The world of comics was reborn in 2001. Stan Lee, the master of the Marvel Universe for decades, produced his first works for DC Comics. In Just Imagine ..., Stan the Man reimagined iconic characters like Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman. Instead of Bruce Wayne in Gotham or Diana Prince on Paradise Island, all of the characters ended up in Los Angeles with (mostly) alliterative names.
Some of his recreations in the Just Imagine ... universe, which eventually became Earth-6, worked well. Others were a good attempt but didn't have the spirit of the originals. All of the heroes can be ranked by their uniqueness and how they were written.
10 Catwoman Is The Least Fleshed Out Character
Out of all the reimagined heroes, the origin of Catwoman, alias Joanie Jordan, seemed the least fleshed out. Struck by green lightning, she gained the powers of a cat. This included seeing in the dark, advanced reflexes, and the ability to grow claws.
While the idea was solid, the way Lee put it all together was ramshackle. With barely a hesitation, Jordan knows she wants to be a superhero and sews together a costume that resembles the one Black Widow wore in the 1970s. Needless to say, it wasn't par for his creativity.
9 Robin/Hawkman/Atom Has A Confusing Backstory That Takes Away From The Character
The reason this character is not ranked higher is due to his confusing origins. Left at the doorstep of an orphanage, the boy who became known as Robin led a solitary life. Yet, since he walked and talked at two months of age, those who took care of him knew he was something greater.
It turned out that Robin was actually the son of the series main antagonist, Reverend Dominic Darrk, and was endowed with purple mystic energy. When that was combined with an ancient hawk rune, Robin became Hawkman. After the intervention of Green Lantern, yet another transformation took place and the young man became the powerful Atom. The origins of Marvel superheroes were never this muddled.
8 Sandman Merges Mystical Realms And Hero Tropes In A Familiar Way
Of all the reimagined characters, Sandman is one that merges Lee's love of mystical realms with a superhero characterization that felt familiar to DC audiences. On a mission to Titan to examine a strange green cloud, Colonel Larry Wilton is left for dead during a spacewalk. However, he ends up in a dimension called Dreamworld that he actually saw in dreams when he was younger.
Here, through the help of his friend Oracle, he becomes Sandman -- a being that can transverse the barrier between Dreamworld and Earth. Larry has to do this because a great threat is about to come down on his homeworld. It's the being known as Crisis. It's up to Larry and his newfound superheroic friends to help defeat the terror.
7 Wonder Woman's Determination Is Explored In A Realistic And Fascinating Way
This version of Wonder Woman, Maria Mendoza, isn't from a place of grandeur like Paradise Island. She's from the streets of Peru, and, when the readers meet her, she has seen the death of her father by an authoritarian leader. With help from archeologist Steve Trevor, Maria escapes to nearby ruins.
It's here that Maria is enveloped in a green mist, finds the ancient Sun Goddess staff, and becomes Wonder Woman. She's able to avenge her father's murder at the cost of landing in Los Angeles. With this hero, Lee does a good job of fleshing out the reasons Maria didn't give up.
6 Aquaman Got A Well Deserved Makeover That Could Turn Him Into A Fan Favourite
In his reimagining of the King of the Seas, Lee gives Aquaman more of a Peter Parker vibe than the other characters. The origin story features Ramon Raymond, an oceanographer in a relationship with a beautiful woman. His brother is a Los Angeles police officer. Change the interest to science, the woman's name to MJ, and the cop's name to Flash, and you have the origin of Spider-Man.
However, Ramon isn't bitten by a radioactive fish. Instead, he's immersed in green waters that give him the ability to become a water being. Combined with the sealife DNA he injected himself with, this version of Aquaman is truly one with the seas.
5 Shazam's Power Changed Sources From The One Who Sits On The Rock of Eternity To Merlin
Lee's reimagining of this magical character is a smart one. The mystical origins remain the same. However, this time the power comes from the wizard Merlin instead of the one who sits on the Rock of Eternity.
The difference is who receives the power. Instead of a teenager, it's Robert Rogers, a mild-mannered investigator on the trail of a criminal organization. What's not different is the way Robert becomes his demon-like alter ego. He just needs to utter the word Shazam to make it happen.
4 This Version Of Flash Is Unlike Any Other Version And It's A Great Improvement
The Flash in Stan Lee's universe bears a striking resemblance in characterization to the version created for DC's Tangent Comics specials in the late 1990s. Like the latter, the Just Imagine ... version is also a teenager, Mary Maxwell. Like many young adolescents, she believes her life is dull. That's until her father injects her with the DNA of a hummingbird.
Her circumstances shift after that. She has to escape the clutches of an evil organization, so she makes a costume and calls herself the Flash. However, she doesn't tap into the Speed Force like other Flashes. Similar to how Wally West had to rest and eat when he first took over the Scarlett Speedster mantle, Mary has to do so as well.
3 Superman's Responsible Redesign Is An Intriguing Spin On A Classic Character
Good thing Clark Kent is an alliterative name. It gave Lee a chance to keep it for his version of Superman. He's an alien with the strength of the Man of Steel but with the attitude of Guy Gardner.
On Krypton, Superman isn't powerful at all. He's a normal law enforcement agent among cybernetic hybrids. However, after landing on Earth and passing through green-tinged water, he gains super strength, flight, and telescopic vision. He knows great power requires great responsibility. Still, he uses his newfound abilities to make a lot of money for his agent, Lois Lane.
2 Batman Is No Longer A Billionaire, He Is Now A Professional Wrestler
Lee tries to stay true to the origins of Batman with a few tweaks. First, they're not in Gotham. Second, when he's not scaring people, Wayne Williams is a professional wrestler who dresses like a bat.
Besides those items, how Wayne becomes Batman is very similar to Gotham's Dark Knight. He loses his father, a cop, to a shooting and his mother to a broken heart. While in prison, he builds himself up mentally and physically to destroy the person responsible for everything. He even tells the Flash he's not a team player when she thinks they should form a Justice League.
1 Green Lantern Is The Lynchpin For The Entire Universe
The reason this version of Green Lantern is at the top of the list is he's the one that helps link everyone else together. As archeologist Len Lewis, he discovers Yggdrasil -- the Tree of Life. It gives him the power of the Earth to become Green Lantern.
Additionally, it's also how heroes like Wonder Woman, Flash, Shazam, and Catwoman get their powers. During their meeting with Crisis, Green Lantern is the one who transforms Robin/Hawkman into the reborn Atom. In the end, this version of the Emerald Knight is the lynchpin for Stan Lee's universe.
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