10 Amazing Legacy Superheroes Who Proved Fans Wrong

4. Wally West

Storylines To Read: The Flash: Born to Run, The Return of Barry Allen

Although the Wally of today's comics is widely considered to be the best Flash out there, there was a time where he wasn't considered all that hot. Mostly known for being the first Kid Flash, Wally was - much like Dick Grayson - always going to be the prime candidate to replace his mentor. When Barry perished in the aftermath of the first Crisis, Wally switched mantles and took up the reigns as the Flash, with DC retconning his abilities so that he could only break the sound barrier and not travel at the speed of light.

Added to that was the now trademark metabolism of the character, where he had to eat large quantities of food in order to ensure he could maintain his power levels. These changes proved successful years later when Wally pipped Barry to a spot on the formidable Justice League animated series, but - at the time - fans were pretty hung up on Barry's death, a theme that repeated itself during the aforementioned death of Bruce Wayne.

Wally totally flipped those opinions on their head by the time the New 52 came around, however. This time the fans actively mourned his editorially-enforced absence, with the character going on to become the most high profile hero to go missing in action in the exceedingly temperamental reboot.

Wally might not be the OG Flash, or even the most famous, but he's a cracking character - one who can give the other speedsters a good run for their money.