During my most recent Retro Review, I found myself thinking of Firestorm, The Nuclear Man as a “new” character, even though I am well aware that he debuted in 1978. Even more strangely, other characters that my brain keeps in that category are Deadpool (first appearance 1990), Tellus (first appearance 1985) and Ms. Marvel, who actually fits in the category, having bowed in 2013. Still, five years is a long time in the real world, long enough for someone to become an old friend, a marriage to be tested by time or a child to learn to walk, talk and play Parcheesi, even if she cheats. In short, our perceptions of newness may not always have any basis in reality, leading to today’s mint-in-box query…
The MS-QOTD (pronounced, as always, “misquoted”) reminds Faithful Spoilerites of the unspoken rule of the MS-QOTD, that being that any answer can be correct, if you can justify/defend it, asking: What character of any vintage does your memory insist is the best “new” character?
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I’d definitely have to say the Ryan Choi Atom. He’s one of the ‘new’ generation of heroes from when I was getting back into comics, and he’ll always be new to me, having been an addition to the DCU that I knew, the one I grew up with, that of the Silver/Bronze Age. I’m a purist at heart, and I tend to be skeptical of change. I hated Ryan Choi at first, not because of his own value or lack thereof, but because of the terrible things that DC did to his predecessor, Ray Palmer, in order to open the door for Ryan. This is a perennial problem with comics, as the big two tend to torture their characters when they run our of ideas, and they can never just let a hero retire or find a happy ending. Instead, they have to do something awful to them to make way for a new guard.
Despite this, I picked up Ryan Choi’s series after hearing great things about it, sure I was going to dislike it, only to be utterly charmed by the glorious insanity of that book. They made me love a character that I was primed to hate, and they told great, bizarre, and wonderfully entertaining stories about him.
I’ve stopped thinking Kitty as a new character and moved on, so let’s say Stargirl. Actually, that whole JSA team was great. Current Ms. Marvel is also one of the best.
Damian. Grant Morrison hit it out of the park when he created an obnoxious snot that I slowly fell in love with. The pairing of Dick as Batman and Damian as Robin was perfect.
As runner up, Tim Drake. He brought out the best in Batman.
Will Payton Starman
XS of the Legion of Super-Heroes, who debuted in October, 1994.