50 Greatest Super Heroes In Comic Book History

21. Captain Marvel (Shazam)

(Write-up by Nick Tylwalk, Bam Smack Pow Editor)

Whether you call him Captain Marvel or Shazam, there’s a timeless quality to the World’s Mightiest Mortal that never goes away, even as the more innocent time that gave birth to him constantly shrinks in the rear-view mirror. Then again, maybe that’s exactly why we need him around.

I shouldn’t need to explain why the idea of a boy being able to turn into an adult super hero just by calling out a magic word is a powerful one, because minus powers granted by the gods, it’s one that has been explored over and over again in pop culture. How many comics fans wished they were bigger at some point growing up? I’d venture to say nearly all of them.

The best part about Captain Marvel’s original Golden Age adventures is that their lighthearted tone meant Billy Batson never had to deal with the downside of being an adult, at least outside of being played for laughs. More recent attempts to portray this dilemma in a more realistic fashion simply highlight how difficult it is to separate the character from its roots. The Captain Marvel-Stargirl relationship in JSA, while handled well, was fraught with peril, to say the least.

Yet there’s value in the thought that Captain Marvel is even more inherently good than Superman — certainly, it’s what made his reveal as the chief antagonist in Kingdom Come so shocking — and DC would be wise to not give up on trying to utilize that strength even in the 21st Century. Like others on our list, Billy is getting a shot at the movies in the not too distant future, so time will tell if modern audiences will be able to connect with him.

Next: No. 20: The Master of the Mystic Arts