From Arrow and Daredevil, to The Flash and Jessica Jones, the bumper crop of superhero TV shows around right now are bringing a whole host of comic book characters – both familiar and obscure – to life. Sometimes, though, the reams of source material out there just isn’t enough and the writers decide to create their own characters and add something new to the mythology. Surprisingly, these guys frequently end up being more vibrant characters than the ones taken from the page.
It’s a trend that goes back a long way. The 1960s Batman TV series asked DC Comics to create them a new female crime-fighter to assist Batman and Robin – the result was Barbara Gordon AKA Batgirl, who has since become a core member of the Bat-family. Interestingly, this is mostly a technique of DC television, though Marvel shows have done it, too. Just look at Firestar in the old Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends cartoon, or X-23 in the more recent X-Men: Evolution.
Here, you’ll find 9 of the best superhero TV show characters that are original to the medium. If you have another one to add, be sure to let us know who we missed out in the comments section down below.
