Man, look at all the things that have occurred since we last met: Halloween and an election. Ok, so it wasn’t a huge quantity, but the quality of the events is what matters. I hope that everyone, that was eligible, voted and that everyone had a happy Halloween. B, how did those two events go for you?
Halloween was actually pretty neat, which was a nice treat for me since it’s the first time in years me and my college buddies were separated and unable to trick or treat through downtown New London, Connecticut at ten o’clock at night demanding candy from parents who were exhausted from taking their kids out earlier in the night. Instead, I was here at home answering the door in between enjoying sushi with my parents and Megan (!) who got a weekend off from Nazi Theater Camp. The reason it was so cool (besides the aforementioned sushi & Megan) was that my seven year old neighbor Robbie, a big Teen Titans fan, came by in a great Robin costume; knowing he was coming, I got Robbie some Teen Titans GO! comics to go with the Snickers bars and Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups; I also threw on my Superboy t-shirt and my best set of jeans to get a great picture of the junior version of the World’s Finest Duo (hopefully I can post it for all of you soon). Robbie’s mom called me the next day and told me that when he got home he dropped all his candy and immediately went to read the comics; ComicsNexus promotes reading over junk food, people! –B
I know everyone is wondering how my Halloween went. Well I spent most of it in a cell. Despite my pleas no one wanted to listen to my “I’m dressed as the Flash from Kingdom Come!” and they charged me with indecent exposure. And I still haven’t gotten my helmet back from police evidence.
Did I tell you that I picked up the DC Comics Encyclopedia? That book rocks! It’s so jam-packed with information. There are a few errors, but it’s mostly right on the money. B, you’ve got to pick it up.
Actually I don’t”¦because Megan got it for me for our six month anniversary! All I got her was lousy Broadway tickets and she got me the DC Comics Encyclopedia! She’s beautiful and she’s got taste in presents as well as in men! I’m a lucky dude, M. –B
Links (by way of most recently purchased)
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
And of course DOL and The DC/Marvel Tourney
B, what are you linking?
I get back to the business of disassembling the Avengers in my own fashion in my column while Matt continues to go over the possible whodidits for Identity Crisis in his. –B
Last Week’s Read’s
Green Lantern: Rebirth #1: Well worth the wait. Read my review!
Absolutely lived up to the hype and beyond. Geoff nailed everybody’s voice perfectly, threw in something for everybody and has my interest piqued for what happens next. Ethan Van Sciver absolutely cranked it up a notch and turned it some of the most gorgeous and at times down right creepy art I’ve seen in quite some time. That scene between Batman and John Stewart is one of my favorites of all time. –B
The Losers #17: Wow, it’s been 16 months since I picked up this title on a whim? I can’t wait for the inevitable movie adaptation of this title.
Adam Strange #2: Interesting. It’s nice to see Adam finally make it into costume. That cliffhanger has me on the edge of my seat though.
Outsiders #17: Photo cover, real guest star! Great art, but very little resolution to what happened last issue.
I’m looking for big things from this title after this arc resolves. –B
Aquaman #23: Great cover. Review forthcoming.
JLA #107: I’m still not sold on the creative team, but I’m interested in the storyline. I really don’t know how I feel about Busiek’s “Flash.”
I feel differently, M: I loved this issue and I love Busiek’s Flash. See, I figure that when we read Wally’s monthly title, we’re seeing the world at his pace, ultra fast. But when we read a book like JLA or Justice League Elite, things are moving at real time, the pace of everybody else in the book; naturally Wally is more on edge and impatient because of this. This gives Wally a unique personality and dynamic within a team book. This issue was a good pilot for Busiek’s run and gave him a chance to demonstrate he knows the minutia of the DCU as well as he does Marvel with neat touches like the return of The Construct; I’m looking forward to where this and future epics go. –B
Superman #210: Review forthcoming.
More of the same; I’m still bored. –B
Richard Dragon #6 Why does Bronze Tiger have to end up in the hospital? If you’re going to damage the guy you might as well keep him in limbo (where this book is rumored to be heading.)
I don’t read this book, but Bronze Tiger deserves better than a hospital bed. –B
Hellblazer #201: Great stand alone issue. I’d urge everyone to try this one out.
We3 #2: If Seaguy is one half of Grant Morrison, then this book is the genius half. It’s clear and amazing. Quitely’s visuals are stunning. He’s really trying something different with his visual storytelling.
The Flash #215: Not quite what I expected, but not a disappointment. Cool book.
I agree, I was surprised, but not let down; it will be easier to figure out what I think of this storyline as a whole in a month. –B
Solo #1: Wow. This book was my favorite all week, which is odd because I’m not a fan of Tim Sale’s art whatsoever. But this book is really something for fans of comics. The stories are perfect and the art matches them to a ‘t.’ I don’t dig his art, but I love this book, which should say something.
Doctor Spectrum #3: Maybe it’s because I already know how the story ends, but I find this book boring. Even the cover mundanely whispers “boring.”
InsidePulse Wrestling’s own Andy Campbell do you want to start the column?
I know Batman received training from Wildcat and Lady Shiva. Who else trained him?
Dude, lots of people have trained Bruce Wayne. That’s why he’s the best at what he does”¦or is that that Marvel guy?
Anyway, a young Bruce Wayne learned about the ways of detective work from one of the greatest detectives ever, Harvey Harris. Bruce also learned some detective tricks from Henri DuCard. He got his martial arts skills from David Cain, who later framed him for the murder of Vesper Fairchild (perhaps Bruce’s check bounced?)
And Mr. Cain is of course better known as the father of the current Batgirl, Cassandra Cain; Batman’s “stealing” Cassandra from David is a big reason why he helped Lex Luthor to frame him for murder. –B
After that whole “back breaking” incident Lady Shiva trained with Bruce to get back into vigilante shape. Allegedly the tale of Richard Dragon training Bruce Wayne is still in canon, since Bronze Tiger alluded to it in the current series. Tsune Tomo not only was one of Bruce’s teachers but also was Yakuza.
Ted “Wildcat” Grant taught Bruce the sweet science. On the Batman cartoon Bruce learned a few things from Zatara, like concealing things (weapons, tools) the art of escaping and sleight of hand. For even more of Batman’s trainers pick up “The Many Deaths of Batman” (Batman #433-435) in which Bruce’s teachers are marked for death.
Interesting fact: Harvey Harris’s niece is none other than Wendy Harris. Y’know from “Wendy & Marvin” fame?
B, if Bruce Wayne came to you for training what would your field of expertise be?
Definitely Ultimate Frisbee. Sure, Bats can whip any cadre of generic thugs into shape and betray the JLA with the best of them, but can he recklessly dive into a face full of grass in pursuit of a plastic disc? I thought not”¦-B
James Lawson, do you have a semi related question?
After reading Identity Crisis #2, Flash #214, and Richard Dragon through #5, I have an interesting question. Would Deathstroke’s enhanced thought process and reflexes beat out Richard Dragon’s decades of intense martial arts training?
Well looking at my nifty new DC Comics Encyclopedia it says Richard Dragon is a master of all known empty hand combat. Deathstroke is a weapons master, has increased reflexes and uses 90% of his brain and has augmented physical attributes.
Now we know that Dragon trained Batman and Deathstroke beat Batman. Now I’ve also seen Deathstroke go toe to toe with Batgirl. I’m going to say Deathstroke would win, because of the reflexes. Dragon is a tough guy, but he’s just a guy. Deathstroke is a bit more than a guy. He’s going to be able to anticipate and block Dragon’s moves. And while he may not able to connect with Dragon immediately, once Dragon starts to tire, it’s only a matter of time before Slade connects, and then collects his bounty.
B, agree or disagree?
Agreed. Richard Dragon is a highly skilled and trained human, but Deathstroke is a metahuman. Batman is probably the most touted regular human in the DCU, with Batgirl, Lady Shiva and Broze Tiger being in the same league; Deathstroke has beaten Batman and held his own against Batgirl (who took on Shiva), plus he’s shown the ability to take on the majority of the Satellite era Justice League and dominated the entire New Teen Titans squad many a time. Much as I’d love to see Deathstroke against either Richard Dragon or Bronze Tiger (or Lady Shiva for that matter), I don’t think there are many non-metas who can take on Deathstroke without the numbers on their side (which is how Green Arrow did it in IC #3). –B
DJ Brett, do you have a question about a special female?
I have a question about Wonder Girl. How exactly did she get tied up (no pun intended) in the Wonder Woman mythos? What was she doing before she gained
her powers and how did she get them? And what exactly are her limits and can
her powers be taken away from her if she is acting against her benefactor’s wishes? Thanks for your help!
Well young Cassie Sandmark was just your normal girl. When Wonder Woman came to Gateway City, Cassie borrowed some of Wonder Woman’s things, like women normally do. They’re always sharing clothes and such. Cassie borrowed the sandals of Hermes and the gauntlet of Atlas. She then pulverized a clone of Doomdsay.
After that she helped Wondy beat Decay and even adopted a disguise, glasses and a wig, as well as the name Wonder Girl. Then she got the call. She went up to Olympus. Once there she asked Zeus for her own powers, and he gave them to her.
She trained with Artemis and joined Young Justice. Then she had her secret identity exposed by Silver Swan attacking her school. Not only is she a member of the Teen Titans, but she’s also #1 in Superboy’s heart. Oh yeah and she’s got a magic lasso from Ares.
B, I know your girl loves Wonder Girl which means you know all about her, did I miss anything?
Your description was brief but accurate. Cassie also briefly served as the leader of Young Justice before they broke up. The full extent of the powers of the lasso Ares gave her has yet to be revealed, but so far the main attribute seems to be that she can emit mystic lightning through it when she gets angry. To answer your second question, Brett, Cassie has more or less the same limitations and weaknesses as Wonder Woman, though to a lesser extent (so basically just her own stamina, etc.) and Diana could not take away Cassie’s powers, only Zeus can (as far as we know). –B
Joonya do you have a controversial question?
What’s the deal with Flash’s costume fitting in his ring? That always confused me. It does not seem to have anything to do with the Speed Force. It seems like a lame excuse to explain a quick change to fight crime at a moments notice. But why would Wally need that explained? He’s the freakin’ Flash! How long could it take him to find a nice quiet changing room in Guatamala, change his clothes, and get back to Keystone City? 1/9000 of a second? What gives?
Man, are you jaded. Where would you have The Flash keep his costume? Should he keep it in his cubby at work, where any coworker could stumble onto it? Or maybe he should wear it under his regular clothes, because it’s not like the Silver Age was filled with suspicious lady friends who would gladly tear open your shirt in a hope of exposing your super hero emblem.
And let’s not forget how hot it gets in Keystone and Central City. Who cares if has to wear three layers in ninety-degree weather with 80% humidity? I guess you think he’s a super hero and he should just deal with it. So what is he passes out from heat stroke, while walking to check the mail. And could you imagine how awkward it would be for him to go swimming? “Um, why are you wearing a Flash costume under your swim trunks?”
It’s not like he could keep it at his house either. Sure the guy can run really fast, but ten miles out of the way is still ten miles out of the way. I don’t know about you, but if I had to run home to change every time I felt obligated to stop a crime, Central City and Keystone would look like Apokolips lite.
Now how the costume ring works is that it’s made from highly compressible synthetic silk. Then with some calculated folds (like origami only better) it fits in the ring. Since this is happening really fast there is some heat generated. Once placed in the ring, the costume cools and forms a vacuum, which keeps the ring shut. When the ring is opened, the costume reacts to the gasses in the air and expands. That’s the current explanation.
The previous one was basically the same, except that the ring had an electric charge that took away electrons from the specially treated costume, which caused it to shrink. When the ring was opened the costume got what it was missing from the air and expanded.
Either way it sounds nifty. If I could find a Flash costume, like the kid in Daddy Day Care had (only bigger) I’d so get it. And I’d never take it off, just like him.
EPG78, do you have a very sensible question?
I’m fairly new to DC, so I hope this isn’t a dumb question. Barry Allen died during the Crisis. No one in the DC universe remembers the Crisis, right? So how do they think Barry died?
Let’s face it, DC has huge problems every year that can be only be solved by the heroes banding together. The Nexus’ own John Babos even gives you a list of them.
Now they know that Barry died giving his life to save the universe. They probably even know it was during the Crisis. The just don’t know that it was during the Crisis on Infinite Earths.
The Crisis still could have happened. The Monitor could have still gathered all the heroes on Earth to fight the Anti Monitor and his attempt to destroy the matter universe. The story still works, and could have still happened. In fact Wally even tried to take Barry’s place and destroy the Anti Monitor’s cannon, but to no avail (during “Chain Lightning” in Flash #143-150).
Clearly heroes are aware that The Crisis happened and that Barry died as a result of it. They just aren’t aware of the multiple Earths, nor the characters who never existed in the revised DCU (like Supergirl, Huntress (Earth 2) and Robin (Earth 2). Kole and Dove both died during Crisis and are remembered, just like Barry.
To put M’s explanation into less words: Crisis happened but it was just the Anti-Monitor threatening one Earth instead of several and all the heroes came from that one Earth; Barry still died stopping the Anti-Monitor, but other things, like Supergirl and the Earth 2 Superman’s sacrifices, occurred differently, we’re just not sure how. –B
Brad M, do you have a Barry related question?
What is the background behind Bart Allen. I know Barry and Iris spent time in the 30th century but I know there’s more to Bart besides him simply being from the 30th century.
Bart Allen. I really dig this character. I loved Impulse and Kid Flash is growing on me. (I can’t wait to see how the DC Direct Kid Flash measures up against Impulse and the Wally Kid Flash.)
When Barry spent some time in the 30th Century before he went off to his death, he left Iris with child(ren.) She had twins, Don and Dawn Allen. They were known as the Tornado Twins. They both had speed and were heroes for a spell.
Don got married (to a Thawne at that!) Don got killed. Bart was born, with super speed. But it manifested itself oddly. His growth rate was also sped up. He spent his first two years in a type of virtual reality environment. Iris broke him out and sent him to the past (our present) in hopes that Wally West would be able to stabilize Bart’s metabolism.
It worked, but Bart was now basically a two year old in a thirteen year-old’s body. Plus his time spent in the virtual reality left him not talking the dangers of actual reality seriously. Due to his nature, he got the name Impulse.
Wally had not patience for the Bart so he was sent to live with Max Mercury, who was a sort of mentor for all of those connected with the Speed Force. Max taught Bart some responsibility and a bit of maturity.
Bart really matured when Deathstroke blew off his kneecap. He then read an entire library (and retained it all, something that few speedsters can do) he “grew up” and took the name Kid Flash, the new moniker reflected his new maturity.
B, I know you love Bart as much as I do, anything you want to add?
Bart is a great character and he’s Geoff Johns’ favorite Teen Titan, so you can guarantee he’ll continue to get good exposure in that title. You covered things pretty well, but I’ll fill in a few holes. First of all, Max Mercury was possessed by Rival, an enemy of the Golden Age Flash, Jay Garrick, and has been M.I.A. since a battle against Bart and Jay (Geoff has promised this situation will be resolved soon, either in Flash or Teen Titans, and we’ll learn Max’s whereabouts); to make amends to his old friend Max, Jay took Bart in afterwards. Also, Bart has demonstrated an ability no Flash, including Wally has had before him: the ability to retain knowledge he acquires at superspeed (which is how he remembered everything he read in that library; all other speedsters would forget soon after), potentially making him the most powerful speedster ever. –B
Juan Francisco Gutiérrez Santiago, I know you’ve got a related question.
Could you give me a quick recap on who Bart Allen/Impulse/Kid Flash is? After reading the last issue of Teen Titans I’m totally lost. I was a fan of Young Justice and read there who Bart was. However there have been some facts in Teen Titans that have left me confused. Among others is the mention of his parents, the food from the future and the era he “knows”.
From what I know he is from the thirtieth century (exactly from the 12 June 2995 according to The Flash 91) not the thirty-first and he grew in a lab to keep up his accelerated growing rate and was around 3 years old (15 relatively) when he came to the present. Dominators killed his parents much before this, and even these beings were trying to experiment on him before the government caught Bart. So as you can see all the references in Teen Titans 16 got me totally confused. I thought the reference in other issue of TT was a mistake mentioning his parents when there was trouble with Raven, but it seems it wasn’t. He was so “Impulse”ive because he didn’t grow in the real world but in VR. He never met his parents and his only relative was his grandmother. Obviously he couldn’t have eaten “interlac pot pies” because he was in a Lab living in a VR environment without his parents and never had a “real life” in the future. He couldn’t have known of the Legion from the thirty-first century since he is from the thirtieth. All this references I got them from Flash 92 and Secret origins 80 page giant focused on Young Justice. I think Bart wasn’t affected by Zero hour, so this new facts about him have me totally confused. REALLY.
He even says in TT 16 “This is where I was born. This is home. This is where my mom is…” . I am not complaining. I just want to know where all these references come from since I never really read Impulse or Flash outside Young
Justice and JLA (I read Flash 91, 92 and 93 by mere luck). And considering how much Geoff Johns cares about continuity and old references (specially in JSA, which I like a lot) it’s highly possible that I’m missing something, after all he is writer of The Flash and it’d be hard to believe that he made mistakes with the “speed” characters, unless he is writing a new chronology, which I don’t think so considering all the references in The Flash 214. Please, do fill me in the blanks, because this time I’m absolutely confused.
You did miss a few important parts of Bart’s life by not reading Impulse. That’s where most of the confusion comes from.
About Bart’s birth, this is exactly why comics rarely use exact dates, specifically years, to reference things. Eagle eyed readers like you will spot them every time.
In regards to they year, that was just a simple oversight. When Impulse debuted in the early 90’s, the year 2000 seemed way off. No one really considered that the Legion would move from the 30th Century to the 31st Century. It was really an oversight; you’ve got to let that one go, otherwise you’d be wondering why Bart hasn’t aged ten years in the ten years since he appeared.
As for his parents, the Tornado Twins were killed. I don’t care how far in the future you go, siblings are not allowed to procreate. Bart’s mother is alive and showed up in a few issues of Impulse (which is a great book that you should pick up every now and again.)
Now for the food, just because you’re in virtual reality doesn’t mean you don’t need to eat. I’m sure he still had plenty of 30th, oops 31st century cuisine to dine on. I’m going to let that one pass.
Bart did spend some time in the future and he met the Legion when they were stuck in the 20th century. Plus he knows about the Legion from his cousin, Xs, a legionnaire who has super speed. Again some of these events took place in Impulse, a title you should have read because it was fun.
Chase, do you have a question about Martians?
I heard that a planet full of guys like Martian Manhunter was wiped out. I
would really like to know who was powerful enough to destroy a billion of him!
Or am I simply confused?
Oh this is an easy one. Ma’alefa’ak or as you may know him, Malefic, was a mad priest (“mad” are there any other kind in the DCU?) (Revered Craemer from Sucide Squad and The Spectre”¦although he was technically a Reverend and not a Priest, I guess”¦that guy in Superman right now? –B) on Mars. So he released H’ronmeer’s Curse on Mars.
Oh, you want to know what H’ronmeer’s Curse is? Well it’s a pyrokinetic plague that’s spread telepathically. Almost all of the Martians caught it, and promptly burst into flames, including J’onn’s wife and daughter, right in front of his eyes.
And that’s the story of how the Martians were wiped out. B, where does that origin rank in terms of tragedy? Is it worse than Bruce and Dick?
It’s strange, but despite the fact that in real life genocide like what occurred to J’onn would seem far more tragic than what happened to Batman’s parents, we will always find the latter to be the more tragic. Why? Because we can conceptualize losing a loved one much easier than we could our entire race being slaughtered, so thus the smaller tragedy is the more frightening of the two. –B
Referee2372, do you have a related question?
What’s up with the Martians and their weakness to fire? I seem to remember something about it being a psychological fear as much as physical. What does it do to them?
Ok, well back in the day the Martians weren’t all peace loving, like hippies. They were more dangerous like Hell’s Angels. So the Guardians of the Universe intervened. They had to stop the threat of the Martians, but they weren’t too keen on that whole “genocide” thing.
They decided to give all the Martians a fear of fire. It was part of their genetic code. It not only worked as a sort of collar for the race, but it also mellowed them into the species they ended up being.
Now in J’onn’s case he had that physical weakness, but his was equally psychological. Y’see, watching his two most cherished loves, his wife and daughter, burst into flame in front of him kind of scarred him. Kind of like how I’m afraid of dogs. One incident can mess you up for life.
B, aren’t you tired of the Guardians meddling in every little thing in the DCU? They wouldn’t let Hal Jordan say good-bye to Coast City, they wouldn’t let the Martians rampage, and they stabbed Kyle in the gut. What’s their problem?
Never trust a blue midget in a red dress. Of course the whole “make Martians afraid of fire and the problem will go away” thing came back to bite the Guardians in the ass not once, but twice. Once, near the dawn of civilization on Earth, when Vandal Savage was still a bad ass caveman, a Martian was “cured” and went on a rampage, killing tons of Guardians and primitive earthlings. More recently, in the JLA’s “Trial By Fire” storyline, J’onn was “cured” of his aversion to fire by reformed villain Scorch and went nuts, becoming the super-evil and wicked powerful Fernus The Burning; he would have destroyed the Earth if the JLA hadn’t been able to separate the J’onn and Fernus personas. –B
Brad M, do you have another question?
What exactly is the L.E.G.I.O.N. and specifically, what’s their relation to the Legion of Super-Heroes?
L.E.G.I.O.N. spun out of Invasion! and served a variety of purposes.
First it was an attempt to provide an inspiration for the Legion of Super Heroes who would come about in the 30th century. The pre Crisis Superboy had served as their inspiration prior to 1985. But after Crisis, Superman never was Superboy, therefore the Legion had not inspiration. L.E.G.I.O.N. (I’ve got to figure out a better way to type that or avoid it all together.) would try to fix that.
Secondly it attempted to replace the Green Lantern Corps. The Corp was no longer in the universe protecting business, so L.E.G.I.O.N. (darn it!) would provide that protection, for a fee.
Lastly it was a way to explore the DCU. Not too many heroes ventured off Earth, yet DC has a rich cast of aliens. So L.E.G.I.O.N. (gah!) could explore the DCU and visit planets and races that would provide a back-story for the 30th Century universe.
One of the links to the Legion was the Durlan. The Durlan was an early member, and reluctant member of L.E.G.I.O.N. (this is irking me). It turned out that due to some time tampering from Glorith, he went from the 20th Century to the 30th Century. Once in the future he created the identity of R.J. Brande, who financed the Legion, pre Zero Hour. It was a great twist and showed some amazing creativity. If you want to read one of the best L.E.G.I.O.N. (oh my god!) stories pick up L.E.G.I.O.N. (seriously, c’mon.) #23. It’s one of my favorites.
Vril Dox II was an ancestor for Brainac 5. Lyrissa and Lydea Mallor were ancestors of Shadow Lass. Strata was from the same race as Blok and the two even met, as witnessed when Blok was killed in Legion V4 #3. Garryn and Marj’in Bek both possessed the Emerald Eye of Ekron. And it turned out that Pulsar Stargrave a villain from the Legion of Super Heroes was just the Computer Tyrants of Colu.
I love the pre Zero Hour Legion of Super Heroes. Volume 4 is one of my favorite books of all time. As a result I also love L.E.G.I.O.N. (but not typing it.). I’m working on getting a complete run of L.E.G.I.O.N. (I can’t take much more), so I’m always on the prowl when I hit the cons. There seem to be perpetual rumors of Barry Kitson working on a relaunch. I’d love it, because the DCU hasn’t really been explored since that book ended.
B, any thoughts on L.E.G.I.O.N. (last time)?
Yeah: learn to copy and paste, dumbass. –B
Sly Reference (best name ever!) do you have an unusual question?
I sent a question to the Marvel column, and the answer brought up Conan the barbarian. Since he was originally a pulp hero, that made me wonder what other pulp or literary characters are officially part of the Marvel Universe. That chain of wondering lead me to wonder what pulp or literary characters are officially part of the DC Universe.
There aren’t too many literary characters or pulp heroes that DC has published. Some of the more notable ones would be Doc Savage. DC has published a few Doc Savage miniseries, some true to the character, some that were departures. Adam and Andy Kubert both worked on those books.
The Shadow has also been published by DC Comics. I’ve never read any of those books, but they sound more and more appealing with every passing year. I’m a huge fan of Andy Helfer and I’m in love with Kyle Baker’s work.
I seem to recall a Beowulf book being advertised in some old comics I picked up at a con. I know he’s a literary character, (thank you college)
And judging by last week’s Wizard, Spawn of Frankenstein will be reemerging thanks to Grant Morrison. I’m pretty sure I recall ol’ Frankie being a book or two.
That’s really all that I can think of; characters like that are a risk, because in some cases they are licensed, like The Shadow and Doc Savage. Since DC doesn’t want any of their regular book to be null and void, there can’t really be too much crossing over, because once that license expires DC can’t use the characters anymore. Thus the licensed characters are segregated to their own area, which doesn’t make them as profitable.
Fun fact: in Alan Moore’s original proposal for Twilight of the Super-Heroes, his DC opus that was essentially Kingdom Come a little over a decade early, he used Doc Savage and The Shadow as allies of Batman. –B
Nalydpsycho got a question?
I do have a question about The Question. Has he been up to anything post crisis?
Since his new book is coming out today let’s give everyone a run down the character first.
The Question, like many heroes was an orphan. The Hub City orphanage named him Charles Victor Szasz, but when he got out on his own he changed it to Vic Sage. As a kid he didn’t quite understand human nature, this lead to his adult profession of investigative television journalism.
At KBEL he covered political corruption. He got frustrated because he couldn’t uncover all the corruption with his reporting. So he turned to his good buddy Aristotle Rodor. Rodor who had been working with Arby Twain on a new kind of artificial skin called Psuedoderm.
Psuedoderm didn’t quite work out. And impurity in the gas that bonded it to the skin, was sometimes fatal. The two creators decided to give up on the breakthrough. But Rodor was going to sell it to third world countries anyway. Sage decided to stop Rodor and wore a mask of Pseudoderm that covered his features. Thus the Question was created.
The Question went after the corruption that Sage couldn’t expose with his reporting. He retired to the Amazon rain forest to “find himself.” But he later returned after learning a few things (marital arts wise) from Richard Dragon.
Most recently The Question mentored The Huntress and connected her with Richard Dragon, who taught her some things as well.
I’m really interested in the new miniseries that’s coming out this week.
Nalydpsycho, got a follow up?
What secret identities does Vic “The Question” Sage know?
I honestly don’t know. He hasn’t had too many run ins with the heroes of the DCU. He’s crossed over with Batman, Green Arrow and The Huntress. I’m betting that he probably knows who Green Arrow and Huntress are. As for Batman, I don’t have the issues. Based on what I’ve found, The Question is one of the few heroes who doesn’t know Batman is Bruce Wayne.
But I’m pretty sure that those are the only identities Vic knows, just based on who he’s encountered.
He’s remained somewhat chummy with the other former Charlton characters he was purchased with; I think he may at least know that Ted Kord is the Blue Beetle. –B
Neil do you have a personal favor to ask?
Can you spoil Birthright for me? I never bothered with it, but I figure it may be important.
Birthright was ok. Here are some of the more notable changes;
Kal-el was born on Krypton, which looks much more like the Silver Age Krypton than John Byrne’s “World of Krypton.”
Clark Kent’s powers began developing earlier, more akin to the tv show Smallville’s timeline.
Another influence of Smallville, Lex Luthor spend some time in Smallville, and even went to school with Clark. The two were friends. (But young Lex still has flowing red locks in Birthright.)
Lex was a super genius, who was so smart that he alienated himself. His quest for comparable intelligence was a driving force in his looking for extraterrestrial life.
Clark didn’t find out his Kryptonian name until after he became Superman, when Lex attacked him in Metropolis.
No one in Smallville will acknowledge that Lex was ever there, nor will he acknowledge it. He suffered some sort of breakdown so that he doesn’t recognize that the Clark that he knew (sans glasses) looks anything like Superman (also sans glasses.)
That’s about it. There were some pretty good scenes, but it doesn’t really make up for some of the stuff that I didn’t enjoy. But I don’t want to bash the book.
Blaine do you have a question?
Am I the only one who liked Birthright??
I enjoyed some moments. There were some great moments. But I’m kind of offended that DC would take the Lex/Clark dynamic from Smallville but not make Pete Ross Black.
To me it’s like their saying “we’re comfortable with tossing out lots of stories that fly directly in the face of the concept of Lex spending formative years in Smallville to capitalize on the success of a TV show. But c’mon a Black Pete Ross, that’s absurd. Who cares that this alien has fantastic powers, him befriending a person of color, even if it is just a supporting character, who barely pops up once a year, would just stretch the imagination too far.”
I don’t know how successful Birthright was. I honestly haven’t seen anyone really singing it’s praises. Like I said, I there were some scenes that were done really well, but overall I think that it put off more people, for a variety of reason, than it attracted.
George do you have a couple of questions you want to piggyback off this one?
What are your thoughts on an actor of another race being a character that isn’t his own, like Billy Dee Williams as Harvey Dent for instance? Do you think this could be done, but with a more mainstream hero, like Laurence Fishburne as Tony Stark for instance? Or should a hero’s race remain final and not be changed in the movie adaptation?
I suppose my example should be changed for the DCU; so what if a black actor were the Flash or Green Arrow. And since there’s this thing with Hollywood filming black characters as helping white characters, like Will Smith in the Legend of Bagger Vance, do you think the comics industry’ll pick up on it and all of the next Robin will be black?
This may sound kind of odd given my answer to the previous question, but I don’t even know if it’s feasible to alter the race of a hero. But I’ll get to that later.
First off, let me address Harvey Dent. I was pumped when I saw Billy Dee Williams as Harvey Dent in the first Batman flick. Two-Face is like my second favorite Bat villain. So I knew the introduction of Harvey Dent meant that somewhere down the line Two-Face would show up.
So imagine my shock at seeing Harvey Two-Face played by Tommy Lee Jones (at least they got the three name thing right.) Now I’m sure that there were factors into the casting change. Tommy Lee Jones’ stock was probably high, or maybe Billy Dee turned it down. I don’t know. I do know that I was disappointed to see the character’s race change and at the lack of an origin, equally.
Now as for the hero or the movie; I honestly couldn’t see a Black Green Arrow or Flash (and have you noticed how there aren’t really too many Black speedsters? The prevailing theory has to do with the dominance of Black track athletes.) If only because you’d be yelling at the screen, “Hello? He’s the only other Black guy in the movie, of course Oliver Queen is Green Arrow!”
One of the inherent storylines in a hero movie is the secret identity subplot. Now the minute you cast a Black actor as the hero, that subplot is all but done. There are only going to be so many Black folks in the city. It’s like the club/cane in Daredevil, except that it’s not introduced in the second act, it happens the first time someone comes in contact with both the Black hero and their secret identity. The suspension of disbelief goes right out the window, taking you out of the movie.
Basically all of DC’s heroes, would work with Black actors. The only one who might possibly work would be Batman, because he’s got a mask that covers up a great deal of his face and he tends to stick to the shadows. So he could possibly conceal his race that much longer.
Your Iron Man was dead on. A hero with a full-face mask could be cast as a Black actor, because that secret identity subplot will remain intact, due to the concealing of the face. So Spider-Man and Iron Man would work.
Would the audiences accept them? That’s another story. Catwoman had absolutely nothing going for it, and Kingpin in Daredevil didn’t have a dual identity so they aren’t really good gauges. But I can’t see why a studio would take a gamble on changing the race of a character, so I wouldn’t bet on it.
Conversely you couldn’t have a white Black Lightning (not that Jeff would ever get a movie.) Black heroes’ race is very much a part of the character, while a Black face in a white heroes costume would prove unbelievable.
As for the Black sidekick role, that’s a much more foreseeable outcome. I mean who doesn’t want to see a jive talking sidekick with a light hearted quip for every occasion? However given the darker tone of the upcoming Bat flick, I’m putting my money on a female Robin, if only to draw a parallel to Dark Knight Returns and the serious tone of the new franchise.
I do recall Marlon Wayans being mentioned as being the next Robin in the previous batch of Bat-flicks. But that’s it. Basically; I wouldn’t hold my breath.
B, I’ve rambled on enough. Wanna chime in on this one?
I think in the end the talent of the actor wins out over the race of the character. These are comic book fans we’re talking about, so of course no matter how small the change there would be an uproar (and this would be a pretty big one), but if Denzel absolutely nailed Hal Jordan and made a great movie, you’d hear very few complains. In addition to the frightening Marlon Wayans rumors were the equally terrifying Will Smith as Robin rumors; don’t get me wrong, I love Will Smith, but the Fresh Prince as the Boy Wonder? Nah”¦-B
That’s it. I don’t know what happened but the column was longer than I expected. I hope you enjoyed reading it as much I enjoyed writing it. Upcoming topics include; Teen Titans, New Gods, Crossover Galore, and Vertigo? Be sure to send me your questions and visit the Forum where there is always a lively debate. My question to you; What’s been your favorite comic (not just DC) moment this year?
“Time is like a broken watch, I make money like Fred Astaire.”
