10 Stupid Attempts At Rebranding Famous Comic Characters

6. Drug-Addicted, Arm-Missing Red Arrow

Since human superheroes thrive on tragedy, DC writers felt it necessary to pour on the trauma for America's least favourite sidekick: Speedy. During the Green Arrow/Green Lantern series, it turns out he was a heroin addict, which caused Green Arrow to beat him and then disown the poor kid. Later retcons made it so even the Titans thought he was a worthless druggie. Thankfully, he later distinguished himself by becoming a father and Green Arrow's replacement in the Justice League (as Red Arrow). But then DC editors said "Character development?! We'll see about that!" During the series Cry For Justice, the old Speedy luck came back as he lost his arm and his daughter on the same day. This was meant to kick off Red Arrow becoming a much darker hero, and boy did he! For plot convenience, his inability to get his arm healed forced him to get a cybernetic arm. His decreased archery abilities meant he had to resort to guns and throwing weapons to compensate. All of this took away what made the character unique. But the cherry on top of this poop sundae was him succumbing to a new addiction: the fictional drug 'China Cat.' This culminated in him taking on the moniker 'Arsenal' and becoming DC's go-to anti-hero. Sadly, I assume there's no connection to the Arsenal football team.