Random Most Unexpected Day Jobs Worked By Superheroes (14 items)

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  (#1) Barbara Gordon

  • Birds of Prey

  Barbara Gordon has had an interesting character history with DC. She goes by the name Batgirl to this day and seems to be perpetually a year or two out of college - and yet, she's also one of Batman's oldest allies and a mentor to generations of subsequent Batgirls. She's also old enough to have held a major public office.

  Before her continuity was rebooted several times, Barbara had spent several years as a member of the United States Congress. She campaigned for the position because she realized her vigilante actions weren't striking at the root of her country's problems - but she still found time to dress up in a cape and beat up crooks, even while Congress was in session!
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  (#2) Deathlok

  There have been many Deathloks in the annals of Marvel Comics, but they're all fairly similar - cyborgs from the future with extremely lethal capabilities. The individual known as Deathlok Prime features the body of an unrepentant serial killer paired with a noble and heroic AI, a combination that probably shouldn't even be allowed on school grounds, much less in a teaching position.

  Still, when the Jean Grey School for Higher Learning found itself in desperate need of substitute teachers, Deathlok Prime made the transition from Wolverine's X-Force squad to the teaching staff. Deathlok's lessons primarily consisted of informing students of their precise statistical odds of experiencing tragic ends - which, in all honesty, is probably an important part of the curriculum at a school for mutants. He stayed in the role until he went back to the future.
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  (#3) Captain America

  • Captain America, Volume 5, Captain America Comics, Civil War

  Steve Rogers has been many things in a lifetime that has spanned a century - soldier, Super Soldier, Avenger, and director of S.H.I.E.L.D. Even before he was a military man, however, Rogers carried an interest that has only occasionally been depicted in the pages of his comic adventures - a passion for art.

  Long before he encountered the Super Soldier Serum, Rogers showed a real knack for drawing - something that came in handy when designing Captain America's costume. When he woke up from decades in the ice and had to find his place in the modern era, Rogers spent some time trying to establish a normal life for himself - and that included taking on a couple jobs as a commercial illustrator. He even did a stint as a comic book artist, which included illustrating comics about himself - which must have been a bizarre experience. Eventually, Rogers revealed his identity to the public, however, and had to leave his other work behind.
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  (#4) Hal Jordan

  • Green Lantern Corps: Recharge, The Brave and the Bold

  There have been many Green Lanterns from Earth, but Hal Jordan has always been both the coolest and most popular. Even before his time with the Green Lantern Corps, Jordan was an ace flyer and an Air Force test pilot - which makes the career change he made in the midst of his Justice League days all the more unusual.

  In part to help create a plausible explanation for his appearances all over the country as Green Lantern, Jordan took a job as a traveling toy salesman. That's certainly a far cry from the danger and prestige that comes with being a test pilot, and it resulted in at least one embarrassing incident for Jordan, in which his fellow superheroes caught him with a suitcase full of dolls. But after a continuity reboot, he was right back to being a pilot.
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  (#5) Green Arrow

  • Identity Crisis, More Fun Comics, Green Arrow: The Longbow Hunters

  Oliver Queen has been many things in his life. Billionaire. Vigilante. Mayor. Justice Leaguer. A section of the Green Arrow’s resume that is rarely commented on, however, is his time as the successful owner and operator of a flower shop.

  At one point in a previous continuity, Green Arrow and the Black Canary moved to Seattle to settle down away from the superhero scene - and they opened up Sherwood Florist to give them some semblance of a normal life. While Queen wasn't often depicted putting together arrangements on-page, the concept did prove memorable enough to make it onto television for one Arrow storyline.
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  (#6) Wolverine

  • Marvel Comics Presents, The New Avengers

  Wolverine is the best there is at what he does, and that usually involves a lot of punching and slicing. He's never been known as a patient man, and he didn't receive a formal education; instead, he spent much of his childhood living with wolves in the woods. All of which makes the mutant known as Logan a questionable choice to teach at a school, never mind serve as a headmaster - but somehow, that's exactly what he did.

  Following the events of Schism, Wolverine grew uncomfortable with the X-Men's bad habit of putting teenagers on the frontlines and decided to reopen the old Xavier school under a new name - the Jean Grey School of Higher Learning. Logan didn't just run the new institution, he also taught several classes, including "World History: An Eyewitness Account," "The Art of Fighting Without Fighting," and "The Art of Fighting With Fighting." Against all odds, Wolverine proved to be a fantastic headmaster and ushered in a new generation of world-changing mutants, remaining in the role until his temporary demise.
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  (#7) Hawkeye

  Clint Barton has always been a man of the people. After all, he's been on the roster of Earth's Mightiest Heroes for decades on the strength of his archery skills and plucky attitude alone - and yet, he's never forgotten his humble roots as an orphan raised in the circus. That could lead to some confusion as to why Hawkeye spent much of his recent time as a landlord - a source of income that isn't always thought of as altruistic - but as it turns out, even that was an act of heroism.

  Wanting to get away from the glitz and glamour of Avengers HQ for a while, Barton and his crimefighting partner, Kate Bishop, took up residency in a Bedford-Stuyvesant apartment. When he learned that the man who owned the building was involved in organized crime and threatening to triple rent, however, Hawkeye saved the day by buying the building out from under him. From then on, Barton became the most benevolent landlord in Brooklyn, never hesitating to help out a neighbor in need - or bust out his bow in defense of the block.
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  (#8) Thor

  • Journey into Mystery

  When Odin decided that his son Thor needed a little humility, he banished him to Earth and created a human persona for Thor to occupy. At first, medical student Donald Blake had no idea he was secretly the God of Thunder, or that when he struck his cane against the ground it would be transformed into the mighty Mjolnir. But even after he learned the truth, Thor spent a while living his double life.

  This included completing his medical degree and becoming a practicing physician. Having someone who speaks with "thees" and "thous" and still drinks mead perform surgeries might seem strange, but Dr. Blake actually became renowned for his medical skill. In time, Thor left his civilian identity behind and returned to being a full-time Asgardian, but he's since returned to practice on a handful of occasions and retains all of his life-saving training.
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  (#9) Wonder Woman

  Diana of Themyscira is a literal princess of the Amazons, known for her grace, elegance, and fortitude. All of these traits serve Diana well in the role of Wonder Woman, but they're of questionable use in another line of work she briefly took on while down on her luck - serving fast food at the chain restaurant Taco Whiz.

  After a stint in outer space during which she was presumed deceased, Diana returns to Earth to find that the Amazons have disappeared and that she has nowhere to live and not a dollar to her name. She goes hunting for a job and finds one at what is obviously a pastiche of Taco Bell. Despite her royal upbringing, she thrives there - and even comes to enjoy the work. Of course, it's only a matter of time before she goes back to working with the Justice League - this time with her room and board covered.
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  (#10) Iceman

  From the beginning, Bobby Drake - a founding member of the X-Men - has always been the "fun one." Iceman's inability to take himself seriously is both his greatest strength and his greatest weakness as a character, which makes it especially peculiar that he would choose a career typically thought of as antithetical to a good time: accounting.

  While taking a break from superheroics, Drake went to college, got his CPA, and enjoyed a brief period of employment at the law firm of Harras, Anderson, and Brown. When Jean Grey returned to life, however, the original X-Men got the band back together and Bobby left accounting behind - at least for a time. Years down the road, he would also keep the books for the Jean Grey School of Higher Learning, where he worked under Headmasters Wolverine and Kitty Pryde.
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  (#11) Moon Knight

  The vigilante known as Moon Knight is afflicted with dissociative identity disorder, which manifests in the form of several distinct personalities. Marc Spector, the original personality, employs his mercenary skills as the Moon Knight while simultaneously using the riches and fame of his movie star Steven Grant persona to bankroll the entire operation.

  Holding down multiple careers at the same time sounds like a lot for one individual, but Moon Knight also spends a significant portion of his time as Jake Lockley, a fairly ordinary taxi driver. While this probably makes him the only billionaire cabbie in the history of fiction, this gig actually serves an important purpose in the Moon Knight operation - allowing him to always keep an ear to the ground and an eye on things from the street level.
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  (#12) Superman

  • Superman/Batman, Superman: Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow?, Action Comics, Superman: War of the Worlds, The Superman Madman Hullabaloo, Batman: The Dark Knight Returns

  Superman's day job as Clark Kent, reporter for the Daily Planet, is oftentimes treated as more of a disguise than a career. That's not entirely fair, however, because in DC's previous continuity, Kent was a two-time Pulitzer Prize winner, which should qualify him as one of the best journalists in the DC Universe. Still, his straightforward demeanor has always seemed like more of a fit for non-fiction writing than something more imaginative - but, it turns out, he's equally capable of fiction.

  In universe, Kent has released two fictional novels, including one, Under a Yellow Sun, that was more or less an autobiography of his life as Superman - and which became a bestseller. DC even went so far as to "release" the novel as a one-shot comic. Amazingly, even such an obvious clue as a novel outlining his origin tale wasn't enough for the public to realize that Superman and Clark Kent are one and the same.
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  (#13) Tick

  • The Tick

  Those who know of The Tick would describe him as many things - verbose, brawny, earnest, and heroic - but clever is probably not one of them. This is, after all, the superhero who chose "Spoon!" as his catchphrase and an accountant as his sidekick. So, what business does he have writing brain-teasers for a newspaper?

  Indeed, the Tick once worked as a crossword puzzle writer for a local paper as part of his attempt to create a civilian identity for himself. He still wore his big, blue suit in to work, but he added a tie and a briefcase to help him blend in, which is objectively ridiculous. Even more ridiculous? The disguise worked, for the most part.
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  (#14) Hulk

  If there's one trait that defines the Incredible Hulk - aside from the obvious ones, like strength, anger, and greenness - it's his constant desire to be left alone. Usually, the Jade Giant is happy to spend most of his time out in the desert as far away from other people as possible, which should make Las Vegas the very last place on Earth he'd want to make his home.

  Still, the big and grumpy version of the Hulk is only one of many personalities hiding within Bruce Banner's head. Another iteration, the grey Hulk known as "Joe Fixit," is significantly more personable - to the point that he spent a long stint in Vegas as a bouncer and casino enforcer. He even wore a suit and drove a car for the job, which was truly a sight to behold - though, eventually, the Joe Fixit personality faded into the background and Hulk went right back to his more anti-social ways.

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