Who are the Spider-Girl people? Are they among us even now?
Mere weeks after fuming that two of Marvel's more interesting new titles, S.W.O.R.D. and Doctor Voodoo, were already getting canceled before even finishing their first story arcs, I opened Google Reader this weekend to the (not particularly substantiated) rumor that the company will soon be announcing a brand new Spider-Girl series. Again.
For those of you who are uninitiated: Spider-Girl was featured in an issue of What If? back in the nineties (not the printing-money, collectible nineties; the bankruptcy, office-furniture-for-sale nineties) about a possible future in which Spider-Man's teenage daughter discovered she had inherited her middle-aged dad's super powers. You can tell Spider-Man is middle-aged in the book because he has a moustache. I can't grow a moustache; that's how I know I'm not middle-aged yet.
(During the Decade of Terrible Spider-Ideas, the "current" Peter Parker and Mary Jane did indeed get pregnant with a little girl, but luckily someone eventually violently shook the editor asleep at that particular switch until he woke up and made the baby go away in a rollicking, super-fun, web-swinging stillborn adventure. Marvel magically made Spider-Man's marriage disappear two years ago, and there are still people saying, "Why didn't they just have him get a divorce?" I promise you: you don't know how good you got it, True Believer.)
Anyway: the reaction to that What If? among the comics readers who were still hanging in there in 1998 was allegedly so overwhelming that Marvel started a whole new line of comics called MC2 based on the alternate future it posited. Spider-Girl got her own book in that line– featuring Tom Defalco and roughly the same creative team that Amazing Spider-Man had employed circa 1985, if memory serves– and though the other books they tried to launch never really took off that book clung to life. If Wikipedia is to be believed, and why wouldn't it be?, Spider-Girl was the longest-running superhero book with a female star in the history of Marvel Comics; she made it all the way to #100.
The thing is, though… that book was always a web's width away from getting the axe. It was a hit at first, but it quickly became the Firefly or Freaks and Geeks of Marvel. When it was being published, I cannot remember a time when I read the words "Spider-Girl" without seeing them preceded by the word "Save." There was always a new petition, always a new letter writing campaign, always a new stay of execution at the last minute. People who will live long, active lives without ever calling their congressmen a single time about anything mobilized to save that book like it was a beagle puppy on the operating table. "Breathe, damn you! Breathe!" said Spider-Girl readers.
And breathe it metaphorically did! The collected digests sold well enough to keep it in print six issues at a time, twelve issues at a time…. When it reached its milestone 100th issue, they did cancel it, but they almost immediately announced that Spider-Girl was getting a brand new book with an all-new, collectible #1 on its cover. Then that book didn't sell, and they announced that her story would continue as a back-up in another book. Then when that book wasn't selling, they announced that Spider-Girl would be available as a digital comic on the web site.
It was at around the "back-up story" point of this journey that I began exclaiming to no one in particular, "Oh my God, which Marvel board member does Tom Defalco have pictures of, and exactly how young was the prostitute? Dan Slott's Thing lasts eight whopping months, and Spider-Girl is on her fourteenth try at bat?"
This character has the tenacity of someone who ought to be called Bedbug-Girl. Every time I'm sure she's left the building for good, I start itching again and realize she's just hiding in the couch now.
And the thing is… I have been elbows-deep in comics for years now. I have engaged with hundreds of comics readers over the years here, and on Twitter, and in extremely tentative face-to-face conversations when you've seen me reading She-Hulk at Subway. In all those interactions, no one has ever, ever piped up and said, "Oh, sure! Huge Spider-Girl fan. Never miss it. I'd punch your granny dead in the face for three more issues."
But they must be out there.
Despite how this may come across, I don't actually have any real problem with Spider-Girl. It's not Deadpool or anything; it reads as though everyone involved cares and is trying to work for a living. I take a look at it every so often in its current form, and it is a perfectly serviceable story that simply happens to be Not For Me. I just can't help but be astonished by its Twinkie-like ability to survive on the shelf as entropy claims so many other things that interest me.
The way I've got it figured is this: there are maybe 5,000 people in all the world who love Spider-Girl, but those 5,000 people will battle with knives in their teeth all the way to the gates of hell for her and then have a picnic in the parking lot. I may not understand the character, but this devotion I understand perfectly.
We all have a pet character, or we know someone who does. Sure, we all have the mainstream, fish-in-a-barrel guy we like. "I'm a Batman guy." "I'm a Wolverine guy." But there's another one too, several tiers below Batman, the one that's in a comic right now but who could just as easily disappear for six years at a time. Maybe you're that person who can't stop trying to get people to buy The Incredible Hercules like you get a cut of the profits. Maybe you were one of the people who, when Ron and I were idly wondering where the hell Havok and Polaris went, did the online equivalent of a fist pump and started typing furiously. Maybe you're someone who's mad I didn't even mention Rachel Summers just now.
The Agents of Atlas seem to be entering Spider-Girl territory, beloved but not bought. Their series didn't sell, so they got a few miniseries and back-up appearances in Hercules. I really… well, I can't say "love," but… I appreciate the Agents of Atlas. I'm glad they have existed this long even as I understand that they aren't for everyone. It's like having a favorite indie band; in a way, the fact that they don't have hits on the radio adds to the appeal.
Recently, it occurred to me that Wonder Man (whose superhero costume is a red leisure suit and sunglasses) had been in the Mighty Avengers but then seemed to disappear without a trace after Secret Invasion. I almost sicced Ron on him before a quick search of the web showed me a small but devoted cult was already keeping track of his whereabouts. Somewhere, someone knows exactly what Wonder Man is up to.
Which characters are my pets? Well, as a kid who came to comics after many Saturdays watching Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends, I was always a little annoyed that the X-Men's Iceman wasn't at least a Hulk-level star. Even now, I see him in the background of X-Men and say, "Tsk! Iceman, you coulda been somebody. Why didn't you study harder? Why didn't you apply yourself?"
I started out joking about him, but since then I've developed an increasingly unhealthy fixation on whether or not someone is finally going to get his/her head out of his/her ass and do something useful with Rom, Spaceknight. I mean, come on! With that premise, the stories write themselves! There's money lying on the table, friend! Spaceknight!
More than all of them, though, I would say my pet has to be Jessica Jones. Brian Bendis' Alias was the book that cemented my return to comics, and when it ended– whether it was because he "told the story he set out to tell" or not– I knew it signaled a change in the direction comics (or, at least, Marvel comics) were headed. Bendis went from that relatively small, intimate book to become the architect of the Marvel Universe, and though I have loved 90% of what his pen has brought to that world I can't help occasionally thinking, "I'd trade 40 Avengers books for another six issues of Alias. Any day of the week, buddy."
What about you? Who's your Spaceknight? Don't act like you don't have one.
Jim Mroczkowski dare not even mention Gambit. His Twitter is much more pithy than this, but only because it has to be.
Find us on Facebook
Follow us on Twitter
Subscribe to our RSS Feed
Some rights reserved.
I too, have always liked Iceman since the days of Saturday Morning Cartoons of my youth. In my mind right now I am shaking my fist to the heavens and demanding, "When God? When will you ensure that this ‘Omega-Class’ Mutant gets the respect that he deserves! When will they stop making him a teen wise-ass? He is more than ‘spidey-banter’ for the X-Men dammit!"
Also, ‘I’d punch your granny dead in the face’, awesome.
Vic Sage…The REAL Question
I like to check in wif Hellboy once and awhile and see how that ol’ horny devil is doing….
Moon Knight and Superman, too…………..I don’t read the titles actively, but I do try to stay updated on what’s happening….I stopped Punisher a few years ago and know I heard he’s back as Frankenscence or some such shite….
Machine Man is my pet character. Hands down.
I love wonderman’s outfit.
Moon Knight, which means less now that he has his own book again, but still. Also a big fan of the Zapata Bros, even after that weak showing in Deadpool Team Up a while back. Need to see more of them.
Jessica Jones is not a bad pet character to have, since she was created/ is presumably beloved by the guy who’s basically running the Marvel Universe. That doesn’t mean Bendis will never screw her up but at least you’ll know who to blame?
I’m pretty devoted to Jessica Jones as well, ditto Renee Montoya — who has the same kind of patron in Greg Rucka that Jessica has in Bendis, so that’s nice.
More vexing are what I feel like are the orphan characters. You can get me to read just about anything by telling me that Corsair (Cyclops’ space-pirate/deadbeat dad) is in it — he’s Han Solo played by Burt Reynolds, what’s not to like? But Ed Brubaker unceremoniously killed him off in a fairly gratuitous X-Men-in-space plot a few years ago. And if Alex and Rachel and Lorna still haven’t gotten back to earth, I’m never gonna see Corsair again.
My friends and I all got obsessed with Matt Fraction’s short-lived series ‘The Order,’ a few years ago, and when Fraction had that group’s leader show up in ‘Iron Man’ in his capacity as Tony’s AA sponsor, it was like Christmas for the (I think, possibly, literally) seven people who cared.
Finally, in the realms of completely obscure characters I’m dying to see again — whatever happened to Cable’s assistant, Irene Merryweather? If the answer is that she’s hanging around with Deadpool, I probably don’t want to know.
Moon Knight is definitely a character that I love. The only problem is nothing has lived up to the original Dough Moench stuff….yet.
Hear hear, let’s light a candle for Iceman. Always been my favourite of the original 5.
I would say that lower profile JSA characters like Doctor Mid-Nite or Wildcat are my pet characters, but recent history shows that I won’t read every book featuring them. While I do own a Doctor Mid-Nite mini series (JSA classified) in issues, I’m not reading the current Justice Society of America. I tried it, but Willingham’s take on the series just isn’t my bag. and that’s okay. The series will come back around and I’ll try it again.
But in terms of fervor, and overall success rate, my real pet characters are probably the Flash Rogues. Hell, I even created their Twitter accounts. 😉
Ricochet, or any of the Slingers, really. Every time I think that I’m the only person on earth who remembers who the hell the Slingers are, one of them pops up for a moment, struggling for breath admidst the waves. Prodigy probably fared the best, with his recurring role in Avengers: Initiative, but Rico did all right for himself in C.B. Cebulski’s criminally underrated "The Loners." Meanwhile, Dusk shows up for one issue of Ms. Marvel, and Hornet gets killed off panel. (Sidenote: Although getting killed off panel is lame, he was killed by WOLVER-Freaking-INE, so that’s worth some bonus points righgt there.)
Bart Allen might top them, though. Yeah, Bart’s pretty rad.
I have a few, The Prowler, Black Cat and then there’s always going to be a soft spot in my heart for Cloak and Dagger
Maybe not as obscure, but anytime Kilowog does just about anything, I get a major green-on. I’d say he’s my favorite GL, even above the humans. *Crosses my fingers for a mini*
she-hulk
Oh, man, I have so many of these pet characters. Caroline already mentioned The Order (and Henry Hellrung in particular), but I’m also a rabid proponent of She-Hulk (WHY DOES SHE NOT HAVE A BOOK RIGHT NOW), the X-Men’s Pixie (so happy she’s getting a miniseries), and, perhaps most obscure of all, Captain America’s 1980s fiance Bernie Rosenthal. The glimpse we got of her in Cap 600 was a dream come true for someone who’s been yearning to find out what she’s been doing since her last appearance at some point in the mid-90s. She’s a Jewish glassblower-turned-lawyer from Brooklyn who figured out that Steve was Cap on her own and would not hear it when he tried to break up with her for her safety. She is AWESOME and needs to be in every comic ever. The Marvel U can always use more lawyers who aren’t Matt Murdock. Bernie could even team up with She-Hulk!
Also, count me among the very possibly 5 people who was SO HAPPY to see a reference to Laurie Collins in the most recent Astonishing X-Men; she was one of my favorites in the New X-Men cast before Kyle and Yost came in and massacred everyone.
Three Characters, Firestar, I desperately want her to join the X-Men and become relevant. Speedball, I want this character back because the Pennace thing isn’t working. Lastly Darkhawk, as someone who got serious about comics in the late 80’s/early 90’s I was really big on Liefield New Mutants/X-Force, New Warriors, and DarkHawk. I would love to see a new Darkhawk ongoing penciled by Mike Manly.
Jean Paul Valley Azrael, The would be red headed step child of the bat family. I remember in the early 2000s wizard did a look at the batman family of books and they didn’t talk about Azrael (whom still had an ongoing at the time and it lasted a few more years after the article) I mean they mentioned the Huntress and Spoiler but not the guy that Was Batman for a little over year? I’ll be honest I sent several angry letters to wizard as well as a slew of emails, and never got a response. To this day I still get a little twitch in my eye when I think about this slight, but I’ve moved on from it … sorta…
I like Spider-Girl. It’s a fun book for the people who started reading comics during the Clone Saga.
Otherwise, I desperately want a Starman (Thom Kallor) book. Everything he does is fun. And sloppy joes! ON WEDNESDAYS!
Spider-Man is my character that I’ll read every important book he’s in.
If "Pet characetr" also means less popular character, I’d have to go with…Fantastic Four. If they had an "A list" movie, the mainstream would treat them with the A list respect they deserve. (Even though both FF movies were blockbusters) The Stan Lee stuff is some of the best stuff ever in comics. The JMS and Hickman runs are highly recommended by me as far as modern takes go. (The last 2 issues of the Millar run that were written by someone else were SO BAD, it turned an "A level" run into shit. Pure shit. Lowering it to "C level" status at best.)
Also Sentry, cause he’s f***ing badass! His solo comics and Avengers comics always kick major ass.
@SPEEDBALL
Looks like you’ll be getting yourself a Firestar one shot in April.
I have too many of these pet characters, most of them come from the DCU though. Booster Gold would possibly be the biggest, there is just something about him that I really like.
Stargirl comes to mind too. I know that she’s everywhere in the DCU right now but as soon as Johns is gone, I’m sure she will disapear.
Well I am getting a series with my favorite character Zantanna. Something about the magic realmed characters in DC that strike my interest. On the marvel side of things, I would have to say Ghost Rider. While the series has ended a great run with Jason Aaron I am still hoping that he pops up in the Shadowlands street level series that has been rumored from Marvel
Quicksilver is probably my #1 Marvel pet character. I always liked how he was a hero but very human. He was selfish and had a huge ego. Sometime the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree. My #1 DC pet character would definitely be Jonah Hex and we’ve all heard on again off again rumors of his series cancelation. Deathlok is also another of my favorites and he has a new Marvel Knights series out at the moment.
I used to buy Spider-girl in back issues at cons for $1, but when they cancelled it a 100 i couldn’t keep the interested alive.
As far as Pet Characters i would have to Say She-Hulk, Silver Surfer, most cosmic characters which is why i love what Abnett and Lanning are doing right now.
Guys with a fetish for Spider-Girl are really creepy. Like "sex-robot-owner" kind of creepy. (Shudder!)
Deadpool and Deadshot.
@ohcarline: Brubaker killed Corsair AND Banshee in the span of a year or so, and for no reason I ever really understood. And THEN War of Kings killed off Lilandra. Something about that corner of the X-world made somebody say, "Clear the decks!" a few years ago. Meanwhile, all those no-name teenage mutants are walking around Utopia like they own the place.
I’m with Paul on Dr Midnight, and I’d buy any book with Aquaman in it. Same goes for Connor Hawke (Green Arrow)
I’ve got a soft spot for Atom Smasher/Nuklon. Actually, I kind of try to keep up with all of the (surviving) Infinity Inc. members.
Is Necrosha over yet? Did Banshee come back? I miss Banshee.
I’m one of the Spider-Girl people! But my actual answer is Jubilee.
Orion. New Gods. Every few years they pop up, get interesting and then get cancelled. Dammit.
Doctor Strange.
@Jimski Lilandra’s death at least had a story reason (plus, also, I always kind of thought she sucked), but the others really didn’t. Corsair was almost anti-story-driven, because if you’re going to have an X-Man with an inferiority complex bopping around space trying to be a pirate, it seems like there’s *better* drama if his Burt-Reynolds-as-Han-Solo dad is looking over his shoulder.
Also, I realized I didn’t even mention Jean Grey, who *is* my pet character, probably because she feels too major to be in this category. But that’s sort of a myth since, for the last five years, she’s just shown up on the cover of comics that she’s not actually in. (nd sure, you can nitpick and say she’s DEAD or whatever, but if that argument holds, they should stop putting her on covers. (Yeah, I might be a little bitter about that ‘Wolverine’s love life’ comic that just came out).
Angel/Archangel, Betta Ray Bill, Nick Fury, Namor, Taskmaster, Dr. Doom, Multiple Man, Lockheed, and Devil Dinosaur. I’ve spent time on google/wikipedia way too often tracking down random appearances with these characters. Also, agree that DnA are utilizing so many of my favorites in the cosmic end of the marvel universe right now.
Definitly Moon Knight for me. No matter what it is that is put out, as long as he is in it, I’ll buy it.
I’ve always been partial to Banshee and Ice Man. One of the best things about Age of Apocalypse was how badass both those characters were, only increasing my demand for some writer to explore their potential (especially Iceman). While his is a little more "big time," Nick Fury is certainly a pet character of mine. I prefer when he is not starring in a book, but periodically popping up in Captain America, X-Men, Avengers, or something.
While this isn’t a character, I really like when the X-Men randomly wear the old blue and yellow outfits.
I read Spider-Girl for the first 50 issues or so. It had a fun "Untold Tales of Spider-Man" vibe that I like in the late 1990s, but I became bored when they started making all sorts of "ultimatized" characters to repeat old Spider-Man stories.
Iceman and Nightwing.Does that count now that he’s batman? I was really pissed when they canceled Tomasi’s run on Nightwing after like ten issues. I hope that when Bruce Wayne comes back they give Tomasi Nightwing again.
I’m obsess with Valliant’s Magnus Robotfighter.
Seein as they were the revitilization of my Marvel love, Runaways is a group I’ll probably follow until it finally keels over from lack of BKV, who was pretty much the series lifeblood.
I think when Batman does come back, I think there will be an issue over who is really Batman. Kind of what’s going on with Captain America. I also forgot to mention The Comet, and The Fly from Impact Comics, and Prime from Ultraverse. Oh and Ralph Snart from Now Comics.
I’m sad to see Ms. Marvel get cancelled, Carol just reclaimed her title. But my favorite pet character would be Barbara Gordon/Oracle. So happy to hear that Birds of Prey is coming back.
I have a major girl crush on Rogue and I have since I watched the old school X-Men cartoon as a kid. If she’s in it, I’ll buy it no matter how bad. Also, Molly Hayes from Runaways. That kid cracks me up, one of the funniest comic moments I’ve ever read was when she punched the Punisher in the gut. Aaaaand I have a bit of an unhealthy love for the X-Factor team, especially Siryn. Come on Terry, pull yourself together! 🙁
On the DC side of the fence I’ve got to go with Booster Gold. And although he’s not a superhero as such, I always get a little thrill of glee whenever I see Jimmy Olsen.
@SPEEDBALL: Totally on board with the Impact version of The Fly. Had almost forgotten about that series, but it was pretty great.
Detective Chimp. I was so excited to see him turn up in the Brave and the Bold cartoon a few weeks ago. I wish DC would use him more.
The Taskmaster has been my guy for a long time. I’m not sure why, but I’ve always dug him. Same goes for Omega Red.
Shadowcat and Colossus, without a doubt. I may be the only person on the planet that read that Pryde & Wisdom mini, and I am effing PSYCHED that she’s coming back! There are Marvel Zombies, there are X-Zombies (hi Ron!), and then there are Kitty/Peter Zombies.
I tend to gravitate to pairs like that. Not necessarily romantically linked, but just an awesome duo. My latest obsession is Rocket Raccoon and Groot. Man, they are awesome.
For my girlfriend, it’s Jubilee. If her pet character wasn’t an X-Man, I’m not sure we’d be together actually…
Colossus and Nightcrawler, no X line-up is complete without them!
Shadowpact…. They get mentions here and there, but nothings happening. It’s the story that brought me into comics again. A huge smile ran across my face when Blue Devil mentioned them in the Blackest Night Phantom Stranger ish. One day, they’ll be back….or killed in a crisis.
Iceman was the SECOND X-Man! Second! Scott joins up, then Bobby, literally second! he should be telling Wolverine what to do. "Hey furball, I’ve been here for years. Magneto almost turned my parents into mutants, where were you? Working for the Canadian government? Lame. Get a scrapper and clean up after my ice trail, bitch."
any questions as to my answer? the Maximoffs are a close second.
My pet character is definitely and obviously Catwoman. Sure shes in Gotham City Sirens right now (though honestly who cares about that book?) but its not the same as her canceled series. I love the character so much I even bought that stupid resurrected issue a few weeks ago which I have already chosen to ignore.
Renee Montoya is another character I wish had a large enough audience to have her own book(in the form of Question) but I know its not gonna happen any time soon.
Also Jason Todd, a lot of it comes from nostalgia since I havent enjoyed hwo hes been written since Judd Winnicks run but for some reason I still read anything hes in half knowing its going to be awful
Jonn Jones (dub) and Kate Spencer/Manhunter.
Oh my! Did I just do that? Jonzz. Must be coffee time.
Buddy Baker, Animal Man.
I actually check on Machine Man as well. Ever since his great use in Marvel Zombies 3 I wondered where he has been. Well he’s scheduled to take part of Marvel Zombies 5, so I guess he’s the zombie ass kicker for the time being.
For DC…..well it’s tough really cause most of the heroes seem to be properly placed. I did wonder what happened to Scarecrow but now Geoff Johns is using him perfectly in Blackest Night. I do wonder where Dr. Spectro is…
Katar Hol. I miss Messner-Loebs Hawkman.
F’n love Namor. Love Namor.
I fell in love with Amadeus Cho instantly, largely because he rescued and cared for the orphaned coyote puppy who spent a year worth of issues riding around in his jacket. So that’s a pet character due to the character’s pet!
I also do a little dance of joy every time I see Butterball show up in the Initiative.
black bolt….love the inhumans
Power Girl and Tim Drake Robin are my will follow even when it goes horribly bad characters. Followed by Guy Gardner.
For families, it’s Green Lantern and Batman families.
I have an irrational love of Moon Knight that I have no justification for whatsoever.
I have a deep set nostalgic love of Storm from X-men because she is the first black female character I remeber growing up. Granted I grind my teeth at way she written most of time now…but I still cant help myself from buying and reading all thing Ororo
I picked up Spider-Girl 1 because of the "hype" (did it really have that much hype?) and actually stuck around for all 100 issues. I would say the first 45 issues or so are good (not great) and the tone reminded me of the old Spidey stories (which you can now find in the Essentials). Near the end I think a creator change may have helped, at least writer wise, but it was probably too screwed up already to fix.
Not really sure who my pet character would be though.
My pet characters are the Warriors Three. So this is a pretty magical time for me. There is a Volstagg road trip mini series going on right now, can you believe that?
Obisidan when he’s used as a villain. The Darkness Falls arc in Johns first JSA run is amazing and shows the potential his character has. Kinda surprised he hasn’t showed up in Blackest Night – especially with his Green Lantern ties.
I meant Obsidian. Dammit I can’t spell
Is spider Jerusalem acceptable? I wish he was my daddy. I also harbor inexplicable bromantic feelings for union Jack, and recently I really have developed a soft spot for faiza Hussein. (I’m not even British for god’s sake)
ROM!
Namor is my favorite, followed by Dazzler and Vampirella. Those are my pet characters.
The Agents of Atlas nod is appropriate though because I’ve bought everything they’ve appeared in since the regular series started and bought the HC of the mini. Love every bit of it.
I keep sticking with Moon Knight, though no one has ever come close to those classic Moench/ Sienkiewicz stories. Putting Union Jack and/or Spitfire in a comic, any comic, greatly increases the chances I will buy it.
In DC, I love Jay Garrick, Black Canary, and especially Kate Spencer. When Manhunter was given its first reprieve, I actually gifted the first three issues to two customers at my LCS in hopes of keeping the sales figures up (one of the two continued on the book; the book didn’t return the favor).
Metal Men and The Warlord for me.
Wolfsbane was mine up until they had her do it with Rictor, start acting crazy, and jump ship to X-Force without resolving anything. I still keep an eye open to see if something good happens with her, but her characterization in X-Force hasn’t done much for me. I liked her better as the naive girl in the New Mutants, the conflicted drama queen in X-Factor, or the devoted daughter in Excalibur. Now she’s…I don’t know what she is. She hasn’t hardly done anything with the team from what I can tell.
I remember being sad when she disappeared after Mystique nullified her mutant powers and incredibly excited when I found they were bringing her back in the new New Mutants. I followed her religiously after that until I dropped X-Force.
Silver Surfer. I hope Jonathan Hickman brings poor old Norrin Radd for a future story arc or two on his FF run.
Blink! Not this new servant of Selene from the 616, that died in the eighties, but the Age of Apocalypse Blink. I read that astonishing x-men mini series over and over in Jr. High.
I’ve also liked Adam Warlock since before I had actually read any comics he was in (Thanks Marvel trading cards!). I’m psyched about the return of the Magus!
Black Night! Love his robot horse and electric sword. How badass is a magneto-esq helmet paired with Indiana Jones style brown leather jacket. He’s always been my favorite Avenger and yet I managed to miss his in the Captain Britain series. I feel shame. Second choice Scott "Slim" Summers. Long live the stick up his butt.
second thought shout outs to Taskmaster and the Prowler. Props to *Beta Ray Ryan* and *Roi Vampire* for reminding me of the freakin Prowler.
Plastic Man
Wonder Man but only in the leisure suit outfit
Detective Chimp
Zantanna
Impulse/Kid Flash/Bart Allen
and I am sure more but I cannot think of them off the top of my head.
Ahhh
MEtal Men
Booster Gold (whose book I did stop buying though)
Ted Kord Blue Beetle
Adam Strange
there I am done now I promise…….oh wait…
KAMANDI!
wait what about The Phantom Stranger. That dude’s cool.
My love for any version of the Suicide Squad which sports Deadshot and the original Captain Boomerang is thanks to John Ostrander’s take on them during his run. Man, just thinking about it makes me want to go and reread that entire series.
Also, gotta agree with Timmy on Plastic Man.
for me it’s the midnight sons, come on ghostrider,blade, freaky looking dr. strange thats a stacked deck right there. makes me wonder if they will ever team again.
Hank Pym, Kyle Rayner, Barry Allen and She-Hulk.
I hope Pym gets a spot on one of the new Avenger teams, there’s been a lot of good development with the character recently
What happened to Echo? She too disapeared after secret invasion
@TheNextChampion I will see your Dr Spectro, and raise you Rainbow Raider. I really like Rainbow Raider – he was the villain in one of the first comics I ever bought as a kid, but these days he seems to have become the villain who is so lame, he’s just beyond redemption.
Just looking it up now, however, Wikipedia says he was resurrected in Blackest Night #3. I await the miniseries eagerly!
Detective Chimp all the way.
Hell, the whole Shadowpact. I’d give up all my Green Lantern comics if I could see just one more issue of Shadowpact written by Bill Willingham.
Though I wouldn’t give Jack for Sterges. Not that I don’t like him, it’s just that he’s no Willingham.
As someone who started reading the X-Men during the third wave of Claremont, I always had a soft spot for Longshot. I"m really glad he got picked up by Peter David for X-Factor, not because I desperately needed to read stories with Longshot again, but because it keeps him mostly out of the huge god-awful X-Mess going on in all the other titles.
And, on the X-Factor front, I’ve loved Madrox ever since we discovered that his dupes have their own personalities.
Darkhawk (The Manley Era) & Nightwing. I would love to see an ongoing DH book following the War of Kings re-introduction.
The Legion of Super-Heroes. Come hell or highwater I will always follow the Legion. Hell, I’m probably the only guy who read Adventure Comics mainly for the LSH back-up rather than the Superboy main feature.
Stargirl. There’s something about Courtney…I don’t know what it is, but I’ll read anything with her.
Marvel’s version of Dracula. Tomb of Dracula is my all-time favorite comic series. I’ve bought it 4 times now: twice in singles, the essentials, and the omnibuses.
Mavel’s Micronauts. I bought the Realm of Kings Son of Hulk book just because Rann and Mari were in it.
"I’d trade 40 Avengers books for another six issues of Alias. Any day of the week, buddy."
Oh, me too. Me too.
I really miss Jack Knight
Ben Parker and Martha Wayne.
Interesting list. I don’t guess I have one. I’m not really an obsession guy. Interesting article.
I’m not entirely sure, actually. I’ve always been a really big fan of the Black Knight, I guess. The first comic I ever read and followed was the old Heroes for Hire series in the ’90s, and loved that character particularly. Actually, come to think of it, he’s the entire reason I read Captain Britain and the MI:15, so yeah. The Black Knight!
I really love tracking down appearances by Devil Dinosaur and the Red Roni, probably because they both made very memorable appearances in Marvel’s Godzilla book and I was obsessed with that as a kid
Great article, Jim! 😀
*ahem*
Yeah, I’m the Rachel Summers guy you were talking about. 🙂 Sadly, her online cult seems to be a slacking lately.
Fin Fang Foom. Purple shorts and all.
Also, Juggernaut. I was so glad to see him return to his former glory in WWH: X-Men. Too bad he’s only shown up to job for Skaar in a recent Incredible Hulk issue since.
@ShonenRafa77 — I’m with you on Red Ronin and Devil Dinosaur as well.
I just so happen to be rereading my Godzilla Essential right now. I just read the bit where Red Ronin gets his head cut off by the helicopter-y alien monster Rhiahn. >sniff<
The Fabulous Frog-Man FTW!!!!
Madrox is my main man…I even have his insignia tattooed on my right shoulder blade! I’ve been digging him ever since he was on Havok’s X-Factor team, though the recent X-Factor series cemented him as one of my all time favorite characters.
Lockjaw.
The Silver Surfer!
Namor and Nightcrawler
Rocker Racer
ahem: RockeT Racer and the Prowler
Sunfire.