The Avengers remain one of the greatest teams in Marvel Comics history. While the Fantastic Four was the first team to exist, the Avengers was all about bringing in the mightiest heroes to deal with threats that solo heroes couldn’t handle, the Marvel version of the Justice League. However, even with names like Thor, Captain America, and Iron Man, there were several times that they failed in their mission to protect the world, and in some cases, they ended up defeated soundly. Some of these defeats came thanks to interdimensional threats, while others came thanks to conflict from within the Avengers ranks.
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From defeats to cosmic threats like Thanos and Korvac to an astonishing failure to beat the Masters of Evil, here are the Avengers’ worst failures.
6) Infinity Gauntlet
The Infinity Gauntlet storyline was a huge cosmic-level event series with Thanos using the Infinity Gems to show his true love for the persona of Death. His goal was to show that he could kill half the universe’s existence to show his love, although he later found out that wasn’t what she wanted at all. However, before this could happen, the Avengers joined heroes like Adam Warlock, the Silver Surfer, Doctor Strange, and more to battle the Mad Titan. The Avengers had no chance against Thanos, and they couldn’t stop him from wiping out half of all life in the universe.
5) World War Hulk
It wasn’t the entire group of the Avengers. However, Tony Stark represented the Avengers and was responsible for sending Hulk into space, on a crash course to Sakaar. However, when Hulk’s pregnant wife and close friends were killed when the shuttle the Avengers sent him on exploded, he returned to Earth and attacked the Illuminati for their part in the tragic deaths. All of Earth’s heroes, including the Avengers, fought Hulk, and no one stood a chance against him. Hulk became Marvel’s most dangerous villain, and the Avengers fell to him one by one until none were left standing. It took Sentry to stop Hulk because the Avengers all fell to his anger.
4) Kang Dynasty
The Marvel Cinematic Universe was excitedly headed to the Kang Dynasty until real-world issues put that storyline in the ground. The reason it was so exciting was that in the comic book storyline of the same name, Kang won and beat the Avengers soundly. Kang is a time-traveling villain, and he really wants to ensure that his rule over the universe continues in every timeline. He succeeded in the Kang Dynasty and did it while piloting a ship that looked like a giant sword. Kang beat the Avengers more soundly than almost anyone, stranded them in space, and then forced them to surrender to him. It was complete domination.
3) Avengers Disassembled
Scarlet Witch is one of the most powerful characters in all of Marvel Comics. As a result, other Marvel heroes have to stop her when she loses control, and it often doesn’t end up well. This happened more than once with the Avengers, and the worst moment came in Avengers Disassembled. This storyline saw Wanda remember her kids and their disappearance, and she sought revenge against everyone she blamed for her loss, even though she initially created the kids herself. She killed Agatha Harkness before attacking the Avengers. Her rampage saw the death of Hawkeye, Ant-Man, and Jack-of-Hearts, and it wasn’t until Doctor Strange arrived to shut down her mind that the rampage ended. This defeat led the Avengers to disband their team, and the battle ultimately led to House of M.
2) The Korvac Saga
The Korvac Saga not only saw the Avengers fail, but it was also a storyline where they didn’t stand a chance at all. Korvac was a nigh-omnipotent being who didn’t want to defeat the Avengers, but who wanted to turn the world into a utopia of his own design to make things “better” for humankind. When the Avengers and the original Guardians of the Galaxy (Yondu’s team) stood in his way and let him know he didn’t have the right to make this decision for humanity, Korvac unleashed his full power and murdered every single hero standing in his way. It was an obliteration of every Avengers member there, and it was only Korvac falling into a depressive state that caused him to resurrect them all and then end his own life.
1) Under Siege
“Under Seige” is not talked about enough, but it remains one of the best Avengers stories ever told for one specific reason. The Avengers lost in a fight to the Masters of Evil, something that no reader would ever expect to happen in Marvel Comics. This was the smartest thing any supervillain team ever did, as they waited to attack Avengers Mansion when they knew most of the heavy hitters were away.
In a move so staggeringly embarrassing for the Avengers that you’ll never see it in the MCU (not least because of the escalating threat levels of each sequel), they outnumbered and overpowered Captain America and made him watch as they brutally beat up the Avengers’ butler, Jarvis. They then almost killed Hercules and beat the team senseless, in probably the Avengers’ most shocking failure ever. While the Avengers regrouped and won the rematch, it was still an embarrassing defeat.
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