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DC has been making superheroes for 86 years now, and looking over those years reveals some of the coolest heroes ever. B-listers have come and go, but the best of them have lasted the test of time, starring in team books, miniseries, and sometimes even solo ongoings. These ten DC B-listers are not the pick of the litter, but they’re still great.
10) Superboy
“Reign of the Supermen” introduced readers to four new Supermen, including one who wasn’t exactly a man (but don’t call him a boy). This new Superboy was a hit with ’90s readers (some that may even resemble me) and has stayed popular ever since. Conner Kent has grown and changed over the years, battling the greatest threats in the universe, tasting death and rebirth, and helping the Superman family battle the greatest threats. His plot in the recent Action Comics story “Phantoms” saw him becoming a warlord of the Khund, which was the perfect little bit of development for him, and his fans are dying for him to get more spotlight. The various Superboys have always been great, but Kon-El is easily the best.
9) Tim Drake
Tim Drake is the Robin who earned it, and it’s a shame that he fell from grace. Tim was able to get the edgy teens of the ’90s to like Robin again and he became a solo star in his own right, so much so that Robin mostly just appeared in his own series and was only rarely in the main Batman books. Since then, the young detective has seen his star fall because of characters like Damian Wayne, but that doesn’t change just how great Drake is. The character has always been the best Robin, his adventures proving how great he could be. Drake’s return in recent years has been great, proving what ’90s kids always knew: Tim Drake is a star.
8) Cliff Steele
Cliff Steele was a race car driver whose body was destroyed in a crash secretly caused by Professor Niles Caulder. His brain was put into a robot body, and Robotman was born. Since then, Cliff has experienced the weirdest things imaginable as a member of the Doom Patrol, somehow keeping a level head despite the insanity of his life. Cliff is perfect; he’s a character with a lot of personality and a great sense of humor. He’s the beating heart of the Doom Patrol, doing his best to help his friends, whether that be giving them advice or smashing the heads of anyone who attacks the team.
7) Donna Troy
Donna Troy is one of the most complicated characters ever. Her very existence is a retcon — Wonder Girl was originally young Diana, like Superboy was young Clark, but then someone put her in the Teen Titans, and they had to change her into an individual character — and over the year,s the numerous changes to Donna Troy’s origin has made her a hard character to get into for a lot of fans. However, away from all of the continuity woes, she’s a simple character: she’s a good person who loves her friends and her sister Diana, and she’ll do anything for anyone. Donna Troy has been a part of some of the best stories eve,r and despite how complicated she can be, she’s still an amazing character.
6) Cyborg
Cyborg is one of the breakout stars of the early ’80s sensation New Teen Titans and has grown a ton since his first appearance over 40 years ago. Victor Stone has been retconned and rewritten several times — he was a founding member of the Justice League for a while — but he’s always been the same hero, even if his cybernetic shell and powers changed. DC finally gave a member of the New Teen Titans a chance to shine and it’s honestly gone pretty well. Cyborg has become more important to the superhero community than ever before, and this has made her an even better character. At this point, all he needs is a long-running solo ongoing, and he’ll hit the A-list.
