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Published Jan 24, 2026, 9:30 AM EST
Robert Wood is a writer and editor based out of Cheshire, England. He is the author of 'The False Elephant: and 99 Other Unreasonably Short Stories' - 100 stories, each told in exactly 100 words.
Rob got into comics via Bendis' Ultimate Spider-Man and the UK anthology 'The Mighty World of Marvel,' which was running Frank Miller's Daredevil, Classic Hulk and Contest of Champions II.
Prior to journalism, he worked in copywriting and copyedited for Oxford University Press. He is on X as @PinchTwigs and Instagram as roobwoodjourno.
Marvel's Avengers just had an awesome chance to address an issue with the franchise that's been hanging overhead since the very beginning... and whiffed the chance so hard, it actually made it worse.
Marvel Celebrates the Key Avengers... And Sidelines the Wasp
Avengers just hit the milestone of its legacy 800th issue, and Marvel celebrated with a story from Brian Michael Bendis, Mark Bagley, John Dell, Scott Hanna, Frank D'Armata and Cory Petit. The adventure sees Cap, Iron Man and Thor unite against Hydra on the anniversary of the team's formation, with Thor exclaiming, "Just the three of us. Just like old times."
The story depicts the mission as a symbolic celebration of the entire Avengers franchise. The three core members (what publicity for the issue called "the Big Three") unite, and then Avengers past and present cameo as the mission plays out, showing the immense legacy that Captain America, Iron Man and Thor built around their friendship.
The problem is that there aren't "three core members" of the Avengers in any narrative sense. Wasp is just as much a core Avenger as her male colleagues, and it's deeply weird for them to have a nostalgic 'inner circle' that excludes her.
Three influential men can't sideline the one female colleague who's been with them from the start without coming across as painfully sexist, superheroes or not.
Wasp isn't the only founding Avenger the 'big three' are leaving out, but she's the least logical. Hulk left almost immediately after founding the team, and Ant-Man has retired and distanced himself from other superheroes. Meanwhile, Wasp has always been there, fighting alongside the Avengers through thick and thin.
Marvel Doesn't Value or Respect the Wasp
In the "old times" that Thor refers to, the Wasp co-founded the team, gave them the 'Avengers' name, fought alongside them as a core member, bankrolled the team when Tony Stark couldn't, led the team for five real-world years, and died while fighting at their side. And yet she doesn't deserve a couple of panels of nostalgic reflection with the rest of the team?
Comic fans famously hate it when publishers paper over past canon, and the creation of an Avengers inner circle that Wasp isn't part of is an ahistorical move. While the Big Three ignore Wasp's role in the "old times," the story confirms her irrelevance, giving Wasp and Ant-Man the same type of cameo as a dozen other heroes who show up to help.
Bendis and Bagley can tell any story they want, but an anniversary issue that includes all of the team's founders but only focuses on three of them is sending a strong message about who's important and who isn't.
Why Is Marvel Ignoring Wasp in Avengers Comics?
Part of the problem is that Bendis and Bagley are telling a metatextual story, celebrating Avengers comics up to this point. Captain America, Iron Man and Thor are the big names of the franchise in the real world. However, to make that canon in their own heads turns the Avengers into yet another old boys' club. And it's not like Marvel has tried to improve Wasp's profile...
Janet Van Dyne received her first solo series ever in 2023 - a miniseries to celebrate her sixtieth birthday. She then appeared in Avengers Inc., which Marvel canceled before its first arc was concluded (and before the collected edition had even been released.) Not to mention her sidelining in the MCU.
There are financial realities to how Marvel handles its characters, and Wasp simply isn't as big of a draw as some other Avengers, limiting what can be done with the character. However, this isn't a solo series or a dedicated arc - it's a back-up story reminiscing about Avengers history and celebrating their legacy.
When your flagship team has one woman founder and you treat her like she's irrelevant during a celebration of the franchise, that sends a message.
Avengers Needs to Stop Copying the Justice League
In trying to create a "big three" of the Avengers, Marvel is acknowledging financial realities, but it's also trying to get in on the iconography of the Justice League Trinity. In DC lore, Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman really are the heart of the team that other heroes gathered around. They possess a unique authority and leadership role that other characters don't.
In Marvel lore, the same just can't be said for the 'Big Three.' Captain America, Iron Man and Thor might receive a lot of respect, but only Steve Rogers actually holds that 'senior hero' role.
In attempting to whittle down the founding Avengers into a trio, Marvel actually fails where DC's Trinity succeeds. DC uses the Trinity to maintain Wonder Woman's status as Batman and Superman's legendary equal, despite the fact she's rarely matched them in terms of readership.
Ultimately, trying to retcon Thor, Iron Man and Captain America as the "Big Three" Avengers is a bad idea with unintended consequences. Three influential guys can't sideline the female colleague who's been with them from the start (indeed, longer than Cap) without coming across as painfully sexist, and Avengers shouldn't celebrate issue #800 by taking the team's singular female co-founder and turning her into a background character.
The Avengers #34/800 is available now from Marvel Comics.
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