(no subject)
Another list because lists are the domain of the uncreative. Liz came up with a few other suggestions for me the other night and said if I wasn't going to sleep I might as well entertain her. I couldn't totally argue with that. At least she finds me entertaining. I doubt a lot of the people reading this care. That's because those people are wrong. Anyway, her excellent idea was a top 10 legacy heroes. Which is a fantastic idea because I love legacy heroes, those who take up the mantle to carry on for the original (or in some cases the 2nd or 3rd). Here is my list
10. Mister Terrific (Michael Holt) - Mister Terrific is a fantastic character in both incarnations. I love a guy who is just sitting around and says, "You know what? I'm smarter than everyone else. I think I should go fight crime". He then puts the words "Fair Play" on his clothing and punches people. Michael Holt is the world's third smartest man. He holds 14 PHDs and black belts in 5 different martial arts. He took over the legacy of a pretty much forgotten Golden Age hero and became the leader of the Justice Society of America. He is a pretty solid fighter but the thing I love about him is how he will pull a Batman so often, he'll just stand in the background and watch until he comes up with a brilliant idea to win.
9. Hawkeye (Kate Bishop) - The only person who truly counts as a legacy character in the Young Avengers, Kate Bishop was a girl who suffered an attack in central park and turned it around by training herself in martial arts. That part is kind of cliche. The good part is that she is a fun character and a bad ass fighter. She has taken up the weapons and style of 3 classic human Avengers: Hawkeye, Mockingbird, and the Swordsman. Her costume is cool as hell, I love the idea of a famous socialite being the scrapper on her team, and the Young Avengers in general are just cool as hell.
8. Superboy (Conner Kent) - The second and current Superboy, the first being the man himself, Clark Kent, Conner Kent has the sort of origin you only find in comics. He is the cloned son of Superman and Lex Luthor who was artificially aged to 14 years old. He was supposed to be aged to adulthood and replace Superman but in the fight that caused Superman's death, something happened and Superboy broke free. He is an interesting mix of Superman and Spider-man. I love his sense of humor and teen angst and I also love how often and effortlessly he embodies the power and magesty of Superman. And I actually like his costume, no matter how much everyone else rags on it.
7. Flash (Wally West) - Speaking of great costumes, one of the greatest costumes in comics belong to the Flash. Wally West was the third man to carry the name and the second to wear this costume. His journey is my favorite type of legacy hero, he started as Kid Flash, side kick to his uncle Barry Allen, the second and best known Flash. After Barry gave his life to save the universe (because if you're going to die that's a pretty good way to go, you can totally one up the chumps who died saving a bus full of orphans when you get to the after life), Wally was reluctant but eventually took up the mantle. He sucked at first, too. He was a jerk and a womanizer and pretty annoying. He eventually grew into the role and became the greatest Flash ever, finally joining the speed force with his wife and children for a happy ending. Until he came back, because, you know, it's comics.
6. Starman (Jack Knight) - Jack Knight is about as 90's as you can get and in some way it's a little embarrassing to read his 80 issue long story because I thought everything he did was so cool back then. Of course, it was so cool back then, Starman is really one of the quintessential works of fiction about the 1990's, though only I and numerous reviewers seem to know it. Jack Knight is a snotty, ironic jerk when we first meet him. He's too cool for heroism or costumes or anything like that. He is distant from his lame father and more interested in nostalgia for things his father hated than his father's heroic legacy. What makes him so great is his travel from 30 something shit head to heroic protector of Opal City. In the end, he is one of the most interesting, capable, and heroic legacy characters ever.
5. Stargirl (Courtney Whitmore) - I'd be lying if I said the fact that this is Liz's favorite super hero didn't influence her position on this list. That said< I get it, Stargirl is a lot of fun. Originally, she was known as the Star Spangled Kid, carrying on first the legacy of the Golden Age Hero team the Star Spangled Kid and Stripesy, joined by her step father who wore the S.T.R.I.P.E. battle suit and worked more like her chaperon than someone interested in heroing. Upon Jack Knight's retirement she agreed to take on his heroic legacy. What really makes her stand out in my mind is that she is more experienced than most of the people on this list. Starting in junior high it wasn't long until she joined the JSA. She has actually been a member of the JSA longer than anyone except the originals, the guys who have been doing this for 50 years. I have to be impressed by an 18 year old girl who is seen as an elder statesman in the hero community. More impressive, though it all she has always remained cheerful and fun, never hitting that angsty phase that seems to almost be a requirement of heroes. She acts like having super powers is, you know, fun.
4. Green Lantern (Kyle Rayner) - Kyle Rayner is awesome. He got to become Green Lantern just when all the benefits of being a Green Lantern disappeared. No big home world with lots of resources, no corp of 4000+ members, no real guidance. Just a ring and a bunch of villains that wanted to take his head off. The guy was a completely inexperienced rookie but managed to hang on to be my favorite Green Lantern. He hung with the greatest Justice League of all time and didn't only hold his own, he thrived. He kept things together until the Green Lantern Corp finally returned and took his place among their honor guard.
3. Blue Beetle (Ted Kord) - Poor, poor Ted Kord. He is a hard luck story, he got to see his best friend Dan Garrett die in front of his eyes. As Dan died he revealed that he was the Blue Beetle and asked Ted to carry on. Problem was, Dan had a mystic scarab that gave him super strength and invulnerability and basically a bunch of Superman knock off abilities, the scarab didn't work for Ted. Ted had a bunch of things he invented and that was it. So he fought crime with gadgets and a left hook and was mainly taken as a joke, which was a shame because he was a good hero. He proved it in the end when he knew something was going down and no one believed him, because, well, he was a joke. Well, he proved it but it cost him his life. His death managed to actually shake the major heroes out of their sleep walking and caused them to save all of reality just in time. Of course, Ted's still dead, so that might be cold comfort.
2. Captain America (James Barnes) - There have been more Captain Americas than you can shake a stick at. Most of them haven't fared very well, they either get killed in action or go insane trying to match the legacy of the original, Steve Roger. Luckily for America, Steve Rogers eventually came back and lead a new generation of heroes. When he was finally killed a few years ago the man to take up his mantle and do it right was his original sidekick, Bucky. A very different kind of hero, Bucky has no super soldier serum in his veins and instead has to make up for it by fighting dirty and smart. He is fascinating to watch struggle with the legacy and it probably doesn't hurt that all of this is part of the greatest Captain America story ever told.
1. Robin (Tim Drake) - The third man to be called Robin, Tim Drake is the best. Oh, I love Dick Grayson but he never really wanted to be Robin, he always wanted to be something more, and he became more. Tim Drake though, he was much more comfortable in the role of Robin. It was all he aspired to be and it's probably why he did it so well. Dick was the better fighter but Tim more accurately mirrored him mentor, proving to be as capable a tactician and detective as Batman himself. Tim was able to be a hero in his own right in the costume, not just a sidekick and lead Young Justice and the Teen Titans successfully until finally being driven out of the costume by the constant loss it brought him. Still, Tim Drake is my favorite Robin and I think the fact that he was able to support a 175 issue long series as the character in an industry where 30 issues is a long run for any character whose series didn't start in 1960 says a lot to just how good he was as Robin.
10. Mister Terrific (Michael Holt) - Mister Terrific is a fantastic character in both incarnations. I love a guy who is just sitting around and says, "You know what? I'm smarter than everyone else. I think I should go fight crime". He then puts the words "Fair Play" on his clothing and punches people. Michael Holt is the world's third smartest man. He holds 14 PHDs and black belts in 5 different martial arts. He took over the legacy of a pretty much forgotten Golden Age hero and became the leader of the Justice Society of America. He is a pretty solid fighter but the thing I love about him is how he will pull a Batman so often, he'll just stand in the background and watch until he comes up with a brilliant idea to win.
9. Hawkeye (Kate Bishop) - The only person who truly counts as a legacy character in the Young Avengers, Kate Bishop was a girl who suffered an attack in central park and turned it around by training herself in martial arts. That part is kind of cliche. The good part is that she is a fun character and a bad ass fighter. She has taken up the weapons and style of 3 classic human Avengers: Hawkeye, Mockingbird, and the Swordsman. Her costume is cool as hell, I love the idea of a famous socialite being the scrapper on her team, and the Young Avengers in general are just cool as hell.
8. Superboy (Conner Kent) - The second and current Superboy, the first being the man himself, Clark Kent, Conner Kent has the sort of origin you only find in comics. He is the cloned son of Superman and Lex Luthor who was artificially aged to 14 years old. He was supposed to be aged to adulthood and replace Superman but in the fight that caused Superman's death, something happened and Superboy broke free. He is an interesting mix of Superman and Spider-man. I love his sense of humor and teen angst and I also love how often and effortlessly he embodies the power and magesty of Superman. And I actually like his costume, no matter how much everyone else rags on it.
7. Flash (Wally West) - Speaking of great costumes, one of the greatest costumes in comics belong to the Flash. Wally West was the third man to carry the name and the second to wear this costume. His journey is my favorite type of legacy hero, he started as Kid Flash, side kick to his uncle Barry Allen, the second and best known Flash. After Barry gave his life to save the universe (because if you're going to die that's a pretty good way to go, you can totally one up the chumps who died saving a bus full of orphans when you get to the after life), Wally was reluctant but eventually took up the mantle. He sucked at first, too. He was a jerk and a womanizer and pretty annoying. He eventually grew into the role and became the greatest Flash ever, finally joining the speed force with his wife and children for a happy ending. Until he came back, because, you know, it's comics.
6. Starman (Jack Knight) - Jack Knight is about as 90's as you can get and in some way it's a little embarrassing to read his 80 issue long story because I thought everything he did was so cool back then. Of course, it was so cool back then, Starman is really one of the quintessential works of fiction about the 1990's, though only I and numerous reviewers seem to know it. Jack Knight is a snotty, ironic jerk when we first meet him. He's too cool for heroism or costumes or anything like that. He is distant from his lame father and more interested in nostalgia for things his father hated than his father's heroic legacy. What makes him so great is his travel from 30 something shit head to heroic protector of Opal City. In the end, he is one of the most interesting, capable, and heroic legacy characters ever.
5. Stargirl (Courtney Whitmore) - I'd be lying if I said the fact that this is Liz's favorite super hero didn't influence her position on this list. That said< I get it, Stargirl is a lot of fun. Originally, she was known as the Star Spangled Kid, carrying on first the legacy of the Golden Age Hero team the Star Spangled Kid and Stripesy, joined by her step father who wore the S.T.R.I.P.E. battle suit and worked more like her chaperon than someone interested in heroing. Upon Jack Knight's retirement she agreed to take on his heroic legacy. What really makes her stand out in my mind is that she is more experienced than most of the people on this list. Starting in junior high it wasn't long until she joined the JSA. She has actually been a member of the JSA longer than anyone except the originals, the guys who have been doing this for 50 years. I have to be impressed by an 18 year old girl who is seen as an elder statesman in the hero community. More impressive, though it all she has always remained cheerful and fun, never hitting that angsty phase that seems to almost be a requirement of heroes. She acts like having super powers is, you know, fun.
4. Green Lantern (Kyle Rayner) - Kyle Rayner is awesome. He got to become Green Lantern just when all the benefits of being a Green Lantern disappeared. No big home world with lots of resources, no corp of 4000+ members, no real guidance. Just a ring and a bunch of villains that wanted to take his head off. The guy was a completely inexperienced rookie but managed to hang on to be my favorite Green Lantern. He hung with the greatest Justice League of all time and didn't only hold his own, he thrived. He kept things together until the Green Lantern Corp finally returned and took his place among their honor guard.
3. Blue Beetle (Ted Kord) - Poor, poor Ted Kord. He is a hard luck story, he got to see his best friend Dan Garrett die in front of his eyes. As Dan died he revealed that he was the Blue Beetle and asked Ted to carry on. Problem was, Dan had a mystic scarab that gave him super strength and invulnerability and basically a bunch of Superman knock off abilities, the scarab didn't work for Ted. Ted had a bunch of things he invented and that was it. So he fought crime with gadgets and a left hook and was mainly taken as a joke, which was a shame because he was a good hero. He proved it in the end when he knew something was going down and no one believed him, because, well, he was a joke. Well, he proved it but it cost him his life. His death managed to actually shake the major heroes out of their sleep walking and caused them to save all of reality just in time. Of course, Ted's still dead, so that might be cold comfort.
2. Captain America (James Barnes) - There have been more Captain Americas than you can shake a stick at. Most of them haven't fared very well, they either get killed in action or go insane trying to match the legacy of the original, Steve Roger. Luckily for America, Steve Rogers eventually came back and lead a new generation of heroes. When he was finally killed a few years ago the man to take up his mantle and do it right was his original sidekick, Bucky. A very different kind of hero, Bucky has no super soldier serum in his veins and instead has to make up for it by fighting dirty and smart. He is fascinating to watch struggle with the legacy and it probably doesn't hurt that all of this is part of the greatest Captain America story ever told.
1. Robin (Tim Drake) - The third man to be called Robin, Tim Drake is the best. Oh, I love Dick Grayson but he never really wanted to be Robin, he always wanted to be something more, and he became more. Tim Drake though, he was much more comfortable in the role of Robin. It was all he aspired to be and it's probably why he did it so well. Dick was the better fighter but Tim more accurately mirrored him mentor, proving to be as capable a tactician and detective as Batman himself. Tim was able to be a hero in his own right in the costume, not just a sidekick and lead Young Justice and the Teen Titans successfully until finally being driven out of the costume by the constant loss it brought him. Still, Tim Drake is my favorite Robin and I think the fact that he was able to support a 175 issue long series as the character in an industry where 30 issues is a long run for any character whose series didn't start in 1960 says a lot to just how good he was as Robin.