{"id":253702,"date":"2025-11-09T20:46:17","date_gmt":"2025-11-09T20:46:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/253702\/"},"modified":"2025-11-09T20:46:17","modified_gmt":"2025-11-09T20:46:17","slug":"5-dc-characters-from-the-70s-who-are-totally-cringe-now","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/253702\/","title":{"rendered":"5 DC Characters From The ’70s Who Are Totally Cringe Now"},"content":{"rendered":"

The 1970s was a time when DC was desperately trying to shed its squeaky-clean Silver Age image while also staying \u201crelevant\u201d to a rapidly changing world. Marvel had cornered the market on relatable heroes and countercultural cool, so DC tried to follow suit. While the 1970s did give us lasting creations like Ra\u2019s al Ghul and the darker, more introspective tone of Batman, these moments were exceptions rather than the rule. <\/p>\n

The company wanted to say something deep about politics, youth, feminism, and social change, but often ended up producing tone-deaf attempts at \u201chipness.\u201d For much of the decade, DC was caught in a creative identity crisis, struggling to balance its legacy of larger-than-life heroes with the growing demand for grounded, meaningful stories.<\/p>\n

5. The Outsider<\/p>\n

\"The-Outsider\"<\/p>\n

During the Silver and early Bronze Age<\/a> of comics, DC often dabbled in absurd twists to keep readers hooked. One of the strangest involved Alfred dying to save Batman and Robin, only to be resurrected in 1964 (Detective Comics #328) as \u201cThe Outsider,\u201d a pale, mutated villain with telekinetic powers, bent on vengeance against the Dynamic Duo. While the storyline technically began in the \u201860s, it lingered into the \u201970s as part of Batman\u2019s increasingly weird rogues\u2019 gallery.<\/p>\n

And let me say it \u2014 this character has not aged well. The concept of Alfred as \u201cThe Outsider\u201d feels like a tonal whiplash. Alfred Pennyworth is one of DC\u2019s most beloved and enduring characters. Thankfully, DC eventually retconned the concept, bringing Alfred back to his proper role as Bruce Wayne\u2019s confidant and moral compass. But the fact that this storyline happened at all is a reminder of how wild \u2014 and sometimes misguided \u2014 comic book storytelling could be in the \u201970s.\u00a0<\/p>\n

4. Lady Cop<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Lady Cop \u2014 real name Liza Warner \u2014 first appeared in 1st Issue Special #4 in 1975, created by Robert Kanigher and John Rosenberger. Her origin was heavy-handed but simple: after witnessing her roommates\u2019 murder, Liza memorizes the killer\u2019s shoes (yes, the shoes) and joins the police force to bring him to justice. The problem with Lady Cop isn\u2019t that the concept is inherently bad \u2014 it\u2019s that it was plagued by lazy execution and outdated stereotypes. <\/p>\n

Liza Warner is portrayed as little more than a caricature of what male writers in the \u201970s thought a \u201cstrong\u201d female protagonist should be. While she does show courage and determination, her stories lean heavily on her gender in the most patronizing ways. She\u2019s constantly objectified or reduced to dealing with \u201cwoman-specific\u201d issues, like fending off unwanted advances, navigating sexist colleagues, or giving a lecture about venereal disease (seriously). Instead of being a fully realized character, she feels more like a vehicle for ham-fisted morality tales and shallow attempts at \u201cprogressive\u201d storytelling.<\/p>\n

3. The Ten-Eyed Man<\/p>\n

\"\"Image Courtesy of DC Comics<\/p>\n

Some comic book villains are terrifying<\/a> because of their powers; others because of their sheer absurdity. The Ten-Eyed Man falls firmly into the latter category. The Ten-Eyed Man, aka Philip Reardon, debuted in Batman #226 (1970). His origin story is as convoluted as his powers are ridiculous. Reardon, a Vietnam War veteran turned security guard, is blinded during a warehouse explosion caused by Batman\u2019s intervention. After a questionable surgery, doctors connect his optic nerves to his fingertips, giving him the ability to \u201csee\u201d through them.<\/p>\n

Naturally, instead of using this bizarre new gift to rebuild his life, he becomes a criminal and swears vengeance on Batman. Perhaps the cringiest aspect of the Ten-Eyed Man is how seriously the comics tried to sell him as a threat. Batman \u2014 the world\u2019s greatest detective and a martial arts master \u2014 was genuinely challenged by a guy whose power could be nullified with a pair of mittens. It\u2019s hard to suspend disbelief when the villain\u2019s entire shtick is so absurd. Even by the campy standards of the Bronze Age, the Ten-Eyed Man was a stretch. Unsurprisingly, the character didn\u2019t last long. After a handful of appearances, he was killed off in Crisis on Infinite Earths, and DC largely abandoned him as a joke.\u00a0<\/p>\n

2. Brother Power\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Brother Power, the so-called Geek, first appeared in Brother Power the Geek #1 (1968), created by Joe Simon, the co-creator of Captain America. A discarded mannequin struck by lightning, Brother Power is brought to life and becomes a superpowered hippie messiah for the counterculture movement. Wearing the torn clothes of protestors and preaching about freedom and peace, Brother Power roamed America trying to fight \u201cthe establishment,\u201d often in painfully tone-deaf ways.<\/p>\n

While technically created in the late \u201860s, his brief, two-issue run lingered in public consciousness into the early \u201870s. What makes Brother Power especially cringe-worthy today is how painfully forced the concept feels. DC was clearly trying to tap into the cultural zeitgeist of the late \u201860s and early \u201870s, but comics are at their best when they reflect social movements naturally, not when they awkwardly try to pander to them. The hippies they were trying to connect with likely weren\u2019t interested in reading about a mannequin messiah, and anyone outside the movement couldn\u2019t relate to the character at all. It\u2019s no wonder the series was canceled after just two issues.<\/p>\n

1. Prez Rickard<\/p>\n

\"Prez<\/p>\n

Prez Rickard debuted in Prez: The First Teen President #1 (1973) by Joe Simon (of Captain America fame). The premise was simple: in a future where voting laws were changed, allowing teenagers to run for office, an idealistic young man named Prez Rickard becomes the youngest President of the United States. Armed with good intentions and a crew of eccentric allies, he tackles everything from political corruption to\u2026 well, werewolves. Yes, werewolves. The series only lasted four issues. Prez was clearly DC\u2019s attempt to tap into the youthful, countercultural energy of the early \u201870s<\/a>, but it completely missed the mark.<\/p>\n

The series tried to be topical, but instead of reflecting real issues, it veered into nonsensical territory. The dialogue is riddled with cringe-inducing attempts to sound \u201chip\u201d and appeal to teenagers, but it reads like what middle-aged creators thought young people would find cool. As a result, Prez felt more patronizing than progressive, and the character failed to connect with his intended audience. Another reason Prez hasn\u2019t aged well is that the tone of the comic is wildly inconsistent. It\u2019s not quite satire, not quite comedy, and not quite serious drama.<\/p>\n

What do you think? Let us know in the comments!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The 1970s was a time when DC was desperately trying to shed its squeaky-clean Silver Age image while…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":253703,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[27],"tags":[96,88254,2839,105515,105516,56,54,55],"class_list":["post-253702","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-movies","tag-entertainment","tag-list-feature","tag-movies","tag-prez-rickard","tag-the-outsider","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-unitedkingdom"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/253702","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=253702"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/253702\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/253703"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=253702"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=253702"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=253702"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}