What if the Avengers were just an ordinary group of people? In Avengers Beyond #4 by Derek Landy and Greg Land, the Avengers find themselves locked in combat with the Bootleg Avengers. This group receives powers from the earthbound alien Sel Sennan to combat a being called the Lost One who has touched down on Earth. However, as powerful as they are, they're noticeably less skilled than the original team.

Ironically, the Bootleg Avenger team is just as powerful as the original. They have their counterparts' powers. However, they don't stand much of a chance of defeating the original team. While Sel Sennan's desperate act proves that the original Avengers team is irreplaceable, it also demonstrates why most normal people aren't cut out to be heroes. When they try, it can feel like a bad joke.

The Beyonder's Bootleg Avengers

In the Avengers Beyond series, Earth's Mightiest Heroes must stop the Lost One from destroying the universe. To do so, they form a shaky alliance with the Beyonder, a longstanding villain capable of warping reality. Even though the Avengers were able to activate a planetary shield around the planet, the Lost One was still able to manifest on Earth, leading to widespread devastation. Afterward, Sel Sennan gives six ordinary people the powers of the Avengers to combat the threat.

It was unsuccessful. The Bootleg Avengers immediately began fighting the original team rather than working with them, and The Beyonder had to use his godlike abilities to convince them that they'd won the battle just to preempt the infighting. Bootleg Captain America even describes his team as the real Avengers and chastises the original for failing to stop the Lost One. While their powers are identical, the Bootleg Avengers lack the character and experience that the Avengers bring to the table.

For decades, fans have seen the Avengers take on a host of world-ending threats. From Galactus to Thanos, these battles have only made the Avengers stronger. More importantly, each member of the original team was an experienced hero before they started collaborating with other superhumans. Captain America fought valiantly during WW2 and Thor has been the God of Thunder for centuries in the Marvel Universe. Their bootleg counterparts, however, lacked these formative experiences. They also lack practical experience with their abilities and haven't worked together as a unit before. Perhaps most importantly, though, they're overwhelmed with a sense of self-importance when the Beyonder empowers them. While many people are potential heroes, this random assortment of wannabes never finds its feet.

They are undisciplined, unfocused, and not equipped to deal with the Avengers-level threat faced before them. One by one, the Bootleg Avengers fall to their original counterparts. Their costumes are crude and resemble casual clothing, and Bootleg Iron Man's suit is cobbled together using spare parts. While Thor's counterpart speaks in a lofty manner like the Silver Age Thor once did, it reads more like a bad imitation than the original Thor's dialogue. And while Thor offered his bootleg counterpart Mjolnir, he didn't take up the offer, so he may have intuitively understood that he wasn't worthy.

Amazingly, the Beyonder also gives one of the Bootleg Avengers his powers, while the original watches the battle unfold from Earth's orbit. The Lost One confronts this pretender before leaving to face the original. The comic ends with the original Beyonder imprisoned by the other members of his race and stripped of his powers.

The Other Avengers Teams

This isn't the first time Marvel has given fans alternative versions of the Avengers. Across the Multiverse, there have been good and evil versions of the team. From the Pet Avengers to the Great Lakes Avengers, they all have something in common. These teams learned the importance of teamwork together. They all have had significant problems. The original Avengers were disassembled by the Scarlet Witch; the Young Avengers found out that their leader was a version of Kang the Conquerer. Captain America and Iron Man even went to war with one another in Civil War. However, the team has almost always been able to bounce back from defeat and when they couldn't, a new team of Avengers has been waiting in the wings to take their place.

The Bootleg Avengers lost their battle because of their lack of skill and experience. It's hard not to blame them, after all, they were only formed recently. While Stan Lee like to say that 'anyone can wear the mask,' it clearly takes more than a mask and powers to be a hero. If Avengers Beyond #4 has taught fans anything, it's that a hero must earn the title of Avenger.

What it Means To Be An Avenger

Being an Avenger is more than just a title, it's a way of life. Captain America says to his counterpart, 'Sel Sennan couldn't give you our skills, could she?' She couldn't give you our experience.' This message highlights the key distinction between the two teams. Even if the Bootleg Avengers were already established heroes, they wouldn't be on the same level as the original team when they had to fight the threat at hand, physically, emotionally, or experientially. Even if they were a collection of individual heroes, it would take a considerable amount of time before they could gel together and take on a threat like the Lost One as a team. In the future, the Bootleg Avengers may learn how to work together to save the world with their counterparts but right now they feel more like a problem than a solution.

Avengers: Beyond is currently available through Marvel: Unlimited.