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Team Member in the Adaptation

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This trope is for when an adaptation of a team or organization (usually, but not always, a superhero or supervillain team) prominently features a character who was not a core member of the team in the source material.

Occasionally overlaps with Canon Foreigner. May also involve Adaptational Job Change.

Examples:

    open/close all folders 

    Anime & Manga 
  • Fairy Tail: In the manga, Erigor and his dark guild Eisenwald were technically always under the control of the stronger dark guild Oración Seis in the Balam Alliance but Erigor never joined any other guild besides his own. In the anime exclusive story "Key of the Starry Heavens", Erigor joins the top guild that once controlled his lower level guild as an actual teammate once they become the Neo-Oración Seis.
  • MegaMan NT Warrior: In the original game, Tory was just a random child NPC and had a generic sprite. In the anime, he was given a much-expanded role, unique design, and a new status as part of Lan's group.
  • Mobile Suit Gundam: The Origin:
    • Judock is a Colonel in the Earth Federation Forces and a mole for Zeon. In the original cartoon, Judock was never part of the Federation but rather was a Zeon soldier who disguised himself as one.
    • Tokwan is part of the Zeon Aquatic Corps. under Boone in Origin. In the original cartoon, he was a member of the Zeon Space Forces.
  • The Narutaki twins in Negima! Magister Negi Magi were never important characters, but in Negima!? (second season), they join Negi's team early, even ahead of characters like Yue who are far more prominent in the source material.
  • Pokémon:
    • In Pokémon Adventures, gym leaders Lt. Surge, Koga, and Sabrina start off as admins of the criminal organization Team Rocket, which they had no connection to in the games or any other adaptations. Likewise, Blaine is revealed to be a former scientist who worked for Team Rocket. Finally, when the group is revived, two of its members are Will and Karen, who were merely Elite Four members in the game, and lead by Pryce, who was only just a gym leader.
    • Pokémon: The Series itself gave several Pokémon trainers, gym leaders, or Elite Four members several team members they never had in the base game. Case in point, Brock and Misty gain several Pokémon during their travels with Ash that they never otherwise had; Brock had an Onix (later a Steelix in the anime) and a Geodude in the game, but got a Crobat, a Vulpix (given back to its trainer later on), a Forretress, a Ludicolo, a Marshtomp, a Sudowoodo, a Croagunk, a Blissey, and a Comfey. Misty, meanwhile, got a Goldeen, a Horsea, a Psyduck, a Togetic (later released), a Politoed, a Corsola, a Gyarados, a Luvdisc, an Azurill, and a Clauncher, in addition to her Staryu and Starmie.note 
  • Powerpuff Girls Z:
  • Suicide Squad ISEKAI features Clayface as a member of the Suicide Squad. While an alternate version from Earth 23 briefly worked for the team during War for Earth-3, this is the first time a mainline version is part of the squad.

    Comic Books 

    Fan Works 

Crossovers

Animorphs

  • All Assorted Animorphs AUs: Towards the end of "What if they saved Jake's family?", Tom and Jordan join the Animorphs, since the former's Yeerk died in this AU before the point at which he got away with the morphing cube in canon.
  • Dæmorphing really starts to diverge from canon when the Animorphs realise that Loren could be a potential ally, and she ends up joining them. Inverted with the "Auxiliary Animorphs"; while they get involved with the war in their own way and meet the Animorphs a few times, they never get the morphing power and are physically far away from the main plot. They call themselves the Campsite Rule instead.
  • The premise of Elfangor's Folly is that Elfangor didn't die in the first book, and becomes a commander for the Animorphs instead.

Danganronpa

  • New Island Life:
    • Hajime is a member of Class 77-B as the Ultimate Reserve Student instead of the Reserve Course.
    • Ryota Mitarai was a member of Class 77-A instead of Class 77-B before the Tragedy.
  • Valhalla's Angel: Instead of being in the Reserve Course, Hajime is instead a member of Class 77-B as the Ultimate Bartender.

Dinosaur King

Dragon Age

  • There are plenty of characters who join the Wardens in Ten Versus Blight but don't do so in the original game. As of chapter 73, these are Tamlen, Merrill, Fenarel, Gorim, Soris, Cullen and Ser Gilmore.

Dragon Ball

Fairy Tail

  • Carla is the only canonical member of 'Team Natsu' among the main characters in Alternate Tail Series. The rest of the team consist of Gajeel, Levy, Lyon, Mira, Pantherlily, and Kagura.
    • Guild membership has also changed. Lyon, Merudy, Jellal, Rogue, and Frosch are members of Fairy Tail; Gray is part of Lamia Scale, and Juvia was a member of Grimoire Heart.

Godzilla

Helluva Boss

JoJo's Bizarre Adventure

Kid Icarus

  • Kid Icarus Uprising 2: Hades Revenge has an example with Pyrrhon. In canon, he's out for himself, and while he helps out during one of the plot arcs, he isn't part of any faction. In this fanfic, he is now a high-ranking member of the Forces of Nature, seemingly one of the top Lieutenants. The story never reveals why he changed alignment, or even comments on the change.

Kingdom Hearts

Marvel Universe

  • Sixes and Sevens:
    • Anthea in Sixes and Sevens is based on Victoria Starr, a member of the Agents of Atlas. She joins the comics version of The Invaders instead.
    • Mister Sinister's two teams in the comics, the Marauders and the Nasty Boys, existed independantly of each other. In Phantom Pain, the strike force sent after Peggy and Michael's team is composed of Marauders Arclight, Harpoon, and Vertigo, Nasty Boy Ruckus, and Swarm (who never worked for Sinister in the comics as he's not a mutant).

My Hero Academia

Naruto

  • A common Fandom-Specific Plot is switching up the composition of the Rookie 9's teams, which can range from two characters swapping places to full-fledged reassignments.
  • Chiaroscuro has Shikamaru and Ino get assigned to Team 7 alongside Naruto due to the more motivated Shikamaru ending up as Rookie of the Year. Sasuke ends up on Team 10 alongside Hinata and Chouji, while Sakura is on Team 8 with Kiba and Shino.
  • In A Case Study in the Sturdiness of the Rookie 9, Team 7 consists of Shino, Sakura, and Chouji; Team 8 consists of Shikamaru, Hinata, and Sasuke; and Team 10 consist of Naruto, Kiba, and Ino.
  • The Echo Remains, But The Song Is Not The Same splits up Ino-Shika-Cho, divvying them up among the teams as follows:
    • Kakashi gets Naruto, Sasuke and Shikamaru in Team Seven.
    • Asuma ends up in charge of Team Eight, consisting of Hinata, Sakura and Chouji.
    • Kurenai takes Team Ten with Kiba, Shino and Ino.
  • In The Element of Time, Ripples, and White Eyes, Hinata and Sakura end up getting their team designations switched so that Hinata is on Team 7 with Naruto and Sasuke, while Sakura ends up on Team 8 with Kiba and Shino. The Element of Time goes one step further by having Itachi as Team 7's sensei instead of Kakashi.
  • Foundational Legacy has Shiranui Genma joining Team 7 as an instructor along with Tenzo from the start.
  • The Moon Cries in Reverse switches up the teams and their sensei; for instance, Anko is in charge of Team Ten, consisting of Naruto, Sakura, and Shikamaru. This proves to be a major issue since Anko puts the trio through Training from Hell and sends them to T&I, where they're forced to learn how to torture people.
  • More Than Enemies: Minato joined ROOT when he was a jonin shortly after meeting kid Kakashi. As the narration puts it, he seemed to flourish there. It's hinted he had motives different from the usual ROOT agenda (kidnapping children to turn them into even younger child soldiers, completing the more morally black missions, and disregarding the Sandaime as the village leader). However, by chapter 33 said motivations are still unknown.
  • Son of the Sannin changes all the teams minus Teams 10 and Gai, with the new teams being Naruto, Hinata and Haku, Sasuke, Sakura and Karin, and lastly Kiba, Shino and Tamaki.
  • Space to Breathe:
    • After Sakura starts an apprenticeship under Ibiki, Hiruzen decides to remove her from Team Seven, replacing her with Kabuto.
    • Sakura later teams up with Masato and Nanako in order to enter the Chunin Exams and test her newfound skills. Following the Konoha Crush attempt, Shino is assigned to her team as well.
    • After the Retrieval Mission, Kiba and Hinata join her squad, ironically meaning that Team 8 is effectively reunited under her command.
  • sunflower has Gai join Kakashi's ANBU team, Team Ro, as a Deep Cover Agent known only as Nezumi.
  • The Tale of Nagato Uzumaki features Naruto, Shikamaru, and Hinata on Team 7, Sakura, Choji, and Shino on Team 8, and Sasuke, Ino, and Kiba on Team 10.
  • Three's A Crowd: Due to Naruto's Plot-Triggering Death when he's ten, Kimura Uo ends up as the new 'dead-last' in their class... and as the third member of Team Seven, alongside Sakura and Sasuke.
  • Team 8 has Kurenai request that Naruto be placed on her team, switching his position with Kiba.
  • In True Potential, Naruto's teammates are Hinata and Shikamaru as part of Team 3, with Anko as their sensei. Kiba takes Naruto's place on Team 7, while Shino takes Shikamaru's place on Team 10. An evil version of this is Kabuto becoming a member of Akatsuki due to Orochimaru dying much earlier than in the manga.
  • your move, instigator (draw your weapon and hold your tongue):

Nier

One Piece

  • It's popular in fanworks for other characters to join the Straw Hat Pirates. Some popular examples include Coby, Vivi, and Sabo.
  • Coby's Choice: Coby, Gin, Miss Valentine, Miss Goldenweek, and Billy all join the Strawhats over the course of the story.
  • Dragon Princess:
    • Following Kaido's defeat and death by Oden's hand, the Beast Pirates are disbanded and the members scatter. Oden takes in Yamato, Ulti, and Page One as part of his household, and it's implied that Black Maria has joined the Kozuki clan as well. Jack has joined Jimbe's Sun Pirates, while Queen was recruited by Dragon into the Revolutionary Army.
    • Following an incident where she ate the Wood-Wood Fruit in Syrup Village, Kaya joined the Straw Hat Pirates after using her new powers to protect herself from Kuro and his crew.
  • This Bites!:
    • Among the new additions of the Strawhat Pirates are Vivi, Carue, Lassoo, Conis, Su, Funkfreed, and Billy.
    • The new members of the Barto Club include Gin, Mr. 5, Miss Valentine, Miss Goldenweek, Apis and Lindy (Ryu's reincarnation), Mohmoo, Ever, and Desire. Inverted with Gambia, who stays behind in Logue Town
    • The Kidd Pirates participated in the Dead End Adventure, and have recruited Shuraiya, Adelle, and Bierre.
    • The Blackbeard Pirates now have Shiki the Golden Lion in their ranks. Byrnndi World was a member during Marineford, but when he tried to overthrow Blackbeard, he is killed and had his Devil Fruit power stolen by Teach.

Total Drama

  • A BFG's World Tour has this as part of the fic's premise. With Izzy being medically evacuated from the competition and the rest of Team Victory already having been eliminated, Chris has DJ moved over to Team Chris Is Really Really Really Really Hot instead.
  • A Codette World Tour shifts Cody over from Team Amazon to Team Victory to get the Cody-Bridgette friendship (and eventual romance) going. Additionally, canonical Team Victory members Lindsay and Ezekiel are instead on Team Chris is Really Really Really Really Hot and Team Amazon respectively, while Izzy is placed on Team Amazon instead of Team CIRRRRH in the story (resulting in her and Ezekiel becoming a Beta Couple).
  • TDWT Reducks Redux switches Duncan from Team Chris is Really Really Really Really Hot to Team Victory, while doing the opposite with Ezekiel and adding Katie (who was not in the canon season) to Team Amazon. This results in much more drama on Team Victory (due to Duncan's conflicts with Harold, Leshawna, and Bridgette), Ezekiel getting more development (by befriending Izzy, Tyler, and Owen), and Team Amazon having much less tension (due to Katie playing The Heart in the Gwen-Courtney-Heather conflict).
  • Total Drama All-Stars Rewrite adds Owen, Brick, and Dawn to the Heroic Hamsters (while removing canon member Sam), as well as Noah and Anne Maria to the Villainous Vultures (although Noah is later moved to the Hamsters alongside Duncan).
  • Total Drama Island: A New Beginning: Harold, Duncan, Bridgette, Courtney, and Eva are on the Screaming Gophers instead of the Killer Bass, while the reverse is applied to Lindsay, Beth, Justin, Izzy, and Leshawna. The results are some very different interactions and character dynamics, including Heather being a much less successful villain (and Justin being far more successful); Bridgette, Leshawna, and Izzy not developing romances with Geoff, Harold, and Owen respectively; and numerous new rivalries and friendships that did not exist in the original season.
  • Twinning With a Twist: Sugar and Sammy have switched their canonical team placements, with Sugar being placed on the Floating Salmon and Sammy on the Confused Bears.

    Films — Animation 
  • Catwoman: Hunted sees Leviathan composed of the Cheetah, Moxie Mannheim, Black Mask, Dr. Tzin, Oyabun Noguri (given the codename "Mr. Yakuza" in the film), and La Dama — none of them were members in the comics. In fact, the only member from the comics who does appear is Talia al Ghul, its true leader, who's using Cheetah as a proxy.
  • DC Animated Movie Universe:
  • Deathstroke: Knights & Dragons depicts Bronze Tiger, Lady Shiva, Rose and Jericho as members of HIVE, an organization they have nothing to do with in the comics.
  • Justice League: Doom: The whole Legion of Doom. Vandal Savage, Metallo, Bane, Star Sapphire, Malefic and Mirror Master were not members of the original Superfriends version (in face Malefic postdates Superfriends). The closest is Cheetah — and even she falls under this due to being Barbara Minerva, not Priscilla Rich.

    Films — Live-Action 
  • In quite possibly the weirdest example of this trope, in Clouds of Sils Maria, protagonist Maria Enders lists among her film credits a stint in the X-Men Film Series, playing a character named "Nemesis". As Enders is a fictional character, obviously she wasn't in the X-Men movies. Additionally, while there are characters with the name "Nemesis" in Marvel comics, none of the female Nemeses have ever been closely connected to the X-Men.
  • DC Extended Universe:
    • Killer Croc and Katana were first added to the Suicide Squad comics in Vol. 5, originally released 2 months after the 2016 film, which they were main characters in.
    • Birds of Prey has Harley Quinn as the movie's central character, and a part of the group that becomes the Birds of Prey (though she is not a member of the actual team when it is formed at the end, she's basically just a temporary ally to them in the Final Battle). Harley's association with the Birds of Prey in the comics was as a villain, not a member, until she was added to the team specifically so the comics would line up with the movie, which even then took place in out of continuity works for DC Black Label.
    • For The Suicide Squad, the roster is a mixture of canon and new members. The newcomers who weren't part of the Squad in the comics have been confirmed to be Bloodsport, Polka-Dot Man, Peacemaker, Ratcatcher and Mongal. Due to the lead time of comics being quicker compared to films, Bloodsport and Peacemaker were eventually added in the comics as well as a result of the film, with those comics being released before the film itself was. Director James Gunn has explained that the unorthodox team showcased in the film was chosen on the idea that they were characters who could've eventually been featured in the original 80s Suicide Squad run from John Ostrander and Kim Yale had it not been cancelled.
  • Nerdy Eugene gets made a member of the T-Birds at the end of the 2016 remake of Grease after using his knowledge of rockets to help them win the drag race.
  • Harry Potter: Padma Patil in the movies is in Gryffindor with her twin sister rather than Ravenclaw like in the books.
  • Marvel Cinematic Universe:
    • The franchise has cemented the Hulk as one of the core members of The Avengers in most of the public's eyes. In the comics, while he was a founding member of the team, he left in the second issue and didn't fully rejoin until the Avengers vs. X-Men storyline (which, for the record, began after the first MCU Avengers movie was released).
    • In Iron Man 3, Aldrich Killian is the head and founder of the A.I.M. organization, while Maya Hansen is one of his chief scientists. Neither Killian nor Hansen were part of A.I.M. in the comics (with the group generally being run by characters like M.O.D.O.K. or the Scientist Supreme), and instead worked for a company called FuturePharm. Although in the Video Game Adaptation, Aldrich Killian becomes M.O.D.O.K..
    • Captain America: Civil War sees two fraction of superheroes, each lead by Iron Man and Captain America respectively, as it was the case in the comic book event of the same name. However, the roster of the teams differ from the comics: On Iron Man's side now are Black Widow and War Machine (who weren't included in the comic events), Black Panther and The Vision (who were on Cap's side in the comics)note , as well as Spider-Man (whose switch to Team Cap is Adapted Out). Cap's team involves Bucky Barnes, Wanda Maximoff, Hawkeye and Scott Lang, who weren't part of the comic book - the latter two were even dead in the comics during the time of the event. Falcon is the only one who is a member in the team in both continuities.
    • Thor: Ragnarok sees Thor founding a team called "Revengers" with Banner and Valkyrie. While different teams named "Revengers" exist in the comics, they all feature villains or anti-heroes - Thor, Hulk and Valkyrie are in neither of them, making the MCU-team an In Name Only-adaptation.
    • Captain Marvel sees the titular heroine Carol Danvers being part of the Starforce, an elite group of Kree warriors in the beginning of the movie before opposing them. However, neither Carol nor another individual who took up the mantle of Captain Marvel was part of the team in the comic books.
    • In Avengers: Endgame, Nebula and Rocket Raccoon become members of the team during the five year Time Skip. Neither character was ever an Avenger in the comics, save for a brief storyline in The '80s where Nebula infiltrated the team (which was subsequently Retconned away as Ravonna using her name).
    • Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness features the debut of the Illuminati, and while about half the cast of the comic incarnation of the group of present, the rest of the line-up is filled by Captain Carter and multiversal Variants of Maria Rambeau (her reality's Captain Marvel) and Baron Mordo.
    • The core characters of the Thunderbolts movie were all part of at least some iteration of the team in the past, with the notable exceptions of Red Guardian, Contessa Valentina Allegra de Fontaine, and technically Yelena Belovanote .
  • Mortal Kombat:
    • In the original 1995 movie, Sub-Zero and Scorpion work for Shang Tsung. In the first game, Sub-Zero actually entered the tournament to kill Shang Tsung, while Scorpion entered to get his revenge on Sub-Zero.
    • The 2021 reboot depicts Kabal and Nitara as part of Shang Tsung's Outworld forces. In the games, Kabal was actually a good guy who fought for Earthrealm, while Nitara was an unaffiliated vampire who actually sought to liberate her people from Outworld's rule.
    • On the good side, frickin' Kano is sided with the heroes. However, he (unsurprisingly) defects to Outworld's team after being promised more money by Kabal.
  • Spectre reveals that Le Chiffre from Casino Royale was an associate of the titular criminal organization.
  • X-Men Film Series:
    • While Sabretooth may be a core member of the Brotherhood of Mutants now, he was not a member in the comics until a few months after the first film included him in the Brotherhood.
    • Since X-Men: Days of Future Past, Quicksilver has been a main character in the movies. While he is definitely a part of the X-Men mythos due to being a mutant (sometimes) and the son of Magneto (sometimes), he is more commonly associated with The Avengers. The closest he ever came to joining the X-Men was the spinoff team X-Factor.
    • The only members of the Hellfire Club in the comics who are members of the version in X-Men: First Class are Sebastian Shaw and Emma Frost. Additionally, once Magneto takes over and makes it the first Brotherhood, everyone but him, Mystique, and Angel Salvadore falls under this.
    • X-Men: Apocalypse adds Magneto and Storm to the Horsemen, which had also been done in X-Men: Evolution.
    • The Brotherhood's members included Quill, Spike, Arclight, Callisto, and — thanks to Adaptational Villainy — Psylocke and Multiple Man.
    • The Blob, who's a member of the Brotherhood in the comics, was instead a member of Team X until their disbandment in X-Men Origins: Wolverine. In the new timeline, he's apparently not part of any group since Team X was never formed.

    Literature 

    Live-Action TV 
  • Arrowverse:
    • Arrow's version of Task Force X incorporates Cupid, who was not a member in the comics. In the team's later appearance as the "Ghost Initiative", they also include China White, Joe Wilson, and Richard Dragon.
    • Team Arrow consists of characters unassociated with Green Arrow lore throughout its run, including John Diggle (the Arrowverse version of John Stewart), Huntress, Felicity Smoak (traditionally a Firestorm character), The Atom, Mister Terrific, Wild Dog, Ragman, and the Dinah Drake Black Canary (Dinah Laurel Lance, who indeed was a member of The Team in this incarnation, technically twice, is the one associated with Green Arrow in the comics).
    • Harbinger is Amanda Waller's Number Two in A.R.G.U.S., eventually taking over the organization after the latter's Death by Adaptation.
    • The Church of Blood also boasts members such as Deathstroke (who is The Man Behind the Man to Brother Blood, the organization's actual leader in the comics) and Cyrus Gold (the man who would go onto become Solomon Grundy).
    • The Flash: Team Flash is quite different from the Flash Family, having Vibe, Killer Frost, Joe West, Firestorm, and Pariah, as well as several of the Rogues Gallery members either being the Big Bad Friend or undergoing a Heel–Face Turn such as Reverse-Flash, Zoom, Dr. Alchemy, and Pied Piper.
    • Legends of Tomorrow: The Arrowverse version of the Legion of Doom includes Reverse-Flash (who was only a member of the Secret Society of Super Villains), while Damien Darkh is an Ascended Extra who was never part of any such team outside HIVE.
    • While The Legends are themselves an original creation of the Arrowverse, they are loosely based off the Forgotten Heroes, a team assembled to fight against Vandal Savage. All members sans Rip Hunter himself were never members of this team.
    • Speaking of Vandal Savage, his villainous group includes Negative Woman, Pohzar, Per Degaton, and a Brainwashed and Crazy Hawkman (who later pulls a Heel–Face Turn) as members.
    • The Justice Society of America mostly includes members from various iterations of the team, with the exception of Vixen, who has never been a member before (though this is not the same Vixen from the comics, but her grandmother who was created for the show). The Justice Society that appears is from World War II, but encounters another instance of the trope with Obsidian (the son of the Golden Age Green Lantern) and Stargirl (a modern successor to Starman) being present in the roster, when both members were much younger and only appeared in later Justice Society rosters.
    • The Legends have referred to Green Arrow, Flash, and Supergirl as "The Trinity". Outside the Arrowverse, the DC trinity is Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman (though it's never been an In-Universe nickname).
    • Supergirl: Martian Manhunter (who also disguises himself as Hank Henshaw, traditionally the villain Cyborg Superman) and Supergirl's adoptive sister Alex Danvers are the highest ranking members of the D.E.O. In the comics, Martian Manhunter is more associated with the Justice League of America while Supergirl's adoptive brother is an infant. Winslow Schott, Jr. (the son of Superman villain Toyman), Valor, and Brainiac 5 became members at some point as well, with the latter even becoming its director in the second half of season 5. And post Crisis on Infinite Earths, Lex Luthor becomes the founder.
    • Speaking of Winslow Schott, Jr., he ultimately joins the show's version of the Legion of Super-Heroes.
    • While all are members of the comicbook Justice League, the Arrowverse team has Supergirl, Batwoman and Black Lightning as founding members. Canon Foreigner Sara Lance a.k.a. White Canary is also added to the team as a founding member.
  • Renata Klein in Big Little Lies gets this treatment, especially in Season 2. In the book, she is a secondary antagonist (although she eventually sees the error of her ways) with a totally separate group of friends. Season 1 follows that arc, too, except that Renata is actually present when Perry attacks Celeste and Bonnie kills him, which means that Renata is part of the conspiracy between the other women (Celeste, Bonnie, Madeleine, and Jane), to cover up Perry's death and becomes a member of the core group.
  • The Boys:
    • Teenage Kix member Gunpowder appears as a member of Payback.
    • Stormfront becomes a new member of the Seven, when her comics counterpart was only affiliated with Payback.
    • Season 3 reveals that Black Noir used to be affiliated with Payback before joining the Seven, when the comic book only showed him to be a member of the Seven.
  • In The Defenders, the team consists of Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, and Iron Fist. Luke Cage is the only one of these four who is a Defenders mainstay in the comics (where the most iconic lineup is Doctor Strange, The Hulk, Namor the Sub-Mariner, and the Silver Surfer). A later comics run of the Defenders would eventually assemble the above four.
  • Doom Patrol:
    • The show features Cyborg as one of the main characters, seemingly to fill in for fellow Teen Titans member Beast Boy, who is already in a different DC Universe series.
    • Madame Rouge and Elasti-Woman are members of the Sisterhood of Dada, this continuity's Brotherhood of Dada, when in the comics both characters had been killed off long before the first roster of the Brotherhood of Dada was formed. There is also an inversion in that Mr. Nobody has nothing to do with the Sisterhood when he was the Brotherhood of Dada's founder and leader in the comics.
  • Game of Thrones inverts this by removing the mercenary group The Brave Companions.
    • Leader Vargo Hoat is replaced by Lord Locke. Unlike the unaffiliated Hoat, Locke is a loyal bannerman to Lord Roose Bolton.
    • Criminals Rorge and Biter escape on route to the Wall. In the books they join the Brave Companions, but in the show they join the Lannister army.
    • Mad Scientist and Doctor Qyburn acted as the field medic to the Brave Companions, after being kicked out of the Maesters. In the show he acted as a Back-Alley Doctor.
  • Hawkeye: Echo is the current leader of the Tracksuit Mafia, while she had no affliation with them in the comics. The Tracksuit Mafia works under the Kingpin, who they didn't have any affilation with in the comics, but Echo personally did.
  • The failed Justice League of America (1997) Pilot Movie:
    • It contains a notable Inverted example. Due to licensing issues, Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman, the three characters who are members of practically every version of the League, are absent.
    • A straighter example comes with the pilot using Guy Gardner, instead of a Green Lantern more commonly associated with the Justice League, like Hal Jordan or John Stewart.
  • Loki:
    • Ravonna Renslayer is a high-ranking member of the Time Variance Authority, a group she was never a part of in the comics.
    • Immortus is revealed to be the mysterious Founder of the Time Variance Authority. In the comics, he was never part of the organization, and certainly was not their leader.
  • On the original MacGyver, Jack Dalton was a recurring character who made appearances maybe once or twice a season. In the reboot, he's part of a team with the title character for the first three seasons.
  • Maria Clara at Ibarra sees Elias, Juli and Fidel become members of the revolutionaries in the show's version of the El Filibusterismo arc. The first two characters are Spared by the Adaptation, with the former supposedly dying in the climax of the previous novel. The last mentioned is an Ascended Extra and Breakout Character from the first novel.
  • In the mid-2010's, there was a plan for a New Warriors series that would have included Squirrel Girl and Mr. Immortal from the Great Lakes Avengers, despite neither of them ever being New Warriors in any comics.
  • Power Rangers
  • Smallville: Lois Lane becomes a member of the Justice League in the show, despite never being a member in the comics.
  • While the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles have had various allies over the years, in most works, the actual team remains just Leonardo, Michelangelo, Donatello, and Raphael. The sole exception is Ninja Turtles: The Next Mutation, which adds in a Canon Foreigner Affirmative Action Girl named Venus de Milo. It is highly unlikely that something like this will happen again for the Turtles, since Venus was quite unpopular among most of the fans as well as TMNT's co-creator, Peter Laird.
  • Vagrant Queen adds Amae, Dengar, Krob, Hath, and Winnibot to Elida and Isaac's expedition to Wix, whereas in the original comic, Elida and Isaac travel to Wix alone. With the exception of Hath, all of the extra party members are Canon Foreigners.
  • VR Troopers is an interesting case. The source footage was taken from three different shows, so only two of the Troopers, JB and Kaitlyn, ever fought together or met each other in the originals, with Ryan always on his own. Any footage showing Ryan fighting together with JB and Kaitlyn was American-original.
  • The Walking Dead: The show's version of Dante is reimagined as a villain and a member of the Whisperers. In the comics, he's with Hilltop and Maggie Greene's Hopeless Suitor.
  • WandaVision reveals that Monica Rambeau is a member of S.W.O.R.D. in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, when she had no such affiliation in the comics. Her mother Maria also wasn't a member, much less one of its co-founders and its former director.

    Theatre 
  • Les Misérables:
    • In the original novel, Marius is not necessarily a member of Les Amis, coming to the meetings on Courfeyrac's insistence. In the musical, however, Marius seems to be a principal member of Les Amis.
    • In the novel, Thénardier isn't a member of the street gang Patron-Minette; he just collaborates with them. In the musical, he's apparently their leader.
  • Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark features a version of the Sinister Six consisting of research scientists who used to work for OsCorp before they were mutated into superhuman freaks by the Green Goblin as punishment for severing their ties with his company. The roster consists of Swarm, Electro, Carnage, the Lizard, Kraven the Hunter and a Canon Foreigner named Swiss Miss. Of the five members who originated in the comics, Swarm and Carnage were never members of any version of the Sinister Six that existed prior to the musical, though the Spider-Man and the X-Men miniseries that came out afterwards did have Carnage included as part of a Sinister Sixty-Six consisting of illusions created by Mojo and Mysterio as well as Swarm forming his own Sinister Six.

    Video Games 
  • Inazuma Eleven:
    • In the video games, Shadow is no more than a recurring scout character, therefore not an official member of Raimon's soccer club. In the anime, he does join the club in the second season, although he's never ascended to main character since the school club is barely in focus in the second and third seasons.
    • Tamano Gorou is no more than a scout character in the video games. In the manga, he becomes an official member for Raimon, replacing Shishido Sakichi, who is an official member in the games and anime.
  • Green Arrow's arcade ending in Injustice 2 sees President Superman work with two characters undergoing Adaptational Heroism and thus weren't part of the original Justice Incarnate: the Flashpoint timeline's Wonder Woman and the Superman: Red Son version of Batman.
  • Marvel's Avengers sees Hulk villain Abomination as a member of A.I.M.
  • Marvel: Avengers Alliance had an incarnation of Black Widow in the Dark Avengers, which no Dark Avengers roster in the comics had, in this case, villainous Black Widow Yelena Belova is the one here. Red Skull in his Dell Rusk persona is also the founder of the team, when in the comics that was Norman Osborn.
  • Pokémon:
    • Remakes and Updated Rereleases of Pokémon games will often change which Pokémon an NPC trainer uses on their team. While we cannot list every example of this, some notable examples include:
      • Pokémon Yellow almost completely changes Blue/Green's team from Red and Blue, with the only shared Pokémon between the two versions being Raticate, Alakazam, and Exeggutor.
      • In Pokémon Gold and Silver, Red has an Espeon on his team. In the remakes, Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver, and all of Red's subsequent appearances, Espeon is replaced with Lapras.
      • In Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire, Wally's Ralts evolves into a Gallade instead of a Gardevoir like in the original Ruby and Sapphire.
      • In Pokémon Diamond and Pearl, there were very few Fire-Type Pokémon in the Sinnoh PokéDex. As a result, the Elite Four Fire-Type specialist, Flint, only had two Fire-Types on his team- Infernape and Rapidash- with the rest of his team consisting of Steelix, Lopunny, and Drifblim. Pokémon Platinum added more Fire-Types to the Sinnoh Dex, and replaced Flint's non-Fire-Types with Houndoom, Flareon, and Magmortar.
    • Some Updated Rereleases of Pokémon games have changed the Pokémon League roster from the original games as well.
  • Spider-Man (PS4) contains the first ever version of the Sinister Six with Mr. Negative as a member.

    Web Videos 

    Western Animation 
  • The Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes:
    • This is another Avengers adaptation to feature the Hulk as one of the team's main members. The show initially has him leave in the second episode in a way more in line with the original comics (as he left the Avengers in the second issue), but a two part episode involving his enemy Leader would see him forgive his teammates and rejoin their ranks, only leaving again when an episode involving Red Hulk framing him would be used as an opportunity by Skrull Captain America to get him off the roster for the Skrulls' Secret Invasion, being absent from the final battle with the Skrulls and only reappearing several episodes later when Red Hulk was defeated. Even then, he still wanted to be alone for a while, only helping the team again when Back for the Finale against Galactus.
    • This also applies to half of the main lineup of the show's version of the Masters of Evil. While Baron Zemo, The Enchantress, and Executioner were indeed members, albeit only for the original lineup from the 1960s (though Marvel Ultimate Alliance would also include Enchantress and Executioner), Wonder Man, Abomination, and later recruit Chemistro have each only been a part of one of the comic book lineups (and Wonder Man has actually been a hero in the comics outside of the single issue he was part of the Masters, and maybe his time as the leader of the Revengers in the 2010s), in the case of Abomination he is from the Marvel Adventures version of the roster, and Chemistro is from the House of M roster. Grey Gargoyle was a member of Helmut Zemo's roster, which was another basis for the show version (given that the Siege on Avengers Mansion, an attack that group performed in the comics, was done in the show by the show's team) and was also in the Marvel Ultimate Alliance version, but he is only shown as a member for a few seconds before being Killed Offscreen for serving his purpose. Aside from a different person bearing the identity in Marvel Ultimate Alliance (Valentin Shatalov in that game, Ivan Vanko in the show), Crimson Dynamo has never been a Master of Evil in the comics, and Living Laser, a later recruit for the team, was definitely never a member in the comics.
    • The episode "New Avengers" is about the team of the same name. Among the characters featured in that episode, which included Wolverine, Spider-Man, Luke Cage, Iron Fist, and The Thing, War Machine is the only one who has never been a member of the New Avengers in the comics.
  • The Avengers: United They Stand is an Inverted example, with the Avengers' Big Three (Iron Man, Captain America, and Thor) not being part of the team in this version. Despite being present in the opening sequence, Tony and Cap appear in one episode each, and Thor never appears at all.
  • Batman: The Brave and the Bold's version of the Justice League International replaces the Ted Kord incarnation of the Blue Beetle (who is dead before the series starts in this continuity) with Jaime Reyes, and adds Aquaman, who is from the main League.
  • The Duck Dodgers episode "The Green Loontern", a crossover with Green Lantern where Dodgers gets involved with the Green Lantern Corps as a result of getting Hal Jordan's costume and ring after a laundry mix-up, has Green Lambkin from the Captain Carrot and His Amazing Zoo Crew! in-universe comic Justa Lotta Animals appear among the cameos of Green Lantern Corps members. This is contrary to how in the comics Green Lambkin wasn't an inhabitant of the same universe as the regular Green Lantern Corps, let alone affiliated with it.
  • DuckTales (2017)
    • S.H.U.S.H., a S.H.I.E.L.D. expy from Darkwing Duck, is brought back in the episode "From the Confidential Casefiles of Agent 22!", with the organization director being Ludwig von Drake and its agents including Beatrice Beakley and Scrooge McDuck.
    • F.O.W.L. (the Fiendish Organization for World Larceny) was reintroduced as the main antagonist of the third season. Alongside returning members Steelbeak and the High Command (who are the members of Scrooge's Board of Directors) and Canon Foreigner Black Heron, the organization has Gandra Dee, John D. Rockerduck,and the Phantom Blot among their ranks.
  • Adaptations of the Fantastic Four almost never stray from the original lineup of Mister Fantastic, the Invisible Woman, the Human Torch, and The Thing. The sole exception is the 1978 cartoon, where the Torch couldn't be used due to his rights being wrapped up in a solo film project that was ultimately never made. In his place was a Canon Foreigner, H.E.R.B.I.E. (Reed Richards' robot lab assistant).
  • Fireman Sam: In the original 1987 series, Firefighter Penny Morris was stationed in Newtown rather than Pontypandy, and as such, was mainly a Drop-In Character who only appeared when the story called for a conflict that couldn't be done with Sam, Steele, Elvis, or Trevor. In the 2005 revival and subsequent 2008 reboot, Penny is part of the main Pontypandy Fire Service, with the role of "supply firefighter from Newtown" disappearing entirely (although Series 10 alludes to it with a Newtown firefighter named Jerry Lee taking over for Penny while she's away).
  • Green Lantern: The Animated Series had Ragnar become a member of the Red Lantern Corps, when his comics counterpart was sentenced to death and beheaded long before the Red Lanterns made their debut and not long after the Sinestro Corps was established.
  • Harley Quinn:
    • The Legion of Doom adds many new members, mostly members of Batman's Rogues Gallery. Many of those, such as The Joker (a member who the LoD excommunicated in the comics in DC Rebirth but was also present in Robot Chicken, LEGO Batman 3: Beyond Gotham, and Batman: The Brave and the Bold), Two-Face (who was only present in Robot Chicken and LEGO DC Super-Villains), Bane (again, from Robot Chicken but also in Justice League: Doom), and The Penguin (also only in Robot Chicken and LEGO DC Super-Villains) weren't members in the comics, with a few other examples of villains not in any comics roster but being in other adaptation's versions before being in this show's roster were Reverse-Flash, Calendar Man, Killer Croc, Felix Faust, and Livewire. Only Man-Bat is entirely new, having been rejected as a member in LEGO DC Comics Super Heroes: Justice League: Attack of the Legion of Doom.
    • The series also includes Bane on the Injustice League.
  • Iron Man: The Animated Series used Force Works, but replaced U.S. Agent with Hawkeye due to legal reasons (Wonder Man was also cut, likely due to his very short tenure with the comics team). Strangely enough, the Recursive Adaptation comic book that tied in with the show included both Hawkeye and US Agent. (A US Agent action figure was planned for the toyline, but due to Toy Biz cutbacks, instead got turned into Living Laser....who also didn't get released thanks to the show's cancellation, taking the IM toyline with it; it ultimately saw release as Astral Armor Professor X in the X-Men: Mutant Armor line).
  • Justice League cartoons:
    • Superfriends:
      • Dick Grayson as Robin was presented as a member of the Justice League long before either Joe Kelly's JLA (1997) run (where he was part of an emergency team as Nightwing) and James Robinson's Justice League of America run (during his second time as Batman).
      • The All-New Super Friends Hour saw DC's version of Rima, the Jungle Princess from the novel Green Mansions, as a member of the League.
      • The Super Powers Team: Galactic Guardians adapted Cyborg into the Justice League way before Robinson's run and the New 52 did the same. In addition, the Joker was made part of the Royal Flush Gang by revealing Ace to be him in disguise (while the Joker did occasionally work with the Royal Flush Gang in the comics, he was never a full-fledged member).
    • Justice League:
      • Unlimited brings in several Leaguers who are more commonly associated with the Justice Society of America, like Stargirl and S.T.R.I.P.E., Wildcat, and Sand; the Seven Soldiers of Victory, like Vigilante, Shining Knight, the Crimson Avenger, and Speedy (though he would join the Justice League post-Infinite Crisis as Red Arrow); or just plain not in any team like Supergirl (until she joined in the comics later on), Nemesis, and The Question. Outside of the show (including the supplemental comics as well as sequel films made after the end of Unlimited), other new members include Miss Martian, Black Condor, Bloodwynd, and Doctor Occult.
      • The final season saw the Legion of Doom (albeit, thanks to Executive Meddling, as an extended version of the Secret Society) with many additional members including Star Sapphire, the Parasite, and Atomic Skull. On the flip side, thanks to reasons related to prior episodes or additional Executive Meddling related to Batman Begins, The Batman, or the failed Mercy Reef pilot meant that when the DCAU did get to the Legion, Brainiac (who had been killed off via being split into fragments following his merge with Lex Luthor, only briefly appearing as a hallucination before being fused with Darkseid in the Grand Finale), The Riddler, The Scarecrow, Black Manta (replaced with an expy named Devil Ray), and Solomon Grundy (who was killed off much earlier during the Justice League seasons and only briefly came Back from the Dead in Unlimited before being re-Killed Offscreen) were Adapted Out.
    • Justice League Action also brings in several non-traditional Leaguers like John Constantine and Swamp Thing, both loners in the comics who usually have little to do with other superheroes (though both Constantine and Swamp Thing are members of Justice League Dark).
  • In the American Mega Man (Ruby-Spears) series, Aloof Big Brother Proto Man isn't an ally but The Dragon to Dr. Wily throughout the series, a role he never played in the original series, unless you count Mega Man 5, but even then he's revealed to actually be an Evil Doppelgänger of Proto Man made by Wily, with the real Proto Man still on Rock's side.
  • My Adventures with Superman:
    • Livewire is portrayed as a member of a group of criminal mercenaries, a role that she's never had in either the comics or the other animated series that she originated from.
    • Deathstroke in the comics is a self-employed mercenary criminal, while in this show, Slade is a black ops agent working for Task Force X. Though he did work for Task Force X aka the Suicide Squad during the New 52, specifically its New Suicide Squad iteration, he only worked for them in a single issue before betraying them. By the time the shock collars associated with the Suicide Squad made their appearance, several other new characters not associated with the squad in the comics are members now, these being Rough House, Livewire, Silver Banshee, and Professor Anthony Ivo (though he becomes a Composite Character with Parasite, who typically is a member of the squad in the comics).
    • Silver Banshee and Mist are both members of Intergang in this show, despite having never been members of the team in the comics.
  • Sonic the Hedgehog:
    • In Sonic Boom, Amy Rose is shown to be a core member of Team Sonic unlike in the games, where she often led her own team in the form of Team Rose.
    • In Sonic Prime, Rouge the Bat is counted among Team Sonic unlike in other media where she is often a Nominal Hero and mostly works with Team Dark.
  • Spider-Man: The Animated Series has the Insidious Six, the series' version of the Sinister Six (the name change was because Fox Kids censored the "Sinister" word). The team was formed by Doctor Octopus, Mysterio, Shocker, Chameleon, Rhino, and Scorpion. Apart from having a different group than any of the comic book versions (Doc Ock and Mysterio being the only original members, at least until another original member, Vulture, was added in the team's final arc as a substitute for Mysterio once he was Killed Off for Real, Shocker being a member in some incarnations, Chameleon and Rhino only being part of the team in Ends of the Earth and Scorpion never being part of the team before), the Insidious Six was formed by The Kingpin instead of Doc Ock (who's still the team leader, but acted as The Dragon to Kingpin).
  • The Super Hero Squad Show has the titular Squad (basically the Avengers with a different name) include Reptil, a Canon Foreigner with the power to change his body parts into those of dinosaurs (he later became a Canon Immigrant into the comics). It also includes Silver Surfer, who was a member of the Defenders in the comics instead of the Avengers. Conversely, Doctor Doom is depicted as leading the Lethal Legion, including a variety of other Marvel villains, though most of the time Abomination and MODOK are his chief henchmen (none of the three have ever been part of any of the comics' Lethal Legions, or have worked for Doctor Doom).
  • In the 1987 version of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Baxter Stockman initially winds up working for Shredder as a member of the Foot Clan. This is in stark contrast to the original Mirage comics, where he was a completely independent villain who likely never interacted with the clan. The loner villains Rat King and Leatherhead (who is actually a good guy in the comics) also occasionally team up with the Foot Clan.
  • Teen Titans
    • While the Brotherhood of Evil had classic members Brain, Monsieur Mallah, Madame Rouge, General Immortus, Phobia, Plasmus, and Warp, it expanded to include almost every other villain in the show. Among the few exceptions are Slade, Terra, Brother Blood, Trigon, Blackfire, and the villains of Teen Titans: Trouble in Tokyo.
    • Titans East also has this. The only member of that team who's a member of the group in the comics is Cyborg (who, while helping the group get established, doesn't stay as a part of it). This continuity's Titans East consists of Bumblebee, Speedy, Aqualad, and Canon Immigrant duo Mas y Menos.
  • Transformers:
    • Transformers: Animated made their version of Dirt Boss a Constructicon when neither of the previous Transformers to go by that name (who appeared respectively in Transformers: Armada and Transformers: Cybertron) were affiliated with that Decepticon sub-faction.
      • This generally happens to unaffiliated villainous characters like Lockdown and Unicron in marketing, as until recently, the toys were sold as either under the Autobot or Decepticon banner, with no third faction, so various toys of those two have been released as Decepticons, albeit only in packaging. In the case of Lockdown, his IDW version is still a bounty hunter for hire like his original Animated self, but wears the badge, because the 'Cons give him consistent and substantial payment. Meanwhile, his Cyberverse version is just a straight up Decepticon, with no trace of being a bounty hunter.
    • A version of Strika from Beast Machines is one of Megatron's highest generals off-camera for most of the show, but while she was loyal to the Megatron of Beast Machines, it was only because he was ruler of Cybertron by that point, the position she and her partner Obsidian are actually loyal to. Plans for the cancelled fourth season would have given this exact same treatment to a planned Animated version of Obsidian as well.
    • Transformers: Cyberverse mashes together characters from across the franchise and often places characters in factions they weren't before.
      • Lockdown was originally an unaffiliated bounty hunter with heavy signs pointing to him being a former Autobot in Animated. In Cyberverse he's a Decepticon, which is in line with many adaptations after Animated.
      • Much like in Animated, Strika (renamed Alpha Strike) is reimagined as a Decepticon rather than a Vehicon.
      • Cheetor is on the Autobot team whereas originally he was a Maximal born long after the Autobot faction was phased out.
      • Gnaw's original toy marked him as a Decepticon while Cyberverse, as with most adaptations, has him as Quintesson aligned.
  • X-Men cartoons:
    • In 1983, there were plans for an X-Men cartoon that was never picked up. Among its cast were a version of Ms. Marvel (who isn't even a mutant in other continuities, much less a member of the X-Men) named "Lady Lightning", and Videoman (a Canon Foreigner from Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends, which this show was intended to spin-off from).
    • X-Men: The Animated Series:
      • In a What Could Have Been example, had the "Beyond Good and Evil" four-parter indeed ended up the Grand Finale, it would've seen Archangel, Psylocke, Bishop, and Shard join the X-Men. While the former three are mainstays of the team (Archangel even being an original member), Shard was part of sister (given her relation to Bishop, no pun intended) team X-Factor in the comics.
      • Inverted with the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants, as the only member of the original group who has anything to with the cartoon's member was the one who was part of Mystique's Brotherhood from the get-go as well: Sixth Ranger the Blob. Outside of his debut (where he was working with Sabretooth) and the above-mentioned "Beyond Good and Evil" (where he was among those Apocalypse recruited), Magneto worked alone and was rarely an actual villain for most of the series; Mastermind and Quicksilver were already with the Hellfire Club/Inner Circle and X-Factor respectively when viewers actually see them; the Scarlet Witch was doing her own thing, presumably being an Avenger or a member of Force Works; and Toad was hanging out with Solarr in his sole appearance.
    • X-Men: Evolution:
      • Iceman is on the New Mutants team instead of the X-Men proper until Spyke leaves. For that matter, Jubilee, Multiple (Minus the "Man" as he's a kid), and Berzerker, the former two being a part of the X-Men and auxiliary teams and the latter being a Morlock through his tenure.
      • While Quicksilver was a member of the Brotherhood of Mutants in some of the Brotherhood's earliest appearances, it wouldn't be long before he underwent a Heel–Face Turn and joined The Avengers. In X-Men: Evolution, he is not only a member the whole way through, but the de facto team leader. The same applies to his twin sister, the Scarlet Witch (minus being team leader). Boom-Boom also joins the Brotherhood for a team after leaving the New Mutants and this applies to Sabretooth in the first season as it was in production before the arc that'd see him join the team in the comics saw print.
      • Apocalypse forcibly conscripts Professor X, Storm, Magneto, and Mystique to be his Horsemen. Also inverted as Angel, Wolverine and Caliban are never one of them despite that being a big thing for all three in the comics.
      • The only Acolytes from the comics that are members of this version are Magneto and Colossus (albeit due to blackmail instead of a crisis of faith). The Evo version's ranks including Sabretooth, Pyro, and Gambit.
    • Wolverine and the X-Men:
      • Much like Evolution, Quicksilver is not only a member of the Brotherhood of Mutants the whole way through, but the de facto team leader. Domino is also a Brotherhood member, even though she's an ally of the X-Men in every other continuity.
      • The same applies to his twin sister, the Scarlet Witch, though here she's a member of the Acolytes. In the Acolytes' case, this also applies to Pyro, Mystique, the Juggernaut, Mercury, and Blink.
  • Young Justice:
    • While The Team never calls themselves Young Justice, they include some members that were never part of the original team, like Miss Martian, a Canon Immigrant Aqualad, a de-aged heroic version of the Artemis Crock incarnation of Tigress (a Justice Society villain), Zatanna, Rocket, Wolf (a mutated wolf who serves as an expy of Krypto), Roy Harper (made a Decomposite Character with the original as Arsenal and a clone as Red Arrow), Tempest (who served offscreen aside from Young Justice: Legacy and the Series Fauxnale), Aquagirl (who also served offscreen aside from that same game, which explained her death in the show), Troia (again, offscreen), Jason Todd (also offscreen and Killed Offscreen until he came back), Mary Marvel (as Sergeant Marvel, you guessed it, offscreen), Barbara Gordon, Bumblebee, Blue Beetle, Mal Duncan, Static, Spoiler (who does later join the relaunched team as a reserve), Traci Thirteen, Geo-Force, Halo, Forager, Terra, Cyborg, El Dorado, and Mist. Even Robin and Kid Flash are examples, since the comics used Tim Drake and Bart Allen (as "Impulse"), while the show used Dick Grayson and Wally West. Only Superboy, and technically the Super-Cycle (who is initially introduced under Canon Foreigner identity Sphere before revealing her hovercycle form), were from the original team at first, and it was only in later seasons that Tim, Wonder Girl, Bart, and Arrowette were also added, with Secret as an inversion since she only appeared in a single Halloween Episode despite being the initial reason for Tim, Conner, and Bart getting together. The show also incorporates Beast Boy, Lagoon Boy, Cassandra Cain (renamed Cassandra Wu-San), and an offscreen inclusion of Captain Marvel Jr. (renamed Lieutenant Marvel) from a short-lived New Young Justice.
    • The Justice League also includes members who were never a part of the League in the comics. Specifically, Icon, the aforementioned Rocket, Zatara (Zatanna's father, though he takes on the Doctor Fate identity, who has served the Justice League, later), Batwoman, and Hardware, plus an offhanded reference to Magog. Kaldur'ahm, the show's Aqualad (who arrived in the comics as Jackson Hyde) also becomes a member as the second Aquaman. Season 4 sees Lagoon Boy, an obscure Teen Titan and New Young Justice member, eventually become a member of the Justice League and the third Aquaman, but it also has Jay Garrick join up, who was briefly a member during the Justice League International days.
    • For Young Justice: Outsiders, the only member who's actually part of The Outsiders in the comics is Geo-Force (And later, for both the show and the comics, Terra). Metamorpho and Katana are part of Batman Inc., Black Lightning is more of a satellite character to the group, and while she's a very important character for the season, Halo never actually becomes a member of the group. This version of the team has more in common with the Teen Titans, being lead by Beast Boy and featuring Wonder Girl, Blue Beetle, Bart as Kid Flash, Static, and Superboy, plus a de-aged El Dorado and obscure New Gods character Forager. In the timeskip between season 3 and 4, Looker, Windfall, and Tim Drake, members in the comics, also join, but other new members by that point include Stargirl and Livewire.
    • The Sentinels of Magic debut in season 4, but only Zatanna was a member in the comics. The other members who aren't part of the team in the comics are Traci Thirteen, Mary Bromfield, and Khalid Nassour.
    • For the first official appearance of the Suicide Squad/Task Force X, its members are Captain Boomerang, Black Manta and Monsieur Mallah. While Boomerang is a well known member, and Manta was a member of the New 52 incarnation, Mallah has never been part of the Squad. A canon audio play at DC FanDome adds Green Arrow villain Brick and Canon Foreigner Tuppence Terror of the Terror Twins as well.
    • The Light, the show's version of the Secret Society of Super Villains, features the Bialyan version of Queen Bee, Klarion the Witch Boy, Granny Goodness, and Bad Samaritan as members of the group, which they've never been a part of in the original comics, working with other members who have such as Vandal Savage, Ras al Ghul, Lex Luthor, Ocean Master, the Brain, Black Manta, Deathstroke, and Ultra-Humanite.
    • Queen Bee's group of enforcers, Onslaught, are named for a team of criminals who oppose the Suicide Squad, yet are based instead on Teen Titans rogues the Fearsome Five, of which Mammoth, Shimmer, and Psimon are members. Everyone else in the group counts either way, as seen with Devastation (an enemy of Wonder Woman), the second Icicle (an enemy of the Justice Society), the Canon Foreigner characters the Terror Twins, and Holocaust (a Milestone Comics antagonist who fought Static). The Targets miniseries added Superboy's Evil Twin Match and a (Hispanic and renamed to Juan Cordero) depiction of Superman antagonist Metallo as well. The only villain in the show who actually was a member of Onslaught in the comics, Jaculi, is an assassin who kills the Markov parents before being himself shot by Baron Bedlam as part of his cover story to control Markovia.
    • The League of Shadows (the show's renamed version of the League of Assassins) contains a number of members who weren't part of the team in the comics, such as Cheshire, Black Spider, Sportsmaster, the Shade (who promptly leaves them later on), and a Gender Flipped version of Red Hood and the Outlaws villain Rictus. Cheshire would later be RetCanoned as having been part of the League of Assassins during the New 52.
    • The Lex Luthor-aligned incarnation of Infinity, Inc. later defects to Markovia, where classic Outsiders member Geo-Force becomes their leader. The Targets comic adds Lizard Johnny, a member of an obscure team also called the Outsiders, and Jet, a member of the Global Guardians, to their ranks.
    • Among Darkseid's minions on Apokolips in the series is a reimagined version of Martian Manhunter villain Ma'alefa'ak (depicted as Miss Martian's brother who allies with Apokolips to get back at the other Martian races' persecution of White Martians like him). Although the comic version would later be revealed to have been an ally of Darkseid who probed the minds of Martians for the Anti-Life Equation, he would never appear as a prominent ally of him in a recurring capacity, as he does in the show.

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