Rita DeMara

Rita DeMara is a Marvel villain-turned-antihero who stole the Yellowjacket identity and its size-changing suit, allowing her to shrink, grow, and fire bio-electric stings. She later operated with the Guardians of the Galaxy and other groups, walking an uneasy line between crime and heroism.

Rita DeMara made her Marvel debut in 1988's Avengers Annual #17 — a Copper Age arrival courtesy of Walter Simonson and Mark Bright — and she's been a quietly compelling presence in the House of Ideas ever since. With appearances stretching across nearly three decades, she's shared the page with some of Marvel's heaviest hitters: Captain America, Iron Man, and Captain Marvel among them, a roster that speaks to the caliber of stories she found herself woven into. Her most notable appearances span Captain America, Avengers Finale, and Avengers Classic, placing her squarely in the heart of Marvel's action, and at least one of her issues carries genuine key-issue status for collectors. Seventeen catalog appearances may sound modest, but Rita DeMara is exactly the kind of character that rewards the curious fan willing to dig — a Copper Age gem embedded in some of Marvel's most storied pages.