The Avengers are not only Marvel’s most powerful team of heroes, but easily its most popular as well. However, among the dozens of characters who have ed the ranks of the prolific superheroic team, not every Avenger receives the attention they deserve. Meanwhile, other organization are so hyped up that they almost don’t feel special. It’s time for the Avengers to let some of their underdogs take the spotlight.

When the Avengers formed in Avengers #1 (1963), by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, the Marvel Universe was forever changed as the publisher’s most powerful heroes banded together to face the onslaught of an Asgardian god. Today, the team has grown enormously, dominating as Marvel’s most recognizable brand of heroes. That said, despite their heroics, the most popular Avengers certainly play favorites and not every character is given a chance to play in the big leagues alongside the team’s more recognizable heroes. While some of the Avengers’ rejects have found success alone, not all can share that sentiment.

12 Too Much Attention: Iron Man (Tony Stark)

Tony Stark Is A Problematic Hero

Iron Man’s greatest flaw is that he sees himself as the smartest person in the room at all times and, therefore, is the best person in the room at all times. His arrogance has preceded him for decades, often creating new problems for the world that the Avengers must rally together to defeat. Even worse, Tony Stark has always gravitated towards an “ends justify the means” mentality. His pragmatism earns him a spot on the Avengers, but his short-sightedness only creates new problems.

Ultimately, Iron Man’s problematic way of thinking has directly inspired major destructive events such as the first Civil War and the World War Hulk storyline. While the hero was a founding Avenger, his popularity tanked over time until Robert Downey Jr.’s portrayal in the MCU. Now, Marvel Comics’ version of the character has been riding his live-action counterpart’s success for decades, while other Avengers fail to gain any semblance of respect from the team.

11 Underappreciated Avenger: Black Knight (Dane Whitman)

An Underrated Silver Age Avenger

After assisting the Avengers take down Kang the Conqueror, Black Knight was offered full hip and a permanent seat among the Earth’s Mightiest Heroes. While his attendance has been spotty over the years, Black Knight played a crucial role in the team throughout the 1980s and ‘90s. Sometime after helping the Avengers destroy the Kree Supreme Intelligence, Dane Whitman eventually rose as the team’s temporary leader during the multiversal against the Gatherers. However, even after all that, the modern Avengers openly hate the Black Knight for no good reason.

Black Knight is an extraordinarily powerful hero. Armed with the Ebony Blade, an artifact formed from the Multiverse’s primordial powers and imbued with Merlin’s greatest magics, the Black Knight is an all-around cosmic and mystical threat whose power has yet to be fully recognized by the Avengers. The Ebony Blade has also made Dane immortal, ranking the hero among the Avengers’ more godly ; yet, the team has rarely made space for Black Knight in recent years.

10 Too Much Attention: Ghost Rider (Robbie Reyes)

There Was Already One Cosmic Ghost Rider

ittedly, Marvel’s supernatural characters rarely get the same love as its caped crusaders. When Robbie Reyes first debuted, he was a fresh face to a franchise that had long refined its sense of style. However, when Robbie Reyes denounced his identity as a Ghost Rider to embrace his new role as an Avenger, he effectively cut ties with the one paranormal character trait that made him stand out among the already eclectic team.

However, Robbie still proved himself as a worthy hero all the way until the cosmic war against the Multiversal Masters of Evil and the First Firmament. That said, after this Ghost Rider unlocked the omniversal powers of the “All-Rider,” it cemented Robbie’s status as something entirely different from the roots of the franchise he first appeared in. He may be one of the team’s newer , but his willingness to reject his supernatural origins makes him a little too popular without as many reasons to care.

9 Underappreciated Avenger: Doctor Druid (Anthony Druid)

The Doctor Strange of Natural Magic

While Doctor Druid isn’t exactly the most unique supernatural force in Marvel’s paranormal repertoire of characters, he still has something to offer to the Avengers that no other sorcerer can: free time. When Anthony Druid discovered he was the descendant of an ancient Druid, he traveled to Kamar-Taj where he learned the mystic arts and became the master of all druidic magic. However, despite his fantastic powers, after being manipulated into betraying and usurping the Avengers, Druid’s time with the team was ultimately cut short.

However, after learning that Doctor Druid was not acting of his own volition, the Avengers never sought to reinstate the sorcerer. While other , like Iron Man or Ant-Man, are frequently forgiven for their even-more-frequent transgressions, Doctor Druid is still being penalized for something he never had control over. While the likes of Doctor Strange and Doctor Voodoo are often too busy to give the Avengers any more time than necessary, Doctor Druid has all the time and power in the world to lend the Avengers a more permanent hand.

8 Too Much Attention: Thor

The All-Father Is Rarely Around To Help

When the Avenges first formed, Thor easily ranked as one of the team’s most powerful , only the arrogant God of Thunder has grown and evolved to reign as the new All-Father of the Ten Realms. However, as Thor has faced his growing responsibilities, he has consistently distanced himself away from a team that still claims him as one of their most “dependable” heroes.

While his magnificent, godly powers may be reliable, his presence isn’t. He deserves to be respected for his nobility and strength, but not enough to justify his place in the Avengers if he only ever appears as a deus-ex backup character. While Thor is facing the righteous powers of the Elder Gods, Earth still needs its “Mightiest Heroes.” If Thor isn’t willing to be around for all the team’s struggles, he shouldn’t be given the attention the team treats him with.

7 Underappreciated Avenger: Hercules

He’s Far More Than Just Thor’s Friend

Hercules is often relegated as Thor’s weaker rival. While he may only be a demigod, his raw power and exceptionally open heart are what cemented the Greek god’s spot on the Avengers in the first place. However, like Thor, Hercules has historically possessed a boastfully oafish personality that often overshadows his nobler qualities. Hercules’s love of feasts and alcohol has characterized him as no better than the typical arrogant god, but this Olympian is far greater than his worst habits.

Like Thor, Hercules has become an on-again-off-again Avenger who has grown to overcome his more basal urges to become a reliable and wise ally to any hero. However, while the Avengers are quick to forgive Thor’s selfish transgressions and aggrandizing attitude, Hercules is seen as more of an annoyance rather than a modern ally. Despite being half-human, this Olympian is a complementary mixture of pure physical might and centuries of wisdom, resulting in an extraordinary ally the Avengers need to call upon more often.

6 Too Much Attention: Hawkeye (Clint Barton)

Even The Underdogs Are Cooler Than Hawkeye

While the MCU may have solidified Hawkeye as a staple member of the Avengers, that hasn’t always been the case in the comics. When Clint Barton first debuted, he was little more than a petty supervillain who simply failed to compare to the rest of Marvel’s most powerful characters. Even after ing the team, Hawkeye has consistently been a gruffer antagonizing force in the Avengers, often leaving until he is called upon during the most disastrous conflicts.

Like some of the other popular of this list, Hawkeye doesn’t quite possess the same moral character that the Avengers’ brand has become synonymous with. The Earth’s Mightiest Heroes are supposed to be paragons of justice. At least, that’s what the team has d. Yet, despite that, they have still allowed this authority-hating rogue assassin to and flourish in the Avengers while rejecting other for similar reasons.

5 Underappreciated Avenger: Hellcat (Patsy Walker)

A Surprisingly Old But Overpowered Character

Shockingly, Patsy Walker is an older character than Marvel itself. Originally published by Timely Comics, Patsy was an idyllic American teenager whose comics were often tied to teen romance and slice-of-life storytelling. However, long after Marvel’s emergence, Patsy Walker renounced her youthful popularity to become a superhero in her own right. Today, Hellcat has become one of Marvel’s most surprisingly overpowered characters and a long-forgotten, but wholly underappreciated, reserve member of the Avengers.

When Hellcat first took to the superhero scene, she wanted nothing more than to become an Avenger. Originally, her physical prowess was enough to gain their attention, but, in time, she has developed a slew of new abilities ranging from psionic powers, mystical enhancements, to demonic empowerment. While Patsy Walker has been condemned to side-character status, this hero deserves a second chance to prove to the Avengers just how powerful she has become.

4 Too Much Attention: Wolverine (“Logan” Howlett)

The Avengers Are Hypocrites For Allowing Wolverine To

Wolverine may be a quintessential member of the X-Men, but his destructive and outright lethal talents seem like an odd fit for the Avengers. Yet, the team frequently relies on the diverse hero’s ferocious nature to bolster their already iconically powerful strength. But power doesn’t make the Avengers, culture does. With heroes like the Captain Americas or Captain Marvel leading the squad, there is a higher level of nobility required from the Avengers that Wolverine just can’t provide.

Simply put, Wolverine is a life-long savage killer who, despite his best efforts to be better, still often relies on his claws to put an end to his most dangerous enemies. This is not something the Avengers officially stand for, yet they still allow Logan onto the team. Frankly, it's hypocritical. The Avengers often cast judgment on other lethal heroes like Wolverine, but continue to make exceptions simply because Logan is a powerful ally, even if he is an inconsistent killer.

3 Underappreciated Avenger: Moon Knight (Marc Spector)

A Popular Hero Distrusted By The Avengers

While Moon Knight certainly doesn’t lack popularity in the public eye, the Avengers feel less enthusiastic about Marc Spector’s presence among the team. Marc originally ed the West Coast Avengers under Khonshu’s guidance, who wished to spread his influence to Earth’s Mightiest Heroes. Later, after being conscripted into Captain America’s Secret Avengers, the Mr. Knight personality emerged as a direct reflection of Marc’s time with a truly heroic team. However, the reality is that no Avenger truly trusts Marc Spector.

During Marvel’s first Civil War event, both Captain America and Iron Man offered Moon Knight a place on their respective teams. That said, both men chastise Marc for being an unpredictably violent killer, with Steve even telling Marc that he belonged in a straightjacket. But, in the face of this animosity, Moon Knight isn’t all that different from any of the Avengers’ other lethal heroes, like Wolverine. His sense of justice is straightforward, something the Avengers could use a little more of.