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THE 200 GREATEST COMIC BOOK CHARACTERS OF ALL TIME | In honor of our 200th Issue, Wizard runs down the 200 comic book characters that stand apart from the rest!
Today: Numbers 40 to 21! | | | By the Wizard Staff | | Posted 05/22/08 | |  | |
30. The Flash
Spastic speedsters are a dime a dozen in comics, but none have resonated with readers quite like the Flash, DC's resident red blur of justice. Current mantle-holder Wally West has emerged as one of the few sidekicks to mature into a leading role; lately, he's even had to deal with offspring who exhibit powers similar to his own. His growth—both as a man and as a hero—is a rarity in the medium. Unlike most characters frozen in time, West moves at the speed of life.
29. Ozymandias
Forget the shouting, shooting, and strangling: villains are at their unsettling best when they remain calm even when delivering unspeakable horror. That quiet menace defines Adrian Veidt, the marquee psychopath of Watchmen and a man who relates his slaughter of two million people with the cadence of someone ordering an appetizer. His steady pulse is what gets ours racing.
28. Fone Bone
The most honest and adventurous of the three cartoony cousins at the core of Jeff Smith's epic indie series Bone, Fone Bone is the quintessential courageous hero. Despite his diminutive size, Fone spends the majority of the series sticking up for anyone and everyone smaller than him against massively terrifying foes. But his kind-hearted quirks, from his unrequited love of Princess Thorn to his irrational obsession with Moby Dick, are what ultimately make Fone the Bone to root for.
27. Green Goblin
Cunning, diabolical, evil and twisted—if Norman Osborn were real he'd either be a serial killer or President of the United States. Norman doesn't simply want to kill his foes, he wants to watch them slowly degrade before him; he wants to make it last and he wants that maniacal laughter to haunt you until the day you die. Whether in a business suit or atop a Goblin Glider, Norman's the kind of man who'd cut your throat as quickly as shake your hand.
26. Cassidy
How is it that such a charming, hard-drinking, Irish vampire could be such an absolute wanker? In Preacher, Proinsias Cassidy was the Rev. Jesse Custer's "best mate," and yet, he would eventually betray him by making a move on his girlfriend, Tulip, when Jesse was both alive and thought dead. Cassidy would pay for that with a brutal battle with his ex-pal, but ultimately, whether he deserved it or not, the nearly century-old parasite would receive a redemption of sorts. Bollocks!
25. The Spirit
One of comics' first and finest noir characters—it's little wonder Frank Miller is directing a big-screen outing—Will Eisner's genial crime fighter remains one of the most easygoing detectives in fiction. (And considering he was once buried alive, that's saying something.) Surrounded by femme fatales, colorful criminals, and quirky cases, Denny Colt handles it all with trademark aplomb, bringing welcome levity to an industry brimming with grim ‘n' gritty sourpusses.
24. Marv
Pure, unadulterated raging id, Marv's the ultimate dim-witted badass with a heart of gold (and also a wicked right cross). For someone who's ultimately a sociopathic killing machine, Marv's drive to do the right thing—without consideration of the possible collateral damage or body count—imparts him with a sense of medieval nobility, and elevates him above the rest of the gutter-level criminals that populate Sin City. So if you're ever sitting next to him at a bar, buy him a beer and be his pal. To not do so runs the risk of dying. Painfully.
23. Yorick Brown
By a quirk of fate (and a feces-throwing monkey), Yorick Brown, an escape artist wannabe, is the seemingly sole survivor of a plague that wiped out all of Earth's males in Y: The Last Man. He's not your typical hero: His fighting skills are lacking; he's not the bravest guy ever; his quips are exceedingly biting and topical; and at one point he seemed more self-destructive than constructive. But he evolved. He learned how to survive in a world turned upside down. Sadly, though, it was a world in which this hopeless romantic would finally find true love for only a fleeting moment.
22. Commissioner James Gordon
"Lieutenant Gordon," muses the Dark Knight in Batman: Year One. "I've been hearing his name often. All the right people seem to hate him…I need an ally—an inside man. I need Jim Gordon. On my side." Yes, he did. While Batman's gone through a slew of teams, teen partners and Bat-family members, the one constant in his crimefighting crusade has been Gordon. The Commissioner vehemently believes in law and order, but he's well aware, when you live in Psychoville (i.e., Gotham City), that there are times to fire up the bat signal and get a little help from a friend.
21. Daredevil
Matt Murdock embodied his childhood nickname by overcoming his physical handicap, training to use his enhanced senses and raising himself to become one of the most feared, driven defense attorneys in New York City. Throw in his career as a masked crimefighter—one who relies only on guts and his own perfected physical prowess—and Daredevil's proven time and again that an iron will and a good uppercut are all the tools you need to wage a war on the criminal underworld, whether your battleground is the back alleys or the courtroom.
Click the links for more top characters--Numbers 200 to 181, Numbers 180 to 161, Numbers 160 to 141, Numbers 140 to 121, Numbers 120 to 101, Numbers 100 to 81, Numbers 80 to 61 and Numbers 60 to 41! | | | | | | | | |
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