Hi there, r/DCcomics members, welcome to the post!
This was tagged as a [Discussion], so we require OP to add commentary, [per rule 8](https://www.reddit.com/r/DCcomics/wiki/guidelines#wiki_8._no_memes.2C_fluff.2C_or_other_low-effort_content).
u/Psymorte, if you haven't already added commentary, please do so in the text or as a new comment. Also, if you included imagery, please provide a source or artist name.
*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/DCcomics) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Kate Spencer is a frustrated federal prosecutor who’s grown sick of watching murderous supervillains get away with their sick crimes. When Copperhead avoids the death penalty, and kills two prison guards in his escape, she raids the police evidence locker and cobbles together a super-suit and weapons to hunt him down as the new Manhunter. If you know about Cameron Chase, she plays a significant role in the series. She complicated, messy, a lousy mom at times, but one helluva character and it’s an awesome series.
It’s like if Marcia Clark hunted down O.J. Simpson for sweet vigilante justice.
I don't know if he's my favorite but I'll say this about ~~Mad Dog~~ Wild Dog: For such a generic character, he has a pretty intense and motivated dialogue. Probably one of the more sensible psychos, too. (But like anyone else who dresses up and plays vigilante, especially without guns, is still a psycho.)
Wild Dog is surprisingly likeable for someone who's one trip and fall away from just being Punisher. I've got a soft spot for that fella since he's the only "superhero" from my home in the Quad Cities, gotta represent!
I remember there was one issue where he admitted to a kid who wanted to follow in his footsteps that he didn’t even know if he’s was doing the right thing or not.
I don’t know, man. WildC.A.Ts was massive in the 90s. I’d say Grifter went from solid B tier, all the way down to D and maaaybe has made it back up to a C overtime.
Boy I do wish DC would do something with Wildstorm one of these days.
*Superman Legacy* is adapting "What's so Funny about TJ&tAW", but with the actual Authority, not a pastiche; except they're just using The Engineer and replacing the rest with a bunch of DC characters as stand-ins, like Hawkgirl for Swift, Terrific for Hawkmoor, etc.
The Wildcats (mini)series last year wasn’t bad, I think it suffered from the fact that it evidently thought it was gonna get picked up or get an extended run.
I know Tom King is doing a Jenny Sparks miniseries later this year too.
Ya, I think I was hoping against hope that maybe Ricky Bobby “if you’re not first you’re last” logic would kick in, coupled with the fact the Wild CATs run was 25 -30 years ago; and before you know it Grifter is back renting a nice condo with a view on Main Street in D-List City haha
I'm not sure what his physical form is now, but back in the day, Blue Devil was pretty awesome. A stuntman fused with his armor by sorcery, gave him a clever group of foes. But when he'd team up with the Creeper, or the Phantom Stranger, or Zantanna it had possibilities and I enjoyed it at the time.
I think D-list characters can be pretty interesting, who are some you guys really appreciate? Can include but doesn't have to be limited to those shown in the post.
Favorite D lister for DC is Kiteman. Son of a bitch broke my fucking heart.
I know they did it with Calendar Man and others, but they freaking made Kiteman relevant!
For Marvel, I wouldn’t call Wizard or Trapster D-list, but I love me some Frightful Four!
Orpheus was a really solid idea.
Shado has always had great stories. Would like if she stopped heel turning but she's got a great design and character.
Butcher was a short lived addition to O'Neal's Question and Green Arrow corner of DC. He's always has a soft spot for me, especially since Lemire used him in his run as head of the axe clan
I have a soft spot for Argus, mostly because I really liked his [DC Master Series 1994 trading card art](https://i.imgur.com/mDXxVP7.jpeg).
Same with [Gunfire](https://i.imgur.com/rfPiYbc.jpeg), though in retrospect they just look like palette-swapped versions of each other.
Bringing in Bat characters practically guarantees they'll dominate the discussion, so I wanted to avoid that in favor of something a bit more interesting.
It's crazy how these characters have changed over time.
Newest incarnation of Manhunter was in Joker: Man who Laughs in 2022, where she was hunting down the fake Joker iirc.
Newest incarnation of Wild Dog was in Batman: Brave and the Bold (2024). I truly have no idea what that story was even about.
Yes. He was essentially a Shadow-type character, but I really liked his brief appearance in SANDMAN MYSTERY THEATER in the Phantom Of The Fair story where you kind of get the feeling he's just a semi-crazy guy who likes using guns A LOT.
The second Vigilante's costume always looked so great in his original solo series, the black with the lone touches of color always pops for me. Plus his civilian identity is a fun twist.
Nah, Stephanie is C tier at the lowest, she's been both Robin and Batgirl and is considered by most to be one of the big names of the Bat-Family. A Bat-Family D-lister would be someone like Onyx.
That's where I was first introduced to her, yeah, but I also ran across her when looking into that infamous incident with Nightwing and Tarantula from Devin Grayson's run in the mid-2000s
DC has treated her so poorly these past few years it just feels like she's a D lister now. Clutching onto my issues of Batgirl 2009 and remembering the good old days.
The Kate Spencer Manhunter series was pretty great, I wish she wasn’t a D-lister. Always thought DC would benefit from a street level team, they’ve got some interesting characters in that tier.
The Crimson Avenger was National / DC's second costumed hero, premiered in Detective Comics seven issues before another certain hero, has never had an Archive Edition and I am one of the handful of fans of him. Or am I?
I like the original Crimson Avenger a lot. The first masked DC hero after Superman, pre-dating even Batman. I love his original costume, and even his red onesie looks cool with the right artist depicting it.
Nice to see some love for Romeo T. Legendary inker AND outstanding artist in his own right. The second Vigilante deserved better, but we got Checkmate and Pat Trayce out of it, so it wasn't all bad.
One of the first comics I remember reading was a backup Crimson Avenger story where he sacrifices himself to save thousands.
I was in with Wild Dog from the beginning. Collins and Beatty were at the top of their comics game, having done a long Ms. Tree run.
I haven't read the Kate Spencer series, though I've read some of her guest appearances. I'm still traumatized by the Millennium crossover nearly 40 years later. Ugh! Sorry, Manhunter.
Idk if Shining Knight counts as Street Level but he's up there for me totally.
Dr. Midnite and Sandman (Wesley or Sandy) I like a lot but are they D listers? I Especially like Sandman. He's probably in my top 10 fav DC characters.
I would say Herald/Guardian (Mal Duncan) is a D lister but he shouldn't be. I like him a lot. He's usually pretty street level.
No idea if he'd count as "street level" but I liked Gunfire. Read him years ago and lost the few issues I had...just went back and worked my way into collecting the whole run. He had such an interesting power set, to me.
Anyone else remember him? He came out of the Bloodlines story arc.
Oh yeah I kinda remember him, he first appeared in a crossover with Batman during the whole Knightfall arc didn't he? At least that's where I've seen him, whatever happened to that guy?
Hi there, r/DCcomics members, welcome to the post! This was tagged as a [Discussion], so we require OP to add commentary, [per rule 8](https://www.reddit.com/r/DCcomics/wiki/guidelines#wiki_8._no_memes.2C_fluff.2C_or_other_low-effort_content). u/Psymorte, if you haven't already added commentary, please do so in the text or as a new comment. Also, if you included imagery, please provide a source or artist name. *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/DCcomics) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Mark Andreyko's Manhunter series was so underrated.
That really was such an amazing run. I miss stuff like that.
It was so good it got saved from cancellation twice.
She almost ended up on the JSA as a result.
Whats it about? Worth checking out?
Kate Spencer is a frustrated federal prosecutor who’s grown sick of watching murderous supervillains get away with their sick crimes. When Copperhead avoids the death penalty, and kills two prison guards in his escape, she raids the police evidence locker and cobbles together a super-suit and weapons to hunt him down as the new Manhunter. If you know about Cameron Chase, she plays a significant role in the series. She complicated, messy, a lousy mom at times, but one helluva character and it’s an awesome series. It’s like if Marcia Clark hunted down O.J. Simpson for sweet vigilante justice.
That sounds awesome! I always love the weirder characters getting love. Ill check it out.
I don't know if he's my favorite but I'll say this about ~~Mad Dog~~ Wild Dog: For such a generic character, he has a pretty intense and motivated dialogue. Probably one of the more sensible psychos, too. (But like anyone else who dresses up and plays vigilante, especially without guns, is still a psycho.)
Wild Dog is surprisingly likeable for someone who's one trip and fall away from just being Punisher. I've got a soft spot for that fella since he's the only "superhero" from my home in the Quad Cities, gotta represent!
What makes him different from the Punisher?
He works at a sports stadium and people in his city like him
A real job and a tad more self awareness.
He has a couple of friends who try to get him to quit being Wild Dog.
He's not completely gone.
Currently living in Moline. Had no idea there were any comic book characters from here. Thanks for this info!!
Hell yeah I'm in East Moline, gotta show our hometown pride!
That Kyle Starks story of Wild Dog in the recent Brave And Bold fucking ruled
Can you elaborate on the dialogue? I don't know anything about the character.
I remember there was one issue where he admitted to a kid who wanted to follow in his footsteps that he didn’t even know if he’s was doing the right thing or not.
Original Seven Soldiers, specifically OG Vigilante and OG Shining Knight. Ever since JLU.
I’d say they qualify as C-List for that JLU alone being as memorable as it is
Well considering they've only appeared once in a star girl special comic for last 2 decades probably puts them out.
Does Grifter reside on the D-List?! Or has he shimmied his way onto C-List territory?? If not, he is my answer haha
I don’t know, man. WildC.A.Ts was massive in the 90s. I’d say Grifter went from solid B tier, all the way down to D and maaaybe has made it back up to a C overtime. Boy I do wish DC would do something with Wildstorm one of these days.
Well, they’re making an Authority movie, so yeah
*Superman Legacy* is adapting "What's so Funny about TJ&tAW", but with the actual Authority, not a pastiche; except they're just using The Engineer and replacing the rest with a bunch of DC characters as stand-ins, like Hawkgirl for Swift, Terrific for Hawkmoor, etc.
None of what you´re saying is confirmed, we have almost 0 information regarding the story of Superman (2025) (not legacy anymore)
The Wildcats (mini)series last year wasn’t bad, I think it suffered from the fact that it evidently thought it was gonna get picked up or get an extended run. I know Tom King is doing a Jenny Sparks miniseries later this year too.
Grifter had a long backup story in Batman last year.
Ya, I think I was hoping against hope that maybe Ricky Bobby “if you’re not first you’re last” logic would kick in, coupled with the fact the Wild CATs run was 25 -30 years ago; and before you know it Grifter is back renting a nice condo with a view on Main Street in D-List City haha
I'm not sure what his physical form is now, but back in the day, Blue Devil was pretty awesome. A stuntman fused with his armor by sorcery, gave him a clever group of foes. But when he'd team up with the Creeper, or the Phantom Stranger, or Zantanna it had possibilities and I enjoyed it at the time.
Seriously wished that Swamp Thing never got cancelled. Would love to see more of Phantom Stranger and Blue Devil.
So weird they didn’t even let it finish it’s first season
Blue Devil was, according to DC’s in-comic ads, one of the best selling comics of its day. Seems weird now.
I feel like vigilante has probably moved to maybe B-list because of Peacemaker. And Wild Dog maybe C-list because of Arrow.
I think it’s hilarious that we all have a matching like sort of head canon list for this unspoken lettering system lol I agree with it
Meanwhile Mr Terrific dropped from B to C list because of Arrow
We’ll see about that when the new Superman movie comes out.
He's still a B Lister imo
I think D-list characters can be pretty interesting, who are some you guys really appreciate? Can include but doesn't have to be limited to those shown in the post.
Favorite D lister for DC is Kiteman. Son of a bitch broke my fucking heart. I know they did it with Calendar Man and others, but they freaking made Kiteman relevant! For Marvel, I wouldn’t call Wizard or Trapster D-list, but I love me some Frightful Four!
Frightful Four is great!
I want them in Marvel Strike Force so much!
Kiteman is *not* a D-lister bro, those are people like March Harriet or Crazy Quilt
He broke your heart in the Harley Quinn show?
They’re probably referring to his role in the war of jokes and riddles
Yes, but they continued it into the Harley show with his catch phrase.
Yes but I feel like there’s less heartbreak there because he’s still regarded as a super Chad who women love
There is something endearing about a tragic back story
Definitely Manhunter. Kate is my favorite deadbeat mom
The Question
I'd argue they're C-List now, but still, my favorite superhero, full stop.
At least. I'm pretty new to comics, I'd say if I know them, they're probably at least b list lol.
Oh. Here's a thought? Is Interrogang considered "street level?"
Ragman. Such a cool concept.
Seconding to Ragman. Great concept, interesting character. Would love to see him used more.
Orpheus was a really solid idea. Shado has always had great stories. Would like if she stopped heel turning but she's got a great design and character. Butcher was a short lived addition to O'Neal's Question and Green Arrow corner of DC. He's always has a soft spot for me, especially since Lemire used him in his run as head of the axe clan
John Butcher!
Tommy Monaghan aka Hitman
The goat
I have a soft spot for Argus, mostly because I really liked his [DC Master Series 1994 trading card art](https://i.imgur.com/mDXxVP7.jpeg). Same with [Gunfire](https://i.imgur.com/rfPiYbc.jpeg), though in retrospect they just look like palette-swapped versions of each other.
I apreciate that all of these are not Bat-related
Bringing in Bat characters practically guarantees they'll dominate the discussion, so I wanted to avoid that in favor of something a bit more interesting.
A rarity.
I really liked crimson avenger 2 in her few brief appearances if she counts. *edited to fix grammar and spelling
Yes!!
Crimson Avenger 3 if we're being pedantic nerds. 4 if you count Gummi Bears.
Oh wow never knew she was the third thanks for the correction
This is the one with the gunshot wound in her chest which never stops bleeding?
Yup
Creepy / awesome concept.
The Creeper
It's crazy how these characters have changed over time. Newest incarnation of Manhunter was in Joker: Man who Laughs in 2022, where she was hunting down the fake Joker iirc. Newest incarnation of Wild Dog was in Batman: Brave and the Bold (2024). I truly have no idea what that story was even about.
the first guy is crimson avenger?
Yes. He was essentially a Shadow-type character, but I really liked his brief appearance in SANDMAN MYSTERY THEATER in the Phantom Of The Fair story where you kind of get the feeling he's just a semi-crazy guy who likes using guns A LOT.
Man-hunter is pretty underrated I like her
The second Vigilante's costume always looked so great in his original solo series, the black with the lone touches of color always pops for me. Plus his civilian identity is a fun twist.
Jakeem Thunder
Does Ragman count? He practically the street level version of a magic superhero.
Definetly killer moth. Love this loser.
I don’t know if she’s a D lister but I love Stephanie Brown (Spoiler/Robin/Batgirl). She a D list Bat Family character so IDK, but she’s awesome.
Nah, Stephanie is C tier at the lowest, she's been both Robin and Batgirl and is considered by most to be one of the big names of the Bat-Family. A Bat-Family D-lister would be someone like Onyx.
Damn, this man dug real deep into his bag of tricks to pull out Onyx 🤣🤣🤣. Props for remembering her.
Onyx was in Young Justice.
That's where I was first introduced to her, yeah, but I also ran across her when looking into that infamous incident with Nightwing and Tarantula from Devin Grayson's run in the mid-2000s
What would that make Pagan? Z-list?
DC has treated her so poorly these past few years it just feels like she's a D lister now. Clutching onto my issues of Batgirl 2009 and remembering the good old days.
Didn't she recently get the Batgirls book with Cassandra and Barbara?
Katana
Nite-Wing
Is wildcat considered d list? If so him
B list
Green Hornet
I loved the Kate Spencer Manhunter book. It was IMO one of the very best of that era.
The Kate Spencer Manhunter series was pretty great, I wish she wasn’t a D-lister. Always thought DC would benefit from a street level team, they’ve got some interesting characters in that tier.
If Wildcat is considered D-Lost then him by a mile.
The Crimson Avenger was National / DC's second costumed hero, premiered in Detective Comics seven issues before another certain hero, has never had an Archive Edition and I am one of the handful of fans of him. Or am I?
Big Crimson fan here too!
Who was the first?
Superman.
Joe Public
Snap Bradley.
Vigilante was always my favorite! "The original"
I like the original Crimson Avenger a lot. The first masked DC hero after Superman, pre-dating even Batman. I love his original costume, and even his red onesie looks cool with the right artist depicting it.
Foolkiller
Western version vigilante is super awesome
All the above 💯
I’m not saying he’s the best, but I have soft spot for Wild Dog. That Fernando Pasarin drawn The Brave and the Bold story was so much dumb fun.
Casey Jones!
The Silencer
I am partial to Question
Well dang, I don’t have to be carmen for halloween. I can get a domino mask and be that guy :)
Manhunter!!
Which one?
Kate
I really liked Grifter in Batman Urban Legends, I thought he was a cool character
The Question First saw in JLU he’s my fav low tier character. Just a conspiracy theorist with a cool costume
Who is the first one?
Manhunter. She was extremely underrated and I hope she gets something in the DCU
I remember reading an old issue of Manhunter 2070 years ago, is that guy even D-List? Is he even *on* the list?
The guy with the spiky gloves and looked like Spawn?
I really like Wild Dog and his relationship with his 4 college friends, even though they constantly disagree.
The Creeper?
Since I'm only familiar with Vigilante then I guess him.
Wildcat
Congo Bill would be street level equivalent for Africa, especially pre Congorilla
I really enjoyed Vigilante.
KGBeast. Cool name, cool costume, everything you need in a D-lister
Wold Dog came back recently
Gangbuster.
Does Checkmate counts as a Level D Lister?
Nice to see some love for Romeo T. Legendary inker AND outstanding artist in his own right. The second Vigilante deserved better, but we got Checkmate and Pat Trayce out of it, so it wasn't all bad. One of the first comics I remember reading was a backup Crimson Avenger story where he sacrifices himself to save thousands. I was in with Wild Dog from the beginning. Collins and Beatty were at the top of their comics game, having done a long Ms. Tree run. I haven't read the Kate Spencer series, though I've read some of her guest appearances. I'm still traumatized by the Millennium crossover nearly 40 years later. Ugh! Sorry, Manhunter.
The Creeper
Idk if Shining Knight counts as Street Level but he's up there for me totally. Dr. Midnite and Sandman (Wesley or Sandy) I like a lot but are they D listers? I Especially like Sandman. He's probably in my top 10 fav DC characters. I would say Herald/Guardian (Mal Duncan) is a D lister but he shouldn't be. I like him a lot. He's usually pretty street level.
Who is in the first image in the red outfit?
I am a huge fan of the d list type of character. They usually have a cool look and DC seems to have the best ones.
The Demon, metal men, Blue Devil, The Question, Phantom Stranger, Cardiac, Death's Head, Hawk and Dove.
No idea if he'd count as "street level" but I liked Gunfire. Read him years ago and lost the few issues I had...just went back and worked my way into collecting the whole run. He had such an interesting power set, to me. Anyone else remember him? He came out of the Bloodlines story arc.
Oh yeah I kinda remember him, he first appeared in a crossover with Batman during the whole Knightfall arc didn't he? At least that's where I've seen him, whatever happened to that guy?
I believe he died during Heroes in Crisis
I’m always going to be partial to a trench coat and fedora.
Guardian and Gangbuster, the other Metropolis heroes.
Pagan. I wish they would do something with her.
Sandman (Wesley Dodds)
Manhunter (Kate) leads the pack for me! I would have liked more of Onyx (80’s Green Arrow stories) and Moonbow.
Adrian Chase Vigilante. It's a shame what James Gunn did with him in Peacemaker....but at least we got to see his costume in liveaction.
Agreed—made him into AliExpress Deadpool
That's a great description.
Adrian Chase like Prometheus in the Arrowverse?
NO. no not like that CW knockoff 😣
Crimson Avenger is B or C list
Its vigilante and it’s not even close
Batman