10 Comic Book Characters Who Were Forced To Change Their Name

Cooking up a brand-new superhero or supervillain is a lot trickier than it sounds. The character needs to have a unique look, a charismatic personality, some cool powers, and a name that stands out.

It may not sound like a big deal but some of the most popular comic book characters probably wouldn't have taken off if they didn't have a badass moniker. Wolverine was nearly called Badger. Coal Tiger was considered for Black Panther. Robin's runner-up sobriquet was Socko. (I can't imagine Batman saying that with a straight face.)

Even though names are important, they are not set in stone. When a character changes allegiance, dons a new costume, or wants a fresh start, revising their alias isn't uncommon. Superheroes like Monica Rambeau and Kitty Pryde have had tons of different handles, simply because the writers tried to find one that sounded right.

But there are times where the creative team behind the character doesn't get a say in the matter. Sometimes, a character's title is forcibly changed. Whether it's because multiple characters share the name, copyright issues, real-life events, or it gives readers the wrong idea, these name-changes had to be made.

The most common reason a comic book character is forced to change their name is when someone else with the same pseudonym becomes more popular. And that was the sad fate of Bart Hill AKA the original Daredevil. The lesser-known superhero debuted in Silver Streak Comics #6 in 1940, predating The Man Without Fear by over two decades.

Hill is mute meaning, like Marvel's Daredevil, he is disabled. In fact, he has the distinction of being the first superhero to have a disability. Hill was rendered unable to speak after witnessing his father being murdered and having his chest branded with a hot iron. Consumed by revenge, Hill declared war upon the criminal world when he reached adulthood. His weapon of choice is a boomerang as a reference to the boomerang-shaped scar on his chest.

When his publishing company, Lev Gleason Publications, went out of business in 1956, the name "Daredevil" was up for grabs. Because Bart Hill went into the public domain, the silent hero was incorporated into other comics but under different names to disassociate from Marvel. He was known as Reddevil in AC Comics, Doubledare in First Publications, and is currently known as the Death-Defying 'Devil under Dynamite Entertainment.