Saturday, June 29, 2013

Man-Eating Cow

Yes, this is real. It is from The Tick comic and got a spin-off series (although I can't find any info on it).
Biography
Chairface Chippendale trained Man-Eating Cow to eat people. She was kept in pit with other man-eating cows and alligators. The idea being that Chairface would throw in the pit people he wanted to get rid of and the animals would eat them. The cows and alligator turned on each other (since, according to issue 7, "the alligator is the cow's natural-born enemy") and Man-Eating Cow was the only survivor. After Chairface was sent to prison, the police tried to transport the cow away, but it escaped. The cow ate two trigger men trying to kill the Tick. When the Tick and Arthur decided to go to New York, the Tick left the City in the Man-Eating Cow's "hands". Since then, the cow has been a superhero by eating criminals.
Powers
The Man-Eating Cow is tougher and stronger than a normal cow. She has seem to have some form of super-eating powers as she ate "through an inch-thick steel cable" (The Tick issue 8) and can eat humans at abnormally fast speed.
References:
http://www.comicvine.com/man-eating-cow/4005-41614/

Friday, June 28, 2013

Ataturk the Llama

Pearls Before Swine has several controversial strips. Among these strips were the Ataturk the Llama strips.
Content
These strips were released on January 9 and 10, 2007. Ataturk is a llama and an UN diplomat. His form of "diplomacy" is to spit on other people. Rat claims Ataturk is from the "Llama Nation" (whom he is presumably the representative for) and that his tendency to spit on people is part of his country's culture.
Controversy
So what was the problem?  Many Turkish-descended readers interpreted the strip as mocking former Turkish president Mustafa Kemal Atatürk and were offended. This was made worse by the fact Greece and Turkey tend to be enemies and Stephen Pastis is of Greek descent. As such, the Turkish ambassador to the US demanded an apology from George Bush and Pastis got a lot of hate mail.
Pastis himself claimed he wasn't mocking Mustafa. He used the name because he liked how the name sounded. He has called this the biggest controversy in Pearls Before Swine's history.
References:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pearls_Before_Swine_(comics)#Ataturk_the_Llama_strips
http://cdn.iciba.com/news/2013/0424/manhuaimg/gifs/u6_20070110p.gif

Wednesday, June 26, 2013

Tag and Bink

Tag and Bink are two Rosencrantz and Guildenstern-like characters that appear in Dark Horse's Star Wars comics.
Tag and Bink Are Dead # 1-2
This has to the titular duo go through the events of the original Star Wars trilogy. Tag and Bink are two rebels that were on Tantive IV when the Devastator attacked it. The two beat up two stormtroopers and stole their uniforms. They ended up on the Death Star. After a failed attempt to go to Alderaan (the Death Star blew it up), they accidentally returned to the Death Star and Darth Vader makes them the pilots of two TIE fighters.  During the climactic battle of Star Wars Episode 4, Tag and Bink accidentally really get Vader killed. Tag and Bink stole an Imperial landing craft to save themselves when the Death Star was blown up. After meeting people such as Lando Calrissian, Emperor Palpatine and Boba Fett, they found themselves on the second Death Star and were killed when the Rebels blew it up. They live on as Force ghosts in purgatory.
Tag and Bink: Revenge of the Clone Menace
This is a prequel to the original and has Tag and Bink go through the events of the Star Wars prequels. Tag and Bink tried (and failed) to become Jedis under the tutorship of Yoda. At a restraunt, they give Anakin Skywalker tips on how to deal with his relationship problems with Padmé. They went back to the Jedi Temple (which took them several years) and discovered Darth Vader and his stormtroopers killed all the other Jedis. Due to their past association with him and their promise to give being Jedis, Vader spares them. Tag and Bink Are Dead takes palce 20 years later.
References:
http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Tag_%26_Bink_Are_Dead
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tag_and_Bink
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tag_and_Bink:_Revenge_of_the_Clone_Menace

Tuesday, June 25, 2013

Mighty Agrippa, Roman God of the Aqueduct

The Mighty Agrippa is one of the most powerful superheroes in The Tick comics.
Biography
Despite being likely the most powerful superhero in the Tick universe, he is a low-ranking deity.  He was the last god to join the Roman pantheon. However when he actually showed up at Olympus, he discovered the gates were locked and the other gods had abandoned him. However, Agrippa hopes they will return one day. He became superhero for unknown reasons. His alter ego is Dexter Fisk, who is a mild-mannered plumber and "reformed protestant". However, Dexter can turn into Agrippa by tapping his grout trowel. Agrippa has become a field agent for the Tri-State Superhero Congress by hunting down superhero fugitives.
Powers
He has the standard powers of super strength, invulnerability and flight. However, since he is the god of aqueducts, he also has the ability to teleport water instantly. There appears to be no limit to this ability since he accidentally created a sea next to the City. Said sea became a tourist attraction.
References:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mighty_Agrippa,_Roman_God_of_the_Aqueduct

Monday, June 24, 2013

Sixpack

Overview
He is the leader of the team Section 8, which consists of mentally ill superhero wannabes. Despite thinking he is a superhero, he is actually just a drunk guy that fails to realize most of his "adventures" were little more than drunken dreams. He hangs out at Noonan's Sleazy Bar. His "power" is attacking people with broken bottles.
History
He founded Section 8 to be the superhero team of the Irish section of Gotham City (called "The Cauldron"). The rest of his team were good-intentioned, but mentally unstable people. The team helped Tommy Monaghan / Hitman from time to time. The team disbanded when Friendly Flame (a member) pointed out how pathetic they are. However, they united to fight the demonic Multi-Angled Ones. The Multi-Angled Ones, amused by him, offered to stop attacking the Earth if Sixpack would fight them with his soul being on the line. Sixpack agreed and he and the Multi-Angled Ones disappeared. A statue was made in his honor. It is implied he defeated the Multi-Angled Ones as he was seen at an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting.
References:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Section_8_(comics)
http://www.comicvine.com/sixpack/4005-12133/

Sunday, June 23, 2013

Maze Agency

Overview
Maze Agency focuses on two detectives and the mysteries they solve. The comic is notable for being a "fair play" mystery that give the readers clues to solve the mystery themselves. However, Mike Barr admits a few of the stories are "too complex for the reader to solve". He also cited Ellery Queen as an inspiration.
Characters
  • Jennifer Mays- She is a main character. She is a tough and smart ex-CIA agent that runs a private detective agency. Few know about her soft side.
  • Gabriel Webb- He is a main character. He is a crime writer and detective that works with Jennifer. He is easily distracted and scatterbrain, but has a deductive mind. He won't officially join her because of their romantic relationship and thinks such action would inappropriate.
  • Detective Roberta Bliss- She is a NYPD detective. She is of Puerto Rican descent. She is annoyed how Mays and Webb tend to cause complications, but has a begrudging respect for them.
  • Ashley Swift- She is Mays' detective rival and ex-boss. She is arrogant (much to Mays' annoyance) and a competent detective.
References:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maze_Agency

Friday, June 21, 2013

Marvel No-Prize

What the Heck Is It?
The No-Prize was a fake award that readers would get from Marvel Comics. You could get it for having done a "meritorious service to the cause of Marveldom" (such as finding or explaining mistakes in continuity).  The term "No-Prize" comes from Fantastic Four issue 26, where Stan Lee wrote (in a letter printed in the issue) "there will be no prizes, and therefore, no losers."
History
It was the practice of other companies to give a prize to people that found mistakes or wrote a letter. Marvel fans asked Marvel to do the same. As a joke, Stan Lee (starting in 1964) decided to give people, who had perform some form of "meritorious service to the cause of Marveldom", a letter that told them what they won a No-Prize i.e. nothing at all. While at first he gave it to people that wrote creative responses to questions he posed in the letter column, Stan Lee decided to take a new approach. As a parody of the practice that inspired it, he gave these out to people that found such mistakes in Marvel publications. Despite intending the No-Prize to remind Marvel readers to just relax and enjoy the stories, letters sent to Marvel tripled. In response to the people asking why they didn't get an award, Marvel Comics, starting in 1967, sent envelopes with the words "Congratulations, this envelope contains a genuine Marvel Comics No-Prize which you have just won!" printed on it. In 1982, Marvel produced The Official Marvel No-Prize Book (which points out and mocks Marvel's past mistakes). In 1986, editor Mark Gruenwald discontinued the practice since he felt it had negatively affect the letters sent to letter columns. In 1989, Ronald Perelman (would drive Marvel into bankruptcy) called the No-Prizes "a silly, expensive extravagance to mail out." Despite this, Tom DeFalco brought the practice back in 1991 (when he was editor-in-chief) and made a new criteria: that in order to get a No-Prize, you had to perform a "meritorious service to Marvel above and beyond the call of duty".
References:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/No-Prize