Here is Part 2 of the Top 100 most Palooka characters ever to grace the comic pages.
Maybe I'm biased because I'm a twin, but I was always stoked to see these Jim Starlin creations show up. I mean, they're big bruisers who are dependent on being in close proximity to their brother to sustain their massive strength and durability, and for some unexplained reason drain blood from others in a decidedly vampiric like manner.
They've actually hung in there and have popped up in all corners of the MU. Jim Starlin had a talent in the 70s and 80s to make even the oddest characters work, and these guys are a great example of this.
#94 ANIMAL-VEGETABLE-MINERAL MAN
To be fair, every Doom Patrol character could be on this list....but there's something quite impressive about this guy. And not just his eleven syllable name, which has got to be a contender for longest in comic's history. His powers were actually quite impressive, put was always under utilized. Points deducted for the awful reinterpretation of the character in the New 52.
Also: I had a friend named Sven Larsen in Jr. High, who couldn't turn into vegetables or minerals, but did kinda look like a human koala bear.
#93: ULYSSES SOLOMON ARCHER (US 1)
So, in 1983 Marvel released a comic about a truck driving adventurer who winds up flying spaceships for aliens. Like BJ and the Bear meets Battlestar Galactica. Because apparently that was what Marvel thought of as some magical untapped market. (There wasn't one.) I remember being very perplexed by the ads for this comic, even as a young kid in the mid 80s.
#92: CARDIAC
Man, David Micheline and Erik Laresen REALLY wanted to make this character a thing. During their run together, they created all kinds Palookas (some you will see later on in this list) but they seemed especially intent on getting Cardiac to become a major player in the Marvel Universe. The only thing standing in their way? Total public apathy.
The concept of a vigilante surgeon has story potential, and if I'm being honest, I actually loved his costume design....but that name is AWFUL, and he soon became extremely tiresome. He apparently has some presence in the Superior Spider-Man storyline, which I have intended to check out but haven't gotten around to yet. (Instead I'm just re-reading old Champions comics.)
#91: RAMPAGE
Rampage is more of a "She" Hulk then She-Hulk: A scientist specializing in radiation accidentally turns into a super strong uncontrollable behemoth.
Created by John Byrne, Rampage became a consistent supporting character in the Superman books of the late 80s and 90s. She was portrayed as a sympathetic character with some actual depth and nuance, as Byrne was actively trying to expand the Superman universe with new blood, and Rampage was embraced by the various creative teams that followed. Eventually though, she fell by the wayside, to pop up every now and then as a disposable threat for the DCU.
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