Why The Rogues are Awesome (And Why They Deserve an Ongoing)
By batmannflash 24 Comments
Here's another one for y'all. Part of my blog series "Why ___ is Awesome."
Why do The Flash's Rogues deserve their own monthly ongoing? Why are they so awesome? Here's why.
1. Captain Cold
The leader of the bunch, and my favorite Flash villain. No pun intended, but he is downright cool. He has the personality, leadership, and the interesting power-set to be a major villain. If you think about it, he's a fantastic leader who is underrated. He's able to pull together these villains and work together unlike most villain groups. He's respected and they listen to him but Cold also listens to them. His power set is perfect against the Flash, because first of all, if there's ice, it's slippery. Second of all, he can freeze to absolute zero, limited and stopping motion of even the Flash!
2. Mirror Master, Heatwave, Weather Wizard...
The rest of the Rogues are interesting as well. They too have unique and colorful abilities that look amazing on panel. Mirror Master has the unique ability to transport through reflective surfaces. Heatwave is the perfect opposite to Captain Cold and Weather Wizard is all-around powerful. Then throw-in oddballs like Trickster and reformed villains like the Pied Piper, and you've got an intriguing team.
3. Underrated
When you think about how powerful the Flash is, doesn't matter if it's Barry or Wally or Bart, you realize that you need some really powerful villains to give him a challenge. Time after time, I hear people state that the Rogues are too weak to face the Flash. False. As proven in "Rogues' Revenge," they are quite the foes. Captain Cold can create an absolute zero cold field to slow down the Flash. Heatwave's fire is hot enough to melt the Flash's boots. Weather Wizard can summon intense storms. Mirror Master is amazing with prep and incredibly tricky to fight. Pied Piper has mind control and hypnosis abilities. Now in the New 52, the Rogues actually have powers and the Golden Glider appears to be able to compete with the Flash's speed and plus she can become intangible. Together, The Rogues create a difficult challenge for the Scarlet Speedster.
4. They're Proven
The Rogues already have had great stories like Rogues' Revenge, Rogues War, and currently Rogues Rebellion. These stories prove that they can be villains that can hold their own monthly ongoing series. They certainly have the chemistry, the humor, the drive, and the interesting character dynamic to do it. Not to mention, they always look spectacular on-panel. So colorful and creative. Get someone like Brian Buccellato and Francis Manapul for art and Geoff Johns on writing and you are all set. They're able to fight against heroes in their own series and also against other villains. Sometimes they even team-up with the Flash. I definitely think that the Rogues, unlike most villains, can hold a monthly ongoing series.
5. Moral Code
They aren't the type of villains to want to take over the world or kill the Flash. The Rogues like what they have going on right now and just want to continue on robbing banks in order to spend the money later on. They will never want to kill the Flash. They have their own moral code, whether or not you agree with it. It gives them almost a sense of honor and respect. This is what makes them so different and unique. Here is another reason why the Rogues have the special ability to star in their own series. As main characters, they should "win" and for the Rogues, it would actually be okay. For most villains, "winning" means killing the hero or taking over the city. We don't want that because it leaves lasting consequences. The Rogues can just rob a bank or defeat the Flash (without killing him) and everyone would be fine. Despite their strong moral code, the Rogues always pose a sense of danger against the Flash.
Like what you see? Read more: Why ___ is Awesome
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