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With DC Comics and Marvel coming back together, there’s a great chance readers are about to see some exciting new characters. Fans everywhere have been buzzing after hearing the Big Two are gearing up for a crossover, and now Amalgam Comics is back on everyone’s radar.
Amalgam Comics was the short-lived imprint that spun out of the DC vs. Marvel crossover that combined both universes to create new characters like Dark Claw or the JLX. But it’s been years since Marvel and DC have joined up and dozens of new characters have debuted since. If there’s a chance the Amalgam Universe is about to live again, then the following ten combos are almost certain to produce a new character for DC and Marvel’s shared imprint.
10
The Maker/The Batman Who Laughs
Villainous, Godlike Variants
Batman and Mister Fantastic may be two of the smartest, most heroic characters of their respective universes, but both have variants that became evil forces unto themselves. The Maker hails from Earth-1610 and was a younger Reed Richards who slowly descended into full-blown villainy. The Batman Who Laughs, on the other hand, came from the twisted Dark Multiverse and is a Batman who was corrupted by Joker Venom after finally killing the Clown Prince of Crime.
Though the Batman Who Laughs is gone, and the Maker is imprisoned, the Amalgam Universe combines the total histories of both DC and Marvel. It’s not outrageous to think that in a fused world, a hypothetical ‘Maker Who Laughs’ has repeatedly attacked the Amalgam Heroes. And let’s face it, these two characters are a much more natural blend than some older Amalgam fusions (like Speed Demon, the Ghost Rider/Flash combo).
9
Ms. Marvel/Stargirl
Bright Fangirls Who Became Icons
One can’t ignore how the last several decades has introduced a lot of really cool new, younger heroes who are inspired by the generations of heroes who came before them. Ms. Marvel, aka Kamala Khan, was a huge Captain Marvel fangirl before she ever donned her heroic identity. Courtney Whitmore, aka Stargirl, on the other hand, was the step-daughter of Pat Dugan, the Star-Spangled Kid’s sidekick. Both Courtney and Kamala entered the hero life as high school students, but they’ve both come a long way since.
Ms. Marvel and Stargirl are a natural choice to create an Amalgam hero. Something like ‘Ms. Star’ could capture their eagerness and zeal for heroics. Not to mention if their fusion retains Ms. Marvel’s stretchy powers along with Stargirl’s Cosmic Staff, these two could become a real force to be reckoned with.
8
Red Hood/Winter Soldier
Revived Sidekicks Who Went Through Hell
Neither the Winter Soldier nor the Red Hood were around for the heyday of Marvel/DC crossovers as both had been dead for years. Shortly after the final official crossover, JLA/Avengers, both James ‘Bucky’ Barnes and Jason Todd were both brought back to life around the same time, the former becoming the Winter Soldier and the latter becoming the Red Hood. Aside from that coincidental timing, both men became troubled vigilantes who took a while to properly deal with their trauma and return to work with their former allies.
Given Bucky and Jason’s preference for guns and close-up fighting, it only makes good sense to fuse these two into a hypothetical ‘Red Soldier’. Granted, the existing Darkclaw and Super-Soldier characters might make that hard to fit him into their histories. But come on, could anyone deny that Red Hood and Winter Soldier would make the perfect combination hero?
7
Echo/Batwoman
Kickass Martial Artists
Both the Marvel and the DC Universe have a lot of great street-level heroes. In the years following Amalgam Comics, DC Comics introduced Kate Kane, aka Batwoman, Batman’s cousin who launched her own campaign against crime. Marvel, on the other hand, introduced Maya Lopez, aka Echo, a highly-skilled martial artist who could perfectly copy anyone’s movements. In addition to being great heroes, both Echo and Batwoman were praised for representing underrepresented groups.
Their fighting skills would blend naturally together in a potential ‘Maya Kane’ fusion. Not to mention, Echo is a great name for a bat-themed character, so there’s no real need to change the name. As one character, Echo could be a prominent street-level character, rivaling other vigilantes like Dark Claw or Moonwing (the Nightwing/Moon Knight fusion).
6
X-23/Damian Wanye
Chips Off the Old Block
Fans of the original Amalgam Comics may recall that in that fused world, Batman was combined with Wolverine to create Dark Claw (technically, Bruce was also fused with Nick Fury, but Dark Claw was more popular). Interestingly enough, after DC Comics and Marvel stopped collaborating on crossovers, both Bruce and Logan discovered they had descendants who became fan-favorites. Wolverine had his clone, X-23, aka Laura Kinney while Batman had Damian Wayne, who later became his sidekick, Robin.
In the Amalgam Comics, Dark Claw had a sidekick known as Sparrow, a combination of Jubilee and Robin. But just as Damian replaced Tim Drake, ‘Laura Wayne’ could have come into Dark Claw’s life and become the current Sparrow to fight at Dark Claw’s side. Both X-23 and Robin are great heroes in their own right, and they’d make an even better fused hero.
5
Jessica Jones/The Question
Amazing Private Eyes Who’ve Struggled
Both the Marvel and DC Universes are filled with curious cases that require detectives to dig deep and get their hands dirty. In the Marvel Universe, Jessica Jones is often called on to look into the most twisted cases and in the DC Universe, Renee Montya, aka the Question, does the same thing. Jones and Montoya are frighteningly similar. Not only are they experienced private eyes, but they’ve both had to work through their respective demons.
Not too much would have to change with a combination of these two. Since Jessica doesn’t have a codename, they could theoretically still use the Question moniker (not exactly uncommon in the Amalgam world). Perhaps their fusion would be ‘Renee Jones’ and have a complicated relationship with the aforementioned Maya Kane. Either way, uniting Jessica Jones and the Question would make for a hell of a detective.
4
Spider-Man/Blue Beetle
Iconic Legacy Heroes
The best part of the last few decades in Marvel and DC history is seeing how legacies have grown. In 2006, DC Comics introduced its newest Blue Beetle, Jaime Reyes, a young man gifted with an incredible power from space. Five years later, Marvel Comics passed on Ultimate Spider-Man’s mantle to Miles Morales. Both heroes have grappled with the weight of their legacies, but they’ve come into their own as heroes who are loved across the whole world.
While the original Amalgam Universe combined Superboy and Ben Reilly together due to their shared clone background, Jaime and Miles work similarly as young heroes who have come into their own. A ‘Blue-Spider’ could keep the best aspects of both characters and explore what it means to make a heroic legacy one’s own.
3
Detective Chimp/Hit-Monkey
All About the Monkey Business
Though he was around during the age of Marvel/DC crossovers, no one ever used Detective Chimp. But his profile has raised considerably in the last few years. While Bobo would have worked perfectly with a character like Howard the Duck, Howard was fused with Lobo the last go-round. So who would work well with Detective Chimp? How about Hit-Monkey, the small-time simian assassin who became an overnight sensation thanks to his animated series on Hulu?
‘Hit-Chimp’ just feels right, doesn’t it? He could still be the sassy, brilliant ape that associates with the greatest investigative minds. He just also happens to be one of the world’s deadliest marksman. Just imagine him going up against other equally skilled Amalgam heroes like Punisher or the Daredevil/Deathstroke combination, Dare the Terminator. Certainly sounds like it’d be more fun than a barrel of monkeys.
2
Harley Quinn/Gwenpool
Off-The-Wall Chaos Bringers
Harley Quinn’s star has risen in the last few years, and it’s hard to think who would be the perfect Marvel character to fuse her with. Deadpool would be a good choice, but he’s already got an Amalgam equivalent, Deadline. However, several years ago, Marvel Comics introduced a similar character who matches Harley’s zany behavior and her penchant for chaos: Gwenpool, the fourth-wall-breaking mercenary who absolutely adores comics.
Just imagine for a second what a potential ‘Harleypool’ would be like. Not only would she be one of the most oddball characters in the Amalgam Universe, she’d be incredibly deadly, either with guns or oversized mallets. And, thanks to Gwenpool’s meta-knowledge, Harleypool would potentially know everything about the Marvel or DC Universe and their combined reality, making her a true rarity of the Amalgam Comics line.
1
Absolute Batman/Ultimate Spider-Man
Beloved Modern-Day Overhauls
Interestingly enough, Marvel and DC Comics have both revitalized their heroes with new lines of comics that put their heroes at greater and more difficult odds. Marvel’s new Ultimate Spider-Man presents a world where Peter Parker never became Spider-Man in his youth thanks to the Maker’s actions. Similarly, DC’s Absolute Batman follows a Bruce Wayne who lacks the financial backing of his counterpart, forcing him to get creative in order to protect his city.
In the same way that Amalgam Comics played with the idea of Marvel and DC’s biggest events with the idea of “Secret Crisis of the Infinity Hour”, a new Amalgam could play with this idea where a fusion of Batman and Spider-Man (Spider-Bat?) face greater odds in a strange and more difficult version of the Amalgam Universe. A bit high-concept, but one that captures the essence of Marvel and DC’s biggest successes right now.
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