There was a time when younger characters in comic books were relegated to sidekick roles. You had your Buckys, Toros, Robins, etc. But with the introduction of Spider-Man, the teen superhero that wasn’t anyone’s sidekick took off. The readers didn’t identify with the sidekicks the way they could with the gifted teenagers that were a lot like them and faced similar struggles. The tradition continues to this day and these are some of best teen superheroes comics have had to offer in the last fourteen years.

Gravity (Greg Willis)

Like a lot of fictional teens before him, Greg Willis was just an ordinary guy until a freak accident gave him superpowers. Moving to New York City for college, Greg set out to become a superhero to the detriment of both his social and scholastic life. He wasn’t a genius like Peter Parker. Greg was a normal kid that just wanted to do the right thing like a lot of people that grew up reading comics. Gravity had an unfortunately ignored five-issue miniseries by Sean McKeever and Mike Norton followed up by minor appearances in crossovers and the background of other books. However, his failure to catch on doesn’t diminish how great of a character he was.

The Runaways

Pretty much every teenager has thought that their parents were evil at some point. Well, for the Runaways, they actually were. The original line-up of characters were initially played as the typical stock teen characters but writer Brian K. Vaughan took the Breakfast Club approach of exploring these stereotypes to find the real people within. If the Young Avengers were, y’know, young Avengers then the Runaways were practically the new wave of young street heroes. And, even after their title had come to an end, these characters have still found life in various crossover events and Dennis Hopeless and Kev Walker’s Avengers Arena/Undercover.

Nova (Sam Alexander)

Marvel really wants Sam Alexander, the new Nova, to work. They’ve been pushing him hard. And they’re so lucky that it’s managed to work out. Replacing a fan-favorite character like Richard Rider as Nova was a tricky proposition but Jeph Loeb made it work by crafting a whole new mythology for this Nova that capitalized on all of the elements that make a successful legacy character. Sam’s relationship with his father was instantly compelling and translated into a cool, relatable motivation for him as a hero. His solo title has gone through a couple of creative shake-ups but this new character’s value has been firmly established.

Blue Beetle (Jaime Reyes)

The Blue Beetle was, at best, a b-list character in DC’s catalog of heroes. He had his fans but that didn’t stop him from being served up to die as the preamble to a big crossover event. This left room to bring in a new character to take on the mantle, a common practice over at DC. This new character was Mexican-America teenager Jaime Reyes and what made him unique was his supporting cast. Jaime, unlike a lot of teen superheroes, immediately told his friends and family that he was a superhero. It made for a character with a unique support system and a whole bunch of new conflicts for readers that were tired of the traditional teen with a secret identity metaphor. The character was such a hit with the readers that Jaime was allowed to remain as the Blue Beetle and past versions displaced when DC rebooted into the New 52. 

Invincible (Mark Grayson)

What if Spider-Man was Superman’s son? He would be Invincible. That’s definitely what Robert Kirkman thought. Mark Grayson was a funny, decent kid gifted with immense power after a lifetime of longing for it. Heck, if your father was the most powerful superhero in the world you’d be hoping to develop powers, too. Mark learning to harness his powers, navigating both his personal and superhero life, and stopping his fair share of crimes made him a fantastic substitute for Spider-Man during a time where the character was undergoing a more adult period. That said, Invincible grew up with his readers with a series of truly shocking twists and turns for the character and his world that have really made him a phenomenal character for readers to follow.

The Young Avengers

This idea took far too long. How was there not an early attempt at the Young Avengers before Heinberg and Cheung? A couple characters introduced on the team were pre-existing but the majority were newly invented with the standouts being Wiccan, Hulkling, and the new Hawkeye, Kate Bishop. These characters were tying in old continuity with new continuity in daring ways that blazed a trail for a new generation of teen heroes in the Marvel Universe. A few years later, Kieron Gillen and Jamie McKelvie took the concept and some of the characters for a 14-issue joyride that drew critical and fan acclaim for their frank representation of modern youth in a superhero context.

Miles Morales: The Ultimate Spider-Man

Miles Morales is a character as important as he is great. Just like Peter Parker ushered in the age of the teen hero before him, Miles brought with him a whole new era of diversity in Marvel that has seen an astonishing boom since his debut. You can draw a line from the debut of this Black Latino Spider-Man to that of the current Miss Marvel, Pakistani-American teenager Kamala Khan. His importance as a character aside, Miles just makes for great stories that explore a young man’s insecurities in a heightened, modern environment. His familial relationships are complex and make for some of the most affecting storytelling of the last couple of years.