This article contains mention of domestic violence and sexual assault.
As a founding member of the Avengers, Ant-Man has had a lasting legacy being involved in some of Marvel's most important storylines, including the rise of one of its most iconic villains, Ultron. For all his contributions, Hank Pym, Ant-Man's most recognized alter-ego, has had his heroism overshadowed by a long line of theatrical and calamitous adventures, something the MCU's Scott Lang (Paul Rudd) has helped assuage.
When Hank isn't suffering a grievous misunderstanding, he's channeling his insecurities into a variety of other superhero identities which, although fine for Marvel in the '60s when it was finding its footing, makes for some pretty wild arcs in the current era.
Updated on November 15th, 2022 by Kayleena Pierce-Bohen: Now that Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania is heading to theaters in 2023, it's the perfect time to take a look back at the bizarre histrionics of the Avengers' small but mighty hero, Ant-Man. In particular, early Ant-Man comics walk a delicate balance between bizarre and whimsical, whereas later comics achieve their weird categorization through graphic violence and sci-fi homages.
Avengers #1
In the Silver Age, Hank Pym seemed to need validation from his superhero peers, especially since his power was shrinking to an insignificant size. Sometimes, the ability to go unnoticed was a double-edged sword, and eventually, he wanted to become someone deeply important and necessary. This drove him to reverse his shrinking ability to create the identity of Giant-Man.
There have been a few Marvel characters who have gone by the alias "Giant-Man", but Hank Pym was the first, assuming the moniker when he formed the found-family of Avengers with Iron Man, Thor, Wasp, and the Hulk in Avengers #1.
Age Of Ultron Vol 1 #10 A.I.
Longtime Ant-Man fans will know that it was Hank Pym, not Tony Stark who created Ultron and indirectly unleashed him upon an unsuspecting world. Though time travel was used to reverse the course of events, they left Pym scarred. He was convinced that the expectations he suffered as an inventor, under which he was unable to feel worth without contributing something worthwhile, were to blame.
It was an odd time for Pym who, in his pursuit of being "free" from the "yoke" of others' opinions slowly slipped into insanity. Freedom from expectations didn't mean freedom from accountability, which is what he struggled with most after Ultron's attack. He decides in Age Of Ultron Vol 1 #10A.I. to explore different timelines as Giant-Man, Yellowjacket, and Goliath, trying to prevent an apocalypse in each. Eventually, he realizes that what they're all missing is Ant-Man. Not the workaholic, but the superhero.
All-New Guardians Of The Galaxy #12
The Guardians of the Galaxy have had great success in their latest comic adventures, but just because fans loved following the misfit bunch of intergalactic heroes, doesn't mean that Ant-Man randomly joining their colorful crew suddenly made any sense - unless fans considered Scott Lang trying to distance himself from Earth and the Avengers after a particularly nasty betrayal.
All-New Guardians Of The Galaxy #12 marked the end of an era, and the closing of the chapter on one incarnation of the Guardians while another began, paired with a good amount of humor as the Earth-based hero acquainted himself with space.
Avengers #213
While Hank Pym's personality had been known to explore the dark side of neuroticism, it crossed a line in Avengers #213, when he underwent a court-martial for "unnecessary violence" against a villain he'd already defeated (as well as for scheming to set a robot against the Avengers only he could defeat) and took his frustrations out on his wife Jan.
In a burst of anger, he appeared to backhand her while babbling inanely about her spying. Even for Pym, who was no stranger to paroxysms, spousal abuse was a hard storyline for fans to wrap their heads around, and it almost irrevocably damaged his credibility as a superhero.
Avengers: Rage Of Ultron
Avengers: Rage of Ultron devoted a massive storyline to Hank Pym and his greatest and most devious creation in Marvel Comics, Ultron. In one of the best villain introductions, Ultron was originally devised as a laboratory aid, once it realized it had self-awareness and could self-repair, it took on a unique personality that despised its creator and humankind. The arc saw Pym and Ultron get fused together, to be collectively known throughout the fandom as "Pymtron".
Suddenly every one of Hank's past mistakes was merged into a single physical reminder of his failures in the most brutal possible way. To make matters worse, Hank had to plead with the Avengers to let him continue serving on the team and convince them he wasn't a puppet of Ultron's consciousness.
Secret Empire
Over the course of Secret Wars, a storyline that saw a division between quite a few of Marvel's superheroes, Hank grew to detest all robot life, putting him in direct conflict with beings like Vision and the rest of the Avengers. By Secret Empire, Ultron and Hank Pym (Pymtron) decided to try to find a piece of the Cosmic Cube, which attracted the attention of Steve Rogers and Hydra.
Rogers wasn't the only one enticed, as the Tony Stark AI-led Avengers rebels also had an interest, and the two groups converged on Pymtron's secret location. Not only did Pymtron force the two groups to sit down to dinner, but to further complicate matters, he gave the fragment to the Avengers while at the same time agreeing to let Hydra conduct their schemes without interference.
Infinity Countdown Prime #1
In Infinity Countdown Prime #1, while the Marvel Universe was thrown into chaos over who would claim all the reconstituted Infinity stones, Pymtron got the Soul Stone by killing Magus, the evil version of Adam Warlock. However, the part of him that still had Hank Pym's soul in it was ripped out and sent spiraling off to the Soul World.
While this happened, Ultron (in the cybernetic Frankenstein that was their body) happily began the next phase of his plan; to spread a virus across the universe. It took the even more powerful, eater of stupid worlds villain, Galactus to foil Ultron and drive him away, wounded, possibly never to be reunited with his creator again.
Irredeemable Ant-Man #1
Hank Pym already established himself as an irascible, complicated superhero who, despite being one of the founders of the Avengers, had a reputation for not always being a team player. He's redeemed the Ant-Man mantle (with the help of Scott Lang, Wasp, and Cassie) in recent years, leaving space for someone truly degenerate to take it up; Eric O'Grady who, reminiscent of The Boys' MCU counterparts, used his shrinking abilities to spy on women taking showers.
In Irredeemable Ant-Man #1, O'Grady stole the prototype Ant-Man suit off of a friend who was killed in it, but not before sleeping with the friend's girlfriend, and finally becoming one of the absolute worst superheroes imaginable under the sobriquet Black Ant.
Ultimatum
Ultimatum was a tough event for any Ant-Man fan to get through given its sociopathic "hero", Ultimate Universe Hank Pym. The controversial elements of Avengers #213 took on a whole new meaning with this Ant-Man, whose insecurities around his wife's friendship with Captain America drove him to kidnap her and try to murder her by smothering her in ants and insecticide.
When Wasp eventually did get murdered in Ultimatum, Hank unleashed all of his fury on her murderer in a way that would have made even Eric O'Grady blush; he bit off Blob's head. Turning Ant-Man into a homicidal maniac was definitely subversive, but also difficult to root for considering his domestic history with Wasp.
Yellowjacket
The first Ant-Man movie in the MCU introduced the villain Yellowjacket, known to fans as one of the top antagonists for the superhero, but Yellowjacket was once one of Hank Pym's many personas when he was still cycling through suits and powers.
The Avengers #59 was the first time Yellowjacket appeared, the botched result of an experiment gone wrong, leading Hank Pym to turn into a cocky, brazen louse that allowed him to act out all of his worst impulses. Those impulses happened to be incredibly campy by today's standards, but his antics as an anti-hero were entertaining.
Ant-Man Versus Soviet Russia With A Mini-Catapult
Ant-Man took on Soviet Russia in the late '50s (all the cool superheroes were doing it) in Tales to Astonish #36, which focused on keeping precious intelligence about American Armed Forces inside the United States. Of course, the notorious Comrade X had other ideas, forcing Ant-Man to get creative.
This is the first appearance of Ant-Man's mini catapult, which lets him become Superman; in his diminutive form, he loads himself into what looks like the barrel of a gun and "shoots" himself all over town (which beats rolling on top of a mini-Coke). Luckily, his dependency on the catapult lessened over the years.
Egghead
If Ant-Man's Marvel comic villains were ranked by coolness, Egghead wouldn't top the list. Originally a government scientist in Tales to Astonish #38, he was thrown in prison but emerged well-financed and poised to become a criminal mastermind known as Egghead to the wary public.
That Ant-Man would have to match wits with a crimelord named Egghead, whose interactions put him squarely as more of a henchman or a goon to a criminal mastermind than one himself, seems strange. Particularly because an Egghead also exists as a villain in Batman's Rogue Gallery.
Ant-Man's Misogyny Against The Wasp
The Wasp might be Ant-Man's partner in crime now and one of several prominent female superheroes, but when she was introduced in Tales to Astonish #44 she was one of only a few heroines in the Marvel Universe. Ant-Man openly mocked Wasp for being typically irrational and overly emotional, but that wasn't the weirdest part.
Wasp put herself down consistently, reducing her contributions to Ant-Man's plans just so she could sit "in a room full of men." While the comic has to be looked at through the cultural context of its era, it reads incredibly awkwardly by today's standards and looks almost unrecognizable as an Ant-Man adventure today.