One of Marvel's most unique takes on the X-Men concept is X-Statix, the seminal early 2000s series by Peter Milligan and Mike Allred that stars a group of mutant heroes who eschewed the usual goals of X-teams for a focus on celebrity culture.
But in one of their most bombastic stories, X-Statix found themselves engaging in a time-honored Marvel tradition by trading blows with other heroes before working together towards a common cause. In the process, the team ended up facing off with Earth's Mightiest Heroes, and they miraculously held their own against the Avengers.
X-Statix focused on an unlikely band of mutants who became reality TV stars in the early '00s, despite the high morality of the heroes who joined the team. "The Good and the Famous" storyarc ran from X-Statix #21-25 and revealed how other heroes in the Marvel Universe perceived the team -- specifically Captain America, who saw the team as irresponsible rookies who couldn't be trusted to keep an eye on the dimension-hopping Doop. His concerns were given extra credence when a group of terrorists stole and weaponized Doop, resulting in X-Statix reluctantly turning to the Avengers for assistance.
Captain America, Iron Man, Thor, Hawkeye, Scarlet Witch and Ant-Man secretly intended to use X-Statix to reach Doop and destroy him however, removing the potentially dangerous being from the board entirely. This resulted in the teams briefly coming to blows, long enough for their mission to destroy Doop to go sideways when Doop's mind exploded and scattered across the world. The Avengers ended up in one-on-one duels with the members of X-Statix, as each fight determined possession of one piece of Doop's mind. A frustrated Anarchist went up against Captain America and was handily defeated. Meanwhile, Hawkeye was able to overcome Vivsector and take a piece for himself.
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But X-Statix's female members had a much easier time of it -- with Dead Girl defeating Scarlet Witch while Venus Dee Milo staking on Ant-Man for the victory. Mister Sensitive and Iron Man's duel ends up becoming an unlikely naked wrestling match due to the customs of the locals. Although Mister Sensitive is ultimately victorious, he allows Iron Man to keep the piece of Doop's brain. Teleporting to Asgard, Venus De Milo and Doop find themselves facing off with Thor. Although Thor quickly found the piece of the brain, Doop's strange abilities and sheer resilience made him an unexpectedly difficult challenge for the God of Thunder to overcome. But when the Asgardian Fatal Sisters are awakened by the conflict, the two teams were forced to work together again.
Ultimately, X-Statix proves themselves, and the Avengers allowed them to continue monitoring Doop. They even earn Captain America's respect -- which actually has the opposite effect on the team than he likely intended. Bummed out they've become normal enough for mainstream heroes like the Avengers to openly champion them, X-Statix was left on the verge of breaking up, right before the team went on to be slaughtered in their very next mission. Captain America's ultimate victory over the team didn't stem from his might or abilities -- but from the fact that the inherently counter-culture mutants can't stand being on his side.
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