Man… at this rate, I’ll have enough Ant-Man posts as there are ants in the places I’ve visited. Just can’t seem to get away from the crawlers. Welcome to Adaptations Done Right, a segment that explores events that have been improved on the little screen and big. Today it’s a 2-for-1 featuring an episode of Avengers: Earth’s Mightiest Heroes and the first Ant-Man movie; a from just one issue with the title of To Steal an Ant-Man.
To Steal an Ant-Man is the origin story of Scott Lang as Ant-Man. In it Scott has to save his daughter Cassie from a guy called Cross. Now it’s all the same scenario just with different build ups.
To Steal An Ant-Man: The Scenarios
In all of them, Scott is a divorced ex-con trying to find work to support his daughter. However mediums show different angles.
The Inking Ant
In the comics from 1972, Cassie needs a heart treatment. But the only doctor who can operate on her is captured by a tech mogul named Darren Cross. Cross has a heart condition and his pacemaker makes his heart burn out. And because comics… the pacemaker makes him bulk up. This is actually a fitting theme of having a hulking Goliath go against the world’s arguably smallest superhero. I don’t know who shrinks further, DC’s Atom or Marvel’s Ant-Man.
The Re-Animated Ant
Now in the show, Darren is replaced by his cousin William Cross (a.k.a. the Deadshot rip-off, Crossfire). Here Crossfire is an old partner of Scott from his thieving days. Cross holds Cassie hostage so Scott can pay him back with money he helped steal for Cassie’s treatments. Replacing Darren with Crossfire is actually a pretty good idea. This brings up how Scott’s days as a thief can affect his loved ones first hand.
The show actually improves things by quite a lot, the comic was just Scott suiting up to replace original Ant-Man Hank Pym so that Marvel’s staff could make changes (in the form of driving Pym insane!). The show on the other hand offers a deeper and more personal look into how this affects Hank.
Watch the Fungus
When the show starts, the audience gets a glimpse of Ant-Man robbing a bank. It’s a classic villain move that comic fans could take as a hint of Hank going through a breakdown. Seeing Hank out of mask and destroying his lab equipment out of anger from creating Ultron indicates so. But when Hank sees the news on TV with Ant-Man in full display, he shares the audience surprise that this Ant-Man is actually a thief who stole the Ant-Man suit. That’s lampshading at its finest.
Hank is visibly upset that someone is using his tech to commit crimes. Hank might have messed up but he tries to help people, including the bad guys. Not to mention the appearance of the inspiration for his next alter-ego; a certain kind of yellow wasp.
Extracting the Sample
As Hank talks about how the suit would affect the average guy, we see firsthand how Scott experiences being Ant-Man. I mean anybody would be terrified at the sight of an ant, especially when they’re around the same size as you. Not to mention his lack of experience with using Pym Particles. Scott screws up so many times at robbing banks he gets caught by the Heroes for Hire. Luke and Iron Fist’s chemistry and detective skills were certainly a treat to look at. Turns out the banks are owned by HYDRA.
Rather than get in another tussle, the Heroes for Hire and Hank help Scott out by giving Crossfire’s gang dirty money. Of course, the bad guys have other plans to have a shrinking thief. But the heroes manage to put up a fight with good use of their powers while outsmarting their opponents. Scott even offered to turn himself in after the whole thing. But Hank impressed with what he’s seen decides to move on from the Ant-Man suit, allowing Scott to keep it. Unfortunately unlike the comics, this is less of a choice and more of a push-on as Hank starts to become Yellowjacket.
The CG Ant
Now for where this fits in the Ant-Man movie; unlike either above case Cassie doesn’t have a heart condition. In fact the relationship between her and Scott is at the forefront seeing her as someone who likes weird things and her closeness to her father despite Scott’s criminal history. Scott is desperate for work to support his daughter, unfortunately his status as a jailbird prevents him from finding legitimate jobs. Hank Pym, an old man in this media, set up a rumor to steal the Ant-Man suit in order to stop his old student Darren Cross who took over his tech company. With Scott needing the money, he takes up the job and finds the suit. Even Scott’s first use of the suit reminds me of the Earth’s Mightiest Hero appearance. I just wish that show stayed on longer to give more depth.
We Call Him Antony
Here Darren Cross is a planning on selling Pym Particle weaponry to terrorist groups like HYDRA; I guess they wanted an angle to go with the whole foil and redemption theme for the Ant-Men. I mean as Pym himself states, Cross is essentially a younger Hank Pym who obsesses over success. It’s no wonder he’s Yellowjacket. This is essentially Marvel Studio’s way of redeeming Pym, by giving him an Ultron who would go down without actually being a direct product of Pym’s hubris.
As for where Cross and Cassie fit in this, well Cross didn’t take losing his deal and research so he tried to take it out on Scott’s family. During a hilariously epic fight on a toy train, Cross has Scott’s family cornered. So Scott had to damage the Yellowjacket suit from the inside while risking losing himself in dimensions. Fortunately, Cassie’s voice and Scott’s quick thinking got him out, and a stronger relationship with his daughter.
It also rubbed off on Hank to allow him and his own daughter Hope to work closely together and have Hope become the new Wasp.
Best Thing of To Steal an Ant-Man
Now when it comes to adapting a story, especially a decades old one, it’s important to get the spirit down. For Scott it’s not enough to save his daughter by becoming Ant-Man; it’s about becoming the hero she believes him to be after a lifetime of screwups that come back on her. For Hank Pym, it’s about learning to forgive yourself to become a better person. The comics might not have had this, but it really should have; especially when the staff decided to make decisions that are way too bold for their own good.