View source for Invaders (comics)

{{short description|Marvel Comics superhero team}}
{{About|the [[Marvel Comics|Marvel]] [[comic book]] series|the 1967 comic book series by [[Gold Key Comics]] based upon the TV series of the same name|The Invaders}}
{{In-universe|date=July 2018}}
{{Infobox comics organization
|image=Invaders 1 (Marvel Comics August 1975).png
|imagesize=
|caption=Cover of ''The Invaders'' #1 (August 1975)<br>Art by [[John Romita Sr.]]
|name=Invaders
|publisher=[[Marvel Comics]]
|debut=''[[Avengers (comic book)|The Avengers]]'' #71 (December 1969)
|creators=[[Roy Thomas]]<br>[[Sal Buscema]]
|base=Various
|members='''Current members:'''<br>[[Falcon (comics)|Captain America (Sam Wilson)]]<br>[[Human Torch (android)|Human Torch]] I<br>[[Iron Cross (Marvel Comics)|Iron Cross (Clare Gruler)]]<br>[[Namor]]<br>Radiance<br>[[Toro (comics)|Toro]]<br>[[Bucky Barnes]]<br>'''Former members:'''<br>[[Blazing Skull]]<br>[[Blonde Phantom]]<br>[[Bucky (Marvel Comics)|Bucky (Fred Davis)]]<br>[[Spirit of '76 (Marvel Comics)|Captain America (William Nasland)]]<br>[[Captain America|Captain America (Steve Rogers)]]<br>The [[Fin (character)|Fin]]<br>[[Major Mapleleaf]]<br>[[Miss America (Madeline Joyce)|Miss America]]<br>Nia Noble<br>[[Silver Scorpion]]<br>[[Spitfire (character)|Spitfire]]<br>[[Tara (comics)|Tara]]<br>[[Thin Man (comics)|Thin Man]]<br>[[Union Jack (Joseph Chapman)]]<br>[[Union Jack (Marvel Comics)#Brian Falsworth|Union Jack (Brian Falsworth)]]<br>[[Union Jack (Marvel Comics)#James Montgomery Falsworth|Union Jack (James Falsworth)]]<br>[[U.S. Agent]]<br>[[Vision (Timely Comics)|Vision]] (Aarkus)<br>[[Whizzer (Robert Frank)|Whizzer]]
|subcat=Marvel Comics
|hero=y
|villain=
}}
'''The Invaders''' is the name of two [[superhero]] teams appearing in [[American comic book]]s published by [[Marvel Comics]].

==Publication history==
The original team was created by writer [[Roy Thomas]] and artist [[Sal Buscema]] in ''[[The Avengers (comic book)|The Avengers]]'' #71 (December 1969).<ref>{{cite book |last1=DeFalco |first1=Tom |last2=Sanderson |first2=Peter |last3=Brevoort |first3=Tom |last4=Teitelbaum |first4=Michael |last5=Wallace |first5=Daniel |last6=Darling |first6=Andrew |last7=Forbeck |first7=Matt |last8=Cowsill |first8=Alan |last9=Bray |first9=Adam |title=The Marvel Encyclopedia |date=2019 |publisher=DK Publishing |isbn=978-1-4654-7890-0 |page=188}}</ref>

A present-day incarnation was introduced by writer [[Chuck Austen]] and artist [[Scott Kolins]] in ''The Avengers'' (vol. 3) #82 (July 2004).

==Fictional team history==
The prototype for the Invaders, the [[All-Winners Squad]], created by publisher [[Martin Goodman (publisher)|Martin Goodman]] and scripter [[Bill Finger]], was a comic book feature published in the [[Golden Age of Comic Books|Golden Age]] with only two appearances, in ''All Winners Comics'' #19 (Fall 1946) and #21 (Winter 1947; there was no issue #20). 

This team had much of the same membership as the Invaders, but had its adventures in the post–[[World War II]] era, the time that their adventures were published. 

This group was also notable as its members did not entirely get along, prefiguring the internal conflicts of the [[Fantastic Four]] in the 1960s.{{citation needed|date=October 2022}}

===World War II===
The Invaders team first appeared in flashback stories set during [[World War II]], and comprised existing characters from [[Timely Comics]], the 1940s predecessor of Marvel. Originally, [[Captain America]] (Steve Rogers), his sidekick [[Bucky Barnes]], the original android [[Human Torch (android)|Human Torch]] ("Jim Hammond"), the Torch's sidekick [[Toro (comics)|Toro]] (Thomas Raymond) and [[Namor]] were together as heroes opposing the forces of [[Nazism]]. When these superheroes saved [[Prime Minister of the United Kingdom|British Prime Minister]] [[Winston Churchill]] from [[Master Man (Marvel Comics)|Master Man]], Churchill suggested that they should become a team, known as the Invaders.

The Invaders fight the [[Axis powers]] over the world until eventually finding themselves in [[England]], where they meet James Falsworth, the original [[Union Jack (Marvel Comics)|Union Jack]]. He joins the team and provides them with a base of operations in England.<ref>''The Invaders'' #6 (May 1976)</ref> Eventually, Falsworth's children Brian ([[Union Jack (Marvel Comics)#Brian Falsworth|Union Jack]] II) and Jacqueline ([[Spitfire (character)|Spitfire]]) become members.<ref>''The Invaders'' #12 (January 1977)</ref> The team later adds [[Miss America (Madeline Joyce)|Miss America]] (Madeline Joyce) and super-speedster the [[Whizzer (Robert Frank)|Whizzer]] (Bob Frank), during a battle with the [[Super-Axis]].<ref>''The Invaders'' #38 (March 1979)</ref> Later, against the threat of the Battle-Axis, the team is assisted by the [[Blazing Skull]] and the [[Silver Scorpion]].

The team continues to fight against several threats, (including a Nazi occupation of [[Atlantis (Marvel Comics)|Atlantis]] and the emergence of [[Hydra (Marvel Comics)|HYDRA]] backed by the time-travelling [[Baron Strucker]]) and faces an emotional trauma with the apparent deaths of Captain America and Bucky in a [[Unmanned aerial vehicle|drone]] [[aircraft]]'s explosion near the end of World War II, as first described in ''The Avengers'' #4 (March 1964). After the war's end, several members—including the second [[Bucky (Marvel Comics)|Bucky]] and Captain America (respectively, Fred Davis and William Naslund, formerly the superhero known as the [[Spirit of '76 (Marvel Comics)|Spirit of '76]])—created a new team, the All-Winners Squad. When that team dissolves, Marvel [[Retroactive continuity|retroactively changes the continuity]] ("retcon") of several members, having them join [[Citizen V#John Watkins|Citizen V]]'s [[V-Battalion#Golden Age|V-Battalion]].

After the Invaders' introduction in the pages of ''The Avengers'', the team appeared in its own try-out title, ''Giant-Size Invaders'' #1 in 1975, followed by the ongoing series; ''The Invaders'' later that year, and a single ''Annual'' in 1977. Issues #5–6 of the series introduced another retroactively changed World War II team, the [[Liberty Legion]], in a two-part story arc, "The Red Skull Strikes", interlaced with another two-part story in ''[[Marvel Premiere]]'' #29–30.

===New Invaders===
[[File:New Invaders -2.jpg|left|thumb|160px|''New Invaders'' #2, cover art by [[Scott Kolins]]]]
In 2004, a new Invaders team was created in the four-issue story arc "Once an Invader...", beginning with ''The Avengers'' (vol. 3) #82, written by [[Chuck Austen]].<ref>{{Cite web | url=http://classic.newsarama.com/pages/Marvel/Austen.htm | title=Chuck Austen: Once an Avenger, Still an X-Man | work=[[Newsarama]] | date=March 26, 2004 }}{{dead link|date=July 2025|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref> The revived team was [[Spin-off (media)|spun off]] into its own title, ''The New Invaders'', running 10 issues (August 2004 – June 2005) beginning with issue #0. It was written by Allan Jacobsen<ref>{{Cite web | url=http://forum.newsarama.com/showthread.php?t=10791 | title=Jacobsen Talks Invaders | work=Newsarama | date=March 22, 2004 }}{{dead link|date=July 2025|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref> with artwork by C. P. Smith.<ref>{{Cite web | url=http://forum.newsarama.com/showthread.php?t=12687 | title=Illustrating The Invaders: CP Smith | work=Newsarama | date=May 6, 2004 }}{{dead link|date=July 2025|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref>

The new team consisted of the [[Blazing Skull]] (Mark Todd), a flame-generating girl named Tara, former [[Liberty Legion]] member [[Thin Man (comics)|Thin Man]] (Bruce Dickson), [[U.S. Agent]] (John Walker, a.k.a. Captain America V), [[Union Jack (Joseph Chapman)|Union Jack]] III (Joey Chapman) and returning members Namor and Spitfire. Later, the android the [[Human Torch (android)|Human Torch]] joins the team, feeling an affinity for Tara, revealed as an android herself. The Invaders are also assisted by former [[Golden Age of Comic Books|Golden Age]] hero the [[Fin (character)|Fin]] and his Atlantean wife Nia, although they did not officially join the team.

They are formed by the supposed [[United States Secretary of Defense|U.S. Secretary of Defense]] Dell Rusk—in actuality the [[Red Skull]]—who coerces the Thin Man into gathering this new team, which the Skull intends to use for his own goals. The new Invaders eventually learn of the plan, however, and thwart it. The apparent "death" of the android Human Torch came as a result of the betrayal of the Skull-planted Tara. The majority of the members quit the team after this incident.

===''Avengers/Invaders''===
[[File:2.27.20JimKruegerAvengersInvadersByLuigiNovi2.jpg|thumb|Writer [[Jim Krueger]] signing a copy of ''Avengers/Invaders'' at [[Midtown Comics]] Grand Central in Manhattan]]
The 2007 12-issue crossover series ''Avengers/Invaders'' saw the original WWII team of [[Captain America]], [[Bucky Barnes|Bucky]], [[Namor]], the [[Human Torch (android)|Human Torch]], and [[Toro (comics)|Toro]] brought to the present-day [[Marvel Universe]] by the [[Cosmic Cube]], which had fallen into the hands of the demon [[D'Spayre]]. His use of it to draw on the grief generated by Captain America's death had unintentionally caused it to grant the wish of those who wished for his return. 

Upon arriving in the present day, the Invaders battled the [[Thunderbolts (comics)|Thunderbolts]] and [[The Mighty Avengers]], believing them to be Nazi agents. Eventually, the Invaders came to trust the Avengers teams (both Mighty and [[New Avengers|New]] versions) and agreed to go back to where they belonged. The teams collected the Cosmic Cube and an American soldier who traveled into the future with the Invaders. However, the soldier took it upon himself to steal the Cosmic Cube and save his dead friends in the past. 

This triggers an alternative reality to emerge where most of the Avengers are wiped from time. [[Doctor Strange]] manages to send the Invaders and the surviving members of the Avengers into the past before being wiped from time himself.<ref>''Avengers/Invaders'' #1–8 (July 2008&nbsp;– March 2009). Marvel Comics.</ref>

In the past, the soldier raised his dead friends and healed a dying Union Jack. The soldier then attempted to destroy the Nazis with the Cosmic Cube, but lost it when he was attacked by [[Red Skull]]'s henchmen. The Red Skull I later came into possession of the Cosmic Cube and transformed the world into one made in his own image. Elsewhere, the Invaders and the Avengers arrived in the past, but found that it had dramatically changed. The Avengers took up identities of Golden Age characters so that they could fit into the past without giving the Red Skull too much information about the future: [[Luke Cage]] as the [[Thunderer (Marvel Comics)|Black Avenger]], [[Iron Man]] as [[Electro (Timely Comics)|Electro]], [[Carol Danvers|Ms. Marvel]] as [[Black Widow (Claire Voyant)|Black Widow]], [[Spider-Man]] as the [[Challenger (comics)|Challenger]], [[Veranke|Spider-Woman]] as the [[Silver Scorpion]], and [[Wolverine (character)|Wolverine]] as Captain Terror. The [[Wasp (character)|Wasp]] uses her powers to stay hidden from sight. They end the Red Skull's reign of terror and restore the original timeline.<ref>''Avengers/Invaders'' #9–12 (June–August 2009). Marvel Comics.</ref>

At the end of the series, Toro is revived after Bucky acquires the Cube.<ref>''Avengers/Invaders'' #12 (August 2009)</ref> His story is continued in the eight-issue limited series ''The Torch'', which deals with the resurrection of the original Human Torch. In the series, the two [[Golden Age of Comic Books|Golden Age]] heroes battle the [[Mad Thinker]] and the Inhuman Torch.<ref>''The Torch'' #1–8 (November 2009&nbsp;– July 2010). Marvel Comics.</ref>

===''Invaders Now!''===
In September 2010, Marvel launched ''Invaders Now!'', a miniseries starring [[Bucky Barnes|Captain America (Bucky Barnes)]], the original [[Human Torch (android)|Human Torch]], [[Namora|Namor]], [[Captain America|Steve Rogers]], [[Spitfire (character)|Spitfire]], and [[Toro (comics)|Toro]]. The Invaders are all reunited by the original [[Vision (Timely Comics)|Vision]] and [[Union Jack (Joseph Chapman)|Union Jack]] to face a resurfaced threat from World War II. This threat manifests as a disease that mutates those infected, causing horrible deformation, granting superhuman strength, and driving the victim insane with pain and rage. Those infected are driven to attack and thereby infect others. In World War II this pathogen was created by [[Arnim Zola]], as his last project before suffering wounds which necessitated his consciousness being transferred into a robot. To contain the plague, the Invaders had to kill the entire population of a village in the Netherlands, including some who had been infected, but had not yet transformed. In this miniseries, the infection reappears in the modern era.<ref>''Invaders Now'' #1 (November 2010)</ref>

===''All-New Invaders''===
In 2014, Marvel launched a new series written by [[James Robinson (writer)|James Robinson]] and starring Captain America who is eventually replaced by [[Falcon (comics)|Sam Wilson]], [[Bucky Barnes|Winter Soldier]], the original [[Human Torch (android)|Human Torch]], and Namor.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://plus.google.com/108523337373444601877/posts/M764Km5N3bj|title=Marvel surges into 2014 with All-New Invaders, Inhuman, Avengers and more as...}}</ref> A Japanese heroine named Radiance (the granddaughter of [[Golden Girl (Timely Comics)|Golden Girl]]) joins the team during the book's second arc,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.comicvine.com/articles/exclusive-james-robinson-talks-all-new-invaders-original-sin-and-new-characters/1100-148409/|title=Exclusive: James Robinson Talks ALL-NEW INVADERS, Original Sin, and New Characters|work=Comic Vine|date=28 March 2014 }}</ref> and the daughter of [[Iron Cross (Marvel Comics)|Iron Cross]] joins in issue # 10.

===''Invaders'' (vol. 3)===
In January 2019, Marvel launched a new series written by [[Chip Zdarsky]] that saw original members [[Captain America|Steve Rogers]], the [[Bucky Barnes|Winter Soldier]], and the [[Human Torch (android)|Human Torch]] reunite to stop Namor, who has become a global threat and mentally unstable.<ref>''Invaders'' (vol. 3) (2019)</ref>

==Collected editions==
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! Title
! Material collected
! Year
! ISBN
|-
|''Invaders Classic Vol. 1''
|''Invaders'' (vol. 1, 1975) #1–9, ''Giant-Size Invaders'' #1 (1975) and ''Marvel Premiere'' #29–30
|July 2007
|{{ISBNT|978-0785127062}}
|-
|''Invaders Classic Vol. 2''
|''Invaders'' (vol. 1, 1975) #10–21 and ''Annual'' #1 (1977)
|July 2008
|{{ISBNT|978-0785131205}}
|-
|''Invaders Classic Vol. 3''
|''Invaders'' (vol. 1, 1975) #22–23,<ref>The omitted issue #24 was a reprint of the Namor/Human Torch team-up from ''Marvel Mystery'' #17 (1941)</ref> 25–34
|February 2009
|{{ISBNT|978-0785137207}}
|-
|''Invaders Classic Vol. 4''
|''Invaders'' (vol. 1, 1975) #35–41, ''Invaders'' (vol. 2, 1993) #1–4
|July 2010
|{{ISBNT|978-0785145516}}
|-
|''Invaders Classic: The Complete Collection Vol. 1''
|''Giant-Size Invaders'' #1 (1975), ''Invaders'' (vol. 1, 1975) #1–22 & ''Annual'' #1 (1977), ''Avengers'' (vol. 1) #71 (1969), and ''Marvel Premiere'' #29–30 (1976)
|July 2014
|{{ISBNT|978-0785190578}}
|-
|''Invaders Classic: The Complete Collection Vol. 2''
|''Invaders'' (vol. 1, 1975) #23, 25-41, ''The Invaders'' (vol. 2, 1993) #1–4, ''Giant-Size Invaders'' #2 (2005), and ''What If'' (vol. 1, 1977) #4
|December 2014
|{{ISBNT|978-0785190585}}
|-
|''Invaders Omnibus''
|''Invaders'' (vol. 1, 1975) #1-23, 25-41, ''Annual'' (1977) #1; ''Marvel Premiere'' (1972) #29–30; ''Avengers'' (1963) #71; ''Invaders'' (vol. 2,1993) #1–4; ''What If?'' (vol. 1,1977) #4; material from ''Captain America Comics'' (1941) #22; ''Giant-Size Invaders'' (1975) #1–2;<ref>Despite being advertised as containing the complete ''Giant-Size Invaders'' (1975) #1 and ''Invaders'' (1975) #1-41, the published volume omits almost all the re-edited Golden Age material originally included in these issues, i.e., ''Sub-Mariner'' (1941) #1, ''Marvel Comics'' (1939) #1 and ''Marvel Mystery Comics'' (1939) #10, 17</ref>
|November 2022
|{{ISBNT|978-1302934750}}
|-
|''Avengers: Once An Invader''
|''Avengers'' (vol. 3) #82–84 and ''New Invaders'' #0 (2004), with ''Invaders Annual'' #1 (1977) and ''Avengers'' (vol. 1) #71 (1969)
|November 2004
|{{ISBNT|978-0785114819}}
|-
|''New Invaders: To End All Wars''
|''New Invaders'' #1–9
|July 2005
|{{ISBNT|978-0785114499}}
|-
|''Avengers/Invaders''
|''Avengers/Invaders'' #1–12
|October 2009
|{{ISBNT|978-0785129424}}
|-
|''Invaders: The Eve of Destruction''
|''Marvel Universe'' #1-7
|August 2010
|{{ISBNT|978-0785145523}}
|-
|''Invaders Now!''
|''Invaders Now!'' #1-5
|April 2011
|{{ISBNT|978-0785139126}}
|-
| ''All-New Invaders Vol. 1: Gods and Soldiers''
| ''All-New Invaders'' #1–5 and material from ''All-New Marvel Now Point One'' #1
| August 2014
| {{ISBNT|978-0785189145}}
|-
| ''All-New Invaders Vol. 2: Original Sin''
| ''All-New Invaders'' #6–10
| December 2014
| {{ISBNT| 978-0785189152}}
|-
| ''All-New Invaders Vol. 3: The Martians are Coming''
| ''All-New Invaders'' #11–15
| June 2015
| {{ISBNT|978-0785192473}}
|-
|''Invaders Vol. 1: War Ghost''
|''Invaders'' (vol. 3, 2019) #1-6
|August 2019
|{{ISBNT|978-1302917494}}
|-
|''Invaders Vol. 2: Dead in the Water''
|''Invaders'' (vol. 3, 2019) #7-12
|March 2020
|{{ISBNT|978-1302917500}}
|-
|''Always an Invader''
|''Invaders'' (vol. 3, 2019) #1-12 and ''Namor: The Best Defense'' #1
|February 2021
|{{ISBNT|978-1302927356}}
|}

==In other media==
===Television===
{{unsourced-section|date=May 2025}}
* The Invaders appear in ''[[The Super Hero Squad Show]]'' episode "World War Witch!", consisting of Captain America, [[Bucky Barnes]], the [[Human Torch (android)|Human Torch]], and [[Toro (comics)|Toro]].
* The Invaders appear in flashbacks depicted in the ''[[Ultimate Spider-Man (TV series)|Ultimate Spider-Man]]'' episode "S.H.I.E.L.D. Academy", consisting of Captain America, Bucky Barnes, [[Miss America (Madeline Joyce)|Miss America]], the Human Torch, and the [[Whizzer (Robert Frank)|Whizzer]].

===Film===
The Invaders as a concept, hybridized with the [[Howling Commandos (Marvel Cinematic Universe)|Howling Commandos]], appear in ''[[Captain America: The First Avenger]]''. This version of the group is a hand-selected Special Forces infantry unit under [[Steve Rogers (Marvel Cinematic Universe)|Captain America]]'s field command, and has [[Bucky Barnes (Marvel Cinematic Universe)|Bucky Barnes]] and [[Union Jack (Marvel Comics)|James Falsworth]] among its number.<ref>{{cite web|last=Coovert|first=John|title=FIRST AVENGER Friday: The Howling Commandos|url=http://lostinreviews.com/2011/07/first-avenger-friday-2/|publisher=Lost in Reviews|access-date=24 July 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111009041127/http://lostinreviews.com/2011/07/first-avenger-friday-2/|archive-date=9 October 2011|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Moore |first=Roger |title=Joe Johnston On How Captain America's 'Howling Commandos' Confined Their Name |url=http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/entertainment_movies_blog/2011/07/captain-america-director-joe-johnston-makes-captain-america-fit-into-the-marvel-universe.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110722220454/http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/entertainment_movies_blog/2011/07/captain-america-director-joe-johnston-makes-captain-america-fit-into-the-marvel-universe.html |archive-date=22 July 2011 |access-date=24 July 2011 |publisher=Orlando Sentinel}}</ref>

===Video games===
* The Invaders appear in ''[[Captain America: Super Soldier]]'',{{cn|date=March 2025}} consisting of Bucky Barnes, [[Dum Dum Dugan]], Union Jack, and [[Jim Morita]].
* The Invaders appear in ''[[Marvel Strike Force]]'',<ref>{{cite web | url=https://marvelstrikeforce.com/en/updates/blog-update-3-10-23 | title=MARVEL Strike Force }}</ref> consisting of [[Nick Fury (Ultimate Marvel character)|Nick Fury]], Captain America, Bucky Barnes, Union Jack, and [[Orson Randall]].

==See also==
* [[Golden Age of Comic Books]]
* [[All-Winners Squad]]
* [[Avengers (comics)|Avengers]]
* [[Crusaders (Marvel Comics)]]
* [[Liberty Legion]]
* [[Agents of Atlas]]
* [[Timely Comics]]
* [[Atlas Comics (1950s)|Atlas Comics]]
* [[Marvel Comics]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
*[http://toonopedia.com/invaders.htm Invaders] at [[Don Markstein's Toonopedia]]. [https://archive.today/20240527232827/https://www.webcitation.org/6kb4KeTlj?url=http://toonopedia.com/invaders.htm Archived] from the original on September 17, 2016.
* {{Marveldatabase|Invaders}}

{{Invaders}}
{{Namor}}
{{Human Torch (android)}}
{{Captain America characters}}
{{Avengers publications}}

[[Category:1975 comics debuts]]
[[Category:Captain America]]
[[Category:Characters created by Roy Thomas]]
[[Category:Comics characters introduced in 1975]]
[[Category:Golden Age superheroes]]
[[Category:Marvel Comics set during World War II]]
[[Category:Marvel Comics superhero teams]]
[[Category:Marvel Comics titles]]
[[Category:United States-themed superheroes]]