Greetings nerdy list afficionados and welcome back to Top 10 Nerd today we’re looking
at a tried and true plot pun fully intended the trial plot when comics just turn into
a courtroom drama where people yell, and would be declared in contempt of court 6 ways through
Sunday.
There’s a fair few to choose from so get ready for a rollercoaster ride and lots of
lawyers abusing their position and asking questions that would not be allowed.
I’m Sasha and these are the Top 10 superheroes Who Stood Trial.
Number 10 - Batman The Trial Animated Series – Let’s go over to the DCAU the dc animated
universe.
So this episode is the ninth episode of the 2nd season.
And in it Batman gets knocked out and captured by his rogues gallery and is placed in a straight
jacket and forced to stand trial his lawyer is janet an attorney he was actually having
a dinner date with as Bruce Wayne.
She inspired this whole trial due to her view that Batman was a disgrace to Gotham so they
picked her to prove he was good for the city feeling given her bias she wouldn’t be able
to do it.
So you get the villains taking the stand claiming that they were harmless individuals who just
fell on rough circumstances until Batman came along and ruined everything however Janet
is able to demonstrate how really they were the problem not Batman and she realizes through
the process of the trial that she no longer believes that Batman creates criminals in
Gotham.
However even though she wins the rogues still try to execute both of them, but they manage
to escape all of them and Janet makes peace with Batman and they both vow to help the
city in their own ways.
Number 9 - Wonder Woman – So many may be aware of the fact that Wonder Woman snapped
the Maxwell lords neck live in front of everyone but what happened after?
Well Wonder Woman turns herself in since the world saw the broadcast and also she felt
her cause was just Maxwell lord had grown to the point psychically where he could control
Superman.
So she is tried by the world court and it plays out in the pages of manhunter cause
her lawyer was Kate Spencer who is manhunter the first female one there have been many
manhunters.
The trial had dramatic twists and turns including an appearance from blue beetle ted kord who
at that point had been killed by Maxwell lord which was a huge crux of Diana’s see Max
was bad argument but after enlisting the help of Batman who was mad at her for killing they
found out it was actually a shape shifter.
With help from checkmate Wonder Woman’s actions are proven to be justifiable, a neck
snap the public could get behind.
Number 8 - Yellow Jacket – Yellow jacket is hank pym yes he took on the name of one
of his enemies for a time, it was during one of his unstable periods.
This is ther period wherein he has a psychotic break and descends into paranoia and abuse
it’s from this period that we get the now infamous backhand panel where he hits Janet
an action that would start them on the path to divorce.
All of this would also lead Captain America to suspend him from the team until he could
be courtmartialed so his trial wasn’t public but held instead amongst his peers.
Is that better or worse.
So during the suspension that happens pre smack it happened cause he kept attacking
an enemy after they were down and the fight was over.
He wants to get back in the teams good graces so he builds a robot to attack them but with
a kill switch so he can stop it it’s when Jane finds this out and tries to stop him
that he strikes her.
People talk about the panel itself all the time but they don’t often talk about the
whole story surrounding it, it’s a dark odessey.
A lot of this turned out to be tampering and manipulation of someone already unstable by
the villain egg head who was supposedly dead and saying he was alive led to hank being
arrested it was only after egghead revealed himself that hank was freed and cleared of
all charges but he would never be the same in the eyes of the readers.
Number 7 - The Justice Society – Woo the JSA this trial got it’s own little series
America Vs.
The Justice Society this is one of the last JSA stories before crisis on infinite earths
would wipe earth 2 off the map for awhile and fold everything into one universe.
Batman who was dead at this point on Earth 2 had seemingly left a journal detailing all
kinds of misconduct perpetrated by the JSA.
Specifically he accused them of acts of treason this is a famous moment in comics and would
be played with and echoed in media for years.
The team was accused of treason by the us government and put to trial in a proceeding
that was meant to harken back to the red scare the hunt for communists that destroyed the
lives and careers of so many rather than submit to the treatment they were experiencing they
decided to retire rather than reveal their secret identities to the world you know so
villains didn’t just come murder all their loved ones.
Well in the eyes of the people this just made them look more guilty.
It would be discovered that the diary was a fake a trap set so that the jsa could lure
in and capture a time travelling villain but the victory would come to not as crisis would
erase this continuity from existence.
Number 6 - She Hulk VS Herself – Now the she hulk is a lawyer and as a result has many
a courtroom plot but we’re going to looked at a recent mid 2010s occurrence when she
went to trial against herself specifically the classic version of she hulk dubbed by
some as pin up she hulk and the strong or ugly hulk.
The court case would be a meta conversation with a forgone conclusion for those involved
in the atmosphere of marvel comics.
She was fighting for the right to be ugly a right that her and all comic book characters
have but that pretty much none male or female exercise.
They prefer the right to be hot.
This trial would prove polarizing as would the more hulk like direction of jennifer’s
character not just in appearance.
Number 5 - Daredevil – Matt Murdock is also a lawyer who was also involved in a case about
his alter ego but not on a meta textual level no he really got sued for being the daredevil.
So Matt Murdock takes on a case wherein the daredevil is being sued for property damage
property damage matt knows he didn’t commit so that must mean there’s an imposter in
town but in order to suss all this out we have to have the trial but how can matt Murdock
be in the court with daredevil at the same time why with the help of some of his new
York friends in this case spider-man who he convinces to wear his costume for him and
appear as him in court, I mean Peter was down even being sued daredevil is still more well
liked than spider-man.
Number 4 - Mr Incredible – Mr. Incredible getting sued after he saves a suicidal man
is the catalyst that sets of the outlawing of superheroes in this universe, that lawsuit
of a man fighting for his right to death is followed up by property damage case after
property damage case and let’s face it and get depressingly realistic for a minute no
insurance company could cover all the damage from superhero battles it would just be un-insurable
you’d have these unsafe zones where no one could travel.
So it would be easier to just outlaw them all.
This eventually leads to bob’s midlife crisis later on after being forced into a rather
mundane suburban lifestyle.
Number 3 - The Fantastic Four – But largely reed let’s be honest.
So Robinson’s run would introduce a very depressing plot where the fantastic four where
turned against by the city and taken to task for all the property damage and hoarded items
such as the ultimate nullifier the portal to the negative zone making deals with galactus
and the like Basically the city saying that the fantastic four were making it unsafe that
they were irresponsible with their powers, Sue would be accused of having an affair with
Namor on the stand and they would allow it cause it was all of we need to established
their connection to this dangerous mutant ruler.
Their lawyer would be their friend and colleague Jennifer walters and despite her best efforts
she would not be able to win the case for them and they would have their kids taken
a way from them and placed in government charge.
The human torch the first one jim Hammond was there so that helped a bit but obviously
they were devastated and also the baxter building would be taken from them as well Sue would
be so distraught that when the avengers came to keep them out of the building that was
their home she fought them all to a standstill.
So why did all this happen well it was a villainous plot orchestrated by some guy who loved sue
and was jealous she had married reed.
Yeah getting her kids taken away that will make her love you.
Number 2 – Starfox – The is starfox a rapist or not trial a classic.
This was the plot that for many ruined Starfox it’s a hard one to come back from so Starfox
was accused of using his pheromone powers to entice women to sleep with him against
their consent and also being like you just slept with a superhero you should be grateful.
Again Jennifer Walters would be his lawyer but would come to question him as well as
her own consent in when they had slept together it turned out that wasn’t manipulation just
poor judgment but he had made her and her husband love each other so ew.
It would all come out that this was manipulation from his childhood it’s not really his fault
feel bad for Starfox.
You know starfox was part of some key arcs but this is what most people remember and
since then he hasn’t been utilized the same way.
This plot was a hard one to write and it didn’t always achieve quite the heights it clearly
wanted to.
Number 1 - The Flash Kills – Oh the trial comic to end all trial comics this was a massive
arc for Barry Allen approaching the end of his tenure as the flash.
This arc started in issue 323 and went to 350.
It lasted two whole years two years reading about the flash on trial that’s definitely
worthy of number 1.
It was like the length of a proper trial all things included points for realism well actually
still faster if we include the wait period.
So the flash was charged with man slaughter after he seemingly snapped the neck of the
reverse flash but the charges would later be upgraded to second degree murder.
Now not every issue was the flash in court but most had to do with say his lawyer being
kidnapped or the rogues taking over the city which turned public sentiment against him
the trial would see his friends supeaoned wally would be all oh it wasn’t necessary
to kill him, ice cold Wally.
The flash was found guilt eventually and then everything went off the rails this was a plot
against him from the future and iris was alive and living in said future by sending info
back the flash was cleared of the guilty verdict but decided to go live in the future with
iris and then crisis happened.
So those were ten times superheroes were put on trial do you want more please want more
cause I have more.
I’m Sasha