While being a superhero can often be a lonely profession, there are a few comic book heroes who find themselves lucky enough to be surrounded by allies who can join them in their fight against crime or life-long mission to protect others. In some cases, these close allies are also able to take up the mantle of their friends and mentors when needed.
While this doesn't always go well and fans are usually dying to see the return of the original hero, there are a few cases where a hero who takes up the mantle of another actually outshines the original. Whether through their dedication to the cause or even additional abilities that made them better heroes, which we'll take a closer look at today.
10 Even Clint Barton Thinks Kate Bishop Is Better As Hawkeye
While she was initially reluctant to take on the name when she first joined the Young Avengers, Kate Bishop's excellent marksmanship and attitude made her the perfect choice to take over as Hawkeye, a name which was finally given to her by Captain America after the death of Clint Barton.
When Barton returned and finally met the new Hawkeye, he began to work alongside her and ultimately agreed with Captain America's choice. Bishop herself has also proven time and time again that she is more level-headed and logical than her mentor and will undoubtedly outshine the older Avenger in the future.
9 Jaime Reyes Was The Only Blue Beetle To Properly Use The Scarab
There have been three different characters who have used the Blue Beetle name, which originated with Charlton Comics' Dan Garrett and his mystical scarab that increased his strength and gave him additional abilities, though when he passed the scarab on to his successor Ted Kord, none of the powers transferred and Kord was forced to use technology to become the second Blue Beetle.
It wasn't until high school student Jaime Reyes found Garrett's mystical scarab and it bonded to his spine that the full power of the device was unlocked. The scarab revealed its alien heritage and granted Reyes a superpowered exoskeleton capable of producing incredibly advanced alien weaponry that could potentially make Blue Beetle one of the most powerful weapons in the galaxy.
8 Scott Lang Has Become The Most Respected Ant-Man
Hank Pym used the Pym Particles he created to become the size-changing hero known as Ant-Man and one of the founding Avengers, though he soon adopted new identities like Giant-Man, Goliath, and Yellowjacket in a controversial career that included domestic abuse and the creation of one of the Avengers' greatest enemies in Ultron.
While Scott Lang had to initially steal the Ant-Man costume in order to save his daughter, he has more than redeemed both himself and the Ant-Man identity, which suffered further damage when Eric O'Grady became the Irredeemable Ant-Man before he evolved into the villainous Black Ant.
7 Michael Holt Is Brilliant And Practices Fair Play As Mister Terrific
Terry Sloane was a gifted athlete and millionaire with a photoreflexive memory who used his skills and resources to become the first Mister Terrific, who wore a large "Fair Play" shield on his chest and even organized a "Fair Play Club" to help the youth in his community stay out of trouble.
Michael Holt was a highly-trained Olympic-level athlete who is also one of the smartest men in the world, though he almost took his own life after losing his wife and unborn child. Instead, he was inspired by the life of Terry Sloane to become the new Mister Terrific, who used his training and specially-designed T-Spheres to continue his namesake's work with the Justice Society of America.
6 Kate Spencer Has Begun To Redeem The Troubled Manhunter Name
There have been quite a few characters who have used the Manhunter name over the years, which includes evil robotic sentries, a brainwashed cult of clones, and the former Manhunter Mark Shaw who ultimately turned on and killed other bearers of the Manhunter title.
Kate Spencer was a lawyer who assembled together weaponry from evidence to create her own Manhunter identity to bring down the criminals that she couldn't touch legally. Spencer wears a powerful Darkstar exomantle that increases her strength and the clawed gloves worn by Azrael when he was Batman along with a Manhunter power baton to further increase her power.
5 Doctor Octopus Vowed To Become The Superior Spider-Man
When Otto Octavius exchanged his dying body for Peter Parker/Spider-Man's, the former Doctor Octopus never intended to use his new lease on life to become a better hero, but thanks to one of Peter Parker's final acts, he was given a heroic reset. Parker instilled the lessons he learned into Otto's mind so he felt the same responsibility that drove him to become the Superior Spider-Man.
Otto was able to also improve Peter Parker's life by finally finishing his doctorate and launching his own tech company while also elevating Spider-Man's status in New York City, the technology he used to fight crime, and built an organization of spider-themed henchman that helped him better police the city, which he also covered with spider-bots as his own surveillance network.
4 Wally West First Discovered The Speed Force As The Flash
While Barry Allen is highly regarded as the most well-known version of The Flash, he wasn't the first as he followed in the footsteps of the original Jay Garrick and he wasn't the last as his sidekick Wally West/Kid Flash took over the role following the loss of Barry during Crisis on Infinite Earths.
Wally West spent years in the role of The Flash and had many milestones that included the discovery of the Speed Force which created a lasting connection that makes him the fastest man alive. Unfortunately, while Wally West shined as The Flash, the return of Barry Allen left the character in limbo and DC has continually failed to honor the hero's legacy.
3 Miles Morales Quickly Impressed The Original Spider-Man
Following the death of Peter Parker in the Ultimate universe, Miles Morales was the next hero to don the webs as the new Ultimate Spider-Man, though he had slightly altered powers that gave him a powerful edge thanks to his camouflaging stealth ability and his devastating electric Venom-Blast.
Morales and others eventually made the jump to the mainstream Marvel reality where he continued to impress Peter Parker and repeatedly earned the name of Spider-Man that he wears proudly alongside the original. Morales' youth, intelligence, and strong moral compass have also led Parker to at times question his own decisions based on the trust he has for Miles.
2 Dick Grayson Followed In His Mentor's Footsteps As Batman
There have been a few characters who have taken on the mantle of the Dark Knight over the years to fill in for Bruce Wayne when he is forced to step away from Gotham City, though none have been able to take over for him as successfully as his original ward and sidekick Dick Grayson, who began his costumed career as Robin before he became Nightwing.
Grayson originally took on the cowl after Azrael's disastrous run as Batman, though after Wayne's apparent death in Final Crisis, the lighter-spirited Grayson stepped into the role with Damian Wayne at his side as the new Robin to breathe new life into the Dynamic Duo. Even after Wayne returned, he asked Grayson to stay on in the role as his chosen successor.
1 Nite-Owl And Silk Spectre Overachieved At Outshining Their Predecessors
1986's Watchmen explored different generations of costumed adventures as they dealt with the dawn of the superhero and featured legacy heroes like Hollis T. Mason/Nite-Owl and Sally Jupiter/Silk Spectre, who helped usher in their own heroic age as members of the Minutemen.
Daniel Drieberg used his sizeable inheritance to follow in his hero's footsteps as the second Nite-Owl with advanced weaponry and vehicles while Sally's daughter Laurie Juspeczyk was raised in training by her mother to take on the role as Silk Spectre. Both Nite-Owl and Silk Spectre are fantastic examples of two heroes who took on the mantles of others to outshine their predecessors.