7 Worst Things Marvel Did To The Avengers

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For decades, the Avengers have been Marvel’s leading team, even when their popularity fluctuated. This iconic group brings together Earth’s greatest heroes to tackle any danger. While they haven’t always been the most popular – the X-Men actually outsold them at times, particularly in the 2000s – the Avengers have consistently been a major force in Marvel Comics. The recent Marvel movies have made them incredibly well-known, attracting a new wave of fans to the comic books.

The Avengers comics have seen many exciting moments, but the team hasn’t always been handled well. Beyond battling supervillains, the Avengers have faced problems caused by missteps from Marvel itself. Here are seven of the worst decisions the publisher made that ultimately hurt the team, often at the worst possible times.

7) Jed MacKay’s Avengers

Jed MacKay has quickly become a fan-favorite writer at Marvel, known for his work on titles like Moon Knight, Black Cat, Strange, and Doctor Strange. He took over the Avengers series in 2022, following Jason Aaron’s run, and initially set up an interesting storyline involving Kang the Conqueror in the Timeless one-shot. However, the resulting Avengers series hasn’t lived up to expectations. While MacKay excels at writing lesser-known characters, his work on major heroes hasn’t been as strong. The series has largely disappeared from the conversation, and it’s frustrating because the planned Kang-focused storyline lost relevance when the Marvel Cinematic Universe shifted away from using that villain. Ultimately, the Avengers book exists, but it’s failing to generate much interest.

6) The Leather Jacket Era

The 1990s were a difficult period for the Avengers. A major low point was the so-called “Leather Jacket Era,” which began after the “Operation: Galactic Storm” storyline. Following a war between the Kree and Shi’Ar races, some Avengers killed the Supreme Intelligence, and many of the team’s most popular members departed. This left the Avengers with a lineup of lesser-known heroes. While the comic wasn’t bad – the artwork by Steve Epting was excellent – it lacked the star power fans expected. It didn’t really feel like an Avengers book, and many believed Marvel was unsuccessfully trying to emulate DC’s Justice League International by attempting to turn a group of less prominent heroes into stars.

5) All-New All-Different Avengers

The All-New, All-Different Avengers comic had all the ingredients for success: a fantastic writer in Mark Waid, stunning art from Adam Kubert and Mike Del Mundo, and covers by Alex Ross. The team itself – Iron Man, Vision, Ms. Marvel, Miles Morales’ Spider-Man, Thor, and Nova – was full of popular heroes. However, despite all this talent, it’s hard to recall a single memorable story from the run. The main issue was that it followed the critically acclaimed Avengers run by Jonathan Hickman, making it nearly impossible to stand out. Marvel hoped this new team would build excitement for Avengers: Age of Ultron, but the comic just didn’t quite click. Ironically, it marked the start of a decade-long decline for the Avengers in the comics, even as the Marvel Cinematic Universe made the characters more popular than ever.

4) Avengers #300

Over the years, the Avengers have had some fantastic teams, and some truly awful ones. Many consider the lineup introduced in Avengers #300 to be the worst. At the time, Captain America was disillusioned with the United States while still acting as Captain, and he brought together Mister Fantastic, Invisible Woman, Thor, and Gilgamesh the Forgotten One. It’s likely you’ve never even heard of this team – and that’s because it didn’t work out. While the roster was undeniably powerful – featuring a god in Thor, an Eternal in Gilgamesh, and the incredibly strong Invisible Woman – it just didn’t feel like a true Avengers team. Fans were already starting to lose interest in the Avengers and gravitate towards Marvel’s mutant characters, and this particular lineup drove many of them away for good.

3) “The Crossing”

While the 1990s brought some memorable Marvel stories, many were poorly received, particularly those involving the Avengers. The low point was arguably “The Crossing,” a storyline where Kang traveled back in time and manipulated Iron Man into secretly working against his teammates. The Avengers’ solution – bringing a teenage Tony Stark into the past to fight his future self – was illogical and confusing. The story also tried to make the Avengers more edgy and modern, a stylistic choice that didn’t suit the team and felt forced, resembling the style of Image Comics. Ultimately, “The Crossing” is considered one of the worst Avengers stories ever – not entertainingly bad, just plain bad.

2) Chuck Austen’s Run on Avengers

Chuck Austen is widely considered one of the worst writers to ever work for Marvel Comics, despite having written some of their best-selling titles in the early 2000s. He initially landed those jobs thanks to his War Machine MAX series, but he was assigned to books—like Uncanny X-Men—that were guaranteed to sell regardless of the story quality. While his X-Men stories were poorly received, the popularity of the title kept fans buying. This led to him taking over Avengers after Geoff Johns moved to DC. However, his run on Avengers was a failure from the beginning. He introduced an unpopular new Captain Britain and attempted an Invaders story that didn’t work. Marvel essentially erased his run with the “Avengers Disassembled: Chaos” event, and it has largely been forgotten ever since.

1) Avengers #200

Everyone agrees that Avengers #200 is a terrible comic – arguably the worst ever published. It’s infamous for its deeply problematic storyline where a future version of Captain Marvel is subjected to a horrific sexual assault, resulting in a child who is revealed to be her attacker. What makes it even worse is that the story depicts her falling in love with him, and the Avengers accepting this as if it were a positive outcome. This issue is shockingly bad and deserves to be remembered as a low point in comic book history. Even within Marvel, many creators disliked it. Chris Claremont, writer of Uncanny X-Men, addressed the story’s issues in Avengers Annual #10, effectively undoing the damage done to Carol Danvers and criticizing the Avengers’ behavior. He then brought her over to the X-Men series, where she developed into the powerful hero she is known as today.

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2025-10-30 20:15