|
| 3 people marked this as a favorite. |
Ah, the Sentry and his 'origin.' Fifty years, people have been trying to replicate the super-soldier serum, with *many* horrible failures that killed or deformed their subjects, a serum that made you *not actually superhuman* but just 'as good as a man can get.' Billions of dollars spent, multiple governments working on it, 'top men' are on the job, and it's failure after failure.
And this nobody whips up a dose of something that imbues the drinker with 'the power of 1000 exploding suns.' (A line then dropped with enough frequency that Psylocke, who works 'my psychic knife, the focused totality of my telepathic powers' into ordering lunch at Burger King, thought was a bit overused...)
As someone wittier than myself quipped, 'What was in that vial, anyway? The collected spooge of the Elders of the Universe?' "Mm. Salty!"
And his 'weakness,' the Void, is the sort of thing that even the greenest GM would laugh at. "So, you have all the power of everything in the book, and your *drawback* is that you are going to hog even more of the game and make everyone else feel even more irrelevant when your evil self comes out to play?"
Still. Not at bad as Xorn, the guy who 'has a black hole in his head, which gives him healing powers.'
Or his (totally made up) twin sister Nrox, who has a wormhole in her left eyesocket that gives her the power to make people giggle uncontrollably, or their (also made up) cousin Plop, who has a comet in his liver that gives him the power to make plants grow really fast.
I swear, some of these writers need to cut back on the drugs before designing characters. (Or at least put LSD in the ink, so that the readers can appreciate their 'genius.')
10) Moon Knight (Marc Spector) - I *loved* the stand alone series they put out in the early 80s - drawn by Bill Sienkiewicz - and was seriously unhappy when it was cancelled after only 38 issues.
9) Weapon X/Vindicator/Guardian (James Hudson) if I have to have a guy in a super suit (and yeah - I do have to have one!;) )I'm going with the Canadian one! I was stunned beyond all belief when he was killed in the 12th issue of Alpha Flight - especially when hints were dropped that a character was going to die in issue 12 - most everyone I knew who followed the book figured it would be Marinna or Puck. I almost stopped reading after that issue but I'm glad I didn't - I did gain a lot of respect for John Byrne for that storyline too.
8) Captain America (Steve Rogers) - funny enough this is mainly because of the movies with Cap in them. It made me re-read a lot of the old issues and helped me gain a new insight into the character. He is surprisingly well-rounded as superheroes go.
7) Daredevil (Matt Murdoch) - really only when he was written & drawn by Frank Miller. Easily the high water mark for the series and character - but it is a really, really high mark!
6) Superman (Kal-El/Clark Kent) - while he has been mishandled a lot over the years in both movies & books the iconic superhero is still a fav of mine. The All-Star Superman series they brought out a few years ago was excellent and really captured, imo, the essence of what makes Superman special.
5) The Hulk (Bruce Banner) - the Planet Hulk series blew me away and catapulted Hulk into the #5 spot. The followup World War Hulk wasn't as good but it was still really well done and continued the stories of some characters I would love to have seen more of (the Warbound).
4) Wolverine (Logan) - the one constant in the ever changing XMen title throughout the 80s and 90s Wolverine brought a sense of unity to the team and slowly developed over the years into a well rounded character who (up until I stopped reading XMen in the 90s) we still knew very little about. His past was always shrouded in mystery and really, should have been kept that way.
3) The Batman (Bruce Wayne) - have always liked Batman - from the ridiculously campy 60s TV series to be-masked Batdog and BatImp of the 70s to the Dark Knight badassedness of the 80s right up to modern day - Batman has always been the one unpowered superhero who does constantly looked over matched and out of place amoung the gods, aliens and super powerful people that populate his universe. It helps that the writers they get for his books seem to know Batman really well and how the character works.
2) Adam Warlock (Him) - once Jim Starlin started writing his stories Warlock became my #2 hero almost instantly. I love the cosmic nature of his books over the years and few writers seem to be able to handle tales of 'cosmic' scope like Starlin. This became a perfect match for me as I have always liked those types of stories and Warlock was a perfect vehicle for Starlin to write them through.
1) Spiderman (Peter Parker) - I've read more Spidey stories than anything else and he will always be my #1 superhero. He isn't the most powerful or smartest or cleverest but he always puts the 'hero' part of superhero first. He's the guy stopping muggings and vandalism just because he knows its right. He always looks out for the regular guy since, as his core, that is exactly was Peter Parker is. He's the everyman and he gives hope that we can all make the world a better place...
...just as soon as we can stick to walls and swing on a webline.
RPG Superstar 2009 Top 32, 2010 Top 8
|
It's funny, re-reading and evaluating this thread.
10) Jim Rhodes - I always liked that Rhodey was a hero before he was a Superhero. He really was a 'I do what's right, because I have to. Frak the consequences.' Whether it be when he first wore the Iron Man armor, when he helped Tony at his lowest, or just being an ass beater, he was a hero long before he became the War Machine.
9) Stephanie Brown - So much has been lost in the reboot, and few embody this more than Stephanie. She's dedicated, driven, etc, but never loses her humor and cheerfulness. I'm afraid to see her return to the comics, honestly.
8) Katherine "Kitty" Pryde. While the use of her powers has fluctuated, I like that she, like Jim above, always does what's right.
7) Dani Moonstar - Oh, Dani, how much I love you. From a simple illusion power, to a poorly defined "Reality Warper" to the energy bow, to now just being 'Indian Hawkeye' I love her. I wish someone could write a book with her now, since in a world of old mutants, post AvX mutants, and now inhumans, she's unique as an 'ex-mutant'. She's also Hel's Valkyrie, and SHIELD trained. (aside, a Gillian book with her watching over kid Loki and Leah...)
6) John Stewart (DCAU version) Even though I am old enough for Hal and Guy, John is my Green Lantern, and from the DCAU. I like his seriousness, and his having a romantic and funny side.
5) J'onn J'onzz (Also the DCAU version) I felt with J'onn's outside nature, and that he showed sometimes why he was the last Martian. ("I thought you said you couldn't read their minds." "I will just have to try... harder.")
4) M'gann M'orrse (Both YJ and Comic versions) I like M'gann, she's cheery like Stephanie, and goes against her innate nature as a white martian. She's as powerful as J'onn but tries so hard to just be... human. If J'onn's distance appeals to me, M'gann's trying to fit in.
3) Illyana Rasputin. I barely include her in the hero character, and her current incarnation is not helping. As a kid who had rage issues (that I now know were linked to the depression) Illyana's trying to be good, despite her link to demons and missing chunks of her soul, made her special. I was sad when she lost that battle.
2) Dick Greyson. (like Stephanie, preboot) All the Titans have a special place in my heart, being the first book I read. Dick's problems of being a sidekick though, and rising above it, make him a good hero/role model. I've referenced the line in the Judas Contract several times, about him finding his own identity without it starting "Batman and"
1) Steve Rogers. I thought they caught Steve's nature pretty will in the Captain America movie. He does what's right, and hates bullies. He's a superhero because of the serum, he's a hero even without it.
Now there are several characters (Wolverine, Rose Wilson, all the Secret Six, etc.) that I've enjoyed, but I don't really call them heroes. Anti-heroes, anti-villians, etc. but not heroes. Logan's current path, like Rose's before the reboot, means they might become heroes, rather than anti-heroes, like how Illyna currently is.
In no particular order:
Superman
Nightwing
Flash (Wally West)
Green Lantern (Jon Stewart and Kyle Rayner)
Thor
Captain America
Silver Surfer (Ron Lim era especially)
Nova (Annihalation era +)
Doctor Strange
Iron Fist
Captain America
Thor
Batman
Wonder Woman
Savage Dragon
Martian Manhunter
Aquaman
Thing
Hellboy
Silver Surfer
I'm kind of surprised to see the Silver Surfer on so many lists. I always thought he was a niche character with few fans, as he hasn't had his own book in a long time (that I know of).
Conan
Lobo
D.R. and Quinch
Slaine
Nemesis the Warlock
The Goon
Hellboy
The Preacher
Howard the Duck
Rorschach
Honorable mention for the Silver Surfer and Acroyear from the Micronauts.
In no particular order.
Invincible (great comic)
Nightcrawler
Iron Man (first comic I ever collected)
Hellboy
Daredevil (not always the best comic but the concept is awesome)
Storm (one of the coolest character designs ever)
Groo (Of Groo it has been often said, that nothing lurks within his head.)
Wolverine (I hate putting him on the list because he is in ever f^&ing comic these days but he is cool when taken in reasonable doses.)
Captain Marvel (Mar-vell or Carol Danvers they are both awesome)
Colossus
I've never been much of a DC comic book fan. The comics just never appealed to me. Keep in mind I was an avid comic reader before Crisis on infinite earths so the quality at DC was pretty meh back then. I do enjoy the DC characters as movies and animation but not so much for comics.
-MD
I tend to like the more obscure characters than the usual suspects:
Jocasta - best designed female robot ever
Kole - love the costume
Moondragon - love the b&&$@iness
Flash (Barry Allen) - love the soap operas of his life
Aurora - love the "slutishness" and the multiple personalities
Black Canary - Love the fishnets
Dark Phoenix - love an asskicking villainess
That is pretty much off the top of my head.
|
|
Kole - love the costume
Moondragon - love the b+$@#iness
Kole is awesome (the visual of her powers is just amazing). How she got dumped in favor of such 'awesome' Titans as Wildebeest and Danny Chase is one of the madness-inducing Lovecraftian mysteries of DC editorial.
But Moondragon? Oh yeah. Enough telepathy to punch through the mental shields of *Galactus* and read his mind, or to mind-control *an entire planet.* Also occasionally remembers her 'backup power' of telekinesis, which has proven sufficient to *block a blow from Thor's hammer.* And a martial artist, master of an alien style that allowed Mantis, fellow Pama-trained fighter, to throw super-powered Avengers around. Also has the technical skills and equipment necessary to *create super-people* when she is in the mood. Snarky and morally ambiguous before Emma Frost/White Queen and Karla Sofen/Moonstone made it cool. Finally, Persis Khambatta-hot, with that shiny head. What's not to love?
On the one hand, it could be fun to see her snark with Emma Frost on a team, and on the other hand, she's so far out of Emma's league, I'd feel bad for Emma. Moondragon would have to pair up with Moonstone, from the time when she had both of the moonstones and her powers were amped up, or perhaps Sersi, but that much power and attitude on one team might threaten the stability of the 616 universe...
Kole is awesome (the visual of her powers is just amazing). How she got dumped in favor of such 'awesome' Titans as Wildebeest and Danny Chase is one of the madness-inducing Lovecraftian mysteries of DC editorial.
If memory serves, none of Kole's replacements that came afterward lasted long (Chase, WBeast, Pantha...all dead I might add). The team basically jumped the shark after Kole's departure and never recovered.
|
|
If memory serves, none of Kole's replacements that came afterward lasted long (Chase, WBeast, Pantha... all dead I might add). The team basically jumped the shark after Kole's departure and never recovered.
After Crisis, DC put some serious focus into the relaunches of Superman (Man of Steel), Batman (Year One) and Wonder Woman (Gods & Mortals), and the Teen Titans (among others, like the Legion of Super-Heroes) seem to have suffered for that shift in attention, from what was already popularly and financially successful, to what they *wanted* to be successful (their 'iconic' brand name properties).
It is always kind of neat what characters 'stick' and which ones fail to find traction no matter how much build-up they get from their creators. Jericho was hard sold by his creators, and never really took off. Dick Grayson remains incredibly popular, despite DC's leadership having agitated multiple times to kill him off, because they have niche space for a Batman and a Robin, but no 'place' in the corporate flowchart for a character that has spun off and made his own name and niche. Same with Garth/Tempest. There's always room for an Aqualad and an Aquaman, but step outside of those roles, and it's into the deep fat fryer, fishboy. Roy Harper as Arsenal or Donna Troy as Troia were apparently also a sticking point, pre-nuDCU. There's room for a sidekick (Speedy or Wonder Girl), *or* the grown up / graduated version (Green/Red Arrow or Wonder Woman), but no room at all for a sidekick that grew up and found a new identity / role, other than replacing their adult mentor.
Something less binary than an inevitable progression from 'Robin -> Batman' is seen as too 'confusing,' or 'diluted the brand,' or whatever, and a Nightwing book could be seen as distracting from their 'core competency' of six different Batman books.
I suspect the sidelining of Wally West, Kyle Rayner, John Stewart, Conner Hawke, etc. might be similar marketing-based decisions, to try and streamline and solidify the Flash and Green Lantern 'brands' under a single recognizable name, rather than risk diluting them (or perpetuating the fragmentation of the customerbase, by having multiple Flashes and Green Lanterns).
In no particular order
Gambit
Spider-Man
Wolverine
Iron Man
Batman
Venom
Deadpool
Nightwing/Robin (Dick Grayson)
Raphael TMNT
Rogue
Nightcrawler
]Honorable mentions:
Warbird
Warbird??!!! It's Ms. Marvel to you!
I never like that moniker...Warbird.
Finally, Persis Khambatta-hot, with that shiny head. What's not to love?
Persis Khambatta (RIP) was one the few women who looked better bald than with a full head of hair.
It seems after the Star Trek Movie, artists start to have Moondragon looking like Lt. Ilia.
Kole is awesome (the visual of her powers is just amazing). How she got dumped in favor of such 'awesome' Titans as Wildebeest and Danny Chase is one of the madness-inducing Lovecraftian mysteries of DC editorial.If memory serves, none of Kole's replacements that came afterward lasted long (Chase, WBeast, Pantha...all dead I might add). The team basically jumped the shark after Kole's departure and never recovered.
IIRC, kole was set up as a character to troll the audience by killing her off. I read that in an ooooooooooooold issue of amazing heroes, one of the first comic 'zines I ever read. If I'm right, her slot in the team went to other characters that were supposed to be killed off(pantha, wildebeest, etc...).
If memory serves, none of Kole's replacements that came afterward lasted long (Chase, WBeast, Pantha... all dead I might add). The team basically jumped the shark after Kole's departure and never recovered.After Crisis, DC put some serious focus into the relaunches of Superman (Man of Steel), Batman (Year One) and Wonder Woman (Gods & Mortals), and the Teen Titans (among others, like the Legion of Super-Heroes) seem to have suffered for that shift in attention, from what was already popularly and financially successful, to what they *wanted* to be successful (their 'iconic' brand name properties).
It is always kind of neat what characters 'stick' and which ones fail to find traction no matter how much build-up they get from their creators. Jericho was hard sold by his creators, and never really took off. Dick Grayson remains incredibly popular, despite DC's leadership having agitated multiple times to kill him off, because they have niche space for a Batman and a Robin, but no 'place' in the corporate flowchart for a character that has spun off and made his own name and niche. Same with Garth/Tempest. There's always room for an Aqualad and an Aquaman, but step outside of those roles, and it's into the deep fat fryer, fishboy. Roy Harper as Arsenal or Donna Troy as Troia were apparently also a sticking point, pre-nuDCU. There's room for a sidekick (Speedy or Wonder Girl), *or* the grown up / graduated version (Green/Red Arrow or Wonder Woman), but no room at all for a sidekick that grew up and found a new identity / role, other than replacing their adult mentor.
Something less binary than an inevitable progression from 'Robin -> Batman' is seen as too 'confusing,' or 'diluted the brand,' or whatever, and a Nightwing book could be seen as distracting from their 'core competency' of six different Batman books.
I suspect the sidelining of Wally West, Kyle Rayner, John Stewart, Conner Hawke, etc. might be similar marketing-based decisions, to try and streamline and...
One of the best explanations of the corporate side of things I have ever read.
|
RPG Superstar 2009 Top 32, 2010 Top 8
|
It is always kind of neat what characters 'stick' and which ones fail to find traction no matter how much build-up they get from their creators. Jericho was hard sold by his creators, and never really took off. Dick Grayson remains incredibly popular, despite DC's leadership having agitated multiple times to kill him off, because they have niche space for a Batman and a Robin, but no 'place' in the corporate flowchart for a character that has spun off and made his own name and niche. Same with Garth/Tempest. There's always room for an Aqualad and an Aquaman, but step outside of those roles, and it's into the deep fat fryer, fishboy. Roy Harper as Arsenal or Donna Troy as Troia were apparently also a sticking point, pre-nuDCU. There's room for a sidekick (Speedy or Wonder Girl), *or* the grown up / graduated version (Green/Red Arrow or Wonder Woman), but no room at all for a sidekick that grew up and found a new identity / role, other than replacing their adult mentor.
This.
One thing about Bucky is he when he was brought back he became <redacted>* rather than Captain America jr. I think the Warwear** in the old War Machine book was a way to try to make Rhodey more than "Black Iron Man" Even the Young Avengers were more 'based on' than 'carbon copies'
I liked Garth's new powers, and of course am something of a Wingnut. because of the DCAU, John Stewart is 'my' Green Lantern. So the cutting down of the legacy characters is annoying.
Edit: i liked Panthra too. She had the advantage of Wolverine-esque origins (Who am I, what am I? Am I a woman made into a cat, or a cat evolved into a woman?) and slowly developed into a likable character in her actually caring for Leonid and baby Wildebeast.
*
**
Oops, forgot Mr. Terrific so Terry Sloan is one.
IIRC, kole was set up as a character to troll the audience by killing her off. I read that in an ooooooooooooold issue of amazing heroes, one of the first comic 'zines I ever read. If I'm right, her slot in the team went to other characters that were supposed to be killed off(panthta, wildebeest, etc...).
Kole is awesome (the visual of her powers is just amazing). How she got dumped in favor of such 'awesome' Titans as Wildebeest and Danny Chase is one of the madness-inducing Lovecraftian mysteries of DC editorial.
If memory serves, none of Kole's replacements that came afterward lasted long (Chase, WBeast, Pantha...all dead I might add). The team basically jumped the shark after Kole's departure and never recovered.
Kole lasted less than a year. Chase lasted about 3 years, WBeast and Pantha both much longer.
That's farther out than most "planned to die" storylines last.There were also something like 3 years between Kole's death and Chase's introduction so it's hardly like she was dropped in favor of him. Much less the others.
The Titans really didn't recover after Crisis for whatever reason. Wonder Girl's backstory getting screwed up was part of it, but hardly the whole thing. The magic was gone.
It's the slot on the roster, not that the character was introduced to be a kole replacement. An unlucky spot in the rotation, as it were.
Let's say that Crisis of Infinite Earths ruined whatever that George Perez had set up for the Teen Titans.
|
|
I liked the Warwear concept, my only complaint in both cases (War Machine and Warwear) was that Rhodey was *given* the armors. One trend I think *does* need to be addressed is the 'self made' minority superhero. Tony, Hank, Stephen, heck even villians like Doom and Zemo are self made. What minorites do we have? Rocket Racer? Night Thrasher? Prowler?
That's an unfortunate implication that tends to show up with both women and people of color, in the comics.
There are multiple white male characters who *built* their powers, such as Batman or Tony Stark or Hank Pym. Many prominent female or black characters, such as any of the X-women (Jean, Storm, Emma) just were born that way, or were given them by experimentation performed by men and / or white men, or had them handed down by a man or white man or male aliens or whatever (Luke Cage, Carol Danvers, the Wasp, She-Hulk, Black Goliath, War Machine, Mary Marvel, Starfire, John Stewart) making them feel like powerless observers in their own 'origin stories' instead of active participants or drivers of events.
I'm going to argue whether or not it's disproportionately so (all the male mutants, as much as the female mutants, did nothing other than be born to get their powers, and Spider-Man is a famous white dude who got his powers by accident), for a group that might already have a smaller representation on the comic page, even a few such examples can be off-putting, and makes the minority characters who did it on their own (like Steel or Night Thrasher or the second Mr. Terrific) stand out.
It's the slot on the roster, not that the character was introduced to be a kole replacement. An unlucky spot in the rotation, as it were.IIRC, kole was set up as a character to troll the audience by killing her off. I read that in an ooooooooooooold issue of amazing heroes, one of the first comic 'zines I ever read. If I'm right, her slot in the team went to other characters that were supposed to be killed off(panthta, wildebeest, etc...).
Kole is awesome (the visual of her powers is just amazing). How she got dumped in favor of such 'awesome' Titans as Wildebeest and Danny Chase is one of the madness-inducing Lovecraftian mysteries of DC editorial.
If memory serves, none of Kole's replacements that came afterward lasted long (Chase, WBeast, Pantha...all dead I might add). The team basically jumped the shark after Kole's departure and never recovered.
Kole lasted less than a year. Chase lasted about 3 years, WBeast and Pantha both much longer.
That's farther out than most "planned to die" storylines last.There were also something like 3 years between Kole's death and Chase's introduction so it's hardly like she was dropped in favor of him. Much less the others.
The Titans really didn't recover after Crisis for whatever reason. Wonder Girl's backstory getting screwed up was part of it, but hardly the whole thing. The magic was gone.
I disagree. Certainly not a Kole replacement, but also not "supposed to be killed off".
And the team was so different by the time Pantha & Wbeast came around that talking about "the slot" is pretty meaningless. Both of them filled the same slot? And then lasted for a decade before their "supposed to be killed" time came around?
wildebeest and pantha were both on the chopping block for a while. There is a reason they were both killed in the same issue by the same character. The books they were in lost popularity, otherwise they would have met their fates a long time ago. I guess we'll have to agree to disagree.
|
|
Ugh. Superboy Prime. If we had a 'Bottom Ten Comicbook Super characters' thread, he'd be on my list twice.
In the same issue where he decapitates Pantha and kills Wildebaby, he also cuts Bushido in half with his 'heat vision,' and blood spreads out all over the floor around his severed halves, as if the writer / artist had no friggin' clue what 'heat vision' actually meant (or that it would cauterize the wounds), and decided it meant 'sword vision' or something.
TL;DR
Badly written story was bad.
Ugh. Superboy Prime. If we had a 'Bottom Ten Comicbook Super characters' thread, he'd be on my list twice.
In the same issue where he decapitates Pantha and kills Wildebaby, he also cuts Bushido in half with his 'heat vision,' and blood spreads out all over the floor around his severed halves, as if the writer / artist had no friggin' clue what 'heat vision' actually meant (or that it would cauterize the wounds), and decided it meant 'sword vision' or something.
TL;DR
Badly written story was bad.
Oh come now. I liked it. Maybe in more of a guilty pleasure sense of but still.
Matter-eater lad
As he could technically eat any other hero (or anything else) he is by default the greatest hero.
Discuss
|
|
Matter-eater lad
As he could technically eat any other hero (or anything else) he is by default the greatest hero.
Discuss
[tangent]
And by eat any hero, you mean, 'eat any hero that is less than 2 inches tall and can fit in his mouth.' :)Matter Eater Lad is a fun character with a fun personality, but his power requires even more Writer Fiat than Wolverine's claws to actually do anything. He can't even distend his jaw, so, any time you see him biting anything more than 3" across, the writer is cheating. He can't move faster than a normal dude, so any time someone across a room points a gun at him, and the next panel shows a bite mark taken out of the gun and *doesn't* show Matter-Eater Lad with fifty plasma holes in his hide, the writer is cheating.
He's not *useless* by any means, since, like pretty much anyone with a marginal power, he's still got one more super-power than *Batman,* but he's a victim of bad writing, more often than not.
The happily forgotten X-Man Maggott had the same power, but even better, because his little devourer critters were at least big enough to eat a bomb.
Now, since it's been established that Bismollans convert matter they eat into energy, and have invulnerable digestive tissue, being like the opposite of Kryptonians (who can absorb a tiny bit of sunlight on their face and convert it into the power to drop kick the moon out of orbit) in that they use nuclear fission levels of power to walk around and talk and do stuff that the rest of us do normally, it's possible to make super-powered Bismollans that do have impressive powers.
A Bismollan with an 'eating disorder' that results in her not immediately breaking matter down into nuclear energy, but only breaks down matter slowly, and able to open her mouth an unleash some of that slow-burn nuclear explosion as a breath weapon, would rock. Even gulping in some air would allow her to 'burp' out a blast like a hand grenade!
A Bismollan whose outer skin had the same properties as their matter-to-energy converting totally-invulnerable digestive tract (and perhaps the same nasty appearance) would have Superman-level invulnerability *and* the ability to destroy anything they touched by converting it instantly into energy (Ka-blammo!), like the Human Bomb or Antimatterman or whatever.
But Tenzil? Probably should stick to politics.
[/tangent]
Matter-eater lad
As he could technically eat any other hero (or anything else) he is by default the greatest hero.
Discuss
he's my favorite legionnaire.
Matter-eater lad
As he could technically eat any other hero (or anything else) he is by default the greatest hero.
Discuss
[tangent]
And by eat any hero, you mean, 'eat any hero that is less than 2 inches tall and can fit in his mouth.' :)Matter Eater Lad is a fun character with a fun personality, but his power requires even more Writer Fiat than Wolverine's claws to actually do anything. He can't even distend his jaw, so, any time you see him biting anything more than 3" across, the writer is cheating. He can't move faster than a normal dude, so any time someone across a room points a gun at him, and the next panel shows a bite mark taken out of the gun and *doesn't* show Matter-Eater Lad with fifty plasma holes in his hide, the writer is cheating.
He's not *useless* by any means, since, like pretty much anyone with a marginal power, he's still got one more super-power than *Batman,* but he's a victim of bad writing, more often than not.
The happily forgotten X-Man Maggott had the same power, but even better, because his little devourer critters were at least big enough to eat a bomb.
Now, since it's been established that Bismollans convert matter they eat into energy, and have invulnerable digestive tissue, being like the opposite of Kryptonians (who can absorb a tiny bit of sunlight on their face and convert it into the power to drop kick the moon out of orbit) in that they use nuclear fission levels of power to walk around and talk and do stuff that the rest of us do normally, it's possible to make super-powered Bismollans that do have impressive powers.
A Bismollan with an 'eating disorder' that results in her not immediately breaking matter down into nuclear energy, but only breaks down matter slowly, and able to open her mouth an unleash some of that slow-burn nuclear explosion as a breath weapon, would rock. Even gulping in some air would allow her to 'burp' out a blast like a hand grenade!
A Bismollan whose outer skin had the same...
stuff and nonsense.
First off there has been some confusion as to whether or not he eats super quickly or not. I've seen him devour a pair of energy rifles he snatched from two different terrorists halfway down the barrel each, and I've also seen him bite the atomic Axe in half. Not damage it, SUNDER the most powerful individual weapon in the universe in. one. bite. While the overall speed and utility of his abilities depends on the situation and yes, the writer, to say that he requires writer fiat to do anything in the same paragraph you mention Batman is disingenuous at best.
Tenzil should have lead the Legion for a while not just been a politician/lawyer. And btw, he married freaking Saturn Queen. Let's see bats do that.
|
Mine:
1. Supergirl - Kara Zor-El (Pre-Nu52, which goes for ANY DC character on this list, and preferably Pre-Crisis for Kara). This one is heads and shoulders above any other character on my list. I adore Pre-Crisis Kara, and even Post-Crisis Kara in the right hands (Sterling Gates, I'm looking right at you.) Crisis #7 is still my all time favorite comic book. I have Action Comics #252 in a frame, and right next to a copy of Crisis #7 signed by George Perez.
2. Kitty Pryde
3. Dick Grayson (any incarnation)
3. Roy Harper
4. Superman
5. Nightcrawler
6. Captain America
7. Donna Troy
8. Wally West
9. Starfire
10. Tim Drake
#1
Damn awesome Cori. Damn awesome.
Still love my post crisis high school Kara, though. Got into a real fight over her once, twas awesome.
10. Huntress
9. Superman..just cause well he's superman
8. Batman..my favorite DC
7. Nightcrawler-love the teleporation
6. Thor-cause I love norse myths
5. Commander Rann of the micronaughts--he had the enimga force
4. Buck Rogers
3. Flash Gordon -inspiration for Star wars..my fav movie
2. Conan the Barbarian
1. Spiderman..the original..no freaking reboots..grew up reading him and lsitening too the thehe.."is he strong, listen bub, he's got radioactive blood, can he swing froma thread, take a look overhead"
Care to provide a narrative, FDM?#1
Damn awesome Cori. Damn awesome.
Still love my post crisis high school Kara, though. Got into a real fight over her once, twas awesome.
Oh yikes.
The fight started off as the usual comic book store nerdfest over which supergirl was superior. I stated I liked post crisis non angel highschool girl supergirl best, and the guy who ended up disagreeing with me most laughed and called me a pervert. I used my beloved power girl quote regarding her boob window to counter, and this guy kinda lost it.
He went on and on (and on) about how sex was bad and Kara was wonderful because she was never going to have premarital sex EVER and all other superhero females were sluts. This began to make others around him uncomfortable, and I was considering leaving the conversation entirely, but he persisted on how he couldn't like wonder woman anymore because she was with Superman outside of marriage and Kara was his last hope to give to his daughter as an icon and the writers were ruining it. I gently directed him towards dcs kid friendly comic line at the time, but he just wouldn't calm down. I eventually extracted myself (don't remember how) and avoided the guy next time I saw him.
Don't get me wrong, I also liked Post-Crisis Kara, but too often for my liking she was written as an insufferable brat.#1
Damn awesome Cori. Damn awesome.
Still love my post crisis high school Kara, though. Got into a real fight over her once, twas awesome.
fair. I find her written like a 40 year old woman in a teenagers body most times.
|
|
This is the Iron Age of comics. Soon the gods will kill us all.
The Iron Age was the '90s, with all the pouches and guns.
Then came the Plutonium Age. Toxic and radioactive.
Now we're up to our hips in the Quantum Age, where anything written will probably no longer be in continuity by the time the issue hits the stands. Unless it is. Until it isn't again.
Fantastic Four have always been my favorite but since they are a group I will pick:
Thing
Batman
Invisible Woman (she doesn't get nearly enough play and should get more pub as a strong female character)
Captain America
Flash (Wally West)
Green Lantern
Superman (not my cup of tea as he is too hard to challenge but he is iconic)
Wonder Woman (as portrayed on Justice League cartoon)
Magneto (when he is a good guy because this is a hero list)
Wolverine (overdone but cool back in the Claremont days)
Any age in which Emma Frost talks shi+ to Thor and then kicks his ass can't be over too fast. So effin' stupid.This is the Iron Age of comics. Soon the gods will kill us all.The Iron Age was the '90s, with all the pouches and guns.
Then came the Plutonium Age. Toxic and radioactive.
Now we're up to our hips in the Quantum Age, where anything written will probably no longer be in continuity by the time the issue hits the stands. Unless it is. Until it isn't again.
I couldn't agree more. I stopped paying attention to Frost when from nowhere she can suddenly turn into diamond. What happened to the just telepath? Was that ever even explained. I only duck my head into comics a couple times a year these days.