Welcome to Marvel's L.A., the Super Hero Hub of the West Coast

New York may be home to the Avengers, Spider-Man, the X-Men, and the Defenders, but it’s not the only super hero hot spot in the Marvel Universe. Boasting numerous solo heroes and multiple teams, Los Angeles, California acts a hub for Marvel heroes on the West Coast.

Alongside teams like the West Coast Avengers, heroes like Wonder Man and Iron Man balanced their high-flying adventures with their high-profile careers as celebrity media figures. Even outside of the media industry, beloved characters from Werewolf by Night to Jeff the Land Shark made their Marvel Universe debut in L.A.

Now, let’s take a closer look at Marvel’s Los Angeles and the heroes who call it home in stories available to read now on Marvel Unlimited. Whether they’re living in the Avengers Compound or using the city as a base for their Californian adventures, these are the heroes who watch over the West Coast.

THE WEST COAST AVENGERS

The West Coast Avengers became the center of super hero activity in Los Angeles when the group debuted in WEST COAST AVENGERS (1984) #1 by Roger Stern and Bob Hall. To deal with an ever-growing number of threats, Vision—acting as the Avengers’ leader—started up a new branch of the team in California. Hawkeye (Clint Barton) founded the new team with his then-wife Mockingbird at his side. While he was Iron Man, Jim "Rhodey" Rhodes joined the team, and Wonder Man and the cat-like Tigra tagged along as well. The group operated out of Avengers Compound, a massive estate in Palos Verdes that the team bought and converted into its heroic headquarters.

The West Coast Avengers went on to recruit over two dozen heroes, including Iron Man (Tony Stark), Wasp, Ant-Man (Hank Pym), Moon Knight, Vision, Scarlet Witch, U.S. Agent, and the Thing. However, Captain America (Steve Rogers) and other Avengers leaders voted to disband the West Coast Avengers because of the group’s unstable membership and aggressive actions.

Although the Avengers Compound went unused for several years, the Avengers eventually repurposed the facility as Avengers Academy, where veteran heroes mentored young superhumans like Hazmat and Reptil. After that school shut down, Hawkeye and Hawkeye (Kate Bishop) brought a few other young heroes together as a short-lived Venice-based West Coast Avengers team, which introduced the Marvel Universe to Jeff the Land Shark.

WONDER MAN

As a working actor, celebrity, and card-carrying Avenger, Wonder Man embodies the essence of Marvel’s Los Angeles. After growing up as the son of a wealthy industrialist family, Simon Williams tried to save his family’s business by embezzling money on the advice of his villainous brother, Grim Reaper (Eric Williams). When Simon faced serious jail time, Baron Zemo recruited him for the Masters of Evil and exposed him to the ionic energy that gave him superhuman strength and energy powers.

During his initial outing as Wonder Man, Simon joined the Avengers as Zemo’s double agent, but he betrayed the villain and fell into a deep coma. When he recovered, Simon was welcomed back to the Avengers as a true member, but he never felt at ease with the team.

After he left the Avengers, Wonder Man relocated to L.A. to pursue acting in AVENGERS (1963) #211 by Jim Shooter and Gene Colan. Thanks to his super-strength and invulnerability, Williams primarily found success doing stunts and working on children’s programming. When Hawkeye formed a second Avengers squad in L.A., Wonder Man became one of the West Coast Avengers’ founding members. While Simon moved back to New York to join other Avengers squads a few times, he has always returned to L.A.

IRON MAN

While working with the West Coast Avengers, Tony Stark moved to California, where he operated for several years. When he wasn’t at the Avengers Compound or his Stark Industries offices in Silicon Valley, Iron Man lived at the Retreat, a beachfront mansion that overlooked the Pacific Ocean in Malibu, starting in IRON MAN (1968) #217 by Bob Layton, David Michelinie, and Mark Bright. Stark eventually moved his company’s headquarters to the nearby Stark Enterprises Building in L.A.

Following the end of the West Coast Avengers, Iron Man brought several of the group’s former members together as Force Works. That short-lived team operated out of a facility called the Works in Ventura.

More recently, Iron Man restarted the West Coast Avengers with War Machine, Firestar, and Spider-Woman (Jessica Drew) in WEST COAST AVENGERS (2024) #1 by Gerry Duggan and Danny Kim. With a focus on rehabilitating former villains, this group also recruited a heroic Ultron unit and the electricity-wielding Thomas Watt, who went by the codenames Killerwatt, Blue Bolt, and Wonder Man. Eventually, Simon Williams joined the team and reclaimed his Wonder Man identity.

CHAMPIONS OF LOS ANGELES

Beyond the Avengers, several other heroes have called Los Angeles home, including one of Marvel’s most unlikely super-teams. When the god Pluto attacked the city, Hercules teamed up with Black Widow (Natasha Romanoff), Ghost Rider (Johnny Blaze), Iceman, and Angel (Warren Worthington III) to form the Champions in CHAMPIONS (1975) #1 by Tony Isabella and Don Heck. The team also worked closely with Goliath (Bill Foster), a size-changing hero from the Watts neighborhood.

Despite funding from Angel, the Champions only stayed together for a brief time. Although the Champions were the first West Coast super team, Iceman and Angel later described the group as a mistake. Like those veteran mutants, Beast also moved to L.A. a few times to live with Wonder Man, his best friend from their shared time with the Avengers.

After growing up in L.A., Jack Russell transformed into the Werewolf by Night in MARVEL SPOTLIGHT (1971) #2 by Roy Thomas, Jean Thomas, Gerry Conway, and Mike Ploog. Since he lived in Venice Beach, many of his supernatural adventures took place around the city, including Moon Knight’s debut. For one mission, Russel and Ghost Rider teamed up with Morbius and Man-Thing to form the Legion of Monsters in MARVEL PREMIERE (1972) #28 by Bill Mantlo and Frank Robbins.

Early in their careers, Spider-Woman (Jessica Drew) and She-Hulk both served as solo heroes in L.A. In addition to one X-Force team, a group of X-Men called the X-Treme Sanctions Executive operated out of Valle Soleada, a beach town near L.A. where mutants were widely accepted. As Ghost Rider, Robbie Reyes has protected the East L.A. neighborhood of Hillrock Heights. Additionally, several former teen heroes like Darkhawk (Chris Powell) and Spider-Woman (Mattie Franklin) formed a support group for recovering heroes called the Loners.

CELEBRITY SUPER HEROES

When the 50-State Initiative placed teams of heroes in every state, Tony Stark set up an L.A.-based team called the Order in THE ORDER (2007) #1 by Matt Fraction and Barry Kitson. This short-lived team consisted of celebrities who had been granted superhuman powers that would last for one year. A group of celebrity mutants called X-Statix was also based in L.A., where their violent and frequently deadly adventures became a reality TV show.

Following Wonder Man’s example, many other heroes have moved to Los Angeles to pursue careers in the entertainment industry. While working as a musician, Dazzler moved to Hollywood and made tabloid headlines while filming a doomed movie that revealed her status as a mutant. Around the time he was bonded to the cosmic hero Genis-Vell, Rick Jones worked as a musician in L.A.

Jubilee and Karen Page both moved to L.A. as aspiring actors, and Namor briefly owned a production company called Imperial Studios. As part of her successful career as a model and actor, Mary Jane Watson moved to L.A. and made a movie with Mysterio as he tried to revive his film career in AMAZING MARY JANE (2019) #1 by Leah Williams and Carlos Gomez.

THE PRIDE AND THE RUNAWAYS

Los Angeles never had as many villains as New York, but a few villainous groups have taken up residence in the City of Angels. For many years, a group of villains called the Pride oversaw L.A.’s criminal underworld. The Pride included six married couples who worked on behalf of powerful ancient entities called the Gibborim.

While making a human sacrifice, the children of the Pride discovered them in RUNAWAYS (2003) #1 by Brian K. Vaughan and Adrian Alphona. Although Alex Wilder joined his parents, Nico Minoru and the Pride’s other children teamed up to stop their parents as the Runaways. After the Pride’s defeat, Daken—Wolverine’s long-lost son—briefly tried to take over their role as L.A.’s kingpin.

Multiple villainous organizations have emerged in L.A., including the economy-manipulating Committee and a mutant fighting ring called the Gladiators. To disguise his vigilante activities, the Shroud posed as a villain and formed a mercenary group called Night Shift there. From his L.A. base, the Power Broker gave superhuman abilities to villains like Atlas (Erik Josten), who was also exposed to the ionic energy that empowered Wonder Man. Villains like Grim Reaper, Ultron, and Magneto also fought the West Coast Avengers, even though they usually operated outside of Southern California.

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