| White Tiger | |
|---|---|
 Ava Ayala (right) andJulie Power (left) as depicted inAvengers Academy #24 (January 2012). Art by Rodin Esquejo. | |
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | Marvel Comics |
| First appearance | Avengers Academy #20 (December 2011) |
| Created by | Christos Gage Tom Raney |
| In-story information | |
| Alter ego | Ava Ayala |
| Species | Human mutate |
| Team affiliations | Daughters of Liberty Avengers Academy Mighty Avengers Heroes for Hire S.H.I.E.L.D. |
| Notable aliases | White Tiger |
| Abilities |
|
White Tiger (Ava Ayala) is asuperheroine appearing inAmerican comic books published byMarvel Comics. Created byChristos Gage andTom Raney, the characterfirst appeared inAvengers Academy issue #20 (December 2011).[1] Ava Ayala is the fifth incarnation ofWhite Tiger. She is the younger sister ofHector Ayala as well as the aunt ofAngela del Toro.[2] The character has also been a member of theMighty Avengers and theNew Avengers at various points in her history.[3]
Ava Ayala debuted in the twentieth issue of the 2010Avengers Academy series, and was created by writerChristos Gage and artistTom Raney. She later appeared in the 2013Mighty Avengers, byAl Ewing.[4] She appeared in the 2015New Avengers series, byAl Ewing. She appeared in the 2021 and 2022Marvel's Voices: Comunidades anthology series.[5][6][7][8][9]
Ava, the fifth White Tiger, is the sister of Hector Ayala and a student of theAvengers Academy. She inherited the White Tiger amulet from her brother and came to live with her sister Awilda's family afterGideon Mace killed her parents. Upon her introduction, Ava states the White Tiger is a family legacy that she intends to honor. She also criticizes classmateReptil for not being more active in theHispanic community.[10][11]
During theInfinity storyline, White Tiger andHeroes for Hire thwartPlunderer's plan to steal robot parts. When theSuperior Spider-Man (Doctor Octopus' mind in Spider-Man's body) stops Plunderer and considers the Heroes for Hire team as mercenaries, White Tiger quits the team and joins theMighty Avengers.[12]
During theSecret Wars storyline, White Tiger attempts to reconcile with her surviving family members. They are angered that she has chosen a violent lifestyle and threaten to kill her if she does not leave.[13]
In theAll-New, All-Different Marvel event, White Tiger joinsSunspot's incarnation of theNew Avengers.[14]
Ava later battles her nieceAngela del Toro in Rome, during which their respective tiger gods and amulets merge.[15]
During the New Revengers' attack on the New Avengers at Avengers Base Two, Ava battles Angela again, destroys her amulet, and frees her from the Tiger God's influence. The two later help the New Avengers defeat the New Revengers and a rogueS.H.I.E.L.D. agent who was huntingA.I.M. After defeating a rogue A.I.M. group, Ava and Angela discuss their future, with Ava wondering who the Tiger God will choose to be the next White Tiger.[16]
While attempting to reconnect with the Tiger God, Ava is visited by Hector's ghost, who appears to her in agony. Ava believes that there is more to their parents' murder and returns to their place of death to investigate, believing that it would put Hector's ghost to rest. However,D'Spayre reveals himself to be controlling Hector and uses Hector's and Ava's combined grief to take a physical form. Without the amulets' power, Ava is nearly overwhelmed by D'Spayre, but finds herself in the Tiger God's realm and reunited with the freed Hector. The Tiger God makes Ava his permanent host, which not only returns the amulets' power but permanently fuses with Ava's body, granting her enough power to destroy D'Spayre. She later helps Angela protect activists fromRoxxon and the two reconcile.[17]
The White Tiger amulet augments Ava Ayala's physical abilities to superhuman levels. Additionally, she possesses sharp claws and is trained in martial arts.[18]
After becoming a permanent host of the Tiger God, the White Tiger amulets fused with her body, which further empowered her and gave her the ability to generate a mystical jade colored aura which she can use to enhance her attacks, particularly infusing it with her claws.[19]
Adam Barnhardt ofComicBook.com called Ava Ayala a "fan-favorite Avengers character," writing, "While mystical at heart, White Tiger has often found herself as one of the street-level characters Marvel fans have long hoped to see in live-action."[20] Evan Lewis ofMovieWeb ranked Ava Ayala 6th in their "10 Female Characters the MCU Should Introduce in Future Phases" list, saying, "She would be refreshing and bring something new to the table."[21] Megan Nicole O'Brien ofComic Book Resources ranked Ava Ayala 8th in their "Every Member Of The Daughters Of Liberty" list,[22] Daniel Kurland while ranked her 15th in their "15 Obscure Marvel Characters Who Deserve Their Own Movie" list.[23] Jack Walters ofScreen Rant called Ava Ayala the "White Tiger that most Marvel fans know and love from the comics."[24]
An alternate universe variant of Ava Ayala from Earth-11080 appears inMarvel Universe vs. The Avengers. This version is one of the last surviving students of the Avengers Academy following a virus outbreak. After she,Mettle,Veil, andStriker are infected, they begin wearing Doomstones to prevent it from taking over them before Ava is killed by an infectedRed Hulk.[25][26]
