The "Hey, You Look Familiar" Meme

Kalinara mentioned a couple of variations on a meme (ha!) and I thought I'd try 'em both.

Version One:

[C]reate a team of four heroes, a.la the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, only the catch is that each hero must be a character portrayed by the same actor.

Thus, the League of Extraordinary Patrick Stewarts:

1. Ahab, monomaniacal commander of the whaling ship Pequod;
2. Ebenezer Scrooge, newly-reformed uber-capitalist (and the group's financier);
3. Professor Charles Xavier, mutant telepath and educator; and of course
4. Jean-Luc Picard, starship captain.

One could also have the League of Extraordinary Sean Connerys:

1. Allan Quartermain;
2. Robin Hood (from the film Robin & Marian);
3. James Bond; and
4. Draco the dragon (from Dragonheart).

Finally, the League of Extraordinary Johnny Depps:

1. Jack Sparrow;
2. Ichabod Crane;
3. Willy Wonka; and
4. Dr. Hunter S. Thompson.

Then there's Version Two:

[C]reate a team of four to eight members, which comprise of sets of doubles as played by the same actor.

Here goes...

1a. Dr. Sam Beckett, time-traveler (Scott Bakula),
1b. Jonathan Archer, starship captain (Scott Bakula),
2a. Dennis/Denise Bryson, DEA agent (David Duchovny),
2b. Fox Mulder, FBI agent (David Duchovny),
3a. Ra's al Ghul (Liam Neeson),
3b. Qui-Gon Jinn (Liam Neeson),
4a. Brisco County Jr. (Bruce Campbell), and
4b. Ash (Bruce Campbell).

How's that?

Full Post

Friday Night Fights

You know, if I'm up too far past my bedtime, I get a little cranky.


Sleepwalk, though, gets violent.


So, let me think ... do you have to get up pretty early in the morning to beat her, or are you better off waiting until later in the day, when she's more likely to be awake...?

It's a puzzler, that's for sure --

-- but no one snoozes on Bahlactus!

[From "Labyrinth," Doom Patrol vol. 2 #28 (December 1989). Written by Grant Morrison, pencilled by Richard Case, inked by John Nyberg, lettered by John Workman, colored by Daniel Vozzo.]

Full Post

Friday Night Fights

Wonder Woman is a born warrior, trained in unarmed combat and the use of a wide range of weapons, and given powers by the gods and goddesses themselves -- but even so, she never stops learning.


Kind of puts the lie to any thoughts of towel-snapping locker-room scenes on Themyscira too, I suppose....

Don't tug on Bahlactus' cape!

[From "Bird Of Paradise/Bird Of Prey!" in Wonder Woman vol. 2 #16 (May 1988). Written by George Perez and Len Wein, pencilled by Perez, inked by Bob Smith, colored by Carl Gafford, and lettered by John Costanza.]

Full Post

Friday Night Fights

Hey, Black Canary is fighting a bad mother -- shut your mouth!

No, really, the goon here actually does belong to a bad mother, who's thrown her planet into an horrific crisis of overpopulation. So yes, I'm just talkin' about Mother Juna.


Bahlactus can dig it!

[From "Death Be My Destiny!" in Green Lantern vol. 2 #81, December 1970. Written by Denny O'Neil, pencilled by Neal Adams, inked by Dick Giordano, lettered by John Costanza.]

Full Post

Friday Night Fights

[Postponed from last week....]

No Jon around, but here's Kate Plus Eight!


... or, wait a minute, maybe there's nine. Ten? Aw, heck. With Multiplex, who can tell?

Anyway, we can't get enough of Bahlactus!

[From "Forgotten Part 4," in Manhunter vol. 3 #34, November 2008. Written by Marc Andreyko, drawn by Michael Gaydos, lettered by Travis Lanham, colored by Jose Villarrubia.]

Full Post

Friday Night Fights

The Fourth World takes on the future as the 853rd Century's Justice Legion A invades the Justice League Watchtower!

In case you can't read the captions, Wonder Woman's bracelets are named Harmony and Charity. Harmony, Charity ...


... meet Mega-Rod!


This isn't the only fight, of course; but by the time we check in with these combatants, it's pretty much over.


A particle cannon (with Kirby Dots (TM), even!) might seem like cheating, but hey -- it's not like Wonder Woman didn't know who she might run into, back in the mists of history....



It's always the right time for Bahlactus!

[From "Prisoners of the Twentieth Century" in JLA #1,000,000, November 85,271. Written by Grant Morrison, pencilled by Howard Porter, inked by John Dell, lettered by Ken Lopez, colored by Pat Garrahy.]

Full Post

Friday Night Fights

For someone who described her home planet as "peaceful" and "hav[ing] no weapons," Leia Organa sure is good in a scrap.



Of course, she also famously declared that "someone has to save our skins!"

Bahlactus decrees Ladies' Night, even in a galaxy far, far away!

[From "To Take The Tarkin!" in Star Wars #52, October 1981. Written by David Michelinie, pencilled by Walter Simonson, inked by Tom Palmer, lettered by John Morelli, colored by David Warfield. Scan from the reprint in Star Wars: A Long Time Ago ... Volume 3.]

Full Post

Friday Night Fights

Someday, several years from now, when Olivia Bondurant and her dad sit down to talk about Supergirl -- as, inevitably, we will -- she'll bring up the Maid of Might's less popular fashion choices. She'll list the headband and perm of the '80s, the bare midriff of the '90s and '00s, and the hot pants of the '70s.



And I will reply that yes, these were all rather unfortunate to one degree or another; but through it all, Supergirl could still serve up a beatdown.

Strike a pose, Bahlactus!

[From "The Other Side Of Doomsday!" in Super-Team Family #11, June-July 1977. Written by Gerry Conway, pencilled by Alan Weiss, inked by Joe Rubenstein, colored by Jerry Serpe, lettered by Bill Morse.]

Full Post

Friday Night Fights

This time around, it's Ladies' Night! Bahlactus commands that at least one combatant must be female ... but hey, look what I just happened to pull from an unorganized stack:


That's right, it's the classic throwdown between Barbara "Call Me Batgirl" Gordon and Katarina "Spy Smasher" Armstrong!


The stakes? How about control of a little ad hoc group of superfolk no one dares call the Birds Of Prey?


"But Tom," you say, "Babs is in that wheelchair for a reason!" Yes, and that's why Manhunter zapped Spy Smasher in the leg.


Although really, I tend to think it's so that Barbara wouldn't hurt her too badly....

Naturally, the multi-page spread which follows this bout shows that none of Babs' operatives will go with Spy Smasher under any circumstances -- but this isn't called "Friday Night Friendships," now is it?

[From "Whitewater Epilogue," Birds Of Prey #108, September 2007. Written by Gail Simone, pencilled by Nicola Scott, inked by Doug Hazlewood, colored by Hi-Fi Designs, lettered by Travis Lanham.]

Full Post

Friday Night Fights

I could set this up with some clever comment, but really -- it's Dracula versus Jack Russell, Werewolf By Night. How much more do you need?


The idea that Dracula thinks he can control Jack, just like any other dumb animal, is a nice touch.



Dracula still wins, of course. You think he'd go out to someone named Jack Russell? Charles "Kite-Man" Brown will defeat Batman before that happens....

I saw Bahlactus drinkin' a Pina Colada at Trader Vic's -- and his hair was perfect--!

[From "Enter: Werewolf By Night," in The Tomb of Dracula #18, March 1974, reprinted in Essential Tomb of Dracula vol. 1. Written by Marv Wolfman (no relation ... or is he?!?), pencilled by Gene Colan, inked by Tom Palmer, lettered by John Costanza.]

Full Post

Friday Night Fights

The Spirit Jam teamed Will Eisner and his most famous creation with dozens of comics professionals.


Of course, one thing stayed the same ...


... the Spirit dished out, and took, a lot of punishment.

I'll try not to sing out of key, Bahlactus!

[From Spirit Jam, reprinting a story from The Spirit Magazine #30, July 1981. This sequence scripted by Mike W. Barr, pencilled by Joe Staton, inked by Bob Smith, and lettered by Todd Klein. Project coordinated by Will Eisner, Denis Kitchen, and Cat Yronwode.]

Full Post

Friday Night Fights

If a tree falls in the forest and no one is there to hear it, does it make a sound?



If an intercompany crossover gets scrapped after 21 pages are pencilled, do Batman and Captain America really fight?



Now, that's not entirely fair. After all, when JLA/Avengers was eventually published, it made the original 1983 plot one of the teams' "annual meetings." Therefore, from a certain point of view, it did happen.



It was in an alternate reality, of course ... but aren't they all?

Bahlactus has all the answers!

[From the unpublished first meeting of the Justice League of America and the Avengers, planned for publication in 1983. Plot by Gerry Conway and Roy Thomas, pencils by George Perez. Reprinted in Avengers/JLA Compendium, 2004.]

Full Post

Friday Night Fights

It's easy to do a Batman sequence for Friday Night Fights . It's not much harder to pick out one in black-and-white, as per Bahlactus' instructions for this round.

Therefore, I like these particular pages because they demonstrate the tone of the Batman books in the early '70s. Basically, Alfred's niece -- not, we rush to point out, Alicia Silverstone -- has somehow found herself in the old "governess in the haunted mansion" circumstance. After reading her latest letter, Uncle Alfred suggests that maybe his employer might want to check things out.

So here's Batman, calmly walking through the woods in full costume, trolling for information ...


... but really, why wouldn't a couple of thugs want to beat up a loon in a bat costume? Clearly Batman knows this, and is just looking for any excuse to cause trouble. The results are predictable:



Two guards, each carrying a farm implement -- yeah, a page is about right.

[From "The Demon Of Gothos Mansion!" in Batman #227, December 1970. Written by Denny O'Neil, pencilled by Irv Novick, inked by Dick Giordano, lettered by Ben Oda. Reprinted in Batman From The '30s To The '70s (1971).

Full Post

Friday Night Fights

So ... who thinks Mary Marvel needs the black cheerleader outfit to be tough?

Here she is in December 1942, taking apart some goons after saying "Shazam!" for the very first time ...



... and here she is in July-August 1975, showing that experience doesn't mean sacrificing one's sense of humor.



(Yeah, she does more fighting in the older scan, but I've always liked her '70s look. I wonder if she would have grown up to be Bailey Quarters. Mmmm ... Bailey Quarters....)

Ahem. Our magic word is "Bahlactus!"

[First scan from "Captain Marvel Introduces Mary Marvel," in Captain Marvel Adventures #18, December 1942. Written by Otto Binder, drawn by Marc Swayze. Second scan from "Secret of the Smiling Swordsman!," in Shazam! #19, July-August 1975. Written by E. Nelson Bridwell, drawn by Bob Oksner, lettered by Ben Oda. Both stories reprinted in Shazam! From The '40s To The '70s (1977).]

Full Post

Friday Night Fights

Forget Superman-Red and Superman-Blue -- here's Homer-Right versus Homer-Left!



We don't dare call Bahlactus "Mr. Sparkle"....

[From "Too Crazy, Juvenile Prankster: Bartomu!", originally published in Simpsons Comics #131, June 2007; and reprinted in the 2008 Bongo Comics Free-For-All sampler. Written by Chuck Dixon, pencilled by Nina Matsumoto, inked by Andrew Pepoy, lettered by Karen Bates.]

Full Post

Friday Night Fights

Jonah Hex thinks he's J.M. Marberry's business partner. Therefore, the following comes as something of a surprise....





Tonight we ride with Bahlactus!

[From "The Hoax," in Weird Western Tales #18, April-May 1973, reprinted in Showcase Presents Jonah Hex Vol. 1. Written by John Albano, drawn by Tony DeZuniga, lettered by (I think) Milt Snapinn.]

Full Post

Trading Places

The instructions, via plok:

“What creators who are usually associated with a certain company (or, indeed, medium) would you like to see writing someone else’s title? For example, would you want to see JMS on Hellboy? Which DC character should Bendis have a crack at? Should George Pelecanos write Batman? (Answer: Yes)

This could be a tough one. There aren't too many company-specific people left, what with Mark Bagley going to DC and Mark Waid having written some of Marvel's biggest characters (including, soon, a run on Amazing Spider-Man). But ... okay.

1. Michael Chabon and Mike Allred on Fantastic Four. It sounds like it would be a '60s pastiche, and to a certain extent it would be, but I think these two would bring a good mix of Lee/Kirby reverence, irreverence, and innovation to the book. Plus, aren't you curious to see how Chabon would do a multi-issue arc?

2. Greg Rucka and Joe Bennett on a S.H.I.E.L.D. book. Yes, it'd be Checkmate with a Helicarrier -- but also a high concept that actually pays off.

3. Geoff Johns and Scott Kolins on Incredible Hulk would give Johns a chance to indulge his bloodlust (I kid because I love); and Kolins does big, bulky carnage well.

4. I really liked plok's idea for a Hellboy-esque Mignola Captain America, so I'll appropriate the gist of it. How about Walt Simonson on a 1940s Justice Society of America?

5. Since Waid's going to be writing Spidey, I guess that particular pairing is off-limits; so let's put Paul Dini on Amazing Spider-Man instead, with Cliff Chiang drawing. (Mike Norton if Chiang's unavailable.)

6. I see that Jim Roeg has picked Ed Brubaker for New Teen Titans, and while I'd love to read that, I've gotta put Brubaker on Justice League of America, together with Alan Davis.

How's that?

Full Post

Friday Night Fights

Friday Night Fights is back! Here, Howard has finally gotten the hang of being Sorcerer Supreme -- but of course nothing satisfies like a little chin music!


Coming to you as Bahlactus demands -- in glorious "quack and white!"

(Sorry, couldn't resist....)

[From "The Duck and the Defenders," in Marvel Treasury Edition #12 (1976). Written by Steve Gerber, pencilled by Sal Buscema, inked by Klaus Janson, lettered by Joe Rosen. Reprinted, of course, in Essential Howard The Duck Vol. 1.]

Full Post

Thursday Night Thinking

Groo has no plan for leading his troops -- so the troops devise a plan to distract Groo.

Of course, it's always dangerous to try and remove Groo from a fray, but at least this hapless soul is THINKING before he acts....


Over to you, General Diamondrock!

[From Groo: Hell On Earth #4, April 2008. By Sergio Aragones; with wordsmith Mark Evanier, colorist Tom Luth, and letterer Stan Sakai.]

Full Post

Thursday Night Thinking

One of the great joys of being married is finding out new things to love about your spouse. For instance, I never knew (until she unpacked her office papers last weekend) that the Best Wife Ever had a copy of Marvel's all-star Raiders of the Lost Ark adaptation. Heck, I never knew there was a Raiders adaptation....

Anyway, because it's a comic book, writer Walt Simonson lets us see Indy THINKING--!


If adventure has a name, it must be Diamondrock!

[From Marvel Super Special No. 18, adapting Raiders of the Lost Ark. Adaptation written by Walt Simonson, pencilled by John Buscema, inked by Klaus Janson, lettered by Rick Parker, and colored by Michele Wolfman.]

Full Post