Greatest comic book characters – 14. Cyclops
First comic book appearance: The X-Men No. 1
Scott Summers is the most underappreciated character in comic books. He’s looked at as boring. The funny thing is that he isn’t a bland character at all. Especially after Apocalypse was in his mind. That’s when people couldn’t deny how great Cyclops is.
Cyclops saved the mutant race from more dangerous events than anyone. Messiah Complex, Second Coming, and Norman Osborn’s Dark Avengers and X-Men are among the worst threats the X-Men have ever faced.
Beyond keeping the world safe from threats, Cyclops has consistently tried to give mutants a place to be safe. Opening their doors to all mutants during M-Day, the move to California, and later Utopia were all moves orchestrated by Cyclops. Yes, some of his decisions can be questionable, but you can’t deny the results.
Greatest comic book characters – 13. Thor
First comic book appearance: Journey into Mystery No. 83
Thor is the greatest god in Marvel Comics. Possibly in all of comics. Despite being one of the most powerful beings in existence, Thor has constantly had to prove himself. Usually, he’s trying to show himself that he’s worthy. No matter how many times he’s saved the universe, Thor always has this lingering doubt that he isn’t good enough, a doubt that Nick Fury exploited in Original Sin and made him unworthy of Mjolnir.
Thor was a drunken mess for years after that. No matter how unworthy he felt, Thor was there to save the Ten Realms from Malekith and his armies (The War of the Realms). In fact, if it wasn’t for being unworthy, he may not have been the King he is today.