How come Hank Pym hasn't really been forgiven, but others have?

[QuinnFillory]

In the latest issue of Secret Empire, Hank Pym confronts the Avengers about all of the fighting they have been doing. When the Stark AI calls him out, he loses it and almost kills them all. However, he did say something interesting: out of all of the heroes, he is the only one who has yet to be forgiven for his "one mistake" (his words, not mine.) Yet everyone else, from Wanda to Tony to possibly Steve soon, has been. Is he right, and why hasn't he been forgiven?

[norj]

Bad writers refuse to do anything else with his character.

[SpiderClops]

Because Marvel universe is full of elite hypocrites. Simple answer.

By the way, I absolutely lover Secret Empire #4, specifically because of Hank's characterization. It was spot on. And Spencer going all meta with "one mistake"... HELL YES!!!

[Ianbarreilles]

I hate when writers and readers continue to hate on Wanda and refuse to let her character move on from the avengers disassembled and house of m events that transpired which was then retconned to her being posssesed when those events happened.

But still writers and in many ways readers refuse to let it go and let her character move on from it and continue to remind people of that part of her past and continue to make it seem as if she can't come back from it and it's so annoying.

so in a way I can sympathize with pym fans who are similarly annoyed with marvel's insistance on not letting pym move on from that mistake he made.

[Anthony W]

I haven't been reading Secret Empire. Are we talking about Ultron or the other mistake?

[Crazy Diamond]

I'm guessing the other one because it keeps being brought up from time to time.

Destroying the universe isn't something that happens in real life. Domestic abuse does though so it hits closer to home. The original story wasn't good to begin with so I'm not sure why they didn't retcon it when they started their universe over or whatever a few years back.

[Anthony W]

Marvel should go all in and base an entire event around Hank Pym slapping people.

[XPac]

I don't think it's entirely fair to say Hank hasn't been forgiven for his one mistake. He's been with the Avengers on and off since that one indicent.

But really, the main reason Pyms issues keep coming up is simply because there are only 2 interesting things about Pym... him slapping Jan and him creating Ulton. He's sort of a boring character outside of that, and whenever he moves past it Hank essentially becames the default smart guy when Starks not around who just happens to have the power to grow.

Hank is almost most interesting when he's either having a break down, or recovering from a break down.

[Grim Ghost]

Bad writers refuse to do anything else with his character.

Yup. And he did it while he was insane. There is a lot of argument that up until that time there wasn't a whole lot to define Hank Pym as a character. So that just kind of stuck. The character should move on from this but Marvel won't ever let it happen. Marvel and DC have some very odd ideas about mental illness.

Meanwhile there are literal MASS MURDERERS on Avengers and X-Men teams that are rarely called out over their actions.

[Jokerz79]

Ultimate/1610 Hank was pure suck but why 616 Hank continues to get hate I'll never know or understand he was suffering from a mental breakdown when he hit Jan and betrayed the Avengers and he went to prison did his time and even refused to be a costume hero for a long time afterwards even when the Avengers wanted him too and aided them as a scientist. It's really mind boggling to me.

[stingray]

Bad writers refuse to do anything else with his character.

True, some of the bad ones keep returning to this over and over again, but guys like Kurt Busiek and Mark Waid have done some great things with Hank over the years that move him beyond all of it. Then the writer that follows them ignores all of it and goes back to the slap. Enough already!

[Ianbarreilles]

Yup. And he did it while he was insane. There is a lot of argument that up until that time there wasn't a whole lot to define Hank Pym as a character. So that just kind of stuck. The character should move on from this but Marvel won't ever let it happen. Marvel and DC have some very odd ideas about mental illness.

Meanwhile there are literal MASS MURDERERS on Avengers and X-Men teams that are rarely called out over their actions.

Wanda was posssesed and that's why the avengers forgave her I think it's silly to condemn her for a mistake she made that she had no control over she was forced to cause the events of disassembled and the house of m against her will.

I hate the fact that some readers believe Wanda should never be allowed to move on from her past mistakes that she has to forever be dogged by and tortured by the mistakes she made for all eternity and it's sad that a lot of readers think that is what Wanda deserves.

[Grim Ghost]

Wanda was posssesed and that's why the avengers forgive her I think it's silly to condemn her for a mistake she made that she had no control over she was forced to cause the events of disassembled and the house of m against her will.

I wasn't referring to her. I was talking about people like Wolverine, Sabretooth, Magneto, etc..

[XPac]

Yup. And he did it while he was insane. There is a lot of argument that up until that time there wasn't a whole lot to define Hank Pym as a character. So that just kind of stuck. The character should move on from this but Marvel won't ever let it happen. Marvel and DC have some very odd ideas about mental illness.

Meanwhile there are literal MASS MURDERERS on Avengers and X-Men teams that are rarely called out over their actions.

I think the Crossing actually did TRY and definatively most Hank past his issues by retconning things so that Kang was responsible for Hanks breakdowns when he was trying to control him (the way he eventually controlled Stark). But when Busiek in Avengers Forever retconned that back to where Hank was responsible for Hanks breakdowns, he ended up back in square one. And Austen pretty much picked up that ball and ran with it.

[Danileriver23]

because there's no real life precedent/ parallel for mentally wiping out the species like wanda did, or making your friends register at the dmv(shield) like stark did, but there is a real life precedent for hitting your wife.