The Avengers are the epicenter of the Marvel Universe. It’s the team that gets called in for the biggest threats and has often been the centerpiece of the defense of the planet when the chips are down. Everyone who puts on a costume wants to join them at some point, showing that they’re ready for the big time. It takes a special kind of hero to thrive in Earth’s Mightiest Heroes. It’s the top of the pyramid, where the best heroes work together against enemies that would destroy the planet if they were given a chance. Over the years, nearly all of Marvel Comics‘ best heroes have called the team home.
It’s that “nearly all” that concerns us right now. There are some amazing Marvel heroes out there who have done everything you can think of and still haven’t worn the big “A” on their costume. The thing is they should have by now. These seven Marvel heroes are worthy of becoming Avengers, joining the ranks of the greatest heroes on the planet.
X-Factor is a surprisingly illustrious team, but it’s best members isn’t some A-list mutant like Havok or Iceman, but Jamie Madrox. The Multiple Man has the power to make copies of himself. He can send them into the world to learn things and then absorb them, gaining all of their knowledge and memories. He’s a polymath, having mastered just about every skill you need to be superhero. He’s low key one of the best mutants in the Marvel Universe and he deserves a berth with the Avengers. We need to see him working with Iron Man and helping strategize with Captain America. He’d be perfect for the team.
Speedball seemed like a joke for years, but he’s more powerful than anyone gives him credit for. His powers made him into the world’s greatest bouncy ball, but what he was really doing was absorbing and releasing kinetic energy. After surviving the explosion that level Stamford, Connecticut in Civil War, his powers became pain based, allowing him to release charged up kinetic energy. His powers have since went back to normal, but he’s mastered them to a much greater extent and is more formidable than ever. He’s at the perfect place for a run with the team, and could become a major player with the right push.
The aborted 2010s Inhumans push basically destroyed any good will they had with fans, but people still love Medusa. She’s the wife of Black Bolt and a successful leader and hero on her own. She’s cunning, a woman constantly working to watch her husband’s back, all while outsmarting everyone else gunning for her. Her hair is an amazing weapon and she’s an expert at using it in combat, making her an asset in the field. She’s exactly the kind of woman the Avengers need – a smart, capable combatant who can shock their foes with how useful she is on the battlefield.
The Avengers have called several Eternals members, including Sersi, Gilgamesh, and Hyperion. However, there’s one Eternal who should have joined the team who hasn’t: Ikaris. He’s the chief warrior of the group, the one who dispatches all of the threats, the first into the breach and the last to go home. He defends the Earth with gusto, working to fulfill the Celestials left deep inside all of his people, and could be a much bigger deal in the hero world with little help. Becoming an Avenger would allow him to do what he would anyway on a greater scale than before. With his power level, the team would mow through their foes.
Jean Grey is the X-Men’s most powerful woman. Even before she gained the power of the Phoenix Force, she was the second most telepath on the planet and her telekinesis was at a level where she could control molecules and level mountains. Now, she’s a cosmic-powered dynamo who can stop stars from going supernova. She’s a titan and and one of the X-Men’s most experienced members. She was be perfect for the Avengers, whether it be as Phoenix or as just plain old Jean Grey. She would make an amazing addition to the team, becoming one of their most clutch members from the word go.
Johnny Storm was a teenage heart throb when he joined Reed Richards’ mission to space with his sister Sue and Reed’s friend Ben. The cosmic radiation storm gave him the power to burst into flame, harnessing the fire as a weapon and flying through the air like a living missile of flame. He became the Fantastic Four’s resident hothead, a star on the world stage, and one of the coolest heroes to ever put on a costume made of unstable molecules. So far, he’s the only member of the Fantastic Four to have never have joined the Avengers, so it’s time for that to change. He’s long been worthy of them, and it’s past time he got the call.
The X-Men have become icons, and the team has fed several members to the Avengers. Beast was the first, but later Wolverine, Storm, Rogue, and many more thanks to the Avengers Unity Squad would join up. However, one X-Man who definitely deserves his place on the team hasn’t been a member: Cyclops. As the best leader in X-Men history, he’s a hero who has faced off against everything out there and brought his allies home. His powers are amazing, and he’s a master combatant and strategist. He’s the total package, and would be great on the team. On top of all of that, it would be cool to see him mend fences with Earth’s Mightiest Heroes after years of battling against them.
What Marvel heroes do you think are worthy of being Avengers? Leave a comment in the comment section below and join the conversation on the ComicBook Forums!
