5) Joe West (The Flash)
Family is a big theme in The Flash and, as if to emphasize this, Barry Allen has numerous father figures – his real dad Henry Allen, his dad’s doppelganger from another Earth Jay Garrick, his science hero who turns out to be a supervillain (just go with it) etc. The one who feels most like Barry’s actual father, though, is Joe West. It’s a little surprising, then, that he is completely original to the show.
On the one hand, Joe fulfils that old superhero trope of the detective ally e.g. Commissioner Gordon, Captain Lance or Maggie Sawyer. On the other, he’s the beating heart of the show. Always there for Barry when he needs advice and someone to believe in him, Joe is Barry’s rock and probably a big reason why he’s The Flash in the first place. Besides all that, Jesse L. Martin is just so darn loveable in the role, making us feel like we all want Joe to be our dad.