Peyton Reed’s Ant-Man movies have managed to popularize the character of Ant-Man for fans who aren't necessarily lovers of the films themselves. But who is Ant-Man in Marvel Comics? With Ant-man & The Wasp: Quantummania officially a few days away – check out our review here – let's look into the comic book origins of the Earth’s tiniest Avenger.

Ant-Man's Comic Book Origins

Ant-Man falling in Al Ewing and Tom Reilly's 'Ant-Man' comic series
Image via Marvel Comics

Created by David Michelinie, Bob Layton and John Byrne, Scott Lang first appeared in the comic book Avengers #181 in March 1979. In the comics, Lang is an avid movie watcher who turned to burglary when his job as an electrical engineer wasn't exciting enough for him. After being apprehended, Lang completed his prison term and was granted parole for good behavior after four years. He continued his electronics studies while incarcerated, and Stark International quickly hired him to work in its design department. He assisted in the installation of a new security system in Avengers Mansion at Tony Stark's request.

Soon his daughter falls sick and when his job doesn’t pay enough to provide for his daughter, Cassie, after his wife's death, Lang returned to a life of crime and broke into the home of Dr. Hank Pym, the original Ant-Man, in order to steal technology that would allow him to commit steal enough to help her situation.

During the break-in, Lang discovered Pym's Ant-Man suit and decided to use it to pull off a heist. With the suit, Lang was able to shrink down to the size of an ant while still retaining his normal strength, allowing him to infiltrate secure locations and steal valuables easily.

Despite his criminal intentions, Lang's actions soon drew the attention of the Avengers, who recruited him to help them stop a dangerous threat. After proving himself to be a capable and courageous hero, Lang was given Pym's blessing to continue using the Ant-Man suit and fighting crime. Over the years, Lang has become a respected member of the Marvel Comics universe and has been a member of the Avengers, Future Foundation, The Fantastic Four, and the Guardians of the Galaxy. His origin story is followed to a T, in the film adaptation of the comic book character although his wife is very much alive in the feature and now married to a cop.

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Ant-Man's Important Marvel Comics Storylines

Ant-Man in Marvel Comics
Image via Marvel Comics

One of the most notable storylines featuring Scott Lang as Ant-Man is the Avengers Disassembled storyline, where he sacrifices himself to stop a villain, and his death had a big impact on his daughter Cassie, who later on becomes a superhero named Stature to join the Young Avengers. This is something we will see in the upcoming sequel to Ant-Man & The Wasp although from the film it doesn’t appear as if the film has any plans of killing Scott off to promote Cassie to hero status. Scott's death in the series was considered fairly iconic and helped with the character's popularity. That said, there’s been plenty of rumblings about a Young Avengers film and if the film follows the footsteps of Stature’s origins, Kang killing Ant-Man could potentially lead to the creation of the Young Avengers.

Cassie's role was altogether different in the comic The Astonishing Ant-Man where she isn't Ant-man's daughter but just a petty thief who he mentors and becomes a father figure to as he attempts to take down a villain by the name of Darius Cross.

Often a life of crime ends with him embracing his true destiny as a superhero. The Eric O'Grady version of Ant-Man for instance from The Irredeemible Ant-man sees him struggle between the life of a hero and that of a criminal and sees him tip toe between the good and the bad side. Ultimately, Eric O'Grady died a hero's death, but there were plenty of instances where he turned his back on his friends.

Meanwhile, the longest running Ant-Man moniker was Hank Pym who played a significant role in establishing the Avengers Initiative, which aimed to cultivate future heroes. Pym is just another of many who have assumed the Ant-Man moniker. In the aftermath of Marvel Comics Civil War storyline, He adopted the title of Yellowjacket and managed Camp Hammond with a strict hand, revealing more and more of his flaws. Eventually, it was revealed that he was a Skrull impostor, bringing his story to a close in the Secret Invasion event.

Marvel remains tight-lipped on everything Secret Invasion but if Hank or Scott makes an appearance in that Disney+ series, don't be surprised if that ends with the hero coming out as a Skrull. In Ant-Man and the Ultron Offensive, Ant-Man must stop Ultron from taking over the world. He joins forces with the Avengers and fights against Ultron's robotic army. Despite being vastly outnumbered, Ant-Man's size-changing abilities and quick thinking help the Avengers defeat Ultron and save the world. Hank Pym has often been deemed the brains behind Ultron in Marvel comics and continues to reckon with the fallout of that.

Ant-Man's Relationship With the Wasp in the Comics

The Ant-man has also usually had a fairly rocky relationship with his wife The Wasp in the comics. Most of these storylines focused on Hank and Janet and their tumultuous love. In Avengers 2.13, this even became a big issue when Hank Pym hit Janet. During the time he is using the name Yellow Jacket, Pym is being disciplined by the Avengers. He then proposes a ridiculous plan, under great stress, to build a robot that only he can defeat. He intends to use it against the Avengers, save them, and regain their trust. However, the Wasp disagrees with his flawed idea and is beaten first by Pym and then by his robot invention. While it is unlikely that Scott or Hank will be physically abusing their respective partners on screen, the comic book world's image of Ant-Man was quite tarnished after this event.

It's no wonder that the MCU has opted for the goofball version of Ant-man. Scott Lang’s stature as MCU’s lovable rogue as portrayed by Paul Rudd has enjoyed a lot of fame since his first appearance in 2015 and subsequent appearances in Civil War and the Avengers films. Let's hope there's plenty more of him in Phase 5.

Ant-man and the Wasp: Quantumania releases Thursday, February 16, 2023.

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