9. Captain Marvel (DC & Marvel)
DC's Captain Marvel first appeared some 27 years before his Marvel Comics counterpart in 1940 and the Marvel Comics version has remained in his shadow ever since. The DC version is a prominent member of the Justice League - arguably the biggest and best superhero team in comics - and a member of what is known as the Marvel Family - a group of individuals whose power derives from the same source. He possesses superhuman speed, strength and durability as well as the power of flight and the ability to call upon the wizard Shazam, who granted him his powers based on several historical figures, to fire powerful magical lightning at his opponents. Marvel Comics' Captain Marvel is a title given to several characters (usually one at a time) and one that has been used as an alias of Mar-Vell (an alien military officer), Monica Rambeau (a New Orleans police lieutenant) and Genis-Vell (the genetically engineered son of Mar-Vell) amongst others. They all possess superhuman physical statistics, as well as various energy-based powers.