Superhero Teams are a safer way for studios to take weaker or more outlandish characters from a franchise, and develop/test them to a point where a final decision can then be made on how to ultimately employ them in the larger vision for the project.

The way teams have been used in the Marvel Cinematic Universe is a case in point. They took the non-powered members Black Widow and Hawkeye, who weren’t considered strong enough for a solo movie, and developed them over multiple pictures to a stage where they could now both support a solo project. They also took the problematic Hulk, yet to support a satisfying solo outing, and cleverly employed him as a foil for their other characters.

We’ve already had the Avengers and X-Men rosters. We’re getting an Inhumans movie, and TV shows for X-Force and the Thunderbolts are in development. It kind of makes you wonder why they felt the need to invent a team from scratch for Agents of SHIELD, it’s not like the material wasn’t there to use already in the comics.

Yes, Superhero Teams are an ever present staple of the Marvel brand, but what other line-ups still exist in the Marvel Canon? Let’s take a look at what might be available for future use, and what it brings to the table:

10. NextWave

Always nice to start your list off with a wild card, this oddball collection of C-List comic properties were trained as agents of HATE, to fight terrorism. Unfortunate then that an organization named HATE turns out to be a terrorist group. Stealing what they needed and going rogue, the series has a delightfully sarcastic overtone. Featuring a sexpot cockney monster hunter, a foul mounted Captain America parody, and several other equally odd powered misfits, there is definite humorous potential here for a studio brave enough to try something outside of traditional superhero genre.

9. Runaways

 

What do you do when you find out your parents are bad guys? You become good guys, naturally. Following a gaggle of teenage wannabe heroes, this series has all the growing pains, fear and anxiety that were employed so successfully in the X-Men films . Mix those in with an element of the Jason Bourne franchise, as the group tries to come to terms with what and who they are, whilst constantly evading capture from both the authorities and their parents, and the result could be very satisfying.

8. The Order

Assuming the MCU Civil War ends as it does in the comics, with the Superhero Registration Act in force, one of the possible outcomes is Tony Stark’s ‘Fifty State Initiative’, where each state has a licensed and designated team of approved heroes to defend it. Backed and powered by Stark-tech, The Order were the Calidornian team. Modelled on Greek mythology, and led by the former alcoholic actor who played Tony on TV, it opened with half the team being fired by Stark for drunkenly breaching their contracts. A series examining the Fifty State Initiative would be an interesting way to explore the politics and public attitudes that would spin out of the preceding conflict.

7. Avengers Academy

Another possible spinoff from Civil War, and part of Stark’s initiative is the training ground for new heroes. Representative of a superhero community tainted by guilt and sorrow for the innocent lives lost in previous battles, this would be an intriguing chance to track the developing character arcs of optimism and disappointment experienced by the next young generation of heroes, and the efforts of their teachers to avoid future fatalities, and atone for the failures of the past.

6. Omega Flight

Amidst an influx of US super villains, fleeing the effects of Civil War, Canada’s premiere superhero team, Alpha Flight, is tragically wiped out combating an unstable mutant. Omega Flight is the replacement team, half-filled with American heroes who the surviving Canadians blame for their predicament, and lead by an agenda-driven former Captain America, John Walker. This has great potential to intersperse the action and adventure of hunting down the displaced American super villain community, with the anger and resentment of the Canadian population towards the results of a fight they were not involved in. Alpha flight could also feature heavily in flashbacks, examining the backstories of the Canadian team members…. And it’s got Beta Ray Bill in it….

5. MI: 13

The British equivalent of SHIELD is a government department of superheroes, dedicated to the defence of the realm. Containing the cream of UK hero talent, including Union Jack, Captain Britain and superspy Peter Wisdom, the majority of the threats the team faced were from the ancient magic and sorcery connected to the British Isles. This would provide a good platform to relaunch Blade from, as he has worked alongside the team to combat vampiric threats they faced, plus it’s always nice to see a British parody/perspective on the superhero format.

4. Invaders

Containing a fluid roster of classic WWII heroes, this super team was founded by Steve Rogers, and fought throughout the conflict, continuing after his apparent death, and carried on by successive Captain Americas. Featuring the original robotic Human Torch, and members of the British Falsworth family of heroes, this team could effortlessly slot into either of the current Marvel TV offerings, and would prove the perfect showcase for Marvel’s biggest remaining hero yet to appear on screen, Namor.

3. Midnight Sons

Combine the son of Satan (literally) with a hard drinking/swearing werewolf, an Atlantean witch/sorceress, Morbius the living vampire, and the legendary Man-Thing, and you have the modern-day incarnation of supernatural saviours, the Midnight Sons. All respectively shunned by society, the team has been around in one form or another since the 1970’s. With an emphasis on battling supernatural threats, this concept has the potential to tie-in with the forthcoming Dr Strange project, and corner the market left by the demise of the short-lived Consantine TV series.

2. Agents of Atlas

An assorted collection of independent heroes and adventurers from the 1950’s era, this team was assembled by the FBI to combat domestic threats, and has now resurfaced in the modern day. Comprising a Scientist living in the body of a gorilla, a very antiquated robot, an alien and an Atlantean warrior, the team is led by a former FBI agent, and makes a point of selecting their own targets, working independently of SHIELD. The main pull here is replicating the ‘man out of time’ element that works so well for Steve Rogers, and also taking the outmoded 50’s technology and adapting it steampunk-style against modern day threats.

1. Marvel Knights

An edgier comic run, deliberately set aside from the larger multi-story arcs and continuity of the Marvel canon, these comics were aimed at more street-level, urban vigilantes. Lead by Daredevil, the series saw him working alongside less developed characters such as Punisher, Shang Chi, Moon Knight and Cloak/Dagger. This is problematic in that some of these characters have now been picked up and run by the MCU, and some will clearly crop up in the forthcoming Luke Cage and Jessica Jones TV projects. But there are surely enough yet to be used vigilante characters in the comic continuity to put into a team-up, and bring back into an edgier, grittier run, independent of the MCU. Maybe even use it as a chance to reboot Punisher/Ghost Rider, and bring Moon Knight to the screen?

So what do you think? Who should get some screen time out of the above choices? Anyone we’ve missed? Sound off below!