With two solo series to his name, one under DC/Vertigo and one in the New 52, Animal Man is one of the coolest characters DC has. As a host for The Red, the animal life force of the universe, Buddy Baker has abilities different from Beast Boy and Vixen. Animal Man has stood apart from the others in not only how his powers work but also in who he fights for. As a standby Justice Leaguer, Buddy stayed active in San Francisco and would help animals as well as humans. After a while, Buddy’s adventures shifted and his stories would now go down as a horror series starring a superhero and his family. From body horror to existential dread, Animal Man made his mark.
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With his original series spawning an all time favorite run by Grant Morrison, Animal Man’s book continued on for five more years aunder Vertigo’s label. For those unaware Vertigo is DC’s darker and more experimental label that was creator owned in house by DC. Characters like Swamp Thing and Constantine were moved over there in their own little world away from the larger DCU, but Animal Man had a foot in both worlds. Over the years he’d make appearances now and again but was largely one of Vertigo’s earliest series to take the experimental route. After the final issue of Morrison’s series with reality breaking ideas for the character, he remained as such. But Animal Man hasn’t been as much of a presence in recent years — and DC really needs to do something more with this character.
Where to Take Animal Man Next?
In the New 52, Animal Man returned for the first to a solo series in 16 years, with Jeff Lemire taking the helm. Lemire leaned into Morrison’s approach and added many horror elements to the character as well. Now with the ability to journey into the animal life force The Red with the help of his daughter Maxine, the book shifted majorly. It explained that Buddy was not the true avatar of The Red and it was actually destined to be Maxine. The Red had been planning it for centuries and gave Buddy his abilities so they’d be passed down to his daughter. This revelation came as a genuine shock to the whole Baker family.
Ellen and Cliff being the two members of the family that aren’t connected to the Red were more than concerned. Buddy was as well due to The Red wanting to keep hold of Maxine until she was ready didn’t help either. With all of that leading to the death of one of the family members in a twist that no one expected, the stakes for the rest of the series were ultimately different forever.
The logical next step for Animal Man would be to explore the family life with now three members of the family instead of four. One of the best parts of the original series was how each family member had a different plotline going even when Buddy wasn’t active and sometimes dead. Buddy would come back from the dead a few times of course, but that could be a neat angle. Another would be to explore the powers of Maxine. In the glimpses we’ve gotten of her and her dad since the book ended, it’s clear her powers have manifested and become a lot stronger. Whether she’d be Animal Girl or Animal Woman remains to be seen, but exploring the father-daughter legacy as it’s happening would be a very interesting approach not only to Animal Man as we know him, but to Maxine as she starts her journey as well.
However DC opts to approach this classic character, it’s time to bring Animal Man back. His fans may not be many but has proved to be a classic with his original run, and he deserves more. Here’s to hoping we can see him again outside of cameos in other titles.
Do you think Animal Man deserves a chance to return? Let us know down in the comments.
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