Lame Sidekicks

So recently I saw G4’s Olivia Mun give a quick little commentary on the top 3 lamest sidekicks. Now I have an issue with her list. Before I get started, I know the list was possibly created just to get fanboys like me all riled up. Anyway the list was Speedy, Aqualad, and Robin Alright, I’ll admit it. Except for some bad ass magic powers, Aqualad is pretty lame. I want to comment, however, on the number 1 contender Speedy. I will admit that his name was pretty lame and ill conceived. I mean, you hear a name like Speedy and you think he should be the Flash’s sidekick.


But Speedy was a huge part of comic book history. As Olivia mentioned, DC Comics gave him a heroin habit in the late 70’s. This was part of Neal Adams’ and Dennis O’Niel’s historic run on Green Arrow/Green Lantern. Nowadays it is referred to as the Hard Traveling Heroes arch. This run tackled a lot of social issues, such as racism and environmentalism. For one, it introduced the first black Green Lantern, which was against DC’s original design.

But some of you may be wondering what’s the big deal about there being a druggie in comics. Isn’t that the norm? Well, in the modern era of comics, yes. For those of you not in the know, there was something called the Comic’s Code back in the day. The Comic’s Code was created back when comics were accused of corrupting the youth. Some quack said that super heroes encourage violence, lesbianism, and gayness. My favorite claim was Batman and Robin being gay, so that’s where Bruce Wayne’s infamous string of girlfriends dates back to. So, with the Comic’s Code created, parents knew by a seal on the front of an issue saying “Comic’s Code approved” that this comic wasn’t going to corrupt their teens.

One of the things in the Comic’s Code was that you could not show the usage of drugs in a comic. But let’s think about that for a second, shall we. Where did kids learn right and wrong back in the day? From their comic book heroes. You couldn’t even really mention drugs. So, DC running issues not only tackling the drugs issue, but also showing usage of drugs was a huge step in comic’s becoming more real. And even more so than that, it was the last time DC carried the Comic’s Code seal of approval.

Personally, I think Speedy, now known as Red Arrow, is pretty damn cool. He’s a non metahuman, non alien super hero who has time after time proven his valor. He’s not the motherfucking Batman, but he’s pretty bad ass in my book. And, being the comic book historian geek I am, I just had to point out his importance in changing the make up of how DC carried itself.