Marvel Hero and Villain Teams
Thursday, February 5, 2009 at 05:30AM This is a list of those groups of heroes and villains that band together for a common goal. This list does not include cults such as HYDRA or government organizations such as S.H.I.E.L.D., although it will include some hero teams that may be funded and authorized by the government.
This list is still under construction and will be regularly updated.
Acolytes of Magneto - Also known simply as the "Acolytes", this was a group of mutant terrorists who believed Magneto was their messiah. While the Brotherhood of Mutants was usually dedicated to mutant domination, the Acolytes wished to wipe out humanity rather than rule it and were known to people at random in order to "genetically cleanse" all traces of normal humans or "flat-scans" as they called them (since they did not register any mutant qualities or an X-gene). The Acolytes were originally led by Fabian Cortez and later by the mutant called Exodus. The Acolytes saw themselves as a religious order and did not bother with unique costumes or colorful aliases.
Avengers - Often called "Earth's Mightiest Heroes." The group formed soon after the rise of the Modern Age of Heroes, when Thor, Iron Man, Wasp and the original Ant-Man all attempted to capture the Hulk, believing he had attacked innocent people. After realizing their mistake and defeating the true villain Loki, the five decided to form a club that would handle threats no single super-hero could defeat. Thus, the Avengers were formed. Tony Stark (Iron Man) set up their HQ in his old 5th Avenue mansion (which became Avengers Mansion) and also provided each member with a weekly stipend as compensation for their services.
In one of the team's first missions, they recovered Steve Rogers, the original Captain America, who had been locked in suspended animation since just before the end of World War II. Since he joined so early after the team's formation and became an invaluable asset, even coining their battle cry "Avengers Assemble," Cap is considered a founder as well and has been leader of the team on many occasions. In the opinion of many fans, Captain America, Iron Man and Thor represent the core of the team and are often called the "Big Three" of the Avengers.
Over the years, the Avengers roster has changed many times over. It has occasionally disbanded and reformed. For a time, there was also a West Coast branch. For most of the team's tenure, it had special security clearance with the U.S. government.
After the Super-Human Registration Act, a new official team of Avengers was formed as a strike-force for S.H.I.E.L.D. (see entry below), while a second team of unregistered heroes acted on their own, sometimes called "Secret Avengers" or "New Avengers."
Recently, Norman Osborn has been put in charge of the U.S.'s super-human operations. As such, he has created his own new team of official Avengers, made up mostly of former criminals who used to be part of the Thunderbolts team. These characters are featured in the series Dark Avengers. Meanwhile, there are two other splinter groups working on their own. One, led by Hank Pym (formerly the original Ant-Man), operates outside the U.S., beyond Osborn's jurisdiction, and is featured in the series Mighty Avengers. The other, led by the new Captain America, operates in the U.S., in defiance of the Registration Act, and is featured in New Avengers.
A group of teenage heroes with ties to the team have called themselves the Young Avengers. Due to the Registration Act, they do not work together frequently anymore, lest they attract the attention of authorities.
Avengers Initiative - The Initiative Program involved smaller units of super-heroes operating in each of the 50 states of the U.S. People who wished to operate in one of the Initiative teams must first be trained at Camp Hammond. The Avengers Initiative was disbanded when SHIELD was discontinued. The black ops division of the Initiative was known as the Shadow Initiative.
The Brotherhood of Mutants - Also known at times as the "Brotherhood of Evil Mutants", this was originally a group of mutant terrorists gathered and led by Magneto. The Brotherhood led attacks on government bases and attempted to spread mutant rule across the Earth. The team has been disbanded and re-organized several times, sometimes under the leadership of the shape-shifter Mystique, other times led by various others, including Magneto's former followers Exodus and Toad. Some of the Brotherhood teams have been as much about profit as they have been about mutant domination. Magneto, Mystique and Toad occasionally allowed the press to label the group as "the Brotherhood of EVIL Mutants" because it was both ironic and allowed them to point out to their followers how easily humans labeled mutants as evil.
When the mutant Xorn masqueraded as Magneto, he formed his own version of the Brotherhood of Mutants that consisted of former students of the X-Men. This Brotherhood led an attack on Manhattan that resulted in the deaths of hundreds, making them perhaps the most effective and notorious incarnation of the team.
Recently, a new group has shown up calling itself the Sisterhood of Mutants, led by Madelyne Pryor, the clone of the X-Man Jean Grey.
Champions - Also known as the "Champions of Los Angeles", this was Marvel's first west coast-based super-hero team. The group was funded by the Angel (who would later rename himself the Archangel), who had recently left the X-Men. Joining him were his old teammate Iceman, the Black Widow (Natasha Romanova), the original Ghost Rider (Johnny Blaze) and the Greek demi-god Hercules. The team was only in operation for a few months before disbanding.
Despite having fought enemies such as Magneto, the Sentinels and Soviet super-soldiers, the Champion didn't make much of an impact in the eyes of the public and some even considered the loosely organized team to be somewhat silly. Years later, Spider-Man jokingly stated that he refused to join any group even called "Champions."
After the Super-Human Registration Act, the Avengers Initiative set-up a team in California that was originally called the Champions but then, due to a legal dispute, changed their name to the Order.
Defenders - After having teamed up a few times before, the Silver Surfer, Dr. Strange, the Hulk and Namor, the Sub-Mariner, decided to join forces on a semi-regular basis as the Defenders. They were a self-described "non-team" with no formal charter or by-laws, no regular meeting schedule nor even an official team headquarters. Unlike the Avengers, the Defenders tended to focus on supernatural menaces.
Other members came and went, the longest-standing ones being Nighthawk (Kyle Richmond), Valkyrie (Brunhilde) and Hellcat (Patsy Walker). Later on, an alleged magical prophecy stated that if the original four members remained working together, they would bring about the end of the world. The original four left to pursue their own lives (though months later, Dr. Strange found out this prophecy was a lie). With them gone, the former X-Man known as the Beast re-organized the team as a more formal group, even getting government funding. But during a battle with the Dragons of the Moon, several members were killed and the team disbanded soon after.
A few years later, Dr. Strange made a habit of recruiting a team of super-humans to help him on various adventures, changing the membership each time depending on the situation. He called these various groups his "Secret Defenders." He later turned leadership over to the sorcerer Dr. Druid, who then disbanded the team altogether months afterward when he decided to fake his own death so he could pursue a private agenda.
The original four Defenders later wound up cursed to work together by their old foe Yandroth, who also manipulated them into believing they were best suited to rule the world. They called themselves the Order and fought several heroes before realizing the truth and then defeating Yandroth. Later the four worked together to fight the supernatural villains Umar and Dormammu before separating once again.
After the Super-Human Registration Act, the Avengers Initiative formed a team in New Jersey that was known as the Defenders or the "Last Defenders." They were discontinued due to incompetence, but Nighthawk later reformed the team, acting outside of Initiative authority.
Excalibur - When the X-Men were believed to be dead, former members Nightcrawler, Shadowcat and Phoenix II (Rachel Grey) formed a new team in London with the hero Captain Britain and his girlfriend the shape-shifter Meggan. They operated as both defenders of England and as trans-dimensional adventurers, often finding themselves transported to different realities. Eventually, the team relocated to Muir Island, off the coast of Scotland, and focused more on defending mutant rights and taking down mutant terrorists. Some time later, the group finally disbanded.
A couple of years later, Captain Britain and government agent Pete Wisdom formed a new Excalibur team to act as British super-heroes. Once again, it involved several former members of the X-Men. It lasted only several months before disbanding.
Exiles - Formed by a race known as the Timebreakers, the Exiles was a team sent to various alternate realities to correct flaws and errors in space and time. The team had a rotating roster of heroes and villains from various parallel universes.
Fantastic Four - The first heroes of the modern age of super-heroes (at least, in the Marvel Universe). Dr. Reed Richards, his best friend Air Force pilot Ben Grimm, his fiancé Sue Storm, and her teenage brother Johnny Storm, were all on board a space-flight intended to test Reed's experimental hyperdrive. As the hyper-drive activated, the ship was exposed to strange radiation, including a high level of cosmic rays, and the inadequate shielding resulted in the four being mutated.
Blaming himself, Richards decided to turn tragedy into opportunity. He and the others became the Fantastic Four, ready to offer aid when conventional forces couldn't handle a disaster. To endorse themselves as celebrities rather than freaks, the four made no effort to hide their identities and each took on a colorful nickname. Reed, Ben, Sue and Johnny called themselves Mr. Fantastic, the Thing, Invisible Girl (later Invisible Woman), and the Human Torch, respectively. Johnny named himself after the World War II android hero of the same name since he wielded similar abilities.
The Fantastic Four see themselves as a family of adventurers (or "imaginauts") first and super-heroes second, preferring to explore strange new worlds rather than hunting down villains. The FF have served as a major defense against many alien invasions and they are known throughout the galaxy.
At times, one or two of the members have temporarily left and been replaced by another super-hero in the meantime, but the original group always comes back together soon enough. Once, when the team was believed to be dead, Spider-Man, the Hulk, Ghost Rider (Danny Ketch) and Wolverine were manipulated into becoming the "New Fantastic Four." They were only together for one mission however before discovering that the true FF was alive and well and then going their separate ways (in truth, none of them really felt they worked together that well as a team). Some time later, they actually re-united and faced off against the true Fantastic Four.
Another time, when the FF seemed to have disbanded for good, a new team formed called Fantastic Force. But it only lasted several weeks, disbanding just before the original FF team reunited.
Force Works - When the Avengers West Coast branch disbanded, Iron Man organized several of the members into a new team called Force Works which operated by a different philosophy than the Avengers. Rather than reacting to disasters, Force Works sought to hunt out and defeat villains in pre-emptive strikes. Though the Scarlet Witch was technically team leader, Iron Man would often defy her and take charge himself. The team used a combination of the Scarlet Witch's magic and a device called the Chaos Computer to predict where possible threats would occur. After several months, the team disbanded.
After the passing of the Super-Human Registration Act, the Avengers Initiative formed a team in Iowa that was labeled "Force Works."
Generation X - When Emma Frost joined forces with Prof. Charles Xavier, leader of the X-Men, she and Sean Cassidy (the X-Man called Banshee) became teachers to a group of teenage mutants who were collectively referred to as Generation X. The group was based at the new Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters in Massachusetts (formerly known as the Massachusetts Academy). Eventually, the group was discontinued and the students of Generation X either joined the X-Men or went their own ways.
Hellions - When Emma Frost ran the Massachusetts Academy, she was also secretly training mutant students in the use of their powers. These special students were known as the Hellions and were rivals to the X-Men, the New Mutants and later the New Warriors. A few years after their formation, the Hellions were killed during an attack by the time traveling terrorist Trevor Fitzroy. Months after this event, Emma Frost joined forces with Charles Xavier and her Massachusetts Academy became the new Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters. Emma's new students were jokingly called Generation X.
Two teams of villains came afterwards, each called Hellions, but each was short-lived.
When the X-Men went public with their true identities and opened their doors to any mutants who wished for safe haven, the new students were divided into different squads. Emma Frost's class were called the Hellions Squad. After the events of M-Day, during which most mutants lost their powers, there were so few students left in the school that the squads were merged into one large class, collectively referred to as the Young X-Men.
Masters of Evil - Soon after the Avengers first formed, several enemies of the individual members were gathered together by Baron Heinrich Zemo, one of Hitler's greatest scientists and an old enemy of Captain America. Zemo led these criminals in attacks against the Avengers. During their first battle, Thor, upon seeing their callous disregard for innocents caught in the crossfire, referred to the villains as being "Masters of Evil." Zemo enjoyed the theatrical name and decided to keep it, emphasizing that he and his soldiers intended to be masters of the world and were not like other criminals who were motivated solely by profit.
Although this original group didn't re-unite following the death of Heinrich Zemo, other groups of villains calling themselves by the same name have formed from time to time over the years, often with the two-pronged goal of conquest while also humiliating or destroying the Avengers.
Heinrich's son Helmut Zemo once gathered together a large group for his new incarnation of the Masters of Evil and actually led them on a successful attack on Avengers Mansion, leading them to capture and torture several of the team members before they were finally defeated later on. Years later, Helmut Zemo recruited a new incarnation of the team and was ready to strike when suddenly the Avengers seemingly died during a fight against a villain called Onslaught. Zemo then had his new team masquerade as a new group of heroes and they called themselves the Thunderbolts (see Thunderbolts entry further below).
New Mutants - Some years after he'd formed the X-Men, who at that point were almost all adults, Professor Charles Xavier recruited a secondary class of mutants who were still teenagers. He originally did this because he was being influenced by the alien Brood, who wished to use the teens as hosts. After the X-Men freed Xavier from this mind-control, Xavier continued acting as teacher and mentor to these "New Mutants" he had recruited. Though he originally forbade them from going out on actual missions, the New Mutants continually found themselves on adventures. Eventually, many of them left and formed the first team called X-Force.
Years later, when the X-Men went public with their true identities and opened their doors to any mutants who wished for safe haven, the new students were divided into different squads. Dani Moonstar, a former member of the New Mutants, was in charge of one squad and referred to them as the New Mutants squad. After the events of M-Day, when most mutants lost their powers, there were so few students that the squads were merged into one large class known as the Young X-Men.
New X-Men - This term referred to the young students of the Xavier Institute for Higher Learning, those mutants-in-training who wished to be X-Men one day. These days, they are more commonly known as the Young X-Men.
New Warriors - The first group to be called the New Warriors was formed by Dwayne Taylor AKA Night Thrasher, who wanted to form a group who would focus on local crimes that groups such as the Avengers did not usually take care of. This group operated for a few years before disbanding. Later, several of the former members got back together and formed a new incarnation of the team. Eventually, however, they fell on hard times and wound up agreeing to be sponsored as part of a super-hero reality TV program.
NIGHT THRASHERWhile being filmed on one of their adventures in Stamford, CT, the New Warriors attacked a group of villains and were unaware that one of them, Nitro, had increased his powers with MGH (Mutant Growth Hormone). During the affair, Nitro released enough explosive force that he killed a few hundred people in the surrounding area, including an elementary school. With the exception of member Robbie Baldwin (originally called Speedball, later Penance), all the Warriors present were killed.
The "Stamford Incident" caused the government to push forward the Super-Human Registration Act. Weeks after the SHRA passed, a new team of New Warriors was organized by Dwayne Taylor's half-brother Donyell, a mutant who used to call himself Bandit but now took on the identity of the new Night Thrasher. The team is made up mostly of mutants who lost their powers during the M-Day event (which involved the Scarlet Witch taking away the X-gene from most of the world's mutants), who use scavenged technology to simulate powers and operate with new identities. For instance, Jubilation Lee used to be called Jubilee but now uses the identity Wondra. The New Warriors are illegal vigilantes since they are not registered and the use of their name is seen as a rebellious act, since many hold the old team of New Warriors in contempt for their part in the Stamford Incident.
NICK FURYSecret Warriors - Formed and trained by Nick Fury, former Director of S.H.I.E.L.D., the Secret Warriors are a military-like unit of super-humans who have inherited their abilities from various heroes and villains. Originally, Fury formed this group to help him combat a secret invasion of the shape-shifting aliens known as Skrull. The members of the team were selected as people he could trust because no one besides Fury were even aware that they possessed super-powers, thus the Skrulls would not have targeted any of them to be replaced by a spy.
After the Skrull Secret Invasion was defeated, Fury and his warriors went into hiding again and soon discovered that the terrorist organization HYDRA was more powerful than Fury had ever realized. The Secret Warriors are now determined to defeat HYDRA and enemies that most of the world is unaware of while also avoiding government capture since they are all unregistered super-humans.
Thunderbolts - Originally forming when the Avengers were believed to be dead, the Thunderbolts claimed to be a group of new super-heroes. They were actually various super-villains, led by Baron Helmut Zemo, who were attempting to gain the trust of the world before they took it over. Over the course of months, however, several of the team members found themselves enjoying their new roles as heroes.
When the true identities of the team members became public, most of them decided to continue operating as heroes, stating they wished to make up for their past crimes. Eventually, Baron Zemo himself was swayed to believe that protecting the Earth was a more fulfilling challenge than conquering it.
HELMUT ZEMO and NORMAN OSBORNFollowing the events of the Super-Human Registration Act, all the Thunderbolts members registered and the team was disbanded, replaced by a new group of the same name that was tasked with hunting down unregistered super-humans. Led by Norman Osborn, this new team included criminals who had no interest in reforming but were either forced into working on the team or did so willing for the chance to hunt down unregistered super-heroes.
After the Skrull Secret Invasion, the Thunderbolts have been reorganized as a covert ops force for Norman Osborn. Most members are convicted criminals and may be severely punished or even executed if they fail in a mission.
X-Factor - There have been three core groups to use the name X-Factor. The first involved the original X-Men members who decided to operate separately from the team that was active at the time. Playing on public fears, the five advertised themselves as a team of human bounty hunters called "X-Factor", trained to capture mutants. This way, they were led to mutants who needed their help. Then they would take money from the racist who'd hired them and use it to help the mutant they'd been sent after. Whenever the members of X-Factor had to use their powers in public, they donned masks and called themselves the "X-Terminators."
Eventually, it became public knowledge that these bounty hunters were actually the mutant X-Terminators and so they dropped the act, operating openly as mutant heroes under the X-Factor name. A couple of years later, the team members rejoined the X-Men, leaving the X-Factor name to be picked up by the government, who decided it would help human/mutant relations to employ a group of mutant operatives. This new government X-Factor team was originally led by Alex Summers AKA Havok and had many member changes over the years before the government finally disbanded it.
Recently, Jamie Madrox AKA Multiple Man started a private detective agency called XXX Investigations. When he found himself joined by former X-Factor teammates, he decided to rename the agency X-Factor Investigations. The current group do their best to help mutants who can't get aid from conventional law enforcement and also investigates plots that could threaten the mutant population.
X-Force - The original X-Force team formed when the mutant known as Cable recruited several young X-Men-in-training (known as the "New Mutants") and convinced them that a more para-military attitude was necessary to bring peace to the mutant community, through force whenever necessary. X-Force actively hunted down mutant terrorists, not wishing to wait as a responsive force as the X-Men did. The team changed membership many times and eventually broke apart. For a short time, a reality TV series used the name X-Force before changing its name to X-Statix.
Recently, Cyclops, leader of the X-Men, formed a new group he has called "X-Force." This new team is the black ops division of the X-Men, actively hunting down menaces that are too dangerous to simply leave alone and to assassinate them if necessary. The team is led by Wolverine.
X-Men - Seeing that anti-mutant prejudice was on the rise, and wishing to ensure that mutants were trained in the use of their powers and taught not to abuse those gifts, Professor Charles Xavier gathered together a team of students. These students not only trained in how to master their abilities, but also acted as a counter-terrorist strike force to combat mutant terrorists, thus showing the public that not all mutants needed to be feared. Because mutants gain their power as a result of being born with the "X-gene", Xavier called his team the X-Men.
The team's original headquarters was Charles Xavier's family home in Westchester, NY (nicknamed the "X-Mansion"). Thanks to his ally Fred Duncan in the FBI, Professor X's mansion was set-up as a false private school called "Xavier's School for Gifted Youngster." Many years later, Xavier joined forces with Emma Frost and her Massachusetts Academy became the new School for Gifted Youngsters, where the young students known as Generation X were trained in the use of their powers. The adult X-Men stayed in Westchester and the X-Mansion was renamed the "Xavier Institute for Higher Learning."
Over the years, the X-Men have had various members. For the most part, its leader has been Scott Summers AKA Cyclops, Xavier's first recruit. At times, Ororo Munroe AKA Storm has also proved to be a formidable leader. And there was a brief period when the terrorist called Magneto, arch-enemy to the X-Men and Xavier in particular, attempted to reform and served as a guiding force to the group.
Recently, the X-Men have completely broken away from Charles Xavier and have relocated to San Francisco. Although originally they were very secretive, the X-Men finally went public a few years ago, revealing their true names and identities to the world at large and explaining that along with being a combat strike force, they also offer classes and a safe haven for any mutant teenagers who feel persecuted in the outside world. Cyclops acts as a general now, dispatching different teams of X-Men depending on the situation. He and the other senior members also act as mentors and teachers to the younger, less experienced mutants among them, those who wish to become new X-men in the future.
Members of the X-Men have sometimes left to participate in other groups known as X-Factor and X-Force.
X-Statix - A group of mutants who fought criminals as part of a reality TV series that promoted their exploits. The members of X-Statix were often looked down on by mutant heroes such as the X-Men. Due to the extreme danger of their missions and since none of them had actual combat training, many members of the group were killed in action, leading the roster to go under constant change.
Young X-Men - The young students who learn under the X-Men make up a junior squad known as the Young X-Men (formerly known as the New X-Men).
Reader Comments (2)
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