So today (or yesterday) is Batman day. For some reason. Yeah, can someone explain that one to me? But since it is also his 80th anniversary this year, I guess a little celebrating can’t hurt. And while I covered a lot of Batman stories and inceptions, and his villains, one thing I never discussed was his supporting cast. Batman has one of the best supporting cast of any superhero, and today I’m going to look at the my ten favorites.
I kind mentioned this when I went over five characters I did not like. But today I wanted to take a look at the awesome characters I do like. The only rule is that these have to be a “Batman” family character, so heroes and/or colleagues like Superman are off the list. And no villains, with one notable exception.
#10.Cassandra Cain
Why so high on the list? I barely know anything about her. What I do came from the AT4W retrospective earlier this year. But from what I understand she is a very unqiue character who really made a mark for herself as the second Batgirl.
#9.The Huntress
I put her high because her status as a Bat family member is kinda shaky. She was the daughter of the Earth 1 Batman in the pre-crisis days. Post Crisis they tried to find a way for her to fit in with no relation to the Wayne family. That was hit or miss and these days she’s a direct relative again.
#8.Lucius Fox
I actually knew this character before Morgan Freeman made him famous in the Nolan films. He’d been around for awhile though he was never really stood out. What makes him unique is he is Bruce’s friend, which is a rare thing.
#7.Selina Kyle
While Catwoman is technically a villain you cant deny that Selina Kyle has always been a hot love interest for Batman and/or Bruce. While I never really got why they had to be together it’s clear that many like them that way.
#6.Tim Drake
I’ve discussed this one to death so will just say Drake was a great character mostly because of hoe he was introduced and developed. These days he is Red Robin which I don’t understand but that’s cool.
#5.Vicki Vale
Seriously, what the heck happened to her? I liked her and she kinda vanished! She was a reporter and another love interest. Ok she was no Lois Lane but she was a good addition to the Batman cast because she so, well, normal!
#4.Barbara Gordon
I’ve talked a lot about her so wont go on to long. She was the first Batgirl before becoming the awesome Oracle..and then being turned into Batgrl again. But either way, she is awesome.
#3.Commissioner Gordon
One of the things Batman:Year One did was make Commissioner Gordon a more fleshed out character. What I like about him is that he isn’t just some police officer Batman confides in. There is genuine respect and admiration between the two.
#2.Dick Grayson
Grayson was of course the first Robin, before becoming Nightwing later on. And the reason this character works is that there is a real father/son connection between the him and Batman. But not in a healthy way. They are more like a dysfunctional father and son who will often argue and butt heads…but deep down there is mutual love and respect. Grayson is one of the few characters in comics who evolved and grew up, and was never retconned back to the way he was. What bout Jason Rodd and Damien Wayne? I know nothing about Bruce’s son and Todd never did much for me.
#1.Alfred Pennyworth
It was hard to decide who should be the #1 choice. But Alfred gets the top slot because he has always been there. Well, except for that one time he quit but he came back! His backstory has been retconned here and there but the point is he is Batman’s butler and confidant. And what I love the best is that Alfred is the one character who tell Bruce when he is losing touch with his humanity. He’s never afraid to stand up to him but he’s still loyal to the end. Course he isn’t just a butler he is smart and efficient helping Batman with medical and technical needs.
Well, guess it’s only fair to do Superman next. Check that out tomorrow.
No comments:
Post a Comment