I'm not ignoring any thing. I know they have expressed their need for Batman to come up with plans, but as I said, they never seem to acknowledge the fact that almost all of them are just as capable of it wen they actually apply some time and effort into actually studying those subjects.
I kind of find it funny that it never occurs to Flash, "Gee, I can just do this!" (please log in to view the image)
Batman has gotten the JLA out a jam before, but that doesn't change much with all areas. Hulk, for instance, has also gotten the Defenders out a predicament on more than one occasion, but that doesn't change the fact that he's pretty much the least useful member of that team.
As for Plastic Man, he still has his powers he can use to combat the powerful villains they fight, and with the strategist abilities, powers, and teamwork of the others, he's set.
I think you have to keep in mind the intent of the thread is to discuss who is the least useful and not who is useless.
That is why I picked Aquaman as being the least useful in the original JLA lineup. It's not that he doesn't have some impressive abilities or resources, it's just I think either the other members have the same abilities or that the resources he brings are not consistently needed. He may be richer than anyone on the planet but when is the last time the JLA was hurting for cash?
In defense of Batman it's not just his detective skills that I think warrant him being considered more useful but also his practical knowledge of modern human technology and certain intellectual disciplines (criminology, psychology, forensics, etc). Also he has the advantage to bringing a seemingly limitless number of pieces of equipment that can be brought to deal with certain situations.
While he could certainly do all of this in a periphery role, I think the same thing could be said for Aquaman.
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Last edited by TheKahn on Aug 20th, 2006 at 07:58 PM
I think Aquaman is more useful than Bats is not because of his wealth, but due to the fact that he actually brings some powers that allow him to fight the threats that the JLA regularly faces, especially wit his magic hand.
Practically every one else is capable of bringing the level of intelligence that Batman has to the table as well as very useful gadgets, such as Superman or Green Lantern.
It's not just analytical things that is useful to get the job done. Flash may be able to process things at a high rate, but he is still lacking in the areas that Batman brings to the table for the JLA, hence WHY THEY HAVE HIM! And it isn't just strategy that he's good for (however, he is the leader in that area). As Kahn has said, he brings knowledge of human technology, criminology, forensic science (which they use a lot normally), deductive reasoning, detective skills, psychiatric knowledge which allows him to trace all the steps and think like the criminal they are actually trying to capture. His psychiatric learnings is what has lead them to successful missions in the past, because he knows how to think like a criminal. All of his uses are practical when you consider what they usually do. He also has plenty of connections that they use all the time, and he funds their equipment, AND he brings equipment to the table as well. Arthur may be rich, but he isn't the one who helps out the League in the funding department. Like I said, Batman definitely has his uses in the League. He isn't the least useful in the group. Plastic Man is just another body for the League. He's a waste of space. He doens't provide any strategic compliments to them. ONCE AGAIN, I'm gonna mention the fail safes he's made for everybody, which is EXTREMELY usefu.
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What about wonder woman?
When we got people like cap marvel, superman, characters like that.
All she brings is a lasso, and braclets, that she deflects bullets with, yay, she can't take a bullet....
How many times do I have to explain this to you? Not only did Bane get one-sided prep for the whole situation, but Batman just got done beating up every single inmate that escaped from Arkham Asylumn. Ooooo, Bane beat up a fatigued and weakened Batman. GOOD FOR HIM!!! Guess what? Their next fight was on equal ground and Batman nearly killed Bane's ass.
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Aug 20th, 2006 07:12 PM
