The first team of Avengers in Marvel Comics was Thor, Ant-Man, the Wasp, Hulk, and Iron Man. Captain America didn’t join the team until a few issues in, but he’s still considered one of the founding members. Steve Rogers wasn’t the last new member to join the team, either. Between Avengers No. 1 (1964) and Avengers: Disassembled (2004), there have been dozens of roster changes. However, the first New Avengers comic book (Breakout) started in 2005 with their most random team ever.
New Avengers: Breakout creative team
- Writer: Brian Michael Bendis
- Artist: David Finch
- Colorist: Frank D'ARMATA
In this series, Electro was paid by Elektra (who we later find out is a Skrull) to break Sauron out of the supervillain prison, the Raft. The prison break caused a blackout in New York, which got Spider-Man involved. Captain America’s helicopter crashed on the Raft after it was hit by lightning. Luke Cage was there and saw Jessica Drew (who was also a Skrull) there to meet with the Sentry, who was a prisoner. Iron Man also happens to show up to help.
After the chaos ended, Steve Rogers and Tony Stark talked about what happened. The latter told him that a bunch of evil people broke out of prison. Cap acknowledged that, but he saw something else. Like when Loki threatened the world, a team came together to fight back, and now it could happen again. Iron Man was hesitant, but he decided to go with it and assemble yesterday’s heroes. Unbeknownst to them, their team wasn’t complete. On their first mission was to get Sauron from the Savage Land, the new Avengers met Wolverine, who was there on a mission of his own.
Soon after that, a host of superhero teams got together to talk to the Sentry. After a weird and monster-filled battle, Emma Frost and Reed Richards helped the Sentry himself, Robert Reynolds, process what happened to his memory. Once that was complete, the New Avengers were officially assembled.
The New Avengers changed teams as time went on, thanks to Marvel’s Civil War, Secret Invasion, and Norman Osborn’s Dark Reign. Among the members were Doctor Strange, Bucky Barnes (now Captain America), the real Jessica Drew, Bobbi Morse, Echo, Iron Fist, Carol Danvers, and Clint Barton (as Ronin). But Luke Cage, Wolverine, and Spider-Man were the consistent members even after Siege, when the Marvel Comics universe went back to normal.
Also check out these New Avengers runs for roster changes:
- New Avengers: The Sentry
- New Avengers: Secrets and Lies
- New Avengers: Civil War
- New Avengers: The Trust
- New Avengers: Secret Invasion
- New Avengers: Power
- New Avengers: Search for the Sorcerer Supreme
- New Avengers: Power Loss
- Siege: New Avengers
This run of New Avengers was this writer’s favorite team because it was so random and checked all of the boxes. It didn’t matter if it was magic, gods, ninjas, or aliens; there was someone to combat it. Then, you have Luke Cage as their leader. He was the perfect person to direct a crew with so many personalities. He understood who each of them were and how to direct them. Yes, he made mistakes, but overall, he was fantastic.
It’s not shocking that the Thunderbolts became the New Avengers in the MCU. They’re following the same pattern with the random crew of heroes that no one would think to put in a room, brought together by fate and defeated someone more powerful than they were. To top it all off, the press the New Avengers received in the movie was the same as the press that the New Avengers got in the comics. No one believes in them because they aren’t the original squad.
Like every team after the original Avengers in the comics, they’ll have to prove themselves to the world. The people even doubted Steve Rogers' next team in the source material, calling them "Cap's Kooky Quartet,". On the movie front, some fans even doubt that the former Thunderbolts will succeed in Avengers: Doomsday. However, that’s what will make their victories better.
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