Meet Tigra, Marvel's Feline Avenger

From sunny California to the darkest corners of the Marvel Universe, Tigra has proven herself to be one of the Avengers' most resilient heroes. On occasion, her feline powers and primal instincts have even led her to become a particularly vicious fighter. 

Lately, Tigra has found herself teaming up with another one of Marvel's most ferocious fighters: Moon Knight. After helping Moon Knight as part of his Midnight Mission, Tigra and her nocturnal allies are set to face their greatest challenge yet in BLOOD HUNT, where eternal night will fall and unleash a legion of vampires on the Marvel Universe.

Now, let's take a closer look at Tigra, as well as her time with the Avengers and beyond. We'll also break down her connection with Moon Knight as she takes on a mysterious new figure in VENGEANCE OF MOON KNIGHT (2024) #2 by Jed Mackay, Alessandro Cappuccio, Rachelle Rosenberg, and VC's Cory Petit.

WHO IS TIGRA?

Before Tigra became the feline Avenger, she was Greer Grant Nelson, who started operating as a vigilante called the Cat in THE CAT (1972) #1 by Linda Fite and Marie Severin. After her police officer husband was killed, Greer began working for her old college professor, Joanne Tumolo, and participated in an experiment that gave her super-strength and some empathic powers. After Tumolo seemingly died in an explosion at her lab, Greer confronted Tumolo's supposed killer with a Cat suit that amplified her newfound abilities. 

Soon, Greer learned Tumolo had merely faked her death and that she was one of the Cat People, a mystical race of feline humanoids. After Greer was injured while trying to protect the professor, Tumolo used her people's magic to turn Greer into Tigra in GIANT-SIZE CREATURES (1974) #1 by Tony Isabella and Don Perlin. 

As a "were-woman," Tigra has a feline humanoid form that grants her catlike claws, fangs, and instincts in addition to superhuman strength, agility, reflexes, and senses. Although Tigra has the ability to switch between her human and feline forms with the Cat's Head amulet, she prefers to stay in her catlike form.

TIGRA AND THE AVENGERS

Although Tigra's initial time with the Avengers did not last particularly long, she left a lasting impression on the team. When the team needed new members, the telepathic Moondragon compelled Tigra and several other heroes into trying out in AVENGERS (1963) #211 by Jim Shooter and Gene Colan. After impressing Hercules during an impromptu sparring session against other heroes, the group accepted Tigra, who moved into Avengers Mansion and was particularly enthusiastic about the weekly stipend provided by Tony Stark. 

After Ghost Rider struck her with his fear-inducing hellfire, Tigra developed some serious doubts about her place in the Avengers. However, she continued to prove herself by playing a critical role in taking down the reality-warping Molecule Man, whom she convinced to surrender and seek therapy. 

Despite her success, Tigra still felt out of place next to her teammates and resigned in AVENGERS (1963) #216 by Shooter and Alan Weiss. Although she remained an ally of the team, Tigra moved to California, where she began working with Spider-Woman.

TIGRA AND THE WEST COAST AVENGERS

Despite some initial hesitation, Tigra became a founding member of the West Coast Avengers in WEST COAST AVENGERS (1984) #1 by Roger Stern and Bob Hall. However, Tigra struggled with her feline instincts and started simultaneously romancing her teammates Hank Pym and Wonder Man. 

After brutally attacking Hawkeye while training, Tigra ended up in the Land Within, the underworld home of the Cat People, in WEST COAST AVENGERS (1985) #15 by Steve Englehart and Al Milgrom. There, she learned of the Cat People's demonic origins and took down Balkatar, their champion. As a result, she gained greater control over her feline physiology and instincts.   

During their time on the West Coast Avengers, Tigra and Moon Knight began dating after she kissed him in WEST COAST AVENGERS (1985) #27 by Englehart and Milgrom. Alongside Mockingbird, Tigra and Moon Knight formed a splinter group that embraced more aggressive tactics. After Moon Knight left that group and ended their relationship, Tigra returned to the main team, where she devolved into a catlike state. 

Through another encounter with the Cat People, Agatha Harkness helped Tigra mystically restore her humanity. However, Tigra was wounded in battle and ultimately left the team to stay with a group of Indigenous Australians in WEST COAST AVENGERS (1985) #74 by Roy Thomas, Dann Thomas, and David Ross.

ACROSS THE COSMOS

After her time with the West Coast Avengers, Tigra prowled around the periphery of the Avengers' world. For instance, while traveling through the cosmos with Starfox, she joined a makeshift team of Avengers in outer space in AVENGERS: INFINITY (2000) #1 by Roger Stern and Sean Chen. Together, Tigra and her allies convinced a group of cosmic beings known as Infinites to stop rearranging planets around the universe, a process that took countless lives. Then, when the Kree turned Earth into an alien prison in MAXIMUM SECURITY (2000), Tigra and her team played a crucial role in revealing the Kree's expansionist intentions to the rest of the universe.

Following her cosmic adventures, Tigra began investigating the Brethren of the Blue Fist, a group of police officers involved in her husband's murder, in TIGRA (2002) #1 by Christina Z and Mike Deodato Jr. While undercover as a police cadet, she exposed the Brethren for executing her husband as well as several suspected criminals.

THE INITIATIVE AND AVENGERS ACADEMY

Following her police training, Tigra continued to work as a legally sanctioned crime fighter. During CIVIL WAR (2006), Tigra supported Iron Man's Pro-Registration faction and spied on Captain America's Anti-Registration side. After Stark's side won, Tigra joined the Initiative, where she helped train sanctioned heroes and survived a brutal battle with the Hood. 

Tigra also seemingly rekindled her romance with Hank Pym, who had been replaced by a Skrull sleeper agent. After the Skrulls attacked in SECRET INVASION (2008), Tigra revealed she was pregnant in AVENGERS: THE INITIATIVE (2007) #20 by Dan Slott, Christos Gage, and Steve Kurth. 

When Norman Osborn took over the Initiative and threatened to experiment on her child, Tigra left the group and joined the outlaw heroes of the Avengers Resistance. After a quick pregnancy, Tigra gave birth to a son, William Grant Nelson, and left him under the protection of the Cat People in AVENGERS: THE INITIATIVE (2007) #35 by Gage and Jorge Molina. 

Once the Initiative was shuttered, Tigra joined the Avengers Academy, where she taught a new generation of heroes and rekindled her romance with the real Pym. Due to the completeness of the Skrull's transformation into Pym, William was revealed to be the genetic son of Tigra and Pym, carrying his mother's feline powers as well as alien DNA.

TIGRA AND THE DEFENDERS

Once Avengers Academy closed its doors, Tigra spent time with several short-lived groups of heroes. For instance, Misty Knight and Valkyrie (Brunnhilde) recruited Tigra to help them take on Asgard's Doom Maidens in FEARLESS DEFENDERS (2013) #5 by Cullen Bunn and William Sliney.

When a corrupt Captain America and Hydra took over the United States in SECRET EMPIRE (2017), Tigra was part of the Underground that fought Hydra's forces, and she tried to capture the Punisher—who worked with Hydra—once order was restored. M.O.D.O.K. also briefly transformed Tigra into a rampaging 200-foot-tall giant in WEST COAST AVENGERS (2018) #1 by Kelly Thompson and Stefano Caselli, but Hawkeye and his new West Coast Avengers team cut her back down to size. 

As Tigra focused on raising William, she introduced him to Nadia Van Dyne, his genetic half-sister, in UNSTOPPABLE WASP (2018) #7 by Jeremy Whitley and Alti Firmansyah. Having lived much of her life without any family, Nadia—the daughter of Hank Pym and his first wife—was delighted to have a half-sibling. Tigra also briefly served with Loki and Blue Marvel's Defenders before returning to Earth to continue raising her son. 

TIGRA AND MOON KNIGHT

When Moon Knight opened the Midnight Mission to protect nocturnal travelers and anyone else who asked for help, the Avengers recruited Tigra to keep tabs on her old boyfriend. Tigra initially approached Moon Knight as a concerned old friend in MOON KNIGHT (2021) #4 by Jed MacKay and Alessandro Cappuccio, but she grew conflicted as she reconnected with Moon Knight and eventually confessed her secret mission. 

In response, Moon Knight told her he already knew she was spying and said she helped keep him grounded. With Tigra's support, Moon Knight slayed Tutor, the vampiric leader of an organization called the Structure, and ordered the world's vampires to stay out of New York in MOON KNIGHT (2021) #18 by MacKay and Federico Sabbatini. 

Soon, Tigra and Moon Knight grew closer and began dating—until he was mortally wounded by Robert Plesko, a former ally and the new Black Spectre. When Plesko tried to send out a broadcast that would drive everyone in Manhattan insane, a wounded Moon Knight sacrificed his life to stop Plesko's plan in MOON KNIGHT (2021) #30 by MacKay and Cappuccio. 

After Marc's death, Tigra and the rest of the Midnight Mission vowed to continue Moon Knight's mission. However, a mysterious new Moon Knight appeared at the team's base and viciously attacked them in VENGEANCE OF MOON KNIGHT (2024) #2. Certain that the man she loved has not been resurrected, Tigra must push past this new Moon Knight to carry on the original Moon Knight's dream.

Tigra goes on the prowl in VENGEANCE OF MOON KNIGHT #2, now on sale!

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