What If Marvel Had Its Own Version of "Super Friends"

[TMC1982]

Lets just say, that Marvel had its own animated series during the 1970s-1980s involving an all-star group of comic book superheroes being involved in relatively non-violent (by that era of children's television standards), partially campy (non-sophisticated in retrospect) adventures with some "and knowing is half the battle" type morals thrown in for good measure. I guess you can argue that the current Super Hero Squad show follows in a similar spirit as Super Friends followed. And Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends was arguably the closest Marvel show from that same era to be like Super Friends (at least in terms of showing the whole, expanded Marvel/DC universe).

Marvel's Super Friends:
Captain America=Superman

Iron Man=Batman

Thor=Wonder Woman

The three "core" members that most immediately come to mind.

As for the Legion of Doom, well it's quite obvious that you can't have a Marvel version of the Legion of Doom without Dr. Doom.

 

[Rick Jones]

I think it would feature a team based on popularity rather than Avengers hierarchy. They'd definitely have Hulk, Spidey, Cap, maybe Spider-Woman, Dr. Strange and even Falcon for diversity purposes. I think the other guys like Iron Man, Thor, Human Torch, Mr. Fantastic, etc would start popping up during the "Challenge" seasons.

 

[Spider-Friends]

I think it would feature a team based on popularity rather than Avengers hierarchy.

Me too. Before the show started airing, I remember hearing the promos for Spider-Man and his Amazing Friends during the credits of other cartoons. THESE are who I thought the "friends" would be:

Then when the first episode of SM&HAF aired, the show started without an intro. (Which is call a "cold opening".) Spidey was seen chasing some burglars by himself. When Iceman popped up, I didn't have a clue who he was since I'd never seen him before. Until his name was said, I thought he was the Silver Surfer. When the intro aired a few minutes into the show, it revealed that Firestar was the (only) other "friend". I was disappointed and curious at the same time.

The kid in me would still like to see a SuperFriends style show with Spidey, Spider-Woman, Hulk and Cap.

 

[Silverstar]

The Super Hero Squad Show's roster is more or less what I imagine a Marvel Justice League would be like.

You'd have to have the Avenger's Big Three: Captain America (iconic stalwart hero/poster boy), Iron Man (billionaire backer/gadget guru) and Thor (mythic matinee idol with ties to mythology and sorcery). Balance them out with Marvel heavy-hitters like Hulk (big strong bruiser), Silver Surfer (alien for space-themed stories) and someone like Falcon or Black Panther or Storm for racial balance.

Spider-Man (teen rookie/jokester) and Wolverine (tough guy/loose cannon) are good A-listers too, but whether they'd appear or not would depend on whether or not they were under contract with someone else.

Unlike SHS however, I'd also toss in some decent Marvel women for gender balance, say, Ms. Marvel, Wasp, Tygra or Scarlet Witch.

 

[STARTOUNZ]

Marvel's Super Friends:
Captain America=Superman

Iron Man=Batman

Thor=Wonder Woman

The three "core" members that most immediately come to mind.

For me, Marvel's core threesome (to DC's top three) would be Spider-Man (to Superman because of the red/blue color costume scheme, multiple powers, and high moral values), Captain America (to Wonder Woman due to their warrior skills and America-themed costumes), and Daredevil (to Batman for their long-lasting quest for justice against tragedies they've suffered as children and the intense training they went through to become the superheroes they are).

 

[Silverstar]

For me, Marvel's core threesome (to DC's top three) would be Spider-Man (to Superman because of the red/blue color costume scheme, multiple powers, and high moral values), Captain America (to Wonder Woman due to their warrior skills and America-themed costumes), and Daredevil (to Batman for their long-lasting quest for justice against tragedies they've suffered as children and the intense training they went through to become the superheroes they are).

Eh, those analogies don't really work for me. No offense.

Really, it depends on whether we're drawing similarities based on characters' statuses within their respective universes, their abilities or simply cosmetic similarities, 'cause I personally don't count the latter.

The Spider-Man/Superman comparison doesn't work for me at all. In terms of fan notoriety, Spidey may be on par with Superman, but beyond that they're nothing alike. Spider-Man isn't nearly as powerful as Superman, nor is he iconic a figure as Supes. Supey is practically a demigod among men, whereas Spider-Man is basically a "regular guy in tights" and a perpetual underdog. Superman is the kind of hero most of us aspire to be, while Spider-Man is they type of hero most of us actually would be. If Superman truly has a Marvel equivalent, it's someone like Cap or Sentry or Gladiator, and the latter 2 aren't nearly popular or iconic enough to be used as a core member of a Super Friends-like team.

There is one basic but huge element which prevents Captain America from being Marvel's Wonder Woman: the presence of a Y chromosome. Again, I don't consider similar costumes to be a true similarity in terms of character or abilities. Again, IMO Cap is closer to Superman than Wonder Woman. I'm not sure if Marvel even has a parallel to Wonder Woman; there doesn't seem to be a single top-tier heroine in the Marvel universe. I suppose you could say Ms. Marvel, but she's not nearly as popular or beloved. Storm is a likely candidate: she's popular and she shares some of Wondy's exotic beauty and her "stranger in a strange land" demeanor. Ororo could work on such a team. Why is it OK for Wolverine to play for more than one team but not any of the other X-Men?

The Batman/Daredevil comparison is probably the most accurate one, though Daredevil isn't nearly as popular as Batman, nor is he as marketable; Daredevil doesn't have the loads of cool gadgets that keeps kids buying action figures and playsets, then there's the whole "he's blind" thing. Not the easiest thing to market.

 

[Rick Jones]

Storm is a likely candidate: she's popular and she shares some of Wondy's exotic beauty and her "stranger in a strange land" demeanor. Ororo could work on such a team. Why is it OK for Wolverine to play for more than one team but not any of the other X-Men?

She's part of the team in the Marvel Adventures: The Avengers books and it's kind of weird that it never carried over to regular continuity.She was also a substitute FF member but of course that didn't last forever. Personally, I'm still a little miffed that Wolverine ever got to be an Avenger. I'm not too keen on superteam mixing and matching in 616 continuity. I still liked it when Beast was the only X-Man to be a card carrying Avenger. Anyways, I do think it would be cool for Storm to be a member of a SuperFriends styled team.

The Batman/Daredevil comparison is probably the most accurate one, though Daredevil isn't nearly as popular as Batman, nor is he as marketable; Daredevil doesn't have the loads of cool gadgets that keeps kids buying action figures and playsets, then there's the whole "he's blind" thing. Not the easiest thing to market.

I have friends that still refer to him as a poor man's Spidey.

 

[Kenny E. McCall]

If Spider-Woman was part of the Spider-Friends show back in the 80's, Peter Parker would be working for Jessica Drew at Justice Magazine as her freelance photographer, and you know, bottom boy!

At least Peter and Jessica would be working for the same tabloid magazine owned by the same people behind the Daily Bugle! And you know Jessica, she'd tell J. Jonah Jameson off in a heartbeat!