For Marvel Comics, the 2010s were a time of near-unrivaled success and bold new ideas that captivated countless readers. In the theaters, the Marvel Cinematic Universe reached its peak in terms of critical and commercial success, completely changing the Hollywood landscape. The movies weren’t the only place where Marvel found success; their comics were doing exceptionally well thanks to new story concepts and characters that advanced the industry. The 2010s were particularly notable for Marvel because of its emphasis on heroes who carry on the mantles of some of the company’s biggest legacy names. From more diverse characters to the continuation of Marvel’s most important legacies, the 2010s saw the rise of the next generation of heroes.
The future looks bright for Marvel, with these next-generation superheroes leading the charge.
10) Gwenpool
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Debuting in 2015, Gwendolyn Poole, aka Gwenpool, is easily one of Marvel’s strangest characters. After the success of the alternate version of Gwen Stacy, known as Ghost Spider, Marvel had some fun with a series of Variant Theme covers featuring Gwen as other superheroes. When the Gwenpool illustration became a huge hit, Marvel made her an official character. Hailing from a universe extremely like our own, comic book fan Gwendolyn found herself in the Marvel Universe by unknown means. Taking on the name Gwenpool, she began acting as a mercenary and anti-hero. She has near-unparalleled skills at breaking the fourth wall, which have led to many creative storylines. She’s also notable for being Marvel’s first openly asexual and aromantic character.
9) Moon Girl
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One of Marvel’s most obscure duos was the primitive Moon Boy and the ferocious Devil Dinosaur. In 2015, the mantel was resurrected with the introduction of Lunella Lafayette, aka Moon Girl, who is an Inhuman who replaced Moon Boy as Devil Dinosaur’s partner. After being exposed to the Terrigen Mist, she developed a psychic link with the towering beast. However, Moon Girl’s greatest attribute is her intelligence. Despite only being nine years old, Moon Girl is arguably the smartest person in Marvel Comics. She uses these smarts to develop all manner of high-tech gadgets to fight crime alongside her reptilian best friend. Moon Girl’s witty attitude and fun adventures helped her stand out so much that she even got her own hit Disney Channel series.
8) Nova (Sam Alexander)
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In 2013, the underrated superhero mantle of Nova passed to a new hero: Sam Alexander. Sam is the son of Jesse Alexander, a former member of the intergalactic peacekeeping force, the Nova Corps, who was past his prime and reduced to a drunken mess. After Jesse went missing, Sam discovered his father’s Nova helmet. When he wears the helmet, Sam gets the Nova super-suit, which grants him super-strength, flight, and energy projection. Sam became an instant fan favorite because of his high-flying adventures across the galaxy that are mixed with relatable teenage struggles with school, crushes, and feeling unworthy of being a superhero.
7) Ironheart
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When Iron Man fell into a coma at the end of Civil War II, a new armored hero suited up to honor his legacy. First appearing in 2016, teenage prodigy Riri Williams built her own high-tech suit of armor in her garage. When Tony left Riri his estate, tech, and an A.I. duplicate of himself, she upgraded her armor even further and became the superhero Ironheart. Headstrong and brave, Ironheart quickly carved out her own identity both as an independent hero and an integral part of the teenage superhero team the Champions. Over the years, Ironheart has become an even more popular hero, living to protect others while struggling with her own inner demons.
6) Silk
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In 2014, Marvel revealed that another teenager had been bitten by the radioactive spider that gave Peter Parker his powers. When Peter’s classmate Cindy also received the infamous bite, she was taken in by the anti-hero Ezekiel to protect her from the villain Morlun. Spider-Man only discovered her 13 years later in a secret bunker. Once out in the world again, Cindy took the superhero named Silk. Additionally, with her years of combat training under Ezekiel and far more accurate Spider-Sense, she’s one of the most formidable web-slinging heroes in New York City. Silk is an amazing and complex new hero who’s already headlined several of her own hit comic storylines.
5) Ghost Rider (Robbie Reyes)
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Debuting in 2014, Robbie Reyes is arguably the most popular Ghost Rider of the modern day. A talented mechanic, Robbie was killed by a cartel but was brought back to life when the soul of his demonic uncle Eli Morrow possessed him. Instead of a flaming motorcycle, Robbie rides into battle in a Hellfire-infused car called the Hell Charger. And despite not possessing a Spirit of Vengeance, Robbie has all the other hellish abilities afforded to Ghost Riders, like weapon manifestation and the Penance Stare. Robbie has been a breakout hero, becoming an integral member of the Avengers and is even destined to become the cosmic All-Rider. Fans quickly fell in love with Robbie, and he’s bound to have many more exciting future storylines.
4) America Chavez
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America Chavez, aka Miss America, brought multiversal power along with LGBTQ+ and Latinx pride to Marvel Comics when she debuted in 2011. When America was a child, she was the subject of illegal experimentation. These experiments enabled her to channel interdimensional energy through her body, granting her super-strength, flight, cosmic awareness, and the power to create star-shaped portals to other universes. After escaping her captors, the young America was adopted by the Santanna family, and she grew up to defend her neighborhood from all manner of threats. America is a confident and defiant hero who embodies the struggles of many marginalized groups while still fighting for a better tomorrow.
3) Ghost Spider
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In 2014, Spider-Man’s lost love, Gwen Stacy, was brought back to life as Ghost Spider. Nicknamed Spider-Gwen, this teenage version of Gwen Stacy hails from Earth-65, where she was bitten by the radioactive spider instead of Peter Parker. Initially known as Spider-Woman in her home universe before becoming Ghost Spider, Gwen’s incredible design, fun personality, and tragic storylines made her one of Marvel’s biggest hits. She continued to shine as a member of numerous multiversal Spider-Men teams. This wall-crawling version of Gwen would eventually prove to be so popular that Marvel would have her move into the main Earth-616 universe, where she continues to be one of New York City’s primary protectors.
2) Ms. Marvel
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When Kamala Khan, aka Ms. Marvel, made her big debut in 2014, she immediately made history as Marvel’s first A-List Muslim superhero. An Inhuman/mutant hybrid, Kamala became the face of Marvel for an entire generation of readers thanks to her engaging, relatable personality as an awkward teenager who loves all things superhero. If her name didn’t give it away, Kamala was inspired by the original Ms. Marvel, the cosmic hero Carol Danvers, to don her own costume and use her stretching and hard-light construct powers to protect the people of Jersey City. Having appeared in numerous team-ups, solo comics, movies, TV Shows, and video games, Ms. Marvel has quickly moved up the ranks to become one of Marvel’s most iconic heroes.
1) Spider-Man (Miles Morales)
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In 2011, the world of comics changed forever with the debut of Miles Morales. Hailing from the original Ultimate Universe, Miles was just a young black teen from Brooklyn when he was bitten by a genetically enhanced spider that gave him Spider-Man’s powers along with additional abilities like electricity and invisibility. When his world’s version of Peter Parker tragically died in battle, Miles became the new Spider-Man to honor his legacy. Miles has become a household name, nearly as popular as Peter himself, to the point that he was transferred to the main Earth-616 universe. And of course, he became the star in the hit Spider-Verse film series. Miles is a brave, compassionate, and relatable character who has more than earned the right to the Spider-Man mantle.
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