Marvel Explains Why Ant-Man Is the Avengers’ Most Cursed Legacy Hero

Marvel has demonstrated that Ant-Man might be the Avengers’ most cursed legacy hero. Since the character’s first appearance, there have been three different Ant-Men–and all of them have experienced hardship and suffering eclipsing that of their contemporaries and Marvel is acknowledging this tragic fact in Ant-Man #2. The miniseries commemorates the character’s anniversary, bringing together three generations of Ant-Men, uniting them against a common foe who threatens all reality.

1962’s Tales to Astonish #27 introduced the world to Hank Pym, a scientist who created technology that allowed him to shrink himself; a few months later Pym would return as Ant-Man, and alongside his wife the Wasp, would become a founding member of the Avengers. Hank’s life has been a rocky one, with a history of mental instability and domestic violence; this led Pym to abandon the Ant-Man persona. There have been two other Ant-Men: professional thief Scott Lang, who stole Pym’s technology to help his sick daughter as well as SHIELD operative Eric O’Grady, who appropriated the shrinking tech for his own, selfish ends. Much like Pym, both Lang and O’Grady have suffered a lot during their lives—making Ant-Man’s legacy a cursed one, and Marvel slyly calls this out in Ant-Man #2.

This issue, written by Al Ewing, illustrated by Tom Reilly, colored by Jordie Bellaire and lettered by Cory Petit, opens with one of Ant-Man’s ants filling in readers on the character’s history. The ant mentions that in the 2000s, Pym had been replaced by a Skrull and Lang was dead, leaving the shady and selfish O’Grady the sole bearer of the Ant-Man name. The ant concludes it was not a good decade to be Ant-Man. Later, the Skrull impersonating Pym confronts O’Grady, who was at Lang’s grave. The Skrull, dressed in Ant-Man’s classic outfit, attempts to kill O’Grady but ultimately teleports him away. As the two fight, O’Grady calls Pym out for his abusive behavior. The Skrull flips it back on O’Grady, criticizing him for his moral shortcomings.

The Skrull impersonating Pym was right: O’Grady was selfish, planning to use Pym’s tech for his own ends; however, O’Grady was also correct in pointing out Pym’s terrible behavior. All of this shows just how cursed the Ant-Man legacy truly is. Despite his brilliance, Hank Pym is arrogant and mercurial, and his shrinking tech ended up exacerbating the problem, ultimately leading Pym down a dark path. Likewise, Eric O’Grady is morally ambiguous. Even though there are no domestic abuse incidents in his past, he is still not a good person. When Scott Lang is factored in, even more tragic layers are added. Lang broke into Pym’s lab and stole his tech to help save his daughter’s life, which is an audacious (if not awkward) way to embark on a heroic career. Like Pym and O’Grady, Lang has suffered much in his life as well.

The various Ant-Men have saved the world on many occasions, both alone and alongside the Avengers, but Marvel has finally acknowledged the dark side of this character’s legacy–a legacy of sadness, suffering and heartache.

Ant-Man #2 is available now from Marvel Comics.