10 Comics That Saved Hated Characters
Reminding you that Deadpool used to suck.
Perhaps the single strangest thing about comics is having to come to terms with the fact that some of the most interesting and loveable characters lacked their most compelling features when they were first introduced.
With Daredevil, Deadpool, and even the iconic Punisher having some less than stellar beginnings, it's honestly shocking that so many popular superheroes only developed their most iconic incarnations midway through their history on the page.
It's one thing to write a likeable character, but it's entirely another thing to write a previously hated character and change fans' minds on them. That said, often this is less a task of monumental proportions, and more one of introducing unexplored aspects of the character - such as the Iceman's life outside of him being in the X-Men, or The Question outside of him being used as a way to espouse his creator's political musings.
There are dozens of writers and artists who could stake a claim to have changed their characters for the better, and yet most tend to get overlooked.
While there is no one consistent way to judge a character's 'redemption' in the comic world, it's always worth appreciating the decisions that improved and fixed characters who were once found wanting.
10. Iceman - Uncanny X-Men #600
The case of Robert Drake is an unpredictable one. While Bobby was never the worst characterised of the X-men, his arcs were generally focused on the turmoil surrounding his ice powers, which could prove irritating when it seemed Iceman was trapped in continually rediscovering his own powers. As such, we never really got a full insight into Bobby himself - or rather, we didn't until Uncanny X-Men #600, wherein a young Bobby realises he is gay, and confronts his future self about it (it's complicated).
The delicate nature of the subject matter made for a particularly unpredictable moment, yet one that ended up being handled with ease. Instead of it being a case of the older Drake being in denial, he supports his younger self's conclusion immediately, explaining that a mixture of his obligations to the X-Men and awareness it was another unfair reason others would hate him left him reluctant to address the elephant in his own head.
The unique, emotional conversation that the two characters have really served to make Iceman twice as dynamic and rounded a character as he was prior, and for a surprisingly warm moment from the man of ice.