Vibe has to be one of the most despised super heroes in existence. He's constantly included on lists of the worst comic characters of all time, and seems to be universally derided by fan boys everywhere.
When DC introduced the "New" Justice Leagure in 1984, it immediately had it's detractors...gone were well established heavy hitters like Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman, replaced by newcomers like Gypsy, Vixen and Vibe.
Vibe (real name, Paco Francisco "Cisco" Ramon) was a gangbanger from
Detroit, where the new League would establish their base of operations. He was brash and obnoxious, but fans didn't find this to be compelling, and hate mail bombarded the DC offices immediately.
The character has had a kind of 2nd life, as he's been reimagined as a tech genius and lovable nerd in the CW Flash show (which thankfully ditched the stereotypical gang member trope.)
He was actually revived in the New 52, and even had his own series.
#39: DAIMON HELLSTROM, AKA SON OF SATAN
If I was making this list SOLELY on characters I love, Hellstrom would be in the top 5. I love the character and as a kid I collected every issue he was in.
The 1970s had a huge occult boom, and Marvel comics introduced a ton of characters that capitalized on this craze.
Along with his sister Satana, DAIMON was portrayed as the heir of Satan (Marvel pushed out and Retconned this to a demon named Marduk Kurios, and later Satannish) and he constantly struggled with the forces of Hell, as well as his own inner turmoil.
He'd marry Patsy Walker, AKA Hellcat, and eventually defeat and replace his father as ruler of Hell. He's become an ancillary character in the MU, but I'd love to see him return to his 70s glory. (I assume it's hard for Marvel to merchandise a character with a big pentagram scar on his chest, but I'd kill for a Hellstrom Marvel Legends figure.)
#38: KOBRA
Kobra was conceived by Jack Kirby, as one of the last projects for DC comics, before he left to return to Marvel.
The book was then handed to writer Martin Pasko to refine and eventually released Kobra #1.
The book centered around separated Siamese twins Jeffrey and Jason Burr. Jeffrey is
Abutted as a baby by a cult who believe he will usher is the Age of Chaos.
Unbeknownst to both brothers, they share a psychic link, able feel what the other feels. Jason then is used by an international security ageny to stop the evil cult.
It was an odd book, less superhero and more Adventure Serial, with no costumed hero, and the focus more on the villain of the book.
Eventually Kobra would be more integrated into the standard DCU and fought the JSA, Batman and several others.
With a terrorist organization at his disposal, Kobra had the potential to be a top tier, A-list villain...but despite debuting 10 years before the animated GI-Joe cartoon, there were tons of comparisons which I think hurt any real widespread appeal.
#37: WHIRLWIND
Whirlwind is dope. He has a cool helmet, spins around super fast, has sweeeeeeet sawblades on his wrists. Why don't more people think Whirlwind is a boss? I don't know, but they're all wrong.
Whirlwind rules.
#36: THE NEW UNIVERSE
In 1986, Marvel's brash Editor-in-Chief Jim Shooter had a monumental idea: to create a brand new Marvel universe, one that focused more on grounded, more "realistic" takes on super hero comics. The characters would be more flawed, the powers less glamorous and the stories themselves would be grittier, and focused more on human drama. Shooter wanted to revolutionize comics.
Weellllllllll....that was the plan, anyways.
The history the New Universe is well documented, still considered one of the biggest misfires in comic history. The book was a colossal disappointment in sales, and would last barely 2 years.
A lot can be said about the politics behind the books themselves, but I feel like where they went wrong was a lack of focus, and quality control...while yes, there were some TERRIBLE books (Kickers, INC, Mark Hazzard/ Merc) there were a few great ones...Starbrand had a ton of promise (and would eventually be included into the MU through Quasar) but I honestly feel that DP7 was one of the most underrated series of the decade, far more compelling and sophisticated than almost anything else Marvel was putting out at the time.
Years later Marvek would actually go with their ORIGINAL idea, which was new, reimagined versions of their heroes without all the decades of continuity, with the Ultimate universe.
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