5 times 'Avengers: Earth’s Mightiest Heroes' Pulled Directly from the Comics

We know what the Avengers look like up on the big screen, but what about taking the fight to the small screen? Avengers: Earth’s Mightiest Heroes did just that over the span of 52 episodes between 2010 and 2013. Spanning two seasons, the animated series brought the Avengers to life in a way we hadn’t seen before 

What made this show unique was its reverence for the source material, translating a plethora of comic book storylines into the series. With Avengers: Earth’s Mightiest Heroes now available on Disney+, let’s look at some of the comic-inspired stories you’ll get to experience again, or for the first time.

Under Siege — “Masters of Evil”

With a roster including Abomination, Crimson Dynamo, Wonder Man, Enchantress, and the Executioner, Baron Zemo leads an assault on the Avengers, almost succeeding in taking them out once and for all. This episode comes from the “Under Siege” storyline from AVENGERS #274-277, which resulted in the destruction of Avengers Mansion and Hercules beaten to the brink of death. Both the episode and comic story showed the Avengers are not an indestructible force. The fact they can bounce back from defeats like this and continue to protect the Earth is what makes them the world’s most exceptional super team.

Beta Ray Bill —  “The Ballad of Beta Ray Bill”

Go ahead and ask any Marvel fan, and you will find yourself hard-pressed to find anyone who doesn’t like Beta Ray Bill. Over the years, he has shown he is just as worthy to wield a hammer like Thor — but his is Stormbreaker. Based on his first appearance in THOR #337-338, “The Ballad of Beta Ray Bill” has Thor and Sif teaming up with Bill to stop Surtur from destroying Asgard. 

Secret Invasion — “Infiltration,” “Secret Invasion”

In 2008, the Skrulls invaded the Marvel Universe in a secret invasion. Kidnapping and replacing prominent heroes and figures with Skrulls, the alien race was almost successful in conquering the Earth once and for all. However, the combined might of Earth’s heroes was enough to put an end to the attack, but not without consequences. In the public eye, heroes were no longer trusted because, for all anyone knows, they could still be Skrull in disguise. These two episodes not only retold the Secret Invasion story masterfully but also set up an excellent arc for Captain America. As the most famous of the Skrull replacements, Cap spent the next few episodes doing his best to regain the world’s trust which, thanks to the Skrulls, could no longer trust him.

Captain America found Frozen, “Living Legend”

Captain America’s story is one for the ages. Frozen in ice for decades after helping the Allies win World War II, Cap is “resurrected” in the present day, where he becomes one of the Avengers. In the MCU, S.H.I.E.L.D. finds him. In the comics, it’s the newly formed Avengers who find his frozen body in Avengers #4. In “Living Legend,” we get to see this iconic moment brought to life. From the Avengers submarine to Cap wanting to fight the Avengers before realizing they are telling him the truth about what happened to him. Reading it on the page was emotional enough. Seeing this iconic moment come to life took it to another level.

Red-Hulk, “Nightmare in Red”

In 2008, in HULK Vol. 2, a new Hulk burst onto the scene, this time going with a red skin tone, the opposite color on the spectrum from green (we looked it up, it’s true). This Hulk would do any and everything to destroy the original, and it made perfect sense why when he revealed his identity as General Thunderbolt Ross. In “Nightmare in Red,” Red Hulk attacks S.H.I.E.L.D., and everyone believes him to be Bruce Banner gone rogue. In their defense, the Hulk is the leading expert on Gamma Radiation. Since they really couldn’t ask him, jumping to this conclusion isn’t off base. It’s is an excellent adaptation of one of Hulk's fiercest rivals “fighting gamma with fire.”

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