I’m a massive Hulk fan and have been since I was a child. I absoutely LOVED the Hulk TV show and my mom still tells stories about me “hulking out” on people in the grocery store as a youth.
I’ve probably got 80% of the standard Incredible Hulk run of comics (Including Wolverine’s REAL first appearance in 180). I was kind of an outcast as a kid because my parents bused me to the rich side of town for elementary school because they thought they were doing me a favor when in reality a kid that wears the same jeans to school everyday is going have a hell of a time when confronted by kids with 5-8 pair of clean jeans to wear :(.
Anyway, he was an outcast and would HULK OUT whenever people would piss him off and I always dreamed of being able to HULK OUT on the bullies. It was a fun fantasy and pulled me through tough times. Especially watching ole Lou hulk out and break shit.
I never liked Grey hulk or any of the long story arcs. I’ve always been old school and prefer stortlines that are resolved in 1-2 issues max with half of the issue consisting of Hulk breaking things and villians. Lol.
So, what old school hero holds a special place in your heart and why?
A standalone old school superhero? Spidey. I’m not quite yet 24 so my awkward years aren’t that far behind me, meaning I can relate to him pretty well. Plus he has a nifty array of powers. If teams’re included, though, it’d be the X-Men. I’ve always gravitated towards them for some reason.
As I grow older, the idea of a perfect man who comes from the stars and only wants to do good appeals more and more to me. I know people think he’s overpowered and boring, but used in the right light (which, admittedly, isn’t quite the traditional superhero beatemup), Superman’s combination of power and essential goodness make him really compelling.
Also, the Flash, because he uses weird science tricks.
Well, if he’s considered to be old school, than I get to choose Nightmask. He appealed to me because he was a solitary character in a new universe; I didn’t have to wade through years’ worth of confusing and contradicting backstory; instead, I got to see him throughout his entire comic run.
12 issues.
But, still.
If not him, then the '60s Superman. 'Cause those were the first comics I ever read.
Wolverine. I was the kid everybody picked on, and I would of loved to terrorize and/or shred them. That’s the nice thing about fantasy; you can ignore little details like prison time…
That’s a difficult question. I was always a big Batman fan, but when Ollie lost all his money and took off with Hal to find America, well, Ollie became the man for me. In a lot of ways, Green Arrow is a truly everyman super hero. Just a guy with trick arrows, doing what he can. He hates aging and tries to fight what he perceives is wrong whenever he encounters it.
Another vote for Spider Man. He struggles to do the right thing, doubts himself at every turn, gets the tar beaten out of himself on a daily basis, and still wisecracks. If that’s not enough, he’s the nerd that got the babe and he’s a teacher.
The Wally West Flash is my favorite DC character. No other comic book superhero has shown the growth that Wally has shown over the years. He went from fun loving kid, to angry teen, to cocky young man, to confident superhero.
I don’t know what they are doing with him these days, but his development between the Crisis and the end of Mark Waid’s run was the best characterization in the history of superhero comics (well…tied with Starman…)
My favorite Marvel character is Daredevil. The Frank Miller era was the best “non-creator” run in all of comicdom. The suffering of Matthew Murdock during Born Again? Wow.
I liked Batman from childhood. The old Adam West TV show in its original run was my first exposure to the character. I’ve always liked his motivation (revenge) and that he made himself into a “super” hero. I haven’t read any newly published comics featuring Batman, or any character, in over a decade…but I still like old Batsy.
Well, I’m probably the second biggest Legion of Super Heroes fan on the board. Of all the Legionnaires who have come and gone (and come again and gone again), my favorites are Wildfire and Timber Wolf, both of whom I pay tribute to in the MMORPG City of Heroes.
Across the aisle to the Marvel section, I am a Jim Starlin fan. The original Captain Marvel and Adam Warlock were my favorites.
Nevertheless, I have a number of favorites for different reasons, but I suppose I’ll narrow it down to two to champion here, since Batman and Spidey and Superman have their boosters already.
Firstly, the Phantom Stranger. I love how they’ve maintained his mystery over the years. I always enjoy his appearance because I know things are about to get strange, and serious.
Secondly, Ambush Bug. I have a great affection for silly characters like Slapstick, Madcap, Plastic Man - and Ambush Bug is the king of the hill when it comes to ‘silly’. He’s the perfect superheroic embodiment of the non-sequitur. In one tale, showing the heroes of an alternate DCU getting slaughtered in a big Crisis-style battle, they’re all making their lamentations as they lay dying after a large blast, and Ambush Bug is there, with “Mmm, boy! Who wants pie?”
It’s also hard not to like someone whose archenemy is a sentient sock. I really gotta get moving on those Ambush Bug fanfics I have outlined…
There could not be a more polar opposite of me. I could really get my teeth around the idea of someone who could just kill off all the bad guys. And if/when you put him in prison, he would just kill them all off! Lovely. And when you add in some great one-liners, even better!
