Have you ever heard of this game. It is an amazing rhythm game for the Nintendo DS. I just got it recently and it is so great. The basic theme is that there are people who are in trouble and they need help. The Elite Beat Agents then come out of nowhere somehow, and get everybody to dance to the music, and everything gets better and gets solved. Confused? Here is an example: There is a mother who reports the weather and has the weekend off to spend with her kid who wants to go on a picnic. Unfortunately, her bosses tell her that the chance of rain this weekend is 100%, so she will have to break her promise to her kid or say that it is going to be clear (when it is obviously going to be rain). So, she gets a fan out and tries to blow away the clouds. When you pass the first part, all the people who live in the same building tell her that they saw the show and that they want to help, and so they all blow fans right at the clouds, making them depart a little. She then tries to suck them up with a vacuum cleaner and a hang glider. Then, after another level is passed, the Air Force comes by and lets her know they saw the show and want to help, so they fly around a lot, blowing more clouds away. Then, after dancing a lot, she still needs more help and the animals of the forest come out and start dancing to make it go away. Eventually, the clouds disappear and she takes her kid on a picnic, with the best burgers ever.
See?
It is do addictive, but so great. One of the greatest games I have played, for its humor and for its great gameplay. Also, it is really hard to do well, but I am getting better.
Monday, February 11, 2008
Thursday, February 7, 2008
Annihilation
As opposed to the past weeks, this week, I built a deck that actually follows a storyline. It was made for a contest on VsParadise that revolved around making a team that is a team in comics, that doesn't exist yet in VS. The example was the Rouges which is a team I have helped to fake create. Since this was around the time we were voting on Marvel Universe, I was very into getting Annihilation into VS. Annihilation wasn't voted for and many people said that MHG was basically Annihilation, aside of course from the fact that there was no Annihilus, no Nova, and not much to represent it in general. Of course, there were still some cosmic stuff that related to Annihilation, but not much. When this contest came around, I realized, "Wait a minute, I can actually make the United Front! Not only that, but I can explain every single card that goes into the deck and why characters are at the drop they are and everything! Awesome!" One more thing, the contest had a rule where you can choose a team that your deck has and that every single character in your deck gets that affiliation. I chose Heralds for reasons that should be obvious.
To Save a Universe...
Characters
5 Kree Soldiers, Army
4 Silver Surfer, Skyrider of the Space Ways
4 Gamora, Protector of the Time Gem
2 Air-Walker, Gabriel Lan
4 Richard Rider<>Nova, Xanadarian Nova Corps
2 Stardust, Merciless Warrior
4 Drax the Destroyer, Protector of the Power Gem
1 Red Shift, Rift Walker
3 Super-Skrull, Kl'rt
1 Firelord, Harbringer of Havoc
2 Ronan, Supreme Public Accuser
1 Silver Surfer, Norrin Radd
1 Galactus, Devourer of Worlds
Plot Twists
4 Absorba Shield
4 Creaton of a Herald
4 Elemental Battle
3 The Power Cosmic Unleashed
4 Sworn Enemies
4 Intergalactic Summit
Locations
3 The Kyln
Let's run through every card in the deck to see why it is there.
Kree Soldiers because they were the main race fighting the Annihilation Wave, and they are easy to have as a 1-drop. Surfer, at the beginning, wasn't nearly at his "Herald" level status, but still went to Galactus (fetches high cost). Gamora played a big part as Nova's girlfriend and as a fighter, and she proves here that she can fight the soldiers that are after her by herself. Air-Walker was pretty much just destroyed by Ravenous, but was able to stall for time. Nova was the leader of the Corps, and even after they lost the main battle, he won the war by taking out a single guy after everything had finished. Stardust was powerful in helping, but wasn't able to do much early on, and was lost early. Drax held a big role in this, by just being a beast. He was incredibly powerful and helped everybody a lot, although he did it by himself, without anything crazy happening. Red Shift wasn't there for long, but was able to help get the United Front away from the planet Annihilus was attacking in a critical battle. Kl'rt had an important role, and became more powerful, and helpful, when he joined with others to help fight Annihilus. He affiliated himself with Skrulls, being one, the Negative Zone with Praxagora, Nova Corps (however represented) by helping Nova along and the Kree affiliation when he went to help Ronan. Firelord got to the main part of it late, but powerful, and pissed off because of Air-Walker. Ronan was incredibly helpful in the battle and was able to shut down Ravenous and everything he was trying to change. Silver Surfer came back later and changed the tide of the war, with one simple action. Galactus came back and it was over.
Absorba Shield because Air-Walker, while not quite powerful enough to defeat others, was able to hold them back long enough for better things (Silver Surfer) to happen. Creation of a Herald because Galactus remade Silver Surfer into his herald, giving him all the power he once wielded, making him more powerful, and recreating him. Elemental Battle, because Firelord had to fight Ravenous with his fire, plus he held him off, stalling for time. The Power Cosmic was Unleashed when Surfer released Galactus from his imprisonment, and a lot of heralds also gave their all to this battle, unleashing cosmic blasts. Drax came face to face with his Sworn Enemy for the last time in one of the most awesome scenes ever. Using Richard Rider as the main part, an Intergalactic Summit was formed to defeat Annihilus.
When The Kyln was around, it kept Tenebrous and Aegis under lock and key (at least until they were destroyed).
So that was pretty much my post. Nobody else posted, so I won, but this is a representation, to an extent, of Nova fighting the Annihilation Wave against Annihilus with his United Front.
There really isn't a way, at the moment, to represent the Annihilation Wave. With only one copy of Annihilation, and then, no bug soldiers or Ravenous, you have almost nothing. These are the cards that currently exist that would go into a deck, although couldn't make one:
Annihilus, Destroyer of Life (MOR-156)
When MOR came out, Negative Zone was a two-bit team with two characters and a location. Now, it has 6 characters, two locations and a plot twist. Not a lot. Hopefully, with all the support NZ got in the MU vote, we'll see more and be able to build a deck. Until then, we still have the leader of the Annihilation Wave, the one who literally wanted to destroy all life.
The Annihilation Wave (MTU-218)
Um, duh? But it is pretty cool. On turn 5, you can wipe out all stunned characters with the Wave. Not quite as much as I would want, but whatever.
Negative Zone (MOR-158)
Wow. That is a horrible card! You discard one card to get it up and then lose two if you want to use it. Oy! Still, it is a Negative Zone and they still have reps from the Negative Zone when they invade.
Negative Zone, Shadow Dimension (MHG-210)
Much better. Still one to get it going, but can get any character to your hidden area and can bring people out of hiding. Again, it represents how Negative Zone still helps Annihilus and his crew.
Thanos, Courting Death (MTU-155)
Okay, the art is almost, but not quite, straight out of Annihilation. He even has little girl Death with him. Plus, Thanos is just awesome and helped Annihilus out.
The Fallen One, The Forgotten (MHG-025)
He became Thanos' servant after Galactus and was his servant when Thanos confronted Aegis and Tenebrous.
Terrax, Harbringer of Ruin (MHG-024)
Terrax was corrupted into helping Annihilus. Otherwise, he wouldn't be here.
Paibok, the Power Skrull (MHG-188)
Just like Terrax. Just helped because he was captured and made to fight.
Only 8 cards that really would represent the Annihilation Wave. Sigh... Any questions can be asked. All will be answered to an extent.
To Save a Universe...
Characters
5 Kree Soldiers, Army
4 Silver Surfer, Skyrider of the Space Ways
4 Gamora, Protector of the Time Gem
2 Air-Walker, Gabriel Lan
4 Richard Rider<>Nova, Xanadarian Nova Corps
2 Stardust, Merciless Warrior
4 Drax the Destroyer, Protector of the Power Gem
1 Red Shift, Rift Walker
3 Super-Skrull, Kl'rt
1 Firelord, Harbringer of Havoc
2 Ronan, Supreme Public Accuser
1 Silver Surfer, Norrin Radd
1 Galactus, Devourer of Worlds
Plot Twists
4 Absorba Shield
4 Creaton of a Herald
4 Elemental Battle
3 The Power Cosmic Unleashed
4 Sworn Enemies
4 Intergalactic Summit
Locations
3 The Kyln
Let's run through every card in the deck to see why it is there.
Kree Soldiers because they were the main race fighting the Annihilation Wave, and they are easy to have as a 1-drop. Surfer, at the beginning, wasn't nearly at his "Herald" level status, but still went to Galactus (fetches high cost). Gamora played a big part as Nova's girlfriend and as a fighter, and she proves here that she can fight the soldiers that are after her by herself. Air-Walker was pretty much just destroyed by Ravenous, but was able to stall for time. Nova was the leader of the Corps, and even after they lost the main battle, he won the war by taking out a single guy after everything had finished. Stardust was powerful in helping, but wasn't able to do much early on, and was lost early. Drax held a big role in this, by just being a beast. He was incredibly powerful and helped everybody a lot, although he did it by himself, without anything crazy happening. Red Shift wasn't there for long, but was able to help get the United Front away from the planet Annihilus was attacking in a critical battle. Kl'rt had an important role, and became more powerful, and helpful, when he joined with others to help fight Annihilus. He affiliated himself with Skrulls, being one, the Negative Zone with Praxagora, Nova Corps (however represented) by helping Nova along and the Kree affiliation when he went to help Ronan. Firelord got to the main part of it late, but powerful, and pissed off because of Air-Walker. Ronan was incredibly helpful in the battle and was able to shut down Ravenous and everything he was trying to change. Silver Surfer came back later and changed the tide of the war, with one simple action. Galactus came back and it was over.
Absorba Shield because Air-Walker, while not quite powerful enough to defeat others, was able to hold them back long enough for better things (Silver Surfer) to happen. Creation of a Herald because Galactus remade Silver Surfer into his herald, giving him all the power he once wielded, making him more powerful, and recreating him. Elemental Battle, because Firelord had to fight Ravenous with his fire, plus he held him off, stalling for time. The Power Cosmic was Unleashed when Surfer released Galactus from his imprisonment, and a lot of heralds also gave their all to this battle, unleashing cosmic blasts. Drax came face to face with his Sworn Enemy for the last time in one of the most awesome scenes ever. Using Richard Rider as the main part, an Intergalactic Summit was formed to defeat Annihilus.
When The Kyln was around, it kept Tenebrous and Aegis under lock and key (at least until they were destroyed).
So that was pretty much my post. Nobody else posted, so I won, but this is a representation, to an extent, of Nova fighting the Annihilation Wave against Annihilus with his United Front.
There really isn't a way, at the moment, to represent the Annihilation Wave. With only one copy of Annihilation, and then, no bug soldiers or Ravenous, you have almost nothing. These are the cards that currently exist that would go into a deck, although couldn't make one:
Annihilus, Destroyer of Life (MOR-156)
When MOR came out, Negative Zone was a two-bit team with two characters and a location. Now, it has 6 characters, two locations and a plot twist. Not a lot. Hopefully, with all the support NZ got in the MU vote, we'll see more and be able to build a deck. Until then, we still have the leader of the Annihilation Wave, the one who literally wanted to destroy all life.
The Annihilation Wave (MTU-218)
Um, duh? But it is pretty cool. On turn 5, you can wipe out all stunned characters with the Wave. Not quite as much as I would want, but whatever.
Negative Zone (MOR-158)
Wow. That is a horrible card! You discard one card to get it up and then lose two if you want to use it. Oy! Still, it is a Negative Zone and they still have reps from the Negative Zone when they invade.
Negative Zone, Shadow Dimension (MHG-210)
Much better. Still one to get it going, but can get any character to your hidden area and can bring people out of hiding. Again, it represents how Negative Zone still helps Annihilus and his crew.
Thanos, Courting Death (MTU-155)
Okay, the art is almost, but not quite, straight out of Annihilation. He even has little girl Death with him. Plus, Thanos is just awesome and helped Annihilus out.
The Fallen One, The Forgotten (MHG-025)
He became Thanos' servant after Galactus and was his servant when Thanos confronted Aegis and Tenebrous.
Terrax, Harbringer of Ruin (MHG-024)
Terrax was corrupted into helping Annihilus. Otherwise, he wouldn't be here.
Paibok, the Power Skrull (MHG-188)
Just like Terrax. Just helped because he was captured and made to fight.
Only 8 cards that really would represent the Annihilation Wave. Sigh... Any questions can be asked. All will be answered to an extent.
Wednesday, February 6, 2008
My comic buys on 2/6/08
Only two comics came out this week that I was interested in. Thankfully, the What if...? from last week was back in. Three comics for you to see me talk about.
What if...? Spider-Man versus Wolverine
Basic Plot: As opposed to going back home after killing Charlemagne, Spidey stays in Europe.
I did like the Spidey v Wolverine story, so this was a pleasant surprise. Pleasant because I liked the story and was interested. Surprise because it is a somewhat obscure story. Instead of going back home because he was "over his head", Logan talked him into helping someone else, Charlie's sister. Okay, explanation time. In Spider-Man v Wolverine, there was a killer in Berlin killing mob people or something and it was interesting enough that Spidey went to get pics for the Daily Bugle with Ned Leeds, whereas Wolverine and the killer were lovers, and he went back to stop her or help her. See, she was going to be killed by the KGB eventually, and she and Wolverine knew about it, but Spidey thought he would be able to save her. Wolverine was going to help her by killing her painlessly as opposed to being tortured to death. Ned Leeds ended up dead for some reason that I am not sure of (although he was later revealed to be the Hobgoblin's pawn dresses as the Hobgoblin and was killed because of that or something). What happens is Spidey is manipulated by Charlie into killing her, and he is tortured by his punching her, killing her. In the 616 universe, he goes to MJ where he cries on her shoulder and he gets back to being normal. How that is affected by Brand New Day, who knows? In this universe, he saves the kid, although ends up killing someone else and watching Wolverine kill a bunch of people and he changes. In an effort to save Charlie's sister, who looks somewhat like Gwen Stacy, he decides to stay and protect her. With that, he and Wolverine, along with Alex (Charlie's sister) and a trainer of killers, they pulled a lot of missions, including killing and death. Spidey became more dark and also mastered his Spider-Sense so that as opposed to just danger right before it hits, he got premonitions and was pretty much a psychic. Plus he got a much more awesome costume, although he was darker and even shot somebody when he probably could have knocked him out. All in all, it's crazy and I like it and think it makes a lot of sense following the story. Who knows what would have happened if he hadn't even had a Mary Jane.
Amazing Spider-Man 549
Basic Plot: Spidey tries to deal with Jackpot and the new goblin-esque villain.
Oy, another goblin. Then again, Harry's back, so who knows what could happen. Jackpot is pretty much MJ in an outfit. Super powers? Who knows. She has red hair and acts a lot like MJ. She may or may not be, but either way, this could be interesting. I am liking the story, like I have said, although I still dislike the reason behind it, and I don't think I'll ever be fine with it. It's been said that he's still an Avenger and also that nobody really knows his identity. Apparently you'll see him with the Avengers in issue 555. Aggh, I really hate how this is all so confusing in terms of what has actually happened now. What has happened? Who knows? People know he revealed his identity but just can't remember who it was beneath the mask. Sorry, I should just talk about the issue which just makes me think of the classic Spidey stories which were the best, except that these are also trying to tie in to the rest of the MU, with the Registration Act and everything, so it's just weird now. Sigh...
Annihilation: Conquest 4
Basic Plot: Warlock tries to bring te fight to Hala. Ronan has Phalanx-proof Sentries that he is going to send to wipe out Hala.
I have to say that I really don't like this as much as the original, and I am getting in trouble with myself for trying to compare it. It's okay, but not nearly what Annihilation was. I mean, I just really don't know what to say about it. It's an okay story, just not amazing. I really wish it was better and that I could rant about it, but that's just not what's going to happen. Again, Raney's art really doesn't look as good as it has before, with this style of inking and coloring, and I just really wish it were better. All in all, though, it's just not as good and I can't help but compare it. Two more issues to go. Yay.
What if...? Spider-Man versus Wolverine
Basic Plot: As opposed to going back home after killing Charlemagne, Spidey stays in Europe.
I did like the Spidey v Wolverine story, so this was a pleasant surprise. Pleasant because I liked the story and was interested. Surprise because it is a somewhat obscure story. Instead of going back home because he was "over his head", Logan talked him into helping someone else, Charlie's sister. Okay, explanation time. In Spider-Man v Wolverine, there was a killer in Berlin killing mob people or something and it was interesting enough that Spidey went to get pics for the Daily Bugle with Ned Leeds, whereas Wolverine and the killer were lovers, and he went back to stop her or help her. See, she was going to be killed by the KGB eventually, and she and Wolverine knew about it, but Spidey thought he would be able to save her. Wolverine was going to help her by killing her painlessly as opposed to being tortured to death. Ned Leeds ended up dead for some reason that I am not sure of (although he was later revealed to be the Hobgoblin's pawn dresses as the Hobgoblin and was killed because of that or something). What happens is Spidey is manipulated by Charlie into killing her, and he is tortured by his punching her, killing her. In the 616 universe, he goes to MJ where he cries on her shoulder and he gets back to being normal. How that is affected by Brand New Day, who knows? In this universe, he saves the kid, although ends up killing someone else and watching Wolverine kill a bunch of people and he changes. In an effort to save Charlie's sister, who looks somewhat like Gwen Stacy, he decides to stay and protect her. With that, he and Wolverine, along with Alex (Charlie's sister) and a trainer of killers, they pulled a lot of missions, including killing and death. Spidey became more dark and also mastered his Spider-Sense so that as opposed to just danger right before it hits, he got premonitions and was pretty much a psychic. Plus he got a much more awesome costume, although he was darker and even shot somebody when he probably could have knocked him out. All in all, it's crazy and I like it and think it makes a lot of sense following the story. Who knows what would have happened if he hadn't even had a Mary Jane.
Amazing Spider-Man 549
Basic Plot: Spidey tries to deal with Jackpot and the new goblin-esque villain.
Oy, another goblin. Then again, Harry's back, so who knows what could happen. Jackpot is pretty much MJ in an outfit. Super powers? Who knows. She has red hair and acts a lot like MJ. She may or may not be, but either way, this could be interesting. I am liking the story, like I have said, although I still dislike the reason behind it, and I don't think I'll ever be fine with it. It's been said that he's still an Avenger and also that nobody really knows his identity. Apparently you'll see him with the Avengers in issue 555. Aggh, I really hate how this is all so confusing in terms of what has actually happened now. What has happened? Who knows? People know he revealed his identity but just can't remember who it was beneath the mask. Sorry, I should just talk about the issue which just makes me think of the classic Spidey stories which were the best, except that these are also trying to tie in to the rest of the MU, with the Registration Act and everything, so it's just weird now. Sigh...
Annihilation: Conquest 4
Basic Plot: Warlock tries to bring te fight to Hala. Ronan has Phalanx-proof Sentries that he is going to send to wipe out Hala.
I have to say that I really don't like this as much as the original, and I am getting in trouble with myself for trying to compare it. It's okay, but not nearly what Annihilation was. I mean, I just really don't know what to say about it. It's an okay story, just not amazing. I really wish it was better and that I could rant about it, but that's just not what's going to happen. Again, Raney's art really doesn't look as good as it has before, with this style of inking and coloring, and I just really wish it were better. All in all, though, it's just not as good and I can't help but compare it. Two more issues to go. Yay.
Tuesday, February 5, 2008
Comic Book Doctors
Okay, so I was thinking about the comic book world, and was wondering about comics book doctors. When I think comic book doctors, the first one that comes to mind is Dr. Doom, who never finished college, and is not actually a doctor. I was wondering how many other doctors in comics are not or are doctors.
Dr. Doom-No
He never finished college, although he could get an honorary degree in Latveria, so he could have an honorary doctorate.
Dr. Strange-Yes
His origin story tells you whether or not he is. He was a brilliant, but arrogant surgeon who lost use of his hands and then became Master of the Mystic Arts.
Dr. Fate-No
Just a mystic sorcerer and the most powerful of the Lords of Order who inhabits different people (through his mystical helmet and stuff).
Dr. Light-Yes
Dr. Arthur Light was actually a doctor, not a medical doctor, but a doctor nonetheless.
Dr. Light-Yes
Kimiyo Hoshi was an astronaut and a medical doctor. Wow, nice life.
Dr. Light-Yes
Finlay was a doctor and the Dr. Light before Arthur (retconned).
Dr. Octopus-Yes
Again, like Arthur Light, not a medical doctor, but a doctor.
Dr. Polaris-Yes
An actual doctor, who knew? Yes, even medical doctor. He used magnets to try and heal people, and the Earth's magnetic field, etc. Crazy.
Dr. Sivana-Yes
He is a doctor, and definitely uses his crazy for evil, although not a medical doctor.
Dr. Mid-Nite-Yes
All three versions of Dr. Mid-Nite have been medical doctors. I have an issue where he does actually deliver a baby.
Crime Doctor-Yes
Even with his Elton John glasses, he still is a medical doctor.
Dr. Death-Yes
Who is Dr. Death? Batman's first recurring villain. Seriously. And he is a doctor.
Dr. Psycho-Yes
He is a crazy little dwarf, but a doctor nonetheless.
Dr. Occult-No
As far as I can tell, Occult is not actually a doctor, and was just given the name. Plus, I learned, and this is awesome, he was created in 1935, 3 years before Superman. Sure, he wasn't a superhero then (really isn't much of one now), but he is an existing character in the DCU who was created before Superman. The more you know, right?
Dr. Ub'x-No
Well, I know he never got a medical degree from Earth, and I'm not sure if they have doctorates on H'lven, but really, he probably could get a doctorate.
Dr. Bedlam-No
Again, no need for a doctorate where he came from, but probably would have gotten one if on Earth.
Dr. Darrk (Ebeneezer Darrk)-Yes
My guess is that he was in fact a doctor, although not a medical one, although I do not know for sure.
Dr. Destiny-No
Just a common crook who wanted a good name to defeat the Justice League.
Dr. Tzin-Tzin-No
Seriously, he got a card in the first DC set? He's apparently had 4 freaking appearances. Looking him up is pretty pointless. He doesn't even have a Wikipedia entry.
Dr. Alchemy-Yes
I'm pretty sure at least the first one was, and the second one, at the very least, shared a psychic connection with the first one.
Dr. Mist-No
Who? An obscure Global Guardians member who has nothing to do with doctors from what I can tell.
Dr. Impossible-No
Again, as far as I can tell, he has no doctorate, and might have had no opportunity to have gotten one, but still doesn't have one to the best of my knowledge.
Dr. Double X-Yes
Who? Damn, there are a lot of obscure doctors in comics, although this one is a doctor.
Dr. Moon-Yes
Creepy as hell and a doctor who is crazy. Let's move on, shall we?
Dr. Cyber-No
I'm assuming no, because nothing is known about them, either of them, so I really have nothing to go on.
Dr. Phosphorous-Yes
I assume only a nuclear physicist (only), but I don't really know. I don't know much, do I?
Dr. Poison-No
Oy, more obscure villains. I don't think so, but am not positive about either being doctors.
Dr. Spectro-No
Nothing to prove it, but nothing that tells me he is or should be.
Dr. Thirteen-Yes
A parapsychologist who doesn't like/believe in magic who is an actual doctor. Sucks for him that his daughter it Traci Thirteen, a well-known sorceress.
Doc Samson-Yes
He is a psychologist, but is a doctor of something, so he qualifies.
Dr. Bong-Yes
While I may not know if he held a doctorate when he was first shown, he did by the time he tried to treat Deadpool, so he is a doctor (not medical).
Dr. Hauptmann-Yes
Just because he is a crazy scientist who has all these ideas, I am going to assume that he is.
Dr. Demonicus-Yes
An obscure Avengers villain who holds a Ph.D. in genetics.
Dr. Dorcas-Yes
He was a doctor enemy of Namor until he died. He created Tiger Shark (who I think just died in Punisher: War Journal).
Dr. Druid/Droom-Yes
Another medical doctor, with other various degrees.
Dr. Faustus-Yes
He holds a doctorate and is a total whackjob who I dislike because he tortured Bucky/Winter Soldier/Captain America. Huh, still feels weird to call Bucky Captain America.
Doctor Glitternight-No
WTF? Glitternight? Sigh... Anyway, being an extradimensional being, I sincerely doubt Glitternight has a doctorate of any kind.
Dr. Minerva-Yes
Holds what would pass for a doctorate from the Kree. She graduated from the Kree Science Academy, so I think the title holds. One of the few aliens I can say that about.
Dr. Spectrum-No
None of the Dr. Spectrums hold any type of doctorates, although the Squadron Supreme (original Squadron) one does have a college degree in aeronautics.
Dr. Sun-Yes
He is actually a doctor, although a Chinese one, so it doesn't count. Just kidding.
Well, those are the doctors I can think of and can find anything about. If you can think of others or can actually provide proof for any of the ones I am unsure of, please do. Oh, and these are only the people with doctor in their name. I know other characters hold doctorates, but none of them claim to be a doctor in their name.
Dr. Doom-No
He never finished college, although he could get an honorary degree in Latveria, so he could have an honorary doctorate.
Dr. Strange-Yes
His origin story tells you whether or not he is. He was a brilliant, but arrogant surgeon who lost use of his hands and then became Master of the Mystic Arts.
Dr. Fate-No
Just a mystic sorcerer and the most powerful of the Lords of Order who inhabits different people (through his mystical helmet and stuff).
Dr. Light-Yes
Dr. Arthur Light was actually a doctor, not a medical doctor, but a doctor nonetheless.
Dr. Light-Yes
Kimiyo Hoshi was an astronaut and a medical doctor. Wow, nice life.
Dr. Light-Yes
Finlay was a doctor and the Dr. Light before Arthur (retconned).
Dr. Octopus-Yes
Again, like Arthur Light, not a medical doctor, but a doctor.
Dr. Polaris-Yes
An actual doctor, who knew? Yes, even medical doctor. He used magnets to try and heal people, and the Earth's magnetic field, etc. Crazy.
Dr. Sivana-Yes
He is a doctor, and definitely uses his crazy for evil, although not a medical doctor.
Dr. Mid-Nite-Yes
All three versions of Dr. Mid-Nite have been medical doctors. I have an issue where he does actually deliver a baby.
Crime Doctor-Yes
Even with his Elton John glasses, he still is a medical doctor.
Dr. Death-Yes
Who is Dr. Death? Batman's first recurring villain. Seriously. And he is a doctor.
Dr. Psycho-Yes
He is a crazy little dwarf, but a doctor nonetheless.
Dr. Occult-No
As far as I can tell, Occult is not actually a doctor, and was just given the name. Plus, I learned, and this is awesome, he was created in 1935, 3 years before Superman. Sure, he wasn't a superhero then (really isn't much of one now), but he is an existing character in the DCU who was created before Superman. The more you know, right?
Dr. Ub'x-No
Well, I know he never got a medical degree from Earth, and I'm not sure if they have doctorates on H'lven, but really, he probably could get a doctorate.
Dr. Bedlam-No
Again, no need for a doctorate where he came from, but probably would have gotten one if on Earth.
Dr. Darrk (Ebeneezer Darrk)-Yes
My guess is that he was in fact a doctor, although not a medical one, although I do not know for sure.
Dr. Destiny-No
Just a common crook who wanted a good name to defeat the Justice League.
Dr. Tzin-Tzin-No
Seriously, he got a card in the first DC set? He's apparently had 4 freaking appearances. Looking him up is pretty pointless. He doesn't even have a Wikipedia entry.
Dr. Alchemy-Yes
I'm pretty sure at least the first one was, and the second one, at the very least, shared a psychic connection with the first one.
Dr. Mist-No
Who? An obscure Global Guardians member who has nothing to do with doctors from what I can tell.
Dr. Impossible-No
Again, as far as I can tell, he has no doctorate, and might have had no opportunity to have gotten one, but still doesn't have one to the best of my knowledge.
Dr. Double X-Yes
Who? Damn, there are a lot of obscure doctors in comics, although this one is a doctor.
Dr. Moon-Yes
Creepy as hell and a doctor who is crazy. Let's move on, shall we?
Dr. Cyber-No
I'm assuming no, because nothing is known about them, either of them, so I really have nothing to go on.
Dr. Phosphorous-Yes
I assume only a nuclear physicist (only), but I don't really know. I don't know much, do I?
Dr. Poison-No
Oy, more obscure villains. I don't think so, but am not positive about either being doctors.
Dr. Spectro-No
Nothing to prove it, but nothing that tells me he is or should be.
Dr. Thirteen-Yes
A parapsychologist who doesn't like/believe in magic who is an actual doctor. Sucks for him that his daughter it Traci Thirteen, a well-known sorceress.
Doc Samson-Yes
He is a psychologist, but is a doctor of something, so he qualifies.
Dr. Bong-Yes
While I may not know if he held a doctorate when he was first shown, he did by the time he tried to treat Deadpool, so he is a doctor (not medical).
Dr. Hauptmann-Yes
Just because he is a crazy scientist who has all these ideas, I am going to assume that he is.
Dr. Demonicus-Yes
An obscure Avengers villain who holds a Ph.D. in genetics.
Dr. Dorcas-Yes
He was a doctor enemy of Namor until he died. He created Tiger Shark (who I think just died in Punisher: War Journal).
Dr. Druid/Droom-Yes
Another medical doctor, with other various degrees.
Dr. Faustus-Yes
He holds a doctorate and is a total whackjob who I dislike because he tortured Bucky/Winter Soldier/Captain America. Huh, still feels weird to call Bucky Captain America.
Doctor Glitternight-No
WTF? Glitternight? Sigh... Anyway, being an extradimensional being, I sincerely doubt Glitternight has a doctorate of any kind.
Dr. Minerva-Yes
Holds what would pass for a doctorate from the Kree. She graduated from the Kree Science Academy, so I think the title holds. One of the few aliens I can say that about.
Dr. Spectrum-No
None of the Dr. Spectrums hold any type of doctorates, although the Squadron Supreme (original Squadron) one does have a college degree in aeronautics.
Dr. Sun-Yes
He is actually a doctor, although a Chinese one, so it doesn't count. Just kidding.
Well, those are the doctors I can think of and can find anything about. If you can think of others or can actually provide proof for any of the ones I am unsure of, please do. Oh, and these are only the people with doctor in their name. I know other characters hold doctorates, but none of them claim to be a doctor in their name.
Monday, February 4, 2008
Hmmm...
Well, I took a look at how long my summary of Identity Crisis was, and realized that it would take up almost 4 whole pages on Microsoft Word, at close to 3000 words. Sure, Identity Crisis itself is a lot longer, but this was my summary of it, without any of the art, and it was incredibly long. I can't believe I wrote that much (even though it wasn't my thoughts, it still is my choice of what to include and everything). Seriously, just read Identity Crisis. My summary cannot give you all of the emotion that is included in Rags Morales' art, or even how much is just by what Brad Meltzer told him what to do.
On another note, I wanted to thank everybody who voted for my Manhunter Giant deck that Rian Fike just announced was the winner of his challenge. I am surprised that I won, although I do appreciate that people did think my deck was awesome for whatever reason. I was somewhat obsessed with the idea of abusing Manhunter Giant around that time (I also submitted a deck to CarlosTheDwarf for the Mimic/Rogue abuse that abused Manhunters and Mnahunter Giant). It's nice to see me being victorious at something. Yes, I really wore that outfit to prom (although it was underneath the tux until I got there, at which point I put the entire thing on. My biggest problem with wearing Deadpool stuff or a Deadpool outfit? People mistake him for Spider-Man.
Yes, they both wear red masks. They also both have white where their eyes are and black around it. Spidey has webs on his mask, giant white lenses, and a small outline of black around it. Deadpool has small eyeslits, about as big as his eyes, and giant black ovals around the slits, and no webs. It kind of annoys me when people confuse them, but I have to let it go, as I realize people don't know who Deadpool is, even though they should know.
This blog is awesome and I love ranting, but we'll see how we do with it. I do need to put a big focus on school right now, so I might have to lower the amount of times I post (from once a weekday to maybe three or two times a week). Stay tuned for more information.
On another note, I wanted to thank everybody who voted for my Manhunter Giant deck that Rian Fike just announced was the winner of his challenge. I am surprised that I won, although I do appreciate that people did think my deck was awesome for whatever reason. I was somewhat obsessed with the idea of abusing Manhunter Giant around that time (I also submitted a deck to CarlosTheDwarf for the Mimic/Rogue abuse that abused Manhunters and Mnahunter Giant). It's nice to see me being victorious at something. Yes, I really wore that outfit to prom (although it was underneath the tux until I got there, at which point I put the entire thing on. My biggest problem with wearing Deadpool stuff or a Deadpool outfit? People mistake him for Spider-Man.
Yes, they both wear red masks. They also both have white where their eyes are and black around it. Spidey has webs on his mask, giant white lenses, and a small outline of black around it. Deadpool has small eyeslits, about as big as his eyes, and giant black ovals around the slits, and no webs. It kind of annoys me when people confuse them, but I have to let it go, as I realize people don't know who Deadpool is, even though they should know.
This blog is awesome and I love ranting, but we'll see how we do with it. I do need to put a big focus on school right now, so I might have to lower the amount of times I post (from once a weekday to maybe three or two times a week). Stay tuned for more information.
Identity Crisis, and how VS has made it possible
Well, I enjoyed it last week, so it's back this week. This time, let's go through a DC storyline so that I'm not showing favorites (even though I like Marvel more).
Identity Crisis is my favorite DC storyline of all time, and it is at least within the top 5, if not 3, of my all time favorite comic storylines. For this edition, we shall go over Identity Crisis. Just a note of warning, this is an incredibly deep and mature storyline and has mature concepts that aren't light. Please just don't continue, if you don't think you'll be able to handle these concepts maturely.
Plot Summary: It all starts with Elongated Man and Firehawk on patrol. There was a tip that two punks were selling something special, which in comics, means a giant robot, or something like that. So, while waiting, they start talking about Elongated Man and his wife. Ralph Dibny wanted to be a celebrity. He may not have been one, but he always liked being known. So he lived without a secret identity. Any random person could know or learn, if they didn't already that Ralph Dibny, the Elongated Man was married to Sue Dibny. Sue was even made an honorary Justice League member. Nobody else who wasn't a superhero got that treatment. Sue helped Ralph and his teammates, and was liked by pretty much everybody. Ralph tells Firehawk how they met, when he was back helping the Flash (Barry Allen). While Flash was the great hero, everybody looked at Flash and admired Flash, except for Sue. She was intrigued by this stretchable sleuth that hung out with and helped Flash. They loved each other, and moved on from there. Every year on his birthday, which means every year at some random time, she tries to trick him and give him a surprise birthday party. Elongated Man is an amazing detective, probably second best only to Batman, and always knows what is going to happen and when. His birthday was months away, but he knew that his party was this night, and he was going to act surprised when she gave him the magnifying glass that he had drooled over before. Sue knew that he would solve it, but she also knew he wouldn't guess the other surprise. After calling Alfred, and thanking him for helping her find that magnifying glass, she finds someone else in the house. As she panics, she calls Ralph, who immediately asks Firehawk to fly him home. When he gets there, the sprinklers are on and he sees her body, burned, and dead. Her gift to him is shown as the magnifying glass, now broken, but also a pregnancy test showing that she was pregnant. As he mourns, the League tries to figure out how somebody could have killed her. The houses that hold League members are protected by Apokoliptian, Thanagarian, Martian, Kryptonian technology, plus stuff Batman came up with (A great line, mentions all of the different techs, plus all the scary stuff Bruce came up with). No alarms were sounded, nobody just broke in. Nobody could have even just phased in. Meanwhile Green Arrow has the Ray, the Atom, the Metal Men and Mister Miracle all help him try to find how someone got in and who it could have been. They can't find anything, and that is disturbing. At her funeral, Ralph gets up to talk, but can't hold his face together (literally), and he is pulled away. With everything going on, after the funeral, all the superheroes try to find who did it. They all go in separate ways, except for Ralph, Black Canary, Green Arrow, Hawkman and Zatanna, who meet with Ralph, who wants them to go after Dr. Light. Meanwhile, Flash and GL decided to wonder why everybody was going after a villain except for these five, and spy upon the heroes. Hawkman is able to see Wally vibrating, making himself practically invisible. Green Arrow realizes Kyle must be there also and calls him out. On the way to Dr. Light's, they tell Flash and GL why Dr. Light is their number one suspect. A long time ago, when they had the satellite, they were off on a mission, and nobody was on the satellite except for Sue, who wanted to just see the stars, because she was bored. Dr. Light snuck onto the satellite, for what reason, nobody knows, but either way, his reason changed and he decided to have fun. It is never explicitly stated in the comics, but the intent is clear, and Dr. Light raped Sue. She put up a fight, but didn't stand a chance. When the League got back, it was practically over. Everybody piled on top of Light and he wsa taken down by Elongated Man wielding Hawkman's mace. When they teleported Sue and Ralph directly to a hospital, they had other problems. Ralph had not known about this, but the League, that consisted of Green Arrow, Black Canary, Hal Jordan, Barry Allen, Carter Hall, Atom and Zatanna, voted whether or not to mess with his mind using Zatanna's magic. Light was crazy at this point, and was ranting about how he was going to tell everybody at prison, create visuals using his powers, then find out everybody's wife or girlfriend and go after them. With a vote of four to three, they wiped Light's memory of the event and altered his personality to make him an idiot. Light was originally a League enemy, but ended up being the punching bag for the Teen Titans. How did that happen? His mind was altered and he became a loser. While this was explained to Flash and GL, Light decided that he needed help and needed protection from the heroes that were after him angrily for a reason he was unsure of. He hired Deathstroke, the Terminator, who was ready to take them all on. Forgetting what Ralph had at stake, the League doesn't fully pay attention as he rushes in and gets caught in an explosion provided by Deathstroke. Deathstroke's next move is to take out Flash, by exploding mines beneath the street, making Wally run right into his sword, which he twists to make Wally stay down (not kill, but not be able to move super fast for a time). He then goes after Zatanna, punching her in the liver, making her vomit and not be able to speak or cast spells (as her spellc all require backwards speech). Next, he goes after Carter, taking him out by slicing his harness off that holds his wings on, making him fall to the ground. He then takes out Green Arrow, by chopping the backs off of all the arrows in his quiver. When Black Canary tries to sing, he gets behind her and traps her head in a bag, handcuffing her, so she can't get it off. He then looks around for Atom, and seeing him, even while tiny, aims a laser pointer at Atom. The Atom is hit by the laser pointer, and is knocked back, and making himself large, so he is not killed by hitting something, knocks right into Carter, knocking them both out. At this point GL has to take Deathstroke on. Slade just grabs his hand and crushes his fingers. The ring works on will and with seeing everything that has just taken place, he doesn't have the will to take on Slade. Fortunately, Green Arrow grabs one of his arrows and stabs it right into Deathstroke's empty eye socket, enraging him, making him not think and just lash out, allowing the League to all pile on top of him, in a way very similar to what took place when they attacked Light on the satellite, making Light remember what happened, gaining all his memories and his old personality back, making everything super bright, taking Deathstroke with him, running away. As they are confronted by Superman, who wants to know why they are going after Light, Wally helps them out by saying how Ralph had an encounter with him once, and wanted to let him go after Light himself. Superman then tells them how it couldn't be Dr. Light because her body was burned after she was already dead (how this exonerates Light, I'm not sure, but whatever). Green Arrow then needs to tell Wally about how Light wasn't the only one they erased the memory of. Every time a villain took over a hero's body or snuck into their dreams or anything, Zatanna would have to wipe their memories so they wouldn't remember who the heroes were. Batman and Superman always were too busy for the wrap-up, and after the villains were defeated, they went back to their respective cities as Joker or Lex was up to no good. But the villains still needed to be dealt with and memories were taken. Light was different as he also had his personality changed, but he wasn't the first or the last person that was changed by Zatanna's magic. In a sub-plot, Captain Boomerang tries to deal with the fact that he may have a son. Then, as Robin tries to deal with his dad, Jean Loring, Atom's wife is attacked and is hung by a noose and goes stiff. Atom goes through the phone lines and jumps out, destroying the rope, and taking her down, trying to make her breathe. As she finally breathes, he is relieved. This time, Green Arrow goes right to the top, as opposed to all the other League membres. He gets Superman to help investigate. Superman recognizes the knot that was used and has Oracle look up who uses that type of knot, discovering Slipknot used to use that exact knot. Wonder Woman and Green Arrow go to Slipknot in prison and make him tell them what he knows. He doesn't know anything, which leads the JL to believe that it has something to do with the Suicide Squad, which is the only thing that Dr. Light (believed to have done the first murder) and Slipknot (believed to have done the second attempted murder) have in common. Clark tells Bruce that the League is looking at the Squad, which Batman easily casts aside, as there would be no benefit. Captain Boomerang actually meets with his son, who lets him know that a reporter tried to have a picture of him with a boomerang, which he threw back at the reporter, slicing off his earlobe. Green Arrow, in a move that is somewhat desperate goes to Hal Jordan's grave, standing on it, so that the Spectre will appear. They laugh and talk for a while before Arrow asks Hal to tell him who killed Sue, which Hal says he can't do. He has to answer to a higher power (DC God) and cannot just do things on his own. It hurts him a lot though that he can't actually help. Lois is then threatened, with a letter letting her know that she's next and that the killer knows who her husband is (the letter 's' in husband is surrounded by a Superman like triangle). Green Arrow then confronts Deadshot, Merlyn and Monocle. As they aim at him, GL, Flash and Hawkman break through the walls, easily taking care of the villains, who know nothing, as it is all over, as no villains seem to know anything. Unfortunately, during one of these confrontations, Firstorm is stabbed through with Shining Knight's sword by Shadow-Thief. He then, flies in the air and explodes, dying. Atom and Jean get back together, after they realize how short life can be. Captain Boomerang and his son practice throwing boomerangs, and as Owen (his son) throws a razor boomerang directly at his dad, he runs quickly and carries his dad away before the boomerang hits, running with superhuman speed. Robin, as he is about to leave to go on patrol is then confronted by his dad, who doesn't want him to leave. Tim is able to convince his dad that he is better off trying to help than just watching about it on TV. As Jack (Tim's dad) goes into the kitchen, there is a box on the table, with a note on it saying "Jack Drake" with the 'r' in Drake circled, like Robin's R on his outfit. Inside the box is a note and a gun. The note simply says, "Protect Yourself." Jack then calls Oracle, asking for his son, whom Oracle contacts, all while trying to keep Jack calm and trying to help. Someone jumps onto Jack's roof, just as Robin is contacted. Batman turns the Batmobile around, racing towards Jack's house. Robin and his dad talk to each other, with his dad telling him that he loves him and Tim trying to get him out of there. Batman asks for the Flash, but he oculdn't be reached. As Robin and his dad have what could be their last conversation, Owen Mercer gets a message from his dad, letting Owen know that he has a big job that'll get his name back on the map. Boomerang breaks into Jack's house and is shot by Drake, just as he lets go of a razor-sharp boomerang, hitting Jack right in the heart, as they both die. When Batman and Robin get to the house, Tim throws off his costume and races for his dad, who is already dead. Batman holds him, letting him know that he's got him. Before this, Robin had not been an orphan, but now both Batman and Robin are orphans. Owen goes to the house where his dad was killed, asking for his dad's body so that it can be buried, but the cops or feds or somebody won't let him, saying that all these villains have just come back, so they really can't just let the body be out in the open. Everybody deals with the losses, Green Arrow hugs his kid, brothers, sisters, sons, daughters, wives, husbands, mothers and fathers all have been lost (Hal Jordan is like a brother, Terra was Geo-Force's sister, Aquaman's son, Martian Manhunter's daughter, Elongated Man's wife, Sue Dibny, Iris West's husband, Barry Allen, Wonder Woman's mother, Queen Hippolyta, and Bruce Wayne's father, Dick Grayson's father and Tim Drake's father). Life continues, with Merlyn, Deadshot and Monocle going free on technicalities, Dr. Light having an evil smile as he remembers what he was, Owen Mercer putting on the Captain Boomerang suit, Deathstroke shooting an arrow near Green Arrow with the arrow through his mask where he was stabbed in the eye socket. Flash looks for Deathstroke, but can't find him, but Wally asks one more question. During the battle with Deathstroke, when Dr. Light blinded everybody, he projected an image of the League taking him down, with Batman in the image. Wally asks why Batman wasn't mentioned the first time around. Ollie, looks down, then lets Wally know why. Batman wasn't mentioned because they took Batman's memories as well. Batman usually wasn't there for the clean-up afterwards and had gone back to Gotham, but because it had been Sue who had been attacked, he came back, just as Zatanna was wiping Light's mind. Bruce would never allow them to wipe the mind of someone and would have them let go from the League and have extreme things done to them. Zatanna had to stop Batman, and they had to take his memories as he would never allow it and they had to do it. Ollie then makes a big speech about how superheroes don't wear the masks merely to protect themselves, but to protect family and friends as well. If super villains knew who a superhero's mother was or wife or anything, nobody would be safe, but with the mask, people are more safe. Batman tries to track Calculator down, but Calculator already knew Bats would look for him wherever it was. As Dr. Mid-Nite and Mr. Terrific keep examining the body, they find something about her brain as Batman tries to find out who benefits. There were two tiny indentations in Sue's brain, in the shape of footprints, just as Batman asks J'onn to find Ray (Atom) and to keep him where he is. Ray and Jean are back together, and the issue ends. The next issue starts in Ray and Jean's place. As Wildcat wonders why Atom would do something like that, Jean asks who left the note and gun to Jack Drake. Ray then wonders, and asks her how she knew about the note. Batman responds to other people, "Ray, it's not Ray...", as you realize that it had to have been Jean Loring, Atom's wife who killed Sue, "attacked" herself and hired Captain Boomerang to kill Jack Drake. She figured that if she made Sue faint, or whatever, Ralph would race back to her, Clark would go to Lois and maybe, Ray would go to Jean, and they could get back together. Who benefits when the family member of a superhero is killed? The family members of all the other superheroes. Jean stays defiant, asking Ray what he's going to do. Knock her out with a punch? So he takes her to Arkham, where they lock her up. Atom feels so bad about himself, that his ex-wife would kill a friend just to get him back, that he shrinks down and keeps shrinking down until he vanishes. Again, everything gets back to normal, and in the epilogue, Ralph talks to Sue, telling her everything, even though he knows she isn't there, but just telling her nonetheless, letting her know that he loves her.
Phew, sorry that is so long. I still don't feel I did it justice, but whatever. Move on, Pi.
Elongated Man, Ralph Dibny (DJL-007)
It is sad, but the story and everything started because of him, not keeping his identity secret and, of course...
Sue Dibny, Charismatic Coordinator (DJL-062)
The person who was killed in the beginning. A great individual and the only card with her.
Dr. Light, Master of Holograms (DGL-040)
I feel this is the one that represents him best. Maybe, Dr. Light, Furious Flashpoint would serve better, but that is set after Identity Crisis, when he is getting revenge for what happened to him. Of course, I feel that this card is even more disturbing when you consider that Dr. Light can make a hologram of Sue (bring her into play) and that it would actually make sense, as she is a 1-drop with a "come into play" effect.
Identity Crisis (DJL-181)
Of course, but now you know why it has the effect it does. When someone is killed, everybody rushes back to their homes.
Oliver Queen<>Green Arrow, Hard-Traveling Hero (DJL-016)
Aside from probably being the main character, he also represents, along with the next few cards, the people that erased Light's mind and erased others as well.
Hal Jordan, Hard-Traveling Hero (DJL-011)
They always fought, but were also the best of friends, but as their flavor text shows, very different viewpoints (big and small picture), but they still do what they think is right for the people.
Barry Allen<>The Flash, Scarlet Speedster (DJL-003)
One of the people who voted for the mind-wipe, in fact the one who broke the vote. Important indeed, even if he wasn't even alive by the time of Identity Crisis.
Zatanna, Zatanna Zatara (DJL-025)
A JLA version of Zatanna, who also voted for the mind-wipe and who actually preformed the wipe.
Ray Palmer<>The Atom, World's Smallest Hero (DJL-018 and DCL-025)
Another of the supporters of the wipe, plus an important character in the story itself.
Carter Hall<>Hawkman, Eternal Champion (DCR-006)
Not on the JLA, but the only version of Carter in the game. He also voted for the wipe, but beyond that, didn't fulfill much of a role, other than being on the League within the League.
Dinah Laurel Lance<>Black Canary, "Pretty Bird" (DJL-006)
She voted against the wipe. Plus, this incarnation does show the connection between her and Green Arrow (he called her "Pretty Bird"), and they were together then.
Satellite HQ (DJL-034)
Where Sue was when Dr. Light found her. It was important, although very sad, obviously.
Captain Boomerang, "Digger" (DJL-113)
One of his two versions, this one shows how much of a bad guy he is and how he did things that were just wrong. An important character in the story, he is still a letch, even by the villains' standards.
Brother I Satellite (DCR-105)
As a direct result of Identity Crisis, Batman gets paranoid of all the superheroes and beings with superpowers and creates Brother I in order to protect people from superbeings.
Deathstroke the Terminator, Ultimate Assassin (DCR-128)
Ever wonder where that art is from? Now you know. Although they switched out Elongated Man for Plastic Man, but the basic concept is the same.
The Calculator, Crime Broker (DCR-142)
Another big part of Identity Crisis, although always in the background, helping out villains constantly.
Eclipso, Jean Loring (DCR-179)
Yes, Eclipso was not in Identity Crisis, but Jean Loring, the host of Eclipso on this card, was. Plus, she became Eclipso because of Identity Crisis.
Absolute Dominance (DCR-183)
The scene where Kyle's fingers get crushed by Deathstroke is awesome. The card is awesome and represents it well.
Blinding Rage (DCR-184 and DCL-250)
Another scene from Identity Crisis, although not quite. The card has them piling on top of Batman, when that never happened. Zatanna just cried out, "Namtab pots!", and he stopped. They did pile on top of Dr. Light though and this card represents both of these things merging to make things confusing.
Defend Youself! (DCR-187)
Not quite Protect Yourself, but the same concept, plus it has Jack Drake, with the gun and note, plus the box and the shadow of a boomerang in the background.
Magical Lobotomy, Magic (DCR-193)
Zatanna wiped Light's memories using a, what's the term? That's right, a magical lobotomy.
Watch the Birdie! (DCR-203)
Ouch, getting stabbed in the eye socket would make anyone mad. Again, from the fight with Deathstroke.
Blinding Light (DLS-174)
While it takes place after, it is because of Identity Crisis that Dr. Light goes from chump to super villain who almost took out all the people who ever were Titans.
Owen Mercer<>Captain Boomerang, Digger's Son (DLS-220)
An important part of Identity Crisis, Captain Boomerang's son was shown and he took after his dad for a while until he wanted to help his half-brother (Bart Allen).
Atomize (DCL-043)
Jean killed Sue and hanged herself with the help of being super-small using Ray's tech to Atomize herself.
Identity Crisis is my favorite DC storyline of all time, and it is at least within the top 5, if not 3, of my all time favorite comic storylines. For this edition, we shall go over Identity Crisis. Just a note of warning, this is an incredibly deep and mature storyline and has mature concepts that aren't light. Please just don't continue, if you don't think you'll be able to handle these concepts maturely.
Plot Summary: It all starts with Elongated Man and Firehawk on patrol. There was a tip that two punks were selling something special, which in comics, means a giant robot, or something like that. So, while waiting, they start talking about Elongated Man and his wife. Ralph Dibny wanted to be a celebrity. He may not have been one, but he always liked being known. So he lived without a secret identity. Any random person could know or learn, if they didn't already that Ralph Dibny, the Elongated Man was married to Sue Dibny. Sue was even made an honorary Justice League member. Nobody else who wasn't a superhero got that treatment. Sue helped Ralph and his teammates, and was liked by pretty much everybody. Ralph tells Firehawk how they met, when he was back helping the Flash (Barry Allen). While Flash was the great hero, everybody looked at Flash and admired Flash, except for Sue. She was intrigued by this stretchable sleuth that hung out with and helped Flash. They loved each other, and moved on from there. Every year on his birthday, which means every year at some random time, she tries to trick him and give him a surprise birthday party. Elongated Man is an amazing detective, probably second best only to Batman, and always knows what is going to happen and when. His birthday was months away, but he knew that his party was this night, and he was going to act surprised when she gave him the magnifying glass that he had drooled over before. Sue knew that he would solve it, but she also knew he wouldn't guess the other surprise. After calling Alfred, and thanking him for helping her find that magnifying glass, she finds someone else in the house. As she panics, she calls Ralph, who immediately asks Firehawk to fly him home. When he gets there, the sprinklers are on and he sees her body, burned, and dead. Her gift to him is shown as the magnifying glass, now broken, but also a pregnancy test showing that she was pregnant. As he mourns, the League tries to figure out how somebody could have killed her. The houses that hold League members are protected by Apokoliptian, Thanagarian, Martian, Kryptonian technology, plus stuff Batman came up with (A great line, mentions all of the different techs, plus all the scary stuff Bruce came up with). No alarms were sounded, nobody just broke in. Nobody could have even just phased in. Meanwhile Green Arrow has the Ray, the Atom, the Metal Men and Mister Miracle all help him try to find how someone got in and who it could have been. They can't find anything, and that is disturbing. At her funeral, Ralph gets up to talk, but can't hold his face together (literally), and he is pulled away. With everything going on, after the funeral, all the superheroes try to find who did it. They all go in separate ways, except for Ralph, Black Canary, Green Arrow, Hawkman and Zatanna, who meet with Ralph, who wants them to go after Dr. Light. Meanwhile, Flash and GL decided to wonder why everybody was going after a villain except for these five, and spy upon the heroes. Hawkman is able to see Wally vibrating, making himself practically invisible. Green Arrow realizes Kyle must be there also and calls him out. On the way to Dr. Light's, they tell Flash and GL why Dr. Light is their number one suspect. A long time ago, when they had the satellite, they were off on a mission, and nobody was on the satellite except for Sue, who wanted to just see the stars, because she was bored. Dr. Light snuck onto the satellite, for what reason, nobody knows, but either way, his reason changed and he decided to have fun. It is never explicitly stated in the comics, but the intent is clear, and Dr. Light raped Sue. She put up a fight, but didn't stand a chance. When the League got back, it was practically over. Everybody piled on top of Light and he wsa taken down by Elongated Man wielding Hawkman's mace. When they teleported Sue and Ralph directly to a hospital, they had other problems. Ralph had not known about this, but the League, that consisted of Green Arrow, Black Canary, Hal Jordan, Barry Allen, Carter Hall, Atom and Zatanna, voted whether or not to mess with his mind using Zatanna's magic. Light was crazy at this point, and was ranting about how he was going to tell everybody at prison, create visuals using his powers, then find out everybody's wife or girlfriend and go after them. With a vote of four to three, they wiped Light's memory of the event and altered his personality to make him an idiot. Light was originally a League enemy, but ended up being the punching bag for the Teen Titans. How did that happen? His mind was altered and he became a loser. While this was explained to Flash and GL, Light decided that he needed help and needed protection from the heroes that were after him angrily for a reason he was unsure of. He hired Deathstroke, the Terminator, who was ready to take them all on. Forgetting what Ralph had at stake, the League doesn't fully pay attention as he rushes in and gets caught in an explosion provided by Deathstroke. Deathstroke's next move is to take out Flash, by exploding mines beneath the street, making Wally run right into his sword, which he twists to make Wally stay down (not kill, but not be able to move super fast for a time). He then goes after Zatanna, punching her in the liver, making her vomit and not be able to speak or cast spells (as her spellc all require backwards speech). Next, he goes after Carter, taking him out by slicing his harness off that holds his wings on, making him fall to the ground. He then takes out Green Arrow, by chopping the backs off of all the arrows in his quiver. When Black Canary tries to sing, he gets behind her and traps her head in a bag, handcuffing her, so she can't get it off. He then looks around for Atom, and seeing him, even while tiny, aims a laser pointer at Atom. The Atom is hit by the laser pointer, and is knocked back, and making himself large, so he is not killed by hitting something, knocks right into Carter, knocking them both out. At this point GL has to take Deathstroke on. Slade just grabs his hand and crushes his fingers. The ring works on will and with seeing everything that has just taken place, he doesn't have the will to take on Slade. Fortunately, Green Arrow grabs one of his arrows and stabs it right into Deathstroke's empty eye socket, enraging him, making him not think and just lash out, allowing the League to all pile on top of him, in a way very similar to what took place when they attacked Light on the satellite, making Light remember what happened, gaining all his memories and his old personality back, making everything super bright, taking Deathstroke with him, running away. As they are confronted by Superman, who wants to know why they are going after Light, Wally helps them out by saying how Ralph had an encounter with him once, and wanted to let him go after Light himself. Superman then tells them how it couldn't be Dr. Light because her body was burned after she was already dead (how this exonerates Light, I'm not sure, but whatever). Green Arrow then needs to tell Wally about how Light wasn't the only one they erased the memory of. Every time a villain took over a hero's body or snuck into their dreams or anything, Zatanna would have to wipe their memories so they wouldn't remember who the heroes were. Batman and Superman always were too busy for the wrap-up, and after the villains were defeated, they went back to their respective cities as Joker or Lex was up to no good. But the villains still needed to be dealt with and memories were taken. Light was different as he also had his personality changed, but he wasn't the first or the last person that was changed by Zatanna's magic. In a sub-plot, Captain Boomerang tries to deal with the fact that he may have a son. Then, as Robin tries to deal with his dad, Jean Loring, Atom's wife is attacked and is hung by a noose and goes stiff. Atom goes through the phone lines and jumps out, destroying the rope, and taking her down, trying to make her breathe. As she finally breathes, he is relieved. This time, Green Arrow goes right to the top, as opposed to all the other League membres. He gets Superman to help investigate. Superman recognizes the knot that was used and has Oracle look up who uses that type of knot, discovering Slipknot used to use that exact knot. Wonder Woman and Green Arrow go to Slipknot in prison and make him tell them what he knows. He doesn't know anything, which leads the JL to believe that it has something to do with the Suicide Squad, which is the only thing that Dr. Light (believed to have done the first murder) and Slipknot (believed to have done the second attempted murder) have in common. Clark tells Bruce that the League is looking at the Squad, which Batman easily casts aside, as there would be no benefit. Captain Boomerang actually meets with his son, who lets him know that a reporter tried to have a picture of him with a boomerang, which he threw back at the reporter, slicing off his earlobe. Green Arrow, in a move that is somewhat desperate goes to Hal Jordan's grave, standing on it, so that the Spectre will appear. They laugh and talk for a while before Arrow asks Hal to tell him who killed Sue, which Hal says he can't do. He has to answer to a higher power (DC God) and cannot just do things on his own. It hurts him a lot though that he can't actually help. Lois is then threatened, with a letter letting her know that she's next and that the killer knows who her husband is (the letter 's' in husband is surrounded by a Superman like triangle). Green Arrow then confronts Deadshot, Merlyn and Monocle. As they aim at him, GL, Flash and Hawkman break through the walls, easily taking care of the villains, who know nothing, as it is all over, as no villains seem to know anything. Unfortunately, during one of these confrontations, Firstorm is stabbed through with Shining Knight's sword by Shadow-Thief. He then, flies in the air and explodes, dying. Atom and Jean get back together, after they realize how short life can be. Captain Boomerang and his son practice throwing boomerangs, and as Owen (his son) throws a razor boomerang directly at his dad, he runs quickly and carries his dad away before the boomerang hits, running with superhuman speed. Robin, as he is about to leave to go on patrol is then confronted by his dad, who doesn't want him to leave. Tim is able to convince his dad that he is better off trying to help than just watching about it on TV. As Jack (Tim's dad) goes into the kitchen, there is a box on the table, with a note on it saying "Jack Drake" with the 'r' in Drake circled, like Robin's R on his outfit. Inside the box is a note and a gun. The note simply says, "Protect Yourself." Jack then calls Oracle, asking for his son, whom Oracle contacts, all while trying to keep Jack calm and trying to help. Someone jumps onto Jack's roof, just as Robin is contacted. Batman turns the Batmobile around, racing towards Jack's house. Robin and his dad talk to each other, with his dad telling him that he loves him and Tim trying to get him out of there. Batman asks for the Flash, but he oculdn't be reached. As Robin and his dad have what could be their last conversation, Owen Mercer gets a message from his dad, letting Owen know that he has a big job that'll get his name back on the map. Boomerang breaks into Jack's house and is shot by Drake, just as he lets go of a razor-sharp boomerang, hitting Jack right in the heart, as they both die. When Batman and Robin get to the house, Tim throws off his costume and races for his dad, who is already dead. Batman holds him, letting him know that he's got him. Before this, Robin had not been an orphan, but now both Batman and Robin are orphans. Owen goes to the house where his dad was killed, asking for his dad's body so that it can be buried, but the cops or feds or somebody won't let him, saying that all these villains have just come back, so they really can't just let the body be out in the open. Everybody deals with the losses, Green Arrow hugs his kid, brothers, sisters, sons, daughters, wives, husbands, mothers and fathers all have been lost (Hal Jordan is like a brother, Terra was Geo-Force's sister, Aquaman's son, Martian Manhunter's daughter, Elongated Man's wife, Sue Dibny, Iris West's husband, Barry Allen, Wonder Woman's mother, Queen Hippolyta, and Bruce Wayne's father, Dick Grayson's father and Tim Drake's father). Life continues, with Merlyn, Deadshot and Monocle going free on technicalities, Dr. Light having an evil smile as he remembers what he was, Owen Mercer putting on the Captain Boomerang suit, Deathstroke shooting an arrow near Green Arrow with the arrow through his mask where he was stabbed in the eye socket. Flash looks for Deathstroke, but can't find him, but Wally asks one more question. During the battle with Deathstroke, when Dr. Light blinded everybody, he projected an image of the League taking him down, with Batman in the image. Wally asks why Batman wasn't mentioned the first time around. Ollie, looks down, then lets Wally know why. Batman wasn't mentioned because they took Batman's memories as well. Batman usually wasn't there for the clean-up afterwards and had gone back to Gotham, but because it had been Sue who had been attacked, he came back, just as Zatanna was wiping Light's mind. Bruce would never allow them to wipe the mind of someone and would have them let go from the League and have extreme things done to them. Zatanna had to stop Batman, and they had to take his memories as he would never allow it and they had to do it. Ollie then makes a big speech about how superheroes don't wear the masks merely to protect themselves, but to protect family and friends as well. If super villains knew who a superhero's mother was or wife or anything, nobody would be safe, but with the mask, people are more safe. Batman tries to track Calculator down, but Calculator already knew Bats would look for him wherever it was. As Dr. Mid-Nite and Mr. Terrific keep examining the body, they find something about her brain as Batman tries to find out who benefits. There were two tiny indentations in Sue's brain, in the shape of footprints, just as Batman asks J'onn to find Ray (Atom) and to keep him where he is. Ray and Jean are back together, and the issue ends. The next issue starts in Ray and Jean's place. As Wildcat wonders why Atom would do something like that, Jean asks who left the note and gun to Jack Drake. Ray then wonders, and asks her how she knew about the note. Batman responds to other people, "Ray, it's not Ray...", as you realize that it had to have been Jean Loring, Atom's wife who killed Sue, "attacked" herself and hired Captain Boomerang to kill Jack Drake. She figured that if she made Sue faint, or whatever, Ralph would race back to her, Clark would go to Lois and maybe, Ray would go to Jean, and they could get back together. Who benefits when the family member of a superhero is killed? The family members of all the other superheroes. Jean stays defiant, asking Ray what he's going to do. Knock her out with a punch? So he takes her to Arkham, where they lock her up. Atom feels so bad about himself, that his ex-wife would kill a friend just to get him back, that he shrinks down and keeps shrinking down until he vanishes. Again, everything gets back to normal, and in the epilogue, Ralph talks to Sue, telling her everything, even though he knows she isn't there, but just telling her nonetheless, letting her know that he loves her.
Phew, sorry that is so long. I still don't feel I did it justice, but whatever. Move on, Pi.
Elongated Man, Ralph Dibny (DJL-007)
It is sad, but the story and everything started because of him, not keeping his identity secret and, of course...
Sue Dibny, Charismatic Coordinator (DJL-062)
The person who was killed in the beginning. A great individual and the only card with her.
Dr. Light, Master of Holograms (DGL-040)
I feel this is the one that represents him best. Maybe, Dr. Light, Furious Flashpoint would serve better, but that is set after Identity Crisis, when he is getting revenge for what happened to him. Of course, I feel that this card is even more disturbing when you consider that Dr. Light can make a hologram of Sue (bring her into play) and that it would actually make sense, as she is a 1-drop with a "come into play" effect.
Identity Crisis (DJL-181)
Of course, but now you know why it has the effect it does. When someone is killed, everybody rushes back to their homes.
Oliver Queen<>Green Arrow, Hard-Traveling Hero (DJL-016)
Aside from probably being the main character, he also represents, along with the next few cards, the people that erased Light's mind and erased others as well.
Hal Jordan, Hard-Traveling Hero (DJL-011)
They always fought, but were also the best of friends, but as their flavor text shows, very different viewpoints (big and small picture), but they still do what they think is right for the people.
Barry Allen<>The Flash, Scarlet Speedster (DJL-003)
One of the people who voted for the mind-wipe, in fact the one who broke the vote. Important indeed, even if he wasn't even alive by the time of Identity Crisis.
Zatanna, Zatanna Zatara (DJL-025)
A JLA version of Zatanna, who also voted for the mind-wipe and who actually preformed the wipe.
Ray Palmer<>The Atom, World's Smallest Hero (DJL-018 and DCL-025)
Another of the supporters of the wipe, plus an important character in the story itself.
Carter Hall<>Hawkman, Eternal Champion (DCR-006)
Not on the JLA, but the only version of Carter in the game. He also voted for the wipe, but beyond that, didn't fulfill much of a role, other than being on the League within the League.
Dinah Laurel Lance<>Black Canary, "Pretty Bird" (DJL-006)
She voted against the wipe. Plus, this incarnation does show the connection between her and Green Arrow (he called her "Pretty Bird"), and they were together then.
Satellite HQ (DJL-034)
Where Sue was when Dr. Light found her. It was important, although very sad, obviously.
Captain Boomerang, "Digger" (DJL-113)
One of his two versions, this one shows how much of a bad guy he is and how he did things that were just wrong. An important character in the story, he is still a letch, even by the villains' standards.
Brother I Satellite (DCR-105)
As a direct result of Identity Crisis, Batman gets paranoid of all the superheroes and beings with superpowers and creates Brother I in order to protect people from superbeings.
Deathstroke the Terminator, Ultimate Assassin (DCR-128)
Ever wonder where that art is from? Now you know. Although they switched out Elongated Man for Plastic Man, but the basic concept is the same.
The Calculator, Crime Broker (DCR-142)
Another big part of Identity Crisis, although always in the background, helping out villains constantly.
Eclipso, Jean Loring (DCR-179)
Yes, Eclipso was not in Identity Crisis, but Jean Loring, the host of Eclipso on this card, was. Plus, she became Eclipso because of Identity Crisis.
Absolute Dominance (DCR-183)
The scene where Kyle's fingers get crushed by Deathstroke is awesome. The card is awesome and represents it well.
Blinding Rage (DCR-184 and DCL-250)
Another scene from Identity Crisis, although not quite. The card has them piling on top of Batman, when that never happened. Zatanna just cried out, "Namtab pots!", and he stopped. They did pile on top of Dr. Light though and this card represents both of these things merging to make things confusing.
Defend Youself! (DCR-187)
Not quite Protect Yourself, but the same concept, plus it has Jack Drake, with the gun and note, plus the box and the shadow of a boomerang in the background.
Magical Lobotomy, Magic (DCR-193)
Zatanna wiped Light's memories using a, what's the term? That's right, a magical lobotomy.
Watch the Birdie! (DCR-203)
Ouch, getting stabbed in the eye socket would make anyone mad. Again, from the fight with Deathstroke.
Blinding Light (DLS-174)
While it takes place after, it is because of Identity Crisis that Dr. Light goes from chump to super villain who almost took out all the people who ever were Titans.
Owen Mercer<>Captain Boomerang, Digger's Son (DLS-220)
An important part of Identity Crisis, Captain Boomerang's son was shown and he took after his dad for a while until he wanted to help his half-brother (Bart Allen).
Atomize (DCL-043)
Jean killed Sue and hanged herself with the help of being super-small using Ray's tech to Atomize herself.
Saturday, February 2, 2008
Identity Crisis is really good
I was going to post about Identity Crisis in the same way that I posted about Dark Phoenix Saga last week. Unfortunately, I like Identity Crisis way too much. So, I rant about Identity Crisis way too much. With that, I won't be able to finish it until Monday. Then, you'll know all about Identity Crisis and the cards that go with it.
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