The Defenders have been called Marvel's Greatest Non-Team. It started with circumstances uniting Doctor Strange, Silver Surfer, Namor the Sub-Mariner, and The Incredible Hulk to fight a common foe. None of the four particularly liked one another, but they kept being brought back together thanks to shared foes and, eventually, some degree of familiarity and camaraderie. Later, the Valkyrie, Nighthawk, and other Marvel heroes would join the team.
The Defenders have always been a fairly strange team, and creators often revel in the bizarre nature of the lineup and its characters. The creators love to find new ways to shock the reader, and, every once in a while, they succeed.
10 The Formation Of The Original Defenders Team Was Unexpected
It cannot be stated enough how badly the original Defenders got along with others. Silver Surfer was an antisocial exile from another planet, Doctor Strange was the mysterious and aloof Sorcerer Supreme, Namor fought the Fantastic Four and Avengers as often as he helped them, and the Hulk fought pretty much anyone who stood in front of him.
Consequently, seeing these four work together for any period of time is shocking, but the fact that they kept coming back together and that the Defenders had their own title for quite a long time is a twist in itself.
9 The Addition Of The Valkyrie And Her Very Strange Origins
Marvel's Valkyrie first appeared in Defenders #4 by Steve Englehart and Sal Buscema. This character had only a tangential connection to Thor and Asgard through Amora the Enchantress. She lived in the body of Barbara Norriss, a former worshiper of the powerful Undying Ones that initially united the Defenders team thanks to the threat they posed.
Given that the Valkyrie originate in Norse mythology and that this Valkyrie had no connection or relation to Asgard as it exists in the Marvel Universe, this whole origin story is a pretty shocking twist. Eventually, the Valkyrie, aka Brunnhilde, is given her own body, and her actual connection to Asgard is established--just not in Defenders.
8 The Reforming Of Nighthawk And His Own Pretty Shocking Background
Much of the history of the Defenders consists of figuring out what strange characters can be added to this oddball non-team. Nighthawk, aka Kyle Richmond, was among them. Like Quicksilver, Scarlet Witch, and Hawkeye for the Avengers, Nighthawk is a reformed villain attempting to become a hero, as he was formerly involved with a villainous permutation of the Squadron Supreme known as the Squadron Sinister.
This is all a bit weirder and more shocking when one remembers that the Squadron Supreme was a version of the Justice League for Marvel to play with, and this is essentially Batman joining a team with Doctor Strange and the Hulk on it. If that's not a twist, then what truly is?
7 The Red Guardian's Membership On The Defenders' Ever-Shifting Lineup
Another one of the most shocking membership additions came in the form of a Red Guardian, whose real name is Tanya Belinskaya. The Red Guardian is the name of the USSR's counterpart to Captain America and is often part of the Soviet superhero team known as the Winter Guard.
Given that this Red Guardian joined the Defenders at the height of the Cold War (both in the universe of the comics as well as the real world), it's a surprising addition that could have easily drawn some controversy towards Marvel. It's pretty unexpected that a Soviet supersoldier joined one of Marvel's major superhero teams in the 1970s.
6 War With The Avengers And The Machinations Of Dormammu And Loki
The Defenders were drawn into an all-out war with the Avengers thanks to a plan put together by Dormammu and Loki. The Avengers didn't trust the Defenders lineups, and their suspicions were heightened by the villainous magic surrounding the conflict. This was one of the first times that Marvel had a full team versus team fight and proved to be a shocking and exciting event for Marvel readers at the time.
In retrospect, stories like this and Contest of Champions definitely look like a precursor to Civil War and Avengers VS. X-Men and left a huge mark on the future direction of Marvel. Regardless, this is easily one of the biggest early surprises in Marvel history.
5 The Weird Saga Of The Elf With A Gun And Its Possible Origins
The Elf With A Gun, aka Melf, was a strange addition to the Defenders saga, appearing several times to randomly kill someone but never directly interacting with the Defenders or really leading to a larger story. This character first appeared in Defenders #25 by Steve Gerber and Sal Buscema. Melf later had a nephew named Relf that continued his crusade after Melf was hit by a truck.
The truth of Melf was never revealed, though his creation by Steve Gerber is significant. Gerber often liked to write superhero satire, and Melf was likely a parody of plot threads that never go anywhere. Gerber also created Howard the Duck and wrote a famously satirical run of She-Hulk that included a lot of metatextual humor and references before Deadpool was even created. In any case, this is one of the few times that it's shocking that nothing came of a plot thread.
4 The Unsettling Saga Of Daimon Hellstrom And His Ex-Wife, Hellcat
Daimon Hellstrom, the Son of Satan, married Hellcat, aka Patsy Walker, while both were members of the Defenders. However, this story took quite a dark turn. Hellstrom didn't treat Patsy particularly well, and her soul was dragged down to Hell when she tried to help Daimon with his waning powers. She later was returned to Earth when Hellstrom tricked Hawkeye into thinking he was rescuing Mockingbird from Hell.
However, Patsy was a husk of her former self, but Daimon kept her around while trying to accrue new power and confront his father. However, Hellcat eventually recuperated and finally left Daimon Hellstrom for good. Regardless, this was a fairly shocking and unsettling story, as it showed a Marvel regular to be something of a personal monster for another longtime Marvel hero.
3 The "True Defenders" Aren't Actually The Classic Defenders
The Defenders made a return during the Initiative era as a government-sanctioned team. There were several lineups put together by Nighthawk, with each one seeming to fall apart. However, Nighthawk eventually stumbled across a cosmic mystery that required the union of the "True Defenders," and it wasn't any team that had already existed.
The "True Defenders" were made up of Joaquin Pennysworth (an old friend and confidant of Kyle Richmond) as Nighthawk, She-Hulk instead of Hulk, Daimon Hellstrom instead of Doctor Strange, and Namor villain Krang instead of Namor. This showed that the "destined" Defenders were, after all these years, shockingly not the classic Defenders lineup.
2 Namor Using The Silver Surfer's Surfboard And Becoming Silver Namor
Defenders: Best Defense by Al Ewing, Jason Latour, Gerry Duggan, Chip Zdarsky, Carlos Magno, Greg Smallwood, and Joe Bennett found a strange and somewhat disjointed Defenders story that culminated in an encounter with the old Defenders villain, Nebulon.
In the climax of the tale, readers get to watch as Namor the Sub-Mariner takes the Silver Surfer's surfboard and, in an exciting twist, becomes the Silver Namor for the remainder of the issue.
1 The Masked Raider, The Harpy, Galactus' Mom, And The Return Of The Defenders In 2021
The Defenders are actually making a return later this year in what seems to be a continuation to the stories that have been seeded throughout Marvel Comics #1000 and Incoming! in which the Masked Raider returns to foretell a great disaster and investigate the origins of the Marvel Universe as we know it.
In addition to the Masked Raider apparently being part of this Defenders team, Doctor Strange and Silver Surfer will be making their return. New members the Cloud and the Harpy/Red She-Hulk (Betty Ross) will be part of this lineup. In a shock of all shocks, the story apparently involves meeting the mother of Galan of Taa, known better to the universe as Galactus, Devourer of Worlds.