The Avengers are Marvel's greatest team. For years, the best heroes have fought the biggest threats in the pages of Avengers books, enthralling readers with the team's exploits. A hero hasn't really made it until they've been an Avenger and the team's membership roster reads like a list of the most beloved heroes in pop culture, especially since Marvel's MCU dominance has come into play.

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Not every member of the team is beloved, though. Over the years, there have been lots of Avengers in the comics who have gone through an unlikeable patch, or simply never were liked. Even the longest-tenured members of the team have fallen into this category.

10 Deathcry Never Worked Out Like Creators Thought She Would

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The '90s were a bad time for the Avengers. The team had been falling in fan estimation for a long time and Marvel was desperate to make them relevant again in a world where the X-Men and Image's more violent heroes ruled the roost. They started to introduce more stereotypically "extreme" heroes to the team and Deathcry was one of their attempts.

A member of the Shi'Ar race, Deathcry had Wolverine hair and sharp claws. She was an obvious case of pandering to the audience but the kind of readers they were trying to appeal to weren't reading Avengers comics. The book's fans hated the character and she's rarely been seen since.

9 The Sentry Didn't Appeal To Fans Once He Joined The Team

The Sentry

The introduction of the Sentry was the character's greatest moment. Created to be a Marvel version of Superman, The Sentry, by writer Paul Jenkins and artist Jae Lee, was a psychological story about a man dealing with godlike power and his own demons. That comic ended and fans weren't sure when they'd see the Sentry again.

A few years later, the Sentry joined the New Avengers and completely lost his luster. While Jenkins returned for another mini-series, this time with artist John Romita Jr., the character just didn't really connect with fans and his appearance in the Avengers books was as a one-note, slightly creepy powerhouse. His older fans were disappointed and newer fans just wanted him to go away.

8 Jack Of Hearts Rubbed Fans The Wrong Way

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Jack Of Hearts joined the Avengers during writer Geoff Johns's short stint on the title in the early '00s. Jack was played as an arrogant presence on the team, clashing with Scott Lang and engendering hatred from fans. His struggles with his powers, which involved him having to bleed off his zero energy in a special chamber every night, didn't elicit the sympathy from readers Johns probably intended.

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His eventual death would change people's opinions, as he sacrificed himself to save Scott Lang. It was the only time he wasn't the most insufferable person on the team but even with his sacrifice, fans haven't exactly clamored for his return.

7 Black Knight Was Pushed As The Next Big Avenger But Never Caught On

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Black Knight was positioned to be the breakout star of the Avengers in the '90s but that just wasn't in the cards. He was made into the leader of the team and was the focus of its stories for years but his tenure as head of the Avengers is one of the least-loved times in the team's existence. While it wasn't because of his personality or actions, the character never caught on with readers.

Since then, he's basically been a non-entity in the Marvel Universe, although he's gotten a push because of his role in Eternals. Even with that, no one really cares about Black Knight and he's doomed to be obscure at best.

6 U.S.Agent Is Cap-Lite In The Worst Way

USAgent

While U.S.Agent got a lot of attention because of his role in The Falcon And The Winter Soldier, comic fans just aren't into him at all. Johnny Walker's story in the MCU is similar to the comics, except he had super strength from the beginning and was actually stronger than Steve Rogers. He was also undoubtedly more cruel than Rogers, although he would eventually clean up his act.

He joined the West Coast Avengers, where he would become that team's Captain America. He was always the bargain basement super-soldier, though, and when the West Coast team folded, he went away. Marvel carted him out every few years and he still never caught on. Even with his MCU success, comic fans are still leery of the character.

5 Reed Richards Is A Thoroughly Unlikable Character

Fantastic Four Reed Richards vs Squid Game

Reed Richards is the leader of the Fantastic Four but has also been a member of the Avengers. His first stint with the team was the short-lived incarnation with him, Invisible Woman, Captain America when he was just the Captain, Thor, and Gilgamesh. No one liked this team and he wouldn't rejoin until the Hickman run, as a member of the cast of the Illuminati-inspired New Avengers.

Reed Richards is basically '60s American white male exceptionalism as a comic character. He's always been bad in the Fantastic Four but he was somehow worse in the Avengers, a cold and calculating scientist whose best idea for dealing with the Incursions was genocide.

4 Namor Is Kind Of Annoying As An Avenger

Namor Mackenzie Atlantis

Namor is one of comic's greatest aquatic superheroes. He vacillates wildly between hero and villain and usually gravitates toward the Avengers when he's a hero. As an Avenger, Namor is pretty much the most annoying, condescending hero imaginable. He badmouths his teammates, tries to assert his dominance, and consistently makes an argument for why he should never be on a team.

Namor can be entertaining but when he's Avenger he's basically too much to deal with. He's usually the worst person on any given page and what little fan goodwill he has is quickly used up. Namor works well on the X-Men or as a villain but he's among the most insufferable Avengers ever.

Hank Pym as Giant-Man at Avengers Academy.

Hank Pym is a founding Avenger but he's vastly overrated. He created Ultron, the team's most destructive enemy, smacked the Wasp in the mouth, and created a robot to attack the team because he wanted to save the day and have everyone love him again. He's basically unlikable and while Marvel tries to make him into a character people can like or at least enjoy, they always fail.

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Hank Pym is a tainted character in the eyes of most fans. His powers aren't the most exciting, he's an accessory to genocide because of his creation of Ultron, and he's just not entertaining. Most of Marvel's Silver Age science heroes haven't aged well and Pym is one of the worst.

2 Dr. Druid Is The Worst Leader In The Team's History

Doctor Druid from Marvel Comics

Dr. Druid is the worst of the worst. He's long been one of Marvel's most disliked characters. He was a Stan Lee-created Dr. Strange prototype in the pre-Fantastic Four #1 days, known back then as Doctor Droom. He didn't catch on then and when he was brought back as Dr. Druid, fans were even more ambivalent.

Dr. Druid remained a Dr. Strange wannabe during his stint on the team. He became the leader of the Avengers, but it was all a scheme by Ravonna to try to destroy the team. He was killed and while he's returned to life, he's been kept far away from the Avengers.

1 Iron Man Is The Worst Hero In The Marvel Universe

Iron Man Flying Through Lasers

Iron Man may be one of the most popular MCU characters but that popularity does not extend to the comics. He's betrayed his friends more than once, turned evil, and basically been the worst superhero in the Marvel Universe. The list of terrible things he's done starts with genocide on a staggering scale and goes from there.

If Reed Richards is '60s American white male exceptionalism as a comic character, Iron Man is the personification of the military-industrial complex. This doesn't do the character any favors and this concept has aged terribly. Without the charm of Robert Downey Jr., Iron Man is completely unlovable.

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