History LegacyCharacter / MarvelUniverse

** Spoofed in ''ComicBook/{{Wolverines}}'': Following Wolverine's death, [[Characters/MarvelComicsDeadpool Deadpool]] decided that the world ''needed'' a Wolverine in it, so took it upon himself to become the new Wolverine. [[EpicFail It...didn't work out so well]], with Wade not only just getting his ass kicked by [[Characters/SheHulkTitleCharacter She-Hulk]] for his trouble, but receiving a colossal [[LeaningOnTheFourthWall fourth wall-straining lampshade]] hung on just how difficult it is for legacy characters to work by Dogtagger.

** The mainline comics retired Frank Castle at the end of ''ComicBook/Punisher2022'', with him having a HeelRealization after being called out on his violent ways and abandoning the role. Enter Joe Garrison, former agent of S.H.I.E.L.D., who took up Frank's role and codename after his own family was killed in a home bombing.

** Ultimately played straight. When the normal Marvel Universe resumed following ''ComicBook/{{Secret Wars|2015}}'', [[Characters/MarvelComicsLauraKinney X-23]] took up the Wolverine name and costume in Logan's honor in ''ComicBook/AllNewWolverine''.

* ''ComicBook/ThePunisher'': Deconstructed in ''ComicBook/ThePunisherMAX'' with Jenny Cesare. She is a traumatized, abused ex-Mafia-wife who helps Frank fight back against the widows of some Mafia guys he killed when they try to take revenge, and when he is incapacitated by gunshot wounds towards the end of the arc she wears his costume and does most of the killing in his name. Then, when her revenge fails to make her feel any happier, she screws Frank in a final effort to reawaken her emotions, and shoots herself when it doesn't. The general message is that anybody who wants to be Frank is a deeply disturbed and misguided individual. This comes close to upsetting Frank, and he [[IgnoredEpiphany decides]] to kill '''even more''' bad guys to reduce the number of people who get traumatized in the world.

** In 1987 John Walker was chosen as the new ComicBook/CaptainAmerica after Steve Rogers chose to give up the identity rather than be a government stooge. During his tenure as Captain America was partnered with Lemar Hoskins as Bucky (who quicly took the name Battlestar after the UnfortunateImplications of a black man going by 'Bucky' after the use of the word 'buck' about black men in the Antebellum South was [[LampshadeHanging lampshaded]]).

* ''ComicBook/BlackPanther'': The Characters/{{Black Panther|TitleCharacter}} is a title granted to the ruler of the fictional nation of Wakanda. The most iconic bearer of the mantle, T'Challa, became the Black Panther after the murder of his father T'Chaka. T'Challa briefly passed the mantle to his younger sister Shuri before reclaiming it. The title was also briefly inherited by Kasper Cole before he abandoned it in favor of taking on the White Tiger identity (see below).

*** This gets a little complicated at this point, but stay with us. One of the guys who replaced Cap after he disappeared was the Patriot, a name that would later be used by [[ComicBook/YoungAvengers the grandson]] of Isaiah Bradley. After Eli retired, the Patriot mantle would be taken up by a teen named Rayshaun Lucas during ''ComicBook/SecretEmpire''. Meanwhile, one of Cap's alternate identities, Nomad, the Man Without a Country, was adopted by Jack Monroe (formerly the fake Bucky of the 50s), and later by Rikki Barnes, the female Bucky from ''ComicBook/HeroesReborn'''s Counter-Earth. John Walker wore Cap's "The Captain" costume to become [=USAgent=], and during his tenure as Captain America was partnered with Lemar Hoskins as Bucky (who quicly took the name Battlestar after the UnfortunateImplications of a black man going by 'Bucky' after the use of the word 'buck' about black men in the Antebellum South was [[LampshadeHanging lampshaded]]).
** After Cap was defrosted, he had two incidents where he took a different name, and others took the costume and name of Captain America. None of them lasted very long. With Cap dead, the name and shield passed to his BackFromTheDead ex-sidekick; when Cap finally came BackFromTheDead himself, he decided to let Bucky keep the title and adopt a different name again.
** Later on, Steve was temporarily aged into an old man, resulting in Sam Wilson, [[Characters/CaptainAmericaHeroes the Falcon]], becoming the second black Captain America; Steve's rejuvenation resulted in both Steve and Sam sharing the name. During the period when Sam was Captain America, a Mexican teenager named Joaquin Torres became the new Falcon.

** [[Characters/MarvelComicsTonyStark Tony Stark]] himself has passed on the mantle of Iron Man a few times.
*** During his battle with alcoholism, Tony Stark was briefly replaced by his buddy James "Rhodey" Rhodes, who became popular enough that he developed the heroic identity of ComicBook/WarMachine after returning the Iron Man mantle to Tony.
*** Between his ComicBookDeath at the end of ''ComicBook/TheCrossing'' and his resurrection in ''ComicBook/HeroesReborn'', Tony was replaced by a teenaged version of himself from an alternate universe.
*** Following ''ComicBook/CivilWarII'', the Iron Man legacy is temporarily taken up by Riri Williams and [[Characters/MarvelComicsDoctorDoom Doctor Doom]]. However, Riri now calls herself Characters/{{Ironheart}} instead of Iron Man.

** During the 90s, [[Characters/MarvelComicsThorOdinson Thor]] was briefly succeeded by a man named Eric Masterson, who soon took on the identity of ComicBook/{{Thunderstrike}} after the Thor mantle was returned to the original. Thunderstrike was later killed and now his son Kevin operates as the new Thunderstrike and a member of the Avengers Academy.
** After the ''ComicBook/FearItself'' crossover (where Bucky "died", only to become a secret agent), Thor was also briefly replaced by Tanarus, who took over as the new God of Thunder. Subverted when it turned out that Tanarus was actually Thor's enemy Ulik the Troll in disguise as part of a scheme by Karnilla.
** As part of the ''ComicBook/MarvelNOW'' Initiative, the mantle of Thor was passed [[AffirmativeActionLegacy onto a terminally ill]] [[ComicBook/Thor2014 Jane Foster]], who proves herself worthy of Mjolnir. Then, during the events of ''ComicBook/WarOfTheRealms'', Jane becomes the [[Characters/MarvelComicsValkyrior Valkyrie]] after Brunnhilde is killed by Malekith the Accursed.

*** This gets a little complicated at this point, but stay with us. One of the guys who replaced Cap after he disappeared was the Patriot, a name that would later be used by [[ComicBook/YoungAvengers the grandson]] of the ''real'' original Captain America, Isaiah Bradley. After Eli retired, the Patriot mantle would be taken up by a teen named Rayshaun Lucas during ''ComicBook/SecretEmpire''. Meanwhile, one of Cap's alternate identities, Nomad, the Man Without a Country, was adopted by Jack Monroe (formerly the fake Bucky of the 50s), and later by Rikki Barnes, the female Bucky from ''ComicBook/HeroesReborn'''s Counter-Earth. John Walker wore Cap's "The Captain" costume to become [=USAgent=], and during his tenure as Captain America was partnered with Lemar Hoskins as Bucky (who took the name Battlestar after the UnfortunateImplications of a black man going by 'Bucky' after the use of the word 'buck' about black men in the Antebellum South was [[LampshadeHanging lampshaded]]).

* ''ComicBook/{{Captain Marvel|MarvelComics}}'': The original Captain Marvel, Captain Mar-Vell, [[KilledOffForReal died from cancer]] in one of the first large-format graphic novels ''ComicBook/TheDeathOfCaptainMarvel''. In the 1980s, a Coast Guard officer from New Orleans named Monica Rambeau gained energy powers and took the name "Captain Marvel". Eventually, she traded hero sobriquets with the genetically engineered son of the late original Captain, Genis-Vell, who then operated under the name "Captain Marvel". ''He'' was killed, and succeeded as "Captain Marvel" by his younger sister, Phyla-Vell, (Genis-Vell eventually [[BackFromTheDead came back]], but took a different name, Photon -- that Monica Rambeau had ''also'' used.) The original came BackFromTheDead [[spoiler:as a ShapeshifterModeLock Skrull]]. In 2012, [[Characters/MarvelComicsCarolDanvers Carol Danvers]] (formerly ComicBook/MsMarvel) took on the Captain Marvel name herself. As of 2014, Monica Rambeau goes by "Spectrum" while a girl named [[Characters/MarvelComicsKamalaKhan Kamala Khan]] is the new Ms. Marvel.

* ''ComicBook/AntMan'': The ultimate legacy character is Marvel Comics' size-changing hero Doctor Hank Pym; Pym has used five different superhero identities over the years (Ant-Man, Giant-Man, Goliath, Yellowjacket, and the Wasp), and no fewer than six people have adopted his discarded identities at various times.

** At one point Pym even took the identity of the Wasp, a name originally held by his ex-wife Janet van Dyne. After being mocked by foes such as Absorbing Man and realizing he needed to move on, Pym discarded the Wasp identity in favor of retaking the Giant-Man identity. Subsequently, [[ComicBook/TheUnstoppableWasp Pym's daughter and Janet's stepdaughter Nadia became the new Wasp]].

** The recurring mecha supervillain [[Characters/MarvelComicsUltron Ultron]] (created by Hank Pym) created two more robots (ComicBook/TheVision and Victor Mancha) who both rebelled from him and joined the Avengers and the ComicBook/{{Runaways}}, respectively. The Vision was programmed using brainwave patterns from ComicBook/WonderMan. Vision married ComicBook/ScarletWitch, and had two children with her who were killed but their souls (and thus powers) were placed in the bodies of Wiccan and Speed (members of the ComicBook/YoungAvengers; we'll get to them in a minute). Vision was then destroyed in the "Avengers Disassembled" storyline. In the aftermath, a young Kang the Conqueror uses his own shapeshifting power armor and data copied from the Vision's remains to become Iron Lad, another Young Avenger. Kang eventually goes back to his own time, but leaves the Iron Lad armor behind, which has now gained sentience thanks to the Vision program and has become a legacy character to Vision I.

* ''ComicBook/AvengersTheInitiative'': During the 50 States Initiative, the Liberteens were the heroes of Pennsylvania whose gimmick was that they were all legacy characters to the Liberty Legion: [[CaptainPatriotic Revolutionary]] (Patriot), [[WingedHumanoid Blue Eagle]] (Red Raven), [[SuperToughness Hope]] (the Blue Diamond), [[SuperSpeed Whiz Kid]] (the Whizzer), [[AnIcePerson Iceberg]] (Jack Frost), [[RubberMan 2D]] (Flatman) and [[TheHeart Ms America]] (Miss America). (Revolutionary turned out to [[ComicBook/SecretInvasion2008 be a Skrull]], though.)

* ''ComicBook/BlackPanther'': The Black Panther is a title granted to the ruler of the fictional nation of Wakanda. The most iconic bearer of the mantle, T'Challa, became the Black Panther after the murder of his father T'Chaka. T'Challa briefly passed the mantle to his younger sister Shuri before reclaiming it. The title was also briefly inherited by Kasper Cole before he abandoned it in favor of taking on the White Tiger identity (see below).

** Captain America's return in ''ComicBook/TheAvengers'' came with the backstory that he became a HumanPopsicle near the end of UsefulNotes/WorldWarII, and his sidekick Bucky wasn't so lucky. But since Cap and Bucky kept appearing well after [=WW2=], how'd that happen? ''To the {{Retcon}}mobile!'' Turns out 50s "[[DirtyCommies Commie]] Smasher" Cap was another guy named William Burnside (later the villain known as the Grand Director) and his Bucky was not ComicBook/BuckyBarnes[[note]]the real one was believed to be dead at the time, but was secretly active as the Winter Soldier, brainwashed by Hydra[[/note]] but Jack Monroe (later Nomad).

** Later on, Steve was temporarily aged into an old man, resulting in Sam Wilson, ComicBook/TheFalcon, becoming the second black Captain America; Steve's rejuvenation resulted in both Steve and Sam sharing the name. During the period when Sam was Captain America, a Mexican teenager named Joaquin Torres became the new Falcon.

** The moniker of ''ComicBook/MsMarvel'' has also been passed around a few times. After Carol Danvers' depowering at the hands of Rogue, the next person to take it up was Sharon Ventura, a wrestler who became romantically involved with the Thing. During the ''ComicBook/DarkReign'' era, the supervillainess Moonstone took the identity for her own as part of Norman Osborn's Dark Avengers. After Carol's ascension to Captain Marvel, Kamala Khan took up the identity of Ms. Marvel.

* ''ComicBook/DoctorStrange'': The only one of Marvel's original characters to begin as a legacy character was Doctor Strange, who is merely the ''current'' Sorcerer Supreme. His legacy stretches back thousands of years (some say back to [[PhysicalGod Agamotto]] himself).
* ''ComicBook/{{Foolkiller}}'': There have thus far been four individuals to take up the identity and mission of the Foolkiller: Ross G. Everbest, Greg Salinger, Kurt Gerhardt, and Mike Trace. While all have the goal of killing "fools", each has a different definition of the term (Everbest was a KnightTemplar who killed people he perceived as sinners, Gerhardt and Trace were vigilantes with methods much like ComicBook/ThePunisher - but more of a sociopath - who hunted criminals, and Salinger was simply a lunatic who claimed a fool was someone who "lacked a poetic nature". To emphasize how insane he was, when Spider-Man engaged him in a battle, an onlooker remarked that anyone who would fight Spider-Man would have to be a fool; Salinger agreed, and tried to shoot himself).
* ''ComicBook/GhostRider'': Originally, Johnny Blaze seemed to be the first and only Ghost Rider. This was later shown [[https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/GhostRiders.jpg not to be the case.]] Wherever injustice reigns, a Spirit of Vengeance will rise to punish the wicked...

** Johnny himself is technically a Legacy Character, since the original Ghost Rider was Carter Slade, a schoolteacher who donned a spooky phosphorecent costume and rode a pale white horse to terrify evildoers in the Wild West. For a time marvel tried to follow the OneSteveLimit by changing his name to Phantom Rider, but The ComicBook/GhostRacers miniseries has since reinstated Slade as the original Ghost Rider.
** Slade has also had his own [[StealthPun cavalcade]] of successors over the years: Shortly after his death, his brother Lincoln assumed the mantle after seeing Carter's sidekick, Jamie, die while trying to do the same. Then, Lincoln's spirit possessed his descendant, Hamilton Slade, for various adventures until he was exorcised, and the same happened to Hamilton's daughter, Jaime, who seemingly retains ghostly powers to this day. And somewhere between Lincoln and Hamilton, Reno Jones of the Gunhawks briefly took the identity of Ghost Rider during the miniseries ''ComicBook/BlazeOfGlory''.
* ''ComicBook/GreatLakesAvengers'': The various Great Lakes Avengers/X-Men/Defenders comics have been parodying this with the Grasshopper. The first joined the GLA and died less than seven seconds later. Three other Grasshoppers have appeared in the team's comics, and none of them have had the same longevity as the first. A fifth one showed up in ''You Are Deadpool'', and he was able to kick ComicBook/{{Deadpool}} in the face (that is, [[{{Gamebooks}} if he was able to]]) before expiring.

** Clint Barton has taken on three identities in his lifetime:
*** His first was, of course, Hawkeye, and he was the first; the identity later was taken up by Kate Bishop at a time when he was believed dead (she chose not to take up the costume as well, out of respect), then got used by Bullseye during his time in the Dark Avengers. Currently, Clint is back to using it and, unusually, Kate is still using it without any "Hawkeye Jr." or "Lady Hawkeye" modification.

*** The third one, Ronin, was gained from Maya Lopez, better known as Echo, who gave him her blessing after rescuing her from Japan. It has since been taken up by two others, Alexei Shostakov (Red Guardian), and ComicBook/{{Blade}}.

* ''ComicBook/HeroesReborn2021'': In the alternate universe where the Avengers were replaced by the ComicBook/SquadronSupreme, three heroes end up taking up the legacies of certain members of the Squadron: [[ComicBook/{{Nova}} Sam Alexander]] becomes Doctor Spectrum's sidekick Kid Spectrum, [[Characters/MarvelComicsKamalaKhan Kamala Khan]] becomes Power Princess's sidekick Girl Power, and [[Characters/MarvelComicsMilesMorales Miles Morales]] becomes the new Falcon following the death of the previous one.
* ''ComicBook/HumanTorch'': The Human Torch was originally a [[UsefulNotes/TheGoldenAgeOfComicBooks Golden Age]] character from Timely Comics, who was on the cover of the first issue of their flagship title ("Marvel Comics"). He was a Frankensteinian android who could catch fire and fly. When Timely became Marvel in the 60's and Stan and Jack created the ComicBook/FantasticFour, they reused the Torch's design, this time making him a young human. Eventually, Marvel started bringing back their Golden Age characters, which inevitably led to the two Torches involved in a LetsYouAndHimFight situation.
* ''ComicBook/TheIncredibleHulk'': In ''ComicBook/TotallyAwesomeHulk'', Amadeus Cho became the new Hulk for a time after absorbing the gamma radiation from Bruce Banner's body.

** Tony himself has passed on the mantle of Iron Man a few times.

*** Following ''ComicBook/CivilWarII'', the Iron Man legacy is temporarily taken up by Riri Williams and ComicBook/DoctorDoom. However, Riri now calls herself ComicBook/{{Ironheart}} instead of Iron Man.

*** While Scarlotti was going by "Blacklash", Leeann Foreman took up the name "Whiplash" and fought ComicBook/SpiderMan and the ComicBook/XMen. She's since taken up the name of "Snake Whip" during ''ComicBook/HuntForWolverine''.

* ''ComicBook/LukeCage'': Power Man is a complicated example. The first Power Man was a villain named Erik Josten before the name passed to its most famous holder, ComicBook/LukeCage. Luke currently goes by his civilian name and no longer wears a costume, so the identity has since fallen to Victor Alvarez, an Afro-Latino teenager who fancies himself a "hero for hire."

** [[ComicBook/GuardiansOfTheGalaxy Gamora]] has taken on the title of Starlord after Peter Quill's (apparent) death.
** Also, the [[ComicBook/FantasticFour Human Torch]] is now an [[AffirmativeActionLegacy Asian]] boy named Lee Minh Cam.

** ComicBook/SpiderMan2099, there's Miguel O'Hara, better known as ., Spider-Man 2099 is this to Peter Parker, with the only exception being the ComicBook/{{Timestorm}} incarnation.

** During the 90s, Thor was briefly succeeded by a man named Eric Masterson, who soon took on the identity of ComicBook/{{Thunderstrike}} after the Thor mantle was returned to the original. Thunderstrike was later killed and now his son Kevin operates as the new Thunderstrike and a member of the Avengers Academy.
** After the "Fear Itself" crossover (where Bucky "died", only to become a secret agent), Thor was also briefly replaced by Tanarus, who took over as the new God of Thunder. Subverted when it turned out that Tanarus was actually Thor's enemy Ulik the Troll in disguise as part of a scheme by Karnilla.
** As part of the ComicBook/MarvelNOW Initiative, the mantle of Thor was passed [[AffirmativeActionLegacy onto a terminally ill]] [[ComicBook/Thor2014 Jane Foster]], who proves herself worthy of Mjolnir. Then, during the events of ''ComicBook/WarOfTheRealms'', Jane becomes the ComicBook/{{Valkyrie|Marvel Comics}} after Brunnhilde is killed by Malekith the Accursed.

* ''ComicBook/SpiderMan'':

*** Ben Reilly himself inspired a legacy. Before he became the second Spider-Man, Ben went by the name of ComicBook/ScarletSpider. Years after his death, the Scarlet Spider identity was adopted by Kaine, another clone of Peter Parker.

** In ''ComicBook/{{Identity Crisis|1998}}'', Spidey is wanted for murder, so Peter adopts not one but FOUR alternate identities. These identities were eventually adopted by the ComicBook/{{Slingers}} after he returned to the Spider-Man identity; Eddie [=McDonough=] (who became the Hornet), Ritchie Gilmore (who became Prodigy), Johnny Gallo (who became Ricochet), and Cassie St. Commons (who became Dusk). Eddie eventually died fighting ComicBook/{{Wolverine}}, and the villain Cyber subsequently went on a crime spree in the guise of the Hornet. As of ''ComicBook/SpiderManBeyond'', the Hornet identity has been taken over by the original Prowler, Hobie Brown (who created the Hornet's jetpack in the first place).

** In ''ComicBook/SuperiorSpiderMan'', the Spider-Mantle was held by [[Characters/MarvelComicsOttoOctavius Otto Octavius]], who became Spider-Man by pulling a GrandTheftMe on Peter Parker, who died in Otto Octavius' body. Doc Ock agreed to be a hero after seeing the memories of the original Spider-Man. He also agreed to live Peter Parker's life as well and prove to be superior in both identities. Peter returned at the end of the story.

*** Norman also had a henchman act as his stand-in after he returned in ComicBook/TheCloneSaga; the identity of this Goblin was never revealed.

*** ComicBook/{{Venom}} is this, as five hosts have now bonded with the same symbiote and taken the Venom name. Eddie Brock is the first Venom host to use the name Venom, and is a villain/anti-hero depending on his mood. Angelo Fortunato was the second Venom and also villainous, but his tenure was short-lived and he's usually forgotten about. Mac Gargan (Scorpion) was the third Venom and also villainous, also taking on the Spider-Man name while posing as the wallcrawler on Norman Osborn's Avengers. Flash Thompson was the fourth Venom and the first straight-up heroic one; usually he's called Agent Venom to distinguish him from the traditionally villainous role of Venom[[note]]In this case, Flash [[HeroWorshipper wanted to be a new Spider-Man]], but the name "Venom" was chosen due to the fear it instills in people[[/note]]. Lee Price is the most recent new Venom, and returned to the title's villainous origins before losing the symbiote to Eddie Brock.
*** ComicBook/{{Carnage}} has had two non-temporary hosts. The first and most well-known is Cletus Cassady, a serial killer who created the name. The second is Karl Malus, a MadScientist, though the symbiote eventually returned to Cletus.
*** ComicBook/{{Toxin}} has had two hosts. The first was Pat Mulligan, an NYPD officer who tried to use it heroically. He was killed off-panel and the Toxin symbiote was bonded to Eddie Brock, who used it in villainous ways.

*** The ComicBook/{{Scream|CurseOfCarnage}} symbiote is the one instance where one of the Life Foundation symbiotes has done this. The other four very rarely use their names and have had a large variety of hosts. In contrast, Scream has only had three hosts, all of whom have used the name. Donna Diego is the original Scream and was active for about a decade-and-a-half before being killed along with the Scream symbiote. The symbiote was resurrected by Knull and bonded with Patricia Robertson, who immediately took up the Scream name. Then Patricia sacrificed herself and Andi Benton (formerly Mania) got bonded and became the new Scream.

*** The Vulture, Adrian Toomes, was briefly succeeded by Blackie Drago and Clifton Shallot. There was also another Vulture named Jimmy Natale, who briefly replaced Toomes before being killed by ComicBook/ThePunisher, and a group of Vultures called the Vulturions. It should be noted that Adrian ''hates'' imposters, and often seeks revenge on anyone assuming his title.

*** After the original ComicBook/KravenTheHunter died, his son Vladimir became the Grim Hunter. Then his other son Alyosha became the new Kraven the Hunter. Since then, even more of Kraven's family has shown up...
*** [[Characters/MarvelComicsMacGargan Mac Gargan]] gave up being the ComicBook/{{Scorpion}} for a time, during which Elaine Coll became Scorpia, a female version of the villain (who has continued the role even when Gargan returned). Then during the time Gargan was Venom, another woman came to call herself Scorpion. However, this new Scorpion (Camilla Black) is a hero with different powers.

*** Electro is actually the third to use the name. The first was a robot hero without electrical powers, and the second was an electrical supervillain with the DirtyCommies who fought ComicBook/CaptainAmerica.

** ComicBook/{{Wolverine}}'s nemesis Silver Samurai is one example. The original was a guy named Kenuichiro Harada, who was replaced by his son Shin after his death.
** Spoofed in ''ComicBook/{{Wolverines}}'': Following Wolverine's death, ComicBook/{{Deadpool}} decided that the world ''needed'' a Wolverine in it, so took it upon himself to become the new Wolverine. [[EpicFail It...didn't work out so well]], with Wade not only just getting his ass kicked by ComicBook/SheHulk for his trouble, but receiving a colossal [[LeaningOnTheFourthWall fourth wall-straining lampshade]] hung on just how difficult it is for legacy characters to work by Dogtagger.
** Ultimately played straight. When the normal Marvel Universe resumed following ''ComicBook/{{Secret Wars|2015}}'', ComicBook/{{X 23}} took up the Wolverine name and costume in Logan's honor.
** ComicBook/{{Jubilee|MarvelComics}} is the second to have the name and the power set. She seems to be a "we wish we could use that character but can't, so let's make a new one" case: the first Jubilee was part of the Bratpack, a group of kids brainwashed, empowered, and turned into adults by Mojo. They haven't been seen since pulling the plug on the plan reverted them to normal kids and the de-aged ComicBook/CaptainBritain (and some others) to his true adult self. Some time later, the X-Men encounter an unrelated girl in a mall with the same powers and code name, and she even introduces herself similarly. The original one, while using her 'fireworks' to attack, said her name was Jubilee, whose every move is a celebration. The more familiar one, while using her 'fireworks' to show off, said her name was Jubilee because with her, every day is a celebration.

** ComicBook/RachelSummers is the daughter of ComicBook/{{Cyclops}} and ComicBook/JeanGrey from an alternate future. She has taken on both of her "mother"'s identities, as Phoenix and latterly as Marvel Girl. Now, she's got her own name as 'Prestige'.
** ComicBook/{{Apocalypse}} was eventually revealed to be a legacy character, with the gray-skinned Egyptian En Sabah Nur in fact being the eighth Apocalypse charged by the [[CosmicEntity Celestials]] with advancing evolution on Earth. When [[ComicBook/XForce Uncanny X-Force]] killed En Sabah Nur, the mantle was passed on to the Horseman Death - who also happened to be their teammate Archangel. Cue Archangel [[OhCrap becoming the new Apocalypse]].
** Starting from ''ComicBook/DawnOfX'', [[ComicBook/{{Psylocke}} Betsy Braddock]] became the new ComicBook/CaptainBritain. At the same time, her discarded Psylocke identity is taken up by Kwannon, formerly known as Revanche. This is fitting, as Betsy regained her old Caucasian body following the [[FreakyFridayFlip body swap]] with Kwannon, and Kwannon's body is what most people think of when they think "Psylocke".

* ''ComicBook/YoungAvengers'': Wiccan, Speed, Iron Lad, Vision II, Hawkeye II, and Patriot have all been members of the ComicBook/YoungAvengers, which is composed entirely of Legacy Characters. But there's the twist that some members' apparent legacies differ from their actual ones: Hulkling takes his name from [[ComicBook/TheIncredibleHulk The Hulk]], but is actually ComicBook/{{Captain Marvel|MarvelComics}}'s kid; Wiccan looks like he takes after [[ComicBook/TheMightyThor Thor]] (he started out as "Asgardian"), his powers actually come from the ComicBook/ScarletWitch; and Iron Lad modeled himself after ComicBook/IronMan, but he's actually a teenage ComicBook/KangTheConqueror.
** Downplayed with ComicBook/AmericaChavez, who was also in the Young Avengers team for a time. Out of universe she's marketed as the modern version of Marvel's Golden Age character Miss America, but in-universe "America" is genuinely her first name, and [[WordOfGod according to]] Creator/KieronGillen, she probably doesn't even know that the previous character existed.

* ''ComicBook/HeroesReborn2021'': In the alternate universe where the Avengers were replaced by the ComicBook/SquadronSupreme, three heroes end up taking up the legacies of certain members of the Squadron: [[ComicBook/{{Nova}} Sam Alexander]] becomes Doctor Spectrum's sidekick Kid Spectrum, [[Characters/MarvelComicsKamalaKhan Kamala Khan]] becomes Power Princess's sidekick Girl Power, and [[Characters/UltimateSpiderManMilesMorales Miles Morales]] becomes the new Falcon following the death of the previous one.

** After ''ComicBook/SecretWars2015'', [[Characters/UltimateSpiderManMilesMorales Miles Morales]] shares the Spider-Man mantle with Peter after arriving in the mainstream universe.

* In the 1960s and 1970s, Marvel Comics had a character called "ComicBook/{{Captain Marvel|MarvelComics}}" (not to be confused with the one who shouts "ComicBook/{{Shazam}}!"); he [[KilledOffForReal died from cancer]] in one of the first large-format graphic novels. In the 1980s, a Coast Guard officer from New Orleans named ComicBook/MonicaRambeau gained energy powers and took the name "Captain Marvel". Eventually, she traded hero sobriquets with the genetically engineered son of the late original Captain, who then operated under the name "Captain Marvel". ''He'' was killed, and succeeded as "Captain Marvel" by his younger sister (this third one [[BackFromTheDead came back]], but took a different name, Photon -- that Monica Rambeau had ''also'' used.) The original came BackFromTheDead [[spoiler:as a ShapeshifterModeLock Skrull]]. In 2012, ComicBook/CarolDanvers (formerly ComicBook/MsMarvel) took on the Captain Marvel name herself. As of 2014, Monica Rambeau goes by "Spectrum" while a girl named [[ComicBook/MsMarvel2014 Kamala Khan]] is the new Ms. Marvel.
** The "Ms. Marvel" moniker has also been passed around a few times. After Carol Danvers' depowering at the hands of Rogue, the next person to take it up was Sharon Ventura, a wrestler who became romantically involved with the Thing. During the ''ComicBook/DarkReign'' era, the supervillainess Moonstone took the identity for her own as part of Norman Osborn's Dark Avengers. After Carol's ascension to Captain Marvel, Kamala Khan took up the identity of Ms. Marvel.
* The ultimate legacy character is Marvel Comics' size-changing hero Doctor [[ComicBook/AntMan Henry Pym]]; Pym has used five different superhero identities over the years (Ant-Man, Giant-Man, Goliath, Yellowjacket, and the Wasp), and no fewer than six people have adopted his discarded identities at various times.

* The recurring ''Avengers'' mecha supervillain ComicBook/{{Ultron}} (created by Doctor Pym) created two more robots (ComicBook/TheVision and [[ComicBook/{{Runaways}} Victor Mancha]]) who both rebelled from him and joined ComicBook/TheAvengers and the ComicBook/{{Runaways}}, respectively. The Vision was programmed using brainwave patterns from ComicBook/WonderMan. Vision married ComicBook/ScarletWitch, and had two children with her who were killed but their souls (and thus powers) were placed in the bodies of Wiccan and Speed (members of the ComicBook/YoungAvengers; we'll get to them in a minute). Vision was then destroyed in the "Avengers Disassembled" storyline. In the aftermath, a young Kang the Conqueror uses his own shapeshifting power armor and data copied from the Vision's remains to become Iron Lad, another Young Avenger. Kang eventually goes back to his own time, but leaves the Iron Lad armor behind, which has now gained sentience thanks to the Vision program and has become a legacy character to Vision I.
* ComicBook/TheWasp identity is also a legacy mantle in the ComicBook/UltimateMarvel universe. Following Jan's death during the critically panned ''Ultimatum'' crossover, former villainess Petra Laskov was given a similar costume and abilities by S.H.I.E.L.D., and joined the Avengers under the name Red Wasp.
* Russian heroes who work for the Russian government in the Marvel Universe tend to be replaced a lot. (Many are little more than {{Badass Normal}}s who the Kremlin can replace by passing the equipment to someone else if the current owner dies or is in jail.) The current Crimson Dynamo is the ''thirteenth'' one. The current Red Guardian (aka Vanguard) is the seventh, and the leader of the Winter Guard. The Titanium Man is an odd case; Boris Bullski was the first man to wear the armor and Kondrati Topolov (aka the Gremlin) was the second, but, since Toplov's death, several others wearing the armor have appeared, with their identities unrevealed. (At least some of them might actually have been Bullski, but this has not been verified.)
* There have thus far been four individuals to take up the identity and mission of the ComicBook/{{Foolkiller}}: Ross G. Everbest, Greg Salinger, Kurt Gerhardt, and Mike Trace. While all have the goal of killing "fools", each has a different definition of the term (Everbest was a KnightTemplar who killed people he perceived as sinners, Gerhardt and Trace were vigilantes with methods much like ComicBook/ThePunisher - but more of a sociopath - who hunted criminals, and Salinger was simply a lunatic who claimed a fool was someone who "lacked a poetic nature". To emphasize how insane he was, when Spider-Man engaged him in a battle, an onlooker remarked that anyone who would fight Spider-Man would have to be a fool; Salinger agreed, and tried to shoot himself).
* Wiccan, Speed, Iron Lad, Vision II, Hawkeye II, and Patriot have all been members of the ComicBook/YoungAvengers, which is composed entirely of Legacy Characters. But there's the twist that some members' apparent legacies differ from their actual ones: Hulkling takes his name from [[ComicBook/TheIncredibleHulk The Hulk]], but is actually ComicBook/{{Captain Marvel|MarvelComics}}'s kid; Wiccan looks like he takes after [[ComicBook/TheMightyThor Thor]] (he started out as "Asgardian"), his powers actually come from the ComicBook/ScarletWitch; and Iron Lad modeled himself after ComicBook/IronMan, but he's actually a teenage ComicBook/KangTheConqueror.
* Downplayed with ComicBook/AmericaChavez, who was also in the Young Avengers team for a time. Out of universe she's marketed as the modern version of Marvel's Golden Age character Miss America, but in-universe "America" is genuinely her first name, and [[WordOfGod according to]] Creator/KieronGillen, she probably doesn't even know that the previous character existed.
* Marvel's [[ComicBook/MarvelComics2 MC2]] alternate future has a slew of these, the most famous being ComicBook/SpiderGirl, ComicBook/SpiderMan's daughter. There's also a new Green Goblin, the original's grandson Normie, though he eventually hands the role ''back'' to former heroic Goblin Phil Urich. Many other Marvel heroes have [=MC2=] counterparts, as well as teams, such as the [[ComicBook/FantasticFour Fantastic Five]], the [[ComicBook/XMen X-People]], and [[ComicBook/TheAvengers Avengers Next]], the last of which includes American Dream, a DistaffCounterpart to ComicBook/CaptainAmerica.
* The Human Torch was originally a [[UsefulNotes/TheGoldenAgeOfComicBooks Golden Age]] character from Timely Comics, who was on the cover of the first issue of their flagship title ("Marvel Comics"). He was a Frankensteinian android who could catch fire and fly. When Timely became Marvel in the 60's and Stan and Jack created the ComicBook/FantasticFour, they reused the Torch's design, this time making him a young human. Eventually, Marvel started bringing back their Golden Age characters, which inevitably led to the two Torches involved in a LetsYouAndHimFight situation.
* ''ComicBook/YoungAvengers''' Vision isn't the second, but the third. The first is an alien cop called Aarkus. He can fly, create illusions of himself, generate cold, and teleport (but the destination must have smoke! Why? Because he's from a dimension called Smokeworld, ''duh.'') Visually, the android Vision looks like an update of him, but they're quite different characters beyond that.
* Spider-Man's Electro is the third. The first was a robot hero without electrical powers, and the second was an electrical supervillain with the DirtyCommies and fought ComicBook/CaptainAmerica.
* ComicBook/JubileeMarvelComics is the second to have the name and the power set. She seems to be a "we wish we could use that character but can't, so let's make a new one" case: the first Jubilee was part of the Bratpack, a group of kids brainwashed, empowered, and turned into adults by Mojo. They haven't been seen since pulling the plug on the plan reverted them to normal kids and the de-aged ComicBook/CaptainBritain (and some others) to his true adult self. Some time later, the X-Men encounter an unrelated girl in a mall with the same powers and code name, and she even introduces herself similarly. The original one, while using her 'fireworks' to attack, said her name was Jubilee, whose every move is a celebration. The more familiar one, while using her 'fireworks' to show off, said her name was Jubilee because with her, every day is a celebration.
** The code name for the more familiar one is also justified in that her full name is Jubilation Lee, and Jubilee happens to be her nickname.
* Thor and Loki guest-starred in Venus' solo comic. It's a bizarre case of being the same folks and yet not being them. All were depicted as actually being the mythical characters just like the current ones, so they're the same... but the portrayal was completely incompatible with the current ones, so they can't be. The Norse and Greek gods apparently coexisted in Olympus, and Loki had been exiled. Both looked completely different from the way they do now as well. In Venus' case, there is also a modern version portrayed very differently in the pages of Hercules' comic, but we know what happened there: The Golden Age Venus is a siren (but a good one) who took on the identity and is not the goddess herself as previously thought. The actual goddess is the one from ''Hercules'' and insists on being called by her Greek name, Aphrodite, while the one from ''Venus'' remains Venus. That she knew a Thor and a Loki who were nothing like the current ones hasn't been addressed.
* ComicBook/KaZar as he is known today is not the first; the Golden Age character is another Tarzan wannabe accompanied by a lion (not a saber-toothed tiger.) He was last seen in TheForties, alongside the first ComicBook/{{Human Torch|1939}}. The current Ka-Zar does not seem to have a connection to him.
* In a rare inversion of the AffirmativeActionLegacy trope, the Chinese villain [[ComicBook/{{Thunderbolts}} Radioactive Man]] (no, not [[WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons THAT Radioactive Man]]) was replaced by a Russian named Igor Stancheck after making a HeelFaceTurn. The new guy [[RedShirt didn't last long]].
* ComicBook/SpiderMan:
** Miguel O'Hara, better known as ComicBook/SpiderMan2099.
** Ben Reilly, Peter's clone, who took over as Spidey for a short time in the 90's.
** What's more, there was an ''ComicBook/AvengersTheInitiative Initiative]] trio known as the Scarlet Spiders, named for Ben's alter ego, and using suits based on the "Iron Spider" suit Tony Stark created for Peter during ''ComicBook/{{Civil War|2006}}''; only one is still alive, but he's still active as the Scarlet Spider.
** But wait, there's more! During ''ComicBook/{{Identity Crisis|1998}}'', Spidey was wanted for murder, so Peter adopted not one but FOUR alternate identities, each of which he passed on to another hero after returning to the webs. There's Ricochet (Johnny Gallo), Dusk (Cassie St. Commons), Hornet (Scotty [=McDowell=], who preceded Peter, and Eddie [=McDonough=]), and Prodigy (Ritchie Gilmore, who has used the identity ever since).
** In ''ComicBook/SuperiorSpiderMan'', the Spider-Mantle was held by [[spoiler:Doctor Octopus]], who became Spider-Man by pulling a [[spoiler:GrandTheftMe]] on Peter Parker, who [[spoiler:died in Otto Octavius' body]]. [[spoiler:Doc Ock]] agreed to be a hero after seeing [[spoiler:the memories of the original Spider-Man. He also agreed to live Peter Parker's life as well and prove to be superior in both identities]]. Peter returned at the end of the story.
** After the death of the UltimateUniverse version of Peter Parker, the ComicBook/UltimateSpiderMan mantle passed to a young boy named Miles Morales. The ''ComicBook/AllNewAllDifferentMarvel'' continuation after ''ComicBook/SecretWars2015'' has Miles share the Spider-Man mantle with Peter after arriving in the mainstream universe.
** Peter Parker's daughter May "Mayday" Parker takes up the role of ComicBook/SpiderGirl to fight crime. Later she's aided by a new Scarlet Spider (The Black Cat's daughter) and her own clone (who becomes a toss-up between a traditional Spider-Girl crusader and a homicidal Venom-like avenger).
** Ben Reilly himself inspired a legacy. Before he became the second Spider-Man, Ben went by the name of ComicBook/ScarletSpider. Years after his death, the Scarlet Spider identity was adopted by Kaine, another clone of Peter Parker.
** The original and best-known Vulture is Adrian Toomes, who was briefly succeeded by Blackie Drago and Clifton Shallot. There was also another Vulture named Jimmy Natale, who briefly replaced Toomes before being killed by ComicBook/ThePunisher, and a group of Vultures called the Vulturions. It should be noted that Adrian ''hates'' imposters, and often seeks revenge on anyone assuming his title.
** Man-Beast takes over the identity of the Hate-Monger from Adolf Hitler, using it to manipulate the Legion of Light cult and force Spider-Man and his new ally Razorback to fight each other.
** Peter took the identity of Dusk from an alien superhero he'd encountered in the Negative Zone during ''Webspinners: Tales of Spider-Man''; and the four superhero identities he came up with were later passed on to the Spinners.
* There have been at least three different women to use the ComicBook/SpiderWoman mantle; Jessica Drew, Julia Carpenter, and Mattie Franklin. Drew currently has the title again, and operates as a member of ComicBook/TheAvengers.
* Julia Carpenter took up the [[IHaveManyNames new identity of Arachne]] after Jessica began calling herself Spider-Woman again. She now goes by the name Madame Web, a mantle she inherited after the death of the original.
* When Marvel's ComicBook/SquadronSupreme returned to their own universe, they found another Nighthawk operating, the original being dead. The new one was the biological child of the original's worst enemy, and became the original's adopted son after the original Nighthawk had killed his father.
* The various [[ComicBook/GreatLakesAvengers Great Lakes Avengers/X-Men/Defenders]] comics have been parodying this with the Grasshopper. The first joined the GLA and died less than seven seconds later. Three other Grasshoppers have appeared in the team's comics, and none of them have had the same longevity as the first. A fifth one showed up in ''You Are Deadpool'', and he was able to kick ComicBook/{{Deadpool}} in the face (that is, [[{{Gamebooks}} if he was able to]]) before expiring.

*** During his battle with alcoholism, [[ComicBook/IronMan Tony Stark]] was briefly replaced by his buddy James "Rhodey" Rhodes, who became popular enough that he developed the heroic identity of ComicBook/WarMachine after returning the Iron Man mantle to Tony.

** The Crimson Dynamo was an ''ComicBook/IronMan'' villain initially, but since the original died there have been no less then TWELVE wearers of the Crimson Dynamo armor. As of ''ComicBook/WorldWarHulk'', Crimson Dynamo suits are apparently available for purchase on the black market to criminal and terrorist organizations around the world; the Gamma Corps takes on a few of them (rather easily) in their first official mission.
** Boris Bullski was the first Titanium Man, another Russian villain for Iron Man with a legacy. The Gremlin was the second Titanium Man who operated while Titanium Man I was still alive, and was killed during the Armor Wars. After Boris Bullski (Titanium Man I) got killed, a third Titanium Man cropped up during Civil War, though it's unclear whether it was indeed another man using the armor or if it was a somehow revived Boris Bullski.

*** While Scarlotti was going by "Blacklash", Leeann Foreman took up the name "Whiplash" and fought Franchise/SpiderMan and the Franchise/XMen. She's since taken up the name of "Snake Whip" during ''ComicBook/HuntForWolverine''.

* Green Goblin/Hobgoblin: One interesting twist Marvel has also used is for someone to steal the villain's identity and technology and use it for themselves. ComicBook/NormanOsborn was one of the most common victims as the Green Goblin, as his weapons and goblin motifs were repeatedly stolen.
** They were discovered by his son Harry Osborn first.
** Then by Harry's psychiatrist, Dr. Barton "Bart" Hamilton.
** Then by Roderick Kingsley who became the first Hobgoblin.
** Roderick Kingsley then brainwashed Arnold "Lefty" Donovan into becoming the second Hobgoblin.
** Roderick Kingsley also brainwashed Ned Leeds into becoming the third Hobgoblin.
** Then by Jason Philip Macendale (previously Jack O' Lantern, soon to be ''another'' Legacy Character) who became the fourth Hobgoblin (who stole them from the ''first'' Hobgoblin).
** Then by a unknown criminal during Secret War who became the fifth Hobgoblin.
** Then by [[spoiler:Daniel Kingsley, brother of the first Hobgoblin]], who became the sixth Hobgoblin.
** And then yet again by Phil Urich, who had a short-lived career as a superhero in the Green Goblin guise, who later took on the Hobgoblin name becoming the seventh Hobgoblin, then he became the Goblin Knight.
** Norman also had a henchman act as his stand-in after he returned in ComicBook/TheCloneSaga; the identity of this Goblin was never revealed.
** Roderick Kingsley sent his butler Claude to distract the Goblin Underground as the Hobgoblin, becoming the eighth Hobgoblin, but he was killed by the Goblin Knight.
** The pattern seems to be repeated in the current ''ComicBook/SpiderMan'' comics with the new villain Menace.
** It got so bad that the ''first'' Hobgoblin had to come out of retirement to personally kill off the ''fourth'' Hobgoblin for being such a pathetic villain it made the original feel bad. This led to a conflict between him and Osborn (who still held a grudge against Kingsley for stealing his equipment and identity) and Kingsley deciding to retire for good.
* Many symbiotes from ''Spider-Man'' have had multiple people bond with them and use their codename.
** ComicBook/{{Venom}} is this, as five hosts have now bonded with the same symbiote and taken the Venom name. Eddie Brock is the first Venom host to use the name Venom, and is a villain/anti-hero depending on his mood. Angelo Fortunato was the second Venom and also villainous, but his tenure was short-lived and he's usually forgotten about. Mac Gargan (Scorpion) was the third Venom and also villainous, also taking on the Spider-Man name while posing as the wallcrawler on Norman Osborn's Avengers. Flash Thompson was the fourth Venom and the first straight-up heroic one; usually he's called Agent Venom to distinguish him from the traditionally villainous role of Venom[[note]]In this case, Flash [[HeroWorshipper wanted to be a new Spider-Man]], but the name "Venom" was chosen due to the fear it instills in people[[/note]]. Lee Price is the most recent new Venom, and returned to the title's villainous origins before losing the symbiote to Eddie Brock.
** ComicBook/{{Carnage}} has had two non-temporary hosts. The first and most well-known is Cletus Cassady, a serial killer who created the name. The second is Karl Malus, a MadScientist, though the symbiote eventually returned to Cletus.
** Toxin has had two hosts. The first was Pat Mulligan, an NYPD officer who tried to use it in a heroic way. He was killed off-panel and the Toxin symbiote was bonded to Eddie Brock, who used it in villainous ways.
** Anti-Venom, while not a traditional symbiote, has had two people use it as an identity. The first was Eddie Brock, when Mr. Negative created the Anti-Venom symbiote by accident -- Eddie used it in mostly heroic ways before it was destroyed. Later on, a second, synthetic Anti-Venom was created and was accidentally bonded to Flash Thompson, who became the second Anti-Venom -- again, usually prefaced with an 'Agent' -- and acted in a heroic capacity.
** The Scream symbiote is the one instance where one of the Life Foundation symbiotes has done this. The other four very rarely use their names and have had a large variety of hosts. In contrast, Scream has only had three hosts, all of whom have used the name. Donna Diego is the original Scream and was active for about a decade-and-a-half before being killed along with the Scream symbiote. The symbiote was resurrected by Knull and bonded with Patricia Robertson, who immediately took up the Scream name. Then Patricia sacrificed herself and Andi Benton (formerly Mania) got bonded and became the new Scream.
* In addition to those mentioned above, a ''lot'' of Spider-Man rogues have had Legacy Characters:
** ComicBook/DoctorOctopus was dead for a time, so Carolyn Trainer became the new Doc Ock until Otto Octavius was revived.
** The original ComicBook/{{Mysterio}}, Quentin Beck, faked his death so his acquaintance, out-of-work stuntman Danny Berkhart, could adopt the role for a time. Then when Beck [[DrivenToSuicide actually did die]] (before somehow coming back), a teleporting mutant named Francis Klum adopted the mantle. There's also "Mysterion", an unknown man who bought Mysterio's suit from Roderick Kingsley and battled the ComicBook/SuperiorSpiderMan.
** After the original ComicBook/KravenTheHunter died, his son Vladimir became the Grim Hunter. Then his other son Alyosha became the new Kraven the Hunter. Since then, even more of Kraven's family has shown up...
** Mac Gargan gave up being the ComicBook/{{Scorpion}} for a time, during which Elaine Coll became Scorpia, a female version of the villain (who has continued the role even when Gargan returned). Then during the time Gargan was Venom, another woman came to call herself Scorpion. However, this new Scorpion (Camilla Black) is a hero with different powers.
** The Rhino, Aleksei Sytsevich, attempted to quit the super-villain biz, only for a new Rhino to emerge, challenge him, and tragically kill Sytsevich's fiancée, prompting Aleksei to return to the role of Rhino and kill the upstart.
** The Beetle, Abner Jenkins, became MACH-1 of the ComicBook/{{Thunderbolts}}, and has genuinely reformed. A new Beetle, Janice Lincoln, has since emerged. (and in-between both, Leila Davis, widow of minor villain Ringer, became the Beetle in a [[FollowTheLeader government-sanctioned group like the Thunderbolts]], the Redeemers)
** Jason Macendale created the villainous identity of Jack O'Lantern, a role he abandoned when he became the Hobgoblin. A few Jacks O'Lantern have appeared since, including a mercenary who worked for the Red Skull, Danny Berkhart and Maguire Beck (Mysterio's cousin) collaborating as "Mad Jack", and even a few other unidentified individuals.
** The Rose, a masked crime boss and lieutenant-cum-rival to the Kingpin. The first was Richard Fisk, Kingpin's own son. The role was then taken by Detective Sargent Blume of the NYPD, then by news reporter Jacob Conover, then by scientist Philip Hayes.
** Even a new Kangaroo (Brian Hibbs) showed up years after the demise of the original (Frank Oliver)!
** Minor Spidey-villain Cyclone was killed by Scourge. A new Cyclone showed up in Thunderbolts, having procured the equipment designed by the original.
** The Big Man and the Crime-Master were both killed. Their identities were usurped by Big Man's daughter and Crime-Master's son respectively. Later, another Crime-Master appeared to challenge the Flash Thompson Venom.
* ComicBook/CaptainAmerica:
** His return in ComicBook/TheAvengers came with the backstory that he became a HumanPopsicle near the end of UsefulNotes/WorldWarII, and his sidekick Bucky wasn't so lucky. But since Cap and Bucky kept appearing well after [=WW2=], how'd that happen? ''To the {{Retcon}}mobile!'' Turns out 50s "[[DirtyCommies Commie]] Smasher" Cap was another guy named William Burnside (later the villain known as the Grand Director) and his Bucky was not ComicBook/BuckyBarnes[[note]]the real one was believed to be dead at the time, but was secretly active as the Winter Soldier, brainwashed by Hydra[[/note]] but Jack Monroe (later Nomad).
** It is later established that, before Burnside's debut in the 50s, there were two previous Captains America who tried to succeed Steve after he was declared MIA near the end of [=WW2=]. William Naslund (formerly the Spirit of '76) held the title for a brief time before his death, after which [[PassingTheTorch the Cap identity was passed]] to Jeffrey Mace (formerly the superhero known as Patriot).
*** It was later established that there was ''another'' Cap, Isaiah Bradley, who had an experimental version of the serum they used on Steve tested on him in order to recreate it. He became the first Black Captain America.
** After Cap was defrosted, he had two incidents where he took a different name, and others took the costume and name of Captain America. None of them lasted very long. With Cap dead, the name and shield passed to his BackFromTheDead ex-sidekick; when Cap finally came BackFromTheDead himself, he decided to let Bucky keep the title and adopt a different name again.
** This gets a little complicated at this point, but stay with us. One of the guys who replaced Cap after he disappeared was the Patriot, a name that would later be used by [[ComicBook/YoungAvengers the grandson]] of the ''real'' original Captain America, Isaiah Bradley. After Eli retired, the Patriot mantle would be taken up by a teen named Rayshaun Lucas during ''ComicBook/SecretEmpire''. Meanwhile, one of Cap's alternate identities, Nomad, the Man Without a Country, was adopted by Jack Monroe (formerly the fake Bucky of the 50s), and later by Rikki Barnes, the female Bucky from ComicBook/HeroesReborn's Counter-Earth. John Walker wore Cap's "The Captain" costume to become [=USAgent=], and during his tenure as Captain America was partnered with Lemar Hoskins as Bucky (who took the name Battlestar after the UnfortunateImplications of a black man going by 'Bucky' after the use of the word 'buck' about black men in the Antebellum South was [[LampshadeHanging lampshaded]]).
** Later on, Steve was temporarily aged into an old man, resulting in Sam Wilson, ComicBook/TheFalcon, becoming the second black Captain America; Steve's rejuvenation resulted in both Steve and Sam sharing the name. During the period where Sam was Captain America, a Mexican teenager named Joaquin Torres became the new Falcon.
* [[ComicBook/TheMightyThor Thor]]:
** During the 90s, he was briefly succeeded by a man named Eric Masterson, who soon took on the identity of Thunderstrike after the Thor mantle was returned to the original. Thunderstrike was later killed and now his son Kevin operates as the new Thunderstrike and a member of the Avengers Academy.
** After the "Fear Itself" crossover (where Bucky "died", only to become a secret agent), Thor was also briefly replaced by Tanarus, who took over as the new God of Thunder. Subverted when it turned out that Tanarus was actually Thor's enemy Ulik the Troll in disguise as part of a scheme by Karnilla.
** As part of the ComicBook/MarvelNOW Initiative, the mantle of Thor was passed [[AffirmativeActionLegacy onto a terminally ill]] [[ComicBook/Thor2014 Jane Foster]], who proves herself worthy of Mjolnir. Then, during the events of ''ComicBook/WarOfTheRealms'', Jane becomes the ComicBook/{{Valkyrie|Marvel Comics}} after Brunnhilde is killed by Malekith the Accursed.
* ''ComicBook/Marvel2099'' basically revolves around these.
** As mentioned above, Spider-Man 2099 is this to Peter Parker, with the only exception being the ComicBook/{{Timestorm}} incarnation.

** The Avengers 2099 and the X-Men 2099, which are in many cases comprised of individual legacy characters as well.

** There's a [[ComicBook/DoctorStrange Strange]] 2099, a Moon Knight 2099 (though the most recent version is [[spoiler: not technically a legacy character, but simply Khonshu himself in the guise of Moon Knight]]), a Ghost Rider 2099, a Daredevil 2099, an Iron Man 2099, a Black Widow 2099, a Winter Soldier 2099, a Hawkeye 2099, a Valkyrie 2099, and many more. Most recently, even a [[spoiler: ComicBook/SpiderWoman 2099]] has been introduced.
* Many legacy characters of Marvel's western heroes were introduced in the NewOldWest miniseries ''ComicBook/SixGuns''. There's a female Tarantula, a motorcycle-driving Black Rider, and a ComicBook/TwoGunKid who is an ''[[CuteBruiser actual]]'' [[CuteBruiser kid]].

** ComicBook/RachelSummers, of the ComicBook/XMen, is the daughter of ComicBook/{{Cyclops}} and ComicBook/JeanGrey from an alternate future. She has taken on both of her "mother"'s identities, as Phoenix and latterly as Marvel Girl. Now, she's got her own name as 'Prestige'.

* A rarer villainous example is Lady Bullseye (Maki Matsumoto), a DistaffCounterpart to the ''ComicBook/{{Daredevil}}'' villain Bullseye. In a parody/inversion of the idea of heroic inspiration, Bullseye by complete accident "rescues" her from her Yakuza captors by slaughtering them all on an unrelated errand. Already pretty far gone psychologically at that point, she was inspired to become an assassin by his example.
* Creator/MarvelComics' ComicBook/ImmortalIronFist was {{Ret Con}}ned to being a legacy character, with a lineage stretching back hundreds of years. This is why Iron Fist is immortal: the position will never die, only its occupants. This is also true of the other immortal weapons; there will always be a Dog Brother #1, always a Cobra Warrior, etc.
* Power Man is a complicated example. The first Power Man was a villain named Erik Josten before the name passed to its most famous holder, ComicBook/LukeCage. Luke currently goes by his civilian name and no longer wears a costume, so the identity has since fallen to Victor Alvarez, an Afro-Latino teenager who fancies himself a "hero for hire."
* Black Knight is another odd duck. The original was an actual Arthurian knight named Sir Percy who had his mantle taken up hundreds of years later by his descendant Nathan Garrett, who became a villain. The mantle then passed to Nathan's nephew Dane, who famously became a hero and a member of ComicBook/TheAvengers. A WellIntentionedExtremist named Augustine du Lac was later introduced as an enemy of ComicBook/BlackPanther, and an unnamed female teenage incarnation is a member of the "Young Masters" (a team of teenage maybe-villains modelled on Nathan's old team, the Masters of Evil). Dane, however, is still the "official" Black Knight.
* Moonstone was originally Lloyd Bloch, a villain who got powers from a stone found in the Moon. Said rock was then expelled by Bloch once he was manipulated by PsychoPsychologist Karla Sofen, who then took it to become Moonstone herself, a title she has kept ever since (aside from being Meteorite in the early ComicBook/{{Thunderbolts}} and Ms. Marvel of the ComicBook/DarkAvengers). Even if Bloch got new powers to become Nefarius, he was still sore about it, twice targeting Karla for revenge.
* Marvel's Imperial Guard has several legacy characters in its ranks.
** This is played with in the ''ComicBook/WarOfKings'' crossover -- on his way to the throne of the Shi'ar Imperium, Vulcan kills the Guardsman Smasher. Later, as Emperor, he's reviewing the Guard, and comes to Smasher. His reaction is: "Didn't I kill you?" Smasher explains that he's a new guy in the same uniform. Then he gets killed a short time later. Yet another Smasher then appears, and spends half an issue thanking Imperial Guard commander Gladiator for choosing him to fill the uniform. Then Gladiator kills him. A new, [[AffirmativeActionLegacy female]] Smasher, Isabel 'Izzy' Kane, is part of the ComicBook/MarvelNOW ''[[ComicBook/TheAvengers Avengers]]'' relaunch, and has since had rather better luck - she married Cannonball and had a child with him.
** Over the Shi'ar Imperium's long history, this has apparently added up to a LOT of Guardsmen. When Neutron is killed (and replaced), we see the vault where he's buried - and it seems to be filled with thousands of caskets.
* Originally, Johnny Blaze seemed to be the first and only ComicBook/GhostRider. This was later shown [[https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/GhostRiders.jpg not to be the case.]] Wherever injustice reigns, a Spirit of Vengeance will rise to punish the wicked...
** The mantle's also been taken up independently of the Spirits of Vengeance by Robbie Reyes, the ComicBook/AllNewGhostRider. [[spoiler: Although not so independently, as it turns out.]]
** Johnny himself is technically a Legacy Character, since the original Ghost Rider was Carter Slade, a schoolteacher who donned a spooky phosphorecent costume and rode a pale white horse to terrify evildoers in the Wild West. For a time marvel tried to follow the OneSteveLimit by changing his name to Phantom Rider, but The ComicBook/GhostRacers miniseries has since reinstated Slade as the original Ghost Rider.
** Slade has also had his own [[StealthPun cavalcade]] of successors over the years: Shortly after his death, his brother Lincoln assumed the mantle after seeing Carter's sidekick, Jamie, die while trying to do the same. Then, Lincoln's spirit possessed his descendant, Hamilton Slade, for various adventures until he was exorcised, and the same happened to Hamilton's daughter, Jaime, who seemingly retains ghostly powers to this day. And somewhere between Lincoln and Hamilton, Reno Jones of the Gunhawks briefly took the identity of Ghost Rider during the miniseries ''ComicBook/BlazeOfGlory''.
* {{Implied|Trope}} in ''ComicBook/MarvelWesterns: [[AllThereInTheManual Outlaw Files]]'', where a brief mention of someone calling themselves "Venture" can be found among a listing of obscure western heroes. The description states that he "[[CallForward fancies his name will endure a hundred years or more]]". This is a nod to ComicBook/SpiderMan2099's cowboy-themed supervillain, Venture, implying he is a LegacyCharacter of the one mentioned here.
* Trick Shot, ComicBook/{{Hawkeye}}'s mentor, fits this. After he died, the Trickshot identity was taken up by Barney Barton, Hawkeye's older brother and a member of the ComicBook/DarkAvengers.
* ComicBook/BlackPanther is a title granted to the ruler of the fictional nation of Wakanda. The most iconic bearer of the mantle, T'Challa, became the Black Panther after the murder of his father T'Chaka. T'Challa briefly passed the mantle to his younger sister ComicBook/{{Shuri}} before reclaiming it. The title was also briefly inherited by Kasper Cole before he abandoned it in favor of taking on the White Tiger identity (see below).
* The ComicBook/WhiteTiger is a somewhat confusing case. The first White Tiger was Hector Ayala, who was replaced by an unrelated female White Tiger – who was in reality an actual Bengal Tiger who was given human form. The third White Tiger was Kasper Cole, a mixed-race police officer. After Cole faded into obscurity, another new White Tiger was introduced in the form of Angela Del Toro, a Latina cop and Hector's niece. She eventually died and [[CameBackWrong was resurrected as a villain]] before being freed and apparently stripped of the mantle. The title now rests with [[WesternAnimation/UltimateSpiderMan2012 Ava Ayala]], Hector's [[AssPull previously unmentioned]] teenage sister, who currently attends the Avengers Academy.
* The original ComicBook/{{Nova}} was Richard Rider, who was depowered after the cancellation of his series. The title passed to the unrelated Frankie Raye, who ran with the identity until her apparent death (years later she was revealed to be alive in the ''Heralds'' mini-series). Rider regained his abilities and the Nova identity until his death during the ''Thanos Imperative'' storyline, and has now been replaced by Sam Alexander, a new teen Nova.
* X-Men villain ComicBook/{{Apocalypse}} was eventually revealed to be a legacy character, with the gray-skinned Egyptian En Sabah Nur in fact being the eighth Apocalypse charged by the [[CosmicEntity Celestials]] with advancing evolution on Earth. When [[ComicBook/XForce Uncanny X-Force]] killed En Sabah Nur, the mantle was passed on to the Horseman Death - who also happened to be their teammate Archangel. Cue Archangel [[OhCrap becoming the new Apocalypse]].
* The only one of Marvel's original characters to begin as a legacy character was ComicBook/DoctorStrange, who is merely the ''current'' Sorcerer Supreme. His legacy stretches back thousands of years (some say back to [[PhysicalGod Agamotto]] himself).
* [[ComicBook/TotallyAwesomeHulk Amadeus Cho]] became the new [[ComicBook/TheIncredibleHulk Hulk]] for a time after absorbing the gamma radiation from Bruce Banner's body.
* Clint Barton, better known as ComicBook/{{Hawkeye}}, has taken on three identities in his lifetime:
** His first was, of course, Hawkeye, and he was the first; the identity later was taken up by Kate Bishop at a time when he was believed dead (she chose not to take up the costume as well, out of respect), then got used by Bullseye during his time in the Dark Avengers. Currently, Clint is back to using it and, unusually, Kate is still using it without any "Hawkeye Jr." or "Lady Hawkeye" modification.
** The second was Goliath, which, as explained above, he gained from Hank Pym.
** The third one, Ronin, was gained from Maya Lopez, better known as Echo, who gave him her blessing after rescuing her from Japan. It has since been taken up by two others, Alexei Shostakov (Red Guardian), and ComicBook/{{Blade}}.
* ''ComicBook/MarvelOneHundredthAnniversarySpecial'':
** [[ComicBook/GuardiansOfTheGalaxy Gamora]] has taken on the title of Starlord after Peter Quill's (apparent) death.
** Also, the [[ComicBook/FantasticFour Human Torch]] is now an [[AffirmativeActionLegacy Asian]] boy named Lee Minh Cam.
* During the [[ComicBook/AvengersTheInitiative 50 States Initiative]] in Marvel Comics, the Liberteens were the heroes of Pennsylvania whose gimmick was that they were all legacy characters to the Liberty Legion: [[CaptainPatriotic Revolutionary]] (Patriot), [[WingedHumanoid Blue Eagle]] (Red Raven), [[SuperToughness Hope]] (the Blue Diamond), [[SuperSpeed Whiz Kid]] (the Whizzer), [[AnIcePerson Iceberg]] (Jack Frost), [[RubberMan 2D]] (Flatman) and [[TheHeart Ms America]] (Miss America). (Revolutionary turned out to [[ComicBook/SecretInvasion be a Skrull]], though.)
** Eventually, four of the Liberteens (Hope, Iceberg, 2D, and Ms. America) formed a new team called the Fantastix (complete with Ms. America changing her name to Ms. Fantastix), making those characters sort of legacies of the ComicBook/FantasticFour.
* Deconstructed in ''ComicBook/ThePunisherMAX'' with Jenny Cesare. She is a traumatized, abused ex-Mafia-wife who helps Frank fight back against the widows of some Mafia guys he killed when they try to take revenge, and when he is incapacitated by gunshot wounds towards the end of the arc she wears his costume and does most of the killing in his name. Then, when her revenge fails to make her feel any happier, she screws Frank in a final effort to reawaken her emotions, and shoots herself when it doesn't. The general message is that anybody who wants to be Frank is a deeply disturbed and misguided individual. This comes close to upsetting Frank, and he [[IgnoredEpiphany decides]] to kill '''even more''' bad guys to reduce the number of people who get traumatized in the world.
* Razor-Fist started as a ''ComicBook/ShangChi'' villain, but was killed at the end of his first story. One of his two successors was also killed. The Marvel Universe is now on its ''third'' Razor-Fist, which feels a little harsh when you consider that the role means [[CripplingOverspecialization replacing at least one of your hands with blades]]. The ''ComicBook/MasterOfKungFu'' story that introduced the second and third Razor-Fists included some speculation that the original employer of all three, Carlton Velcro, had been discreetly arranging suitable amputation 'accidents' for promising candidates.
* ''ComicBook/{{Thunderstrike}}'': Years after his father sacrificed himself to stop the Bloodaxe, Kevin Masterson is presented a reforged Thunderstrike, and takes up his father's mantle.
* In a case of an established group becoming legacies of [[RememberTheNewGuy a group with a retroactive history]], the ComicBook/{{Runaways}} become a new incarnation of the J-Team in ''ComicBook/RunawaysRainbowRowell''. The original J-Team was said to be active the 1980s and had been defunct since then. The Runaways meet Doc Justice, a former member of the team, and decide to revive the J-Team, complete with taking on the mantles of the former members. Victor Mancha became Kid Justice, Nico Minoru became the Gloom, Molly Hayes became Blue-J, Karolina Dean became Princess Justice, and Chase Stein became Gun Arm. Only Gert Yorkes ends up without a new identity to adopt, but she does want to support the rest of the team. [[spoiler:This is also deconstructed as Gert learns the DarkSecret of the J-Team: that Doc Justice treats his teammates as CListFodder, casually killing off members in battle as soon as he feels that the populace has forgotten about them. Notable in that Karolina's identity as Princess Justice is actually the ''fifth'' version of that character.]]
* The villain organization Zodiac had had many people hold the identity of various members over the years (The original Libra and Scorpio were respectively the father of [[Characters/GuardiansOfTheGalaxyModern Mantis]] and ComicBook/NickFury's brother). There was also a young man operating solo during ''ComicBook/DarkReign'' using "Zodiac" as a codename.
* In ''ComicBook/RomSpaceKnight'', it is revealed that there is a Space Knight named Starshine who has feelings for Rom and ends up getting killed by the Dire Wraiths when she protects Rom from a shot fired behind his back. Later, Brandy Clark succeeds Starshine when the deceased Space Knight posthumously passes her powers onto Brandy and Brandy is mystically bound to Starshine's original Space Knight armor by a Dire Wraith warlock named Dr. Dredd. A third Starshine would later appear in the 2000 ''Spaceknights'' miniseries.
* In the world of ''ComicBook/HeroesReborn2021'', three heroes end up taking up the legacies of certain members of the ComicBook/SquadronSupreme: [[ComicBook/{{Nova}} Sam Alexander]] becomes Doctor Spectrum's sidekick Kid Spectrum, [[ComicBook/MsMarvel2014 Kamala Khan]] becomes Power Princess's sidekick Girl Power, and ComicBook/MilesMorales becomes the new Falcon following the death of the previous one.
* The ComicBook/{{Slingers}} originated as a set of alternate identities Peter Parker created for himself after his ComicBook/SpiderMan identity was framed for murder. These identities were eventually adopted by Eddie [=McDonough=] (who became the Hornet), Ritchie Gilmore (who became Prodigy), Johnny Gallo (who became Ricochet), and Cassie St. Commons (who became Dusk). Eddie eventually died fighting ComicBook/{{Wolverine}}, and the villain Cyber subsequently went on a crime spree in the guise of the Hornet. As of ''ComicBook/SpiderManBeyond'', the Hornet identity has been taken over by the original Prowler, Hobie Brown (who created the Hornet's jetpack in the first place).

* The original and best known Vulture is Adrian Toomes, who was briefly succeeded by Blackie Drago and Clifton Shallot. There was also another Vulture named Jimmy Natale, who briefly replaced Toomes before being killed by ComicBook/ThePunisher, and a group of Vultures called the Vulturions. It should be noted that Adrian ''hates'' imposters, and often seeks revenge on anyone assuming his title.

** What's more, there was an Initiative trio known as the Scarlet Spiders, named for Ben's alter ego, and using suits based on the "Iron Spider" suit Tony Stark created for Peter during Civil War; only one is still alive, but he's still active as the Scarlet Spider.
** But wait, there's more! During Identity Crisis, Spidey was wanted for murder, so Peter adopted not one but FOUR alternate identities, each of which he passed on to another hero after returning to the webs. There's Ricochet (Johnny Gallo), Dusk (Cassie St. Commons), Hornet (Scotty [=McDowell=], who preceded Peter, and Eddie [=McDonough=]), and Prodigy (Ritchie Gilmore, who has used the identity ever since).

* Peter Parker's daughter May "Mayday" Parker takes up the role of Spider-Girl to fight crime. Later she's aided by a new Scarlet Spider (The Black Cat's daughter) and her own clone (who becomes a toss-up between a traditional Spider-Girl crusader and a homicidal Venom-like avenger).
* Ben Reilly himself inspired a legacy. Before he became the second Spider-Man, Ben went by the name of ComicBook/ScarletSpider. Years after his death, the Scarlet Spider identity was adopted by Kaine, another clone of Peter Parker.

* Ka-Zar as he is known today is not the first; the Golden Age character is another Tarzan wannabe accompanied by a lion (not a saber-toothed tiger.) He was last seen in TheForties, alongside the first ComicBook/{{Human Torch|1939}}. The current Ka-Zar does not seem to have a connection to him.

** After the original Kraven the Hunter died, his son Vladimir became the Grim Hunter. Then his other son Alyosha became the new Kraven the Hunter. Since then, even more of Kraven's family has shown up...
** Mac Gargan gave up being the Scorpion for a time, during which Elaine Coll became Scorpia, a female version of the villain (who has continued the role even when Gargan returned). Then during the time Gargan was Venom, another woman came to call herself Scorpion. However, this new Scorpion (Camilla Black) is a hero with different powers.

** His return in ComicBook/TheAvengers came with the backstory that he became a HumanPopsicle near the end of UsefulNotes/WorldWarII, and his sidekick Bucky wasn't so lucky. But since Cap and Bucky kept appearing well after [=WW2=], how'd that happen? ''[[ToTheBatNoun To the]] {{Retcon}}mobile!'' Turns out 50s "[[DirtyCommies Commie]] Smasher" Cap was another guy named William Burnside (later the villain known as the Grand Director) and his Bucky was not ComicBook/BuckyBarnes[[note]]the real one was believed to be dead at the time, but was secretly active as the Winter Soldier, brainwashed by Hydra[[/note]] but Jack Monroe (later Nomad).