Hydra
| Synonyms: | |
| See also: | S.H.I.E.L.D. |
| Click here for related articles on Fanlore. | |
Hydra is a fictional terrorist organization appearing in the Marvel universe. Though often capitalized, the name is not an acronym but rather a reference to the mythical Lernaean Hydra. In the MCU, HYDRA secretly infiltrated S.H.I.E.L.D. and used the agency to their advantage in many ways until it was revealed in Captain America: The Winter Soldier.
The organization's motto references the myth of the Hydra, stating that "if a head is cut off, two more will take its place" proclaiming their resilience and growing strength in the face of resistance. This motto is often used in fanworks in the Marvel and MCU universes to focus on the never-ending battle against Hydra.
Multiple Hydra members and leaders, in particular the Red Skull, are canonically Nazis or aligned with other fascist or totalitarian groups.
List Of Hydra Members
- Agent 33 (brainwashed)
- Sunil Bakshi
- Arnold Brown
- Carl Creel/"Absorbing Man"
- Richard Fisk
- John Garrett
- Pietro Maximoff (MCU version only)
- Wanda Maximoff (MCU version only)
- Bobbi Morse/"Agent 19"/"Mockingbird" (undercover)
- Alexander Pierce
- Ian Quinn
- Jack Rollins
- Brock Rumlow/"Crossbones"
- Sinthea Schmidt/"Sin"/"Mother Superior"
- Silver Fox
- Jemma Simmons (undercover)
- Jasper Sitwell
- Red Skull
- Baron Wolfgang von Strucker
- Viper/Madame Hydra
- Grant Ward
- Daniel Whitehall/"Dr. Werner Reinhardt"
- Winter Soldier
- X-23 (formerly)
- Arnim Zola
Common Tropes and Fanon
- Hail Hydra!: A salute and greeting used by Hydra members, that became a meme both within and outside of fandom circles.[1]
- Hydra Trash Party: A darkfic community focussed on "bad guys doing dirtybadwrong things to your faves".[2]
- Evil!Character: Since Hydra is portrayed as evil, the Evil! modifier is sometimes used in front of a character's name to signify they are a Hydra member in a given fanwork, particularly if they are not canonically Hydra.
- Also used is Hydra!, such as Hydra!Jemma Simmons.
- Post-The Winter Soldier: As the Hydra reveal in Captain America: The Winter Soldier was a fairly drastic change to MCU canon, many fans began using Post-TWS or similar tags for fanworks about the aftermath of the Hydra reveal.
- Pre-Hydra Reveal: The opposite of the above tag; signifies that a fanwork takes place before the events of CA:TWS.
- Canon Divergence AU: Various iterations of "No Hydra Takeover" became common in MCU fandom after CA:TWS.
- A common sub-genre includes denialfic such as "Jasper Sitwell is Not Hydra".
- Winter Soldier AU: Fanworks where someone other than Bucky Barnes becomes the Winter Soldier.
Challenges
Archives & Fannish Links
- Hydra tag at Tumblr (Note that not all content in this tag is actually focused on Marvel's Hydra)
- Hydra (Marvel) & Hydra tagged works at AO3
Resources
- Hydra at Wikipedia
- Hydra at Marvel Database
- Hydra at Marvel Movies
- Hydra at Agents of SHIELD Wikia
- Hydra at Marvel.com
- Hail Hydra! A Brief History at Marvel.com, canon resource
- Hydra (Comic Book) at TV Tropes