The 9 Most Underrated Marvel Heroes Co-Created by Stan Lee

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Stan Lee is, easily, without a doubt, one of the most influential creative masterminds in history. He’s known for creating some of the most popular and profitable characters in fiction, like Spider-Man, Captain America, Iron Man, Black Panther, Hulk, The Fantastic Four, and so many more of Marvel’s most popular superheroes who currently and always have had the world in a chokehold.

While he may be most well-known for creating Marvel’s biggest masterpieces, Lee also created some other heroes that are also wonderful and absurdly underrated. Pretty much any character created in the earliest days of Timely/Marvel Comics was co-created by Stan Lee and whatever artist he was working with at the time.Thus, there are an absurd plethora of characters that Stan Lee and others created that deserve way more recognition. This list will showcase the most underrated characters co-created by Stan Lee, based on their characterization and place in Marvel’s larger world.

9

Jack Frost (Isabrot)

First Appearance: U.S.A. Comics #1 (1941)

The Jack Frost from the Marvel Comics world is nothing like the version of Jack Frost most people probably think about when they hear the name. Typically depicted as a cheeky embodiment of cold and winter who brings the frost and snow each year, the traditional Jack Frost would be very confused at the origin of his Marvel Comics counterpart. Also known as Isabrot, the comic book iteration of the character is the son of an Elder God and an Ice Giant. Sworn to fight Ymir’s Iceworms his whole life, Isabrot was eventually struck down by Ymir and fell to the Earth’s Arctic. It was there he’d meet Thor and join the catalog of Marvel Comics superheroes.

His abilities are pretty similar to those of his from mythology. Isabrot can control cold temperatures, wind, snow, and ice; he’s capable of sleet generation and teleportation (via ice) and has the traditional superhuman physiology that comes with his heritage. Isabrot commonly creates weapons like swords from ice and has non-powered abilities like being proficient in combat. Before the X-Men were going to be making their way to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Jack Frost would’ve been a perfect replacement for the lack of an Iceman.

8

The Human Torch (Jim Hammond)

First Appearance: Marvel Comics #1 (1939)

While some may think of The Fantastic Four’s Johnny Storm as being the one and only Human Torch from the Marvel Universe, there was one that came far before him. The Jim Hammond version of The Human Torch is actually the very first Marvel superhero created. Jim Hammond, an android who could burst into flames if he induced some oxygen.

Hammond was actually part of Marvel’s original superhero team, The Invaders, with Captain America, Bucky Barnes, Toro, and Namor the Sub-Mariner. Despite barely being known by the mass public, Jim Hammond is one of the most influential Marvel superheroes, fading into obscurity by the 1950s. He was shown in Captain America: The First Avenger, hinting that he was active during the MCU’s World War II. Maybe this obscure character will get a movie or be featured in one someday.

7

Man-Thing (Theodore Sallis)

First Appearance: Savage Tales #1 (1971)

Going from being a biochemistry professor at Empire State University to later becoming the Man-Thing is quite a life to live, and that just so happens to Theodore Sallis. He’s just now gaining some slight recognition, thanks to his inclusion in the MCU Disney+ Special Werewolf by Night. However, Man-Thing is still deemed an underrated character, given that his role is so small, and he hasn’t been featured since.

Man-Thing is an incredibly cool character, too, as he’s the guard of the Nexus of All Realities — a multiversal gateway in the Marvel Universe (most notably seen in What If…? as The Watcher’s (Jeffrey Wright) place of residence). Man-Thing also happens to be a great fit for the MCU’s potential Midnight Sons team, so here’s hoping we actually get to see him again sooner rather than later.

6

Swordsman (Jacques DuQuesne)

First Appearance: Avengers #19 (1965)

Swordsman is another character that recently got some attention for his role in the Disney+ miniseries Hawkeye, played by Tony Dalton. However, most people didn’t even put it together that he was a character from the comics before the show. It’s super cool that he was given a cameo in Daredevil: Born Again, but he’s still next to unknown to the general public.

In the comics, Swordman has a wonderful character arc, going from an early Avengers villain to someone who gets redemption.He didn’t even need powers to give Earth’s Mightiest Heroes a boatload of trouble. Swordman is simply a guy who’s a peak athlete and master combatant and the best of the best with a sword. The MCU could use more street-level figures like him.

5

MACH (Mk I – X) & Beetle (Abner Jenkins)

First Appearance: Strange Tales #123 (1964)

Abner Jenkins is a villain who also had an incredibly compelling redemption arc. Abner Jenkins began his career as Beetle, a consistent villain of the web-headed hero, Spider-Man, and even duked it out with The Fantastic Four and Iron Man. His villainy would be tested after both the Avengers and The Fantastic Four disappeared at the hands of Onslaught and Baron Zemo formed the Marvel Universe’s next team: The Thunderbolts.

It would be during his time on The Thunderbolts that he would take on the Mobile Armored Cyber-Harness (MACH) and turn to the side of heroism after his first outing with the team. Everyone loves a good redemption story, and Abner Jenkins’ is a great one. He could be a perfect fit for a future lineup in the MCU’s Thunderbolts* assuming the movie does good enough numbers to warrant a sequel.

4

Hercules Panhellenios

First Appearance: Young Allies #16 (1945)

Like Jack Frost, pretty much everyone knows Hercules. However, the Marvel Universe differs again by changing the demigod’s story and lore to something unique. While Hercules lived his life as a demigod in Greek mythology, Marvel took this piece of the myth a step further.

In the comics universe, Hercules was resurrected after his death by Zeus and given full godhood. He consistently teams up (or butts heads) with Thor and was even hinted in a post-credits scene that was never followed up on in Thor: Love and Thunder. For a character that’s so famous around the world for his mythology, it’s wild that Hercules is so underrated in the Marvel Comics universe.

3

Wonder Man (Simon Williams)

First Appearance: Avengers #9 (1964)

Despite receiving an upcoming Disney+ series set to premiere this year, pretty much no one in the general audience has any idea who Wonder Man is. It’s a shame because Simon Williams has an absurdly long list of powers that would simply be a paragraph to list out. He’s astoundingly powerful and is going to be an essential addition to the MCU.

For a being as strong as he is, it’s surprising that Wonder Man hasn’t found as much popularity in the comics as other heroes. One can only hope that Stan Lee’s creation introduced in Avengers #9 (1964) will get the recognition he deserves in his upcoming series because he’s a fascinating character with deep ties to some of Marvel’s most important heroes.

2

Captain Marvel (Mar-Vell)

First Appearance: Marvel Super-Heroes #12 (1967)

To MCU-only watchers, the only Captain Marvel titleholder out there is Carol Danvers (Brie Larson). In the comics, though, the name Captain Marvel belonged to another hero for a very long time before Carol made her big debut and even further before she took on the title. Mar-Vell was a Kree who went on to become the superhero known as Captain Marvel.

He’s a very powerful warrior who, for quite some time, was one of Marvel’s best heroes and had an intense rivalry with Thanos. He would hand the title on to Carol Danvers later on. Unfortunately for fans of the character and his status as an underrated hero, the MCU film Captain Marvel made it impossible to adapt him to film using his original storyline. Maybe fans will get to see him in Avengers: Secret Wars?

1

The Prowler & The New Hornet (Hobie Brown)

First Appearance: Amazing Spider-Man #78 (1969)

The world currently knows The Prowler as Aaron Davis, thanks to the Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse franchise. However, his underrated predecessor, Hobie Brown, is a villain-turned-hero who is even more impactful than Davis to the Spider-Man mythology. Hobie was the original man to wear the Prowler costume but would later go on to don a new suit as The New Hornet. After being stopped by Spider-Man, he would continue forward to do some wonderful things for both the Marvel Universe and Spider-Man, specifically.

Although he retired from his original mantle, Brown would continue to help Spidey by impersonating him a few times to save Peter’s identity. The mantle didn’t stay down consistently, though. He’d wear the mask again multiple times to go after Spider-Man after the world believed the hero murdered Captain Stacy, and he’d take up arms again when imposters would take his name. In recent books, when the lord of the Symbiotes, Knull, took over Manhattan, Brown became The New Hornet, giving him a new start. While people love Aaron Davis, and he’s been hinted at in the MCU, Hobie Brown would also be a perfect addition to Spider-Man 4.

NEXT: 10 Obscure Bits of Marvel Lore That the MCU Actually Used

“}]] Stan Lee is behind many iconic Marvel heroes, but some of his best co-creations, like Man-Thing and Wonder Man, have gotten lost in the crowd.  Read More