All it takes is one story. One story can irreversibly damage a character, forever tainting them in the minds of fans and creators alike. Future writers will attempt to rehabilitate these characters who are ruined, with various degrees of success. Due to the ongoing narration of superhero comics, these bad stories are always intricately linked to these characters. Even if a damaging story gets retcon, the hero will always be associated with what ruined them in the first place. Marvel is very familiar with releasing storylines or arcs that have made characters worse, and fans still haven’t forgiven them.
Some Marvel characters remain popular even after they are supposedly ruined, whereas others could never fully recover. Fans have extremely good memories, so even if the comic books want to move on from a damaging story, the readers will never.
Honorable Mention: Spider-Man/Peter Parker
While the fandom continues to complain and criticize the One More Day storyline that removed Spider-Man’s marriage, the character has actually been fine despite it. Brand New Day is an underrated gem, and there have been many iconic storylines released since One More Day, including Superior Spider-Man and Hunted. Admittedly, these comic books would’ve worked if Peter were still married, and the whole idea against a married Spider-Man is as flimsy today as it was in 2007. Nonetheless, the character remains one of Marvel’s best.
5) Carol Danvers/Captain Marvel
Carol Danvers, aka Captain Marvel, was riding high with her acclaimed book by Kelly Sue DeConnick and the announcement of her film. To capitalize on the growing momentum with the character, Marvel Comics decided to make her and Iron Man the focal characters for its Civil War II event in 2016. Except, they made Carol the more irrational one and arguably closer to the wrong side of the conflict. She decided to use an Inhuman’s precognitive abilities to stop crime before it starts, creating almost a fascist police state. The greater Marvel Universe has mostly ignored the events of Civil War II, with its most significant outcome being Tony in a coma and Ironheart taking charge. Nevertheless, fans haven’t forgotten Carol’s heel turn.
4) Cyclops/Scott Summer
Marvel may have arguably ruined Cyclops twice. The first time is when he left Madelyne Pryor and his newborn son, Nathan, to be with Jean Grey, who had only recently returned from the supposed “dead.” Being a deadbeat dad who abandons his family is never a good look, yet somehow, Marvel further damaged Cyclops’ character when he cheated on Jean Grey with Emma Frost. While there is still a contingent of fans who ship Scott with Emma, being a known cheater adds to the narrative that Scott is a jerk.
3) Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver
One of the most frustrating things about modern comic books is how publishers try to align with the more successful and popular theatrical adaptations. When the Marvel Cinematic Universe began, Marvel Studios didn’t have the rights to use mutants or X-Men characters. That led to a dilemma when adapting Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver, known mutants and longtime Avengers, into the MCU. The films decided not to make either mutants, a decision that would have ripple effects within the comics. Marvel Comics decided to follow suit and retcon Quicksilver’s and Scarlet Witch’s mutant status.
To add insult to injury, Marvel Comics also made it so that neither hero was the child of Magneto, a status quo shift that continues to not sit well with fans. Although the comics have reestablished the Magneto family, though not biologically, writers and editors continue to defend their decision to keep the characters as non-mutants. This is even though Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver were first introduced as mutants in X-Men #4.
2) Donald Blake
Before he was Thor, he was Donald Blake. The initial idea of Thor was that he was a disabled doctor named Donald Blake, who gained the powers of Thor when he slammed down his cane. Eventually, Marvel moved away from the Blake persona and had Thor be a separate character. J. Michael Straczynski brought back Blake for his Thor run, yet, once again, Thor was soon separated from his Blake persona. Rather than have the character run back into obscurity, Marvel put him in the ringer. Blake went mad by being forgotten by the world, becoming a supervillain, and eventually the new God of Lies.
Blake was originally a noble and even heroic person and was the true main character of the first few decades of the Thor comics. It’s honestly tragic to see how far the character has fallen. He recently appeared in the final issue of Al Ewing’s Immortal Thor run, where he once again tried to fight Thor but was turned into a serpent after losing his soul. Marvel writers can’t help but villainize Blake when the character doesn’t really deserve it. He’s the character we most desperately want to be redeemed.
1) Hank Pym
It wasn’t just a character-ruining comic. It was a string of damaging storylines that converged toward one moment that continues to define the character. When Hank Pym made increasingly illogical and aggressive decisions within the Avengers comics, it led him to build a robot villain for the Avengers that only he could defeat. That alone would’ve ruined any character, but Marvel took a step further. Pym’s then-wife, Janet Van Dyne, realized what he was doing and tried persuading him to stop. This leads to the infamous slap, where Pym struck Janet during a heated argument. Janet had a noticeable black eye, representing real-world abuse with startling accuracy.
Pym’s plan would soon fall apart, leading to his expulsion from the Avengers and Janet’s divorce from him. The character would have multiple rehabilitation arcs throughout the decades, including amend his relationship with Janet, regaining his Avenger status, stop his nemesis Egghead, and even opening the Avengers Academy to guide the next generation of heroes. His erratic personality was later diagnosed as untreated bipolar disorder. However, no matter how much good Pym tries to accomplish, the shadows of the slap would remain. Some writers and characters still refuse to give Hank the benefit of the doubt, labeling him as “evil” and a “wife-beater.” It’s a burden he will likely carry as long as Marvel continues, which is unfortunate, as the character is one of Marvel’s most complex.
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