10 Marvel Heroes Who Took Up Another’s Mantle

A hero passing their mantle on to a successor is a common plot point in superhero comics, with Marvel’s wide cast of characters no exception to this. Plenty of the most notable legacy characters in comics, from Miles Morales’ Spider-Man to Kamala Khan’s Ms. Marvel, have made their mark as original heroes made to succeed someone who existed before them.

However, many legacy characters in the Marvel Universe were not original creations made to succeed a previous character. Many of them had their own titles and reputations as superheroes, and their effort to take on the name of a fellow hero was simply a rebranding to shake up their status quo.

10 Kurt Wagner Went From Nightcrawler To Wall-Crawler

Nightcrawler’s time as the Uncanny Spider-Man opened up a new perspective

Nightcrawler is one of the X-Men’s most iconic characters, being a common part of the team since 1975’s Giant Size X-Men #1. But, this all came to a close when Kurt Wagner left Krakoa following his forced heel turn at the hands of Orchis, taking up the identity of Spider-Man to replace his X-Men ties.

Near the end of the Krakoa era, Orchis— the evil organization seeking to eradicate mutants— manipulated Nightcrawler, forcing him to turn evil and assassinate three anti-mutant-kind government officials. Following this, Kurt abandoned Krakoa, turning instead to protect the mutants of New York who Orchis’ Sentinels were now hunting. However, Nightcrawler’s identity gave away his mutant identity, making him untrustworthy and an easy target. And so, Kurt got an old suit from Peter Parker and became a brand new Spider-Man. He eventually retired his new alter ego, though it helped offer a new perspective to being a street-level hero.

She joined the Guardians after starting a long-distance relationship with Peter Quill

Author Brian Michael Bendis’s fondness for the character of Kitty Pryde is no secret, so readers weren’t too surprised when she joined the Guardians of the Galaxy during his time writing the team. However, what did shock writers wasn’t Kitty’s placement on the team, it was her role— as the new Star-Lord.

After her venture into space to save her then-boyfriend Peter Quill from mercenaries, Kitty is proposed to by the Star-Lord. After accepting the proposal, Kitty would marry him soon after— however, Peter would learn that he was to be the next King of the Spartax Empire, abandoning his post as Star-Lord to take up the throne. And so, Kitty took her husband’s name, becoming the next Star-Lord and traveling with the Guardians of the Galaxy for a short period of time. Kitty would then leave Peter, abandon her role as Star-Lord, and go home to Earth to lead the X-Men upon return.

8 Ant-Man Became The Wasp In Mourning

Dr. Henry Pym abandoned his former alter egos to take up his ex-wife’s mantle

Hank Pym is a Marvel character notorious for jumping from identity to identity over the years, each one as infamous as his original moniker as the first Ant-Man. Pym has gone from Giant-Man to Goliath, Yellowjacket, and even the fearsome robot Ultron. But one of his more recent name changes was quite different, as it honored the mantle of a hero he was incredibly close to— The Wasp.

While the two were separated long before the events of Secret Invasion, with Hank impersonated by a Skrull during the event, it did not make Janet’s apparent death any less heartbreaking for Hank. In his grief, he’d take on his ex-wife’s mantle and use it to found the Mighty Avengers in her name alongside the android Jocasta.

7 Spider-Woman Gained Insight As Madame Web

Julia Carpenter’s psionic abilities were given a major prophetic upgrade

There have been many spider-themed superheroes running amok in the Marvel Universe, with Julia Carpenter as one of the first few in the role of the second Spider-Woman. Despite being a staple of the original Secret Wars — so much so that her costume at the time even inspired the look of Spider-Man’s iconic symbiote suit — Julia would slowly fade in relevancy over the years until the tragic events of “Grim Hunt.”

“Grim Hunt” was the attempt by the Kravinoff family to revive its patriarch, Kraven the Hunter, by sacrificing several of Marvel’s spider-themed heroes. Julia Carpenter, Anya Corazon, and the original Madame Web were all caught in the crossfire after the deaths of Kaine Parker and Mattie Franklin, with Madame Web tragically dying as well. In her final breaths, the clairvoyant passed on her psychic powers to Julia, transforming her into the new Madame Web so that she might guide Spider-Man.

6 Hawkeye Grew, Both Literally and Figuratively, As Goliath

Clint Barton has used a few different alter egos that were borrowed from others

As a long-running member of the Avengers, Clint Barton has always been seen as an incredibly valued team member. However, there was a period of time when Marvel’s most notable bow-slinger felt rather inadequate and took up another mantle to make up for it.

After a malfunction with his bow and arrows left him unable to help the Avengers on a mission, Hawkeye felt he wasn’t cut out for the team as its only powerless member. As he grappled with this insecurity, he learned Black Widow needed rescue and had an idea to save the secret agent properly. He stole a supply of growth Pym particles that Hank Pym was no longer using due to his recent heel turn. He also modified Pym’s old Goliath costume and took the mantle himself. This wasn’t a temporary change, as Barton would become the size-shifting hero for another three years.

5 Ben Reilly’s Growth Was Sensational

Peter Parker’s clone took over as Spider-Man on more than one occasion before tragedy struck

In the 1970s, readers were introduced to the Clone Spider-Man, a one-off antagonist-turned-ally believed to have died while fighting Peter Parker. Despite supposedly dying due to the machinations of his creator, The Jackal, the clone would return in the ’90s. He named himself Ben Reilly, bringing with him one of the messiest storylines— and one of the greatest character arcs— in comic history.

Ben Reilly adopted the superhero identity of Scarlet Spider and worked alongside Spider-Man for a brief period. However, Peter realized he and his pregnant wife, Mary Jane, needed a calmer life, putting faith in Ben to protect New York when they moved to Portland. Ben spent some time as Spider-Man before Peter Parker returned, and he died again. However, Reilly would again return to the role of Scarlet Spider and then Spider-Man when he started working for the Beyond Corporation. Unfortunately, that ended in tragedy, and he abandoned his more famous mantle to become the dangerous villain known as Chasm.

4 Punisher Ascended As The Cosmic Ghost-Rider

Frank Castle became a Spirit of Vengeance and gained the Power Cosmic in a dark reality

Frank Castle is a character known for having gone through undeniable torment due to the death of his family. Yet, his suffering was compounded in an alternate universe where Thanos had destroyed all life on Earth. After the Punisher died in the Mad Titan’s invasion, he signed a deal with Mephisto to become the new Ghost Rider and slaughter Thanos, hellbent on getting revenge on the being who decimated his world.

A tragic spiral of events ensued in which Thanos had left Earth barren, causing Castle to lose his mind from loneliness. He’d be spared when Galactus came to consume the dead world and was recruited as the galactic being’s herald, elevated as the Cosmic Ghost Rider. Castle would go on to explore the galaxy and have his revenge on Thanos, eventually having to watch after an infant version of the Mad Titan before moving to the mainstream Marel universe.

3 Elektra Became One With Daredevil

She embraced the heroic mantle of Matt Murdock to protect Hell’s Kitchen in his stead

Elektra and Daredevil’s relationship has been rocky over the years, but in Chip Zdarsky’s Daredevil the couple came together— both in marriage and identity. Despite never truly being a superhero, Elektra gave up her more violent and murderous ways to don the mantle of Daredevil, honoring her true love.

After accidentally killing a random criminal, Matt Murdock was sentenced to years in prison, leaving Hell’s Kitchen without its devil. However, Elektra Natchios took up the task. Noticing the good her past love had done for his city, Elektra internalized his teachings and ways of non-lethal justice, donning the mask and “DD” logo as the new Daredevil, Woman Without Fear— she even went as far to blunt the end of her sai as to not leave criminals with stab wounds. This decision by Elektra led to her and Matt’s marriage as they formed a brand new ninja clan known as The Fist that they ruled together as Daredevil.

2 Falcon Became An All-New Captain America

Sam Wilson followed in the footsteps of his former partner as a new Sentinel of Liberty

The All-New, All-Different Marvel initiative was a lineup of projects that shook up the status quo of practically every major character in the Marvel universe, from established heroes getting revamped to new legacies being established. Sam Wilson was one of the characters who benefited from this era the most, appointed as the new Captain America.

The circumstances for Sam taking on the mantle of Captain America were slightly different than how the MCU presented it in the Disney+ show Falcon and the Winter Soldier, though the base idea overlapped. Steve Rodgers needed to step down from wielding his shield, as the Super-Soldier Serum within his body had been neutralized— causing the hero to rapidly age to around 90. While he’d go on to become a S.H.I.E.L.D. operative, he passed the mantle onto Sam, his closest friend. Sam briefly returned to his Falcon alter ego, though he later rejoined Steve Rogers in the shared role.

1 Ms. Marvel Ranked Up To Become Captain Marvel

Captain America helped push Carol Danvers into finally taking on the role of her mentor, Mar-Vell

While fans of the Marvel Cinematic Universe might know Carol Danvers as Captain Marvel, the heroine didn’t always go by that name. Originally, Carol was the first Ms. Marvel, the original Captain Marvel’s sidekick— and she wasn’t even his initial replacement.

When Carol was operating as Binary— and as a member of the Starjammers— she was informed that the original Captain Marvel, Mar-Vell, had tragically passed on from cancer. Monica Rambeau took over as the new Captain Marvel for years afterward. It wouldn’t be until decades later when Tony Stark called upon Carol— who had recently returned to being Ms. Marvel after a brief stint as Warbird— to join an Anti-Phoenix Task Force. After urging from another Avenger, Carol ditched her iconic black leotard for a modern red and blue costume and took on the name of Captain Marvel.