Comic book characters have officially taken over! Every day of the week, TV networks air a new live action drama series dedicated to some of our favorite characters, like The Flash, Supergirl and Arrow. And, every other Friday, it seems a new comic book-based movie is premiering in theaters. The next highly anticipated flick that will be hitting the big screen is the DC Universe Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice—pitting two of the comic book industry’s most iconic characters against one another with hopeful intervention from some of their other well-known fellow Justice Leaguers.
With all this in mind, we at ‘LLERO got to thinking about some of the most notable Latino characters that have appeared on the pages of DC comics throughout the years, and we decided to give you a breakdown of 13 super-chicos and super-chicas who have added their own unique brands of justice to the DC Universe.
Vibe
Real Name – Paco “Cisco” Ramone
Known to those of you who watch the CW Network’s TV series, The Flash, as Cisco Ramon (played by Carlos Valdes), Vibe’s come-up story in the comics is the polar opposite to that of the fun, geeky lab assistant you have grown to love. Francisco “Paco” Ramone from the comics was actually the leader of a Detroit street gang known as Los Lobos, who after hearing that the Justice League was looking for new members in his hometown, gave up the g-life and joined up with the League. The Boricua superhero’s powers differ slightly from the TV show as well as in different incarnations in the comics. The first Vibe was able to create shock waves that were able to break through concrete and steel—while, the most recent Vibe is able to disrupt the Speed Force, and is the only meta-human who is able to find interdimensional breaches.
El Diablo
Real Name – Chato Santana
The alias “El Diablo” has been used by a number of DC characters throughout history. The most recent iteration being Chato Santana, an ex-con with the ability to manipulate fire. In the “New 52” reboot, Santana is part of the Suicide Squad, a team of imprisoned villains who are tasked with dangerous, stealth missions given to them by the U.S. government in exchange for commuted prison sentences. The Santana/El Diablo character will be part of the upcoming Suicide Squad film where he will be played by Jay Hernandez.
Aztek
Rooted in Aztec mythology, DC’s Aztek storyline follows Uno, who is raised and trained from childhood by an organization known as the Q Society as he is the one chosen by their god, Quetzalcoatl, to fight off their enemy, another god named Tezcatlipoca. After his training, Uno is given a magical suit of armor which gives him the ability to manipulate four-dimensional energy to achieve flight, super-strength, infrared and x-ray vision, super-speed, super-hearing, invisibility and density shifting. Aztek later joins the Justice League, but soon resigns after he learns that Lex Luthor is actually aligned with the Q Society. Aztek does, however, help the League defeat the planet destroyer, Mageddon, sacrificing himself so that Superman can destroy the evil entity.
Blue Beetle
Real Name -Jaime Reyes
Jaime Reyes is a Mexican-American teenager from El Paso, TX, and the third character to don the Blue Beetle identity. His powers derive from a blue scarab forged to bond with the planet’s mightiest warrior by an alien race known as the Reach. The scarab gives Reyes a super-powered, armored body suit which gives him the ability to fly, form his arms into weapons, comprehend alien languages, as well as giving him super-strength and durability. At first, the scarab seems like a gift from a benevolent alien race but, in actuality, it’s used to control the wearer and use the individual as a weapon to take over their world. Reyes is eventually able to break the Reach’s control and foil their plot. In several storylines, Blue Bettle is found fighting alongside the Teen Titans and the Justice League’s Young Justice team.
Wildcat
Real Name – Yolanda Montez
While Yolanda Montez was still in her mother’s womb, her mother is given experimental drugs by a mad doctor, which results in Yolanda developing abilities later in life like retractable claws and cat-like agility. During the Crisis on Infinite Earths storyline, Yolanda’s godfather, Ted Grant, the original Wildcat, is injured in action, so she takes on the Wildcat identity to honor his name. Donning a cat costume, somewhat similar to that of Catwoman but with actual whiskers, the Mexican-born heroine eventually joins up with the superhero clique known as Infinity, Inc.
Green Lantern
Real Name – Kyle Rayner Vasquez
After the previous Green Lantern, Hal Jordan, goes postal, due to the destruction of his hometown, and kills the rest of the Green Lantern Corps along with the Guardians of the Universe, Kyle Rayner Vasquez, a graphic artist from L.A. and son of a Mexican-American ex-C.I.A. agent, is found by chance by the last Guardian and given the last remaining green power ring. As the fourth Green Lantern from Earth, he used his artistic imagination to create unimaginable weapons via his power ring, making him a standout character in the DCU.
Flecha Verde
Flecha Verde was a member of the organization known as the Green Arrows of the World, which consisted of the original Green Arrow and his sidekick, Speedy, along with other archers from around the world. This sombrero-wearing archer was Mexico’s representative for the Green Arrows, and took part in taking down the bad guy known as Counterfeit who pretended to be the Bowman of Britain and tried to kill the Green Arrows during their first summit.
The Question
Real Name – Renee Montoya
Renee Montoya is a Dominican-American detective in the Gotham City Police Department who often teams up with Batman. Montoya takes on the identity of the hero known as the Question, after her mentor, Vic Sage, the original Question, allegedly passes away. Her abilities are the result of a binary gas, which is released from her belt, that allows her mask to make her face featureless and her costume to change colors. She also wields a mean energy pistol. Appearing in many Batman/Gotham-related storylines, her most recent emergence was on Fox Network’s TV series Gotham, where Montoya is one of the few good detectives in the corrupt GCPD, and is a former lover to Barbara Kean (Jim Gordon’s fiancée). In the comics, Montoya is romantically linked to Katherine Kane (a.k.a. Batwoman).
Más y Menos
Más y Menos are crime-fighting twins from Guatemala who are able to acquire super-speed when they come into physical contact with one another. Created originally for the animated series “Teen Titans,” Más y Menos are the only characters created solely for the series to go on to make it onto the comic books. One of their appearances in comics pinned the twins in a foot race against Kid Flash, where the twins came out the victors due to Kid Flash’s overconfidence. Depicted as only being able to speak Spanish, the twins’ Spanish battle cry is one of the things that make them so likable: “¡Más y Menos, sí podemos!”
Tarantula
Real Name – Catalina Flores
Tarantula is what some would call an anti-hero—her intentions are good, but her plots are executed in a harsh and unheroic manner, which sometimes ends with her killing the bad guys. A former FBI agent, Catalina Flores, dons her spider-chic costume to fight crooked police officers in the town of Blüdhaven. Her extreme measures led to the death of Blüdhaven’s corrupt police chief, which puts her in the crosshairs of Batman’s former sidekick-gone-solo, Nightwing. The two faced off a few times, but eventually partnered up—even developing a twisted romantic relationship at one point. Tarantula assisted Batman in dealing with an ongoing gang war in Gotham City by taking leadership of one of the gangs, coincidentally known as Las Arañas, and keeping them from spreading violence throughout the city.
Vulcan
Real Name – Miguel Devante
Miguel “Mikey” Devante was just a typical teenager hanging out at a burger joint in his town when he’s kidnapped by a villain known as the Floronic Man. Vulcan, a superhero with the power to make and control fire, shows up to save the day, and instructs Devante to help free the other hostages while he fights off the Floronic Man. Devante does as he’s told, but stays behind to ensure Vulcan’s safety as well. The Floronic Man overpowers Vulcan at one point during the fight and the brave teenager grabs Vulcan’s sword and chops his captor’s arm off. Proving that he is a worthy successor, Vulcan takes Devante under his wing and trains him—eventually passing on his Vulcan powers to him before passing away.
Hawkgirl
Real Name – Kendra Muñoz Saunders
The original Kendra Saunders gains her Hawkgirl powers after the spirit of the original superhero, Shiera Hall, enters her body. During DC’s “New 52” reboot, however, the character is reimagined as a half-Latina treasure hunter known as Kendra Muñoz Saunders from Earth 2. During a job in Egypt an unexplained situation occurred and wings were found to be mysteriously grafted onto Saunders’ back. She would later use her newfound powers and enhanced hand-to-hand combat skills to fight alongside The Flash and other heroes. In the TV series, The Flash, Kendra (played by Ciara Renée) is introduced as a coffee house barista who later discovers that she is the modern-day reincarnation of the original Hawkgirl, an Egyptian warrior princess named Chay-Ara. Now, she is a lead character on the spin-off show, DC’s Legends of Tomorrow.
Superman
Real Name – Hernan Guerra
As a part of DC’s special Justice League: Gods and Monsters storyline, a new Superman was introduced…and he was Latino! Well, technically he was a Kryptonian, but what makes him an honorary Latino is the fact that instead of being raised by Kansas farmers, he was brought up in a family of Mexican immigrants. This Spanish-speaking version of Superman was later revealed to be the son of Zod and Lara (Kal-El’s mom in the regular storylines), and was similarly sent to Earth in order to escape his planet’s destruction. Growing up, Hernan — the name given to him by his adoptive parents — faced racism and inequality because of his Mexican background. Until one day, he fought back—hard—revealing his true origin. No longer feeling the need to hide his identity, he went on to live his life openly as Superman—a merciless Superman, who often killed villains, seemingly without any remorse.
