As a kid, I started to get into comic books around the early to mid 90's. A friend of mine had a bunch of comics that I would read and look at whenever I went over to his house. Later on my parents would buy me some from the local convenient store that sold comics because there wasn't a comic book shop in my area at the time. The first comic I ever got into was Todd McFarlane's Spawn, and then I would start to read more Marvel and D.C. stuff. This isn't a top 10 list of the best characters or anything like that. This is just a list of some of my favorite characters and the reasons why they are.
Venom
Artwork by: Todd McFarlane
Creators: Todd McFarlane, Mike Zeck, David Michelinie
My first introduction to Venom was from watching the Spider-Man animated series in the mid 90s. He was my favorite character in the show and it made me want to start reading the comics. He started out as a Spider-Man villain and would later on become more of an anti-hero. Through the years I've tried to collect any Venom comics and the ones that he's appeared in.
Haunt
Artist and Creator: Todd McFarlane
Sometime
in 2010, I went to a new comic book shop that opened up in my area and
was looking through all the new and back issues of all the comics they
had. I came across a book called Haunt that I noticed on a shelf and saw
that it was created by Todd McFarlane, who has always been one of my
favorite writers and artists. I bought the first couple issues that day
and after I read them I really enjoyed the story and the character. I
would start keeping up with every issue and eventually collected the
whole run. Haunt has recently appeared in some recent issues of Spawn. I think it would be awesome to see him appear in a movie or video game.
X-23
Artwork by: Gabriele Dell'Otto
Creator: Craig Kyle
In the early 2000's, I first found out about X-23 from watching the X-Men: Evolution animated series. I thought she was a cool character at the time but I didn't really become a big fan of her until she started appearing in comics and I found out that she was created from Wolverine's stolen DNA. Her real name is Laura Kinney and her claws are different from Wolverine's, having only 2 in each hand and 1 in each foot. In later years she would become the All-New Wolverine in a new series, after Logan was thought to be dead. I believe the series took a lot of criticism but as a big Wolverine fan, I really enjoyed it and collected the whole run.
Blade
Artwork by: Afua Richardson
Creators: Marv Wolfman, Gene Colan
I first became familiar with Blade when the first movie came out in 1998 starring Wesley Snipes. I didn't see it in theaters but I remember my parents taking me to the video store to rent it after it came out on home video. I loved it so much that I wanted to read the comics but at the time I couldn't find any at the local comic shop, so it wouldn't be until years later that I was able to get my hands on some. He's also been in some video games, including a couple of his own and I've always liked to play as him in the Marvel Ultimate Alliance games. I'm hoping to see him appear in more and I can't wait to see him in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
She-Spawn
Artist and Creator: Todd Mcfarlane
She-Spawn (also known as Jessica Priest) is one of my favorite characters in the Spawn universe. She was an assassin who was ordered by Jason Wynn, to kill Al Simmons who after his death, becomes Spawn. She later on becomes She-Spawn after her death and eventually becomes a member of the team Scorched with some other Spawns. Jessica Priest was also in the Spawn movie but that was before she became She-Spawn. I think her costume is awesome and it differs from some of the other Spawns. I have a couple of the older She-Spawn figures and then a newer one that came out in a more recent line of Spawn figures. She hasn't appeared in anything other than the comics that I know of, but I think she's an awesome character.
Deadpool
Artist and Creator: Rob Liefield
Deadpool comics have always made me laugh and I had been reading them for years before they finally came out with his first movie in 2016 and then the sequel in 2018. He's also appeared in a number of video games as well. He was one of my favorite characters to use in the Marvel Ultimate Alliance games. In June of 2013 he also had his own game come out and I had it pre-ordered and couldn't wait for it to be released. It had hilarious dialog and several cameos from other characters like Wolverine, Psylock, and Cable. It's a really fun game.
Batman
Artwork by: Jim Lee
My first introduction to Batman was around the time the 1989 Tim Burton Batman film came out. At the time I was 2 years old and was to young to remember but the older I got, I would watch it all the time with some of my family. In later years I would start reading the comics and collecting the toys. My parents would take me to the theaters anytime a new Batman movie came out.
Wolverine
Artwork by: Jim Lee
Created by: Roy Thomas, Len Wein, and John Romita Sr.
I hadn't read to many Wolverine comics when I was a little kid but I really liked him in the X-Men animated series and from playing the X-Men arcade game. There was a local Pizza Hut that had the arcade machine and I would play it whenever I was there, always using Wolverine. In later years I would start reading the comics and collecting his figures. He's been in a bunch of video games and I liked playing as him in the X-Men Mutant Apocalypse game for the Super Nintendo by Capcom, but that game was ridiculously hard. I've always thought Hugh Jackman made a great Wolverine in the X-Men movies and his solo movies. Logan was my favorite movie of his and that version of Wolverine (Logan) was based off of the Old Man Logan story line which I think is a great story. There was a game based on the X-Men Origins Wolverine movie that I played on the Ps3 called Wolverine Uncaged Edition that was awesome and better than the movie in my opinion. It had a mature rating because it was bloody and gory unlike the movie. You can unlock different costumes and see more of a side story. It was a lot of fun to play. Wolverine has had so many great stories over the years. It was announced that Hugh Jackman is going to return as Wolverine in the upcoming Deadpool 3 movie and I can't wait for that. He's also going to fight the Predator in a new upcoming 4 issue series called Predator vs Wolverine.
Captain American
Created by: Jack Kirby and Joe Simon Cap has always been one of my favorite super heroes because he will stand up to anyone or anything, even S.H.E.I.L.D. and the American government when it comes to the Registration Act. He stands for truth and justice. I've really enjoyed seeing him take down Hydra and villains like Crossbones, Baron Zemo, and The Red Skull. Those are some of my favorite fights and stories in his comics. He's also been in a lot of great Marvel games.
Spawn
Artist and Creator: Todd McFarlane
Spawn is my all time favorite character. When Todd McFarlane came out with Spawn in 1992, I would
become obsessed with the comic book. I grew up reading Spawn and
collected the toys. I still to this day collect anything Spawn from the
comics to the video games, the movie, the soundtrack, and the animated
series. I have boxes in storage full of so many Spawn figures that I barely have room for them. I remember when the movie came out in 1997, starring Michael Jai White as Spawn, my dad took me to see it in theaters and I thought it was amazing. The CGI is a little dated today but I still love that movie and have copies of it on VHS, DVD, and Blu-Ray. The 2 copies on VHS are the theatrical version and the directors cut. The directors cut has some behind the scenes at the end of the movie hosted by Michael Jai White. The DVD and Blu-Ray versions have the same content plus 2 music videos from the movie sound track. The 2 music videos are Trip Like I Do by Filter and The Crystal Method and Long Hard Road Out of Hell by Marilyn Manson. I used to listen to the soundtrack constantly. I was also a big fan of the Spawn animated series that came on HBO from 1997 to 1999. I wasnt always able to catch it on tv because it came on late and it was for mature audiences, but I did get a chance to watch some of it. I was around 10 years old when it came out and my parents didn't know it was meant for adults. When the seasons came out on VHS my mom took me to Blockbuster video and I would rent them. Some years later when they were released on DVD I bought them and watched them all the time. I still enjoy the series to this day. I almost have a complete collection of the comics. I'm just missing a few random issues and some of the spin-off comics.
