The Union (Marvel Team)

The Union is a fictional UK superhero team that appear in comic books published by Marvel.[1]

Not to be confused with Union (comics) (1994), published by Image Comics.
The Union
Publication information
PublisherMarvel Comics
First appearance(King in Black[lower-alpha 1])
The Union #1 (December 2020)
(The Marvels [lower-alpha 2])
The Marvels #5 (September 2021)
Created by(The Union)[lower-alpha 3]
(The Marvels)[lower-alpha 4]
In-story information
Type of organisationSuperheroes
Base(s)United Kingdom
Leader(s)
Agent(s)
  • Kelpie
  • The Choir (Ruth)
  • Snakes
  • Bulldog

The Union has both old and new superheroes within it, including British hero Union Jack and a major new character, Britannia, who leads the new team in its fight against the enemies they encounter.

The Union appeared in the crossover event called King in Black alongside other well known comic book heroes and teams, and faced off against known foes and new foes not yet fought by any Marvel superhero or team.[2]

Comic publication history

The Union (comic) was first released in December 2020 with the first issue of the comic The Union #1. The Union was originally due to be release as part of the Empyre event, but was moved and rewritten to fit into King in Black event due to issues caused by the ongoing pandemic.[3][lower-alpha 7]

Team publication history

The Union (team) first appeared in The Union #1 as part of the King in Black crossover event.[4]

On 29 September 2021 The Union (team) featured in The Marvels #5 alongside other marvel superheroes .[lower-alpha 8]

The Union (comics)
King in Black
Issue No Release Publisher Created by
1 December 02, 2020 Marvel Paul Grist

(writer) Andrea Di Vito

2 January 13, 2021
3 February 24, 2021
4 March 31, 2021
5 May 05, 2021
Special releases
Name Release ISBN Publisher Created by Type Citation
The Union: The Britannia Project Jul 7, 2021 ISBN 9781302938680 Marvel Paul Grist

(writer) Andrea Di Vito (illustrator)

 Trade Paper Back(TPB) [6]

Other series (team featured)
The Marvels
Issue No Release Created by
The Marvels #5 29 September 2021 Kurt Busiek (writing)

Yildiray Cinar (inker)
Richard Isanove (colourist)
Simon Bowland (letterer)
Yıldıray Çınar(penciler)

Britannia Project (organisation)
Britannia Project
Publication information
PublisherMarvel Comics
First appearanceThe Union #1
Created byPaul Grist
In-story information
Type of organisationSuperhero Organisation
Base(s)United Kingdom
Leader(s)Steven Darwin
Agent(s)The Union

Main & Supporting characters
See also: Lists of Marvel Comics characters

The Union

The Union was formed by the British Government as a publicity attempt to restore faith in Britain. The superhero team consists of five members; four of them representing the individual nations of the United Kingdom, and the fifth representing the UK as a whole.[7]

Britannia

Britannia is the leader of the Union and represents the United Kingdom as a whole. She is a powerful warrior, wearing a dark and light contrasting blue outfit with a red cloak. She is seen wielding a sword and shield, as well as a trident. After being killed by a symbiote dragon, her spirit resides within Union Jack, protecting him from harm and enhancing his strength.

Kelpie

Representative of Scotland in the team. She is referred to as "an ancient water demon found living in a Scottish lake". She has the power to control water, as well as being able to transform her hands into sharp claws.

The Choir

Representative of Wales in the team. She has black hair with a bright green strip across the top, and she is dressed in a glowing green and black contrasting outfit with a blue cloak and she wields a dagger. She is described as having "a voice that can shatter stone". During the attack on Earth by Knull, the Choir is infected by a symbiote. She is freed of Knull's control through the efforts of the Union, but later defects to work alongside Doc Croc and his team.

Snakes

Representative of Northern Ireland in the team. Snakes is a sentient collection of snakes formed together in the shape of a human. Described as having "the strength of ten men".

Union Jack

Representative of England in the team. He is the only pre-existing character in the Union, and the latest man to bear the name of a character who first appeared in The Invaders.

Bulldog

Joining the team as a replacement for Britannia after her death, Bulldog is a short man who displays super-strength and enhanced agility. He wears a red and grey jumpsuit and black boots.[8]

Allies
  • Selwlyn James (Government Minister with special responsibility for super heroes), the head of the Britannia Project, and the Union's government liaison. Later revealed to be ex-supervillain The Sponge
  • Steve Darwin (Leader of the Britannia Project)

Enemies
  • Knull
  • Doc Croc (Croker Dyle)
  • The Sponge (Selwlyn James)
  • Skreem (The Choir) (supervillain / superhero) (introduced in The Union #1) (first full appearance in The Union #4)
  • Volcana (introduced in The Union #4)
  • Lady Shimmering Lights (introduced in The Union #4)
  • Craig the cybernetically enhanced corgi (introduced in The Union #4)

Races and species (featured)

Reactions

The Union received mixed reviews from people across the United Kingdom, with some of the Scottish and Welsh people disagreeing with the name of the group and the way that their characters Kelpie (Scotland) & The Choir (Wales) portray the two countries.[9][10]

Roster

The Union (marvel team) roster has gone through a number of changes, this includes members leaving and joining the team and being present in a spirit form.[11][12]

(Current member are indicated in bold) (Leaders are highlighted in gold)

Current Roster
The Union & The Marvels (comics)
Team Member 1 2 3 4 5
Britannia [lower-alpha 9]
Union Jack
Kelpie
The Choir [lower-alpha 10]
Snakes
Bulldog
No of Members 5 4 5 4 6

See also

Marvel Lists

The Union (Members) Comics

References
  1. "'The Union' Introduces New Superteam to Marvel's Comic Book Universe This May". The Hollywood Reporter. 19 February 2020. Retrieved 2020-06-08.
  2. Lealos, Shawn. S (December 7, 2020). "King in Black: Knull's Attack Kills One of Marvel's Newest Heroes". Comic Book Resources.
  3. Lovett, Jamie (October 30, 2020). "Marvel's The Union: Paul Grist Talks Introducing New Superhero Team During King in Black". Comic Book.
  4. MacNamee, Olly (December 2, 2020). "Review: 'The Union' #1 Introduces Readers To A United Team For A Disunited Britain". Comicon.
  5. Dodge, John (September 30, 2021). "The Marvels Puts a Controversial King in Black Team Back in Action". Comic Book Resources.
  6. Grist, Paul (July 7, 2021). The Union: The Britannia Project. Marvel Entertainment. ISBN 9781302938680 – via Google Books.
  7. Adams, Tim (February 14, 2020). "Marvel Introduces The Union, The UK's Brand-New Superhero Team". Comic Book Resources.
  8. Markstein’s, Don (2 April 2020). "Union Jack". Toonpedia.
  9. Jones, Branwen (February 24, 2020). "Marvel unveils its Welsh superhero - and some fans think it's 'humiliating". Daily Post.
  10. Hay, Katherine (February 20, 2020). "This is a big mistake': Scots react as Marvel launch new UK superhero team called The Union". Edinburgh News.
  11. Isaak, Joshua (May 16, 2021). "Marvel Reveals a Horrifying to Alternative To Infinity Stones". Screen Rant.
  12. Corley, Shaun (May 14, 2021). "Marvel's British Wolverine Just Endured a Humiliating Fastball Special". Screen Rant.

Footnotes
  1. King in Black is the first crossover event that The Union features in and includes the first of The Union series of comics
  2. The Marvels is the first comic that The Union (team) feature in that is outside of The Union (comic) series (cameo appearance).
  3. see publication history section
  4. see the other series (team featured) section
  5. Leader in The Union #1)
  6. Leader in The Union #2 - #5 and current holder of the position.
  7. This was part of a 5 issue mini series
  8. This is a cameo role and not a full feature [5]
  9. but in The Union #5 he is eventually stopped through the combined efforts of Union Jack and the spirit of Britannia.
  10. see supporting characters section
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