There’s always a place for the wily veterans in comics, but sometimes you just need an impulsive young gun to blow some stuff up! Welcome to Ten Things: Ten Hotshots!

Whooshman-Bicarbonate Films, in conjunction with An Amateur Comics Historian and that K-Pop boy band, Presents:

TEN THINGS: TEN HOTSHOTS!

10) HOTSHOT

One of the youngest operatives of Hero Hotline, barely out of high school, Billy Lefferts still lives at home with his mother. The source of his pyrokinesis is unknown (but Mama Lefferts hypothesizes it has to do with her love of spicy foods) and most of his free time is spent mooning over fellow hero Diamondette.
But, if you wanna get his help, the number to dial in the DCU is 555-HERO!

9) HOTSHOT

The fire-powered member of The Foundation (associates of the hero called FX, in the book of the same name), he is very reminiscent of The Human Torch, right down to having a sister as part of the team. His partners (Splash, Mudslide and Misty) fill out the elemental foursome and also add to the FF comparisons, in a world that bears a loving resemblance to 80s Marvel Comics.

8) HOTSHOT

Empowered by Hulk villain The Leader as part of his Riot Squad, Louis Lember is not only a gamma-powered green dynamo, but can fire bolts of pure energy from his fingertips. His blasts proved sufficient to bring down The Hulk himself, but his emotional state wasn’t nearly as robust. The death of his girlfriend left him paralyzed with grief and led to his demise.

7) HOTSHOT

One of many superhumans hunted by mysterious forces, Hotshot is forced to team up with other super-teens and form a fighting team called The Troop to ensure their survival. Any comparisons to X-Men are probably intentional, but there’s also a dash of Teen Titans and a modern hyperviolent twist to his adventures, with elements of soap opera that serve the story well.

6) HOTSHOT

A Navy pilot who earned his nickname the old-fashioned way, Jonathan Banks is a master of aerial combat. Rather than use a plane, though, he pilots a special flying suit outfitted with anti-Superman technology, including a pair of Kryptonite blades. Along with his partners All-American Boy, Bruiser and Sekhmet, he works for Amanda Waller in a special strike team called the Last Line, whose lack of restraint destroyed most of Smallville.

5) HOT SHOT

Another character somewhat analogous to the Human Torch, she is a member of The Oddities in Bill Willingham’s ‘Panthon’, married to Doctor Odd. Unfortunately, his ex-wife is also on the team, posthumously, as a ghost called Afterlife, while Hot Shot’s ex-boyfriend Boulder rounds out the team. It’s a very dysfunctional family, made even more so when they face the monstrous threat of Deathboy.

4) HOTSHOT

The son of The Black Knight and Sersi in the near-future reality of Earth-9511, he was so vain and self-assured that he notified the press BEFORE arriving on the scene of a terrible battle with Kang, in the hopes of their capturing footage of his heroism. Instead, they saw him cause his own death, shooting indiscriminately at the villain, only to realize too late that he was trapped in a forcefield that reflected his shots back at him with fatal accuracy.

3) HOTSHOT

After a long stint in a coma, Lieutenant Chris Eastman was awakened by a private contractor named Omen Enterprises and given extensive cybernetic enhancements. Now able to channel the powers of Harbingers by mechanical means, she was given command of the B-Team of Omen’s black ops squad, the H.A.R.D. Corps. She eventually made her way to the main squad, the first woman to do so, though the team’s fatality rate may cast a shadow on whether or not that graduation makes her a success or just another casualty.

2) HOTSHOT

An extremely minor member of Spider-Man’s Rogue’s Gallery, Abraham James’ pyrokinetic fury has one major weakness: Golden sponge cake with creamy filling! He’s also one of the rare Hostess characters to make it into the mainstream Marvel Universe, albeit a brief cameo years later, in which he’s still locked away and has gained quite a bit of Twinkie weight in the ensuing years. To my knowledge, only Icemaster, who appeared in Thunderbolts has pulled that off, though DC Comics has recently been using Hostess villain Pigeon Person.

1) HOTSHOT

In an apocalyptic future, the machines reign supreme, with the nefarious Destructors ruling with an iron grip. And an iron everything, because robits. Hotshot and his Protectors labor under their vicious command, always haunted by the legends of the creatures called “man.” When his heroic destiny is thrust upon him, Hotshot and a ragtag crew of construction bots set off on a journey to find and restore humanity, chased by the Destructors as they go.

It’s kind of like ‘Transformers’, actually…

This week’s topic is all me, but feel free to throw out your own suggestions and follow along @MightyKingCobra for more Ten Things madness on Twitter or check out the full Twitter archive here! As with any set of like items, these aren’t meant to be hard and fast or absolutely complete, especially since there some names are too great not to use and reuse. Either way, the comments section is Below for just such an emergency, but, as always: Please, no wagering!

---

Dear Spoilerite,

At Major Spoilers, we strive to create original content that you find interesting and entertaining. Producing, writing, recording, editing, and researching requires significant resources. We pay writers, podcast hosts, and other staff members who work tirelessly to provide you with insights into the comic book, gaming, and pop culture industries. Help us keep MajorSpoilers.com strong. Become a Patron (and our superhero) today.