It takes a lot out of any person to work so hard in service of the public, and even moreso on such a huge scale like a superhero would. In the Marvel universe, time and time again, superheroes are shown in truly exhausting circumstances. Not only that, but there’s nobody actually in charge of teams like the Avengers or the X-Men except more heroes.
These people are accountable only for themselves, and so must hold themselves to their own values and standards. In order to be a superhero within the Marvel universe, one has to be truly dedicated and love what they do.
10 Captain America
Like other true patriots, Captain America — most frequently Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) — knows that a country must live by its ideals, and must fight to return to those ideals when they’re made corrupt. In Captain America: The First Avenger, Steve Rogers shows that he wants to fight to defend the side of good. He’s willing to sacrifice everything to fight, and it’s important to him that he is able to always fight for what he believes in. He sees it as a physical need to fight, so he truly seems to be happiest when he’s an active superhero.
9 The Human Torch
One of the most happy-go-lucky superheroes is the Human Torch, one of the members of Marvel’s First Family, the Fantastic Four. Because they’re all so close as a team, and really only mainly consist of the four main members — Reed Richards, Sue Storm, Johnny Storm, and Ben Grimm — they’re a strong unit, both emotionally and physically.
Of all of them, the Human Torch — the aforementioned Johnny Storm (Chris Evans, Michael B. Jordan), brother to Sue and (sometimes) brother-in-law to Reed Richards — just has the most fun as a superhero. He enjoys being able to burst into flames, he likes to help people, and the fame & joy of being a superhero appeals deeply to him. Being a superhero is probably the best thing that’s ever happened to Johnny.
8 Iron Man
Before Tony Stark became Iron Man, he wasn’t completely satisfied with the life he was living. It’s clear that Tony (Robert Downey Jr.) isn’t content with his life as-is in Iron Man and, as the plot progresses, it’s even more obvious that being Iron Man isn’t just something he wants. Being Iron Man might be something that Tony Stark needs. Being Iron Man gives Tony Stark the purpose that he seeks in his regular life, and gives him control over the atrocities that he feels a need to stop. If Tony Stark didn’t love being Iron Man, he would never don the suit again.
7 Thor
When it comes to having fun being a superhero, Thor takes the cake. After Taika Waititi’s turn in the Thor series, Thor: Ragnarok, the hero is more fun than ever and seems to be genuinely enjoying himself.
Even before then, being a superhero is Thor’s favorite thing to do; he’s always getting into fights and wants to prove himself, and seems to be having a blast while he does it. Thor (Chris Hemsworth) has a blast as a superhero, and when it comes down to being royalty or being a hero, being a hero is what he truly loves.
6 Falcon
Before the events of Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Sam Wilson (Anthony Mackie) had already received his wings, but lost his partner in the process. Coming back into the role of the winged hero Falcon, now a superhero on the scale of Captain America, is clearly something that satisfies Sam Wilson. Having been a soldier fighting in the war makes it clear that Sam is a lot like Steve Rogers in that he’s happiest fighting for what he believes in. When he’s back as a civilian, Sam has a much better time adapting than Steve, even helping others through their trauma. Even so, being the Falcon is something that makes Sam Wilson happier than any other job could seemingly do.
5 Professor X
When Charles Xavier (Patrick Stewart, James McAvoy) was a child, he thought he was the only one of his kind in the world. Being a mutant was terrifying before he met Raven Darkholme (Rebecca Romijn, Jennifer Lawrence) and realized he wasn’t alone. When he later becomes Professor X and starts Xavier’s School for Gifted Youngsters — as well as the X-Men — it’s obvious to audiences that he truly loves not only being a mutant, but leading other mutants, as well. Helping others and guiding them on the path to acceptance of self and others is what truly makes Professor X happy. He actually loves being Professor X, the hero leader of the X-Men, savior of mutantkind. Even Magneto loves him, and they’re supposed to be enemies.
4 Spider-Man
Everyone knows Peter Parker (Tobey Maguire, Andrew Garfield, Tom Holland) in all his iterations as “your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man,” and this couldn’t be more true. Whether it’s in the Raimi trilogy, the Amazing Spider-Man trilogy, or the new MCU Spider-Man, Peter Parker can’t get enough of being Spider-Man.
Sometimes it even causes problems for him, how much he enjoys being Spider-Man. Before the spider bite that turned him into the webslinger, Peter Parker was a lonely kind of nerd. Being Spider-Man not only makes him well-liked in his costumed persona, but gives him more confidence in his everyday life to reach his full potential.
3 Jessica Jones
After Matt Murdock (Charlie Cox) won everyone’s hearts as the tormented Daredevil, Jessica Jones (Krysten Ritter) came on the scene as everybody’s favorite private investigator/superhero. Though she’s tough on the outside and has a hard time with difficult cases (as any superhero does) Jessica Jones is a hero in both her personal life and her superhero life, which isn’t the case for everyone. Doing the right thing and making the world a better place is incredibly important to Jessica. That being said, Jessica also wouldn’t do something she doesn’t want to do. To be a superhero going through the things Jessica Jones goes through on a daily basis, she has to truly love what she does.
2 Star-Lord
As a Guardian of the Galaxy, Star-Lord, or Peter Quill (Chris Pratt), is duty-bound to help anywhere in the galaxy when something is going amiss. While he does follow through on this, he does it with an undeniable style and flair that makes it clear he’s having fun. Being a superhero isn’t what Star-Lord intended, as the guy starts out as something of a kidnapping victim and something of an antihero raised by an antihero, Yondu Udonta (Michael Rooker). It’s certainly where he ended up, however, and throughout the Guardians of the Galaxy movies by James Gunn, it’s obvious he’s enjoying his time in the role.
1 Black Panther
Much like Thor, T’Challa (Chadwick Boseman) is meant to be royalty, the leader of his nation, the King of Wakanda. While Thor largely eschews this responsibility, T’Challa embraces it and uses his powers — both as the superhero, Black Panther, and as the leader of Wakanda, King T’Challa — to the best of his ability at all times. To live such a constantly exhausting and powerful life is incredibly draining, but T’Challa has never considered another path. He will always fight for good, and he loves to do it.