10 Best Avengers (Who Weren’t On The Main Team)

The Avengers are one of the most illustrious teams in the history of the Marvel Universe. They’ve saved the Earth and the universe numerous times over the decades, and have included many of the greatest heroes (and some villains) in their ranks. Over the years, the group have consisted of heroes who became icons with them. Many of the team’s greatest members came to prominence because of the book and have made their names as heroes because of their place on the main team. However, one of the coolest things about the team is the amount of characters from across the Marvel Universe who got their start their elsewhere or would join one of the many non-main team Avengers groups. Sometimes, they’ve even joined the big team, raising their stars even higher.

The Avengers were long considered kingmakers. Joining the team was a huge deal, and many heroes have been able to join the group because of what they’ve done elsewhere. These ten Avengers are the best members of the group who made their start anywhere other than the main team, showing that they’re some of the best heroes in the Marvel Universe.

10) Iron Fist

Iron Fist came from ’70s Marvel, when kung-fu and blaxploitation movies inspired the creators of the House of Ideas. Danny Rand mastered kung-fu and the use of chi, and ended up joining up with Luke Cage (who will be on this list as well), the two of them working as the Heroes for Hire. Throughout the ’80s, the character got less and less popular before being relegated to guest star status. However, the mid ’00s saw him return in the very capable hands of Ed Brubaker, Matt Fraction, and David Aja in The Immortal Iron Fist, reintroducing him to a new generation. This led to him joining the New Avengers after Civil War, funding the underground Avengers team. He stayed with them until Cage and writer Brian Michael Bendis left the Avengers books. He was perfect for this era of the group, a snarky, skilled, and wealthy hero who played off the rest of the team beautifully.

9) Storm

Storm made her name as one of the best X-Men, leading the team through some of its most harrowing (and popular) years. The mutant is an Omega-level weather manipulator, related to one of the most powerful magic-users in Earth’s history, and has lived up to her “goddess” nickname. She’s a beloved character, and she stayed an X-Man until she married Black Panther. This led to her joining the Fantastic Four and then the Avengers (making her one of three characters in Marvel history to be on all three teams; the other two are also on this list), but she’d leave the team after Avengers vs. X-Men. She rejoined them in 2024, and while the current Avengers series isn’t the most beloved, joining the team has been a big part of the Storm push we’ve been getting over the last seven years. She’s an icon and always deserves a berth with the group.

8) Cannonball

Cannonball first appeared as a member of the New Mutants, becoming one of the stars of the book. He’d help found X-Force, becoming the leader of the team after Cable left, and graduated to the X-Men. He stayed a member over the years, becoming an underrated part of the group. Jonathan Hickman’s amazing Avengers run brought him to Earth’s Mightiest Heroes with his best friend Sunspot, and the two of them became a cool little duo. He ended up marrying Smasher, another member, and has since mostly been retired from heroing to hang out with her in the Shi’Ar Empire and their daughter. He’s a massively underrated hero who has been a member of some of the coolest teams in Marvel history.

7) Spider-Woman

Spider-Woman is another child of ’70s Marvel, when the publisher also got serious about being more feminist and introducing more women in solo books. She wasn’t massively popular, but she made an impact on one Brian Michael Bendis, and would eventually lose her solo books, leading to her powers starting to fade (most people don’t know this, but she moved to Madripoor to become a detective, often working with Wolverine). Bendis brought her into New Avengers, using her as a triple agent, backstabbing Hydra by working with SHIELD and Nick Fury after he left the organization. It was soon revealed that she was actually a quadruple agent, as this new version was the Skrull Empress Vernanke. After Secret Invasion, the real deal would join the Avengers. She was a great character for a while, becoming a favorite of readers, helping to define an entire era of the group.

6) Sunspot

Sunspot has much the same history as Cannonball. premiering with the New Mutants and then moving to X-Force, except he never really became a member of the X-Men. The wealthy Brazilian would become one of the most important members of the Avengers during the Hickman run. He ended up buying the evil scientist group AIM, and after the Incursions were discovered by the main team, funded a last ditch effort to stop them. He’d then start his own Avengers team, leading them in battle against the Maker. He’s honestly an iconic Avenger, and he doesn’t get the love he should.

5) Luke Cage

Luke Cage has a similar story to Iron Fist, with some notable differences. After Heroes for Hire ended, he’d get his own failed series in the ’90s. Marvel tried to reboot Heroes for Hire in the ’90s, but it didn’t work, and it wouldn’t be until the early ’00s, when the MAX Cage miniseries by Brian Azzarello and Richard Corben came out, that he would get popular again. He was also a favorite of Bendis, who put him in Secret War and then New Avengers. He became one of the hottest characters in the mid ’00s, rising to the leader of the New Avengers after Civil War and marrying Jessica Jones, the two of them having a daughter, Danielle. He made a much better Avenger than anyone would have figured, and played a huge role in the popularity of the team for several of their most successful years.

4) Hyperion of Earth-13034

Hyperion came to prominence with Marvel’s Justice League pastiche, the Squadron Supreme, and since then, readers have encountered numerous versions of the hero from the Marvel Multiverse. During the Incursions, a new version of the character from Earth-13034 tried to save his world, and failed. He was pulled into Earth-616 by AIM and would join the Avengers during the Hickman run, becoming one of the team’s heaviest hitters, as well as being one of the more interesting characters on the team. He’s one of those great Avengers that no one talks about enough, and needs more respect on his name.

3) Beast

Beast is a founding member of the X-Men, but has joined several non-mutant teams over the years. He joined the Avengers in the late ’70s and became best friends with Wonder Man. He was the first X-Man to join Earth’s Mightiest Heroes, and fans of the character love his time with the group. He’s also been a member of the Secret Avengers and The Illuminati, as well. There’s an argument that his time with the group was his best, and the current Beast is a reincarnation of that Avengers Beast (it’s a long story, but basically he became a genocidal monster in the X-books after years of watching mutants get shafted and ended up “dying”, leaving behind his edited memories so the older version of himself could be resurrected). Beast is honestly in the best of all time Avengers bracket, and that’s all there is to it.

2) Spider-Man

Spider-Man is Marvel’s most relatable hero, and its most popular character. The Wall-Crawler, despite being based in New York City like Earth’s Mightiest Heroes, was never really a member of the team. He was a reserve member and would get called in to help out, but wasn’t really considered an Avenger. All of that changed with New Avengers. He became a key member of the group, and stayed with them until Doctor Octopus took over his body. Spider-Man was a perfect member of the team, his wisecracks and combat skill making him integral to them. He’d later join the X-Men and was already a former member of the Fantastic Four, making him one of the trio of heroes who have that distinction. He hasn’t been an Avenger for a long time, but he’s so great with the team that he can rejoin them any time.

1) Wolverine

Wolverine is the best there is at what he does, especially when it comes to joining other teams. He started out with the X-Men, becoming one of the most popular heroes in comics. He’d join the Fantastic Four and the Secret Defenders (few people remember that one), and would join the cast of New Avengers in issue #5. He made a great member of the group, playing a big role in the their adventures, and joined the main team after Siege. He stayed with the primary Avengers team until his death in 2014. Logan isn’t a character who most people ever would have expected to join the team, but he was actually a pretty great Avenger.

What do you think? Leave a comment in the comment section below and join the conversation on the ComicBook Forums!

The 10 Best Avengers Stories In Marvel History