Marvel Comics may be best known for its bright, colorful superheroes. Still, the Noir Universe reimagines these characters in a dark, grounded world set in the 1930s. Known as Earth-90214, this universe is steeped in the tropes of the detective noir genre, offering tales of mystery and corruption during the Great Depression and World War II. This universe was introduced and popularized by Spider-Man Noir. Its titular hero is set to get his own live-action series on Amazon Prime with Nicholas Cage reprising his incredible role from Into the Spider-Verse. Of course, such a world offers other fascinating reinterpretations of beloved Marvel heroes, some better than others.
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Many of Marvel’s heroes naturally lend themselves to the gritty and crime-based world that the Noir Universe offers. Some underwent drastic reinventions, becoming practically unrecognizable. Other heroes stayed relatively the same with only minor divergences from their main universe counterparts. These are the stories set in Marvel’s Noir Universe, ranked by their quality.
8) Weapon X Noir
The weakest of the Marvel Noir stories, Weapon X Noir is a one-shot spin-off of X-Men Noir. This story centers on this universe’s version of Nightcrawler, a trapeze artist nicknamed the Demon. After being framed for murder, the Demon teams up with an American spy called the Mimic to clear his name. Like the other X-Men in the Noir Universe, Nightcrawler isn’t a mutant, has no powers, and only rarely wears a blue mask. This complete disconnection from the iconic X-Man’s design and abilities makes it hard for the reader to connect with him. The story itself is also very disjointed and unfocused, with an abrupt ending.
7) X-Men Noir
Instead of a team of mutant superheroes, the X-Men of the Noir Universe is a sociopathic gang of teenage criminals recruited by a cruel Professor X, who takes in juvenile delinquents and encourages their dark impulses. After Jean Grey is found dead, NYPD Homicide Chief Eric Magnus investigates the murder mystery that leads him to the remnants of the X-Men. Despite the interesting concept of a powerless version of the X-Men, the story feels very cluttered as the writers try to cram in a ton of X-Men characters in only four issues. Because of this as well as the excessively slow pacing, confusing plot, and dull art, the X-Men Noir doesn’t live up to its potential.
6) Punisher Noir
Frank Castle, aka the Punisher, is already one of the grittiest and darkest characters in Marvel Comics, so he fits right at home in the Noir Universe. However, in Punisher Noir, it’s his son, Frank Castle Jr., who becomes the vicious vigilante of this post-WWI era. After gangsters murdered his father, Frank Castle Jr. sets out on a quest for vengeance against the criminal underworld. The Punisher fits well into the atmospheric noir setting, and there are several great twists in the story. While the vengeance storyline may sometimes be a bit formulaic, it’s overall a fun read and a great interpretation of Marvel’s most brutal anti-hero.
5) Wolverine Noir
Despite the lukewarm reactions to the other X-Men-related Noir stories, Wolverine Noir is a coherent and riveting mystery thriller. The human detective Jim Logan Howlett is forced to confront his bloody past when a woman named Mariko Yashida asks for his help on a case. Instead of relying on his iconic claws or healing factor, Jim must rely on his knife expertise and overwhelming stubbornness to fight ruthless gangsters. The lack of powers makes the action much more intense as Jim nearly dies several times in the story. Wolverine Noir is a dark tale that uses the tropes of the noir genre to elevate Wolverine’s struggles and to examine his character more fully.
4) Iron Man Noir
Although Iron Man Noir deviates the most from the dark and grounded aesthetic of the other Noir books, it’s still an exciting pulp adventure tale that takes the Armored Avenger in a unique new direction. In this universe, Tony Stark is a rich adventurer who’s suffering from a heart ailment. After going on expeditions across the world, including Atlantis, to find a cure for his condition, Tony must don his titanic Iron Man suit to save Pepper Potts from the Nazis. While not as gritty as some other Noir tales, Iron Man Noir still has a lot of great action and twists. Mixing Indiana Jones-style adventures with late 1930s-era-inspired science fiction, this story offers one of the most narratively and visually distinct versions of Iron Man.
3) Luke Cage Noir
One of the most grounded stories in the Noir Universe, Luke Cage Noir is a compelling mystery thriller that takes full advantage of the 1930s Harlem setting, an environment haunted by racism and gangsters. After being released from prison, Luke Cage returns home and is hired to investigate a woman’s murder. The story has Luke trying to uncover the killer’s identity while also dealing with the changes in his hometown and neighbors since he was put in prison. Although Luke in this universe doesn’t have powers, his toughness and luck have led to an urban legend in Harlem that he is invincible. Luke Cage Noir is a great tale full of suspense, mystery, and drama.
2) Daredevil Noir
Daredevil’s street-level sense of justice and dark aesthetic, work perfectly in a noir setting. When Matt Murdock was a child, an assassin blinded him after he failed to save his father from the killer’s wrath. Even though Matt doesn’t possess superhuman senses, his years of practice as an acrobat allowed him to naturally enhance his other senses to make up for his lack of sight. Working as a detective’s assistant, Matt strikes out at night as the lethal vigilante Daredevil who fights the crime lord Kingpin. Daredevil Noir is a gritty, compelling tale with engaging action, mysteries, and character arcs that perfectly balance the superhero and noir genres.
1) Spider-Man Noir
The series that started it all, Spider-Man Noir, takes the normally jovial Web-Slinger and places him in a grim Great Depression New York City setting. Peter is a reporter who is seeking to bring his Uncle Ben’s killers to justice. He is bitten by a mystical spider that gives him superhuman abilities. Becoming the trenchcoat-wearing crimefighter Spider-Man, Peter battles the crime lord Norman Osborn, aka the Goblin, and his army of goons and crooked cops. Spider-Man Noir is an incredibly imaginative and engaging series that offers a darker, yet still witty, take on Spider-Man as he battles more grounded versions of his rogues’ gallery. The first of Marvel’s Noir series, Spider-Man Noir takes the Wall-Crawler in a bold new direction, that shows the full narrative potential of this universe.
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