Thanks to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the Avengers are the most popular superhero team from the comics. The team in the comics and on the big screen had similar origin stories, as both had to battle Loki and were forced to team up to beat him. However, there were also differences, as Captain America came on later and the government had nothing to do with them forming in the start.

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However, looking at the Avengers through the years in comics, and a lot has changed. While they formed without government regulations, that changed over time and the government became heavily involved in their missions. The team also went through many changes in membership and leadership and the team today is even different from those lineups - both in membership and function.

The Avengers Became A Government-Regulated Team

Henry Peter Gyrich runs the Avengers.

The Avengers formed when the most powerful heroes joined forces to stop a rampaging Hulk, only to learn he was not the true villain but was controlled by Loki. After this, Iron Man, Ant-Man, Thor, Wasp, and Hulk teamed up and then Captain America soon joined them. That changed over the years.

It didn't take long for the United States government to step in and they began to regulate the team, as well as help finance their operations. They had a government liaison, although he was the untrustworthy Henry Peter Gyrich. In today's Marvel Comics, the Avengers no longer answer to anyone but are still on call if the government needs help.

Avengers Membership Exploded

All the various Avengers members in Marvel comics.

The Avengers were, in the start, a tightly-knit group. There were originally five members and then Hulk left before Captain America joined. When newcomers showed up, they often replaced departing members. Soon, there was an actual membership cap, where the government would only authorize a specific number of members at a time.

There were reserve members at the time that could come in if the team needed help. However, over time, this changed and there were often countless members of the Avengers at any given time. Everyone from Wolverine to Spider-Man has been a member in the years since.

The Avengers Branched Out

Hawkeye forms the West Coast Avengers in Marvel Comics.

With so many members of the Avengers, the team soon realized they could work to protect different parts of the country. They created the West Coast Avengers, with Hawkeye as the team leader in California. The Great Lakes Avengers formed, but they had little to do with the original team.

There has also been the Young Avengers, which saw the next generation of heroes team up, despite Captain America and Iron Man being against the idea. The Uncanny Avengers were a mix of Avengers and X-Men and the New Avengers was a street-level team.

The Voting Of New Avengers Leaders

Black Panther as the leader of the Avengers.

When the Avengers were part of the government, the group always had to have a leader. The leaders were either assigned by the United States or were voted on by the team members. Iron Man served as a leader and Captain America was one of the most famous.

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Wasp was a great leader at one time as well, proving that a woman could do a better job than many of the men on the team. However, the idea of a leader is no longer as prevalent. Anyone from Captain America to Iron Man to Black Panther often barks out orders at any given time, but the idea of a team leader is more fluid now.

From Avengers Mansion To Avengers Tower

Avengers mansion gave way to Avengers tower.

The Avengers originally considered Avengers Mansion their base. This was Tony Stark's mansion and he offered it up for the Avengers to use as their base before anyone knew that he was Iron Man. The Avengers Mansion became a joke after a while, similar to the Xavier Mansion, as it was destroyed more than once.

After Scarlet Witch destroyed the Avengers in Avengers Disassembled, Tony Stark decided to leave the mansion in crumbles. He moved the team to Stark Towers, and the Avengers had a new high-tech base in the sky, a huge change from the homey mansion.

Avengers Lost Sight Of Their Purpose

Kamala Khan explains why Champions are forming.

The Avengers formed when they knew they needed to work together to stop Hulk and save countless lives. They then decided to stick together to protect the world from threats, both domestic and off-worldly. When they joined up with the government, things began to change and the Avengers were more about saving the world than caring about the people.

There are exceptions. Captain America will always be there to help someone in need. However, Ms. Marvel, Miles Morales, and Nova quit the Avengers when they saw the team didn't care about helping the people who lost everything after the team battled an alien threat. The Champions formed and became what the Avengers used to be.

The Multiple Destructions Of The Avengers

Captain America sitting on the ground in Avengers Disassembled.

The Avengers has changed a lot through the years because they suffered great destructions more than once. In the mid-90s, the Avengers battled Onslaught alongside the Fantastic Four and the X-Men. The Avengers and Fantastic Four both died, and neither returned for a long time.

After Scarlet Witch destroyed everything in one of the biggest Avengers events in historyAvengers Dissembled, the team decided there was no place for them anymore. Both Civil Wars shattered the team. Through it all, the Avengers returned and time and time again, they changed and morphed into something almost unrecognizable.

The Secret Avengers

The Secret Avengers gather for a battle.

The Avengers were always the most respected superhero team in the Marvel Universe. The people of Earth mostly believed in them and knew that the team was there to do the right thing. They usually stood at the Earth's defense and honorably fought to protect the planet.

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The Secret Avengers changed all that. This team was put together by Captain America and shockingly was a black ops team using the Avengers name. No one knew about them, but what they did was neither honorable nor heroic in a general sense. This is where the Avengers proved they could get dirty, similar to X-Force in the mutant world.

Secret Empire Destroyed Trust

Captain America standing among fallen heroes in Secret Empire.

The public usually loved the Avengers. They cheered on Captain America as a World War II hero and the rest of the team was mostly a shining example of what a hero was supposed to be. After Secret Empire, that all changed. When a fake Captain America took over the country, it split the world in half.

Some people loved the fascist society that formed in Secret Empire. This meant that, when the real Captain America came back and did the right thing, a lot of the country turned on him, preferring the evil man that morphed the world into the image they wanted. Since that event, not as many people respect or even like the Avengers anymore.

Avengers Mountain

Avengers Mountain sitting in the North Pole.

One of the biggest changes to the Avengers in 2021 is that they are no longer around the people they vowed to protect. Instead of having a mansion or a tower in the middle of Manhattan, where they are on-call to protect the city at the drop of a hat, they are now based in Avengers Mountain.

This is the body of an ancient Celestial - the first to ever visit the Earth. The Celestial died to give life to Earth and now the Avengers operate inside it, paying honor to the being that helped create the world. Black Panther brought in Wakandan tech to make the mountain livable and it is located at the North Pole.

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