08 - The Best Marvel Superhero Part One
Okay, so it's been a while since I last wrote something on here, but that's because I needed something to write about. I believe that this is that post. I'm a huge Marvel nerd and when asked who my favourite hero is, I normally go to my default of Spider-man. I mean, he's definitely up there with my favourites but he's not my overall favourite.
There's a reason for this though; nobody actually knows my favourite hero is real. Nobody I know has even heard of half the people I like so this is the plan I came up with. I chose my favourite fifteen and put them all into one place with a little description and reasoning. That way, the mightiest parts of Marvel will be advertised for all to see:
15 - Speedball
Robbie Baldwin is such an underrated superhero. He's a long term member of the super team New Warriors and is one of the most cheery and positive heroes out there. This is the reason he made my top fifteen.
Most people know the basics of the Civil War comic story line, thanks to the fantastic adaptation in the recent Captain America film, but one thing that is very different is the lack of involvement from the New Warriors. In the source material, the "Stanford incident" (Which is the equivalent to what happened in sokovia) was the result of the New Warriors being out of their depth in a fight against Nitro, a hero whose power is to literally explode (No points for guessing where this is going).
When Nitro detonates, he destroys a large portion of a children's school, killing hundreds of the pupils in the process and killing all of the New warriors on site, except for Speedball.
Although it could be considered lucky he survived, Baldwin had to live with the guilt of not only watching his entire team die along with almost an entire school, but he feels completely responsible for convincing his team to take part. After this, he adopts the identity of Penance and designs a suit which intentionally causes him pain to remind of what he did.
Why is this important? Because after everything that happened, Speedball pulled through. He went through something harder than most other superheroes ever would and came through to be the same person he was before.
14 - Hawkeye (Kate Bishop)
Kate Bishop is amazing. Enough said. She is every bit the archer the original Hawkeye is, but with a much different personality. Most important of these personality traits is her level of empathy. Now i'm not trying to make the other Hawkeye seem like an Asshole, but he cares less than Kate does. The reason for this is probably to do with the lack of experience she's had, but she always has the best opinion.
When she debuted, Kate was the Hawkeye for the Young Avengers. Although she stays connected to the group, she has shone in the marvel universe as the partner for the original Hawkeye. When the series started, she seemed to be nothing more than a sidekick. When the series developed however, she became what some would argue is the better Hawkeye. But what I think is most important is what she did for Clint Barton. As Hawkeye, Barton had been more of an avenger or a solo hero, there was never middle ground. Even when he was married or in committed relationships with heroes like Mockingbird or Spider-Woman, he still stuck out as a lone wolf who did his own thing. Kate Bishop changed that. She made him a better hero and a better man and for that, she's one of the best heroes Marvel gave us.
13 - Captain America
I know being British gives me less of a reason to appreciate Captain America than actual Americans, but god damn it I can't help having a man crush on the guy. Cap is literally the textbook definition of a loyal and good hero. He's a patriot and a leader and if there was any hero you'd follow into battle, it's this guy.
I'm not going to go into much detail with Cap cause I highly doubt you'll need it, but my reason for him being in the list is that he is a real and true hero in every definition of the world.
12 - Ms Marvel
I was so happy when I first read Ms Marvel comics because she is nothing more than a lucky lucky fan girl. After getting her powers through inhuman means (I'm not going into details about Inhuman's unless someone wants it) she did the best thing in becoming a hero who is protective over her community and is just fun to read about! The best part is when she has her fangirl moments. She will literally stop, mid team-up, to ask other heroes what she wants to know. She embodies every nerd ever and that's what is great about her.
11 - Deadpool
People who know me would be surprised to see him this far down, but he made the list which is what is important! Every Deadpool comic has made me so damn happy and everything about it is fantastic. I don't need details on him because we all know deadpool and we all know that he is one of the best because he is different in a good way.
10 - Moon Knight
Moon Knight is different. Very different. Which is surprising considering he was based off Batman. This is a guy with the most ridiculous condition of Bipolar you'd ever see. He not only has the identity of Mark Spector and Moon Knight, he has a couple of others just because he can. He's mentally unstable and there are many heroes who don't even want to go near him because they don't know what he's capable of. He was sectioned for psychiatric help because he was found shouting at an imaginary spidey, cap and wolverine.
So what stands out about this guy that makes me like him? Well on top of all that is he worships a
Moon God who saved his life. That's just the icing on the cake.
9 - Hawkeye (Clint Barton)
The classic Hawkeye is such a strong character. He's changed and grown up a lot over the years and he's still such a major character who goes unnoticed. His role in the films hasn't been prominent enough for people to learn about him, but his comic history is long and extensive.
The most prominent Hawkeye moment for me is the first issue of the age of Ultron comic event. For the event itself, Ultron has decimated New york and is working his way across the planet, leaving only a handful of heroes left in hiding. Whilst everyone else is looking out for themselves, Hawkeye learns of Spider-man being held captive by some villains in the ruins of the city. Even though everyone tells him not to go, Barton leaves to go find spider-man, knowing full well the rest of the heroes had told him not to come back because they were only looking after those who were left.
This is an important moment because in a city where God's had fallen and Earth's mightiest resorted to hiding, the one hero who is always considered the weakest and most useless did what he could to save someone he could.
8 - Spider-man
Considering he's my default favourite, it shocks me I would place him so far down this list. Peter Parker is a real hero and has put up with more shit than any other hero I can think of. For more details on exactly what, look for the next post which will explain why I believe this guy is so amazing.
As for the moment which stands out for me in his life, it would be during the Avengers Vs X-men event. When what was left of the avengers were trying to infiltrate one of the hideouts for the Phoenix five to free their friends, they are caught by a near omnipotent version of Colossus and Magik. These were mutants who were powerful before, but now with the phoenix force they became one of the toughest fights the Avengers would have to deal with. considering that most of the team were weak already and the heavy hitters like Thor were unconscious, it was clear that they were outnumbered.
That was when Spider-man pulled every hero towards the entrance with his web line, before sealing them out so he would fight the pair on his own. Although he would live to survive this fight, the odds were stacked against him and his sacrifice to save the others was so great, that it stood out as one of his defining moments. What followed was something that was pure Spidey. He was bloodied, beaten, dying and still making jokes. Not only that be he was also able to trick the two enemies into taking each other out, making the entire fight all that easier.
For a character that comes in so low down, he will always be regarded as one of my favourites.
But if you are good at Maths, you'll notice that so far I have only spoken about eight of the heroes and that is it for this entry.
For part two of the list you will have to stick around and find out who I would put above my default favourite
