History CharacterizationMarchesOn / MarvelUniverse

** ComicBook/AntMan (Hank Pym) and ComicBook/TheWasp (Janet Van Dyne) were wildly different in their first appearances from the modern versions of their characters. Hank didn't begin as superhero, rather just as some schmuck who foolishly poured a shrink serum over himself and got stuck in an ant-hill, he even poured the serum down the drain after getting back to normal size, swearing he would never use the formula again... something he clearly didn't hold to. As for Janet she wasn't the sensible TeamMom and IronLady seen in modern comics rather a highly flirtatious and vapid young woman who didn't take her role as superhero that seriously.

** ComicBook/{{Thor}} in his early comics wasn't a really character on his own but the persona Donald Blake would on after he found Mjölnir in a cave. It wasn't until later they established Donald Blake was Thor all along (with a one modern Thor arc having Blake be an EnemyWithout). Early Thor also had YeOldeButcheredeEnglishe on maximum while modern Thor speaks relatively normally beyond the usual "Thou" and "Doth".

* ''ComicBook/TheIncredibleHulk'': In several of the early comics, the Hulk was slightly more intelligent and could talk better, barely even referring to himself in the 3rd person. Then eventually this paved way to the more popular dumb beast that always spouted "[[HulkSpeak Puny human make Hulk angry! Hulk smash!]]" Though later retcons would establish that this behavior was still canon. The Hulk has [[SplitPersonality multiple personalities]], with some of them being quite intelligent while others are just mindless, screaming monsters.

* [[ComicBook/MachineMan Aaron Stack the Machine Man]] started out as a very [[NiceGuy nice guy]] -- the only robot in his series who ''didn't'' [[MurderousMalfunctioningMachine go mad]] and have to be put down like a wild animal, because he was [[RoboFamily lovingly raised as a son by]] [[MotherlyScientist the man who built him.]] [[MediaNotes/TheDarkAgeOfComicBooks Years later]] though, he went through a [[TraumaCongaLine series of traumatic experiences]] [[ComicBookDeath (getting destroyed and rebuilt,]] [[BrainwashedAndCrazy infected with]] [[ComicBook/XMen Sentinel programming,]] and finally kidnapped by aliens and unceremoniously rejected as being somehow unfit) -- leading to his suffering a full fledged [[FreakOut nervous breakdown]] that turned him into the [[SecondLawMyAss misanthropic]] [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold jerk]] he was in ''ComicBook/{{Nextwave}}.'' He stayed that way for years, but recent portrayals have shown him [[CharacterCheck acting like his much mellower old self,]] so we must assume that he has [[HesBack finally managed to work past it.]]
* ComicBook/TheThing of ''ComicBook/FantasticFour'' has a very distinctive "voice", with most of his dialogue carrying a rough-and-tumble lower-class vibe, befitting a guy hailing from the Lower East Side of Manhattan. In early issues, though, this trait was mostly absent, with his lines sounding noticeably more formal and stilted, even a bit villainous, saying things like "bah!" and "fool!" In general, he came across as less of a JerkWithAHeartOfGold and more like a TokenEvilTeammate, with him being actively disdainful of civilians and creating by far the most collateral damage.

* [[ComicBook/MachineMan Aaron Stack the Machine Man]] started out as a very [[NiceGuy nice guy]] -- the only robot in his series who ''didn't'' [[MurderousMalfunctioningMachine go mad]] and have to be put down like a wild animal, because he was [[RoboFamily lovingly raised as a son by]] [[MotherlyScientist the man who built him.]] [[UsefulNotes/TheDarkAgeOfComicBooks Years later]] though, he went through a [[TraumaCongaLine series of traumatic experiences]] [[ComicBookDeath (getting destroyed and rebuilt,]] [[BrainwashedAndCrazy infected with]] [[ComicBook/XMen Sentinel programming,]] and finally kidnapped by aliens and unceremoniously rejected as being somehow unfit) -- leading to his suffering a full fledged [[FreakOut nervous breakdown]] that turned him into the [[SecondLawMyAss misanthropic]] [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold jerk]] he was in ''ComicBook/{{Nextwave}}.'' He stayed that way for years, but recent portrayals have shown him [[CharacterCheck acting like his much mellower old self,]] so we must assume that he has [[HesBack finally managed to work past it.]]

* Hannibal King, friend of ''ComicBook/{{Blade}}'', was originally introduced in ''Comicbook/TheTombOfDracula'' as a no-nonsense private eye who tended to stay calm, unobtrusive, and most professional. In ''Night Stalkers'', he became very emo, angsty, and melodramatic. And in later appearances, he became a goofy, bumbling, comic relief punching bag. This third characterization may be a response to ''Film/BladeTrinity'' and Creator/RyanReynolds' characterization of King.

* ComicBook/{{Ultimate|Marvel}} Comicbook/NickFury was a ''lot'' different in his initial appearance, being more like Tony Stark (i.e. a suave, cocky and insanely rich ladies man) than the stoic Creator/SamuelLJackson [[NoCelebritiesWereHarmed inspired]] character who later appeared in ''ComicBook/TheUltimates''.

* In several of the early comics, the Green [[ComicBook/TheIncredibleHulk Hulk]] was slightly more intelligent and could talk better, barely even referring to himself in the 3rd person. Then eventually this paved way to the more popular dumb beast that always spouted "[[HulkSpeak Puny human make Hulk angry! Hulk smash!]]" Though later retcons would establish that this behavior was still canon. The Hulk has [[SplitPersonality multiple personalities]], with some of them being quite intelligent while others are just mindless, screaming monsters.

* Aaron Stack the Machine Man started out as a very [[NiceGuy nice guy]] -- the only robot in his series who ''didn't'' [[MurderousMalfunctioningMachine go mad]] and have to be put down like a wild animal, because he was [[RoboFamily lovingly raised as a son by]] [[MotherlyScientist the man who built him.]] [[UsefulNotes/TheDarkAgeOfComicBooks Years later]] though, he went through a [[TraumaCongaLine series of traumatic experiences]] [[ComicBookDeath (getting destroyed and rebuilt,]] [[BrainwashedAndCrazy infected with]] [[ComicBook/XMen Sentinel programming,]] and finally kidnapped by aliens and unceremoniously rejected as being somehow unfit) -- leading to his suffering a full fledged [[FreakOut nervous breakdown]] that turned him into the [[SecondLawMyAss misanthropic]] [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold jerk]] he was in ''ComicBook/{{Nextwave}}.'' He stayed that way for years, but recent portrayals have shown him [[CharacterCheck acting like his much mellower old self,]] so we must assume that he has [[HesBack finally managed to work past it.]]

* In several of the early comics, the Green [[ComicBook/IncredibleHulk Hulk]] was slightly more intelligent and could talk better, barely even referring to himself in the 3rd person. Then eventually this paved way to the more popular dumb beast that always spouted "[[HulkSpeak Puny human make Hulk angry! Hulk smash!]]" Though later retcons would establish that this behavior was still canon. The Hulk has [[SplitPersonality multiple personalities]], with some of them being quite intelligent while others are just mindless, screaming monsters.

* [[ComicBook/ChaosWar The Chaos King]], A.K.A. [[Myth/JapaneseMythology Amatsu-Mikaboshi]], did not [[GratuitousIambicPentameter speak entirely in haiku]] in his first appearance. It was only in ''ComicBook/IncredibleHercules'' that this bit of characterization was introduced, and he's spoken this way ever since, because [[RuleOfCool it just sounds cool]]. One wonders why a "Chaos King" would take the effort to speak in such orderly fashion, but as the man (or primal chaos-being) said himself:

* Aaron Stack the Machine Man started out as a very [[NiceGuy nice guy]] -- the only robot in his series who ''didn't'' [[MurderousMalfunctioningMachine go mad]] and have to be put down like a wild animal, because he was [[RoboFamily lovingly raised as a son by]] [[MotherlyScientist the man who built him.]] [[UsefulNotes/TheDarkAgeOfComicBooks Years later]] though, he went through a [[TraumaCongaLine series of traumatic experiences]] [[ComicBookDeath (getting destroyed and rebuilt,]] [[BrainwashedAndCrazy infected with]] [[ComicBook/XMen Sentinel programming,]] and finally kidnapped by aliens and unceremoniously rejected as being somehow unfit) -- leading to his suffering a full fledged [[FreakOut nervous breakdown]] that turned him into the [[SecondLawMyAss misanthropic]] [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold jerk]] he was in ''ComicBook/{{Nextwave}}.'' He stayed that way for years, but recent portrayals have shown him [[CharacterCheck acting like his much mellower old self,]] so we must assume that he has [[HesBack finally managed to work past it.]]

* ''ComicBook/SpiderMan'': From its origins in 1962 to about 1994, it was known for having [[DynamicCharacter dynamic]] real-time characterization where characters grew and changed, even after it adopted a sliding time scale. Death was death and so on. ''ComicBook/TheCloneSaga'' ended its realism, and ''ComicBook/OneMoreDay'' exchanged the dynamic characters with StaticCharacter. Likewise most of the story is told from Peter's POV and we rarely see the story from the viewpoint of other characters, so their characterization marched on at a different pace:
** Pre-OMD, you had Spider-Man who started off as hotheaded and ready to fight for little reason. As early as ''Amazing Spider-Man'' #1, Spidey breaks into the ComicBook/FantasticFour's house to fight them in order to prove his worth as a potential member. He mellowed out once he became an adult so a lot of this could be chalked up to him being a teenage boy who just got super powers.
** Gwen Stacy was easily the most inconsistently written character in the classic period. When co-creator Creator/SteveDitko was around, he consistently wrote her as a stuck-up college-aged AlphaBitch and beauty queen who got in because of her class and looks. Then after he stepped down, and John Romita wanting a more regular social circle and a change of scenery, had her rewritten into a more virtuous girl. Then her father was introduced and she became a weepy DaddysGirl who largely followed the men in her life. Most notably she was [[BettyAndVeronica the Veronica and then the Betty]] in the ongoing LoveTriangle with Peter and MJ, before winding up Spider-Man's [[NiceGirl very sweet girlfriend]], and then, her father died which she blamed on Spider-Man, which did a number on her relationship with Peter who was convinced that she wouldn't accept his double life at all. Then there came ''ComicBook/TheNightGwenStacyDied'', where posthumously she became a SatelliteCharacter for Mary Jane (right from her death issue, where MJ is easily the most important female character), and MJ often revealed her more vulnerable side whenever Gwen came, feeling upset about her poor background compared to hers and guilty about taking her place in Peter's life. Her later portrayal (Peter's one true love who was TooGoodForThisSinfulEarth) didn't exist until after her death.
** In his earliest appearances the Green Goblin was a SmugSnake who kept [[KarmaHoudini getting away after his plans failed]] and whose [[TheFaceless face we never saw.]] Then he was unmasked as ComicBook/NormanOsborn shortly after successfully learning Spider-Man's own identity, spent some time as a JekyllAndHyde, killed Gwen Stacy, got posthumously upgraded into the BigBad, and was turned into a {{Chessmaster}} upon his [[BackFromTheDead resurrection]], where he has more or less stayed ever since. In short, a major change due to being a BreakoutVillain.
** Mary Jane Watson was set up by Aunt May as a BlindDate for her wallflower love-shy nephew (as she saw it) even if Peter felt he was actually doing a good job getting past that ([[BlatantLies he wasn't]] but he did have a relationship with Betty Brant). Aunt May kept hyping MJ as an ideal match for Peter and readers, after being told contextually that she was indeed very beautiful, were in suspense for her introduction. And when revealed in #42, as a charismatic AudienceSurrogate (a 60s party girl who thought Spider-Man was cool and so was Peter), despite her characterization by Lee and Romita as a flaky party-girl, was seen by fans to be the more interesting character. One of those fans, Creator/GerryConway, wrote the death of Gwen Stacy specifically to develop her character and revealed a more courageous, compassionate, and loyal side than previously expected. Later writers, Marv Wolfman, Creator/RogerStern, Tom [=Defalco=] revealed a much more complex character and made her one of the most important supporting characters not just in Spider-Man but Marvel Comics as a whole, and finally Peter's wife, and Post-OMD still his best known and most popular love interest.
** Aunt May is another example. In the beginning, she was a sweet, extremely old and extremely frail old lady but, readers also felt that she was [[CloudCuckooLander somewhat senile and detached from reality]]. That she allowed herself to be charmed by ComicBook/DoctorOctopus and saw Mary Jane Watson as a suitable partner and future wife for Peter (''before'' MJ's characterization marched on) was portrayed as evidence for this by writers. Then in the late 1970s she became more involved in the real world, e. g. joining the Gray Panthers, a bypass operation removed her recurrent health problems, and by all appearances she actually became younger. During Roger Stern's run her reasons for continuing matchmaking also was revealed as much more canny than previously imagined; she commented to Peter that both he and MJ "had lost so much" which stunned Peter when he realized that in all the time they dated, he never asked MJ about her life and later he learned that MJ really was someone he had more in common and that his Aunt was right about her all along. Writers also implied that Aunt May knew Peter's secret, which was confirmed in the wonderfully written (but later retconned) issue #400. After the Clone Saga, May discovered the secret a second time in ''ComicBook/JMSSpiderMan'', has a sane conversation with him about it, and is ''totally able to deal with it,'' making her the [[CoolOldLady coolest old lady]] on Earth. Later episodes have her helping with the secret identity in ways that make you wonder how he ''ever'' got along when she ''didn't'' know. [[ComicBook/OneMoreDay Then, it was all retconned a second time]].
** In the Post-OMD era, with StaticCharacter for all, in essence characterizations are composite from different periods in history since the undoing of the marriage and the concurrent maturity and growth that comes from characters making that commitment, meant that Peter in Post-OMD is an unlucky but optimistic ButtMonkey and ManChild, Aunt May remarries, grows younger, and lives apart from Peter but still remains his only family. Mary Jane is Peter's on-off girlfriend, sometimes bitter, sometimes loving and friendly, other times distant, and other times flaky like always.
* ''Comicbook/XMen''
** In the first two or so issues of, Beast essentially sexually harassed Jean Grey and was a big dumb oaf, but as early as the third issue, he became a self-described bookworm who used a much more impressive vocabulary and was far kinder to people around him, and it was treated as if he had always been so. Interestingly, in a much later arc, the Beast, now blue and furry (which is also this trope, as ''some'' don't know he wasn't always this way), has his appearance restored to his original human form, but at the cost of his intelligence dwindling as he uses his powers. He eventually talks much like his day-one self.
** ComicBook/{{Apocalypse}}'s first appearances had him as a crime boss and then a ComicBook/{{Magneto}}-esque mutant supremacist, giving the same sort of speeches with more BoldInflation during [[ReplacementFlatCharacter a time when Magneto had become the New Mutants' mentor.]] The [[TheSocialDarwinist "survival of the fittest"]] aspect of his philosophy emerged soon afterward and those other characterizations quickly fell by the wayside. His backstory and status as a rare but overwhelming threat came later still.
** The original plan for the ''Comicbook/XFactor'' comic (where Apocalypse was first introduced) was that the shadowy mastermind that X-Factor had been fighting against was planned to be minor Comicbook/{{Daredevil}} and Spider-Man villain the Owl. When a new writer came in, they decided to create a new villain.
** Magneto himself is a good example of this. The Creator/StanLee/Creator/JackKirby version of the character was just a straightforward villain with essentially no character depth. Creator/ChrisClaremont gave Magneto a sympathetic backstory and changed him into a WellIntentionedExtremist, and these changes have more or less stuck over the intervening decades. Unfortunately, post-Claremont writers and editors re-cardboardified Magneto to some considerable extent.
** ComicBook/{{Rogue}} got her start as a villainous henchwoman working for Mystique, taking on and nearly single-handedly defeating the entire team of Comicbook/TheAvengers with a bravado that would be out of place on the troubled young girl she was soon developed into. This is particularly strange when you consider that nearly all of Rogue's earliest appearances - including that encounter with the Avengers - were written by Creator/ChrisClaremont.
** According to a tenacious urban legend, Comicbook/{{Wolverine}}'s origin was ''intended'' to be that he was actually a wolverine mutated into human form. Creator/LenWein himself, Wolverine's co-creator, has made it clear that this is just a myth. Old plans that ''were'' made are that his claws were originally intended to be built into his gloves, and WordOfGod states that he was planned to be about as strong as Franchise/SpiderMan (i.e. at the low end of superhuman strength in the Franchise/MarvelUniverse, but still able to lift about 10 tons).
** He also started out as a thug with a bad temper whose main contribution to fights was rushing in recklessly and getting [[TheWorfEffect swatted aside]] to prove that the villain couldn't be beaten without teamwork. During ComicBook/TheDarkPhoenixSaga, he TookALevelInBadass and never looked back. It's also surprising (considering how important it is to his modern characterization) how long it is between his first appearance and the first explicit mention of his HealingFactor (he says that he heals fast a little earlier, but it's in more of a "don't fuss over me just because I got myself beaten" context than an "I have a superhuman ability to heal" one).
** And how about Charles Xavier himself? In the first twenty or so issues, he used his powers a lot more, reading minds whenever he pleased, communicating telepathically even to people in the same room, harboring a secret crush on Jean Grey, and mind-wiping several of the X-Men's foes in order to get them out of the way for good. While some later writers would portray Xavier as a {{Jerkass}}, it never reached this level. Early Professor X also had a close relationship with the US government and freely deployed the X-Men as government agents, a setup that would be unthinkable in the later "hated and feared" days.
** Also, Iceman. Nowadays, he is mostly known as a funny guy. In the beginning, he would often attack his teammates during mission briefings. While this was probably intended to show him as immature (he was two years younger than the rest), it just made him look like a JerkAss and an idiot.