Publication History
Janet van Dyne debuted as Henry "Hank" Pym's partner in Tales to Astonish #44 (written by Stan Lee and drawn by Jack Kirby), originally only serving as his partner to avenge the death of her father, scientist Vernon van Dyne. Later in the same issue, she decided to stay with Hank only because she was in love with him, wanting him to realize that he loved her back. They both realized their feelings for each other in Tales to Astonish #56, although it wasn't until later in the series that they acted on them.
During her run in Astonish, van Dyne also joined Avengers in its first issue, along with her partner, Hank Pym. It is on this team that Janet became most well known, at first the weak link of the team, but later on one of the smartest and craftiest members. She was the first one to propose to leave the team, after announcing how tired she was and how she wanted to return to a normal life. However, she missed being a superhero, and she (along with Hank) returned to the team in issue #28. After marrying Hank in issue #60, Janet and Hank both later decided to leave the team in issue #75.
Hank became the main character of the series Marvel Feature, starting with issue #4, and Janet appeared as a second main character starting with issue #6. Both characters left the book after issue #10, making sporadic guest appearances in various other books at the time, presumably living a happily married life.
Janet missed being a superhero once again, and rejoined the Avengers in issue #137, getting injured right away. After being rescued by her husband and hospitalized, Janet recovered and joined the team along with Hank in issue #151. Here she began her longest run as a member of the Avengers. After being brutally slapped in the face by her husband, she divorced him, and in turn became the new Chairman of the Avengers, starting with issue #217.
Janet later resigned as Chairman, and joined the West Coast Avengers in issue #32, at first only to help stabilize the team after Tony Stark left, later becoming a full-time member starting with issue #42. Later in the run, she rekindled her old romance with Hank, and fully rejoined the Avengers.
Read more about this topic: Wasp (comics)
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