Anima vs. Superboy

"Anima vs. Superboy" from Anima #10 (DC, 1995) by Paul Witcover, Elizabeth Hand, Steve Crespo, Buzz and Brian Garvey

You know what doesn't attract me to a series? When the lead is brand new and spun out of a terrible crossover event. Anima was one of the characters born out of Bloodlines (how 90s is that!), an event running through DC's 1993 Annuals, in which ugly alien monsters went on a rampage, drinking people's spinal fluids. It meant death for most, but in each Annual, it activated the meta-gene and created a new hero (or sometimes villain) with a lame-ass origin. A couple got mini-series (Loose Cannon, Argus), a few others got series (Gunfire, Anima, Hitman). Only the latter of these had any measure of success. Most were forgettable and forgotten. Here's the complete list, see who you recognize: Anima, Argus, Ballistic, Cardinal Sin, Chimera, Edge, Geist, Gunfire, Hitman, Hook, Jamm, Joe Public, Krag, Layla, Lionheart, Loose Cannon, Loria, Mongrel, Myriad, Nightblade, Pax, Prism, Razorsharp, Shadowstryke, Slingshot, Sparx, and Terrorsmith. Sounds like DC's answer to all the X-Men Marvel added in the early 90s.

From what I hear, Anima was actually an interesting little series, exploring psychological themes through its heroine's strange powers (releasing the life-sucking Animus from her psyche). It lasted 16 months, and Anima has since appeared infrequently in the DCU until being cut in half in Faces of Evil: Prometheus.