MCU Speculation: Characters I Want To See In the MCU
The Marvel Cinematic Universe currently consists of 29 movies and 6 Disney+ original series (and this isn’t touching on all the shows that are borderline canon). Needless to say, they’ve covered a lot of ground, and brought in a lot of characters. But there are always more…
So, let’s make a list of a few characters I would love to see enter the MCU.
To make this more interesting, I’m adding a couple rules. I cannot name characters previously adapted in any live action project or theatrical animated project, even if that project isn’t in the MCU. This is for two major reasons:
To keep it from being the same as most other lists of this sort.
With all the multiverse stuff going on right now, any previously non-MCU project can theoretically become part of the MCU in the future, so listing any of those characters feels like cheating.
This means that as much as I do really want to see them, I can’t name Kate Pryde, Nico Minoru, or Miles Morales. And yes, I did just use that sentence to cheat my own system.
And, hey, let me know who you would want to see show up in the MCU!
So, here are some characters:
Hulkling
Who They Are:
Hulking has a lot of names. He is Dorrek Vell to the Kree and Skrull. He is Theodore Altman on Earth. But, mainly he is just Teddy to his friends.
Hulking is one of the original Young Avengers, first appearing in the first issue of the series. While he was raised by humans, and believes himself to be a human with superpowers, he soon learns that he’s actually alien royalty. His birth parents are Captain Marvel (a Kree man, not Carol Danvers) and Princess Anelle (daughter of the Skrull Emperor). His powers come from his heritage, his enhanced physical abilities from his Kree side, and his shapeshifting from his Skrull side. But this heritage also comes at a cost, because it leads to many stories where he is wanted by one side or the other for their own means.
Why I Want Them in the MCU:
Appearing alongside Hulking in the first issue of Young Avengers is Billy Kaplan, aka Wiccan (one of Scarlet Witch’s twin sons). They start off flirting, but soon end up in a relationship, and are pretty much always tied together when they appear in the comics. And, honestly, while Hulkling is cool and more than interesting enough on his own, this really sweet relationship would be fantastic to see on the big screen.
But even if he and Billy aren’t together (right away), Hulkling’s life as a both a Kree and a Skrull, setting him in the middle of two waring alien sides, all while seeing himself as more human than either of them, is just a very interesting place for a character to come from.
Where Could They Show Up:
Because Hulkling’s first appearance is in Young Avengers, and nearly every other original Young Avenger will have had at least one appearance by the time Ant Man and the Wasp: Quantumania comes out, it wouldn’t be too crazy if he first appears in a Young Avengers movie or series.
But, if they were to set him up in another project before they put the team together, both The Marvels and Secret Invasion are strong possibilities. The Marvels will presumably continue the conflict between the Kree and the Skrull, and Secret Invasion will at the very least heavily feature the Skrull, so either project could find a lot of use for him.
Armory
Who They Are:
Violet Lightner is a young woman who comes across an alien weapon known as the Tactigon. The Tactigon is a powerful multitool that attaches itself to her arm and can transform into any weapon needed for any situation, scaling itself to be as powerful (or weak) as necessary.
Violet is depressed. She finds the Tactigon while attempting to end her life, and it saves her. She believes that in this weapon she has found a purpose, and that purpose is to be a hero. But she only exists in the comics for a couple issues of Avengers: The Initiative. This was a comic series that came out of Civil War, where teen heroes were trained to use their powers. There is a terrible accident involving another teen whose power is to create people’s fears, and this ends with her killing another student. After this, she is kicked out, and the Tactigon is surgically removed from her arm.
Why I Want Them in the MCU:
Potentially a strange reasoning, but part of why I want to see Armory in the MCU is because of how little she was in the comics, and how much potential there still is to explore in the character.
As previously mentioned, she is a depressed woman who finds purpose is saving people, but where does that lead her? There is so much room to tell a story about her not just living to save others, not thinking she is just the wielder of this weapon by happenstance, but fully realizing the value of her life, and coming to live not just for others but because she feels she deserves to. And all this, while having a cool alien weapon.
Where They Could Show Up:
It feels like the only chance for Armory to ever show up in the MCU is if they make a series based around either Avengers: The Initiative, or Avengers Academy (same basic concept of teen heroes being trained either way). She could be a great member of a team of new students, where the class is potentially made of characters from both series. Highly unlikely we’ll see her at all, but a team show of this nature is the best bet.
Elsa Bloodstone
Who They Are:
Elsa Bloodstone’s first appearance is inside her own four issue self-titled series back in late 2001, but after this first run, the character is reworked fairly heavily.
Her original version is an 18-year-old blonde mix of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Indiana Jones, designed and costumed very sexually. She has no relationship with her father, but after he dies, her and her mother inherit his home. She learns he was a monster hunter, and after finding the bloodstone (which amplifies her physical abilities, healing, and allows her to shoot energy blasts), she takes over the family business. Later appearances reinvent her as a redhead who was trained by her father at a young age to be able to kill monsters, though she still inherits the bloodstone after her father’s death.
Why I Want Them in the MCU:
Elsa Bloodstone is a cocky monster hunter, just as ready to take on a horde of zombies, as she is to take on Dracula, or even a Kaiju. She fits into a kind of subgenre that the MCU just doesn’t have covered at this point. Even the upcoming Blade movie will probably be more about the horror, while Elsa could fit nicely in more of a pulpy action-adventure movie that uses horror monsters.
Where They Could Show Up:
Elsa Bloodstone is the character in this list that I think has the most potential for headlining her own movie or series, but that being said, I do think she is more likely to show up in someone else’s (at least, at first).
There is the Blade movie that is coming next year, and then there’s the rumoured Werewolf by Night Halloween special. Either of these feel like perfect fits for her, either with her starting out as someone hunting them, or entirely there as their ally.
Black Cat
Who They Are:
Felicia Hardy is the daughter of a famous cat burglar and was raised to believe she should be the best at everything she tries. She an expert thief, who is trained in fighting and acrobatics. Because of her being a thief, she is sometimes a villain to a degree, but her morals more often put her on the side of the heroes in the end (while also stealing whatever she’s after).
Depending on the writer and when the story takes place, Black Cat sometimes has luck manipulation powers that essentially gives those around her bad luck (again, depending the writer, it is sometimes more intentional on her part than others). But then, various adaptions in cartoons and games have either used or ignored this power, so in the MCU it could still go either way.
Why I Want Them in the MCU:
A thief with a heart is always a great trope to play with. The conflicted criminal who wants her prize but doesn’t like how far other villains can take things. Plus, the MCU can always use some explicitly bi characters (a fact that better come up if they were to add her in).
Where They Could Show Up:
Black Cat is most often linked with Spider-Man, usually with some degree of a romance between them. But it isn't the usual superhero relationship where she loves Peter Parker, she more often just wants him to be Spider-Man, believing Spidey to be the real (and more interesting) him.
Because of this, it would make the most sense for her to pop up in a future Spider-Man movie, and Spider-Man 4 could be the perfect time. After No Way Home, Peter is the most alone he could possibly be. There is potential for so much temptation for him to give up being Peter Parker all together. So, to have Black Cat show up in his life to be that temptation could be a perfect introduction for her.
Bats
Who They Are:
Bats is a basset hound that is adopted by Stephen Strange at after he stops being the Sorcerer Supreme. Strange soon uses his magic to give Bats the ability to talk. But one day Loki and Doctor Strange have an altercation and when Bat’s gets involved, his old heart gives out, and he passes away…
In later comics, Bats returns, now as a ghost basset hound!
Why I Want Them in the MCU:
Honestly, he’s a ghost dog, what more could you ask more? On top of this already great fact, the idea that Bats is a huge fan of Spider-Man makes him all the better. At one point in comics, Bats is starstruck when meeting Spider-Man, calling him the first “real-life superhero” he has met, even after having met the Avengers previously. And if you don’t want to see that scene play out in a movie, I don’t know how to relate to you.
Where They Could Show Up:
The only chance of Bats ever appearing would be in a movie with Doctor Strange, which makes it very easy to predict where he could show up if it were to happen. A future Doctor Strange movie is a safe bet, Doctor Strange 3 would be great just because it could be relatively soon. And the idea that Doctor Strange first gets a dog when he isn’t Sorcerer Supreme can line up with the fact that Wong is currently holding that title in the MCU.
But there is always a chance that Strange could adopt Bats between movies and have him have at least have a cameo in a crossover movie like Avengers: Kang Dynasty. As far as I’m concerned, whichever one gets Bats around sooner is the best choice.
