Source: comicvine.gamespot.com

6. B’wana Beast

(DC Comics)

Look, I'm aware of the unfortunate role that colonialism plays in our fiction and how problematic it is. But I also really like B'wana Beast. It's a tough internal conflict to have.

Mike Maxwell was a well-off white dude until his plane crashed into Mt. Kilimanjaro (don't know how you miss that) and stranded him in the jungle. He found a strange helmet, put it on, and suddenly had enhanced strength and speed. It also gave him a unique superpower that enabled him to fuse any two animals together into one horrific lovecraftian super-animal. This power is deeply terrifying. I hate it and love it in equal measure.

I'm still unclear on what level of consciousness the animals have when fused, but I'm going to assume it's full consciousness and that both are screaming the whole time.

Why Wasn't He Bigger: He showed up a handful of times before Grant Morrison figured, "Hey, maybe this African-powered superhero should be an actual African." He had Maxwell hand the powers and helmet off to Freedom Beast, who was a more popular successor. Also, the powers were too weird to ever catch on.