10. Aqualad
I recently watched the Cartoon Network Young Justice television show and was actually quite excited by the show's writing, action, and character development. I was especially impressed by their treatment of the character of Aqualad. In the comics, Aqualad was a victim of the "sidekick bandwagon" and became an unimaginative carbon copy of his heroic mentor, Aquaman. Later on, Aqualad became Tempest and joined the ranks of the Outsiders with fellow former sidekicks Nightwing and Arsenal. In the show, however, is a prince of Atlantis that forgoes his underwater allegiances in order to serve as the protector of all of the Earth with his fellow Young Justice team members. He is a dynamic character, powerful leader, and an overall crazy cool hero to watch in action, reminiscent of Cyborg from the Teen Titans television show.
9. Franklin Richards
Sometimes, genetics suck. Franklin Richards is the son of Reed and Susan Richards (that's Mr. Fantastic and the Invisible Woman for you non-geek elite) and, due to his parents' genetic mutations, Franklin was born with incredible psychic powers. Powers that are beyond anyone's, including his own control. Under the tutelage of his parents and the entire Fantastic Four, Franklin has honed his dangerous powers and has managed to save the universe on many occasions, including the time he transported the Fantastic Four, the Avengers, and the X-Men into a pocket dimension in order to save them all from the all-powerful Onslaught. Unstable and constantly time jumping, Franklin is a surprisingly unique character that demonstrates how being a hero means sometimes losing your innocence.
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8. Rick Jones
Rick Jones gets some bonus points for being a sidekick to multiple superheroes. He got his start as one of the Hulk's only friend, who kept Bruce Banner's animalistic side from getting the better of him. He later joined the Teen Brigade, a group of teenagers that report major crimes to Earth's heroes, and became largely responsible for the formation of the Avengers. As time went on, Rick became a close confidant of the entire Avengers and eventually partner with Captain America. He later becomes the hero Captain Mar-Vell and is singlehandedly responsible for ending the Kree-Skrull War and defeating the Supreme Intelligence with his godly powers. Not bad for a sidekick.
7. Bucky Barnes
Bucky Barnes has been getting a lot of press lately due to the Captain America movie so I feel alright about relaying some of the spoilers that are attached to Bucky's story. Bucky started his career as Captain America's sidekick during World War II and Bucky's apparent death is what caused Cap to fall into the ocean where he would stay in suspended animation until he was found and joined the Avengers. Bucky, however, was not death and was instead saved and brainwashed by HYDRA to kill Captain America as the Winter Soldier. Cap manages to save his former sidekick and Bucky later finds himself having to take up the role of Captain America after Steve Rodgers' death. Bucky's story is one of redemption that is trademark amongst the Marvel canon.
6. Speedy
Roy Harper, aka Speedy, Red Arrow, and Arsenal, is an unique sidekick not only due to his equal footing with his mentor, Green Arrow, but also because he lived up to his name in more than one sense. In a ground-breaking comic book arc, Green Arrow discovers that Speedy has become addicted to heroin and begins a long quest to get Roy clean once more. The story marked a loss of innocence for all the DC teenage sidekicks who were no longer treated as clones of their respective heroes, but as individual and unique characters of their own. Speedy has also made appearances on the Young Justice and Batman Brave and the Bold television shows, where he holds his own as an awesome sidekick characters.
5. Wonder Girl
Female superheroes are tricky business. The sex appeal is a major and distracting factor that many comic book fans are unfortunately obsessed with. So, when crafting a female sidekick for an already strong female superhero, the DC writer went the best route with Wonder Girl, creating a deep, fascinating, and spunky character in Cassie Sandsmark aka Wonder Girl. Cassie's birth as a hero came out of tragedy as the death of the original Wonder Girl, Donna Troy, destroys the current Young Justice and leaves the door open for the next generation of sidekicks to rise to the occasion. Cassie stands out from the pack due to a strong and resilient personality and will always stand strong for what she believes in.
4. Kid Flash
The Flash family tree is fairly confusing, and Bart Allen, the son of former Flash Barry Allen from another timeline, is no exception. Not used to the slow way of life that other humans live, Bart lives life at a hundred miles per hour, earning him the nickname Impulse. However, after being kneecapped by the mercenary Deathstroke, Impulse decides to mature and reads the entire San Francisco Library in twenty minutes, rechristening himself as Kid Flash. Bart is one of my favorite sidekicks because of his outlook on life. He knows that challenges of being an outsider but never lets it interfere with his sense of innocence and wonder at the world of superhuman in which he lives. He never forgets what it means to be a hero and the proud legacy that he has to live up to. I have no doubt that Bart will make a great Flash one day.
3. Beast Boy
While known primarily for his comedic antics on the Teen Titans, Gar Logan, aka Beast Boy began his career as a pint-sized sidekick to the Doom Patrol, a ragtag group of misfit heroes. However, as he has grown and matured, Beast Boy has found his own as a hero in his own right on teams like the Titans and the Ravagers. That being said, Gar will always be remembered for his animated antics and his multiple green animal forms. He is an iconic character that is instantly recognizable by many people outside the comic community and for good reason. Beast Boy will go down in history as one of the best heroes that DC Comics has to offer.
2. Superboy
Genetics still suck. In a brave departure from the classic Superman tone, Superboy, who goes by the name Kor-El or Conner Kent, was revealed to be not only a clone of Superman but also a clone of Lex Luthor. So, within Superboy, there is a battle between the most heroic superhero of all time and the most evil supervillain of all time. This makes for a super interesting dynamic in a comic book character as Conner fights his darker urges and tries to find a way to embrace his heroic heritage. Luckily, he has some dedicated help from Superman, the Kents, and Robin. Conner eventually travels to the 31st century where he joins and leads the Legion of Superheroes, becoming the hero that he has always wanted to be.
1. Robin
My choice for my Number One spot is not a surprising, considering that Robin is the most recognizable superhero sidekick of all time. And that's for several good reasons. Over the course of Batman's career, he has had several young wards that have taken up the role of Robin. Dick Grayson grew to become the hero Nightwing, Jason Todd was voted by Batman fans to be brutally killed by the Joker, and Damian Wayne, Bruce's own son, died as well in the role of Robin. However, my favorite Robin, and the reason why Robin is my favorite sidekick, is Tim Drake. Tim was able to deduce, at an incredibly young age, the true identities of Batman and Robin, and, after Jason's death, he approached Bruce and asked to become the new Robin in order to prevent Bruce from falling into depression. For the first time, Tim's Robin became the first version of the character that refused to live in Batman's shadow. Always trying to be his own hero, Tim is a fantastic character to follow through his days as Robin, all the way to his rechristening as Red Robin, a role he chose to become instead of the next Nightwing. Even in his appearances in the Teen Titans and Young Justice television shows, Tim retains his status as the best superhero sidekick of all times.
Thanks for letting me indulge by superhero geek side today guys! It needs to be let out every once in a while or else it gets angry. And you won't like it when it gets... nevermind...
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