Warning: contains spoilers for Avengers Tech-On #1!
The the Avengers are heroes even without their powers...while the same cannot be said about the Justice League.
Avengers Tech-On begins in the aftermath of a terrible battle against Thanos the Mad Titan. After an arduous struggle, Thanos is defeated, the Infinity Stones destroyed, and the Avengers celebrate their victory with a speech by - who else? - Captain America. But peace rarely lasts in the Marvel Universe, and the villainous Red Skull appears through a portal. He's collected the dust of each destroyed Infinity Stone (calling them Infinity Mirror Shards) and, echoing the Scarlet Witch's most famous moment in comics, says "No more powers."
All superheroes around the world suddenly lose their abilities. Captain Marvel drops out of the sky, Spider-Man's enhanced senses cease to function, and Captain America's muscles wither as he reverts back to his pre-World War II self. But after barely escaping with their lives, the Avengers still want to track down the Red Skull and follow him to his base. Not a single Avenger has their powers (only technology still works, such as Iron Man's suit), and yet every single one is determined to fight on. "I can't stay on the sidelines," says Steve Rogers, who embodies Captain America's timeless heroic determination even in his frail form.
This is quite different from the way the of the Justice League dealt with losing their powers. In the 2000 miniseries JLA:Act of God written by Doug Moench, a mysterious black light strips away all superpowers of every hero in the DC Universe. The heroes become shadows of their former selves: Superman turns to alcohol, eventually causing Lois Lane to leave him, Green Lantern becomes a shut-in after his ring ceases to function, and Wonder Woman, rather than saving people in her civilian form, spends her time in a Catholic Church praying (regardless of the fact that she's already met the Greek pantheon of gods). The Justice League, when stripped of their powers, become irrational, morose, and worst of all, defeatist - entirely unlike the Avengers.
A superhero losing their superpowers often makes for classic story arcs in comics; the reader witnesses their favorite heroes charge into battle as ordinary human beings and fight evil regardless of their lost abilities. Avengers: Tech-On proves that the tradition is alive and well: seeing a skinny Captain America struggle to lift his own shield proves as much. But while the Avengers ed this particular test, the Justice League failed miserably.
