#Mr. mxyztplk

[cgbcomics]

[cavernclaw]

I hate this stupid twink

[dontaskchaosandco]

what even is this guy's design

[longwuzhere]

Some cool Easter eggs I caught watching My Adventures with Superman that I want to show to people so they can be in on it with comic book readers

My episode 1 easter eggs and references in My Adventures with Superman post is here

My episode 2 easter eggs and references in My Adventures with Superman post is here

My episode 3 easter eggs and references in My Adventures with Superman post is here

My episode 4 easter eggs and references in My Adventures with Superman post is here

My episode 5 easter eggs and references in My Adventures with Superman post is here

My Episode 6 easter eggs and references in My Adventures with Superman post is here

My second half of Episode 7 easter eggs and references in My Adventures with Superman post is here

My Episode 8 easter eggs and references in My Adventures with Superman post is here

My Episode 9 easter eggs and references in My Adventures with Superman post is here

My Episode 10 easter eggs and references in My Adventures with Superman post is here

My Easter eggs and references in My Adventures with Superman comic issue 1 post is here

My Easter eggs and references in My Adventures with Superman comic issue 2 post is here

My Easter eggs and references for My Adventures with Superman comic issue 3 post is here

(SPOILERS if you haven't seen the show yet):

We start things off with the title of the episode, "Kiss Kiss Fall in Portal" a fun nod to the lyrics of Ouran High School Host club's OP, Sakura Kiss by Chieko Kawabe. Very apt since Clark wanted to show the cherry blossoms to Lois on their date.

Next Jimmy razzing Clark for his extremely scheduled date plans for Lois and razzing Lois for her gift to Clark. Each of them reference what happened in previous episodes. With the first thing Clark and Lois I talked about it here and the second thing Clark mentioned I talked about it here.

After we cut back from Lois and Jimmy picking up Lois's dry cleaning, we meet the villain of the episode, Mr. Mxyztplk. In the comics, Mxy makes his first appearance in Superman #30 (1944) by Joe Shuster, Jerry Seigel, and Ira Yarbrough as you can see in the page above this text. Mxy is a 5th dimension imp who plays jokes and pranks on Superman and can only be rid of if Mxy says his name backwards. Yeah Mxy is a MAJORLY annoying thorn at Clarks side. MAwS Mxy, as you can tell has a DRASTIC overhaul in design kinda shares color and design choices with Whis from the Dragon Ball Super anime. Also in the show Mxy is a chaos god compared to the annoying imp in the comics.

Classic way to describe Clark Kent. That's a given in any Superman media.

Next we see Mxy mess with Clark by snapping him into his various Superman animation incarnations from the Max Fleischer cartoons, the Superfriends cartoons, and the cartoon that introduced Superman to me, Superman the Animated Series. Shout out to the MAwS team for remembering to give StAS Superman the darker trunks. People often forget that. Same with the red belt on the Fleisher Superman and the cape circling behind the neck of Superfriends Superman when usually the cape exposes the next a lot more too. Very good attention to detail.

With Lois and Jimmy they meet alternate versions of themselves. We meet two different Loises and one Louis Lane. There actually is a Louis Lane in the comics who has connections to Mxyzptlk.

In Superman #349 (1980) (W: Martin Pasko, P: Curt Swan, I: Frank Chiaramonte, C: Adrienne Roy, L: Ben Oda), Clark is forced into a genderbent world thanks to Mxyzptlk where he meets, as you can see on the page, gender flipped versions of his Daily Planet colleagues. Clark is eventually able to escape the world and defeat Mxy where he actually meet Louis Lane, Lois Lane's legit cousin. Bonus fun fact Osric Chau who voices Louis Lane, was the Atom/Ryan Choi on the CW DC shows

The League of Loises have a ship that's kinda similar to one of the ships designed by Rian Hughes and Grant Morrison on the Multiverse Map. I talked more about that map and the multiverse here

Lois Prime here shares similar designs to Fleischer Studios' Lois Lane. Very good homage to the look.

Next scene is EASTER EGGS GALORE and the section that took the longest for me to do. When Mxy and Clark break into the Science and Superhero Museum that Lois Prime created, we see a mace and an elaborately designed box of some sort. If you know your DC universe, these two things are a Thanagarian (alien hawk people) Nth Metal (strongest metal in the DC universe) Maces that is usually wielded by Hawkman and Hawkwoman/girl (as you can see both of them wielding their own respective maces on the comic covers here. The first one is from Justice League #15 (2019) done by Jim Cheung Tomey Moreu and the second cover is from Hawkman #1 (2018) done by Stjepan Šejić) and the box is a Mother Box from the New Gods. The Nth Metal mace makes its first debut in the Brave and the Bold #34 (1961) though it resembles more like flails and even then the Nth metal mace is a morningstar, but its alien technology maybe Thanagarians call these weapons maces where here we call it a morningstar.

Mother Boxes are basically supercomputers that the New Gods use. Created by Jack Kirby and debuted in the Forever People #1 (1971), Mother Boxes have a wide range of uses from energy and molecule manipulation, energy transferring, Boom Tube summoning to travel inter-dimensionally or inter-/intra- galactically, machine manipulation. The page from Who's Who-The Definitive Directory of the DC Universe #16 (1986) explains what a Mother Box is in full detail.

The camera then shifts and we see a Green Lantern Power Battery, a T-Sphere, and a book on display. The farthest item is an obvious one, a Power Battery that Green Lantern uses to recharge the Power Ring. This version of the Power Battery and Green Lantern make their debut in Showcase 22 (1959). The final two panels from the comic (W: Jon Broome, P: Gil Kane, I: Joe Giella, L: Gaspar Saladino) shows Hal Jordan recharging the ring with the Power Battery.

T-Spheres are floating spheres used by Mr. Terrific aka Michael Holt. These spheres can form laser grids, act as sensor arrays, bombs, record video and audio, hack into computers, display holograms, and discharge electricity to shock things or people. They make their debut in JSA #11 (2000) as seen there in the middle two panels (W: Geoff Johns, David Goyer, P: Buzz, I: Michael Bair, C: John Kalisz, L: Ken Lopez).

The book is a little harder to pinpoint, but my guess is this is the Book of Souls/the Cosmic Log/The Book of Destiny. If Lois Prime is able to find all this stuff and is able to preserve it in a museum, I wouldn't be surprised if Destiny of the Endless gave her an inert copy of the book for the museum. The book makes its debut in Weird Mystery Tales #1 (1972) (Page art by Michael Kaluta). The book records everything that is, was, and will be. If you haven't read the comics, you might have seen it be used on the CW DC shows rewriting the histories of their characters.

Ok so at the moment I am near the end of my 30 images limit so I will be making another post to hopefully finish the rest, but in the meantime, now that you are down here, feel free to check out the other easter eggs and references posts -

My episode 1 easter eggs and references in My Adventures with Superman post is here

My episode 2 easter eggs and references in My Adventures with Superman post is here

My episode 3 easter eggs and references in My Adventures with Superman post is here

My episode 4 easter eggs and references in My Adventures with Superman post is here

My episode 5 easter eggs and references in My Adventures with Superman post is here

My Episode 6 easter eggs and references in My Adventures with Superman post is here

My second half of Episode 7 easter egs and references in My Adventures with Superman post is here

My Episode 8 easter eggs and references in My Adventures with Superman post is here

My Episode 9 easter eggs and references in My Adventures with Superman post is here

My Episode 10 easter eggs and references in My Adventures with Superman post is here

My Easter eggs and references in My Adventures with Superman comic issue 1 post is here

My Easter eggs and references in My Adventures with Superman comic issue 2 post is here

My Easter eggs and references for My Adventures with Superman comic issue 3 post is here

[tyrantisterror]

Have you watched season two of My Adventures with Superman? If so, what did you think of it? I imagine you’d really like the show’s version of Supergirl.

I haven't finished the first season, actually - I think the last episode I saw was the one where they made Mr. Mxyztplk sexy.

I have seen screenshots of season 2, where Super Girl is wearing one of Android 18's fits and also they made Silver St. Cloud a hot plus sized model. I need to catch up on it, I liked the episodes I watched and I'm a pretty big fan of superhero stories where the romance actually matters.

[a-typical]

A 1969 study by the National Academy of Sciences, while recognizing that there are reports 'not easily explained', concluded that 'the least likely explanation of UFOs is the hypothesis of extraterrestrial visitations by intelligent beings'. Think of how many other 'explanations' there might be: time travellers; demons from witchland; tourists from another dimension - like Mr Mxyztplk (or was it Mxyzptlk? I always forget) from the land of Zrfff in the Fifth Dimension in the old Superman comic books; the souls of the dead; or a 'noncartesian' phenomenon that doesn't obey the rules of science or even of logic. Each of these 'explanations' has in fact been seriously proffered. 'Least likely' is really saying something. This rhetorical excess is an index of how distasteful the whole subject has become to many scientists.

— The Demon-Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark - Carl Sagan (1996)

[capesandjapes]

Today we talk about Mr. Mxyzptlk, who is just a funky little guy from the fifth dimension who likes to come to Earth to annoy Superman and cause problems.

[why-i-love-comics]

Superman #30 - "The Mysterious Mr. Mxyztplk!" (1944)

written by Jerry Siegel art by Ira Yarbrough

[i-r-readcomics]

Superman

Volume: 1 #30

Superman Alias Superman

Lois Lane: "The Arch-Swindler"

The King's Substitutes

The Mysterious Mr. Mxyztplk!

Writers: Don Cameron, Bill Finger, Jerry Siegel

Pencils: Ira Yarbrough, Ed Dobrotka

Inks: Stan Kaye, George Roussos, Ira Yarbrough

Colours: Liz Berube, Anthony Tollin

Covers: Jack Burnley

Featuring: Superman (Clark Kent), Lois Lane, Mister Mxyztplk

DC

[chernobog13]

As much fun as Mr. Mxyzptlk can be as Superman’s personal trickster deity, I much prefer his Golden Age counterpart, Mr. Mxyztplk.

Apparently the producers of Superman: The Animated Series agreed with me, although they kept the Silver Age spelling and pronunciation of his name.

I believe most of the Mr. Mxyptlk episodes were written by Paul Dini, who absolutely nailed the 5th dimensional imp’s characterization: he’s essentially a Looney Tunes character who comes to Metropolis just to keep Superman from taking himself too seriously.

And thanks to those episodes, whenever I read a Mxyzptlk story in my mind I hear him speaking with Gilbert Gottfried’s voice.

Mr. KLTPZYXM from the Superman comics.

[cryingalexanders]

Superman: TAS s2 reactions

Alright I love Clark taking offense at Emil calling it the fortress of solitude

Again this trope that treats the UN like it has any actual authority dskjfslk

Wow this episode doesn’t care about civilians. I’m pretty sure that person walking across the bridge was obliterated

Superman’s spacesuit melting off as they fall to earth was so cool

These AUSTRALIAN ACCENTS. I find it charming but the captain sounds more like a new zealander and one of the others sounds kind of british. Actual Australian voice actors are kept out of hollywood for this smh

Leslie is fun, but my god making a “punk” your villain makes Clark and Lois come off as out of touch. why is this such a persistent trend in kid’s media

“That’s coming out of your pay” Lex has the best one-liners

A bit disappointing that Clark is such a jerk in the Bizarro ep, but you can’t say it’s out-of-character for this version of him.

This isn’t quite bringing Bizarro to the level of a tragic BTAS villain, but they are giving him more sympathy than was the norm at the time I feel

Wow Tim Daly was voicing Bizarro. I love it when we get to see an actor’s range like that

Hearing Gilbert Gottfried’s voice as Mxyztplk took me out

I do really like how the silver age references in the newsroom/petting zoo scene seem so fitting. Like, Lois turning into a horse just seems like randomness, and Jimmy turning into a turtle is a pun in the dialogue. Cool stuff

Of course a DCAU protagonist gets his obligatory “running around a building capeless and defenseless” moment

So we have the classic “Lois dies and Superman goes fascist” storyline, but this is (kind of) interesting because the focal character is the normal dimension’s Lois, Jimmy is the one leading her around and explaining what happened, and the police state is explicitly shown to be bad

I feel like even though Kingdom Come is the source of evil in regards to this idea, this version of Clark has already felt.. not very moral. So this kind of thing seemed like a natural progression

It’s nice that we’re getting Lois’ sister and father, but I was not expecting it to happen in the Titano episode

Oh nice the toy’s name is Beppo

It just implied that Mercy has a thing for Lex, boy I am glad that never took off in her other appearances

I love these little crab drones

I know all the women’s skirts are short for fanservice but the way they have to stand with their thighs together and shins apart for modesty…looks goofy in the middle of action scenes.

Bruno Manheim getting stuck on Apokolips is actually hilarious

Lois hanging out with the Kents before she and Clark have even started dating is PRECIOUS

Gotta love that couple who run off still holding their wine glasses

Ah I actually have seen the World’s Finest episodes before so it’ll be interesting to watch them again with the context of the show so far

Interesting that this is the first time the danger of Kryptonite radiation to humans is expressed

I never realised that the Joker made the “Lex is Mr Clean” joke before anyone else did

So this episode is already leagues better than the episodes surrounding it, and I think this is one reason this show doesn’t get any real attention within the DCAU. Nothing I’ve seen so far as been bad, per se, but nothing has been as good as the best episodes of BTAS or JLU. It’s all really middling, and there’s no real strong sense of Clark’s character or relationships. The only progression (I know its more similar to anthology but) we get is his and Lois’ relationship trying to get off the ground, and in these episodes it dips into really tired jealousy tropes when Bruce comes into things. But bringing Bruce between a relationship as classic and Clark and Lois is one of the things which really betrays how overwhelmingly the creators of these shows prioritised Batman. (Which tends to be really hard to explain to people who have seen these and only read Batman comics). It’s just meh.

I forgot that Lois found out Bruce’s identity in this. I think it’s implied later in JLU that she knows Clark’s though he never told her? Idk it’s been years since I saw it

*fierce alien monster jumps at Bizarro’s face* “doggy!” honestly how can you not love Bizarro

Bizarro just kidnapped some guy who looks vaguely like Jor-El adjksjfsldk

John Henry is here! Yes!

Yeah I think this season has been much better with its portrayal of the police in general. They mostly aren’t framed as heroes, useless at best. And they’re definitely building up a bad vibe with this Sergeant Mills guy.

The message of this episode is dampened by the fact that Superman has not been.. any more gentle than this. You can’t really tell me that Mills is causing more damage and fear than Superman’s usual activities based on what you’ve shown me up to this point lol. Honestly it’s really inexplicable when Superman stories try to pull this “new hero is dangerous and destructive” when we regularly see Supes himself causing that kind of damage and no one seems to care

Clark was literally about to eat Ron Troupe’s cold pizza leftovers. I am disgusted. But it is not.. not unrelatable

Oh I really love this. An episode that focuses on Clark investigating was what I wanted!

Martha calmly repeating that her son’s car blew up and fell into the ocean. Lmao great moment

Oh. Lois crying and saying she liked Clark. I can see why this is a classic episode

Ok ‘The Late Mr Kent’ is easily my favourite episode so far

Oh we have Natasha! I didn’t realise she was from this far back lol. I’ve seen her in a few early 2000s Man of Steel comics

The ramshackle news broadcast is a whole mood

I love that John Henry and Nat save Clark and then get out of there. No fooling around

This Maxima episode.. I’ve always found her a cringey villain on a conceptual level. And they manage to make it entertaining, but it’s still. kinda yikes to begin with

Clark hitting his head on the steps as Maxima drags him fjskjflk

It’s cute that they went the route of giving Maxima character development

Why is it always the Apokolips episodes that elevate the police characters. Am I watching Superman or an animated procedural?

Ok the problem with Turpin’s death is that it feels unearned in light of the series, and is also pretty hokey within the episode? I knew the show was trying to make me sad, but it didn’t feel sad to me. I guess this is my narm  

“Nothing. There’s nothing out there but death.” This the same Clark who was offended when Emil Hamilton dubbed his hideout the Fortress of Solitude?

I get that Kara’s costume is fashionable for the time but it really looks more like clubwear than a feasible superhero costume. Also she’s very much characterised as a teenager…

[brevoorthistoryofcomics]

One of the advantages of the Treasury Edition format is that it was sturdy enough that it allowed outlets that didn’t typically carry comics to stock them, such as department stores. They were also not quite periodicals, so they’d often remain on sale in these stores for months and years at a time. So it was with this SUPERMAN treasury, which I got in, I think, a JC Penny’s store after having seen it multiple times.

It’s a big collection of stories all selected around the theme of the Man of Steel’s interactions with children. In the opening reprint, produced by the Siegel & Shuster studio (but with their byline removed in these pre-settlement days) Superman breaks the time barrier to help an injured boy win an autograph competition over a spoiled rich kid. It’s tantamount to cheating, but since winning will give the boy the confidence to walk again, Superman goes along with it, collecting signatures through the ages from Washington, Lincoln, the signers of the Declaration of Independence and more. But of course, it’s Superman’s own signature that seals the deal.

Next up was a two-part story in which Superman was bedeviled by the “Juvenile Delinquents of Space”, Zigi and Zagi from Alpha Centauri. They come to Earth on a joyride and wind up using their advanced super-science to cause mischief for the Man of Steel. Superman unearths their buried ride and convinces them to take off for home--unaware that an escaped killer has stowed away on their ship. Once he discovers what’s happened, the Man of Tomorrow has no choice but to pursue them into space.

But the trip causes the killer to knock himself out, and Zigi and Zagi conceal him from Superman in order to keep the Man of Steel on their homeworld. They connive to set him up with their sister Zyra. But Zyra secretly loves another, and Superman works to bring them together before heading back home without the killer he’d pursued--only to discover that the two alien kids had earlier shipped him back to the Earth authorities.

Next came another offering of the uncredited Siegel & Shuster studio, this one bringing together two of the series recurring pest characters, Mr Mxyztplk the mystical imp and Susie, Lois Lane’s fibbing niece. Entranced by Susie’s imagination, Mxyztplk makes all of her wild whoppers come true, much to Superman’s frustration. But eventually, of course, the Man of Steel tricks Mxyztplk into speaking his name backward, and back to the 5th Dimension he goes!

The Treasury Editions often contained special features as well as stories. This one contained a brief art lesson by Curt Swan about how to draw different members of the Superman extended cast. It wasn’t in-depth enough for me to get a grasp on the principles involved, but as I was already making my own home-grown comics (mostly knock-offs of books I was reading) this kind of thing fascinated me.

In the final story, the predilection of the Superman stories of this era to pair the Man of Tomorrow up with characters bearing the initials LL is parodied in a way, as a prophecy machine predicts that Superman’s life will be saved today by L.L. As Superman is trapped by Kryptonite and lies dying, the story eliminates one by one all of the assorted LLs in his life. Superman is ultimately saved by Steven Snapinn (no doubt named in tribute to DC letterer Milton Snapinn or perhaps his son) But he counts because he’s wearing his Little League uniform! Don’t tell me that these 1960s Superman stories weren’t serious stuff!

[hellyeahheroes]

Black History Month Character of the Day: Jakeem John Williams

Back in the 40′s a boy named Johnny Thunder would find a magic pen that contained a freaking genie named Thunderbolt. Using Thunderbolt’s power he would become a superhero and an ally of the Justice Society of America. As the time passed Johnny grew old and started suffering from Alzheimer's that affected him to the point he mistook his magic pen for a normal one and gave it as a birthday gift to the original Flash, Jay Garrick. Oblivious to the whole mix-up Jay would give the pen away to a teenage boy, Jakeem Williams. 

After first appearing in Flash #134 it wasn’t until JLA #26-31 that Jakeem would summon Thunderbolt. In which it turns out Thunderbolt’s real name is YZ and he is not a traditional genie but a being from 5th Dimension - the same place that infamous 5th-Dimensional Imps like Mr. Mxyztplk or Bat-Mite come from. One of them, Quisp, decided to amuse himself by setting up a fight between Yz and another being like him, Lkz. A fight that would destroy the Earth. Jakeem joined members of JLA and JSA venturing to 5th Dimension, where they convinced the ruling class of Imps to stop the destruction of Earth....if only because Mr. Mxyztplk would be insufferable without Superman to prank. Jakeem would merge Yz and Lkz into a new being, Ylzkz, who now lives in the magic pen and can be controlled by saying the phrase “so cool”. Jakeem would then take a codename Jakeem Thunder, or sometimes JJ Thunder, and join the JSA, becoming one of their protegees and starring in adventures in JSA #19-21, #29-38, #45-56 #66-74 and #79-87, Justice Society of America #10-15 and #21-26, JSA vs Kobra and JSA Classified #6-8 & #26-28

- Admin

[smashpages]

Nominees announced for the 2020 Hugo Awards

The nominees were announced via livestream today for the 2020 Hugo Awards, which includes a “Best Graphic Story or Comic” category. Four of the six nominees were published by Image, while Dark Horse’s Berger Books imprint and Oni Press each received one.

Presented annually since 1955, The Hugo Awards recognize the best science fiction in books, comics, movies, TV and more. The Hugo Awards are voted on by members of the World Science Fiction Convention every year. The Hugo Award for Best Graphic Story has been awarded since 2009, with previous winners including volumes of Saga, Ms. Marvel, Girl Genius and Sandman: Overture. Monstress has won the award for the last three years and is up for the award again this year.

The nominees are:

Die, Volume 1: Fantasy Heartbreaker, Kieron Gillen, illustrated by Stephanie Hans (Image Comics)

The Wicked + The Divine, Volume 9: Okay, Kieron Gillen, illustrated by Jamie McKelvie & Matt Wilson (Image Comics)

Monstress, Volume 4: The Chosen, Marjorie Liu, illustrated by Sana Takeda (Image Comics)

LaGuardia, Nnedi Okorafor, illustrated by Tana Ford, colours by James Devlin (Berger Books/Dark Horse)

Paper Girls, Volume 6, Brian K. Vaughan, illustrated by Cliff Chiang & Matt Wilson (Image Comics)

Mooncakes, Wendy Xu & Suzanne Walker (Oni Press; Lion Forge)

They also announced the 1945 “retro ballot” for works that were released in 1944. The nominees for the comics category on the retro ballet include:

Donald Duck: “The Mad Chemist”, Carl Barks (Dell Comics)

Buck Rogers: “Hollow Planetoid”, Dick Calkins (National Newspaper Service)

Flash Gordon: “Battle for Tropica”, Alex Raymond (King Features Syndicate)

Flash Gordon: “Triumph in Tropica”, Alex Raymond (Kings Features Syndicate)

Superman: “The Mysterious Mr. Mxyztplk”, Jerry Siegel & Joe Shuster (DC)

The Spirit: “For the Love of Clara Defoe”, Manly Wade Wellman, Lou Fine, and Don Komisarow

The winners will be announced this summer at WorldCon, which was originally going to take place in New Zealand but will now be virtual, because of the coronavirus. You can find the complete list of nominees on the Hugo Awards site.

[thecomicsnexus]

AMBUSH BUG #1-4 JUNE - SEPTEMBER 1985 BY KEITH GIFFEN, ROBERT LOREN FLEMING, BOB OKSNER AND ANTHONY TOLLIN

SYNOPSIS (FROM DC DATABASE)

The story begins with a giant alien space ship about to invade Earth, everyone is in a panic! But wait, wait, no, it's all a marketing plot to get people to buy Ambush Bug #1 and it works as the first issue sells out. Meanwhile, at the Ambush Bug Detective Agency, Ambush Bug is surprised when his old psychiatrist Derwood Denton stands up for him on national television. Just then a garbage truck hits a bump and one of it's contents falls out and smashes through Ambush Bug's windows. Investigating, he finds a toy doll with big cheeks, thinking it's a real live boy, Ambush Bug decides to adopt it and make it his ward and sidekick, naming it Cheeks the Toy Wonder. The Bug then dresses himself and Cheeks up in super-hero costumes and go about the city looking for crimes to bust.

While at a warehouse, a group of terrorists who are against Democrats have taken their grandmother hostage (She did vote for Jimmy Carter..) and plan on blowing up the warehouse (which is full of a lethal nerve gas) and the police have the place surrounded. When Ambush Bug spots the scene, he decides to try and save the day. As the Bug secrets himself into the building the police are informed that the terrorists have bungled and got the wrong warehouse.

Inside, Ambush Bug manages to throw off the criminals and confuse them by using Cheeks as a decoy. When the leader of the terrorists realizes that he is afraid of a doll he kicks Cheeks aside making of his button eyes fall off. Furious, Ambush Bug chases the ring-leader to a sporting goods store where he beats him up with a baseball bat. As Ambush Bug defeats the last of the terrorists and saves the grandmother, he leaves Cheeks behind to defuse the bomb. Of course, Cheeks is just a doll and so the bomb goes off "killing" Cheeks.

Just then, the story is interrupted by Peabody, Dicker and Pending who are revealing a new line of Ambush Bug promotional items for the consumer: The Ambush Bug Aerobics Physical Fitness Work Out Book for People, An Ambush Bug data sheet, Late Night: A horror novel by Ambush Bug, and a funny strip called Little Bug (wherein a child Ambush Bug is looking forward to Nuclear fallout, but then has to spend the next day shoveling it out of his mothers driveway.)

Getting back to the story, Ambush Bug turns over the terrorists to the authorities, and then holds a funeral for Cheeks. In mourning, Ambush Bug is then visited by his Guardian Angel who gives him words of advice: dead super-heroes sell comic books. Reinvigorated and excited about he success of his first issue, Ambush Bug decides to celebrate the death of his sidekick by ordering a pizza, and walks back home thinking up various euphemisms to get over the loss of Cheeks.

When he gets home, Ambush Bug is shocked to find Darkseid is waiting for him in his apartment.

Our story begins in the apartment of Jonni DC, keeper of continuity in the DC Comics Universe, she is not impressed when a during radio report about the latest exploits of Mr. Mxyzptlk, they call him Mr. Mxyztplk (his Earth-Two counterpart), it's just another day in the life of the keeper of continuity.

Meanwhile, a desperate janitor seeks the services of Ambush Bug and interrupts the Bug while he is taking a shower. The janitor tells the Bug that he worked in the cuteness wing of the Paddywac science lab. There, scientist Quentin Quantis was trying to isolate the cause of cuteness, using Koala's as a source to extract it from. Isolating the enzyme, he ingested it and slowly became Quantis, a giant Koala who walks like a man! Just as this bit of exposition is done, Quantis' foot smashes through the roof of Ambush Bug's office killing the janitor. Ambush Bug decides to do something about it, bit first an intermission.... The reader is shown the results of the "1985 Gnatty Dresser Awards" showcasing Ambush Bug in different outfits, and then presented with The Ambush Bug Guide to Collecting Comics.

Back to the story... As Quantis rampages through Metropolis, the creature draws the attention of Jonni DC, who changes into keeper of continuity form and tries to stop Quantis because he will mess up continuity. However, she is no match for the creatures cute sneezes and Quantis attempts to play golf with her. However, this development of the plot is far too absurd for DC Comics Editor Julius Schwartz and he has Keith Giffen and Bob Flemming pull it from the story.

With the police ineffective against Quantis, Ambush Bug tries his hand at trying to stop the creature with minimal success and ends up being swallowed by the cute terror. Inside the creatures stomach, Ambush Bug meets Dr. Bagel and his wife who were eaten by Quantis earlier. They tell Ambush Bug of an antidote back at the lab, and the Bug teleports out of there to get it.

Ambush Bug then gets the antidote, but before he can administer it Giffen and Flemming cut back to Quantis trying to play golf again with Jonni DC much to Schwartz's annoyance. When the story gets back on track, Ambush Bug administers the antidote turning Quantis back into his human form, and he is knocked out by Jonni DC (who was finally hit by that damn golf playing Quantis -- Hey, did you expect this story to make sense or what?) With Quantis defeated, Ambush Bug decides to go get some fast food, and is horrified to find that the person serving him is none other than.... Darkseid!

Ambush Bug decides to take this issue to give the reader his own tour of the DC Comics Universe, taking time to point out some of the more forgettable character of Pre-Crisis DC Universe. He reminds us of Egg Fu's appearances in Wonder Woman, and the forgettable Wonder Tot character. He then begins a detective mystery trying to find out where certain characters in the DC Universe had gone, starting with Binky. He interrogates some of his friends and colleagues and learns that he possibly ran off with a girl from Earth-Two. He later reminds us of Super-Turtle and the very annoying Aquaman back-up character Quisp and informs us of their mysterious disappearances.

We're next shown two actors (Hembeck style) pretending to be readers of Ambush Bug hoping to learn Ambush Bug's secret origin in this issue, however Ambush Bug calls them on their true roles and goes back to the his investigation. He writes an ode to the Super-Pets Krypto and Streaky to the tune of popular songs, and then takes a moment to have a laugh about Super-Monkey and Comet's convoluted storyline. After meeting with the Green Team, Ambush Bug then writers a report about Cheeks and Itty, the Green Lantern's embarrassing and thankfully short lived animal side kick. Ambush Bug next meets with Bat-Mite who complains about the sudden changes in Batman's character from the campy caped crusader to the gritty dark knight with a reaaaalllly long cape. Ambush Bug is surprised that Bat-Mite has shacked up with Star-Mite instead of Batgirl-Mite.

The story is interrupted with an intermission where we are given a science lesson about Superman's powers, a feature called "Ambush Bug Around the World" and a "How to Draw Ambush Bug" with a great teriyaki burger recipe, a "What If" about if the deadline couldn't be met how the story would go if another writer took over (such as Jack Kirby, Ernie Colon, Frank Miller, Steve Ditko, and Gil Kane), and a order form from the Ambush Bug Mart.

Continuing his quest to find missing DC character, he wonders about what happened to Cyrll and Doodles Duck, and learns that the House of Mystery has been put up for sale. After his search is interrupted by the Inferior Five calling Ambush Bug on the fact that they ripped off their concept, the Bug laughs about Ace the Bat-Hound, and makes a comment about Julius Schwartz, and when Schwartz wants a fight scene, Ambush Bug is only happy to comply and give people an instruction on how to draw comics in a grid.

Back to the story, we learn that Mopee an obscure Flash character who claimed to be responsible for the Flash getting his powers is also taking credit for having a hand in every popular DC characters origins. After a visit to Bizarro World where Bizarro Ambush Bug is tormented, Ambush Bug muses about the Glob and finally learns the culprit to all these disappearances: Jonni DC, who's job it is to clean up DC community, however she is incinerated by.... Darkseid!

After a brief introduction into the Ambush Bug family where we meet Ambush Bug's family, which apparently consists of real ambush bugs, we cut a local police precinct in Metropolis. Here the villain known as Scabbard comes back from the dead and reclaims his head, which is being used by a police officer as an ashtray. Scabbard then goes off to get revenge against his foe Thriller. Scabbard instead runs into Ambush Bug, who is out for sushi, and frightening all the customers with his disgusting stories.

With everyone afraid to confront Scabbard, and with the villain hopelessly lost, Ambush Bug decides to take him on, but first reads up on Scabbard by reading a back issue of the comic "Thriller". Dawning a crude fencing costume, Ambush Bug battles Scabbard (with artist assists from Keith Giffen's son) eventually Scabbard realizes that he's in the wrong comic book, stops the fight, apologizes and walks away from a confused Ambush Bug.

Realizing that they have more pages to do for this issue, the Ambush Bug creative team panic to come up with ideas on how to keep readers hooked. The best they can come up with is the "Death of Ambush Bug" however, the Bug refuses to participate in such a pathetic attempt to boost sales. Coming up with a new idea, the plot progresses...

While doing laundry, Ambush Bug notices that one of his socks is missing and thus begins a search to find this and other missing socks. He eventually stumbles upon a conspiracy orchestrated by Argh!yle, an animated sock that apparently came from the same space ship that was bitten by a radioactive space spider and contained Ambush Bug's uniform. The sock's pair being destroyed in a crash, and it gaining sentience from the radiation, the sock soon found itself abandoned and lonely. Hitting rock bottom finding solace in bing drinking until it was savagely attacked by a cat. Surviving and creating an iron mask, the sock, now calling itself Argh!yle, had built a giant bureau in space and began to use advanced technology to reanimate odd socks and recruit them in an army to get revenge against Ambush Bug.

Sending his minions after the Bug, they capture him and bring him aboard the bureau, where they use the device the "Balluptatron" to twist Ambush Bug up into a ball and launch him back to Earth. It doesn't kill him, but boy was it embarrassing. After a brief interruption to see the Ambush Bug family tree and a pin-up of Starfire, Ambush Bug throws a wrap party to celebrate the final issue of his first mini-series. He reveals to the reader that it wasn't Darkseid that was used as a cliffhanger each issue, but an inflatable replica.

REVIEW

Ambush Bug is always an unexpected reading. Full with meta-jokes about comic-books and DC comics. But it doesn’t stop there, it also manages to insert some political “absurd” humor.

It helps a lot to read titles where Giffen and Loren Fleming were involved. Most obviously “Thriller” which I couldn’t finish reading because it was to hard to read. Well, they trash that title over and over in each issue. And the Darkseid insert is a joke about the Great Darkness Saga, and how Darkseid was teased and postponed until the last issue.

It also makes fun about dead sidekicks bringing money to the publishers... and this was before the death of Jason Todd! (the cemetery is named Barnes, after Bucky).

It has hilarious moments, like Cheeks not being able to diffuse a bomb. It’s comedy gold.

Even the letterer has some fun with the captions. It seems like this was a full-team contribution.

I give this story a score of 10

[biggoonie]

SUPERMAN: THE GOLDEN AGE OMNIBUS VOL. 6 HC

written by DON CAMERON, ALVIN SCHWARTZ, EDMOND HAMILTON and others art by JOHN SIKELA, IRA YARBROUGH, AL PLASTINO and others cover by EVAN “DOC” SHANER Superman’s adventures continue into the late 1940s with these stories in which the Man of Tomorrow foils con man J. Wilbur Wolfingham, thwarts the latest scheme of the Prankster, unravels the “Mother Goose Crimes,” battles the magically powered imp from the fifth dimension, Mr. Mxyztplk, and even takes on the mythical Atlas! Includes tales from ACTION COMICS #106-125, SUPERMAN #44-54 and WORLD’S FINEST COMICS #26-36. ON SALE 07.03.19 $125.00 US | 824 PAGES FC | ISBN: 978-1-4012-9193-8