7) Watchmen
Alan Moore has made many huge contributions to comicdom over his career, but arguably his biggest is Watchmen, which spawned one of the most dysfunctional superhero teams ever created. Namely, the Minutemen – often called the Watchmen, due to the confusion with the book’s title.
Watchmen shook the medium to the extent that it did because, for one of the very first times, it presented the darker, more grounded side to superheroes. From the godlike Doctor Manhattan to the vicious Rorschach, every one of the Minutemen is a flawed, troubled individual and, being the guardians of the world, they have no one to look out for them and keep them from going over the edge. In other words, who watches the watchmen?
With the recent reveal of Batman finding the Comedian’s bloodied button in the Batcave, it looks like Watchmen’s heroes are belatedly being introduced into the mainline DC continuity. It’s a bold, controversial move, but it could usher in some great new material for the team.