# Best Superhero



## Morrus (Jun 18, 2020)

Pick one.


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## Eltab (Jun 18, 2020)

Six Million Dollar Man

Because using his bionic eye, he can see to cast a vote even when viewing the page with Dark Mode.


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## Legatus Legionis (Jun 18, 2020)

.


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## Ryujin (Jun 18, 2020)

If I'm going off the regular list of heroes then it's Batman; especially as I read him in the '70s.

If I'm going off my full list then it's a toss-up between Badger (Capital Comics), or Kevin Matchstick from "Mage" (Comico Comics).


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## Campbell (Jun 18, 2020)

Captain America or Black Panther


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## Cadence (Jun 18, 2020)

The Wasp (Janet van Dyne) is 1st.
Thor (either Simonson's run or one of Aaron's first two arcs) is 2nd.

Thinking about how many other Marvel characters I used to love before some author or another put them through the wringer, I find myself remembering the 80s.  I miss Boris the Bear.


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## Hatmatter (Jun 18, 2020)

Cap.


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## Lord Mhoram (Jun 18, 2020)

Nightwing, though Cap is a close second.


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## Zardnaar (Jun 18, 2020)

Batman.

  Then Blade.


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## Xaelvaen (Jun 18, 2020)

Though he himself will attack me for calling him a Super Hero, he certainly fits into the generic genre -* Deadpool *(and I mean even before Ryan Reynolds made him 'cool').  The fourth-wall-breaking "Merc with a Mouth" has always been the only comic I could stomach reading for more than one issue at a time at any point after my adolescence.

Spawn, from Image Comics, is a close second.


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## cmad1977 (Jun 18, 2020)

Campbell said:


> Captain America or Black Panther




I’m here for this. 
I considered Cap boring until the later marvel movies. 
Loved BP tons.


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## Zardnaar (Jun 18, 2020)

cmad1977 said:


> I’m here for this.
> I considered Cap boring until the later marvel movies.
> Loved BP tons.




 Black Panther. Capn is boring AF.


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## cmad1977 (Jun 18, 2020)

Zardnaar said:


> Black Panther. Capn is boring AF.




I feel like, despite having tons of screen time, Cap has the shallowest character arc of all the characters.


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## Zardnaar (Jun 18, 2020)

cmad1977 said:


> I feel like, despite having tons of screen time, Cap has the shallowest character arc of all the characters.




 Red, white and blue loses a lot of it's appeal outside the USA. Bit cheesy.


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## Tonguez (Jun 18, 2020)

Spiderman is the only true hero on the list, the others are all moody, flawed individuals that lucked out by getting powers.

Spiderman gets powers as an angsty nerd and revels in it, his powers become a joy tempered by his good heart and drive towards great responsibility

my favourite comic character was Moores Swamp Thing, but he isnt a superhero either - and eventually he became a god


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## Dannyalcatraz (Jun 18, 2020)

My fave/best varies over time.  Iron Man and Batman have both held that position.  So have Green Lantern, Dr. Strange, Wildfire, Adam Warlock, Martian Manhunter, Magnus Robot Fighter, and many more.


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## JustinCase (Jun 18, 2020)

Define "best". For that matter, define "superhero". 

I've always loved Spawn and The Darkness, although "superhero" in both cases may be a stretch.

Oh, and Darkwing Duck. Because a duck superhero.


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## Asisreo (Jun 18, 2020)

Zardnaar said:


> Red, white and blue loses a lot of it's appeal outside the USA. Bit cheesy.



I have a confession: I watched all of Winter Soldier twice and I can't remember anything from that movie still. I remember more from my one time watching the Avatar movie with James Cameron than I remember Winter Soldier.


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## Zardnaar (Jun 18, 2020)

Asisreo said:


> I have a confession: I watched all of Winter Soldier twice and I can't remember anything from that movie still. I remember more from my one time watching the Avatar movie with James Cameron than I remember Winter Soldier.




I didn't get that one. Boring. 

 I barely watched the MCU until I had Disney+ briefly. 

 Best ones were first Guardians of the Galaxy, Black Panther, one of the Thor movies, first Ironman and the first avengers.


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## Xaelvaen (Jun 18, 2020)

Asisreo said:


> I have a confession: I watched all of Winter Soldier twice and I can't remember anything from that movie still. I remember more from my one time watching the Avatar movie with James Cameron than I remember Winter Soldier.



I have a confession as well;  I watched the original X-men movies, the first Avengers movie, the first Iron Man Movie, and Black Panther.  With great exception to the the very first X-men movie, and the latter movie (BP), I can't stand MCU movies as a whole (though the Deadpool movies made me laugh, if that counts for anything at all).  I'll stick to comics / graphic novels.


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## Hoffmand (Jun 18, 2020)

Zardnaar said:


> Black Panther. Capn is boring AF.



Black panther is so yawn.


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## Morrus (Jun 18, 2020)

JustinCase said:


> Define "best". For that matter, define "superhero".



Define it any way you want!


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## Snarf Zagyg (Jun 18, 2020)

Morrus said:


> Define it any way you want!




Well, in the Arrowverse (RIP Salmon Ladder), it is defined as being someone incredibly attractive, who also happens to inhabit a world of diverse and attractive people with diverse genders and sexualities.

There are worse things. Did I mention the whole ... attractive part? I mean, in all the multiverse, with all the Earths, it's funny how all them have drop-dead gorgeous people everywhere and every location on every earth strangely resembles Vancouver.


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## payn (Jun 18, 2020)

Gotta go with the hero i'd be most like. That means Ash Williams. "Shop smart, shop S-Mart!"


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## Ralif Redhammer (Jun 18, 2020)

Of those listed, I went with Spider-man. I recently read the first Epic collection of the earliest Spider-Man stories and they are absolutely on fire. Lee/Ditko are at the top of their game here. Compared to the other comics of the time, even superheros I like more (like Thor and Dr. Strange), the writing and art and character designs are so darn good.


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## Umbran (Jun 18, 2020)

I don't particularly care for Batman.  All the rest are wonderful characters (or, at least, have been so in the right hands, which is good enough for me).

My vote for best on that list goes to Spidey.  He's the one on the list that's actually a character that feels representational to your average nerd comic book reader.

Off that list, I have a soft spot for Captain America.


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## BookBarbarian (Jun 18, 2020)

I'm a Batman guy. let me explain.

As a kid I idolized Superman. He was the strongest. He couldn't get hurt. Things I wanted when I  to be was a child. 

When I was 8. Batman the Animated Series premiered and I saw a hero that was not the strongest, that was consistently hurt, bet kept going on to fight anyway my devotion shifted immediately.

Unfortunately most recent Batman stories have really paled in comparison to a children's cartoon form the 90s. I've come to love a lot of things about other super heroes but that Batman (always in my mind voiced by Kevin Conroy) has stuck with me.


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## Campbell (Jun 18, 2020)

Umbran said:


> I don't particularly care for Batman.  All the rest are wonderful characters (or, at least, have been so in the right hands, which is good enough for me).
> 
> My vote for best on that list goes to Spidey.  He's the one on the list that's actually a character that feels representational to your average nerd comic book reader.
> 
> Off that list, I have a soft spot for Captain America.




Batman is weird. I enjoy reading Bat books, but not for Bruce. Everyone around him (villains and allies) are way more interesting as characters.


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## Snarf Zagyg (Jun 18, 2020)

BookBarbarian said:


> I'm a Batman guy. let me explain.
> 
> As a kid I idolized Superman. He was the strongest. He couldn't get hurt. Things I wanted when I  to be was a child.
> 
> ...




Batman is complex, which makes him fascinating. He contains multitudes.

You can look to the camp-inflected Batman (BOOM! POW!) or the TAS Batman, or Batman Beyond (still cool), or 80s Miller Batman, or the Nolan take on Batman.

Batman speaks to something deep within us, at different times, in a way that I do not think any other character does. There are particular iterations of characters I love from comics (Alan Moore Swamp Thing, or certain Daredevil runs, or early 80s Teen Titans, or even the DC New Frontier series ....) or film (Downey's indelible take on Iron Man, or Hemsworth's "reboot" of Thor in Ragnarok) or TV even (Legion) ....

But Batman is always there, always being reinvented. There is a Batman for everyone. Well, everyone except Ben Affleck I guess. Sorry, Ben.


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## BookBarbarian (Jun 18, 2020)

Asisreo said:


> I have a confession: I watched all of Winter Soldier twice and I can't remember anything from that movie still. I remember more from my one time watching the Avatar movie with James Cameron than I remember Winter Soldier.





Zardnaar said:


> I didn't get that one. Boring.
> 
> I barely watched the MCU until I had Disney+ briefly.
> 
> Best ones were first Guardians of the Galaxy, Black Panther, one of the Thor movies, first Ironman and the first avengers.



Man Winter Soldier might be my favorite. "the government is always watching and could at any time use sudden an horrible violence on it's own population" is a theme that struck a chord with me.

I've always felt that Captain America was at his best when the ideals he stood for were at odds with the government of the very country that is in his moniker. But I can easily see why that would not be of interest to me if I hadn't been raised to pledge allegiance to the flag of the USofA.


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## Morrus (Jun 18, 2020)

Campbell said:


> Batman is weird. I enjoy reading Bat books, but not for Bruce. Everyone around him (villains and allies) are way more interesting as characters.



His rogues' gallery is by far the best in comic-books.


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## BookBarbarian (Jun 18, 2020)

Campbell said:


> Batman is weird. I enjoy reading Bat books, but not for Bruce. Everyone around him (villains and allies) are way more interesting as characters.



I definitely think Batman has the best Rogues gallery. But I love when they delve into his own broken psyche.

I remember in Scott's Snyder's run on the Batman Comic where he had Bruce in a letter to Catwoman talk about the fact that he recognizes that dressing up in a Halloween costume and beating villain's into submission with his fists is not something a grown man would do. Something stunted in him when he watched his parents die. He's still that kid living a kid's dark power fantasy.

I also loved how in Mask of the Phantasm the scene where a young Bruce newly fallen in love is at his parents grave begging their shades to let him abandon his quest for justice so he can marry a girl and be happy. And the terrible tragedy that that is of course what his parents would want for him but he is too broken to see it. The opera of it always gets to me.


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## Jharet (Jun 18, 2020)

You have to go with the first and the best. Superman.


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## Asisreo (Jun 18, 2020)

Jharet said:


> You have to go with the first and the best. Superman.



I don't know too much about superheroes, but was superman the first? The oldest being I'd classify as a superhero would be Gilgamesh. But I guess superhero is a loose term. Is beowulf a superhero? Or Sherlock Holmes? Do you have to be above human limit? If so, batman is technically not a superhero, depending on the issue. How close to a god can you be without being considered just a god? Thor's both a superhero and a god.


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## Ralif Redhammer (Jun 18, 2020)

I think Arkham Asylum: A Serious House on Serious Earth is one of the greatest works in comics, for that very reason. And the jaw-dropping Dave McKean art, for that matter.

Though, as far as rogues galleries go, I think Spider-Man's is top stuff, too. At a time when lots of superheroes were fighting communists and varying sorts of underground dwellers and aliens (the early Avengers stories are filled with these sorts of filler villains), Spider-Man right off the bat had Dr. Octopus, The Lizard, The Vulture, Mysterio, Kraven, The Sandman, The Green Goblin, and many others that are absolutely iconic, to this day.



BookBarbarian said:


> I definitely think Batman has the best Rogues gallery. But I love when they delve into his own broken psyche.


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## BookBarbarian (Jun 18, 2020)

Ralif Redhammer said:


> I think Arkham Asylum: A Serious House on Serious Earth is one of the greatest works in comics, for that very reason. And the jaw-dropping Dave McKean art, for that matter.



Absolutely. One of my favorites.


Ralif Redhammer said:


> Though, as far as rogues galleries go, I think Spider-Man's is top stuff, too. At a time when lots of superheroes were fighting communists and varying sorts of underground dwellers and aliens (the early Avengers stories are filled with these sorts of filler villains), Spider-Man right off the bat had Dr. Octopus, The Lizard, The Vulture, Mysterio, Kraven, The Sandman, The Green Goblin, and many others that are absolutely iconic, to this day.



Good call on Spider-Man rouges. I think my favorite villains are the ones that don't start out as the hero's enemy but instead have a legitimate beef with a 3rd party and get lost and take it too far requiring the hero's intervention. Mr Freeze, Clayface, The Sandman, even Black Panther's Killmonger and the like all come of as more complex and sympathetic this way. Batman and Spidey seem to have the most of these.


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## Tonguez (Jun 18, 2020)

Asisreo said:


> I have a confession: I watched all of Winter Soldier twice and I can't remember anything from that movie still. I remember more from my one time watching the Avatar movie with James Cameron than I remember Winter Soldier.




I liked the Winter Soldier, it think they did well to make it more Spy Thriller than Superhero, which was a good angle to take with the hero of red white and blue



Snarf Zagyg said:


> Well, in the Arrowverse (RIP Salmon Ladder), it is defined as being someone incredibly attractive, who also happens to inhabit a world of diverse and attractive people with diverse genders and sexualities.
> 
> There are worse things. Did I mention the whole ... attractive part? I mean, in all the multiverse, with all the Earths, it's funny how all them have drop-dead gorgeous people everywhere and every location on every earth strangely resembles Vancouver.




Yeah but thats the CW as a whole though - Beautiful young people full of angst and the older but still attractive older people they interact with.


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## Snarf Zagyg (Jun 18, 2020)

Tonguez said:


> Yeah but thats the CW as a whole though - Beautiful young people full of angst and the older but still attractive older people they interact with.




Maybe that's the CW as a whole, but I can maintain some semblance of nerd cred by watching the Arrowverse.

"I'm watching all these incredibly attractive people fall in and out of romantic entanglements for the superhero plots, fan service, and the possibility that they might show an empty crate that says Gleek (superfriends 4eva)! Really!"

I am very believable.


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## briggart (Jun 18, 2020)

Paperinik!
(I think he goes by Phantom Duck in the US)


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## DammitVictor (Jun 18, 2020)

The _Superior Octopus_. It's right there in his name! He's not my favorite Spider-- he comes after Gwen and Kaine on that score-- but he's one of the few superheroes who is more concerned with making the world _a better place_ than merely preventing villains from making it worse. He's too cynical to get what he wants and too arrogant to see that... but that only enhances the _sheer joy_ of watching a superhero do something other than reinforce the _status quo _that created all of his enemies.

As an added bonus, with both the Superior Octopus and Mister Sinister operating out of San Francisco and the latter becoming a future Spider-Man villain in _Renew Your Vows_, I really want to see a rolling battle between them that leaves _thousands of corpses_ in the streets... with zero casualties.


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## Worrgrendel (Jun 18, 2020)




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## BookBarbarian (Jun 18, 2020)

Worrgrendel said:


> Flash



Barry or Wally? I grew up in the Wally era but always admired Silver Age Flash


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## Worrgrendel (Jun 18, 2020)

I also grew up in the Wally era but went back to the Barry Allen and Jay Garrick comics when I could. I love the show on CW, though life has me behind a season. He's been my fav since I can remember. He's also arguably one of the most powerful superheroes in comics. Really, the only thing limiting the Flash is himself. He holds back because of fear for what he could do. Just look at the arc where he (Wally) lost his powers and got them back after recreating the accident that gave them to him and his "test run" cut a trench miles wide across the United States before he realized it and tried to stop making a crater that a nuclear bomb would be envious of.


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## Enevhar Aldarion (Jun 18, 2020)

Morpheus (Sandman) or maybe his sister Death. Those were some fun comic books and graphic novels and I hope the TV series that is under production works out.


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## Sabathius42 (Jun 18, 2020)

Only heroish at times....but my favorite superheroic character has been Spiral.


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## Ryujin (Jun 19, 2020)

BookBarbarian said:


> Man Winter Soldier might be my favorite. "the government is always watching and could at any time use sudden an horrible violence on it's own population" is a theme that struck a chord with me.
> 
> I've always felt that Captain America was at his best when the ideals he stood for were at odds with the government of the very country that is in his moniker. But I can easily see why that would not be of interest to me if I hadn't been raised to pledge allegiance to the flag of the USofA.




As a Canadian I always found Captain America compelling. He was the same skinny weakling kid who got picked on, but had a moral compass, that I was. He became powerful, but didn't lose that moral compass. 

When he became Nomad? Not so much.


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## Morrus (Jun 19, 2020)

Worrgrendel said:


> View attachment 123004



Oh he's so _miserable_ all the time! He was fun and lighthearted in s1, but five years later it's just been years of him moping constantly.


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## Tonguez (Jun 19, 2020)

Morrus said:


> Oh he's so _miserable_ all the time! He was fun and lighthearted in s1, but five years later it's just been years of him moping constantly.




Yeah absolutely, I stopped watching the CW Flash precisely because he was such a mopey whiner, it just got dumb


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## Worrgrendel (Jun 19, 2020)

Morrus said:


> Oh he's so _miserable_ all the time! He was fun and lighthearted in s1, but five years later it's just been years of him moping constantly.



Let’s be honest. Arrow has the brooding miserable sense of self top award.


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## billd91 (Jun 19, 2020)

cmad1977 said:


> I feel like, despite having tons of screen time, Cap has the shallowest character arc of all the characters.




It's not shallow. It's way too emotion-laden for that. It's direct and without a lot of weird potential branches.


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## billd91 (Jun 19, 2020)

Morrus said:


> His rogues' gallery is by far the best in comic-books.




It's iconic, but is that because of exposure in many different shows and movies? I think the X-Men's rogues gallery competes very well - Hellfire Club members, Brotherhood of Evil Mutants (2 varieties), Magneto, Proteus, Black Tom and Juggernaut, Arcade, Shi'ar Imperial Guard - some pretty awesome stuff.


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## Eric V (Jun 19, 2020)

Depending on the day, it's one of Daredevil, Wonder Woman, or Cassandra Cain as Batgirl.


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## Khelon Testudo (Jun 19, 2020)

I ticked "Spider-Man". But really, we have an embarrassment of riches in the 21st century. I loved both Daredevil and Jessica Jones on TV. Captain America in Winter Soldier and Civil War. Will Smith's Hancock. And so on...


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## Levistus's_Leviathan (Jun 19, 2020)

Spiderman is the best, hands down. No room to debate here, he's the best. 
(Obviously joking here, calm yourselves down)


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## cbwjm (Jun 19, 2020)

Marvel comics Thor gets my vote for best superhero.


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## Umbran (Jun 19, 2020)

Snarf Zagyg said:


> There are worse things. Did I mention the whole ... attractive part? I mean, in all the multiverse, with all the Earths, it's funny how all them have drop-dead gorgeous people everywhere and every location on every earth strangely resembles Vancouver.




Well, Vancouver is a very attractive place.


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## pming (Jun 19, 2020)

Hiya!

"Other"
DOOMGUY

Not "regular comics"...I'm talking DOOMGUY, from the video game series DOOM. A guy who was a marine, just doing his thing, keeping to himself, reading, tinkering with stuff in the 'garage', playing electric guitar, playing video games, armature photography, and taking care of Daisy (Daisy is...was...his pet rabbit). Then, one day at work, just chilling at his post...BoOM!! Demon invasion and zombies from Hell. So...he grabs his shotgun and gets to work. Finishes off the Spider Mastermind and uses the hell-gate-portal to return home....only to find his beloved home destroyed, and the severed head of Daisy on a stick. He absolutely LOOSES IT! Demons took everything from him. He was just a guy, minding his own business and enjoying his meager life. But noooo....demons from hell had to come and screw it all up. Then they made the fatal mistake of killing Daisy!
...
Well, how's the last 24 years been working out for ya, Demons from Hell? 

The DOOM Marine. Ultimate hero. Kinda like John Wick, but in stead of a dog, it was a bunny. And, as much as I love John Wick...DOOMGUY did it first and best! 

PS: Yeah, I know they kinda sorta 'reworked' his history in DOOM Eternal (the whole Sentinels and Makyr thing...), but I like to reinterpret it to be more of a twisted 'time-shifting-alternate-dimension-overlap'; He is 'just a dude from earth', but he did so much damage to Hell, and was exposed to so many dimensional energies and such that he sort of got 'overlapped' with other versions of himself from other timelines. I just think a guy taking it to Hell because they killed his pet bunny rabbit is INFINITELY more relatable than some 'super-serum-soldire-created-by-aliens'...so I'm going with my version. 

^_^

Paul L. Ming


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## Dannyalcatraz (Jun 19, 2020)

Flash and The Vision have held special places in my heart as well.


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## DammitVictor (Jun 19, 2020)

Gotta say, Jessica Jones is near the top of the list. Aren't many people who know firsthand what a _fate worse than death_ looks like, and fewer still who would knowingly risk falling into one to pull a stranger out of it.


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## rgoodbb (Jun 19, 2020)

AQUAMAN!

OK seriously. I really like Nightcrawler.


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## Ryujin (Jun 19, 2020)

Snarf Zagyg said:


> Well, in the Arrowverse (RIP Salmon Ladder), it is defined as being someone incredibly attractive, who also happens to inhabit a world of diverse and attractive people with diverse genders and sexualities.
> 
> There are worse things. Did I mention the whole ... attractive part? I mean, in all the multiverse, with all the Earths, it's funny how all them have drop-dead gorgeous people everywhere and every location on every earth strangely resembles Vancouver.




Well not ALL. Some look like Montreal and the the base of the Vought Enterprises building, in "The Boys", looks shockingly like a certain concert venue in Toronto 

But yes, entire comic worlds seem like the entire populace has easy access to Brazilian plastic surgery professionals.


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## Janx (Jun 19, 2020)

I went with Spiderman.

Most of the other people on the list are privileged and can make being a superhero a lifestyle choice.

Spiderman got bit, and had to decide every day that he should stop that robbery instead of what he wanted to be doing.


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## Mercurius (Jun 19, 2020)

I'm offended by your lack of mutants.

But my actual choice is: The Silver Surfer. All-silver body, the Power Cosmic, Herald of Galactus, riding through space on a surf-board...you just can't beat all of that. He's _radd._

Other favorites: Moon Knight (crazy Batman with occult powers and possession), Jean Grey/Phoenix/Dark Phoenix (comics-version, at least), Magneto (anti-hero).


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## Sadras (Jun 19, 2020)

Green Lantern. Hal Jordan.


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## Eltab (Jun 19, 2020)

I liked Thor from the comic run where they brought in Norse mythology for him to interact with.  Later booked as _The Thor Compendium_.


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## Cadence (Jun 19, 2020)

Morrus said:


> His rogues' gallery is by far the best in comic-books.




Are Clock King, Zebra-man, Crazy Quilt, Killer Moth, The Mime, King Tut, Calendar Man, Mr. Polka Dot, Kite Man, and Condiment King a bug or a feature? (For a rogue's gallery that is, obviously a feature in the Lego Batman movie).


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## Ralif Redhammer (Jun 19, 2020)

The Sandman comics absolutely elevated what the medium was capable of.

What a line... “You get what anybody gets - you get a lifetime."



Enevhar Aldarion said:


> Morpheus (Sandman) or maybe his sister Death. Those were some fun comic books and graphic novels and I hope the TV series that is under production works out.


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## Umbran (Jun 19, 2020)

rgoodbb said:


> AQUAMAN!


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## Levistus's_Leviathan (Jun 19, 2020)

Janx said:


> I went with Spiderman.
> 
> Most of the other people on the list are privileged and can make being a superhero a lifestyle choice.
> 
> Spiderman got bit, and had to decide every day that he should stop that robbery instead of what he wanted to be doing.



I mean, yeah, this is accurate, but that's not why you should vote Spider-Man. You should vote Spider-Man because he's the best.


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## Blue (Jun 19, 2020)

From the list, I chose Spidey.  He'd hit several definitions of "best" for me.  As a bit of an odd runner up, if "best" meant "I liked the most when a kid" and you stayed Marvel, then #2 was The Ever-lovin' Blue-Eyed Thing.  At least as a kid, long before the MCU got it's delightful hooks into me.

On DC side, I'm more of a traditionalist.


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## Blue (Jun 19, 2020)

Who could forget *THE TICK*!

_*SPOOOOOOOOON!!!*_

Well, if you only knew him from either TV show I guess he's easily forgetable.  But if you knew him from early comics, you'd wet yourself laughing.  Just like TMNT were serious and real in the first comics, unlike the campy goofs they are often shown as in the movies.


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## Blue (Jun 19, 2020)

Xaelvaen said:


> Though he himself will attack me for calling him a Super Hero, he certainly fits into the generic genre -* Deadpool *(and I mean even before Ryan Reynolds made him 'cool').  The fourth-wall-breaking "Merc with a Mouth" has always been the only comic I could stomach reading for more than one issue at a time at any point after my adolescence.


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## Dannyalcatraz (Jun 20, 2020)

Blue said:


> Who could forget *THE TICK*!
> 
> _*SPOOOOOOOOON!!!*_
> 
> Well, if you only knew him from either TV show I guess he's easily forgetable.  But if you knew him from early comics, you'd wet yourself laughing.  Just like TMNT were serious and real in the first comics, unlike the campy goofs they are often shown as in the movies.



I have a ninja hedge t-shirt.


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## Levistus's_Leviathan (Jun 20, 2020)

Wow. I voted for Spider-Man, because he's very clearly the best, but I'm very surprised to see 0 support for Iron Man. I mean, he's very clearly better than Superman.


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## Campbell (Jun 20, 2020)

Eltab said:


> I liked Thor from the comic run where they brought in Norse mythology for him to interact with.  Later booked as _The Thor Compendium_.




My favorite Thor is Ultimates Thor where initially you cannot tell if he is a god or a crazy mutant.


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## Tonguez (Jun 20, 2020)

AcererakTriple6 said:


> Wow. I voted for Spider-Man, because he's very clearly the best, but I'm very surprised to see 0 support for Iron Man. I mean, he's very clearly better than Superman.




Selfish, entitled, trust fund kid, with an addictive personality, who made his fortune selling WMDs hasnt got much to recommend him as a hero. His ability as a technological genius and master of the suit is good but really not on that inspiring epic level


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## Enevhar Aldarion (Jun 20, 2020)

Tonguez said:


> Selfish, entitled, trust fund kid, with an addictive personality, who made his fortune selling WMDs hasnt got much to recommend him as a hero. His ability as a technological genius and master of the suit is good but really not on that inspiring epic level




Movie version is much more appealing than the comics version because of Robert Downey Jr and how the character seemed to be made for him.


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## rgoodbb (Jun 20, 2020)

Umbran said:


>



Can't believe I watched that. But hey anyone with curry in their name can't be all that bad.


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## Blue (Jun 20, 2020)

Dannyalcatraz said:


> I have a ninja hedge t-shirt.



We are a hedge.  Move along.  

When the issues would come out, we used to do dramatic readings with different folks taking different parts.  I can still picture my friend Bill doing a ridiculously serious voice for Paul the Samurai: "But first, we bake."


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## Xaelvaen (Jun 20, 2020)

@Blue Wins the thread.


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## Dannyalcatraz (Jun 20, 2020)

Tonguez said:


> Selfish, entitled, trust fund kid, with an addictive personality, who made his fortune selling WMDs hasnt got much to recommend him as a hero. His ability as a technological genius and master of the suit is good but really not on that inspiring epic level



I have always looked at him as someone attempting to atone for the evil he has brought into the world.  Several interesting RW rich people have done such.


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## Bohandas (Jun 23, 2020)

The Bowler (from Flaming Carrot/Mystery Men)

EDIT:
(out of the listed Superheros from the poll I prefer Iron Man and the Incredible Hulk, and my least favorite is Spiderman who I'm still sick of from the overhyped movie series back in 2002. A little of that goes a LOOOOOOOONG way)


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## Li Shenron (Jun 23, 2020)

I voted "other".

Truth is, I don't like traditional superheroes, neither in comics nor movies. I especially hate the _visuals_ i.e. masks and spandex, but in general I don't like the character concepts and their tales. I particularly dislike the "one guy alone vs all the evil" message.

For some reason, I do like the X-Men characters (at least the movie ones, I haven't read the comics) and their overall plot, hence my vote. Although it would be hard for me to pick _one _of them, since what I like is the fact that they are many, all different from each other, and with internal struggles and conflicts.


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## Dannyalcatraz (Jun 23, 2020)

X-Men comics were among my favorite team titles.


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## Ralif Redhammer (Jun 23, 2020)

When I was younger, I loved the X-Men comics. A few years ago I tried to dive back in, and it was just impossible. The X-men have always been complicated in just about every sense of the word - metaphors, timeline (don't get me started on the narrative evils of time travel), villains, characters, connections, and so on. But with a few decades in-between my last X-Men comic and my latest, I could no longer make sense of them, no matter how many wikis and articles I read.


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## the Jester (Jun 23, 2020)

Depends on what you mean by best. Superman is definitely the best in terms of most iconic. But if you mean best as in most powerful, I'd have to go with Duplicate Boy, a Legion of Superheroes ally, who has the ability to duplicate the superpowers of any other super-being. 

But... I'll also argue that Matter-Eater Lad really deserves consideration here.


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## Umbran (Jun 23, 2020)

Dannyalcatraz said:


> I have always looked at him as someone attempting to atone for the evil he has brought into the world.  Several interesting RW rich people have done such.




Tony Stark is _the best_ depiction of PTSD most of us are likely to have seen.


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## Levistus's_Leviathan (Jun 23, 2020)

Superman is the most iconic superhero, but I just find him bland. I don't find superheroes drawing if they're invulnerable.


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## DammitVictor (Jun 23, 2020)

Umbran said:


> Tony Stark is _the best_ depiction of PTSD most of us are likely to have seen.




Nah, gonna give that trophy to Jessica, too.


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## Enevhar Aldarion (Jun 23, 2020)

AcererakTriple6 said:


> Superman is the most iconic superhero, but I just find him bland. I don't find superheroes drawing if they're invulnerable.




Classic Superman was invulnerable if you did not have any Kryptonite. But the more modern Superman has more weaknesses, including to magic/supernatural stuff. And it seems they loaded him up with emotional vulnerability/issues as well.


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## MoonSong (Jun 23, 2020)

BookBarbarian said:


> Barry or Wally? I grew up in the Wally era but always admired Silver Age Flash




I prefer Wally, definitely. To me Barry used to work better as a symbol and legendary hero that Wally aspired to honor. In my opinion there was no reason to bring him back. He had completed his journey and gotten his happy ending already. By bringing him back, they just reset his life and life path, and what for? to give him angst!?



the Jester said:


> Depends on what you mean by best. Superman is definitely the best in terms of most iconic. But if you mean best as in most powerful, I'd have to go with Duplicate Boy, a Legion of Superheroes ally, who has the ability to duplicate the superpowers of any other super-being.
> 
> But... I'll also argue that Matter-Eater Lad really deserves consideration here.



If we are going to go the way of the legion, I'd prefer Duplicate Girl. She has the one power I'd love to have in real life.


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## MoonSong (Jun 23, 2020)

Enevhar Aldarion said:


> Classic Superman was invulnerable if you did not have any Kryptonite. But the more modern Superman has more weaknesses, including to magic/supernatural stuff. And it seems they loaded him up with emotional vulnerability/issues as well.



I love how Clark is jealous of Superman and resents him. By being Superman he has been denied the chance to feel he accomplished anything on his own, and he can't push himself further in his career because he needs to protect his identity and keep some semblance of journalistic integrity.


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## Ryujin (Jun 23, 2020)

Enevhar Aldarion said:


> Classic Superman was invulnerable if you did not have any Kryptonite. But the more modern Superman has more weaknesses, including to magic/supernatural stuff. And it seems they loaded him up with emotional vulnerability/issues as well.




Magic has been around as one of his weaknesses for a long time. I remember reading stories that involve it back as far as the early '70s. His invulnerability evolved over time. In the beginning he was massively powerful, but not unkillable.


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## ProfessorDetective (Jun 23, 2020)

The Question (Both Sage and Montoya), Squirrel Girl, Gwenpool, Jubilee, Zatanna, John Constantine, Casey 'Space Case' Brinke.


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## MoonSong (Jun 23, 2020)

ProfessorDetective said:


> Gwenpool



Oh, the one Marvel character I really like. (Sorry Spidey, you stopped being interesting after selling your soul  marriage)


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## Umbran (Jun 23, 2020)

FaerieGodfather said:


> Nah, gonna give that trophy to Jessica, too.




Jessica is better seen as having Complex PTSD, which is significantly more difficult to untangle.  We can quibble over whether hers is more accurate.  His is more easily grasped by the audience.


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## DammitVictor (Jun 23, 2020)

Umbran said:


> Jessica is better seen as having Complex PTSD, which is significantly more difficult to entangle.  We can quibble over whether hers is more accurate.  His is more easily grasped by the audience.




This is fair. Guess which I have more experience with, and you'll understand my bias.


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## Umbran (Jun 23, 2020)

FaerieGodfather said:


> This is fair. Guess which I have more experience with, and you'll understand my bias.




One of my players has complex PTSD.  They prefer Iron Man because they can _refer to him_ in discussions and have people get it.  Jessica is such a hot mess that using her as shared example becomes difficult.


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## CleverNickName (Jun 23, 2020)




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## Worrgrendel (Jun 23, 2020)

Dannyalcatraz said:


> I have always looked at him as someone attempting to atone for the evil he has brought into the world.  Several interesting RW rich people have done such.




The problem with Tony is that he keeps making really bad judgement decisions on things and then makes something really bad that he then turns around and makes another really bad judgement call on it to try to fix his first bad decision and then makes another bad decision to fix the fix for the first bad decision and no one but Cap calls him out on it. He has good intent but no impulse control and no self accountability for his actions.

Age of Ultron is the ultimate embodiment of this. 
Tony: Hey let's create this ultra powerful robot with alien technology that we don't fully understand because: we can! 
Oops, now Ultron is trying to destroy the world.
Tony: I know! I'll create ANOTHER ultra powerful robot with alien technology that we don't fully understand and it'll work out just fine this time guys I promise because: REASONS!
Avengers: Great idea! What can possibly go wrong?
Vision: seriously guys you only got lucky here. Let's be honest.

Civil war was really about Cap finally unable to put up with Tony's bulls@#t.


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## Ryujin (Jun 23, 2020)

Worrgrendel said:


> The problem with Tony is that he keeps making really bad judgement decisions on things and then makes something really bad that he then turns around and makes another really bad judgement call on it to try to fix his first bad decision and then makes another bad decision to fix the fix for the first bad decision and no one but Cap calls him out on it. He has good intent but no impulse control and no self accountability for his actions.
> 
> Age of Ultron is the ultimate embodiment of this.
> Tony: Hey let's create this ultra powerful robot with alien technology that we don't fully understand because: we can!
> ...




Yeeeeaaahhhh..... He got railroaded in Age of Ultron. In the comics it was Hank Pym, who was also a master of Bad Choices (tm).


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## Dannyalcatraz (Jun 23, 2020)

Personally, I like that Marvel humanized their heroes- before DC, at least- so that they DO make bad decisions.


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## the Jester (Jun 23, 2020)

MoonSong said:


> If we are going to go the way of the legion, I'd prefer Duplicate Girl. She has the one power I'd love to have in real life.




Do you mean Triplicate Girl/Duo Damsel?


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## MoonSong (Jun 23, 2020)

the Jester said:


> Do you mean Triplicate Girl/Duo Damsel?



She changes names faster than some people change cars. In Legion of three worlds she showed up an improved version of her power before proclaiming herself Duplicate Damsel and I quote "How did I manage with just three of me!?"

After New 52 she was renamed Duplicate Girl.


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## the Jester (Jun 23, 2020)

MoonSong said:


> She changes names faster than some people change cars. In Legion of three worlds she showed up an improved version of her power before proclaiming herself Duplicate Damsel and I quote "How did I manage with just three of me!?"
> 
> After New 52 she was renamed Duplicate Girl.




I didn't realize this!

I'm an old-school Legion fan and found the reboots disappointing after Giffen left the "Five Years Later" series. Until the current new version, I haven't kept up with much LSH stuff (though I did read the Legion of Three Worlds story, but don't remember than bit).


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## Worrgrendel (Jun 23, 2020)

Ryujin said:


> Yeeeeaaahhhh..... He got railroaded in Age of Ultron. In the comics it was Hank Pym, who was also a master of Bad Choices (tm).




Sure he did. And I know Hank was the original (comics) creator of Ultron. But let's be honest, Tony wasn't much better in any of the other Marvel movies he was in. Look at his actions all through Infinity War. Can't get any more selfish than that.


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## Ryujin (Jun 23, 2020)

Worrgrendel said:


> Sure he did. And I know Hank was the original (comics) creator of Ultron. But let's be honest, Tony wasn't much better in any of the other Marvel movies he was in. Look at his actions all through Infinity War. Can't get any more selfish than that.




Until...


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## MoonSong (Jun 23, 2020)

the Jester said:


> I didn't realize this!
> 
> I'm an old-school Legion fan and found the reboots disappointing after Giffen left the "Five Years Later" series. Until the current new version, I haven't kept up with much LSH stuff (though I did read the Legion of Three Worlds story, but don't remember than bit).



It is among the last batch of new comics I bought so the whole series was forever burned into memory. Money started getting tight at the time -you know, because of the 2009 crisis- and things at the time seemed to turn into less interesting stuff. Then they announced the new 52 and I took it as permission to jump off.


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## BookBarbarian (Jun 23, 2020)

MoonSong said:


> I prefer Wally, definitely. To me Barry used to work better as a symbol and legendary hero that Wally aspired to honor. In my opinion there was no reason to bring him back. He had completed his journey and gotten his happy ending already. By bringing him back, they just reset his life and life path, and what for? to give him angst!?



I do feel that Wally has gotten the shaft since Barry's return. Of all the original Teen Titan's he had risen the highest and was a super popular character to boot.


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## Eyes of Nine (Jun 24, 2020)

Concrete


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## Worrgrendel (Jun 24, 2020)

Ryujin said:


> Until...



Until what? His “sacrifice”?


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## Levistus's_Leviathan (Jun 24, 2020)

Worrgrendel said:


> Until what? His “sacrifice”?



He did die


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## Imaculata (Jun 24, 2020)

I like Spiderman. He is one of the few super heroes that doesn't seem to get respect or recognision for his hero work, and on top of that, half his enemies know his true identity.


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## Bohandas (Jun 24, 2020)

MoonSong said:


> It is among the last batch of new comics I bought so the whole series was forever burned into memory. Money started getting tight at the time -you know, because of the 2009 crisis- and things at the time seemed to turn into less interesting stuff. Then they announced the new 52 and I took it as permission to jump off.




it was 2008 not 2009


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## Bohandas (Jun 24, 2020)

It occurs to me that the title character from _Doctor Who_ has all the traits of a superhero despite the show being very much a non-superhero show. Think about it: The Doctor has a superpower (regeneration from mortal wounds, and limited shape-shifting and energy blasts connected with this regeneration), a secret identity (I'm pretty sure that even the show's writers don't know what the character's real name is),  uses various super-science gadgets (The sonic screwdriver, the TARDIS, the chameleon arch, etc), has an arch-nemesis (The Master), and - like Superman - is a space alien who is nominally the last of their kind even though there are actually a whole bunch of them trapped in another dimension.


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## Ryujin (Jun 24, 2020)

Bohandas said:


> It occurs to me that the title character from _Doctor Who_ has all the traits of a superhero despite the show being very much a non-superhero show. Think about it: The Doctor has a superpower (regeneration from mortal wounds, and limited shape-shifting and energy blasts connected with this regeneration), a secret identity (I'm pretty sure that even the show's writers don't know what the character's real name is),  uses various super-science gadgets (The sonic screwdriver, the TARDIS, the chameleon arch, etc), has an arch-nemesis (The Master), and - like Superman - is a space alien who is nominally the last of their kind even though there are actually a whole bunch of them trapped in another dimension.




Superman also has the bottled city of Kandor, so... same?


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## Bohandas (Jun 26, 2020)

I also kinf of like "V" from _V For Vendetta_. (Or at least I like the idea of V. The movie wasn't actually super great - it wasn't bad, but it wasn't great either - and I haven't read the graphic novel)


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## Richards (Jun 27, 2020)

Then you should definitely read the graphic novel - it's a much better version than the movie they made from it.  But V makes for an odd "superhero," in any case - he's rather like the Punisher, who likewise doesn't fit the "superhero" mold very well.

I'd have to put myself in the Spider-Man camp for the "best superhero" title.  His whole "with great power comes great responsibility" thing drives him to constantly try to do the right thing no matter how difficult it might be.  

Johnathan


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## Tonguez (Jun 27, 2020)

Bohandas said:


> It occurs to me that the title character from _Doctor Who_ has all the traits of a superhero despite the show being very much a non-superhero show. Think about it: The Doctor has a superpower (regeneration from mortal wounds, and limited shape-shifting and energy blasts connected with this regeneration), a secret identity (I'm pretty sure that even the show's writers don't know what the character's real name is),  uses various super-science gadgets (The sonic screwdriver, the TARDIS, the chameleon arch, etc), has an arch-nemesis (The Master), and - like Superman - is a space alien who is nominally the last of their kind even though there are actually a whole bunch of them trapped in another dimension.




Dr Who is a god

also that whole energy blast when he regenerates is something new, the old Doctors didnt do that


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## Mustrum_Ridcully (Jun 27, 2020)

Doctor Who is a good non-traditional pick.
I am tempted to say names like Captain Jean-Luc Picard or Captain Benjamin Sisko or... Admiral Adama and Captain Apollo. They take risks and always find a way. But of course, they lack superhero costumes and superpowers. Maybe I should pick Data, at least he has superpowers.


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## Ryujin (Jun 28, 2020)

Mustrum_Ridcully said:


> Doctor Who is a good non-traditional pick.
> I am tempted to say names like Captain Jean-Luc Picard or Captain Benjamin Sisko or... Admiral Adama and Captain Apollo. They take risks and always find a way. But of course, they lack superhero costumes and superpowers. Maybe I should pick Data, at least he has superpowers.




Well Sisko became a Q level demigod, so I's say that he qualifies. Hoping that he makes an appearance in the second season of Picard.


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## Tonguez (Jun 28, 2020)

Mustrum_Ridcully said:


> Doctor Who is a good non-traditional pick.
> I am tempted to say names like Captain Jean-Luc Picard or Captain Benjamin Sisko or... Admiral Adama and Captain Apollo. They take risks and always find a way. But of course, they lack superhero costumes and superpowers. Maybe I should pick Data, at least he has superpowers.




I remember one commentary that Sherlock Holmes stories were bad ‘detective mysteries’ because Sherlock Holmes was really an Action hero with superhuman powers of Observation.

The fact that Sherlock inspired Batman, Doctor Who and so many others sorta confirms that description too...


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## Khelon Testudo (Jul 1, 2020)

I'm not sure Ellie from The Last of Us 2 is a superhero or super-villain. Or maybe just a D&D Rogue? She sure can kill a lot, and is hard to kill.


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## Bohandas (Jul 1, 2020)

I'm also partial to the superheroes from that one Dave Chapelle routine on Netflix


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## DrunkonDuty (Jul 14, 2020)

Spidey has been my fave since I was a little fella. I am really enjoying _Renew Your Vows_. Also, _Enter the Spiderverse _might be the best Spiderman movie.

I've also been enjoying Jason Aaron's run on Thor but I dropped out when Jane handed back the hammer.

Of course so much depends on the writer. Basically I'll enjoy a given run by a given writer. When they leave I'll give the new writer a chance but may or may not stick with it. I also consider each writer's run to be a separate story universe. It's the only way to deal with all the damn retcons.


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## Tallifer (Aug 11, 2020)

Christopher Reeves and then Smallville made me vote for Superman. Tony MacGuire and the 1960s cartoon show theme song almost made me vote for Spiderman.


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