| REVIEWS: MOVIES & DVDs | COMIC BOOKS | VIDEOGAMES | WEB SITES & MORE The Coolest Character in Comics by Mike-oh
First of all, Dick Grayson was cool before he ever met Batman. He was a trapeze artist at the age of twelve. He was flying throught the air in a big top circus doing double flips and defying death while the greatest challenge other kids his age faced was a spelling B. If strategy hadn't struck Grayson at a young age, he was already well on his way to fame and fortune. But strategy did strike. And Grayson was taken under the wing of Gotham's Dark Knight. Imagine having Batman teach you everything he knows. Plus, he's got Alfred keeping it real. He's living the life of a millionaire by day and swinging through the towers of Gotham City by night. He hangs out with Superman. Pals around with Batgirl. Beats up Two-Face. All before college. But what really makes Dick Grayson cool is how he quips through it all. He's never lost his sense of humor, even in the darkest of times. He always keeps his cool and manages to taunt danger, no matter how threatening. And as much as he was a great follower, he's also proven to be an inspirational leader. But to call Dick Grayson the coolest character in comics, you have to first consider the competition. Here's a quick list of the (arguably) coolest characters in comics. Batman, Superman, Captain America, Spider-man, Iron-Man, Thor, Daredevil, the Punisher, Robin, Nightwing, Green Lantern (Hal Jordan), Martian Manhunter, Aquaman, Namor, Cyclops, Wolverine, Colossus, Hellboy, Conan, Invincible, the Thing, Johnny Storm, Agent Graves, Hawkman, Nick Fury, the Flash, and Green Arrow. Now consider what makes a person cool. First of all, they don't panic. They maintain their composure. Second, they're not jerks. They aren't cool at someone else's expense. They are like an island. Just not alone on an island. They have charisma. They are attractive. People want to be around them. People want to be them. They make cool choices. Like the clothes they wear, the car they drive, the music they listen to, the subjects they bring up in conversation, and the people they associate with. And though they hang with other cool people, they aren't judgemental. Although they are winners, they aren't hung up on winning. Competing comes natural but they don't believe in winning at any cost. And they have an accurate moral compass. They care about right and wrong and refuse to compromise they're standards for any reason. There are other considerations for determining someone's cool factor, but let's use this criteria as a way to weed out the list of candidates listed above. The second point, "they aren't jerks", tends to eliminate most everyone in the Marvel U. I'm not trying to say that they are all jerks. But in Marvel's effort to make more human like characters, they have built in a lot of real character flaws as a part of the process. Consider Wolverine for example. On the surface, you might think that he's a shoe-in for the coolest character. He's got cool claws. And he's a great fighter. But he has a real hard time keeping his cool. He has a very short fuse. He's always saying the wrong thing, making lousy decisions, operating with a very shaky moral compass, and basically making a mess of most everything he gets involved with. Other Marvel jerks include Johnny Storm, Namor, the Punisher, Nick Fury, and Iron-Man. Spider-man isn't a jerk. He's just very panicky. I guess you could blame it on his spider senses. But face it, Peter Parker was uncool before he became Spider-Man. And how many of you haven't thought to yourself that you would have utilized your spider powers better than he has if you would have beenso lucky to have been bitten by a radioactive spider? It's not like DC is in short supply of jerks either. Hawkman, Aquaman, the Flash, Green Lantern, and Green Arrow all come to mind right away. I guess the "J" in JLA stands for Jerk. But the characters of the DC U have other problems. Martian Manhunter seems cool but only because he's such a freakin' souless alien that he just comes across that way. And if you ever saw him in his natural form, he totally loses in the area of charisma and attraction. Superman, though more human than Mr. J'onz, is still an alien. And pretty unapproachable as Superman. As Clark Kent, he's much more human. But let's face it, Clark has a real hard time coming across as cool. It's his Smallville, Boy Scout demeanor that makes Clark and Superman hard to consider the coolest character in comics. So we're down to Batman, Captain America, Thor, Daredevil, Robin, Nightwing, Cyclops, Colossus, Hellboy, Conan, Invincible, the Thing, and Agent Graves. Invincible and Robin are both very cool. And both very young. Not enough experience to compete with the coolness of say Batman or Agent Graves. Give 'em a few years. Speaking of Agent Graves, he's one cool mother. Scary cool. I'm not sure his moral compass points north, however. It points in whatever direction Graves' is pointing. The Thing has plenty of morals. He's Jewish even. Believes in the Ten Commandments and everything. He also has terrible cigar breath, bad manners, a rude attitude to other people he passes judgment on, and a rocky exterior that's hard to warm up to. Conan the Barbarian falls in a similar camp. That, and he's basically barbaric which by today's standards would be very uncool. Hellboy is totally cool except for the fact that he is a hellspawn demon who will be an instrument for destroying the entire planet. When someone takes out an entire planet, they tend to be considered pretty uncool. Still, he hasn't destroyed any planet's yet, but that whole filing down your devil horns thing is just a little too off-putting for most people. Up next are a couple of X-men, Cyclops and Colossus. I won't make the mistake of discounting them on the basis of being mutants. That would be very uncool. But in Colossus' case, about the only thing that makes him cool are his mutant powers. He's just never had much of a personality beyond his willingness to heave Wolverine at Sentinels. Can you see Colossus carrying his own comic book? I thought not. But what about Scott Summers? He should probaly have his own title, right? Maybe. But he's had a ton of trouble keeping the ladies in his life happy. And frankly, has made some very questionable decisions as the leader of the X-men. They're not exactly a team that stays together, either. Cyclops has a hard time inspiring loyalty. Now we're down to a short list. Batman, Captain America, Thor, Daredevil, and Nightwing. Thor should be the coolest guy in comics. He's great looking. Massivley powerful. Very principled. Uncompromising. But he only likes to party in Valhalla with the other gods and cares very little about regular people unless they are beign threatened. At least Superman cares about people. Captain America cares about people. He should be the coolest guy in comics. But he's helplessly old-fashioned. Helplessly. Daredevil should be the coolest guy in comics. Especially under the pen of Ed Brubaker. Just don't get too close to him. All of his friends are always getting killed. He has a real knack for making enemies. And seems to be very hung up by his vendetta against crime. If anyone needs to chill out and take it easy, it's Daredevil. Which leads us to Batman and Nightwing. Batman is way cool. When you hear people talk about which super hero they admire the most, it often ends up being Batman. The reason? No super powers. A regular guy who has trained his mind and body to perfection. He is so tough that even super powered opponents find themselves at a disadvantage. He's rich. Has great taste. Has a butler that is also very cool as butlers go. He has awesome gadgets and electronic toys. He slides down a firepole into his own batcave which is extremely cool. His is really without compare. Except that he is so grim and uptight that it makes it very hard to call Batman the coolest guy in comics. Batman is so mental that he is more Batman than he is Bruce Wayne. He has left the rest of us ordinary people behind for a life behind a mask. But there is one guy who is as cool as Batman -- without any of his hang ups. And that's his ward, Dick Grayson. Which brings me back to where I started. Given Grayson's background, upbringing, training, personality, attitude, good looks, athletic ability, leadership skill, and super hero pedigree, he's virtually in a class all by himself. So, what do you think? Agree? Disagree? Give us your feedback. |
|
|
ABOUT OUR WRITERS Disgruntled
Dan Afro
Thunder Mike-oh |
