The upcoming future of DC and Marvel characters is interesting enough to sit back and really take a long look since at this time we can’t help but wonder just what’s going to happen with the lot of them. When talking about Brainwave of the DC universe though it’s important to realize that he’s already been seen a couple of times, once in the 80s for a short blurb and in current times on Stargirl. The only thing is, he’s changed quite a bit since his first appearance in the comics and has even been gender-swapped for one reason or another. But the point is that the character has been around for a while and has been seen more than once. So perhaps it’s time to dust off the title a bit and really delve into who Brainwave is and why he might be a good character for a solo movie or series. So far many of the characters that have been mentioned have been more or less minor players in a much bigger play so to speak, but giving a lot of them a bit more prominence might go a long way towards expanding the universes in which they exist, and possibly opening up new stories for various heroes and villains that might need their day in the spotlight to really come across as important and more valuable than they’ve been seen to be. A story is only as strong as its weakest links, and this is why some stories fall apart because those weak links aren’t explored in great enough depth.
Brainwave sounds like a very simple character in theory, but when dealing with someone that can project illusions and make them appear as real as anything else, it’s easy to think that he might be a much more dangerous villain than anyone could possibly imagine since anyone that can confuse people on the level that he’s done could have serious potential. The only problem is that his intelligence is a key determining factor to how successful he really is since Brainwave has never been particularly strong in the comics, and it’s likely that he could be defeated pretty easily in a one on one battle. But when brains over brawn is the name of the game, managing to outwit his opponents would be key since going toe to toe with some of the more powerful heroes wouldn’t be a wise idea. Plus, the idea that there’s a Brainwave Jr. out there, who is more heroic and prefers to be called Brainwave, without the jr., is another factor that might need to be taken into consideration for a movie adaptation. One of the only other major hurdles though is that creating a movie with the villain as the main character isn’t always the most popular idea, as many people want to embrace the idea of the hero winning and the villain getting what’s coming to them. There are many ways to work a redemption arc to be certain, but people want to know that they’ll be rooting for the hero that’s going to win or die by sacrificing themselves in a noble cause, not necessarily a villain that will do the same. It’s just hard for a lot of people to root for the bad guy, especially if the bad guy has few to no redeeming qualities.
The original villain is definitely someone that a lot of people wouldn’t want to root for since it sounds as though he’s just as ugly inside as he is out, and the creators of this character made sure to make certain that a lot of folks wouldn’t find him attractive in any way. But of course, there are plenty of people on the writing teams that might want to switch this around and make him a handsome and charismatic charmer, as this might go along better with the power set he possesses. The one sure thing about Brainwave if he did ever manage to get his own movie is that he would likely go through a few fundamental changes, especially if he’s introduced to the current era and needs a back story that people are going to figure makes more sense than a child that suddenly develops the ability to project what he’s thinking into the real world. That’s a very interesting skill to be quite honest, but it’s also something that might need a little more to it in order to snare enough viewers to make the movie worth watching. Plus, one might think about creating a solo series to start with just to see if people are even interested in pursuing this idea any further. It might be an interesting trend to create if one could find a way to get enough fans interested in following the villains of any given comic, just to see if it’s possible.
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