Badrock

Thomas John McCall was a teenager who volunteered for a military experiment that transformed him into a massive, superhumanly strong rocky-skinned behemoth. Despite his intimidating appearance, the good-natured young man joined the government-sponsored superhero team Youngblood.

Few characters capture the raw, bombastic energy of Image Comics' early 1990s explosion quite like Badrock — a titan of the Copper/Modern Age who burst onto the scene in 1993's Homage Studios Swimsuit Special #1, courtesy of creators Cynthia Sullivan and Jeffery Scott. With 160 catalog appearances spanning an impressive 32 years and counting, this is clearly a character who found real staying power in the Image universe, turning up across Youngblood, Savage Dragon, and Prophet while keeping company with heavy hitters like Shaft, Vogue, Die Hard, and more. Four of those appearances carry key-issue status, making Badrock a name serious collectors keep an eye out for. If you're diving into the wild, ambitious world of early Image and the characters who defined it, Badrock is absolutely worth your time.