Today's Fact
Earth's Mightiest Heroes held together for exactly one adventure before their strongest member walked out the door.
The Featured Fact The Avengers formed in September 1963, and by their very next outing the roster was already down a Hulk. In Avengers Vol. 1 #2 (1963), the shape-shifting Space Phantom turned the team against itself by impersonating its members one by one — and the Hulk, watching heroes he barely knew swing at phantoms wearing his face, concluded the experiment was finished.
His resignation was not a tantrum but a verdict. The Hulk announced that the others had never trusted him, that they were waiting for an excuse to cage or destroy him, and that he would save them the trouble by leaving first. He departed so completely that the same issue ends with the Avengers discussing how to deal with him — as a problem, not a teammate.
The split defined both parties for years. The Hulk drifted into uneasy alliances with Namor and a long career as the monster every team feared, while the Avengers replaced raw power with Captain America three issues later and quietly became a team defined by the trust the Hulk had correctly noticed was missing.
Why It's Obscure
A founding member's resignation letter, delivered after a single month in print.
Gallery
A founding Avenger already walking out the door — the covers tell it.
Sources
Every fact on this page was checked against at least two independent sources before publication.
Bullpen Bulletins
- Hulk In Comics — Marvel Marvel's official character history, covering the Hulk's founding membership of the Avengers and his swift departure from the team.
- Bruce Banner (Earth-616) — Marvel Database Full biography entry covering the Space Phantom incident and the Hulk's resignation in Avengers Vol. 1 #2.
- Avengers (comics) — Wikipedia Independent publication history confirming the original lineup and the Hulk's exit after the team's second issue.