Every week, a secret cabal of Marvel staffers gathers to discuss the best of the best when it comes to the House of Ideas.
Father's Day may be quite a ways away, but this week two of Marvel's wildest sets of dads and their sons celebrate in their own unique fashion as Wolverine and Daken clash with Bruce Banner and Skaar in the pages of INCREDIBLE HULK #603.
While the clawed dudes have their game of "catch" with those gamma-irradiated behemoths, the Secret Cabal got the idea to collect the other father-son duos they enjoy reading about.
For each pairing you get the quick rundown as well as a special spotlight comic courtesy of Marvel Digital Comics Unlimited.
As always, these picks reflect the personal choices of the Secret Cabal, not the official opinion of Marvel or Marvel.com, and can be considered subjective at best. Enjoy!
10. MAR-VELL & GENIS-VELL
First Appearance Together: Never
Relationship: Growing up, Genis-Vell had no knowledge of his deceased father's heroic exploits as Captain Marvel, but upon learning of his legacy, abandoned his life of leisure to become a cosmic champion in his own right. Until his own death, Genis looked to Mar-Vell as a role model and example as he upheld the name of Captain Marvel.
Why They Make the List: Imagine you're a fairly ambitionless teenager who prefers to spend his time chasing girls than saving kittens, until one day you get the new broken to you that your father was one of the universe's greatest heroes and sacrificed his life in the service of good-that would change your perspective a bit, no? So went the story of Genis-Vell, and his years-long quest to live up to the impossible benchmark set by his father, one that made us laugh, cry, cheer and despair, as he came so close so many times, but could never quite measure up in the eyes of the universe, though he was certainly a hero to us.
Spotlight Comic: CAPTAIN MARVEL #11 (2000)-Genis-Vell encounters his supposedly deceased dad!
9. THE KINGPIN & THE ROSE
First Appearance Together: AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #83 (1970)
Relationship: As a youth, Richard Fisk looked up to and admired his father-though he would sometimes abuse him-until learning of his true occupation and growing to hate him. Richard became the Schemer and later the Rose in attempts to destroy the Kingpin, and though he ultimately failed, he did earn some modicum of his father's respect. When Richard died at the hands of his mother following another failed coup of his father, Wilson Fisk did mourn his son.
Why They Make the List: At his best, the Kingpin has seemed untouchable, with even Spider-Man and Daredevil unable to take him down for good, so to see him nearly fall several times at the hands of his scorned son had a certain poetry to it. At the same time, Richard Fisk will always be a tragic character who drowned in his family's shadow and couldn't find a way to make up for the sins of the father without committing far too many of his own along the way.
Spotlight Comic: DAREDEVIL #26 (2001)-Richard Fisk employs his old friend Sammy Silke in his latest attempt to overthrow his father's criminal empire!
8. ARES & PHOBOS
First Appearance Together: ARES #1 (2006)
Relationship: Ares left his life as the God of War behind and only resumed the persona in order to save his son, Alex, from the clutches of evil Japanese gods. Though he has shown himself to be a harsh disciplinarian as one might expect given his own upbringing, there's no question Ares truly loves his son and would do anything to protect him. Alex cares for his father as well, though his frequent absences have led the boy to find something of a surrogate family in the Secret Warriors and opened something of a rift between the two gods.
Why They Make the List: When you've got the God of War, you're not expecting to see a lot of tenderness and affection, but Ares' fatherly devotion to his young son is both surprising and touching, not mention that it adds countless layers to the big guy with the Mohawk. However, now that Alex has come of age after a fashion and joined the Secret Warriors as Phobos, God of Fear, we're looking forward to seeing how immortals deal with adolescent rebellion.
Spotlight Comic: ARES #5-he God of War must battle his son in order to save him!
7. VENOM & CARNAGE
First Appearance Together: AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #360 (1992)
Relationship: Since the moment Eddie Brock's Venom symbiote left behind the "seed" that transformed serial killer Kletus Casady into Carnage, the two have had nothing but murderous hatred for one another. Both father and son have tried to kill the other on countless occasions and can generally focus on little else but the other's death when they come in contact. Whether or not Venom has learned of Carnage's recent demise and his feelings on the matter have yet to be revealed.
Why They Make the List: When Venom first came on the scene, it seemed like there couldn't possibly be more psychotic, violent, terrifying dark mirror of our beloved Spider-Man-until Carnage come along. The single-minded rage this "father" and "son" direct at one another when they come in contact is incredibly intense and has made for some of the wildest fight scenes we've ever beheld.
Spotlight Comic: VENOM VS. CARNAGE #1-It's a symbiote showdown between "father" and "son"!
6. BARON HEINRICH ZEMO & BARON HELMUT ZEMO
First Appearance Together: Never
Relationship: Little has been revealed about the relationship shared by the Barons Zemo, but given that Helmut abandoned a promising career as an engineer with the sole purpose of gaining revenge on Captain America for the death of his father and continued on this path for years, one assumes they were close.
Why They Make the List: Being a Zemo is about more than just getting a ghastly purple hood glued to your face; it's about pride, persistence and honoring your family name regardless of the lengths you have to go to. We never actually got to see the elder and younger Zemo team up, but Helmut's impressive cunning and unrivaled thirst for power unquestionably come from his father, and few have managed to bedevil Captain America quite like the Zemo family has.
Spotlight Comic: ZEMO: BORN BETTER #1-Helmut Zemo explores his family's tragic past!
5. MISTER FANTASTIC & FRANKLIN RICHARDS
First Appearance Together: FANTASTIC FOUR ANNUAL #6 (1968)
Relationship: Though he can be distant and aloof, Reed Richards cares deeply for his son, Franklin, and has always been willing to risk anything for his safety and happiness. For his part, Franklin has a healthy love for his father and even went so far as to once subconsciously create an entire alternate dimension to save him and the rest of his family from certain death.
Why They Make the List: Who has a cooler dad than Franklin Richards? Not only is Mister Fantastic arguably the smartest dude on Earth, he's not shy about using his knowledge to provide his children with rad robotic babysitters or vacations to the Old West. Sure, Reed can get tied up in his experiments and lock himself in the lab for days sometimes, but Franklin is more than precocious enough to make his own fun-and then need his pops to clean it up.
Spotlight Comic: HEROES RETURN #1-Franklin Richards attempts to pull his father back to him from a universe away!
4. ODIN & THOR (& LOKI)
First Appearance Together: JOURNEY INTO MYSTERY #86 (1962)
Relationship: Despite sharing a strong bond and deep love for one another, Odin and Thor often clashed due to their similarly tempestuous natures, at one point leading the Allfather to exile his son to Earth as a crippled mortal doctor in the hope that he would learn humility. Even after they reunited, the Asgardians would still vacillate between being allied and divided all the way until Odin's death; however, Thor has committed himself entirely to honoring his father's memory. Neither Odin nor Thor has every fully trusted the adopted Loki, despite extending him frequent olive branches only to be betrayed.
Why They Make the List: You don't think of burly Viking warriors as being the type to get mushy, but even when they're hurling Asgardian obscenities and god-powered punches at one another, Thor and Odin aren't shy about throwing their affection for each other. Odin may be a bit harsh when it comes to the tough love-most dads will send their kids to their room when they misbehave, not transform them into a scrawny physician with a bad leg-but it really is for Thor's own good. Throw the mischievous Loki in as the wild card in this fractured family tree and you've got one epic generational saga.
Spotlight Comic: THOR #353-Odin and his sons stand united against the threat of Surtur!
3. MAGNETO & QUICKSILVER
First Appearance Together: X-MEN #4 (1964)
Relationship: After Magneto saved the lives of Quicksilver and his sister, the Scarlet Witch, the young speedster served as a reluctant foot soldier in the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants, but often questioned his erstwhile leader, eventually leaving to join the heroic Avengers. Since learning of his parentage, Quicksilver has mostly continued to rebel against his father while Magneto has waffled between attempting to groom his son as a protégé and eliminate him as a legacy, but the duo has united on occasion, both in the service of good and evil.
Why They Make the List: Two of the Marvel Universe's most arrogant, aggressive alpha males, it should come as no shock that Magneto and Quicksilver share DNA and even less of one that they generally can't be in the same room without a shouting match ensuing. However, while Pietro is loath to admit it, he is his father's son, something Magneto is well aware of, which enables him to push his buttons even more easily. When these two come together, the ego clash can be entertaining, but the undercurrent is powerful.
Spotlight Comic: MAGNETO REX #2-Quicksilver challenges his father's rule of Genosha!
2. CYCLOPS & CABLE
First Appearance Together: UNCANNY X-MEN #201 (1986)
Relationship: Initially, Cable harbored great resentment towards his father for sending him into the future as a child in order to save his life. Since both learned of the full extent of their relationship, both Cyclops and Cable have made strides to become closer, though their differing methods and goals often divide them. On the whole, Cable has great respect for his father and Cyclops in turn places tremendous faith and trust in his son, whom he entrusted with safeguarding the "mutant messiah," Hope.
Why They Make the List: Truly there is no other father-son dynamic we can think of quite like Cyclops and Cable, as the son is years older than his father with more life experience and a more hardened demeanor. However, Scott Summers still commands immense respect from just about everybody who comes into contact with him, and his son is not immune to this phenomenon. There's something neat about grey-haired, scar-covered Cable getting a boyish grin when his father-who's probably young enough to be his son-tells him he's proud of him.
Spotlight Comic: CABLE #6 (2008)-Separated by centuries, Scott and Nathan Summers muse on their roles as fathers and sons.
1. NORMAN & HARRY OSBORN
First Appearance Together: AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #37 (1966)
Relationship: While Norman proved a loving and attentive father to some extent, for the first few years of Harry's life, that changed after his wife, Emily, passed away. For years now, Norman has treated his son with alternating dismissal or disdain, leaving Harry desperate to gain his cruel father's approval. After Norman's recent attempts to manipulate Harry into joining his Avengers team only to serve as a martyr and stealing his former fiancée away from him, the younger Osborn has cut all ties from his father.
Why They Make the List: You've got to feel for poor Harry Osborn, as it's tough to imagine a worse father figure than Norman Osborn. Both as the Green Goblin and himself, Norman has made the lives of Harry and just about everybody he cares about miserable-not to mention giving him that awful hair! Yet as much of a beating as Harry takes, his relationship with the old man has made for great drama, whether he's trying to get that elusive pat on the back or rebelling against Darth Norman.
Spotlight Comic: AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #568-While leading his Thunderbolts in pursuit of Spider-Man, Norman makes an unwelcome return to his son's life!
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:f2841b36fb="noona1"]Best Looking father & son goes to......(Drum Roll)................Magneto and quicksilver :magneto:[/quote:f2841b36fb]Nah, I think Best Looking should go to Venom and Carnage! :razz: :venom: :carnage:
Best Looking father & son goes to......(Drum Roll)................Magneto and quicksilver :magneto:
Not really surprised to have Daken and Logan missing.....we only have ben recently introduced to their father/son relationship whereas many of these Father/Son duos have been around for many years in the Marvel U. I think they have an interesting dynamic though, Wolverine and "Dark" Wolverine, and I think it will play out and grow more in the coming months. Especially with them supposedly ...
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Not really surprised to have Daken and Logan missing.....we only have ben recently introduced to their father/son relationship whereas many of these Father/Son duos have been around for many years in the Marvel U. I think they have an interesting dynamic though, Wolverine and "Dark" Wolverine, and I think it will play out and grow more in the coming months. Especially with them supposedly going to fight it out to the death, according to Romulus, for his "seat" of power. And with Daken's possession of his Muramasa claw, any battle with him could be Wolverine's last....and with what we've seen in comics lately, it very well is possible for Logan to "die".My fav has to be Cable and Cyclops...and I cannot wait until Cable and Hope return to the present time, to Utopia!!!!!!!!!!!
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:fb4ab59f27="stormsearcher"]lol i'm surprised to see that Wolverine and Daken weren't on there..but hey thats a good thing though=)[/quote:fb4ab59f27]Agreed. Very surprised they are not on there.
lol i'm surprised to see that Wolverine and Daken weren't on there..but hey thats a good thing though=)