10 Indigenous Marvel Characters Perfect To Join The MCU After Echo

Indigenous representation has been fairly limited in Marvel productions but as Echo promises a change, many comic characters from such backgrounds can make a mark in future Marvel projects. With Echo kickstarting Marvel Studios’ new banner called Marvel Spotlight, the show offered not only a definitive origin story for the titular vigilante, but allowed Alaqua Cox’s character to revisit her Choctaw roots. All the more interesting was the choice to incorporate Native American folklore and history in the opening sequences of each episode. Even if Echo’s reviews are heavily divided, the MCU has taken a major step forward with an Indigenous superhero.

Apart from Cox’s stunning lead performance, the star-studded cast of Echo also includes notable Indigenous talents like Tantoo Cardinal, Zahn McClarnon, and Oscar-winner Graham Greene. But Echo should just be the starting point since Marvel’s comic book mythology has a plethora of superheroes and supervillains hailing from Indigenous backgrounds. It must be acknowledged that many of these characters originally evoked inaccurate and stereotypical representations, an unfortunate reality that’s evident from most of them being created by non-Indigenous comic book writers and artists. And yet, the MCU and its parallel Marvel franchises can subvert these narratives with more sensitivity and nuance.

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10 Forge Is A Mutant With Exceptional Tech-Knowledge

He can make his cinematic debut in the X-Men movies after Deadpool 3

Debuting in The Uncanny X-Men in 1984, Forge has significantly helped the X-Men, especially with his expertise in technology and weaponry. Ultimate Wolverine vs Hulk also shows how Forge can build makeshift gadgets from limited resources. Forge is underrated as a deadly hero, considering he created a morphing suit that mimics the shapeshifting abilities of Mystique in X-Men (2021) #15. The mutant hails from the Cheyenne nation, and was originally trained as a medicine man. But his tech knowledge subverts the mystical stereotypes assigned to Indigenous people in the past. If Deadpool 3 offers possibilities for more unconventional X-Men to join the MCU, Forge must be considered.

9 Danielle Moonstar Is A Powerful Psychic And A Valkyrie

The character can be rebooted in future treatments of The New Mutants or a Thor sequel

A mutant with Northern Cheyenne ethnicity, Danielle “Dani” Moonstar possesses the ability to create telepathic visions of her enemies’ deepest fears and wishes. She can also manipulate energy and picks up magical powers after a brief stint as a Valkyrie in Asgard. Occasionally codenamed as Psyche or Mirage, Moonstar is usually associated with The New Mutants. While 2020’s The New Mutants did feature Moonstar (portrayed by Blu Hunt), the movie’s negative reactions will unlikely lead to a sequel. So, if younger mutants like Moonstar are rebooted in the MCU, she can be effectively used in an X-Men movie, or she can fight alongside Tessa Thompson’s Valkyrie in the Thor franchise.

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8 Red Wolf Is Marvel’s First Indigenous Superhero

The vintage superhero can appear in alternate timelines in What If…?

Red Wolf is the alias of many Marvel heroes, most of them being Indigenous men with superhuman strength and the ability to communicate with animals (especially wolves). The first Red Wolf (Wildrun) protected the Cheyenne tribe in the 1700s and his successor (Johnny Wakely) fought white colonialists in the next century. Over time, the Avenger William Talltrees carried forward the Red Wolf legacy against unjust capitalists, while the comic miniseries 1872 reimagined Red Wolf as a vigilante sheriff. Any version of Red Wolf would seem unique in the MCU considering the zoopathy powers while the character’s Old West counterparts would seem suitable for an alternate Marvel history in What If…?.

7 Puma Is A Feral Villain But Can Be An Occasional Hero

The humanoid werecat can appear in future Spider-Man movies

Thomas Fireheart aka Puma shouldn’t be featured in a future Spider-Man movie simply for his superhumanly acute senses, but for his intriguing backstory. Apart from serving as the multi-millionaire CEO of Fireheart Enterprises, he’s the chosen warrior of an unspecified Native American tribe, a role that he fulfills while turning into a humanoid wild cat. Apart from protecting his tribe, Puma is a mercenary for hire and one of Spider-Man’s animal-themed villains. He briefly changes his ways when he’s moved by the web-slinger’s commitment to saving innocent lives, but Puma’s morally gray personality and feral fighting styles make him a good fit to take on Tom Holland’s Spider-Man.

6 Warpath Is A Skilled Hunter With Vibranium Knives

The X-Men movies can accommodate this vengeful X-Force member

Warpath traces his roots to an Arizona Apache reservation and initially sought revenge on X-Men after his older brother died in one of the team’s missions. His accelerated healing factor, skilled hunting abilities, and his control over two vibranium bowie knives made him an intimidating member of Emma Frost’s antagonistic Hellions squad. Over time, he had a moral awakening and sided with the New Mutants and X-Men. A moving arc in his backstory is when the Hellions massacred his tribe, a subplot that can add depth to Thunderbird’s origins in future X-Men movies, unlike the brief appearance he had in a dystopian alternate future in X-Men: Days of Future Past.

5 Redstone Is A Villain With Super Strength And Infrared Vision

Redstone will be an essential element if a Squadron Supreme movie is greenlit

It’s too soon to predict MCU’s future after movies like Avengers: The Kang Dynasty and Avengers: Secret Wars, but if Kevin Feige ever plans to incorporate Squadron Supreme in the current timeline, then Redstone is bound to be a part of it. Highlighting an evil counterpart to the Avengers, Squadron Supreme changed comics history by proving how misguided superhumans can wreak havoc in society. One such hero-turned-villain is Redstone, who derives his life force and superhuman durability from the Earth and its atmosphere. Redstone hails from an Apache community in Outer Earth (Earth-712) and his Earth-based powers have allowed him to defeat even Squadron Supreme leader Hyperion in battle.

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4 American Eagle Can Fight And Fire A Special Crossbow

The human mutate could appear in Avengers or Thunderbolts spin-offs

Jason Strongbow aka American Eagle has friendly connections with Avengers like Captain America, but he prefers being a drifter. Often spending his time motorcycling across America and fighting villains with his customized crossbow, the Navajo superhero derived his superpowers from an accidental uranium mine explosion. This accident bestowed him with enhanced senses and superhuman agility. Incorporating him in the story of Marvel’s Thunderbolts would be an interesting choice, considering how he has faced off against the team on multiple occasions during Warren Ellis’ run in the Thunderbolts comics. While also helping the Thunderbolts and Avengers, American Eagle has brutally bested adversaries like Bullseye in combat.

3 Thunderbird Has Superspeed, Strength And Is A Great Leader

John Proudstar aka Thunderbird has the potential to star in alternate versions of X-Men

Thunderbird is an Apache member of the X-Men and the brother of fellow team member Warpath. Originally dying in Giant-Size X-Men and then being resurrected multiple times, Thunderbird aka John Proudstar is a heroic protector of his reservation’s people. This is especially evident in Giant-Size X-Men: Thunderbird #1 when Proudstar wages a personal crusade against police authorities in Arizona when they punish his folk for not giving up the identities of the Apache mutants on their reservations. His struggles as an Indigenous man during his brief tenure in the U.S. Army add cultural depth to his backstory, something that Marvel’s upcoming X-Men movies can utilize for more complex characters.

2 Risque Is Telekinetic And Can Implode Inorganic Matter

Future X-Men and X-Force projects must feature Risque

Risque has a mixed heritage with a Seminole mother and a Cuban mother. Discovering her telekinetic and matter-manipulating powers as a teenager, Risque joined the Mutant Liberation Front as the team’s anti-human radicalism resonated with her. This drew her at odds with X-Force and X-Men before she eventually became sympathetic and joined the heroes’ side instead. Her moral complexity and impressive powers would make her a good fit for the MCU’s X-Men if the franchise decides to highlight lesser-known characters. Risque’s skillset includes the manipulation of bio-plasma beams, which can be generated at will and projected as weapons.

1 Wyatt Wingfoot Doesn’t Have Superpowers But Is A Loyal Friend To Many Marvel Heroes

He can appear in The Fantastic Four reboot or She-Hulk season 2

When it comes to Indigenous characters in Marvel Comics, not all of them are enhanced mutants or superheroes. Wyatt Wingfoot is a case in point. Born to an Olympic decathlon star in the fictional Keewazi reservation in Oklahoma, Wingfoot served as an ally to the Fantastic Four on multiple occasions, even striking up a romance with occasional team member She-Hulk. An expert athlete, marksman, and even an animal trainer, Wingfoot has proved his bravery even though he lacks superpowers. His adorable moments with She-Hulk ensure that, if not Marvel’s Fantastic Four, Wingfoot has a chance to appear in She-Hulk: Attorney At Law season 2.