Yes, yes...I realize this is cheating, what with 2011 being a month in and everything. I don't care. I promised this post back in December, and I'm now providing it. I'd like to point out that three characters - Thor, Captain America and Green Lantern/Hal Jordan - will NOT be appearing in this list. They have movies this year, of COURSE they're characters to watch.



I'd also like to state that this comes with absolutely NO insider knowledge, aside from what's been solicited in Previews and my own meandering opinion. That said, away we go!

1) MAX DAMAGE

I don't often stray from the mainstream superhero books, but I was introduced last year to Boom! Studios Incorruptible. The book is a spin off of the book Irredeemable, which tells the story of the Plutonian - the Boom! universes Superman. When the Plutonian reveals his identity to his reporter girlfriend (this universes Lois Lane) she - rather than keeping his secret - breaks the biggest news story of all time and tells the entire news room that her boyfriend was, in fact the Plutonian - causing him to finally snap, destroying nearly all of Sky City and it's inhabitants. One of the sole survivors of the massacre in Sky City was Max Damage - one of the Plutonians greatest villains. Max, witnessing the atrocities of the Plutonian first hand, makes the decision then to become a hero and fight against the Plutonian. Max's series, the aforementioned Incorruptible, tells the story of Max's struggle with his villainous nature and his new found heroic stance. Along the way, he gains a new sidekick named Headcase, befriends Police Lieutenant Armadale and begins a - for lack of a better term - relationship with the Plutonians ex-girlfriend, Alana Patel. With the revelation that the Plutonian has been taken off world, and the threat to earth has been eliminated, the story has changed slightly and shown that Max will continue to work towards being a hero. Mark Waid consistently spins a great story within the pages of Incorruptible, and I look for Max to continue his evolution from Max Damage to Max Daring this year.







2) BOOSTER GOLD

I wrote a post yesterday about Booster, and here he is showing up again in my list of characters to watch. Why? Simple - he's an intricate part of the upcoming Flashpoint event from DC Comics. The teases from DC thus far clearly indicate a time travel, dimension hopping story, which plays perfectly into the current status quo of Booster. He's also approaching 50 issues this year, and I fully anticipate big things happening in that landmark issue. Booster, as well, will be guest starring in Smallville this year on March 4th, alongside the new Blue Beetle, Jaime Reyes. It's going to be a good year to be the greatest hero you've never heard of!







3) DRACULA

Specifically, Marvel's version of the character. With the recent Curse of the Mutants Vampire storyline running through the simply titled X-Men book, Dracula was brought back and made a major player in the world of the Marvel Universe. He's been featured prominently in the Fear Itself event solicitations, and I can't imagine him not being intricate to the overall story arc that runs through the event. I can easily see the Tomb of Dracula series relaunching this October, just in time for Halloween.







4) MEGA MAN

If there's one company who knows how to successfully launch and maintain a comic book based on a video game, it's Archie. For 18 years now they've published the Sonic the Hedgehog comics, always huge sellers for an all-ages audience. Say what you will about the typical content of Archie comics, but they've been around for almost 75 years, and they've got more market penetration than any other company. Go to any supermarket, you'll find Jughead and Archie staring back at you in the checkout aisles - all of this is good news for fans of the Blue Bomber. The comic kicks off this April, and has all the awesome style you'd expect from the Mega Man universe.







5) THE FLASH

Yeah...you knew he'd be on this list, didn't you? Sue me, I'm a little biased. He IS my favorite character, after all. That said - I do think that this year is going to be a big year for the character. As mentioned earlier, DC is running the Flashpoint event, which ties directly into everything Geoff Johns has been doing with the character of Barry Allen since Flash: Rebirth. While I'm not thrilled that it's Barry back in the suit as the main focus of the title, the stories thus far have been a lot of fun and the art by Francis Manapul is been astounding, to say the least. With Geoff and Dan DiDio's mission to make the Flash as recognizable as Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman and Green Lantern within the DC Universe, I can also assume you'll see a casting announcement for the Flash live action movie, as well as (hopefully) an animated adventure from the amazing Warner Bros. animation department.







6) MOON KNIGHT

I don't know a lot about this character, but I've always had a strange affinity for his design and always enjoyed his appearances in the Avengers. With the announcement of a solo series written by Brian Michael Bendis this week, I'm very curious to see where he takes him. Everyone knows I'm not the biggest Bendis fan, but his work on New Avengers this year has earned him enough slack fro me to give the solo Moon Knight series a look-see.







7) GUY GARDNER

I said no Hal Jordan - I said nothing about Guy Gardner. Guy's story line over the last 5 years has been a blast to follow. From getting his ring back in Green Lantern: Rebirth, becoming a member of the Honor Guard, succumbing to rage after the death of Kyle Rayner (he got better) and becoming both a Red Lantern and a Green Lantern, to his current adventures into the unknown sectors, he's gone from an often ridiculed character to what Geoff Johns calls "His role is not DCU Moron. His role is DCU Shitkicker." Guy's going to be one of the major players in the War of the Green Lanterns event coming up this year, and I see big things spinning out of that - least of all a fight between Guy and Hal.







8) DAREDEVIL

This one seems fairly self explanatory - Marvel's got the aforementioned event coming up called Fear Itself, and how do you combat Fear Itself? With the Man Without Fear, of course! After the events of Shadow Land where Daredevil was possessed by a demon and headed up the Hand ninja clan, killing Bullseye in the process, Matt Murdock took time off to center himself and regain who he was. It's no secret that the current Man Without Fear, the Black Panther will be returning to his wife Storm in Wakanda before too long, and it makes perfect sense for Matt to take the mantle back.







9) PALADIN

Wait...PALADIN? Really, Jay? Paladin? Yes - and here's why. Heroes for Hire, two issues in, is one of my favorite Marvel books. A rotating supporting cast with two mainstays - Paladin and Misty Knight. The second issue of the series sets Paladin up as a major player and the potential star of the book - Abnett and Lanning have set him up as almost Marvel's version of the Question - investigating, asking the right questions, and not being afraid to get his hands dirty to get to the bottom of the problem. While Heroes for Hire is only two issues in, I can easily see Paladin becoming a major player in the Marvel Universe as a result of his work with Misty Knight, so much so as I see him as her chief field operative.







10) BATGIRL

Back when Tim Drake was Robin and had his own solo series, one of my favorite characters was The Spoiler, Stephanie Brown. Steph was a lot of fun to read, and some of Tim's best character moments were when Stephanie was involved in the story line. As she grew, she was asked to wear the Robin costume by Batman, before her 'death'. With her continued growth, Steph was given the mantle of Batgirl by the former holder of the name, Cassandra Cain. Since that time, Steph has worked closely with Oracle, getting trained in being a better Batgirl, and has also earned the trust of Bruce Wayne, who has given Stephanie his blessing to be the hero that Gotham needs.





