Most superheroes have weaknesses that define them. For many years, Iron Man had a heart problem that required his chest plate to remain charged. Superman is susceptible to kryptonite. These hindrances help take very powerful heroes and cut them down to size so readers can worry more about them when they face powerful villains.
However, there are some Marvel Comics' superhero weaknesses that not many people know about. These are weaknesses that only pop up randomly and are often a plot device to undermine a hero in a fight they should otherwise win. Some of the weaknesses make sense based on the character's powers, but others just seem strange and out of place in the Marvel Universe.
10 Spider-Man - Ethyl Chloride
Spider-Man first gained his powers as a teenager when a radioactive spider bit him. This gave him the powers of a spider, including climbing walls and superhuman strength and agility.
However, he also picked up a weakness from spiders. Every spider-hero, from Spider-Man to Spider-Woman to Madame Web, has a weakness to Ethyl Chloride. Spider-Man has fought some tough villains and if any of them uses Ethyl Chloride, it drains the Wall-Crawler of all his powers and a strong enough dose could kill him.
9 Cyclops - Surplus Energy
Cyclops has a major weakness: he must keep his Ruby-Quartz visor or glasses on at all times. Many villains defeat Cyclops by taking off his visor, making him a deadly weapon to anyone close by, friend or foe.
Scott Summers has another weakness that is less widely known: too much energy. Cyclops has a surplus of built-up energy that requires him to unleash it regularly. If he doesn't fire blasts on a regular basis, it causes him significant problems.
8 Wolverine - Drowning
Wolverine has a healing factor, and that means he is almost immortal. He almost died once when his adamantium hardened around him, but he even returned from that seemingly inescapable predicament.
There is one thing that Wolverine’s healing factor can't save him from: drowning. Wolverine can drown because it cuts off his brain's oxygen supply. His healing factor will keep him alive longer than others, but it will only prolong his agony.
7 Human Torch - Asbestos
The Human Torch has the power to light his body on fire and he proved more than once he can become the hottest thing on Earth, going supernova at least once. The entire Fantastic Four has a strange weakness, and that is if they are apart for too long at a time, their powers weaken.
Unlike Johnny Storm, the original Human Torch has a weakness that his human counterpart doesn’t possess: asbestos. Marvel hasn't used this superhero weakness for a long time because of real-life cases of asbestos poisoning. However, in the early days of Marvel Comics, Asbestos Lady was a villain for the original Human Torch because asbestos was used at the time for fireproofing buildings. Asbestos Man was also a Human Torch enemy for the same reason.
6 Doctor Strange - Time Limit On Astral Projections
Doctor Strange is one of the most powerful superheroes in the Marvel Universe. Yet since his debut in 1963, Stephen Strange has always had one major weakness: his injured hands, which ended his career as a surgeon and still afflict him in the present.
As the Sorcerer Supreme, Doctor Strange has another weakness that is tied to one of his greatest powers: astral projection. Strange can visit the astral plane to seek answers for his problems. Like with most great powers, there’s a catch: if he spends more than 24 hours in the astral plane, his body starts to deteriorate, and it could lead to death.
5 Ms. Marvel - Electromagnetic Pulses
Ms. Marvel’s main power is to stretch, deform, compress, or expand her entire body into any size or shape she wants. She is almost unbeatable when she begins to fight because of her Inhuman powers.
Kamala Khan learned the hard way that she has a massive weakness when it comes to electromagnetic pulses (EMPs). If a villain blasts Ms. Marvel with an EMP, it weakens her elasticity and limits her only power, making her vulnerable to attacks.
4 Namor - Pollution
Namor is Marvel's king of the seas and the ruler of Atlantis. His biggest weakness has always been leaving the water. From his first appearance, his strength decreases the longer he is out of the water, but he instantly powers up to nearly unstoppable levels once he touches even a drop of water.
However, he has another weakness that ties into his role as protector of the oceans. Pollution can negatively affect his physical abilities and physiology, making him remarkably similar to ocean life in that aspect.
3 Wiccan - Loud Noise
The big problem with people with magical abilities is that many of them need to use words to cast a spell. This means that simply gagging a magic user makes many of them instantly helpless and vulnerable to attack.
As Scarlet Witch’s son, Wiccan is one of Marvel's most powerful magic users, but he also has an even bigger weakness than not being able to speak. Wiccan also has to hear himself say his spell, meaning that any noise loud enough to disrupt his hearing will keep him from being able to cast any spell in a fight.
2 Franklin Richards - Power Loss Through Overuse
Franklin Richards was the most powerful superhero on Earth when he was just a small child. Many believed he was an Omega-Level mutant, but that was disproven when Franklin's biggest weakness revealed itself. The young man, who could create entire worlds with just his imagination, began to lose his powers, and his father Reed Richards had no idea why.
In a fight with Cormorant, Franklin hit him with a massive attack and used up the last of his powers. He not only became powerless but discovered he wasn't a mutant after all, which caused Prof. X to ban him from the mutant-only island of Krakoa.
1 Ghost Rider - Heavenly Weapons
Ghost Rider is considered one of the most powerful supernatural heroes alive. Johnny Blaze sold his soul to Mephisto and bonded with Zarathos to become the Spirit of Vengeance. When Ghost Rider was at his strongest, there weren't many who could stand up to his might.
As a superhero whose powers came from Hell, it makes sense that his little-known weakness was Heaven-sent. Any Ghost Rider, regardless of which hero it is, has a weakness to weapons crafted from Heaven or blessed, any of which can mutilate him.
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July 16, 2021 at 12:00AM
