Gyro Gearloose
Gladstone Gander
You can pretty much do all the Barks/Rosa secondary and tertiary Ducks in this category.

I wouldn't know how to judge best.

Favorite? Everyone here knows I adore Dick Grayson as Robin, but that was less for what he brought to the Batman franchise and more for who he was as his own character.

So I guess my favorite supporting character would be Rasputin, from Corto Maltese. He was, at moments, a terrifying antagonist, at others a lovably unlovable sidekick, and (most of the time) in some  uncomfortable place between those two points. You never knew what he was going to bring to the table, and yet you were exhilarated whenever he'd unexpectedly show up in the comic again, exactly as if you'd stumbled across a long-lost friend.



However, the supporting character I find most impressive is Al Harper because, while he left a strong impression on me and many fans that continues to this day, he existed in exactly one issue of one comic book ever (Silver Surfer #5). I find that extremely impressive.

Can't believe no one mentioned her yet, but Pepper Potts, once Marvel moved her (and Karen Page, for that matter) out if the "I love my boss but he doesn't love me" phase in the 60s.

Sharon Carter. As I've written in my Captain America review thread numerous times, she is probably the best-written female in Marvel's Silver Age. Yes, she pined after Steve/Cap like Pepper and Karen, but she was an accomplished S.H.I.E.L.D. agent in her own right and could take care of herself without needing a man to rescue her every issue.

Cassidy and Tulip from Preacher. It's Jesse's story, but it would have been a lot less interesting without these two.

I don't think anyone has mentioned the supporting cast from Usagi Yojimbo yet. I love the supporting characters, Gen in particular, but all the supporting characters.

I tend to look at supporting casts as a whole rather than just individual supporting characters, because one outstanding supporting character in an otherwise dull or bland supporting cast either gets muted by the rest or stands out so much in contrast it affects the entire tone of the book negatively because it puts the book off-balance or runs the danger of one character becoming the pet character of the writer which is offputting to me in many cases. I actually prefer an ensemble cast for ongoing stories rather than one central character and a supporting cast, but if it is the latter set up, the entire supporting cast needs to be strong for it to really work well in the long run.

-M

Wait, let's add on Snapper Carr! If Jimmy Olsen can be a best bud then why not Rick and Snap? They can team up and be the Teen Support Trio!