According to the Book of Ecclesiastes there's nothing new under the sun. This was never more true than in the case of superheroes. In every entertainment medium, after a new series or concept becomes popular, the competition always responds with a similar version. But in comics, jumping on the artistic bandwagon has been going on since the publication of the very first costumed hero, Superman. The two giants of the industry, Marvel and DC, take their cues from each other, copying the competition - and even copying their own successes. Sometimes, their comic book clones are uncomfortably, even embarrassingly, too close to the originals - right down to the names and circumstances. Is imitation the sincerest form of flattery? Or are the writers just guilty of "creative cribbing"? You be the judge.
9. Green Arrow (Oliver Queen) & Hawkeye (Clint Barton)
No one seems to care much that the lead character of the CW's hit series Arrow has exactly the same shtick as a major supporting member of the Marvel movie franchise The Avengers. Both of these tough guys run about the city armed with nothing more than a compound bow. And both carry a variety of trick arrows in their quivers. But which came first? George Papp created the Green Arrow, for DC Comics, in 1941 - well over 2 decades before Hawkeye made his first appearance in Marvel's The Invincible Iron Man. Stan Lee isn't exactly guilty of copying the Emerald Archer, though, because Lee's character, Clint Barton, starts out as a super-villain. But Hawkeye goes straight after only 3 capers, and he's then allowed to join the Avengers. Why are Barton's teammates so forgiving? Because a certain naughty Russian femme fatale called the Black Widow had the poor, love-sick and misguided archer wrapped around her manipulative little finger - and what super-guy hasn't been there before? Also, since creative cribbing is in discussion here, it's probably best to point out that to begin with, DC's Green Arrow was essentially conceived as a mashup of Batman and Robin Hood, literature's first costumed hero.
Tom English is an environmental chemist who loves reading comics, watching movies, and writing stories both weird and wonderful. His fiction has appeared in several print anthologies, including CHALLENGER UNBOUND (KnightWatch Press, 2015), GASLIGHT ARCANUM: Uncanny Tales of Sherlock Holmes (Edge SF and Fantasy) and DEAD SOULS (Morrigan Books). Tom also edited the mammoth BOUND FOR EVIL: Curious Tales of Books Gone Bad, which was a 2008 Shirley Jackson Award finalist for best anthology. Among his non-fiction books is DIET FOR DREAMERS, a collection of inspirational stories featuring everything from Stan Lee to Sherlock Holmes to Slinky Toys. Tom resides with his wife, Wilma, surrounded by books and beasts, deep in the woods of New Kent, Virginia.
