Forgotten Marvel Comics Superheroes That Deserve To Be In The MCU

1999's "Earth X," by Jim Krueger and John Paul Leon, offers a grim vision of the Marvel universe's future. It also introduces a uniquely enigmatic Daredevil, who provides some much-needed comic relief. The 2020 series "Marvels X," by Krueger and Well-Bee, fleshes out his real name and origin story. But let's face it: When someone says "Marvel's Daredevil," they're talking about Matt Murdock, or potentially Elektra Natchios. They're almost never talking about immortal jester David Jarrett, the Daredevil of "Earth X."

Jarrett is a performer in the spirit of Evel Knievel who repeatedly stages his own gruesome death to the nihilistic delight of circus crowds. Decapitation and severe burns are no big deal for him — this Daredevil's superpowers are regeneration and resurrection. This is pretty ironic, because, as he tells everyone constantly, his greatest wish is to experience the sweet relief of death. He's kind of like Deadpool, except even more unpleasant. Just imagine this Dormammu-faced goofball begging Doctor Doom to rip him in half like a phonebook in a massive crossover movie like "Secret Wars III." It's potentially classic, no? 

Basically an updated version of Joe Simon and Jack Kirby's Captain 3-D from the 1950s, 3-D Man came to fruition in 1977's "Marvel Premiere" #35. He wields the strength and speed of a normal person, multiplied by three. While it might've been neat for him to live up to his name and leap off the page at readers who observe his exploits behind disposable 3D glasses, 3D comics have never quite managed to become commercially viable. Audiences have been tossing down extra dollars to watch blockbuster films in 3D at theaters for decades, however. Attempt to turn 3-D Man into a comic book star would be a pretty dumb move on Marvel's part, at this point ... But bringing him into the MCU? That's a different story. 

Imagine a new Avenger who can only be seen clearly through the classic red-and-blue plastic lenses. Or, perhaps he could appear on a Disney+ program that imports the 3D movie theater experience into your very own living room. If 3-D Man offers the MCU a chance to do something creative with its respective mediums, who cares if he was ever a stupid idea? Everyone would be having too much fun watching him pop off the screen to notice.

Among the many prominent Spider-Man storylines of the '90s, 1993's "Maximum Carnage" and 1994's "The Clone Saga" easily overshadow 1995's "The Great Game." Perhaps the concept was ahead of its time: Here in the 2020s, where superheroes have been thoroughly commodified and billionaires shoot themselves into orbit, a story about bored wealthy people placing bets on costumed adventurers fighting to the death seems a natural fit.

Most of the titular Great Game's participants, including Polestar, Joystick, and Tremolo, scan a little too one-dimensional and derivative to warrant a live-action iteration. While you could accuse El Toro Negro's creators of borrowing more than a little inspiration from Bane, Batman's least-favorite muscle-bound demagogue, we think the MCU could use a little Santa Priscan energy. El Toro Negro is tough, mean, arrogant, and much more interested in getting paid than destroying the universe. He's certainly a villain as long as he's in the employ of Justin Hammer, but a screen version could just as easily fight on the angels' side if, let's say, Pepper Potts ever needs some folks roughed up.  

Brain Drain is a literal brain and pair of eyeballs floating in a glass bowl attached to a robot body. It is deeply regrettable that he began his career in 19775's "Invaders" #2 as a WWII supervillain, but he's long since realized the error of his ways and undergone multiple personality overhauls. In his most recent appearances in Ryan North, Erica Henderson, and Derek Charm's award-winning series, "The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl," Brain Drain is firmly on the side of Squirrel Girl's anti-evil efforts ... despite his penchant for indulging in nihilistic, fatalistic philosophy. 

As we are all but specks in the galaxy, our lives mere seconds relative to the infinite totality of time, someone in the MCU needs to ask an important question: What is the meaning of wearing garish costumes and battling back existential threats from the cosmos? Otherwise, the MCU is in danger of becoming a mere spectacle of colorful characters punching and blasting each other for no purpose other than our own infantile amusement. 

Okay, yeah, we'll admit that's actually what we all come to the MCU for. But Brain Drain's existential musings make him a one-of-a-kind character with enormous potential. "Squirrel Girl" proves how absolutely hilarious he can be: Just imagine him teaching an "applied existentialism" class to Peter Parker and his school chums.

When Barbara Gordon regained the use of her legs and reclaimed the mantle of Batgirl via the New 52, DC Comics' 2011 line-wide relaunch, it was neat to have the original Batgirl back. The only problem was, DC threw away Oracle, the prominent and beloved disabled superhero she had become in the process. Meanwhile, the MCU suffers from a significant lack of disabled representation. Maybe that'll change in the foreseeable future (via Variety), but as of this moment, the issue persists.   

As it happens, Marvel Comics includes a handful of disabled superheroes in its vast roster of intellectual properties. Silhouette of the New Warriors is probably too well-known to call "forgotten," so let us instead gesture towards Alpha Flight's Box, aka Roger Bochs. Bochs, whose legs were amputated below the knee at an unknown point in his life, controls a Hulkbuster-style robot named Box with a sci-fi hat. Thus, Bochs protects the nation of Canada in entirely unparalleled style. That's an idea bursting with creative potential on its own – plus, "Box" is an excellent name for a superhero. It's both accurate and eerily ambiguous, in addition to being a solid bit of wordplay.

A person could argue that Marvel's version of Hercules isn't completely "forgotten." As a member of the team in the ongoing 2020 "Guardians of the Galaxy" comic series, written by Al Ewing and drawn by Juan Frigeri, he's prominently featured in one of the publisher's premiere team titles. But Herc is still somehow only really known to die-hard comics nerds, and has yet to make his MCU debut. That should be corrected sooner rather than later: If we've learned anything from Chris Hemsworth's Thor, it's that modern audiences love a muscle-bound lunkhead with a heart of gold.

Stan Lee and Jack Kirby unleashed their spin on the legendary mythological figure in 1965's "Journey into Mystery Annual" #1. He's been an on-and-off member of the Avengers throughout the decades since, and always a whole lot of fun. Shortly after the start of his tenure with the Guardians, he begins dating Noh-Varr, aka Marvel Boy. Somehow, an Olympian demigod with a Kree warrior from another dimension scans as a drama-free relationship, compared to standard Guardians of the Galaxy-related romances. The fact that Hercules works in this context, so different from his original environs, is a testament to the character's charisma. It's time to use it to light up the big screen.

In a dark alternate future, morally ambiguous science creates a procedure to grant superpowers to folks in their late teens or early 20s. But there's a catch: The "Morituri Process" kills the beneficiary at the end of 12 months, if not sooner. Humanity needs these prefabricated superheroes to fend off malevolent space invaders, but the predetermined nature of their destinies hangs over them like a thundercloud. This creates an emotional dynamic that's pretty unique to comic book team-up stories. Think of Strikeforce: Morituri as the inverse of the Eternals, or maybe as a depressing Suicide Squad.

"Strikeforce: Morituri," a late '80s departure into hard sci-fi, doesn't take place in the mainstream Marvel universe. While the MCU has started exploring its own complex multiverse, the Morituris might be too much of a downer for its generally family-friendly approach. Then again, the last time the MCU went darker and weirder, it basically won pandemic-era TV with "WandaVision." Maybe there's room for Strikeforce: Morituri after all — high-concept, heart-breaking room.

A celebrity musician headlining a comic book series is not as bonkers as you might assume. In fact, Neil Gaiman wrote an Alice Cooper series in the mid-'90s, and it came out pretty okay! Sadly, this was not the case for most of Marvel's music-related projects of the era, particularly the publisher's effort to turn "Achy Breaky Heart" singer Billy Ray Cyrus into a sequential art star.

But whether or not the book sold is beside the point. What matters is that Billy Ray Cyrus is a canonical Marvel Comics superhero, and a forgotten one at that. While Cyrus faltered as a comics character, he's done well as an actor, showing up frequently on both scripted and reality TV shows. Though his film resume is fairly short, he did pitch in a small but memorable part in 2001's "Mulholland Drive." His career has added up to a huge cultural footprint: An entire generation grew up with him on "Hannah Montana," and the whole world spent most of 2019 singing along with him and Lil Nas X on "Old Town Road." You can't tell us people wouldn't gasp in delight to see him step into frame beside Peter Parker — the absurdity alone would be worth the price of admission.