Eternals' Sersi Almost Had a Romantic Fling With Another MCU Avenger

Today, we look at how Sersi had a heavy flirtation with a famous Avenger when she first joined the Avengers (in fact, it was that flirtation that first LED to her joining the Avengers).

In every installment of “If I Pass This Way Again,” we look at comic book plot points that were rarely (sometimes NEVER!) mentioned again after they were first introduced.

As I've written a few times over the last few weeks, Jack Kirby's take on the Eternals was more or less predicated on the idea that the Eternals were in their own universe. The whole concept was what would happen if humanity discovered that gods walked amongst them, and that so did devils, and that the SUPER GODS were now returning to Earth? It was a popular concept in science fiction at the time, especially after Erich von Däniken published his nominally NON-fiction book, Chariots of the Gods? Unsolved Mysteries of the Past, which was a clear influence on Jack Kirby, as it is about the theory that extraterrestrials visited Earth millennia ago and gave us technology and thus kickstarted the development of the human race. So the Eternals was basically, what if those "gods" (the Celestials) returned? That approach really doesn't work in a world where Galactus had previously come to Earth and been warned of by the Fantastic Four and a very-bad-at-his-vow-to-not-interfere Watcher.

The weird thing, though, is that even once the Eternals WERE worked into the Marvel Universe, it wasn't like they were REALLY integrated into the Marvel Universe. They were very much off on their own setting, doing their own thing. It really wasn't until Sersi joined the Avengers that an Eternals character truly crossed over into the Marvel Universe. The interesting thing about Sersi joining the Avengers is how it was set up and how it led to a heavy flirtation by Sersi with a famous Avenger that was just abruptly dropped when Bob Harras took over the series.

HOW CAPTAIN AMERICA CAME TO THINK OF ASKING SERSI TO JOIN THE AVENGERS

Sersi had previously been established as being a very much in-demand party hostess in New York City during some earlier Avengers stories and that was basically the last we had heard from her until Captain America #355 (by Mark Gruenwald, Rich Buckler and Al Milgrom). In that story, Cap decides he wants to go undercover to investigate some group that was kidnapping teenagers, but he wasn't sure of how to make himself look like a teenager.

In a clever meta bit, Gruenwald has Cap literally read the Official Handbook to the Marvel Universe (presented here as just an Avenger file) on Sersi and figures that her ability to transmute matter could work...

Cap visits Sersi and she gladly agrees to help him and transforms him into what he looked like at 15 (she was shocked at how scrawny he was at that age, not knowing that that was pre-Super Soldier Serum Cap) for 48 hours...

As Teen Cap leaves, she reminds him of the favor that she will be expecting in return for helping him out like this...

Well, Cap, of course, gets caught up in a whole scheme involving some of Red Skull's underlings and things look really bad for Cap, as he is surrounded with still a goodly amount of time left before the spell expires. So he is getting the crap kicked out of him until suddenly, he returns to his normal age and strength! He then takes care of business and goes to Sersi to thank her and ask why the spell wore off early and he learns that she put in a backdoor spell where it would end if he ever suffered 50 body blows. Clever Sersi!

However, when they have dinner together in Captain America #357 (by Gruenwald and Milgrom), she looks like she is pushing for favors that Cap is not ready to deliver (especially during the Gruenwald era of Captain America)...

This put her on Cap's mind, though, which came in handy right away.

SERSI JOINS THE AVENGERS AND KEEPS TRYING TO GET WITH CAP

By Avengers #308 (by Paul Ryan, Tom Palmer and John Byrne), the Avengers had already added their FIRST outright Eternal to their ranks, Gilgamesh, but he was now written off of the team by suffering a seemingly fatal injury. So Cap comes up with the idea of going to Sersi for help. Before she realizes the problem, she first makes a come on to Cap...

Six issues later (still Ryan, Palmer and Byrne), Cap comes to her again, this time to ask her to join the Avengers. She agrees, but not before she again tries to make a move on Cap...

The Avengers were busy for the next ten issues, but when things finally settled down in Avengers #325 (by Gruenwald, Rik Levins and Fred Fredericks), Sersi again continues to make a move on Cap, trying to get him to take a bubble bath with her...

Later in the issue, she insists that he and Quasar attend one of her parties, as it is the least they can do for her since she joined the team...

And when Steve Rogers shows up, Sersi throws herself at him, even though he brought his girlfriend with him...

Larry Hama takes over writing duties and in Avengers #328 (by Hama, Ryan and Palmer), Diamondback stops by and Sersi and she have a low level cat fight over Cap...

with Sersi suggesting that she is ready to play the long game with Cap...

However, Bob Harras then took over and he quickly dropped all sexual tension between Sersi and Cap and in fact, they're now way at odds, as Sersi threatens to kill a group of Shi'ar crewmen in Avengers #345 (by Harras, Steve Epting and Palmer)...