Raphael currently head my team of eight, followed by Cervantes, Lizardman, Spawn, Nightmare (Siegfried costume, of course) and Maxi. The other two slots aren't set in stone yet... probably Necrid and Assassin.
Raph was never meant to lead - I only trained up with him so's I could pass the game and see why all three console character meet him last, but his agile pokey-pokey technique is very tricky, both to face and to use. He supplanted Spawn, who has had a terrific fall from grace and will probably drop further. His style is so focussed - get close and thump - that he's too easy to deal with.
Talim is definitely very good, but since she's my brother's main character, I won't be using her.