I guess the original Masters of Evil were apolitical...

[williamtheday]

I mean, Nathan Garrett and Chen Lu didn't seem to mind working with a Nazi, andBaron Heinrich Zemo didn't seem to have two Communists on his team.

[Tofali]

does their individual politics matter when their whole mission statement is being against the avengers?

[The Cool Thatguy]

Was Black Knight an actual commie or just a spy?

[Riv86672]

That original line up was freaking awesome. Totally my favorite.

[Triniking1234]

Nathan Garrett was a commie?

LMAO.

[williamtheday]

According to the official Marvel biography, Garrett became a radical Communist in his college days and later, head of an espionage ring. He was a descendant of the first Black Knight, Sir Percy, but Garrett was denied the ebony blade because of his " Evil tendencies". At first he wanted revenge against Hank Pym (Giant Man), then went after Iron Man (even though it was Thor who defeated him in the first battle with the Avengers.

[JudicatorPrime]

Basically, Marvel taking what was then perceived to be representatives of enemy/hostile countries and putting them all on one team. Marvel has always been political. Anyone who says they aren't don't know their history. Or Marvel's.

[Riv86672]

They worked w. what they had at the time, it wasn’t unprecedented.

They, as Timely did it in WWII, as did DC and every other comics Company.

[Brian Adkins]

Doubt anyone really thought too hard about it back then. A lot of those stories were basically someone being like a little kid and smashing their action figures together. lol

[Dreaded Porcupine]

Great team. They were picked because they were each arch enemies with one of the Avengers. Cap/Zemo, Iron Man/Melter, Thor/Radioactive Man, Giant-Man/Black Knight. Politics had nothing to do with this team.

[JudicatorPrime]

Doubt anyone really thought too hard about it back then. A lot of those stories were basically someone being like a little kid and smashing their action figures together. lol

The material suggests otherwise. Maybe Fawcett and DC were fairly simplistic in their escapism, but Marvel's niche was steeped in real-world concerns, events and pop culture. We don't get Cap, Hulk and many others without it. And you have to remember that it wasn't just kids that read those comics. Adults. Our soldiers during war time. College students. Marvel stories were written as much for the mature thinkers as anyone else.

[The Cool Thatguy]

The material suggests otherwise. Maybe Fawcett and DC were fairly simplistic in their escapism, but Marvel's niche was steeped in real-world concerns, events and pop culture. We don't get Cap, Hulk and many others without it. And you have to remember that it wasn't just kids that read those comics. Adults. Our soldiers during war time. College students. Marvel stories were written as much for the mature thinkers as anyone else.

Agreed.

During the 60s and 70s, Marvel invested greatly in the commie/Russian threat.

Which, unfortunately, kinda left some heroes without great villains when the wall fell (looking at you, Iron Man)

[Riv86672]

The material suggests otherwise. Maybe Fawcett and DC were fairly simplistic in their escapism, but Marvel's niche was steeped in real-world concerns, events and pop culture. We don't get Cap, Hulk and many others without it. And you have to remember that it wasn't just kids that read those comics. Adults. Our soldiers during war time. College students. Marvel stories were written as much for the mature thinkers as anyone else.

Agreed.

During the 60s and 70s, Marvel invested greatly in the commie/Russian threat.

Which, unfortunately, kinda left some heroes without great villains when the wall fell (looking at you, Iron Man)

He (Iron Man) recovered really well though.
There’s always going to be stories to tell w. a billionaire industrialist tech genius weapons manufacturer playboy.

But yeah, even though the MoE were put together to correspond to the heroes and not for their political views Marvel was doing way more than just “smashing their action figures together“.

[D.Z]

While Baron Zemo is the exception, sliding time-scale changes up everybody else politics. They would be supporting whatever the politics were at the time from their respective countries in the 00's.

[Username taken]

Basically, Marvel taking what was then perceived to be representatives of enemy/hostile countries and putting them all on one team. Marvel has always been political. Anyone who says they aren't don't know their history. Or Marvel's.

Quoted for truth.

Probably because of the time, Marvel comics in times past were overtly political.

The difference is they were read by a much younger audience in the psst.