History SupermanStaysOutOfGotham / MarvelUniverse

* ''WesternAnimation/PhineasAndFerb Save Summer'' features the entire world being put in peril of a new ice age. Earlier, [[WesternAnimation/PhineasAndFerbMissionMarvel the Avengers]] appeared in the show showing they are part of a SharedUniverse (though that episode's canonicity is debatable). This was an incident that involved the entire world that everyone knew about so they couldn't be accused of staying out of Danville.
* ''WesternAnimation/{{Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur|2023}}'': ComicBook/TheAvengers ''do'' exist in this continuity, but they tend to be busy with bigger threats and Mimi questions if "they even go below 14th Street".

* Lampshaded in ''ComicBook/{{Exiles}}'', where Asgardians are conspicuously absent from most of the dystopian {{Alternate Universe}}s the team visits, with Morph pointing out that ComicBook/TheMightyThor could likely resolve or prevent the problems the team are sent to deal with by himself. Indeed, on a world ravaged by a Legacy virus[=/=]Phalanx hybrid, Morph gets Rachel Summers to telepathically contact Asgard, bringing them to Earth for the first time, allowing Hank Pym and Beast to synthesis a cure from their blood.

* Similarly, ''[[WesternAnimation/UltimateSpiderMan2012 Ultimate Spider-Man]]'' often has Spidey teaming up with any one of the numerous superheroes who live in New York City. This is largely due to Spider-Man often facing villains from [[RoguesGalleryTransplant other heroes' rogues galleries]].
* ''WesternAnimation/SpiderManTheAnimatedSeries'' zig-zagged this trope. In the first season, Spidey swung solo and dealt with villains from his own rogues gallery. However, starting with season two/"The Neogenetic Nightmare", other superheroes began to pop up -- the X-Men get involved when the Beast gets kidnapped helping Spidey, Punisher battles Spidey's "Man-Spider" form, Spidey aids Blade in fighting vampires, Daredevil aids in clearing Peter Parker's name, Iron Man and War Machine help Spidey battle Venom and Carnage, Spidey aids Captain America in fighting the Red Skull and the ''ComicBook/SecretWars'' adaptation brings in the Fantastic Four along with Cap, Iron Man and Storm.
* ''WesternAnimation/TheSuperHeroSquadShow'' was very specifically designed to avoid this trope. Aside from being LighterAndSofter (and funnier) in general, the series takes place in ''Super Hero City'' where all the Earth-based Marvel heroes live (in fact, only a handful of people shown are NOT heroes.) The city is separated from Villainville by a giant wall. All the villains live there. Even though the series mainly focuses on the "Super Hero Squad" composed of ComicBook/IronMan, Falcon (ComicBook/SpiderMan [[ExiledFromContinuity couldn't be included due to licensing issues with Sony Pictures]]), ComicBook/SilverSurfer, [[CanonImmigrant Reptil]], [[ComicBook/TheMightyThor Thor]], ComicBook/{{Wolverine}}, [[ComicBook/TheIncredibleHulk the Hulk]], and later the ComicBook/ScarletWitch, many episodes had other heroes join in just because they were literally in the neighborhood. One episode involved the Squadies trying to recover the show's MacGuffin from a BrattyHalfpint named [[MeaningfulName Brynnie Bratton]]. Eventually she ends up being passed around like a football by random heroes and villains alike such as ComicBook/{{Colossus}}, [[ComicBook/CarolDanvers Ms. Marvel]], Juggernaut, various members of the Avengers, the Wrecking Crew, the ComicBook/FantasticFour, Dr. Doom, Abomination, ComicBook/{{MODOK}}, ComicBook/{{Storm}}, ComicBook/{{Sabretooth}}, and numerous others along with the Squadies themselves all trying to stop the other side just to get the tiara she's wearing. By the end of the first season, most of these same heroes did whatever they could to stop Galactus from going on an eating binge.

* ''WesternAnimation/MoonGirlAndDevilDinosaur2023'': ComicBook/TheAvengers ''do'' exist in this continuity, but they tend to be busy with bigger threats and Mimi questions if "they even go below 14th Street".

* ''Spider-Man'' games play with this trope a lot, usually by featuring other Marvel heroes in either supporting roles or as cameos:

** Averted in ''VideoGame/MaximumCarnage'' and ''Separation Anxiety'', as ComicBook/{{Venom}} was an optional playable character while several hero icons popped up throughout both games, summoning characters like ComicBook/CaptainAmerica, [[ComicBook/NewWarriors Firestar]], ComicBook/{{Daredevil}} and more in order to help the player.
** Averted in ''[[VideoGame/SpiderManWebOfShadows Web of Shadows]]'', which has Wolverine, Luke Cage, and ComicBook/MoonKnight as summonable allies who feature largely in the plot.

** ...''ComicBook/ThePunisher2001'' saw ComicBook/{{Wolverine}}, ComicBook/{{Daredevil}}, and Franchise/SpiderMan team up to try to arrest him. This being the Punisher, while he would not use lethal force against them since he did not regard them as criminals, he still managed to create enough collateral damage that capturing him simply became not worth the cost. In addition, none of them had a ready answer when Frank pointed out that if they put him in prison, all he was going to do was start killing everyone else in there with him. All three heroes left had to face the fact that short of killing him, there simply wasn't an easy solution to the Punisher.

** In an odd example, Franchise/{{Batman}} beats up The Punisher for 20 minutes in ''ComicBook/JLAAvengers''. In the ''Batman/Punisher'' crossovers, Frank gets annoyed at Gotham and leaves so he can deal with his ''own'' scum, without Batman's interference (namely, that whole ThouShaltNotKill attitude by Bats, who proves he's more than capable of handling him). He ''almost'' killed the Joker once, just before Batman intervened (but worth it just to see the Joker's MyGodYouAreSerious face). [[OutOfCharacterMoment This is further reinforced by Batman deciding to just let him go (instead of, you know, bringing him in like he would with any other killer).]]

* ''ComicBook/OneMoreDay'' had a forced DoubleSubversion: Franchise/SpiderMan asks numerous heroes for help in healing Aunt May's gunshot wound, to which the various heroes responded with a collective "There is nothing we can do." The X-Men in particular had an Omega-level mutant with HealingHands at the time who had healed far worse injuries, including someone having their heart torn out of their chest. Spidey is forced to make a DealWithTheDevil to heal Aunt May in exchange for erasing his marriage from history. That aside, Spider-Man/Daredevil is perhaps the single most recurrent team-up in Marvel history, the second obviously being any combination of those two and the Punisher. Part of the reason, of course, is because they're roughly similar in terms of power levels, realistic themes, and the sorts of enemies they go up against. Spider-Man headlined Marvel Team-Up for nearly 15 years -- he couldn't swing a web without bumping up against some other hero.
* Most heroes in the Franchise/MarvelUniverse are based in New York City, so they can't be accused of "staying out of Gotham". Yet although it is the base and home of ComicBook/TheAvengers, ComicBook/DoctorStrange, The ComicBook/FantasticFour, The ComicBook/XMen[[note]]Westchester, NY[[/note]] and various other immensely powerful superhumans and superteams, it's usually left up to Franchise/SpiderMan, ComicBook/{{Daredevil}} and various other "street-level" heroes to sort out the city's superhuman crime wave. While they do cross over more frequently than DC's heroes, and RoguesGalleryTransplant is a little more common, it's amazing how many times ComicBook/DoctorOctopus or the Rhino can go on a rampage or normal crooks can rob a bank and end up running into Spider-Man instead of, say, ComicBook/TheThing, or even a BadassNormal like ComicBook/CaptainAmerica. Even considering that they are often on adventures to another country or battling aliens in a different dimension, you'd think that with how easily the Web Slinger and others come across serious criminal activities they should run into this kind of thing every other day. It could be argued that Spider-Man is the main adversary for New York's crime because [[ComesGreatResponsibility he is always on duty, 24/7]]. New York is the other heroes' main base, but they take time off, get fringe benefits, and are often off fighting threats on a larger scale. Spider-Man, and to a lesser extent Daredevil, are the heroes charged with guarding New York itself.

** Deconstructed in ''Black Panther: The Man Without Fear''. Panther turns down ComicBook/LukeCage, Franchise/SpiderMan, ComicBook/TheFalcon, and other New York heroes after they offer to help out with the crime situation in Hell's Kitchen, and only accepts their help grudgingly. It gets to the point where Cage threatens to have ComicBook/TheAvengers intervene if T'Challa does not prove himself worthy of defending the neighborhood.

* Subtly lampshaded in ''ComicBook/TheDarkPhoenixSaga'' - the Dark Phoenix's awakening alerts the ComicBook/FantasticFour, Franchise/SpiderMan, ComicBook/DoctorStrange and the ComicBook/SilverSurfer, but it happens so fast that none of them can effectively do anything but worry. Even more so, when Beast gets word of the X-Men's fight with the Hellfire Club, Beast just grabs the nearest Quinjet and doesn't bother letting [[ComicBook/TheAvengers his teammates]] know to go help his old team. Though in this case, he did that deliberately, since it was a politically sensitive matter he wanted as few people as possible involved in.

* Played straight in ''WesternAnimation/IronManArmoredAdventures''. As a HighSchoolAU, despite taking place in New York most of Tony's super-hero counterparts are probably not of age (ComicBook/BlackPanther, in his appearance, was still just a teenager, and Comicbook/IronFist is mentioned as a local teen martial arts champion), and the adult characters who make appearances are otherwise uninterested or unable to in help Tony out (ComicBook/NickFury and ComicBook/{{SHIELD}} view Iron Man as a vigilante threat, [[ComicBook/TheIncredibleHulk the Hulk]] was in one of his rampaging moods during his appearance, ComicBook/CaptainAmerica is still apparently frozen, ComicBook/BlackWidow and ComicBook/{{Hawkeye}} had yet to do their HeelFaceTurn.) It starts to fall apart in the second season where ComicBook/DoctorDoom and ComicBook/{{Magneto}} show up, but neither the Franchise/FantasticFour nor ComicBook/XMen do. ComicBook/JeanGrey does show up as a teenager and is clearly shown to not yet be a superhero or member of the X-Men. At the end of the episode where she appears, she seems to meet Professor X for the first time, so presumably the team is just now being assembled. Reed Richards is mentioned as a professor, but it is unclear whether he has powers. Though WordOfGod states that ComicBook/{{Wolverine}} at least would have shown up [[WhatCouldHaveBeen had the series been given a third season]].
* Averted in ''WesternAnimation/TheAvengersEarthsMightiestHeroes'', where other heroes often pop up to help the team. The GrandFinale has the Fantastic Four, Franchise/SpiderMan, ComicBook/WarMachine, ComicBook/BlackWidow, [[ComicBook/BuckyBarnes Winter Soldier]], ComicBook/TheFalcon, ComicBook/LukeCage, ComicBook/IronFist, and other New York-based heroes aiding the Avengers in the final battle against ComicBook/{{Galactus}}.

* ''WesternAnimation/TheSuperHeroSquadShow'' was very specifically designed to avoid this trope. Aside from being LighterAndSofter (and funnier) in general, the series takes place in ''Super Hero City'' where all the Earth-based Marvel heroes live (in fact, only a handful of people shown are NOT heroes.) The city is separated from Villainville by a giant wall. All the villains live there. Even though the series mainly focuses on the "Super Hero Squad" composed of ComicBook/IronMan, Falcon (Franchise/SpiderMan [[ExiledFromContinuity couldn't be included due to licensing issues with Sony Pictures]]), ComicBook/SilverSurfer, [[CanonImmigrant Reptil]], [[ComicBook/TheMightyThor Thor]], ComicBook/{{Wolverine}}, [[ComicBook/TheIncredibleHulk the Hulk]], and later the ComicBook/ScarletWitch, many episodes had other heroes join in just because they were literally in the neighborhood. One episode involved the Squadies trying to recover the show's MacGuffin from a BrattyHalfpint named [[MeaningfulName Brynnie Bratton]]. Eventually she ends up being passed around like a football by random heroes and villains alike such as ComicBook/{{Colossus}}, [[ComicBook/CarolDanvers Ms. Marvel]], Juggernaut, various members of the Avengers, the Wrecking Crew, the ComicBook/FantasticFour, Dr. Doom, Abomination, ComicBook/{{MODOK}}, ComicBook/{{Storm}}, ComicBook/{{Sabretooth}}, and numerous others along with the Squadies themselves all trying to stop the other side just to get the tiara she's wearing. By the end of the first season, most of these same heroes did whatever they could to stop Galactus from going on an eating binge.

** In ''VideoGame/SpiderMan2000'', there are appearances by several [[BigApplesauce NYC-based]] heroes in the {{cutscene}}s to express their sympathy at his frame-up but who are of no help at all. ComicBook/{{Daredevil}} leaves to "spread the word" about his innocence right before the NYPD swoops down to arrest the wallcrawler. Spidey naturally refuses ComicBook/ThePunisher's' offer of help knowing his penchant for bloody murder. Also, while you can visit the Baxter Building, Spidey will mention that the ComicBook/FantasticFour aren't home at the moment.

** ''ComicBook/ThePunisher2001'' saw ComicBook/{{Wolverine}}, ComicBook/{{Daredevil}}, and Franchise/SpiderMan team up to try to arrest him. This being the Punisher, while he would not use lethal force against them since he did not regard them as criminals, he still managed to create enough collateral damage that capturing him simply became not worth the cost. In addition, none of them had a ready answer when Frank pointed out that if they put him in prison, all he was going to do was start killing everyone else in there with him. All three heroes left had to face the fact that short of killing him, there simply wasn't an easy solution to the Punisher.

** Since Punisher operates in Hell's Kitchen he often has meetings with Daredevil. One of those encounters ended with DD chained up to a pole with Punisher giving a HannibalLecture on how his way is the right way and he doesn't even want DD to try it.

** There was at least one story where superheroes tried to neutralize him (ComicBook/{{Wolverine}} would have been happy to kill him, but ComicBook/{{Daredevil}} and Franchise/SpiderMan were against it). This being the Punisher, [[Awesome/ThePunisher he takes them all out (non-lethally)]].

** Also often averted during the nineties. Back then The Punisher was one of Marvel's cash cows along with Spider-Man and Wolverine, and as such he had quite a few crossovers. Surprisingly, most heroes were either okay with him, or at least willing to put aside their dislike to work with him. The stories tended to focus on both character's intent to save innocent lives first and foremost. But in one particular instance, Castle was recorded shooting a corrupt psychopathic cop on TV, which led to the police and a few other heroes to try to apprehend him. Captain America tried to reason with him. Spider-Man just stomped his ass flat.

** The mini-series ''Punisher: War Zone'' revolved around ComicBook/TheAvengers trying to bring down the Punisher after he was falsely accused of killing a New York police officer. WordOfGod from Creator/GregRucka states that the Avengers have known of the Punisher's murders for years, but ignored him because they felt that sending him to prison wouldn't do any good. Rucka also contends that the Punisher respects heroes like the Avengers, as he's smart enough to realize that if they didn't keep threats like Loki and the Skrulls at bay, there'd be no streets left for him to protect.

** Averted in ''VideoGame/SpiderManTheVideoGame, which featured [[ComicBook/SubMariner Namor]], ComicBook/{{Hawkeye}} and the ComicBook/BlackCat as the other three playable characters.

** Exaggerated by the ''ComicBook/MaximumCarnage'' storyline. Spider-Man ''did'' assemble a team of allies (and not just Venom, but up to and including ComicBook/CaptainAmerica), and the Fantastic Four's absence was a plot point, but the X-Men completely missed the fight, and the Avengers as a group weren't around either. Carnage's family of evil had sent New York completely into chaos by the end; you'd think at some point they'd call out the big guns and make a CrisisCrossover out of it. But Carnage is a Spider-Man villain, so they can't take the plotline out of Spider-Man and Venom's hands.

** The main reason for this is because of Wakanda being a heavily isolationist and xenophobic nation. He has nothing but complete respect for his friends and comrades abroad such as in the Avengers, but ultimately, as King, Wakanda is his responsibility. Furthermore, Wakanda makes it clear that outsiders (including superheroes) are not welcome and usually don't need their help.

* ''ComicBook/XMen'':
** Non-mutant heroes with superpowers function side-by-side among mutant superheroes who face [[FantasticRacism discrimination]] from humans who fear them because they have superpowers. The anti-mutant regulations include high-profile government-sponsored elements such as [[SuperRegistrationAct Mutant Registration Acts]] and mutant-hunting Sentinels, which the rest of the heroes are well aware of, as ComicBook/TheAvengers were once forced to fire their mutant members as a result of increasing public scrutiny ([[OutOfCharacterMoment naturally, the Avengers went]] [[IdiotBall along with it passively]], despite having other members who are just as feared, if not even more feared than the mutants, such as the Hulk) and used a fleet of Sentinels in a major battle against Kang the Conqueror. Despite not being anti-mutant racists themselves, all the heroes who got their powers through other means (and for unexplained reasons are therefore exempted from the FantasticRacism and government scrutiny) have “somehow” decided the plight of mutants is not their problem.
** ComicBook/XMen works both ways too. When evil pro-mutant forces like ComicBook/{{Magneto}} threaten the world, it's the job of mutants like the X-Men, and specific anti-mutant forces to stop him. Magneto rarely ever has ComicBook/TheMightyThor or Doctor Strange coming down on him, unless he's done something ''specific'' to drag them into the story (beside his usual KillAllHumans spiel). Conversely, the X-Men almost never bother to intervene with any non-mutant villains like Kang the Conqueror or ComicBook/DoctorDoom, even if said villain's latest plot should be causing shrapnel to rain down on the Xavier Mansion's front lawn.
** ComicBook/{{Wolverine}} is a perfect symbol of how ridiculous this whole thing can get. He is both a frequent member of the X-Men and an Avenger, often [[WolverinePublicity at the same time]], meaning one man can be simultaneously part of a persecuted minority and member of a group which is "feared and hated" by the government and general public alike; and also part of a team of beloved celebrities with ties to the US government.
** There have been two storylines of ComicBook/CaptainBritain that have an insane [[RealityWarper reality-warping]] mutant (one of whom was the superhero's older brother). Even though years back they faced off against Proteus who caused similar havoc in Muir Island, [[Characters/XMenMutants Moira MacTaggert]] doesn't think to contact them of something taking place in Britain. With the former situation, one gets the impression that [[BigGood Merlyn]] set the whole thing up in a way that only Captain Britain was supposed to deal with them. Interestingly enough, ''TheFallOfTheMutants'' event was supposed to rectify this, but didn't. At least not directly - ''ComicBook/{{Excalibur}}'' was formed sometime afterwards, with two X-Men (Nightcrawler and Shadowcat) in the team.
** The ComicBook/CivilWar storyline mended the hypocrisy, subjecting all superheroes to a Super Human Registration Act. In a twist, the X-Men declared the whole thing [[BystanderSyndrome not their problem]] (specifically citing how the non-mutants never bothered to interfere with Mutant Registration Act(s)).
** Similarly, other large-scale threats to mutantkind exist in the X-Books alone. The Legacy Virus was meant to stay active until they found a cure for AIDS but it became a PlotTumor when the writers had no clear answer for why scientific geniuses like [[ReedRichardsIsUseless Reed Richards or Hank Pym]] couldn't find a cure.
** ComicBook/{{Beast|MarvelComics}} reaches out to nine of Marvel's MadScientist supervillains for help in solving the "Decimation" that BroughtDownToNormal most of Earth's mutants. They all just laugh in his face.
** A trend that comes and goes DependingOnTheWriter, and one that at present has "come", is that Marvel's superheroes will act like {{jerkass}}es in ComicBook/XMen comics and the Franchise/XMen will act like {{jerkass}}es in other Marvel comics, yet they will never be portrayed as jerkasses (or ''that'' jerkish, anyway) in their own stories. Witness [[ComicBook/MisterFantastic Reed Richards]] getting pissed at the ComicBook/XMen for summoning the giant metal bullet that trapped Kitty Pride back from space (long story), basically a long overdue rescue attempt aimed at saving a member of their extended family, albeit with some (averted) danger to the Earth. Never mind that Reed himself would go to equally insane lengths to save one of his friends or family, that he frequently messes about with stuff that potentially puts the Earth in far greater danger (sometimes for his own ''curiosity''), or that he didn't even give ComicBook/{{Cyclops}} the chance to explain that it wasn't even them doing it (ComicBook/{{Magneto}} had decided he owed them a favor).
** When Magneto took over New York during Creator/GrantMorrison's run on New X-Men he explained that he had tricked the Avengers and the Fantastic Four into leaving on a wild goose chase. That does not explain why none of New York's other heroes who weren't associated with any of those groups did not try to help the X-Men. While Magneto may be a few power levels above them, there is no way Spider-Man, Daredevil or ComicBook/LukeCage would have stood by and watched while Magneto sent New Yorkers into gas chambers.
** One story did its best to explain why Magneto is usually the X-Men's problem. Immediately after the Legacy Virus is cured, Magneto sets about gathering mutants from all over the world and organizes them into an army on Genosha in preparation for his latest attack on the rest of the world. Questioned by news reporters on why the Avengers haven't moved in to stop him, Captain America explains that, because the Avengers are a government-sponsored team and Magneto is legally recognized as the ruler of Genosha, they can't move in until he actually does something (of course, he subsequently attacked ComicBook/ProfessorX in his home, kidnapped him and put him on display in the centre of his city, which seems like the kind of thing the Avengers would respond to). At the same time, Israel's main superhero (Sabra, who, like Magneto, is a Mutant as well as Jewish) says that ''she'' would be willing to strike him preemptively.
** In the non-canon ''[[ComicBook/EarthX Universe X]]'' comic, one character hypothesises that the more powerful evil forces in the Marvel Universe- for instance, [[TheLegionsOfHell Hell Lords like Mephisto]], and other demons and dark gods- actually go out of their way to manipulate characters and events to sabotage human-mutant relations, with the explicit aim of stopping them banding together more often and kicking their collective asses or making the world a better place. This is quite a clever {{justifi|edTrope}}cation, even if it wouldn't explain everything (as demons can't affect Free Will), but it has yet to cross over into the mainstream stories.
** The ''ComicBook/AvengersVsXMen'' CrossOver averts this with a vengeance. The Phoenix Force is returning to Earth, and while the Phoenix was always an X-Men problem in the past, this time the Avengers have caught wind of it. Their disagreement on how to handle the incredibly powerful cosmic entity that could potentially save mutantkind or destroy the Earth is the main conflict of the event. It also includes the X-Men (or at least Cyclops's side) [[WhatTheHellHero calling the Avengers out]] on their constantly saying that they don't involve themselves with mutant affairs even when mutants are on the brink of extinction, only to suddenly decide to get involved once the issue becomes a potential threat to them.
** One ''X-Men'' ExpandedUniverse novel trilogy had Magneto conquer New York City. Despite this being the home turf of Spider-Man, Daredevil, and The Fantastic Four, the X-Men are the only people (Other than the US Military) to even ''try'' to do something about it. All the other heroes who happen to live in New York aren't even ''mentioned''.
** ''ComicBook/UncannyAvengers'' is built around breaking down this trope while also giving it more reasons as to why it exists in the first place. After admitting that the Avengers never did much to help the mutant race, ComicBook/CaptainAmerica decides to form a new mutant-centric team of heroes in order to convince humans and mutants to get along. Problem is the two groups have different dynamics and styles of command, and they clash. Frequently. In the end the series shows at several points that this trope could also be called 'Superman Stays Out of Gotham Because He and Batman Operate Very Differently and Their Arguments Can Lead to Bad Things'. Both groups are made up of good people true, but they don't mesh as well as a pure team of Avengers or a pure team of X-Men.
** Part of the problem also originates from the membership choices. The original team had a designated leader in the mutant Havok, but Cap joining the team to inspire by example creates serious leadership confusion that often divides the team by group origins. Also the recruitment of the ComicBook/ScarletWitch to the team led to several clashes with the mutant members who still blame her for ComicBook/HouseOfM. While the membership was partially influenced by who they could round up during the Red Skull's plans and later by monetary and PR necessity, one can't help but wonder if the team would have had more success with a more precise and careful recruitment method that avoided conflicts of command and flare ups of old grudges.
** On the other hand, this is epically subverted in one ComicBook/CableAndDeadpool issue where Cable lands in trouble with the other heroes. The X-Men decide to call in help from an ally and we’re led to believe it’ll be an X-Men related character. It’s not. It’s [[spoiler:[[ComicBook/SilverSurfer the Silver freaking Surfer]]]], who almost never gets involved in conflicts like this. This also highlights an out-of-story reason for this trope; [[spoiler:Silver Surfer]] is [[StoryBreakerPower so totally out of Cable’s weight class it’s almost laughable that Cable tries fighting back]].
** Every year, with absolute predictable regularity, ComicBook/{{Sabretooth}} tracks down ComicBook/{{Wolverine}} on his birthday and beats him almost to death. Every year, Wolverine is totally alone and typically in the middle of nowhere on his birthday, allowing Sabretooth to easily attack him. Hey Logan, aren’t you a member of [[WolverinePublicity like three superhero teams?]] Don’t you have access to at least two fortresses full of superbeings? And aren’t you friends with some of the most powerful heroes on Earth? Do you not think they might be pretty useful right about now?
** This trope is notably [[SubvertedTrope subverted]] in ''ComicBook/AstonishingXMen''. In the first portion of the story, the "lead" team consists of Cyclops, Wolverine, Emma Frost, Beast, and Kitty Pryde, and they are specifically attempting to build up goodwill for mutantkind by handling problems without outside help. When they head to New York City to take down a monster, the Fantastic Four show up and assist; Thing initially grouses that "they're on our turf," but Reed Richards assures the X-Men that they're happy to boost human-mutant relations however possible. In the "Breakworld" portion of the plot, every major New York-based hero gathers to try to stop the giant bullet that's [[EarthShatteringKaboom on a direct collision course with Earth]]--but the creators of said bullet planned ahead by sealing it with various psychic and magical protections that put every single hero into a [[LotusEaterMachine dream-like trance]] wherein they ''do'' successfully stop the weapon...all while their actual selves are standing stock-still. Spider-Man is the only person who's able to wake up from the spell in time to realize what's happening, but can't do anything to help. Ultimately, Kitty Pryde is forced to pull a HeroicSacrifice to phase the bullet through Earth, resulting in the "long story" mentioned above wherein Magneto rescues her years later.
** The X-Men's lack of presence in the ''ComicBook/WorldWarHulk'' storyline, itself a sequel to ''ComicBook/PlanetHulk'', is [[JustifiedTrope justified]] via the events of M-Day. Hulk's goal in the plot is a RoaringRampageOfRevenge against the four members of the Illuminati--Black Bolt, Iron Man, Mr. Fantastic, and Dr. Strange--who decided to banish him from Earth after his powers grew too unstable. Professor X, also an Illuminati member, was not present during the group's vote, but admits that he would have agreed with the decision (although he promises that he would not have supported a permanent exile). Hulk is originally ready to take down the X-Men as punishment--and fights some of their members as well--but then realizes that the mutant population is already in crisis after Scarlet Witch's actions on M-Day. He thus leaves Professor X alone, reasoning that he's suffering enough as it is; presumably, this uneasy truce is why the rest of the X-Men don't get involved when Hulk continues his quest for vengeance against the rest of Marvel's heroes (along with the fact that the existential crisis of M-Day has shattered the group's morale and left them scrambling to stay alive).
** Both ''ComicBook/ThePhoenixSaga'' and ''ComicBook/TheDarkPhoenixSaga'' justifies this trope:
*** In the former, the heroes learn of the M'Kraan Crystal and what it's doing to the universe, however, since the thing is way too far away for any of them to reasonably attempt any actions, all they can do is sit and wait until either it stops or the universe is blunk away.
*** In the latter, the Dark Phoenix's awakening catches the attention of a lot of heroes, but it happens so fast that not even the Silver Surfer can catch up to her before she gobbles up a star.
* This trope even occurs with facing threats that logically another Superhero would be much more equipped to deal with. For instance, The Juggernaut is usually the X-Men's job to handle despite the fact that he's a mystically powered supervillain and thus would fall under ComicBook/DoctorStrange or ComicBook/GhostRider's purview, but it is extremely rare that either of them ever get involved and even when they do, it's usually just showing up to tell the X-Men how to deal with it.

** Taken UpToEleven by the ''ComicBook/MaximumCarnage'' storyline. Spider-Man ''did'' assemble a team of allies (and not just Venom, but up to and including ComicBook/CaptainAmerica), and the Fantastic Four's absence was a plot point, but the X-Men completely missed the fight, and the Avengers as a group weren't around either. Carnage's family of evil had sent New York completely into chaos by the end; you'd think at some point they'd call out the big guns and make a CrisisCrossover out of it. But Carnage is a Spider-Man villain, so they can't take the plotline out of Spider-Man and Venom's hands.

* Played straight in ''WesternAnimation/IronManArmoredAdventures''. As a HighSchoolAU, despite taking place in New York most of Tony's super-hero counterparts are probably not of age (ComicBook/BlackPanther, in his appearance, was still just a teenager, and Comicbook/IronFist is mentioned as a local teen martial arts champion), and the adult characters who make appearances are otherwise uninterested or unable to in help Tony out (ComicBook/NickFury and ComicBook/{{SHIELD}} view Iron Man as a vigilante threat, the ComicBook/IncredibleHulk was in one of his rampaging moods during his appearance, ComicBook/CaptainAmerica is still apparently frozen, ComicBook/BlackWidow and ComicBook/{{Hawkeye}} had yet to do their HeelFaceTurn.) It starts to fall apart in the second season where ComicBook/DoctorDoom and ComicBook/{{Magneto}} show up, but neither the Franchise/FantasticFour nor ComicBook/XMen do. ComicBook/JeanGrey does show up as a teenager and is clearly shown to not yet be a superhero or member of the X-Men. At the end of the episode where she appears, she seems to meet Professor X for the first time, so presumably the team is just now being assembled. Reed Richards is mentioned as a professor, but it is unclear whether he has powers. Though WordOfGod states that ComicBook/{{Wolverine}} at least would have shown up [[WhatCouldHaveBeen had the series been given a third season]].

* ''WesternAnimation/TheSuperHeroSquadShow'' was very specifically designed to avoid this trope. Aside from being LighterAndSofter (and funnier) in general, the series takes place in ''Super Hero City'' where all the Earth-based Marvel heroes live (in fact, only a handful of people shown are NOT heroes.) The city is separated from Villainville by a giant wall. All the villains live there. Even though the series mainly focuses on the "Super Hero Squad" composed of ComicBook/IronMan, Falcon (Franchise/SpiderMan [[ExiledFromContinuity couldn't be included due to licensing issues with Sony Pictures]]), ComicBook/SilverSurfer, [[CanonImmigrant Reptil]], ComicBook/TheMightyThor, ComicBook/{{Wolverine}}, the ComicBook/IncredibleHulk, and later the ComicBook/ScarletWitch, many episodes had other heroes join in just because they were literally in the neighborhood. One episode involved the Squadies trying to recover the show's MacGuffin from a BrattyHalfpint named [[MeaningfulName Brynnie Bratton]]. Eventually she ends up being passed around like a football by random heroes and villains alike such as ComicBook/{{Colossus}}, [[ComicBook/CarolDanvers Ms. Marvel]], Juggernaut, various members of the Avengers, the Wrecking Crew, the ComicBook/FantasticFour, Dr. Doom, Abomination, ComicBook/{{MODOK}}, ComicBook/{{Storm}}, ComicBook/{{Sabretooth}}, and numerous others along with the Squadies themselves all trying to stop the other side just to get the tiara she's wearing. By the end of the first season, most of these same heroes did whatever they could to stop Galactus from going on an eating binge.

* ''VideoGame/SpiderMan'' games play with this trope a lot, usually by featuring other Marvel heroes in either supporting roles or as cameos:

* Averted in ''WesternAnimation/TheAvengersEarthsMightiestHeroes'', where other heroes often pop up to help the team. The GrandFinale has the Fantastic Four, Franchise/SpiderMan, ComicBook/WarMachine, ComicBook/BlackWidow, [[ComicBook/BuckyBarnes Winter Soldier]], ComicBook/TheFalcon, ComicBook/LukeCage, Comicbook/IronFist, and other New York-based heroes aiding the Avengers in the final battle against ComicBook/{{Galactus}}.

** There have been two storylines of ComicBook/CaptainBritain that have an insane [[RealityWarper reality-warping]] mutant (one of whom was the superhero's older brother). Even though years back they faced off against Proteus who caused similar havoc in Muir Island, ComicBook/MoiraMacTaggert doesn't think to contact them of something taking place in Britain. With the former situation, one gets the impression that [[BigGood Merlyn]] set the whole thing up in a way that only Captain Britain was supposed to deal with them. Interestingly enough, ''TheFallOfTheMutants'' event was supposed to rectify this, but didn't. At least not directly - ''ComicBook/{{Excalibur}}'' was formed sometime afterwards, with two X-Men (Nightcrawler and Shadowcat) in the team.

* Similarly, ''WesternAnimation/{{Ultimate Spider-Man}}'' often has Spidey teaming up with any one of the numerous superheroes who live in New York City. This is largely due to Spider-Man often facing villains from [[RoguesGalleryTransplant other heroes' rogues galleries]].

** Deconstructed in ''Black Panther: The Man Without Fear''. Panther turns down ComicBook/{{Luke Cage|HeroForHire}}, Franchise/SpiderMan, ComicBook/TheFalcon, and other New York heroes after they offer to help out with the crime situation in Hell's Kitchen, and only accepts their help grudgingly. It gets to the point where Cage threatens to have ComicBook/TheAvengers intervene if T'Challa does not prove himself worthy of defending the neighborhood.

** When Magneto took over New York during Creator/GrantMorrison's run on New X-Men he explained that he had tricked the Avengers and the Fantastic Four into leaving on a wild goose chase. That does not explain why none of New York's other heroes who weren't associated with any of those groups did not try to help the X-Men. While Magneto may be a few power levels above them, there is no way Spider-Man, Daredevil or ComicBook/{{Luke Cage|HeroForHire}} would have stood by and watched while Magneto sent New Yorkers into gas chambers.

** He really doesn't get along well with the rest of the Marvel heroes: he's a VigilanteMan who lives in a DarkerAndEdgier world and kills criminals in a universe full of superheroes who hold ThouShaltNotKill as an [[BlackAndWhiteMorality ethical absolute]]. In non-Punisher stories, any hero that runs into the Punisher contends he's [[NotSoDifferent a murderer like any other]] and tries to apprehend him. ([[FailureIsTheOnlyOption It never works]]). Within his own {{Black and Gray|Morality}} comic, Frank Castle is the hero (or AntiHero) and his victims run the gamut of unrepentant mobsters, psychopaths and [[PsychoForHire hired killers]] but no hero ever takes the initiative to come down to Hell's Kitchen to apprehend him for racking up such a high body count. It also works the other way around: Punisher is usually never allowed in stories with other heroes in it (unless it’s a {{crossover}}) for mainly three reasons: One, the writers obviously [[JokerImmunity don’t want the Punisher to kill one of the heroes’s “iconic” villains]] (like ComicBook/NormanOsborn, ComicBook/DoctorOctopus, ComicBook/RedSkull, etc.), because if he did, then they wouldn’t be able to make money off of those villains or write any stories about them anymore ([[ComicBookDeath until they come back, that is]]). Second, it doesn't work the other way around, either; The Punisher could only cause so much trouble for, say, ComicBook/TheKingpin, before the latter would hire one (or more) of the Franchise/MarvelUniverse's many bullet-proof, super-strong villains to smash The Punisher's head in. Frank can be fiendishly clever, but at the end of the day, he still relies on being able to gun down his his enemies. Third, the Punisher's stories are dark and grim in nature, which would clash with most heroes's stories which tend to be somewhat lighthearted and fun (a few exceptions being Daredevil, Wolverine, or Ghost Rider).

** There was at least one story where superheroes tried to neutralize him (Franchise/{{Wolverine}} would have been happy to kill him, but ComicBook/{{Daredevil}} and Franchise/SpiderMan were against it). This being the Punisher, [[Awesome/ThePunisher he takes them all out (non-lethally)]].

** Franchise/{{Wolverine}} is a perfect symbol of how ridiculous this whole thing can get. He is both a frequent member of the X-Men and an Avenger, often [[WolverinePublicity at the same time]], meaning one man can be simultaneously part of a persecuted minority and member of a group which is "feared and hated" by the government and general public alike; and also part of a team of beloved celebrities with ties to the US government.

** Every year, with absolute predictable regularity, ComicBook/{{Sabretooth}} tracks down Franchise/{{Wolverine}} on his birthday and beats him almost to death. Every year, Wolverine is totally alone and typically in the middle of nowhere on his birthday, allowing Sabretooth to easily attack him. Hey Logan, aren’t you a member of [[WolverinePublicity like three superhero teams?]] Don’t you have access to at least two fortresses full of superbeings? And aren’t you friends with some of the most powerful heroes on Earth? Do you not think they might be pretty useful right about now?

** He really doesn't get along well with the rest of the Marvel heroes: he's a VigilanteMan who lives in a DarkerAndEdgier world and kills criminals in a universe full of superheroes who hold ThouShaltNotKill as an [[BlackAndWhiteMorality ethical absolute]]. In non-Punisher stories, any hero that runs into the Punisher contends he's [[NotSoDifferent a murderer like any other]] and tries to apprehend him. ([[FailureIsTheOnlyOption It never works]]). Within his own {{Black and Gray|Morality}} comic, Frank Castle is the hero (or AntiHero) and his victims run the gamut of unrepentant mobsters, psychopaths and [[PsychoForHire hired killers]] but no hero ever takes the initiative to come down to Hell's Kitchen to apprehend him for racking up such a high body count. It also works the other way around: Punisher is usually never allowed in stories with other heroes in it (unless it’s a {{crossover}}) for mainly three reasons: One, the writers obviously [[JokerImmunity don’t want the Punisher to kill one of the heroes’s “iconic” villains]] (like ComicBook/NormanOsborn, ComicBook/DoctorOctopus, ComicBook/RedSkull, etc.), because if he did, then they wouldn’t be able to make money off of those villains or write any stories about them anymore ([[ComicBookDeath until they come back, that is]]). Second, it doesn't work the other way around, either; The Punisher could only cause so much trouble for, say, ComicBook/TheKingpin, before the latter would hire one (or more) of the Franchise/MarvelUniverse's many bullet-proof, super-strong villains to smash The Punisher's head in. Frank can be fiendishly clever, but at the end of the day, he still relies on being able to gun down his his enemies. Third, the punisher’s stories are dark and grim in nature, which would clash with most heroes’s stories who tend to be somewhat lighthearted and fun (a few exceptions being Daredevil, Wolverine or Ghost Rider).
** There was at least one story where superheroes tried to neutralize him (Franchise/{{Wolverine}} would have been happy to kill him, but ComicBook/{{Daredevil}} and Franchise/SpiderMan were against it). This being ComicBook/ThePunisher, [[Awesome/ThePunisher he takes them all out (non-lethally)]].

* Enforced in ''ComicBook/AvengersNoSurrender'' early on. Many heroes are quick to spring to action to figure out what happened to the Earth and to protect everyone from the destruction. However, many of them, both hero and villain, are captured by a blue aura that freezes them in place, leaving the heroism to a RagtagBandOfMisfits comprised of the remains of three active Avengers teams and one Reservist.