Dr. Hank Pym Appreciation 2020

[XPac]

I hated it at first, although I came to realize they just wanted to bait Ultron, but still... If they went at it that way, who's to say that's not what they really think of Hank? Not to mention it wasn't really clear if they thought it was Ultron or if Hank was in there somewhere, until the very end where Tony flat out said he believed Hank had been dead for some time (can't remember the exact words as I read it at a friend's and don't have the copy with me). To newer readers, or readers who don't know too much about the characters, they probably thought: "wow, this Pym guy must have been such a jerk for Tony and Janet to hate him so much".

I understand the reasoning behind it, but I still don't really like it.

I don't really remember them having such a rivalry that they would think so poorly of each other. They have been shown working well together in the past, and I'd like it to be like that moving forward, if ever Hank was to come back.

Slotts Mighty Avengers showed Stark and Reed having a bit of an antagonistic rivalry with Pym.

That said, I think marvel has Stark have a sort of rivalry with almost any other male Avenger he's friends with in the modern era. Cap and Tony are the big one, but Stark we've seen it with Thor and Black Panther and even Hulk to a degree too.

[Frontier]

If a writer is committed to handling it the right way, it would be really nice. After all, meeting Hank was her first and foremost motivation to flee the Red Room. I don't understand why no writer continued on that path and have her completely "forget" about that. We did see her wishing or dreaming about her father, but she never took any action to dig in further into his disappearance or "death". If she really is Hank's daughter and take even remotely after him, she shouldn't have let this go this easily.

I'd only really trust mark Waid to write it.

[Mary Jay]

I'd only really trust mark Waid to write it.

Honestly, so would I. There could be other writers I might trust with it to some degree, but not completely. Christos Gage comes to mind, as well as maybe Jim Zub. I know Gage has written Hank in a pretty respectful and positive manner in Avengers Academy, and I like Zub's style in general. The only thing I'm not sure about is whether or not he would respect an older continuity, and if he'd hold his ground or give in to editorial if they wanted to push a narrative that doesn't fit with said continuity.

[Mary Jay]

By the way, I asked the moderator privately to change the title back to how I wrote it in the first place, and he made the changes right away He left out the "scientific adventurer" part, but I don't mind. I'll keep it for next year's appreciation thread

[Old Owl]

Has anyone seen Henry Pym, Jr.(from the Next Avengers universe) recently? I knew he was in the 616 now and I really wanted him and Hank to meet.

[Frontier]

Has anyone seen Henry Pym, Jr.(from the Next Avengers universe) recently? I knew he was in the 616 now and I really wanted him and Hank to meet.

I think all the Next Avengers kids have been forgotten about.

[tliscord]

So same old, same old...

Well said, nothing changing for ol’ Hank. The Busiek rescue of this character is buried under the stewardship of writers afterwards. Thought they’d finish this Pymtron arc with a glorious return of a triumphant Hank Pym. Not to be.

There’s always next year ...

[Mary Jay]

Well said, nothing changing for ol’ Hank. The Busiek rescue of this character is buried under the stewardship of writers afterwards. Thought they’d finish this Pymtron arc with a glorious return of a triumphant Hank Pym. Not to be.

There’s always next year ...

Well... the year is only beginning

But I agree they could have used the last Pymtron arc to finally free Hank of his "prison" somehow, but I don't think it was ever meant to be that way. That story was all about Tony (normal, it was his book after all) and all other characters taking part in it were there as second-tiers to Stark's character build-up. Good if you're a Stark fan, less if you're a Pym fan. And I sort of hate having to see it like this, as I like both characters.

[Frontier]

Well... the year is only beginning

But I agree they could have used the last Pymtron arc to finally free Hank of his "prison" somehow, but I don't think it was ever meant to be that way. That story was all about Tony (normal, it was his book after all) and all other characters taking part in it were there as second-tiers to Stark's character build-up. Good if you're a Stark fan, less if you're a Pym fan. And I sort of hate having to see it like this, as I like both characters.

Doesn't seem like anyone really cares about finishing Pymtron at this point.

[Mary Jay]

Doesn't seem like anyone really cares about finishing Pymtron at this point.

I think it might be a mix of not really caring and feeling like other writers keep painting themselves collectively in the corner.

It just occured to me that seeing Pymtron in a story and automatically thinking they might be bringing Hank back might just be a mistake. We know that Hank's soul was yanked free of Ultron in Infinity Countdown, and was later "devoured" by Devondra. Maybe that's where writers should start in a story to bring him back. Pymtron jus wears his flesh, that's not Hank there.

Now if someone would like to write a crazy alternate dimension/world story where Hank has been sent when devoured by Devondra, and is trying to escape from, well that's something I would totally be down with, and quite happy to read

And to have the opportunity to see Hank confront Pymtron and get the better of him would be great.

[SuperiorIronman]

It just came to mind, did Pymtron ever succeed at y'know..., anything?

Sure you could argue he killed Hank Pym, except that completely ignores that it was Vision who (accidentally) fused the two together starting this whole mess. He then proceeds to go on an intergalactic rampage that he blames the Avengers for in the hopes that none of these beings heard of Ultron or Earth, and by proxy know of Ultron that they overlook him being a cosmic threat only a few years ago in-universe. Then in the hope none of them says anything to blow the whole ruse join the team by fighting off aliens. Y'know unlike just applying for membership to the team if Ultron really does believe he's Hank. Of course then he fights the team (wrongfully) claims he killed Hank and shows up later not wanting to fight the team because they're busy fighting among themselves. Except Pymtron's high-ground is undone when you realize that we he's saying is bullshit considering that's exactly what he did when he showed up.

He then gets pulled into the Hell of a crossover where what's left of Hank is eaten by some monster and Ultron now only has a gimmick he didn't need nor anybody wanted. He then shows up in Iron man with no real goal except assimilate because he's the "perfect merger" when everything prior shows he's nothing but a failure in this state. He can't beat the Avengers, he doesn't have a moral leg to stand on, he's no longer Hank in anything but the meat on his wires, and his "perfect children" are inferior versions of what he showed up with back in Rage of Ultron making Slott's story derivative and a downgrade except with a sudden religious turn only 4 years.

What has he accomplished in this state? Character design maybe but showing half of Hank's face is cliche and ultimately what they went with. What's his goals? Join the Avengers, an anti-hero? So far it's just Ultron with a gimmick nobody in or out of comics bought into. Why is this even being entertained? It not even being Hank in anything other than his face at this point doesn't even stop the slap comments and you didn't even need the merger to keep doing that.

[Mary Jay]

Stills from deleted scenes of Ant-Man and the Wasp on the Marvel's Infinity Saga Box Set!





Wouldn't it have been great to see those scenes!

[Mary Jay]

The videos of the deleted/alternate scenes are out!!

https://www.reddit.com/r/marvelstudi...man_2_mission/

https://old.reddit.com/r/marvelstudi...ternate_janet/

The deleted scene, set in 1987, would have been a great addition to the movie. I recall reading they ultimately didn't go with it because it didn't sit right with the pace of the movie, but honestly I wished they had kept it. The complicity between Hank and Jan is great in this.

[mr_crisp]

Does anyone have any recommendations for good/important comics to read to understand the character? Or are just fun to read I suppose?

Wish I knew the issue numbers there is the story where Egghead kidnaps Hank and makes him work for him with Hank eventually defeating Egghead. The Web Archive used to have those issues but I think they got rid of them.

[Chris0013]

I would love to see him separated from Ultron...but after that he should go off into a self imposed isolation. A handful of people know where he is (Cap, Tigra, Nadia)...but they respect his desire for privacy while he deals with his issues and recovery.