7 DC Characters Who Ripped Off Avengers

There’s a saying that claims there’s nothing original left under the sun, and when dealing with fiction, that’s mostly true. Humanity has been telling stories since we learned to talk to each other, and so by now, we’ve exhausted the majority of original ideas. This is especially true in superhero fiction. It’s no secret that Marvel and DC have been copying each other’s homework for decades. This is in no small part because, early on, a lot of the best writers did work for both companies. If an idea worked so well with one group, why wouldn’t it work with a new coat of paint? After all, comic circles were especially small back then, and there was really only one audience to write for.

Sometimes, however, the ideas get a little too close to really say they’re merely inspired by. It’s nothing shameful, but it is really funny when one company debuts a character that is suspiciously similar to their supposed rival’s own. Today, we’re going to be looking at seven times DC completely copied some of Marvel’s Avengers for themselves. This isn’t something to get mad about, but it definitely is something we can laugh about as we imagine the people who pitched these ideas explaining every reason they can’t be sued for it.

7) Bumblebee

Bumblebee first debuted in Teen Titans (1966) #45, although she didn’t don her costume until issue #48, which was thirteen years after the debut of the character she was based on: Wasp. The two share clear similarities in their powers and name schemes. Both have insect-based names and have advanced technology that allows them to shrink, fly, and shoot energy blasts. Bumblebee and Wasp share very little in terms of personality, however. Much like nearly every other character on this list, the similarities are surface level, and each went their own path to become a beloved hero on their own. 

6) Guardian

Speaking of Bumblebee, her husband’s most famous hero identity is another entry on this list, but not Mal’s incarnation. The first Guardian was James Harper, who debuted in 1942, less than two years after the character he was based on: Captain America. Much like Cap, Guardian was an American patriot who fought with a shield as his main weapon. He battled to improve the Suicide Slums in Metropolis and would join the All-Star Squadron during World War II. While he might not be a super-soldier, the similarities between James and Steve are immediately apparent, and that was by design, as they shared the same creators in Jack Kirby and Joe Simon.

These two legendary names had great success when they made Captain America for Marvel, and likely thought they could strike gold again by designing a separate version for DC. Perhaps DC even requested it, trying to play off Cap’s popularity. Regardless of the reason, Guardian and Captain America are a lot alike, even to the point that their identities have become legacies that represent something more than themselves.

5) Damage

DC’s New Age of Heroes initiative is maybe their most ambitious failure since the New Guardians. In the wake of Dark Knights: Metal, DC introduced a plethora of new characters to fill holes they saw in their roster. In short, Marvel character-shaped holes. One of those attempted heroes was Damage, their Hulk analogue. Much like the Jade Giant, Damage was an ordinary man who could transform into an unstoppable monster who wanted to destroy everything around him, although there are a few caveats. Instead of being a scientist, Ethan Avery was a soldier subjected to a government experiment, and could only turn into Damage for one hour a day, but that’s about where his differences end.

Ethan was constantly hunted by the military, developed an alternate personality whom he constantly argued with, and even went by his middle name. His first name is Elvis, by the way. While he definitely has the potential to become his own distinct character, so far, Damage remains a budget version of the Hulk, which is a shame, considering how much potential he and the others introduced in the New Age of Heroes have.

4) Brimstone

Case in point, Brimstone, who is a clear pastiche of Ghost Rider. Instead of being a stuntman who wound up dead, Joe Chamberlain was the son of a coal miner trapped in a town where the coal had long run dry. One day, a mysterious man called the Salesman appeared and offered to save the town if Joe became his agent. If you can believe it, the Salesman was actually a devil-analog entity from the Dark Multiverse, and Joe was transformed into the demonic Brimstone. 

As Brimstone, Joe could command fire and mold it into any shape or form. He lacked any Penance Stare equivalent and a burning bike, but the Ghost Rider influence is clear in his design and way of battling demons. His personality changes when he transforms, becoming a far more eloquent and destructive monster, much like how Ghost Rider does, especially how he did in the early days. This is DC’s number one man-turned-demon-hunting-other-demons, and he definitely fills that niche well.

3) Red Lion

Okay, Red Lion is literally just an evil Black Panther. He’s the president-for-life of the African nation of Buredunia, and donned a Prometheum-mesh suit that let him fight with superhumans. While he led a democracy in name, in truth, he was a dictator who was infamous worldwide for massacring his own people as swiftly as his enemies. Effectively, Red Lion is what a Black Panther who didn’t care about his own people or heroism could look like. He first appeared in Deathstroke (2016) #1, and the funniest part about him is that he wasn’t a one-off character. Not only was he a recurring character during that run, but he also fought the Justice League in Justice League (2016) #41 and #42. 

The clear similarities to Black Panther are not only intentional but perfectly understandable, given that he was created by Christopher Priest. Priest is known for having written one of the definitive runs for Black Panther, with his incarnation being much less heroic. Priest’s Black Panther was a king first and a hero a distant second, because he cared about Wakanda more than anything. Red Lion, in turn, is what Priest’s Black Panther would look like without his big heart, which is an utter monster. Red Lion, if nothing else, is a very interesting question to ponder when looking at Priest’s Black Panther.

2) Sideways

The most successful of the New Age of Heroes was definitely Sideways, DC’s analog to the original Ultimate Spider-Man. Much like Peter, Derek James was a high school loser who developed powers and immediately sought to get famous with them. He tried to become an internet sensation, but was pulled to the path of true heroism after his mom died because she got involved in his mistakes. Derek then dedicated himself to being the best hero he could, even while being pulled in every direction with hero work alongside typical school and teenager drama. 

Sideways’s costume, of course, clearly resembles Spider-Man’s, but while he shares a lot of similarities to Peter on the surface, he’s very different in all other aspects. The biggest difference is their powerset, as while Spider-Man is all about spider-related powers, Sideways can create rifts in time and space. He can use these rifts to travel anywhere in the multiverse, and he can even use them like shields or weapons. The depths of his powers have yet to be explored, but if only one character on this list went on to be a big-time name, then Sideways probably has the most potential to hit a home run.

1) The Maximums

The Maximums were DC’s version of the original Ultimate Universe Avengers, the Ultimates. They were all but literal copy-pastes of the team. There was Soldier, their Captain America, Robot, their Iron Man, Viking, their Thor, Monster, their Hulk, Skyscraper, their Giant-Man, Hornet, their Wasp, Bowman, their Hawkeye, Bug, their Spider-Man, and Wolfen, their Wolverine. The Maximums were a government-sanctioned superteam, and even talked in the lowercase lettering that was a trademark of the Ultimate Universe. Some of these characters were as close to direct clones as you could get. Soldier was the government’s first supersoldier, Skyscraper and Hornet were married, and they shouted “Maximums March!” as a battle cry.

However, that’s not to say they lacked originality. Monster was actually a little girl who transformed when she got scared, and Robot was a living machine. These heroes were actually created by Joker and Mister Mxyzptlk, who wanted the  Maximums to come into conflict with Batman and Superman and bring out the worst in them. They were an interesting concept for sure, but they were one hundred percent a direct copy of the Ultimates. They have enough unique characteristics to stand on their own, but they’ll likely never get that chance, unfortunately.

There we have seven heroes who are direct rip-offs of different Avengers. Which Marvel clone do you like the best, and which one do you think could stand on their own merit? 

What do you think? Leave a comment below and join the conversation now in the ComicBook Forum!

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