1963 by Marvel Comics legends Stan Lee and Jack Kirby. Consisting of characters that had already debuted in their own standalone titles, the original line-up included Iron Man, Thor, the Hulk, Ant-Man and the Wasp. The team -- dubbed Earth’s Mightiest Heroes -- first formed in response to a threat from Loki. After defeating the Asgardian villain, the five founding members pledged to combine their special powers and unite for the greater good. Unlike in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, however, neither S.H.I.E.L.D. nor Nick Fury had anything to do with the creation of the team.
In what would become standard operating procedure for the Avengers, the lineup began to change right away. The Hulk left by issue 2, Ant-Man became Giant Man, and Captain America joined in Avengers #4. Cap had first debuted in 1941, before Marvel Comics was even called Marvel Comics, and here Lee and Kirby were re-introducing an old popular favorite.
Iron Man
- Real Name: Tony Stark
- Major Powers: Powered Armored Suit
- Joined: Avengers #1 (September, 1963)
- Assembled: Stark’s bulky gold armor would be replaced with his familiar red and gold suit by Avengers #3.
Thor
- Real Name: Thor Odinson
- Major Powers: Superhuman Strength, Flight, Magic Hammer, Weather Control
- Joined: Avengers #1 (September, 1963)
- Assembled: A.k.a. Dr. Donald Blake, Sigurd Jarlson, Jake Olsen
Ant-Man
- Real Name: Dr. Henry “Hank” Pym
- Major Powers: Size Alteration, Communication with Insects
- Joined: Avengers #1 (September, 1963)
- Assembled: A.k.a. Giant-Man, Yellowjacket, Goliath, Dr. Pym, Wasp
Wasp
- Real Name: Janet van Dyne
- Major Powers: Size Alteration, Flight, Bio-Electric “Wasp's Sting”
- Joined: Avengers #1 (September, 1963)
- Assembled: Former chairman of the team. Ex-wife of Hank Pym.
Hulk
- Real Name: Dr. Robert Bruce Banner
- Major Powers: Superhuman Strength and Stamina, Invulnerability
- Joined: Avengers #1 (September, 1963)
- Assembled: Sometime member/occasional enemy of the team.
Captain America
- Real Name: Steve Rogers
- Major Powers: Expert Fighter/Military Tactician, Peak Physical Condition
- Joined: Avengers #4 (March, 1964)
- Assembled: Cap's first appearance was actually 20 years prior to Avengers in 1941.
By 1965, the first major overhaul of the membership occurred. Everyone but Cap stepped down, with new members Hawkeye, Quicksilver and the Scarlet Witch joining. This incarnation, dubbed “Cap’s Kooky Quartet,” was interesting in that the new Avengers had all previously played the role of villains. Hawkeye’s mentor, the Swordsman, soon joined as well -- for just one issue. His membership turned out to be a ruse by the Iron Man villain, the Mandarin, though he would rejoin the team in 1973 as a full-fledged member and hero.
Hawkeye
- Real Name: Clint Barton
- Major Powers: Expert Archer and Martial Artist
- Joined: Avengers #16 (May, 1965)
- Assembled: An ex-criminal who reformed to join the team.
Quicksilver
- Real Name: Pietro Maximoff
- Major Powers: Superhuman Speed
- Joined: Avengers #16 (May, 1965)
- Assembled: Former member of the X-Men foes the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants.
Scarlet Witch
- Real Name: Wanda Maximoff
- Major Powers: Reality Warping "Hex" Bolts
- Joined: Avengers #16 (May, 1965)
- Assembled: Sister of Quicksilver.
Swordsman
- Real Name: Jacques Duquesne
- Major Powers: Expert with Bladed Weapons
- Joined: Avengers #20 (September, 1965)
- Assembled: Former criminal/mentor to Hawkeye. Joined under false pretenses for one issue but eventually rejoined as a full member.
In the late '60s, founding members would return to the fold and then leave again, even while new heroes continued to join. This included the Olympian Hercules and the first mainstream superhero of color, the Black Panther, who had earlier made his debut in the Fantastic Four. Writer Roy Thomas also introduced the android Avenger the Vision and the Black Knight during this period. Many of Thomas’ stories were drawn by the artist John Buscema, and together they brought a grand sense of the mythological to the book, as well as a more adult sensibility.
Hercules
- Real Name: Herakles
- Major Powers: Superhuman Strength, Speed, Stamina
- Joined: Avengers #45 (October, 1967)
- Assembled: The hero of Greek myth, son of Zeus and immortal Olympian.
Black Panther
- Real Name: T'Challa
- Major Powers: Superhuman Senses, Increased Strength, Speed, Stamina, Agility
- Joined: Avengers #52 (May, 1968)
- Assembled: King of the African country Wakanda.
Vision
- Real Name: N/A
- Major Powers: Density Manipulation, Flight, Energy Beam Projection, Computerized Brain
- Joined: Avengers #58 (November, 1968)
- Assembled: Originally created by Ultron to destroy the Avengers!
Black Knight
- Real Name: Dane Whitman
- Major Powers: Expert Swordsman, Scientist and Fighter
- Joined: Avengers #71 (December, 1969)
- Assembled: His sword, the Ebony Blade, was created by Merlin in ancient times.
As the team entered the 1970s, characters such as Black Widow would become long-lasting members, while others such as Mantis and the time-travelling cowboy the Two-Gun Kid enjoyed shorter terms of service. The '70s also introduced a few very influential storylines, such as the cosmic epic, “The Kree-Skrull War,” and writer Jim Shooter’s stories like "The Bride of Ultron" and “The Korvac Saga.” The fight against Michael Korvac was another huge adventure for the team that utilized virtually every Avenger past and present up to that point -- as well as the original Guardians of the Galaxy!
Later in the decade, notable additions to the team included Carol Danvers, finally joining in 1979. At the time she was still operating under the "Ms." Marvel guise, and was several decades away from becoming “Captain Marvel.” Another character that Marvel movie watchers may recognize is the Falcon, Captain America’s partner from the era.
Black Widow
- Real Name: Natalia Romanova
- Major Powers: Expert Martial Artist, Peak Physical Condition, Superhuman Agility and Reflexes
- Joined: Avengers #111 (May, 1973)
- Assembled: Former Russian spy whose earliest appearances saw her battling Iron Man, at times with Hawkeye at her side.
Mantis
- Real Name: Brandt
- Major Powers: Expert Martial Artist, Telepathy, Empathy, Astral Projection, Precognition
- Joined: Avengers #114 (August, 1973)
- Assembled: Eventually became something called the Celestial Madonna and joined the Guardians of the Galaxy.
Two-Gun Kid
- Real Name: Matthew Hawk/Liebowicz
- Major Powers: Master Gunfighter and Horseman
- Joined: Avengers #142 (December, 1975)
- Assembled: Joined when the Avengers time-travelled to the Old West, eventually coming to the present day himself.
Hellcat, Beast, Moondragon
- Real Name: Patsy Walker, Dr. Henry "Hank" McCoy, Heather Douglas
- Major Powers: Martial Arts / Superhuman Strength / Telepathy/Telekinesis
- Joined: Avengers #151 (September, 1976)
- Assembled: Though all three characters joined at this time, only Beast actually stayed onboard as an active member.
Wonder Man
- Real Name: Simon Williams
- Major Powers: Ionic Energy Form, Superhuman Strength, Speed, Stamina, Virtual Immortality
- Joined: Circa Avengers #158 (April, 1977)
- Assembled: First appeared in Avengers #9, where he died. Was revived a decade later.
Ms. Marvel/Captain Marvel
- Real Name: Carol Danvers
- Major Powers: Photonic Blasts, Flight, Superhuman Strength, Durability, Speed
- Joined: Avengers #183 (May, 1979)
- Assembled: Originally a spin-off character of the male Captain Marvel who more recently has taken on that hero's mantle herself.
Falcon
- Real Name: Sam Wilson
- Major Powers: Telepathic Link with Birds, Cybernetic Wings
- Joined: Avengers #184 (June, 1979)
- Assembled: Captain America’s occasional partner and current replacement.
The early '80s saw a number of women join the team: women like Tigra, who started out as a human crime fighter named “The Cat” but eventually transformed with the help of sorcery, and Bruce Banner’s cousin, Jennifer Walters, who became the She-Hulk after a blood transfusion with Bruce’s blood. There was also an all-new Captain Marvel named Monica Rambeau, who later went by the names Photon and Spectrum.
In 1984, the first of what would eventually be many offshoots of the main Avengers team arrived when the Vision suggested the creation of the West Coast Avengers. Hawkeye led the first iteration of this team, which also drafted new members like his wife Mockingbird, a.k.a. former S.H.I.E.L.D. agent Bobbi Morse, and Tony Stark's friend James Rhodes, who was serving as Iron Man at the time. Of course, Rhodes would later become War Machine after Tony designed a brand new suit for him. The Thing also joined the West Coast Avengers after taking a break from his usual team, the Fantastic Four.
Both teams would operate simultaneously for a decade, each acquiring new heroes for their respective and at times interchangeable line-ups. But in the East Coast book, the team fell on hard times during the "Under Siege" story that began in 1986 under writer Roger Stern. As the main Avengers book approached its 300th issue, the East Coast group's downward spiral culminated with the entire team disbanding in 1988. Of course, the Avengers couldn’t stay apart for long. And soon Steve Rogers, known at the time simply as The Captain, built a new team that included Reed and Sue Richards from the Fantastic Four as well as Gilgamesh, the hero of legend. Speaking of The Captain, when Rogers gave up the Captain America name, the mantle was passed over to John Walker, who eventually became the U.S. Agent. The decade was rounded out with the additions of both Quasar and the Human Torch. This Human Torch was not Johnny Storm, but rather a character that first appeared in 1939.
Tigra
- Real Name: Greer Grant Nelson
- Major Powers: Superhuman Speed, Strength, Agility, Senses
- Joined: Avengers #211 (September, 1981)
- Assembled: Formerly known as the costumed crime fighter The Cat.
She-Hulk
- Real Name: Jennifer Walters
- Major Powers: Superhuman Strength and Stamina, Invulnerability
- Joined: Avengers #221 (July, 1982)
- Assembled: Bruce Banner’s cousin. Also a lawyer!
Captain Marvel/Spectrum
- Real Name: Monica Rambeau
- Major Powers: Can Transform into and Control Various Forms of Energy
- Joined: Avengers #231 (May, 1983)
- Assembled: Sought out the Avengers so they could help train her in the use of her powers. She eventually became team leader.
Starfox
- Real Name: Eros
- Major Powers: Superhuman Strength, Flight, Virtual Immortality, Pleasure Stimulation
- Joined: Avengers #243 (May, 1984)
- Assembled: The brother of Avengers villain Thanos.
Members who first joined as West Coast Avengers are indicated in red.
Mockingbird
- Real Name: Barbara Morse
- Major Powers: Expert Martial Artist, Acrobat, Spy
- Joined: West Coast Avengers #1 (September, 1984)
- Assembled: Former S.H.I.E.L.D. agent and ex-wife of Hawkeye.
Iron Man/War Machine/Iron Patriot
- Real Name: James "Rhodey" Rhodes
- Major Powers: Powered Armored Suit
- Joined: West Coast Avengers #1 (September, 1984)
- Assembled: Invited to join the West Coast Avengers while subbing for his long-time friend Tony Stark.
Namor
- Real Name: Namor McKenzie
- Major Powers: Amphibious Adaptation, Flight, Superhuman Strength, Speed
- Joined: Avengers #262 (December, 1985)
- Assembled: Also fought alongside fellow Avengers Captain America and the Human Torch in the WWII group the Invaders.
Thing
- Real Name: Ben Grimm
- Major Powers: Rock-Like Hide, Superhuman Strength and Durability, Virtual Immortality
- Joined: West Coast Avengers V2 #9 (June 1986)
- Assembled: Originally worked with the West Coast team while on a break from the Fantastic Four.
Doctor Druid
- Real Name: Dr. Anthony Ludgate Druid
- Major Powers: Mystical/Magical Abilities, Hypnotism, Telepathy, Telekinesis
- Joined: Avengers #278 (April, 1987)
- Assembled: Was trained by Doctor Strange’s mentor the Ancient One as a successor, but the job ultimately went to Strange himself.
Firebird/La Espirita
- Real Name: Bonita Juarez
- Major Powers: Pyrokinesis, Flight
- Joined: West Coast Avengers V2 #24 (September, 1987)
- Assembled: Previously a member of the superhero team of Southwestern characters the Rangers.
Moon Knight
- Real Name: Marc Spector
- Major Powers: Strength Increases Related to the Lunar Cycle, Expert Martial Artist
- Joined: West Coast Avengers V2 #33 (June, 1988)
- Assembled: His suit’s crescent moon symbolizes Khonshu, the Egyptian god whose followers granted him his powers.
Demolition Man
- Real Name: Dennis Dunphy
- Major Powers: Superhuman Strength, Stamina, Durability
- Joined: Captain America #349 (January, 1989)
- Assembled: Invited to join the team by Steve Rogers but was seemingly killed in that same issue.
Mister Fantastic, Invisible Woman, Gilgamesh the Forgotten One
- Real Name: Reed Richards, Sue Storm-Richards, Unknown
- Joined: Avengers #300 (February, 1989)
- Assembled: Helped reform the team after its brief dissolution along with Steve Rogers and Thor.
U.S. Agent
- Real Name: John Walker
- Major Powers: Superhuman Strength, Stamina, Agility
- Joined: West Coast Avengers V2 #44 (May, 1989)
- Assembled: Prior to becoming U.S. Agent, Walker served as Captain America when Steve Rogers stepped down to become The Captain.
Quasar
- Real Name: Wendell Vaughn
- Major Powers: Energy Blasts and Constructs, Space Flight
- Joined: Avengers Annual #18 (October, 1989)
- Assembled: Rookie S.H.I.E.L.D. agent who mastered the use of the cosmic Quantum Bands.
Human Torch
- Real Name: Jim Hammond
- Major Powers: Heat and Flame Control/Generation, Flight
- Joined: Avengers: West Coast #50 (November, 1989)
- Assembled: The original android Human Torch who was revived by the West Coast Avengers after being long thought destroyed.
Read on for more of Every Avenger Ever...
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