7 Best Marvel Secret Identity Reveals

Secret identities are a core aspect of the superhero genre. In modern stories, especially in the movies and other adaptations, it is common to see a hero’s secret identity thrown out or discovered fairly early. Or worse, have a person say they’ve known the hero’s identity the entire time, which can be cool, but is almost never handled well. However, there was a time in comics when a hero or villain’s secret identity being revealed was an absolute status quo shattering event. In most cases, if a hero goes public with their identity it will almost always return to being a secret at some point. I mean how many times has Daredevil’s identity been compromised and fixed at this point? Still, returning to normal doesn’t change the fact that when it happens it can have a major impact on the characters going through it. And even then, there are some reveals that come as just as much of a surprise to the audience as the characters inside the book. 

When someone’s identity is revealed, either to the public or to a specific character, it almost always shakes things up in a really interesting way. With all that in mind, let’s take a look at seven of the best handled secret identity reveals in Marvel Comics history. 

7) Mary Jane as Venom

This is definitely the most recent reveal on this list, having occurred in All-New Venom #5 on April 2. The first several issues of the series showcased a mystery of Dylan Brock, the previous Venom, trying to discover who the symbiote’s current partner was. The story introduced five suspects, slowly weeding them out until none could have been the newly gold-highlighted hero, with MJ revealing herself at the tail end of issue #5. This reveal sits at seventh place because the story never really gave any indication that MJ would be Venom, so it honestly kind of came out of nowhere. However, it did beautifully manipulate the audience’s expectations into thinking Venom would be the absolutely loathed character Paul, only to flip the script at the last minute. A bit of a cheap reveal in that regard, but an effective one for sure. We’ll have to wait and see the fallout of this reveal in the upcoming issues.

6) Echo as Ronin

While most people know Hawkeye as Ronin, the character’s original true face was Echo, which was a total secret in her first few appearances in the suit. Echo assisted the New Avengers team in their fight against the Hand by acting as a ninja informant, gathering intel and dropping by to mysteriously tell them and help them fight occasionally. At the time, Ronin’s identity was a major secret among Marvel fans, with the most popular theory being that it was Daredevil. According to Ronin co-creator Brian Micheal Bendis, that was the original plan, however Ronin’s identity was changed to Echo last minute because of conflicts with the current Daredevil comic. Ultimately, a cool reveal that shocked audiences and could have been a very different history if timelines worked out better.

[RELATED: Marvel Just Made Godzilla the Most Powerful Venom Ever]

5) Red Hulk being Thunderbolt Ross

Red Hulk emerged at a pivotal time in the Incredible Hulk’s history, taking center stage as the main character in volume two of the Hulk comic. Red Hulk came about in the immediate aftermath of the “World War Hulk” storyline and instantly became a major threat, taking down big names like Thor and the Silver Surfer. His identity was hidden from everyone, even the audience, until issue #22, where Ross and Betty were both unmasked as Red Hulk and Red She-Hulk respectively. Following this reveal was one of the most emotional and intense Hulk fights of all time, with all the drama of Ross and Bruce Banner being the bitterest of enemies, but also sharing their connection through Betty. It was a major shakeup for the character, which featured some of Hulk’s best moments.

4) Jane Foster as Mighty Thor

After losing his worthiness to pick up Mjolnir, Thor Odinson relinquished his name to whoever could pick up the hammer. Jane Foster, longtime friend and occasional love to Thor, was the person who was worthy enough to wield it. She kept her identity close to her chest for a long time, but the eventual reveal sent shockwaves across earth and Asgard. In the aftermath, Jane became the bridge between Asgard and the mortal realm, showing many of the gods that lost faith in humanity how mortals can be brave beyond measure. The reveal especially caused a shift in the relationship between Odinson and Jane, which while initially rocky, eventually settled into a deeper respect than ever before. Jane’s reveal changed Asgard forever, with its effects felt even now.

3) Xorn as Magneto

In Grant Morrison’s all time classic New X-Men, which to this day stands as one of the best X-Men books of all time, Morrison introduced a new mutant named Xorn who joined Xavier’s School. However, Xorn eventually revealed himself to be Magneto in disguise, having infiltrated the school to take down the X-Men. From there, the Master of Magnetism took control of New York City, enslaving its human population and killing Jean Grey before he was stopped. After Morrison’s run concluded Marvel would quickly retcon Xorn to be an entirely different man who only claimed to be Magneto, but in that time when Magneto and Xorn were one and the same, the shock and terror he exuded were palpable across every issue. It was a complete game changer for the character in a way very few identity reveals are.

2) Professor X Tells the World He’s a Mutant

This revelation was one of the biggest changes to the Marvel universe for the X-Men because of all of the implications it carried with it. Also occurring during Morrison’s landmark New X-Men run, Professor Xavier revealed to the entire world that he himself was not merely the world’s leading expert on mutants, but a mutant himself. The status quo had always been that Xavier pretended to be human to the world, using the influence he had as a scientist to sway people to the cause of treating mutants with the respect they deserve, but kept his own mutant gene a secret. This reveal was the start of a major shift to the X-Men standing proud and public about their mutations, leading to all kinds of mutants publicly acknowledging and accepting their genetics for the first time. This reveal gave them hope like they never had before, and inspired countless people to show their true self.

1) Aunt May Discovering Peter is Spider-Man (The Second Time)

For number one on this list, who else could it be but Marvel’s number one hero himself. Aunt May has discovered Peter’s secret identity a few times, but this time was by far the best. In Amazing Spider-Man volume two #37, Aunt May discovers Peter in the remnants of his costume after a brutal battle nearly left him dead. She confronts him in the following issue, with the two finally sharing long held secrets. Peter confesses how he blames himself for Uncle Ben’s death, with May confessing that Ben was only outside because the two of them had a petty argument. They realize they’ve been blaming themselves for his death while holding that pain secret because they didn’t want to hurt the other. It was a beautiful conversation, with May forgiving Peter for the lies and accepting him as Spider-Man, and started an awesome new chapter in their relationship. It truly is the perfect identity reveal, and I don’t think it will ever be topped.

Think we missed any other identity reveals that deserve to be on this list? Let us know in the comments below!