The Young Avengers are today the stars of multiple fan-favorite runs, but when the concept was originally pitched, the reception wasn’t as hyped. With a potential MCU incarnation of the team on the horizon, it’s worth examining both Young Avengers series, and their legacy, in more detail, and explore how each could inform a possible adaptation.
In his latest newsletter, Original Young Avengers Editor Tom Brevoort explained the lack of faith behind the series from the name alone, which seems absurd in retrospect.
The idea of ​​doing “Young Avengers” might have been gimmicky in the early 2000s where Marvel really threw ideas against the wall. In the wake of their late ’90s bankruptcy, the company began to regain its footing under editor-in-chief Joe Quesada, with projects like Marvel Knights and the Ultimate Universe proving successful, but not every idea worked, and Young Avengers might have been a gimmicky bran.
Marvel Senior Editor explains the skepticism about the Young Avengers before their debut
Young Avengers (volume 1) #1 – Written by Alan Heinberg; Art by Jim Cheung; Ink by John Dell; Color by Justin Ponsor; Lettering by Corey Petit
Released in the aftermath of 2004’s Avengers: DisassembledThe original volume of Young Avengers Tied directly into the Marvel landscape of the time. The young heroes formed an Avengers team in the short term, where the main Avengers themselves were skeptical of the idea after the original team was decimated by the Scarlet Witch’s mental breakdown. The team was recruited by Iron Lad, secretly a heroic younger version of Kang the Conqueror, who brought them together to try to stop the older Kang and prevent the young hero’s inevitable fall to darkness.
In response to a fan question about “Skepticism“From Young Avengers Ahead of its debut, Marvel Senior Editor Tom Brevoort had this to say:
Oh yeah, nobody liked the idea of ​​Young Avengers before the book came out, most of all me. I thought it was another sad idea that Joe Quesada had come up with. But once Allan Heinberg was on board to create it, we found ways to make it work and not have it be what everybody was afraid of. This is exactly why the first house ad we did for the series, which was in AVENGERS #500, was focused on the idea that “they’re not what you think”
This is fascinating for a number of reasons, but if nothing else, because of how “obvious” the premise of the book was. Each member of the team initially mirrored a member of the classic Avengers. Iron Lad Mirror Iron Man. Patriot, the grandson of Isaiah Bradley, mirrors Captain America. Cassie long mirrors her father, Ant-Man. Kate Bishop Hawkeye mirrors her namesake.
Meanwhile. The shape-shifting hackling mirrors Hulk, and also his secret father, Captain Marvel. Wiccan mirror Thor, and his mother the Scarlet Witch, who Speed ​​was reminiscent of his uncle, Quicksilver. Their adventures have seen them prove to the mature Marvel Universe that they have what it takes to be true heroes all the while discovering and discovering what links them to their lineage. It ultimately proved to be a successful concept, leading to a memorable seriesThe impact of which can be traced to this day.
Marvel’s Young Avengers reached new heights with the second volume of the series
Young Avengers (volume 2) #1 – Written by Kieron Gillen; Art by Jamie McKelvie & Mike Norton; Color by Matt Wilson; Lettering by Clayton Cowles
The Young Avengers have a second main roster Young Avengers (Vol 2). Although it kept much of the original roster, the book added other younger Marvel heroes, including the recently introduced America Chavez, Marvel Boy, Prodigy and a version of Loki combining his younger self from Gillen’s previous one. Journey into mystery Run and the older one gets angry that killed the younger version (it’s complicated) This version of the team leans heavily into romance, coming of age and related angst For a single dimension-hopping story told over fifteen issues.
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Unlike the first incarnation of the team, this version didn’t exactly fight supervillains. Instead, they fought mind-controlled versions of their parents, evil versions of their exes, evil versions of themselves, and their literalized guilt. The themes and subtext that are always part of the coming-of-age stories became the literalized text in this series, thanks to magic and reality warpers. The outer battles of the heroes were reflected and affected by their inner ones, and the solution to their problems was to admit and speak through their feelings, however difficult it is not to do.
Both volumes of “Young Avengers” share the same quirk
Diversity and commitment to inclusion
One core trait shared by the two books is their diverse casts. in particular, Young Avengers (Volume 2) Often revolved around realistic messy queer romances of a sort that Marvel hadn’t engaged in before this point, with the romance between Wiccan and Hulkling literally saving the universe in the series’ climax. Both series also introduced or highlighted major POC characters, from Patriot to America Chavez to Prodigy. TThese books have helped to realistically represent contemporary audiences and, especially in the case of queer charactersIn ways that audiences may never have seen before in a Marvel book.
A new version of ​​the team appeared not too long ago, in a Marvel Unlimited arc Marvel’s Voices: Young AvengersWhich again focused on the question of Iron Lad, showing that the series still has a fanbase there.
Since the second series, the Young Avengers haven’t had their own ongoing book, but their success undoubtedly spawned a number of books that came later. The most prominent successors were the modern ones ChampionsWhich took the same general idea of ​​a younger team but populated it with successor heroes from the mid-2010s like Miles Morales, Kamala Khan and Nadia Van Dyne’s Wasp. A new version of ​​the team appeared not too long ago, in a Marvel Unlimited arc Marvel’s Voices: Young AvengersWhich again focused on the question of Iron Lad, showing that the series still has a fanbase there.
An MCU adaptation of “Young Avengers” could bring the core strengths of the series to the screen
Carrying on the title’s legacy
In a sense, the MCU has found itself in its own period of turmoil, with members of its original core cast departing after many years as the studio looks to build new teams of very new characters. The introduction of various younger legacy heroes in the MCU like Kamala Khan and the Scarlet Witch’s children suggests that some form of young Avengers (and/or champions) may soon make their way to the big screen, and the success of their original comics. Counterparts offers a number of lessons for a potential adaptation.
If a potential adaptation of Young Avengers did happen, it would also be likely that the series itself would return to publication with a new team.
One crucial thing an adaptation should do is lean into the series’ young adult drama. It’s easy to imagine Marvel Studios balking at the idea of ​​making the potential film too ‘teen-focused’, but the strength of Young Avengers comes from its angst. They have to feel like real teens, and that involves making them messy and overdramatic. Similarly, the diversity of the team should be front and center. The important thing, however, would be maintaining the heart Young Avengers Commitment to diversity and inclusion.
If a potential adaptation of Young Avengers did happen, it would also be likely that the series itself would return to publication with a new team. In the years since the original series, the once-derided idea of ​​focused books for young adults has only become more mainstream, both internally at Marvel and in the wider comics landscape. Marvel has seen these Champions, Avengers: Arena, New X-Men: Academy X And many other titles find success, and a relaunches of Young AvengersA book that paved the way for everyone Would be the perfect treat in concert with its MCU adaptation.