‘They are all written exactly the same’: Marvel fans are concerned about an unpopular trend, questioning the MCU’s future

Marvel fans are questioning the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s future after noticing a concerning and unpopular trend with the franchise’s next generation of heroes.

With many of the franchise’s original heroes retired, the MCU has begun introducing several young heroes who are expected to succeed them. A lot of fans believe the MCU is preparing to bring these young heroes together to become the Young Avengers. So far, the franchise has introduced Ms. Marvel (Iman Vellani), Kate Bishop (Hailee Steinfeld), Ironheart (Dominique Thorne), America Chavez (Xochitl Gomez), Cassie Lang (Kathryn Newton), and Skaar (Wil Deusner). Meanwhile, a prominent Agatha All Along fan theory is that Teen’s (Joe Locke) true identity will be revealed as the reincarnated Billy Maximoff (a.k.a. Wiccan). The thought of the MCU assembling these stars into a new superhero team is quite exciting.

However, fans recently pointed out a major problem with the young actors: Most of them have the same personality.

Are Marvel’s young heroes really all written the same?

The conversation arose after an X user shared a video montage of all the young actors, writing, “I love the young avengers idc what yall say.” In response, user @CosmonautMarcus claimed the problem was that they were “all written exactly the same” and shared the same personality. These claims sparked an interesting discussion as users debated whether the trend is real and if it’s problematic.

It can’t be denied that there seems to be a fanboy/fangirl trend among the new heroes. Ms. Marvel idolizes Captain Marvel (Brie Larson) in a similar fashion to how Teen seems to adore Agatha Harkness (Kathryn Hahn) and Kate Bishop is preoccupied with Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner). These heroes started out as fans, met their idols, and became or will become their protégés. From Teen to Ms. Marvel to Chavez, all of them have a bit of that quirky, sheepish personality that is meant to make them endearing and add comic relief. One user called it “the quirky relatable template” and commented that, despite his flaws, Joss Whedon at least reflected differences between his characters through their dialogues and dynamics.

Another user alleged that the only personality apart from the “Comic Relief Fanboy” was the child genius trope evident in Ironheart and Lang. One user also speculated that the characters were all designed after Tom Holland’s Peter Parker. Since the character was so popular, the franchise may be trying to replicate his success again. It can’t be denied he fit the “comic relief fanboy” template, although his character did grow and develop throughout the MCU’s Spider-Man trilogy. If all the younger heroes do come together, there’s a chance their “individual characteristics” could still come out as they develop further.

Some commenters contested the claims, insisting that the characters weren’t the same or that the problem might just be that viewers haven’t seen enough of them to truly know their personalities. Others argued that a few of the characters are quite distinct from each other, such as Bishop and Ms. Marvel.

There are slight differences between the characters, especially in their confidence, awkwardness, passion, bravery, and maturity levels. For example, Bishop is bolder, more independent, tough, and sarcastic, while Ms. Marvel is the most ambitious and the biggest fan girl. Teen has a level of quirkiness and good-naturedness not seen in the others, while Ironheart has a maturity beyond her years. Still, their personalities and story trajectories are noticeably close.

It’s difficult to tell if the similarities actually should be cause for concern. After all, we haven’t seen much of these characters, including how they act among people their age instead of paired with their idols/mentors. Meanwhile, the character distinction between the original Avengers may be hard to replicate in characters as young as the new heroes. It’s hard to be a billionaire playboy, super soldier/war veteran, or traumatized former skilled assassin when you’re a teenager. These young heroes likely will grow into distinct personalities with time, but they’re young, underdeveloped, and caught in a similar situation for now, so it might take time for the differentiation to happen.