Wasp

Wasp (Janet van Dyne) is a fictional superheroine appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, the character first appeared in Tales to Astonish #44 (June 1963). She is usually depicted as having the ability to shrink to a height of several centimeters, fly by means of insectoid wings, and fire bioelectric energy blasts. She is a founding member of the Avengers as well as a long time leader of the team.

The character makes a cameo appearance in the 2015 film Ant-Man.

History
Janet van Dyne debuted in Tales to Astonish #44 (plotted by Stan Lee, scripted by H.E. Huntley, and drawn by Jack Kirby) as Henry "Hank" Pym's partner, becoming the Wasp to avenge the death of her father, scientist Vernon van Dyne. She co-starred in Tales to Astonish from issue #44 to issue #69.

She was a founding member of the Avengers, appearing in the first issue and giving the team its name. It is with the Avengers that Janet became most well-known. At first she was the weak link of the team, but later on became one of the smartest and craftiest of its members. Though she takes leaves of absence throughout the series, she is one of the longest active members and has acted as leader of the team for longer than any other member save for Captain America.

During her absences from the core Avengers book, Janet appeared in various other publications, including appearing as a main character in Marvel Feature issues #6-10. She has also made sporadic guest appearances in various other books, such as Captain America, Iron Man, and Fantastic Four.

Janet became the leader of the Avengers in Avengers vol. 1 #217, a position she held until Avengers vol. 1 #278 save for a brief period where she handed leadership off to the Vision. She then appeared in issue #32 of West Coast Avengers, becoming a full-time member in issue #42.

She made occasional appearances in Avengers vol. 3, returning as an active member of the team in issue #27 before resuming leadership duties. She and Captain America became co-leaders of the team starting in issue #38.

After the events of "Avengers Disassembled", Janet appeared in the limited series Beyond! before rejoining the Avengers in Mighty Avengers vol. 1 #1-11. She was presumed dead during the events of Secret Invasion in 2008. Wasp returned in the Avengers "End Times" storyline that ran from issue #31 (December 2012) to issue #34 (January 2013). She currently appears as a member of the Avengers Unity Squad in Uncanny Avengers.