5 Biggest Avengers Moments

Over their 50-year history, Captain America and company have come up against a number of game-changing revelations and had to make a number of tough calls. Below, we run through five of the Avengers' most surprising moments in chronological order!

1. CAP'S KOOKY QUARTET

The Avengers' nickname clearly states the prereq for joining the team: "Earth's Mightiest Heroes." Imagine the surprise on both readers' and the fictional citizens of the Marvel Universe's faces when powerhouses like Iron Man and Thor departed the team only to be replaced by two rookie mutants and a guy with a bow and arrow. The very first massive roster shakeup in Avengers history saw a trio of ex-villains – Quicksilver, Scarlet Witch and Hawkeye – replacing the departed founding members. Nicknamed "Cap's Kooky Quartet," this foursome defied the odds and made lifelong Avengers out of the former bad guys.

2. MASTERS OF EVIL: HOUSE CRASHERS

After numerous attempts and even more lineup changes than the Avengers, the Masters of Evil finally scored a major victory over their archenemies by crashing into Avengers Mansion uninvited. The dreadful dozen ruthlessly attacked the team's butler Jarvis, and even put Hercules in a coma. The good guys had never been dealt this disastrous of a hand before.

3. CAROL DANVERS, COURT-MARTIALED

Following a long leave of absence, Carol Danvers finally returned to the Avengers' ranks under the new codename Warbird. The team welcomed their old friend back into the fold, up until the point it became clear that Carol Danvers could not be counted on. Warbird had lied about the loss of her cosmic abilities and also gone off into battle drunk, jeopardizing her team in a battle against the Kree Empire. With a heavy heart, the Avengers had to put an end to Carol's comeback story – at least until she sought help for the demons afflicting her.

4. SCARLET WITCH GOES WILD

Upon remembering the existence of her twin sons, memories that had been taken from her in tandem with her artificially created children, Wanda Maximoff snapped. The Avengers barely managed to survive the onslaught of chaos magic unleashed upon them by their mad teammate, but not all of the heroes made it out alive. Hawkeye, Scott Lang, and Vision all lost their lives in the melee, and the destruction of both Avengers Mansion and the team's morale led to the Avengers' complete disassembly

5. KICKING OUT CAP

With Incursions, the physical collision of Earth's from alternate realities with each other, threatening to smash their home world to bits, a group of sometime Avengers called the Illuminati banded together in secret to protect the planet. But the choice to save their Earth came at a cost – the other Earth. After fending off one planetary catastrophe, Captain America called the rest of the team out of line and demanded they find another course of action. In a surprising twist, the rest of the team unanimously agreed to vote Cap out of the team. Dr. Strange cast a spell on Steve Rogers, robbing him of all of his Illuminati-related memories.