The Secret Avengers are a black ops sect of Marvel’s premier team, The Avengers, whom
operating under the leadership of Captain Steve Rogers, after the hero had retired from
being Captain America between July of 2010 and April of 2015.
Formed after the events of Dark Reign, it was a part of the Avengers line re-launch
that occurred during Marvel’s Heroic Age, and in a time in which the superhuman registration
act had been dissolved at Roger’s request.
Tasked as a proactive effort privy to known threats and meant to quietly clean them up,
the team was made up with an array of talents that made for one of the most interesting
iterations of Avengers we’ve seen to date.
So today, we’re taking a closer look at some of its past members with our list of
the top 10 strongest secret avengers.
10 War Machine War Machine aka James Rhodes was one of the
initial members of the Secret Avengers, but eventually was assigned as the government’s
own Iron Man due to a contract between Tony Stark’s Stark Resilient company and the
Pentagon, now as a lieutenant.
But let’s jump back for a sec.
James Rhodes first appeared in Iron Man issue 118 in 1979, but wouldn’t suit up until
a handful of years later in 1983 in Iron Man issue 170 when he donned the Iron Man mantle.
He would eventually become War Machine in 1992 in Iron Man issue 282 after it was revealed
that tony Stark wasn’t dead after all, and that he wanted Rhodey to have the Variable
threat Response Battle Suit, since he always belonged to his pal anyway.
His war machine suit gives him abilities similar to Stark’s in his Iron Man suit, including
superhuman strength and durability, supersonic flight, and the use of an energy repulsor
and a variety of offensive and defensive weaponry at his disposal.
Rhodes would rejoin the team as part of one of the Marvel Now Recruits but as Iron Patriot,
leaving the team once again in Secret Avengers Vol 1 issue 16.
9 Human Torch (Jim Hammond) The Human Torch, the android version of the
character, is one of a handful of characters on this list that aren’t one of the original
Secret Avengers team members from the 2010 iteration.
Hammond would become known as one of the Shattered Heroes recruits, who joined the team during
Secret Avengers issue 22 in 2012.
But Hammond’s history goes way further back than that.
A Golden Age hero, he was one of Timely Comics signature characters, Timely being Marvel’s
predecessor.
While the Johnny Storm version of the human torch would adapt Hammond’s abilities, their
origins couldn’t be any different.
Hammond is an android created by Professor Phineas T Horton.
At his grand unveiling, the android burst into flames when exposed to oxygen, and was
perceived to be a threat to the public.
He was sealed in concrete as a safety measure, but the sentient robot broke free thanks to
a crack that let oxygen seep through.
He can manipulate fire, is resistant to it, can fly and can survive without oxygen for
long periods of time.
Hammond would eventually depart from the team during Secret Avengers issue 37.
8 Moon Knight Marc Spector was one of the original 9 teammates
that made up the first iteration of the Secret Avengers.
He’s also one of their most intriguing members, being an expert detective, often compared
to Batman from DC comics.
Marc Spector was initially a boxer and US Marine, and is an expert in a variety of different
forms of hand to hand combat, including judo, kung fu and muay thai.
He gained his superhuman powers from the Egyptian mood god Khonshu, giving him superhuman strength,
endurance and reflexes all based on the phases of the moon.
But those powers would be removed from the character in 2007 during his solo Midnight
Sun arc, with Spector admitting that he lost them due to disobedience.
Spectre also has multiple personalities, and is notoriously psychologically unstable.
Spector would leave the Secret Avengers in issue 21.
7 Captain Steve Rogers Steve rogers is yet another one of Timely’s
staple trifecta, having been created in 1941 by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby.
Designed as a war time patriotic super soldier, often fighting against the axis powers of
World War 2, the character would fall into obscurity in 1950, being revived later in
1964 as part of one of the Avengers.
He’s been on many a team in the past, most famously the Avengers, but has dabbled in
other iterations, including the Secret Avengers.
His strength comes from the super-solider serum, giving him peak human strength, speed,
durability, agility, reflexes, senses, and an accelerated healing factor.
In addition to that, he’s a master tactician, strategist and field commander, and definitely
knows his way around hand to hand combat.
Steve would leave the team in Secret Avengers issue 22, and eventually return to his position
as the leader of the Avengers, resuming his role as Captain America.
And fun fact, the costume that Cap wears in the MCU film Captain America The Winter Soldier
was inspired by the Super Soldier costume he wore in the first volume of Secret Avengers.
6 Captain Britain Another member from the Shattered Heroes recruits,
Captain Britain aka Brian Braddock found himself joining up in issue 22 of the first volume
of Secret Avengers comics.
Captain Britain first appeared in 1976’s Captain Britain issue 1, a comic exclusively
published in the UK by Marvel.
He has superhuman strength, speed, endurance, agility, durability, reflexes and sense, and
can create force fields, energy beams, and can even fly.
His powers were initially thanks to a mystical amulet called the Amulet of Right, which Braddock
would rub to transform into his superhero persona.
But that would later change, with his powers being tied to his emotions instead.
5 Agent Venom (Flash Thompson) Flash Thompson is yet another shattered heroes
recruit.
Flash Thompson is a character who has been around for quite some time, first appearing
in Amazing Fantasy issue 15 in 1962 during Spider-Man’s debut, as a school peer bully
of Peter Parker’s.
He would eventually mature, becoming a close friend of Peter’s, learning his secret identity,
and eventually joining the US Army after he graduated college.
He ends up losing both of his legs in the Iraq War, and turns to alcoholism to deal
with his trauma.
But eventually, the military decide to use him for other means; he becomes Agent Venom,
bonding with the venom symbiote, allowing him to use his legs again, all while controlling
Venom thanks to a cocktail of drugs.
As Agent Venom, he not only can walk again, but he has superhuman strength, agility, reflexes
and endurance, can produce organic webbing, has an immunity to Spider-Sense, can shape
shift and camouflage to an extent, and can cling to must surfaces, create his own armour
and form limbs he can use.
Thompson, like our last number, left the Secret Avengers team in issue 37.
4 Nova Nova, the Richard Rider iteration, was a part
of the original team of Secret Avengers, leaving during the events of issue 5 of the first
volume.
While Richard was technically first created by Marv Wolfman in his fanzine Super adventures
in 1966, he wouldn’t become a part of the Marvel Universe until 1976 in a story called
The Man Called Nova, issue 1.
He was meant to be an homage to Spider-Man, but a more cosmic version.
So what can Nova do?
He’s capable of flight, he has super human strength, speed, and durability, and he can
exert influence over gravitational forces, and even open worm holes.
He also would come into possession of the Xandarian Worldmind, which allowed him near
infinite control over the Nova Force, which allowed him to make use of energy projection
and absorption.
So all in all, not too shabby.
Unfortunately, Richard Rider would eventually die during the events of The Thanos Imperative.
3 Beast Beast aka Hank McCoy was part of the first
iteration of Secret Avengers that began in 2010.
He is by far one of the most physically intimidating team members thanks to his mutation.
But Beast is definitely not just brawn; his character is known for his superior genius
level intellect, being a brilliant, well-educated individual with a witty sense of humour and
a reliable authority on biochemistry and genetics.
His mutation gives him an animal-esque physiology, enhancing his physical attributes along with
giving him sharp claws and teeth.
He employs a unique acrobatic fighting style when in battle, can jump great distances,
and his feet are sensitive enough to detect electronic signals the likes of listening
devices or bombs.
Hank would depart from the team in Secret Avengers issue 37.
2 Valkyrie Another OG member at this number!
If we were looking at just the original team members of the Secret Avengers, Valkyrie,
aka Brunnhilde, would have topped our list altogether.
An Asgardian hero, she initially was selected by Odin to lead his personal unit of shield-maidens,
and became known for her prowess in battle.
Her powers are based off of her Asgardian physiology; her body is several times denser
than humans, and while she isn’t immortal, she ages at a much slower rate than we do,
and is immune to earthly diseases.
She has enhanced strength and stamina, and is one of the most skilled warriors of the
nine realms, having extensive training in sword fighting, unarmed combat and horseback
riding, with her natural fighting abilities amongst the best of all Asgardians.
She has an enchanged sword called Dragonfang that was carved from a tooth of an extra-dimensional
dragon.She also can perceive the approach of death thanks to something called a deathglow;
an aura of sorts that surrounds a person’s body that reveals to her their death is imminent.
Valkyrie would eventually depart from the team in issue 37, along with Beast.
1 Hulk The Hulk became a member of the Secret Avengers
following the Avengers vs X-Men storyline in Marvel comics, along with the fight against
the Descendants.
SHIELD took control of the Secret Avengers operations, which involved adding new recruits
to the team, like Mockingbird, Taskmaster and Hulk himself.
They’re considered to be the Marvel NOW!
Recruits.
Anywho, it’s pretty obvious why Hulk tops this list.
The angrier the hulk gets, the stronger he gets, and the more invulnerable he is.
His anger empowerment ability makes him one of the most powerful individuals in the Marvel
universe in the comics, and its rare we encounter an individual capable of withstanding his
attacks and outmatching his endurance and stamina.
He can even survive nuclear attacks, and has proven to outlast most other earth based Marvel
superheroes as seen in a handful of alternate timeline stories in the multiverse.
And, unlike the rest, the Hulk didn’t officially depart the Secret Avengers team, but the last
time he was present in the comics as one of their members was in volume 2 of the series
in issue 15.
There we have it friends!
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