What DC Character Has Changed The Most From Their Debut?

[DrNewGod]

I'm not talking about changes in which character carries a name, like the many different Green Lanterns, I mean which character is the most remarkably different than what their original creator gave us?

My vote actually would be Batman, who began as little more than a Crimson Avenger-knockoff with a more comicy outfit.

[Lee Stone]

Superman.
Went from being a member of a race of superbeings with limited powers to the character we know today.
Flight was added by the '40s cartoon, and in the '60s his origin was changed to 'gained his powers from the yellow sun'.

Green Flame/Fire.
First appearing in 1979 with a very minor power, she went full-on Human Torch following Invasion.

Black Canary.
Went from being a JSA member that joined the JLA to being the daughter of the original Black Canary of the JSA, to being the only Black Canary (and a founder of the JLA), back to daughter of the original to join the JSA (and no longer a founder of the JLA)...

Cyborg.
A founder of the New Teen Titans, then never been a Titan, then founder of Justice League, then not really a founder of the Justice League, then has been a member of Titans but not really sure when or how.

Captain Atom.
Costumed hero from Charlton was given a makeover after Crisis and traded the costume for metallic skin.

Huntress, depending on how you look at her.

[Frontier]

Harley Quinn.

[Lightning Rider]

Harley Quinn.

That's pretty bold. Why do you think so? I'd argue her stories have changed but she hasn't.

[jb681131]

That's pretty bold. Why do you think so? I'd argue her stories have changed but she hasn't.

Yes she has and a lot !
- Different stories
- Not glued to The Joker
- Totally different look
- Different mentality, even if she stays crazy

[Frontier]

Yes she has and a lot !
- Different stories
- Not glued to The Joker
- Totally different look
- Different mentality, even if she stays crazy

Yeah, this is pretty much it.

[OpaqueGiraffe17]

I disagree on Harley. She’s no longer the Joker’s sidekick, realizes he’s toxic, and she has a different costume. Not really all that dramatic. More like her story’s moved forward. The character I’m watching in the Harley Quinn animated series still seems like the character from the dcau.
Alfred by comparison was once a fat oafish detective. Not the dignified father figure war vet he is now. Even has a different last name.
I think golden age Ocean Master was Arthur’s half brother on his human dad’s side. And was a pirate rather than heir to Atlantis.
Jason Todd was originally a Dick Grayson ripoff before his post crisis street kid revamp.
Batwoman: was originally a love interest for Batman before being reimagined as his lesbian cousin.

[LifeIsILL]

Steve Trevor maybe? He went from being some useless guy who is obsessed with Wonder Woman to some Nick Fury type of dude.

Martian Manhunter. He was a detective who had hundreds of powers in the golden age and now he's just....a brooding alien who hates everyone.

[Frontier]

I disagree on Harley. She’s no longer the Joker’s sidekick, realizes he’s toxic, and she has a different costume. Not really all that dramatic. More like her story’s moved forward. The character I’m watching in the Harley Quinn animated series still seems like the character from the dcau.
Alfred by comparison was once a fat oafish detective. Not the dignified father figure war vet he is now. Even has a different last name.
I think golden age Ocean Master was Arthur’s half brother on his human dad’s side. And was a pirate rather than heir to Atlantis.
Jason Todd was originally a Dick Grayson ripoff before his post crisis street kid revamp.
Batwoman: was originally a love interest for Batman before being reimagined as his lesbian cousin.

I dunno, I only see glimpses of DCAU Harley in the cartoon. She would never have been as assertive as she was on that show and the background is completely different.

[kjn]

In the case of Harley Quinn, it's been a lot of character development, and most of it has been shown on-camera. The life situation the character is in now is rather different, but you can still see the traces of personality going forward.

I'm going to toss in Wonder Woman. Marston had a character who was earthy and sassy, with more than a hint of kink and independent sexuality. She was curious and playful, and often found being held captive and chained up amusing. She was not afraid to intervene directly in the lifes of other people, either with actions or advice.

Modern day Wonder Woman talks a lot less, is a lot more somber, and has been placed on a pedestal to admire from afar.

[Chubistian]

Kite Man! Hell Yeah!

[lemonpeace]

he may not be the most drastic but John Stewart has change pretty substantially since his introduction. he went from a socially conscious no nonsense people's champ to a more cerebral, but still socially conscious, abstract thinker to the stoic mother-hen soldier we know today

[Restingvoice]

Superman. He started as a very macho man who takes things to his own hand to be a mild-mannered ideal good person.

[DrNewGod]

Sam Lane. From an abstractly disapproving source of Lois Lane's motivation to completely pushing Waid Eiling out of his Thunderbolt Ross turf.

[Digifiend]

Martian Manhunter. He was a detective who had hundreds of powers in the golden age and now he's just....a brooding alien who hates everyone.

He didn't EXIST in the Golden Age (that'd be 1940s). Debuted about a year before Barry Allen - in the interregnum when superheroes were out of fashion.

Batwoman: was originally a love interest for Batman before being reimagined as his lesbian cousin.

They're completely different characters, and they're actually related.