With the Marvel Universe currently owning the cinema, it seems that every man and his dog knows all there is to know about the hugely successful comics, or so they like to think. Yeah, they can point to the fact that The Hulk was originally meant to be grey but that is a fact as well-known as dolphins being mammals. Below are some of the more obscure Marvel facts.

1) The Badger

To many, Wolverine is without a doubt the best character in the Marvel Universe. What’s not to like about a cigar-chomping, expletive-ranting, Adamantium protruding, bona fide badass? Considering just how much of a beloved character the X-Men member is, the crazy fact that the he nearly lost out to a badger is stupefying. Stan Lee and co. wanted a Canadian special agent to do battle with the nefarious Hulk in issue #181. They believed the most popular character-types to Canucks would be either a wolverine or a badger! Surely a grizzly or a wolf would be more relatable than a badger? Don’t get us wrong, we wouldn’t like to come up against a badger. But as a comic book character? No, thanks! What would his special power be? Raiding the bins? Nah. Do you really think The Badger would have made eight Hollywood movies?

2) Fan Friendly Venom

When you think of Spider-Man’s most famous nemesis, you think of Doc Oc and Venom. The two have been a near constant thorn in Spider-Man’s side. As such you would naturally presume that both were creations of Marvel. However, Venom is not. In fact, the black Spider-Man costume, which we all know later became Venom’s, was actually created by a fan, Randy Schueller. Marvel liked what they saw and in 1982 bought the rights to the idea for $220, around $550 in 2015.

3) The Marvel Slim Shady

Eminem is one of the biggest stars of the music industry. He also has his own character in the Marvel Universe, having appeared alongside the Punisher back in 2009. In that strip, Shady even managed to notch up his first comic book kill, ending Barracuda, the villainous enemy of the antihero the Punisher.

4) As much as you hate, you can’t help but love him

For those who have watched the epic films, and those who have read the comics, this will ring true. Iron Man, one of Marvel’s greatest characters and arguably, right now, the most important member of the cinematographic universe, was created by Stan Lee as a challenge. He tasked himself with creating a hero than nobody should like and then force them to do so. Tony Stark is unlikely to be your best friend but you can’t help but love him.