8 Essential Facts About Avengers' New Strongest Hero

Published Oct 10, 2026, 10:13 PM EDT

Since 2019, Kevin Erdmann has been one of Screen Rant's Senior Staff Writers, covering all kinds of Superhero and Star Wars media with Easter egg breakdowns, theory pieces, breaking news, and more. A huge Star Wars & MCU fan, Kevin also loves Batman (because he's Batman), but could talk for hours about why Nightwing is DC's greatest hero. 

With 8 years of total experience covering entertainment and pop culture, Kevin has gotten the chance to interview top creatives and talent, and has also attended major media events like Disney's D23 convention.

Majoring in Cinema Studies with a minor in Comics and Cartoon Studies from the UofO, Kevin lives in Oregon with his wonderful wife, adorable dog, and sinister cat who is no doubt currently plotting his demise.

Marvel Comics has recently introduced one of its most powerful heroes of all time, and they're about to join the ranks of Earth's Mightiest Heroes. Following the events of the current Avengers: Armageddon event, David Colton will soon join the Avengers with new powers rivaling Captain Marvel and the Hulk, thanks to a remarkable transformation into the all-new Miracleman.

Once Captain America, David Colton has had a fascinating journey in the Marvel Universe since his debut in July 2025. Now confirmed to be joining an all-new roster of Avengers this November, the time feels right to break down his full history, powers, and surprising new status quo in the Marvel Universe.

Now connected to a full legacy of complicated comic book history, David's Miracleman has certainly become one of the most fascinating characters in the pages of Marvel Comics right now. From his origins as a modern-day Captain America to the extraordinary abilities that earned him his new role as the next Miracleman, here are eight essential facts you need to know about David Colton, Marvel's new strongest hero.

David Colton Is A Former Captain America

David Colton was first introduced back in July of 2025 during Chip Zdarsky's ongoing Captain America run, a modern-day counterpart to Steve Rogers. Thanks to Marvel's sliding timescale, Steve Rogers was still on the ice during the tragic September 11th attacks. Inspired to take action, the short, asthmatic kid named David Colton enlisted in the Army and was eventually chosen for a new iteration of the Super Soldier Program, becoming a modern-day Captain America deployed by General Thunderbolt Ross into Afghanistan and Iraq.

Unfortunately, these deployments justifiably led to Colton's descent into cynicism, putting him directly at odds with Steve Rogers once the original Captain America was thawed. Eventually, their shared deployment into Latveria led to Colton finally snapping after learning the US government backed Doctor Doom's rise to power. In the aftermath, Colton was discharged from his role as Captain America.

David Colton's Full Powers Explained

Before becoming Miracleman, Colton already possessed enhanced strength, speed, durability, and healing thanks to the replication of the Super-Soldier Serum he was given. However, the new serum was still imperfect. While these abilities made him an effective soldier for the US government, they came with a serious drawback, with the faulty serum damaging his heart.

Years later in the Marvel Universe, Colton received a whole new set of powers thanks to his transformation into an all-new Miracleman in Avengers: Armageddon #4, granting him extraordinary strength, speed, near-invulnerability, flight, enhanced senses, and other abilities to make him one of Earth's most powerful heroes. However, his full limits have yet to be fully established, or whether his transformation has perhaps taken away the damage to his heart.

David Colton Relies On An Arc Reactor

While Colton's new powers seemingly make virtually unstoppable, his earlier life as a modern-day Captain America and the imperfect Super-Soldier Serum left lasting effects left on his heart, requiring an arc reactor to keep it functioning courtesy of Tony Stark. That being said, David's new Miracleman powers raise the interesting question: does his new transformation change his dependence on the reactor, or will he still need Stark's technology to survive, creating a singular weakness to be exploited if other heroes need to take him down? This will most likely be answered in the upcoming Avengers: Armageddon #5.

David's New Power Comes From An Origin Box

An Origin Box is responsible for Colton's latest transformation and new power set, hailing from Marvel's Ultimate Universe, aka Earth-6160. Created by that world's Iron Lad and Doctor Doom to restore superhuman origins that had been prevented by The Maker, origin boxes contain catalysts that grant extraordinary abilities. Several of these boxes were recently brought to Earth-616 by Miles Morales before they were scattered across the world. While the box's contents remained a mystery when they were first given to Colton, Avengers: Armageddon #4 confirmed that they grant the power to create a new Miracleman.

Wolverine Is Responsible For David's New Powers

David Colton's new transformation into Miracleman wouldn't have happened without Wolverine. As seen in Wolverine: Weapons of Armageddon, Logan and Colton investigate Primewarrior, an organization connected to dangerous super-soldier experiments and offshoots of the Weapon X program.

Their mission brings them into conflict with Nuke and other enhanced soldiers, while also involving Tyler Torrens, a young mutant caught up in Primewarrior's experiments. When Colton is shot and mortally wounded during the confrontation, Wolverine made the desperate decision to open the previously unidentified Origin Box and use its contents to save the former Captain America.

This is what gave Colton his entirely new set of abilities, though neither hero initially understands their true source, nor does anyone else in the following Avengers: Armageddon storyline (including Reed Richards). It's only when David says the magic word that the truth about his new powers becomes clear.

Bucky Barnes Is Allied With David in Avengers: Armageddon

Marvel Comics

Colton's immense new power comes at a time when the Marvel Universe is already struggling with questions about superhero authority and accountability. In Avengers: Armageddon, Colton decides that conventional responses aren't enough, taking matters into his own hands against Ross's rogue Red Hulk and unilaterally starts eliminating the entire world's nuclear arsenal.

Surprisingly, Bucky Barnes supports Colton's radical approach, becoming his sole ally while other heroes grow concerned about the consequences of unchecked superhero intervention. As such, it's going to be fascinating to see how David and Colton's partnership progresses, especially now that he's fully transformed into Miracleman.

David Colton Is Now The Second Miracleman

In Avengers: Armageddon #4, Colton faces the Red Hulk after a Russian-backed transformation turns Ross into a living nuclear weapon. Taking the full force of the attack, Colton speaks the word "Kimota", which is what fully transforms him into Marvel's first in-universe Miracleman.

The original Miracleman aka Michael "Mike" Moran began as Marvelman, a British superhero created by Mick Anglo in 1954 following U.S. copyright lawsuits ending British reprints of Fawcett's Captain Marvel (which would go on to become DC's Shazam). Miracleman was later revived in the 1980s by writer Alan Moore, taking a darker, more deconstructive approach, revealing that Moran's powers were not magic but the result of government experimentation. The name was also changed to Miracleman for American publication amid trademark complications.

Following an era helmed by Neil Gaiman, the character became tangled in decades-long rights issues involving Gaiman, Todd McFarlane and Marvel Comics. Marvel eventually secured the rights to publish Miracleman, allowing the character to return to its catalog. This is what has now led to David Colton carrying the legacy forward, becoming the second hero to bear the Miracleman identity, though the first to exist in the Marvel Universe continuity proper.

David Colton's Miracleman Will Join The Next Avengers' Roster

Last but not least, David Colton's transformation sets the stage for his next major chapter in the Marvel Universe. Marvel's upcoming Avengers #1, written by Chip Zdarsky with art by Marco Checchetto, is set to launch on November 4, featuring Spider-Man, Wolverine, Captain Marvel, Daredevil, and Luke Cage. While a mysterious newcomer was originally teased, Marvel has since identified him as David Colton's Miracleman following Avengers: Armageddon #4.

With all of his new powers, Colton will no doubt be the team's heaviest hitter (though perhaps its biggest flight risk). After all, most of the superhero community is actively ready to take him on in Avengers: Armageddon. With one issue of Armageddon left, it's going to be very exciting to see how Colton's Miracleman joins the upcoming iteration of Earth's Mightiest Heroes.

Avengers #1 releases November 4th from Marvel Comics.