Marvel’s Red Guardian, Explained

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Alexei Shostakov, also known as the Red Guardian, first appeared in 1967’s Avengers #43 (by Roy Thomas and John Buscema) and has since been a soldier, hero, villain, and everything in between. While only appearing in a handful of comics, the Red Guardian’s inclusion in 2021’s Black Widow, depicted by Stranger Things star David Harbour, has brought Alexei back into the spotlight.

The MCU version of Alexei shares some personality traits with his comic book counterpart, but the two characters are vastly different. Usually being linked with Black Widow, the popularity of Harbour’s portrayal and his inclusion in the 2023 Thunderbolts series (by Jackson Lanzing, Collin Kelly, Geraldo Borges, and Joe Sabino), as well as the upcoming Thunderbolts* film, might be a sign of readers seeing much more of Alexei Shostakov in Marvel Comics.

The Red Guardian is A Decorated Hero of the Soviet Union

Alexei was the USSR’s Ultimate Soldier

Alexei Shostakov began his career as a test pilot and quickly proved himself to be the best the Soviets could offer. He was chosen to take on their most dangerous and top-secret missions. Being hailed as a hero, Alexei achieved a semi-celebrity status and married a famous ballerina named Natalia Romanova.

Given Alexei’s impressive covert achievements, the KGB recruited the soldier as the new Red Guardian. It forced him to break all contact with everyone he knew, including his wife, Natalia. Believing Alexei was dead, Natalia was recruited into the Black Widow program and later became the famous Black Widow of the Avengers. Meanwhile, Alexei underwent intense physical and mental training, making him a cold and ruthless weapon for the Soviet Union.

The Red Guardian Meets Captain America

Alexei’s First Mission as Red Guardian Didn’t Go As Planned

Years later, the Red Guardian was sent on a mission to aid the Chinese military with a new weapon capable of causing mass hallucinations in an attempt to take out the United States. During the mission, Alexei met with his ex-wife, Natalia.

S.H.I.E.L.D. sent her along with Hercules and Hawkeye to destroy the Chinese weapon. After revealing himself to Black Widow, the Avengers come to Natalia’s rescue, and Red Guardian fought Captain America, determined to prove himself to be the better soldier. Black Widow destroyed the weapon, and Alexei put himself between her and a bullet, realizing he still loved Natalia.

The Russians would later use Alexei as the model for their Life-Model Decoys. Still, the Soviet soldier would eventually return as the secret mastermind in a plot to have the Black Widow handed over to the government of Bulgaria. Alexei would escape S.H.I.E.L.D. custody and return as the assassin, Ronin, as part of the Dark Ocean Society, before being captured again.

While in S.H.I.E.L.D. custody, Alexei was then broken out by Black Widow Yelena Belova, who he then joined on a mission to destroy hard drives containing USSR secrets. After a run-in with the Winter Guard and Dracula, Alexei betrays Yelena but ultimately loses the hard drive and heads off to Madripoor. Alexei would lie low until recently resurfacing to join Bucky Barnes’s Thunderbolts in an assault on Red Skull’s castle and is currently still with the team.

Red Guardian’s Powers and Abilities

Alexei may not be a Super Soldier in the comics, but he is more than capable

Unlike his MCU counterpart, Alexei is not a super soldier in the comics. While still created to be the Russian counter to Captain America, The Red Guardian possesses no superhuman abilities besides his own athleticism and training.

Before becoming the Red Guardian, Alexei was considered the best pilot in the Soviet Union. He was trained in multiple forms of hand-to-hand combat and espionage after being recruited by the KGB. Alexei also donned the Red Guardian’s shield, originally worn by the fourth Red Guardian Josef Petkus, which was later cast in Vibranium.

While The Most Known, Alexei Was Not the First Red Guardian

Eight People Have Taken On The Mantle Throughout the Characters’ History

While Alexei Shostakov has become the most well-known Red Guardian to fans of the MCU, the Red Guardian is a mantle passed on to many different people over the years. Alexei wasn’t even the first to hold the title, with the Russian soldier Aleksey Lebedev being the first to take on the name during World War II. After failing to secure a stronghold for Hitler, Lebedev fought alongside Wiliam Nasland/Captain America and Namor in the Postdam Conference in 1945.

After Alexei seemingly died, daughter of Dr. Andrei Belinsky’s daughter, Tania Belinskaya, became the leader of the Soviet dissident movement. When Dr. Belinsky was sent to Siberia for publicly criticizing the Soviet Union, Tania took on the mantle of the Red Guardian to free him and fight for others affected by the oppressive regime. Tania would operate as the Red Guardian for some time, even joining the Defenders in 1976’s The Defenders #36 (by Steve Gerber, Mary Skrenes, Sal Buscema, Klaus Johnson, and Joe Rosen). Belinsky later returned to Russia, and after an encounter with the villain Presence, she became composed of pure nuclear energy and took on the name Starlight.

The fourth person to take on the Red Guardian mantle was Josef Petkus, a special operative of the Soviet Union and member of the Supreme Soviets who acted as the Soviet’s version of the Avengers. After the fall of the Soviet Union, Petkus led a new group called the People’s Protectorate and teamed up with the Avengers and Alpha Flight. The People’s Protectorate eventually became the Winter Guard, and Josef took on the new title of Steel Guardian. After Petkus became the Steel Guardian, Krassno Granitsky would briefly take on the mantle in 1998’s Maverick #10 (by Jorge Gonzales, Leo Fernandez, Andrew Pepoy, Kevin Somers, and Chris Eliopoulos). His career was short-lived, and he was killed in the first issue of Ed Brubaker’s 2004 Captain America series.

After Alexei’s likeness was used for the Life Model Decoy robot that became the fifth Red Guardian, the mantle was passed to an engineer and member of the Winter Guard named Anton. Anton used his engineering skills to transfer his mind into Alexei’s Life Model Decoy and become the seventh Red Guardian. Anton would fight with the Winter Guard for some time and defended Russia from the Skrull Invasion in 2008’s Iron Man: Director of S.H.I.E.L.D. #34 (by Chris N. Gage, Sean Chen, Sandu Florea, Jay David Ramos, and Joe Caramagna).

After Anton’s death in 2010’s Darkstar and the Winter Guard #3 (by David Gallaher, Steve Ellis, Scott Hanna, Vale Staples, and Scott O.Brown), fellow Winter Guard teammate and Russian super-soldier Nikolai Krylenko, a mutant who was known as Vanguard, became the eighth Red Guardian for a time. Shortly after, Krylenko took back the name Vanguard but kept the Red Guardian suit and shield when Alexei Shostakov reclaimed the title.

Alexei Shostakov In the MCU

MCU Red Guardian is very different from the comics

While sharing some similarities, Alexei’s story in the MCU is very different from the comics. In the MCU, Alexi was not a pilot but an agent for the Soviet Armed Forces during the Cold War. Shostakov received the only Russian-recreated Super Soldier Serum, which gave him incredible strength and endurance similar to Captain America’s, and he became the Red Guardian. As the Red Guardian, Alexei became a celebrated national celebrity and was beloved by the public.

Once the Soviet Union collapsed, the Red Guardian was no longer needed. Alexei was assigned to be a covert agent in Ohio along with Black Widow agent Melina Voastokoff by General Dreykov. The pair disguised themselves as an all-American family with two kids, Natasha Romanoff and Yelena Belova. After achieving their mission, Alexei was betrayed by Dreykov and sent to prison, while Natasha and Yelena were sent to the Red Room to be trained as Widows.

Years later, Natasha and Yelena break Alexei out of prison, and he takes up the title of Red Guardian once more to aid them in taking down Dreykov and the Red Room. After their victory, Alexei is last seen flying off with Melina and Yelena as Natasha goes into government custody.

Red Guardian’s Role in Thunderbolts*

The Red Guardian returns with an all-new team of misfits

Marvel’s Thunderbolts* will see the return of the Red Guardian, teaming up with some of Marvel’s more morally gray characters, including Yelena Belova and Bucky Barnes, the Winter Soldier. While the full extent of his role in the film is unknown, the Thunderbolts* trailer shows fans that Yelena recruits Alexei from his dirty apartment to join the Thunderbolts.

This first glimpse of the character seems to be pulling from his comic appearance in the 2021 Winter Guard miniseries (by Ryan Cady, Djibril Morissette-Phan, Jan Bazaldua, Federico Blee, and Ariana Maher). In the series, Yelena similarly recruits Alexei for a mission to steal USSR military records involving Alexei as well as her recruitment of him to the Thunderbolts in the 2023 Thunderbolt series (by Jackson Lanzing, Collin Kelly, Geraldo Borges, and Joe Sabino).

With Alexei being a super soldier in the MCU, it will be interesting for fans to dig deeper into his unknown history as the Red Guardian and what he’s been up to for the past ten years since the events of Black Widow.

“}]] The Red Guardian is the Soviet Union’s answer to Captain America in Marvel Comics and is much different than his on-screen counterpart.  Read More