There are plenty of characters within the lore of Marvel and DC that have often been forgotten. Often, it’s for the best due to how forgettable a character can be. There have been characters, even main characters, who have come back with revamped backstories and great storylines. Some of them could potentially come back due to overall relevance to a plot along with influence from current events.
Jose Delgado/Gangbuster
Jose Delgado was a teacher turned vigilante who had resided in the Suicide Slums of Metropolis; the worst part of Superman’s city. Prior to his teaching days, he had been a skilled boxer. When Lex Luthor decided to add youth gangs to Metropolis’ organized crime problems, Jose decided to take on the problem himself. While this makes him quite similar to Guardian, or even a ripoff of Marvel’s Punisher, Gangbuster could be endearing by showcasing his deep ties to his community and being a valued respectable Latinx vigilante.
Tom Bronson/Tomcat
Tom Bronson is the illegitimate son of Ted Grant/Wildcat and a woman named Marilyn Bronson. Tom was different from his infamous boxer father, as in addition to his slacker attitude and pacifism, Tom had the unique ability to transform into a panther-like creature. With Wildcat loosely based off of Batman, it’s not that hard to make a connection to Tom and Damian Wayne. Tom could come back in a significant way in demonstrating a direct tie and legacy to an established hero, and revamping his ethnicity and overall relationship to Ted as his only son. Maybe even engaging in a romance with Yolanda Montez, who also assumed the title of Wildcat.
Oliver Osnick/Steel Spider
Prior to becoming the Steel Spider, Ollie Osnick was a major fanboy … to Doc Ock. After a talking to from Spider-Man, he idolized him and would eventually become the Steel Spider. Ollie would later be attacked by the Thunderbolts, who were under the control of the American Government and the nefarious Green Goblin. Since then, Ollie had been in jail with only his right arm, since Scorpion had eaten his left arm during his time as Venom. Ollie could return more battle-hardened and possibly more dangerous than before, should he choose to further upgrade his armor and get a new supercool robotic arm. Maybe his old idol will once again inspire him to be the hero he was always meant to be and make him his staunch ally?
Cheyenne Freemont
Cheyenne Freemont was introduced in a small story in which she was involved with Dick Grayson and for some reason, Jason Todd tried to take the mantle of Nightwing. Amidst that weird craziness, Cheyenne was a fashion designer who had telekinetic abilities who spent the night with Dick. Dick would try to convince her to become a superhero but she didn’t want to out of fear of discrimination because of her powers. During a fight, she would briefly become the first female Nightwing and quickly retire soon after. Nightwing himself had formed a team called the Nightwings, which consisted of young cops and a firefighter keeping the peace in Nightwing’s neighborhood of Bludhaven. She could help reform the group while acting in a supporting role to them, or maybe leading them.
Eliza Harmon/Trajectory
Eliza Harmon was very much a young overeager teenager who wanted to be a hero, much like how Wally West wanted to be a sidekick to the Flash. But while Wally managed to replicate the incident to give himself powers, Eliza gained hers through the innovations of Lex Luthor. She had hoped to one day become the next Kid Flash, but she would ultimately die due to Lex managing to turn off her powers at a rather crucial moment. Eliza could be brought in as a love interest to the new Wally West while growing as her own person and uncovering her own identity as a superhero.
Robert Farrell/Rocket Racer
Robert Farrell had started as nothing more than an incredibly intelligent and gifted young man who had turned to a life of crime in an effort to help support his family. He was ultimately offered a chance at redemption and also a college scholarship. While he has made appearances as a heroic vigilante often tempted to turn back to crime, it’s all with the well intention to help support his family. With him having a similar background with Hobie Brown a.k.a The Prowler, Robbie could gain a connection to him and possibly his identity as the Prowler. Or simply serve as a support role to him and in turn Spider-Man. If he does take on the mantle of the Prowler, this would allow him to tow the line between a hero and a self-serving vigilante who wants to make things better for himself and the people around him.
Smart Bomb
Smart Bomb was nothing more than simple mercenary who was hired by Batman’s enemy; the Black Mask. Admittedly, he wasn’t even that smart in spite of his name. The name and equipment would later be taken by Samuel Bradley Jr., before he would die in an attempt to stop the drug trade in a particular neighborhood in Gotham City. While both died shortly upon their introduction, the title of Smart Bomb could still come back. The new user of the armor could be an ally to either Batman or Superman. I’m personally leaning toward the latter, as the Iron Man-esque design seems to be more suited towards Superman mythos rather than Bats.
Molecule
Molecule had been nothing more than a simple one-off character who had been introduced as a member of the new Teen Titans and promptly killed shortly after. No backstory, no nothing. What we do know is that he more or less had the same powers as the Atom. The mantle of Molecule could be given to someone bearing a relationship of sorts to Atom, such as Adam Cray; who had been the Atom once upon a time and the friend to his current protégé, Ryan Choi. Or it could come to a new and heroic version of the villainous Atomica; Rhonda Pineda.
Lorena Marquez/Aquagirl
Lorena Marquez was one of Aquaman’s sidekicks, much like Aqualad who would later become Tempest and the current Aqualad Kaldur’ahn/Jackson Hyde. She was not the first Aquagirl, as that had been taken up by Tula; currently the half-sister to Aquaman’s own half-brother Ocean Master. Her origin is rather simple and underwhelming. Upon going on a date to the San Diego Zoo, an earthquake occurred that killed many which included her parents. After that, she was rescued and cared for by Aquaman who came to realize that she had the power to breathe underwater. She could come back with a revamped origin story and possibly incorporate her becoming a regarded LatinX superhero. Perhaps she could become the new Aquagirl via the virtue of being a bastard union between Ocean Master and a Hispanic woman; which could allow her to significantly bond with Kaldur over. Or she could simply be a product of a genetic experiment through an untapped metagene. Either way, she needs to be brought into the fold again.
Grasshopper
Grasshopper is nothing more than something of a joke character. Anytime someone wears the Grasshopper armor, they meet a rather grim fate. The first person died after wearing it to prevent it from being stolen, among other things. The second died shortly after uncovering a new feature that caused him to jump into outer space by accident, no less! And the third one had been killed by an annoyed Deadpool. The Ever-Gregarious Grasshopper should come back as something of a C-List hero of sorts. Or someone just take the mantle to redeem this lethal joke character into something worthwhile!
Jason Hart/ The Protector
In terms of origins, Jason Hart is actually quite simple. He had a normal life with a strong sense of morality and justice. He got into being a superhero after finding out that his young cousin had become addicted to drugs. Jason took on the mantle of “The Protector” loosely based off his cousin’s love of comics to try to dissuade him to keep doing drugs, and would find himself fighting drug dealers to try to save his cousin. Nightwing would later find out and induct him into the Teen Titans and train him.
Protector has not gained a lot of traction or attention due to claims of him being a poor replacement to Robin in a PSA style and format. Protector has a lot of potential to grow beyond the apparent reject he was shaped to be. He could take several cues from Tim Drake and Jason Todd regarding his storylines, slowly growing more jaded and disillusioned and willing to go to more extreme methods and views to stop crimes. How much of a protector and what kind of protector would he be willing to be?
