The MCU Character That 30% Of People Would Eliminate From The Franchise

Every group has a perceived weak link that the fans think the world would be better off without. The Marx Brothers had Zeppo, The Brady Bunch had Cousin Oliver, and Power Rangers fans have been lobbying for the removal of the Puce Ranger since the mid-'90s. For nigh-on a decade, no conglomeration of colorful characters has been quite as ubiquitous as the Marvel Cinematic Universe's Avengers. It's the loveable IP analogue to a Flaming Moe cocktail, in which every character on the shelf gets thrown in the mix and, at one point or another, set on fire.

Everyone has their favorite Avenger and, unavoidably, their least favorite. Some decry Bucky Barnes as a guilt-ridden nothing burger, while others see Black Widow's "shooting stuff with small guns" powers and Hawkeye's remarkable ability to use a weapon that went out of vogue in the seventeenth century as redundant in a universe populated by Norse gods and mech suits. To try and get a definitive answer to the question "which member of the world's most popular franchise is just the pits?," Looper put out a poll, and 658 readers responded. It was a tight race, but in the end, America's love of undisturbed picnics won out.

With 29.9% of the total vote, Scott Lang has been voted the most eminently disposable character in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Why did nearly a third of all respondents snap back with such character-specific Ant-agonism? The reasons weren't clear. It could be brand loyalty to Baskin-Robbins, or the fact that getting really small is a tough hook to hang a tentpole franchise on. Whatever the case, Ant-Man is apparently widely considered the Avenger that the world could live without, despite the fact that his actions saved half of all life in the universe during Endgame. That's gratitude for you.

In second place, with 22.6% of the vote, was perennial easy target Clint Barton a.k.a. Hawkeye. Black Widow racked up around 12% of responses, followed inexplicably by the Hulk with 9%. Write-in votes included the Falcon, Doctor Strange, and "all of them lmao I hate marvel movies."

Ant-Man's perceived lack of popularity has become an in-universe joke for the MCU. In 2019's Avengers: Endgame, while grabbing a meal with nine-percenter Bruce Banner, the littlest hero struggled to get a group of kids to care that he was even in the room. Still, it's sad to see such disinterest in a hero who's done so much to promote the consumption of orange slices. Paul Rudd will just have to console himself with the fact that he apparently stopped aging circa 1995.