While it may be hard to imagine the many members of the Avengers as anything other than Earth’s Mightiest Heroes, sometimes superhero-ing doesn’t always pay the bills. The MCU has touched on this point briefly in projects like Falcon and the Winter Soldier and She-Hulk: Attorney at Law, but for the most part, movie fans only see these heroes when they’re out there, saving the world. In the comics, however, there’s a lot more room to dig into these heroes’ personal lives, and that includes the odd jobs they’ve done throughout their Marvel Comics history.

Sometimes a modern hero had a weird gig before professionally suiting-up as an Avenger, other times they did something on the side to make some extra cash, and on at least one occasion, their physical form was being used as a meat puppet which landed them a position as a CEO. While the jobs themselves aren’t overly strange or out of place (even in regard to the characters working them), it’s mostly just weird to imagine these heroes working such jobs at all, especially when compared to their larger-than-life MCU counterparts. With that being said, here are the 10 jobs Avengers members had in Marvel Comics lore that MCU fans won’t believe.

10 Captain America: Police Officer & Comic Book Artist

One of these things is definitely not like the other, but regardless of the seemingly odd juxtaposition, Captain America was both a police officer and a comic book artist when he wasn’t saving the world as an Avenger. Captain America #139 by Stan Lee and John Romita was the issue in which Steve Rogers became a Rookie New York Police Officer, and it was later revealed that he worked in the 3rd Precinct in Manhattan. Then, roughly one hundred issues later in Captain America #237 by Chris Claremont and Roger McKenzie, Rogers pursues a career as a commercial artist, and eventually realizes that he wants to be a comic book artist in issue #310. Not only was he a comic book artist, but Captain America became the artist for the in-world comic series: Captain America. Just as Spider-Man sold pictures of himself to the Daily Bugle, Captain America drew his adventures from memory, and got paid for it.

9 Doctor Strange: Veterinarian

Dr. Stephen Strange is famously a neurosurgeon who got into a terrible accident that rendered his hands totally useless for conducting surgeries. However, it seems people weren’t his only patients in the Marvel Universe, as Doctor Strange spent some time as a veterinarian as well. In Doctor Strange #381 by Donny Cates and Gabriel Hernandez Walta, Doctor Strange passed the mantle of Sorcerer Supreme to Loki, and Stephen decided to use the free time he had as a veterinary surgeon. Not exactly brain surgery (or cosmically powerful magic, for that matter), but incredibly fulfilling nonetheless.

8 Thor: Construction Worker/Architect

Back when Thor was more of an essence who could possess mortals rather than the physical character MCU fans are familiar with, he walked the Earth as a construction worker named Sigurd Jarlson. However, after Jarlson befriended an architect named Eric Masterson, Thor merged with Masterson through Mjolnir, granting this new ‘host’ the Power of Thor (as shown in The Mighty Thor #408 by Tom DeFalco and Ron Frenz). Eric became the Asgardian-powered hero Thunderstrike, and by taking on this role as an alternate God of Thunder, Masterson gave Thor the means to jump careers from construction worker to architect in the blink of an eye.

7 Black Panther: Teacher

In Avengers #77 by Roy Thomas and John Buscema, Black Panther assumes the civilian identity of Luke Charles, and reveals that he’d been working towards becoming a teacher - specifically African history. T’Challa did this in order to make an even bigger impact on the youth of America after agreeing to become an Avenger and relocate to New York City (which originally meant he’d given up his right to the throne of Wakanda). Black Panther knew that teaching was as great of a public service as fighting super-villains, and he created an entirely new identity to take up this profession.

6 Moon Knight: Television Producer

Moon Knight is a character who’s no stranger to working a number of different odd jobs, given that he’s illustrated dissociative identity disorder throughout his publication history, with each of his alternate personalities in different lines of work. However, none have been as odd as when he became a television producer in Moon Knight Vol. 6 #1 by Brian Michael Bendis and Alex Maleev. In that first issue, it’s revealed that Moon Knight (specifically Marc Spector) has created a television show called “the Legend of Khonshu”, which was based on his life as the superhero Moon Knight. Like Captain America with his comics, Moon Knight capitalized on his heroic escapades in the form of entertainment.

5 Jane Foster’s Thor: Mortician

Jane Foster has been a medical professional since her first appearance, and even officially became a doctor in 1998’s Thor #1 by Dan Jurgens and John Romita. Even as the Mighty Thor, Dr. Foster was a proud representative of the medical profession, including during her brief stint as a mortician. Definitely an odd transition for Jane, especially given the nature of her original field of study and practice, though not one that she necessarily chose. In fact, it was because of her god-tier alter-ego that she was demoted to morgue assistant at her hospital, given the amount of work she’d missed saving the world. No good deed goes unpunished, though sometimes it inadvertently builds a resume.

4 Iron Man: Secretary of Defense

Tony Stark is one of the smartest people in the Marvel Universe, proven true by the unbelievable suits of high-tech armor he’s able to build, even with close to no resources. But, apparently he wasn’t smart enough to secure a patent for his own tech while simultaneously violating an agreement made after the Armor Wars event. This meant that the U.S. government had legal access to Iron Man’s suits. So, as seen in Iron Man Vol. 3 #73 by John Jackson Miller and Jorge Lucas, Tony becomes Secretary of Defense to keep a closer eye on how his tech is being used, thereby reaffirming the status of his own intelligence in the face of adversity.

3 The Thing: Fighter Pilot

While every Fantastic Four fan knows about Ben Grimm’s proficiency as an astronaut, few may know that he was first a fighter pilot during World War II (even going on missions with the likes of Wolverine and Nick Fury). This aspect of the Thing’s life was first revealed in Fantastic Four #11 by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby. While it shouldn’t be too surprising given that astronauts can be recruited because of their military piloting experience, this is a fact about the Thing that isn’t usually highlighted a great deal in modern canon, and is quite overshadowed by the fact that he’s a prominent member of one of Marvel’s greatest superhero teams.

2 Spider-Man: CEO Parker Industries

Making its Marvel Comics debut in Superior Spider-Man #20 by Dan Slott and Giuseppe Camuncoli, Parker Industries was an aerospace, security, defense, and advanced technologies company based in New York City (the Baxter Building, to be precise) with buildings all over the globe - and Peter Parker was the President and CEO. Well, kind of. In truth, it was Otto Octavius aka Doc Ock who started the company. Granted, he did so while he was inhabiting Peter Parker’s body, so it still counts as a very impressive resume-builder for Pete.

1 Hawkeye: Circus Performer

Being a performer with a traveling circus wasn’t just some job Clint Barton did in-between being an Avenger, it’s how he cultivated the skills that made him an Avenger. In Avengers #19 by Stan Lee and Don Heck, it’s revealed that, as a boy, Hawkeye was trained by a man called the Swordsman, someone who also worked in the circus and used it as a cover to commit seemingly impossible crimes. While the Swordsman wasn’t the most moral teacher, he was someone with proven skills, and it was Clint’s time traveling with the circus that brought this master and apprentice together, resulting in one iconic Avenger.

While each one of these professions contributes to the larger functioning of modern society as a whole, it’d still unarguably be pretty weird to see any of these 10 Avengers working them in an MCU movie or show, despite its accuracy to Marvel Comics lore.