Thunderbolts dives into a different aspect of heroism in the MCU, featuring characters who are troubled and don’t have the heroic ideals of the Avengers. Each member of the MCU Thunderbolts has a different origin and powers.
The movie brings together antiheroes, former villains, and individuals with complicated morality who already exist in the MCU timeline .
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History of Thunderbolts in Comics
The Thunderbolts first debuted in The Incredible Hulk #449 in 1997, the work of writer Kurt Busiek and artist Mark Bagley. In the original version, Baron Zemo was the leader of this team. He formed the group to fill the void that the Avengers and Fantastic Four left behind.
Originally called the Masters of Evil, the group disguised themselves as the Thunderbolts to introduce themselves as a team of superheroes. Zemo and his colleagues deceived the public to slowly take over the world, while the Avengers disappeared after the battle against Onslaught.
Eventually, the Avengers managed to defeat the Thunderbolts after their return. Baron Zemo was then ousted from his position as leader and Hawkeye took his place. Hawkeye then turned the Thunderbolts into the original superhero team.
The Origin and Powers of the MCU Thunderbolts Members
1. Bucky Barnes
Bucky Barnes, also known as the Winter Soldier, is a super soldier who possesses superior strength, speed, agility, and durability. His cybernetic arm has undergone several upgrades, providing additional strength and flexibility in combat.
In addition, Bucky is an expert in unarmed combat, shooting, and espionage activities, which he learned from the US military and Hydra. The variant of the super soldier serum he uses gives him enhanced healing abilities, making him more immune to injury.
Bucky Barnes first appeared in Captain America Comics #1 in 1941 as Captain America’s sidekick. He fought in World War II but was presumed dead. In 2005, Bucky was revived as the Winter Soldier, a hitman brainwashed by the Soviet Union. For years, he went on secret missions with no memory of his past until Captain America helped him escape Hydra’s control.
While in the MCU, Bucky Barnes played by Sebastian Stan, first appeared in Captain America: The First Avenger as a friend of Steve Rogers. After his “death,” he survived and was brainwashed by Hydra, becoming the Winter Soldier.
In Captain America: The Winter Soldier, he fought Steve but eventually regained his memory. After fighting Thanos in Avengers: Infinity War and getting blipped, Bucky returned in Avengers: Endgame and continued his journey of redemption in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier. Now he’s back as one of the forces in the MCU’s Thunderbolts movie.
2. Yelena Belova
Yelena Belova is a skilled spy and assassin who trained in the Red Room, just like her adopted sister Natasha Romanoff. She has excellent physical conditioning, martial arts skills, and expertise in using firearms, knives, and various other weapons.
Although she has no superpowers, the training she has received in psychological warfare, espionage and assassination makes her a very dangerous opponent. Yelena also has expertise in stealth and infiltration tactics.
Yelena first appeared in Inhumans #5 in 1999, created by Devin Grayson and J.G. Jones. She was Natasha Romanoff’s rival, who had also received training in the Red Room to become the perfect spy and assassin.
In the comics, Yelena initially sought to transcend Natasha’s legacy and become the true Black Widow. However, over time, their relationship becomes increasingly complicated, and Yelena begins to doubt her loyalty and the morality of her actions.
Yelena made her first appearance in the MCU in Black Widow (2021), starring Florence Pugh. As Natasha Romanoff’s sister, she was instrumental in exposing the corrupt practices of the Red Room and its leader, Dreykov.
After Natasha’s death in Avengers: Endgame, Valentina Allegra de Fontaine recruited her. Fontaine used the situation to influence Yelena to pursue Clint Barton in the Disney+ series Hawkeye.
3. Red Guardian
The Red Guardian has physical abilities such as increased strength, speed, and endurance thanks to a super soldier serum from the Soviet version. Although not as strong as Captain America, Alexei’s fighting skills are impressive.
He is an expert in unarmed combat and is highly skilled with his iconic shield, which functions both defensively and as a throwing weapon. His years of military training have also made him an excellent strategist.
In the comics, he first appeared in The Avengers #43 in 1967, created by Roy Thomas and John Buscema. Alexei Shostakov was a Soviet test pilot who was made a Red Guard as the Soviet Union’s response to Captain America.
Unlike the MCU version, Alexei in the comics is more stoic and dedicated to Soviet ideals, with his rivalry with Captain America being a recurring theme.
In the MCU, the Red Guardian character is played by David Harbour and first appeared in Black Widow. Alexei is described as the adoptive father of Natasha Romanoff and Yelena Belova. Despite his great strength, his glory days as a hero of the Soviet Union are behind him. She provides moments of humor in Black Widow, often boasting of her past accomplishments and looking forward to fighting Captain America again.
4. John Walker
John Walker, known as Agent US, gained physical abilities similar to Captain America after obtaining a version of the super soldier serum. This gave him exceptional strength, agility, endurance and reflexes.
In addition, he is a skilled hand-to-hand fighter and marksman, as well as trained in military tactics. In the comics, Walker uses a Vibranium shield, though his methods are often more ruthless than Steve Rogers.
In the comics, John Walker debuted in Captain America #323 in 1986, created by Mark Gruenwald. Originally known as Super-Patriot, he sought to replace Captain America with a more aggressive approach to patriotism.
After Steve Rogers resigned, Walker took over, but faced pressure and moral dilemmas. He struggled to balance his ideals with his shield legacy, which eventually led him to adopt the persona of Agent US.
While in the MCU, John Walker is played by Wyatt Russell, debuting in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier (2021) as Steve Rogers’ replacement as Captain America. Despite trying to live up to the role, Walker went down a dark path after using the super soldier serum and killing Flag Smasher in public.
As a result, he was stripped of his Captain America title. At the end of the series, Valentina Allegra de Fontaine recruited him with a new black-and-red suit and the title of US Agent.
5. Taskmaster
Taskmaster has the ability of “photographic reflexes,” which allows him to mimic the physical movements and fighting styles of anyone he sees with great accuracy. With this ability, Taskmaster can copy the fighting techniques of heroes like Captain America, Black Widow and Hawkeye, making him a highly adaptive and dangerous fighter.
Despite lacking super strength or incredible durability, Taskmaster’s skill at mimicking the movements of others makes him a formidable opponent in unarmed combat.
Taskmaster is a character created by David Michelinie and George Pérez, who debuted in The Avengers #195 comic in 1980. His real name is Tony Masters, a mercenary and supervillain trainer who uses his photographic reflexes to fight heroes.
She is often cast as a villain or antihero, working for a criminal organization or training its minions, but is also sometimes a reluctant ally to the heroes.
In the Black Widow movie, Taskmaster is introduced as Antonia Dreykov, the daughter of the leader of the Red Room. She was brainwashed and became a hitman after an assassination attempt by Natasha Romanoff. Her mimicry ability comes from the technology embedded in her costume, allowing her to mimic the movements of the Avengers.
6. Ghost
Ghost has the ability to pass through solid objects due to its molecular instability. This ability allows it to become intangible, invisible, and move through walls, making it extremely difficult to capture or attack.
She can also disrupt electronic systems and use his invisible presence to his advantage. However, his powers are unstable, and in the MCU, he requires special technology to stabilize his condition.
In the comics, Ghost first appeared in Iron Man #219 in 1987, created by David Michelinie and Bob Layton. The character is a man with no real name who is an industrial saboteur and mercenary with a grudge against corporations, especially Stark Industries.
Ghost’s powers come from an advanced suit that allows him to become invisible and traverse matter. Although many consider him a villain, he sometimes acts as an antihero, especially against corrupt corporations.
While in the MCU, the character of Ghost is played by Hannah John-Kamen and first appeared in the movie Ant-Man and The Wasp (2018). Ava Starr gained her abilities after an incident involving quantum energy took the lives of her parents and caused her molecules to become unstable.
In an attempt to survive, he collaborates with Bill Foster to find a solution to stabilize his condition. At the end of the movie, he gets hope for recovery thanks to the quantum healing particles that Scott Lang discovered. Now we can see his powers again in the Thunderbolts MCU movie.
7. Vallentina Allegra
Unlike the other Thunderbolts MCU characters who have superpowers and abilities, Valentina Allegra de Fontaine does not have superpowers, but she is a highly skilled operator and manipulator. She is an expert in espionage, strategy, and political tactics.
Her skills in intelligence operations make her one of the most dangerous characters in the MCU, as she can orchestrate events from behind the scenes and control situations that affect both heroes and villains. It was Valentina who created the Thundrbolts team in the MCU.
In Comics, Valentina first appeared in Strange Tales #159 in 1967, created by Jim Steranko. She is a SHIELD agent who was originally Nick Fury’s lover, but later became a key figure in the world of espionage with ambiguous loyalties, including a relationship with Hydra and adopting the pseudonym Madame Hydra.
In the MCU, the character of Valentina is played by Julia Louis-Dreyfus and first appeared in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier. She is a mysterious figure who recruits powerful individuals with ambiguous morality, including John Walker and Yelena Belova.
De Fontaine also appears in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever as the new director of the CIA. Although her true motives remain unrevealed, it seems that Valentina is forming her own operations team.
The Power of Bob, Sentry in the MCU Thunderbolts Movie
Bob from Thunderbolts* is actually the character known as Sentry. Real name Robert Reynolds, Sentry is one of the most powerful superheroes in the Marvel universe, often compared to Superman. He has the power equivalent of“a million exploding suns,” which gives him superhuman abilities, speed, durability, flight, and energy projection.
In addition, Sentry has highly effective healing abilities and can recover from almost any injury. Her abilities also include molecular manipulation, which allows her to remodel matter at a very fundamental level.
In the comics he was introduced in Sentry #1 in 2000, created by Paul Jenkins and Jae Lee. Originally, he was a forgotten hero in the Marvel universe, who gained his powers after consuming a serum.
His immense power makes him both a hero and a threat, as his dark personality, Void, emerges alongside his heroism. Sentry has been a member of both the Avengers and the Dark Avengers, struggling with his dual nature and the burden of his abilities.
Sentry will make his first appearance in the MCU through the movie Thunderbolts, after a long period of speculation regarding his appearance. The Thunderbolts trailer only refers to him as Bob and doesn’t reveal much information about his character. However, his presence will likely have a huge impact on the future of the MCU.
