The daughter of Hank and Maria Pym, Nadia was raised as an assassin of the Red Room before escaping with the use of her father's Pym Particles and becoming the Unstoppable Wasp. Like her predecessor and stepmother, Janet van Dyne, Nadia is depicted as having the ability to shrink to a height of several centimeters, fly by means of insectoid wings, and fire bioelectric energy blasts, while like her biological father she has bipolar disorder. She is a founding member of G.I.R.L. as well as a longtime leader of the organization.
Publication history and creation
Nadia van Dyne first appeared in Free Comic Book Day 2016 Civil War II in July 2016 and was "created as a comic version of Evangeline Lilly's Hope van Dyne".[1]Mark Waid noted that they wanted to introduce a character who was "a nod to Ant-Man's Hope van Dyne without in any way minimizing Janet's role in the Marvel Universe".[2] The name "Nadia" is of Slavic origin and translates to "Hope".[3]
She briefly had her own comic, The Unstoppable Wasp, but it was cancelled after eight issues due. A second series with the same title debuted in October 2018 but was also cancelled after ten issues.[4] In May 2020, Disney Books published a young adult novel written by Sam Maggs titled The Unstoppable Wasp: Built On Hope.[5]
Fictional character biography
Nadia is the child of Hank Pym and his first wife, Maria Trovaya, who was abducted and supposedly killed by foreign agents. Nadia was raised in the Red Room until she obtained a Pym Particle sample and escaped.[6] Initially intending to meet her father, Nadia learns that he is more or less dead, and instead uses parts of his costume and other materials to create a Wasp suit,[7] hoping to obtain the admiration of her father's allies.[6] She later meets Janet van Dyne, and they get along quite well, with Janet feeling that she has the potential to become a true hero.[8][9]
Nadia soon joins the Avengers and gains U.S. citizenship. Upon realizing that S.H.I.E.L.D.'s index of the world's most intelligent people doesn't list any women above 27th place, she starts the program G.I.R.L. (Genius In action Research Labs) to look for women with genius intellects.[10] When choosing a legal name, Nadia takes the surname 'van Dyne', as she does not know much about her birth parents and Janet has believed in and supported her.[11]
She also aids Scott Lang — who is in outer space at that time — in an attempt to return to Earth, which results in a sequence of bizarre adventures in the microverse. In the process, the two of them became quantum-entangled with each other.[12]
In an appearance in Marvel's Voices: Pride (2023), Nadia was revealed to be asexual.[20][21]
What Nadia didn't know yet is that a copy of her father's conscious managed to split itself following All-Father Ultron's defeat and recreate his body which appeared older. When Nadia's Wasp appearance was among the superheroes that arrived to fight the Ultron-possessed Lethal Legion, Hank saw Nadia before her and quoted "You...you're Nadia, aren't you? Maria named you Hope". After Hank tells Nadia that Ultron isn't in him, she receives some code for the nano-ants from the future to use while Ultron is distracted. As Hank tells her to think big, Ultron-12 in Whirlwind's body agrees with her on it. After Ultron's defeat where the nanos leave the Lethal Legion and create a new body for Ultron-12 called Mark Twelve, Nadia witnesses her father and the Lethal Legion leave for Sub-Atomica to regroup as part of Protocol S. She would later accept Mark Twelve as a brother figure.[22]
Powers and abilities
Nadia can use the Pym Particles in her bloodstream to alter her size at will.[23] She has the ability to shrink down to subatomic size. She uses wasp like wings to fly at a tiny size.[24] She also possess Pym Particles in her gauntlets that allow her to change the size of people and objects. Nadia is also able to grow in size much like her father and adoptive mother, although it is not yet known what the limit of this ability is yet. She can generate strong bio-electric blasts from her hands.[25]
Additionally, Nadia is a skilled martial artist as a result of her Red Room training, particularly in Krav Maga.[26] She is an expert gymnast and acrobat.[27] Nadia also has a gifted intellect.[25]
Reception
Accolades
In 2020, CBR.com ranked Nadia van Dyne 6th in their "10 Most Powerful Members Of The Pym Family" list[28] and 9th in their "10 Most Powerful Teen Heroes In Marvel Comics" list.[15]
In 2021, Screen Rant included Nadia van Dyne in their "10 Most Powerful Members Of The Champions" list[29] and in their "Red Room's Most Powerful Members" list.[30]
In 2021, CBR.com ranked Unstoppable Wasp 5th in their "Marvel: 10 Smartest Female Characters" list.[31]
In 2022, Screen Rant included Nadia van Dyne in their"10 Asexual Icons In Comic Books" list.[16]
