5 Deaths That Impacted the Marvel Universe
Posted on: January 17, 2011 by admin.
Death is something that’s always been…impermanent in comics. Two years ago when CNN announced that Captain America was going to be killed off, most fanboys sniggered; they knew that no matter how much hoopla was made about it, given enough time (and maybe an upcoming movie?), Cap would be back. Not everyone is as lucky as Cap, though, and believe it or not, there are SOME deaths in the Marvel Universe that actually stay permanent and have long lasting consequences. With that in mind, here are 5 Deaths that Impacted the Marvel Universe.
5. The 612 People of Stamford, Connecticut – Civil War Series
After a bungled attempt by the New Warriors to take down a group of super-villains, Nitro, a villain whose power is to create nuclear explosions, self-detonates and kills 612 men, women and children caught in the blast radius. This was the catalyst for the Super hero Registration Act, which forced all heroes to register with the government and reveal their secret identities. Not everyone was happy to do this, however, and the result was the Civil War; A war where heroes fought against each other on either the pro or anti-registration side. With lasting consequences including the “death” of Captain America, Tony Stark becoming the head of SHIELD, and the first nail in to the coffin that was the Retcon of Spiderman, the House of ideas managed to tear the MU apart with repercussions that are still felt today.
4. The Death of Professor X – X-Men # 41
After being accidently killed by his son, Legion, who travelled back in time and intended to kill Magneto instead, a new time-line is created where Xavier never creates the X-Men. As a result of this, years later when Apocalypse comes to the conqueror the Earth, there’s no one to stop him, and what ensues is an incredibly bleak future where the MU gets turned on its head; with heroes becoming villains, and some villains becoming heroes. Yes, it was technically a long What If story, but thanks to the Age of Apocalypse, we come to see just how important Xavier is, and what would happen if the X-men had never been formed.
3. Gwen Stacy – The Amazing Spiderman #121-122
You might not realize it from her lackluster appearance in Spidey 3, but in the early days of Peter Parker’s life, Gwen Stacy played a very important role. Sweet and understanding, she was Pete’s first true love, and for a while it looked like marriage might have been in their future. This made it all the worse, when the Green Goblin, aware of Spiderman’s true identity, kidnapped Gwen in an attempt to goad Spiderman into a fight. The climatic bridge ends with the Goblin throwing Gwen off the bridge to her doom, only to have Peter shoot a web and catch her as she’s falling. The SNAP caption on the panel said it all, and we find that Gwen is dead. Whether she was already dead before the Goblin threw her, or whether it was Peter’s web which snapped her neck doesn’t matter, when Gwen Stacy died, Peter learned just how dangerous being Spiderman can be, not only to himself, but his loved ones as well.
2. Captain Marvel – The Death of Captain Marvel Graphic Novel
Originally a Kree solider sent to observe Earth, Mar-Vell begins to sympathize with humanity, and when forced to choose between his own people and Earth, he chooses the latter. The result was a cosmic super-hero career that consisted of battling super-villains, joining the Avengers, and even coming to wield the Nega-bands. Sadly, after one of his battles with Nitro, Mar-Vell finds out that exposure to Nitro’s radiation has given him cancer. With no cure available, he eventually dies; not because of a super- villain’s plot to take over the world, but because of a disease that anyone can get, showing that even super-heroes were human in the end.
1. Uncle Ben – Amazing Fantasy # 15
Probably the most significant death to take place in the Marvel Universe; after Peter Parker is bitten by a radioactive spider he chooses to use his new powers for selfish reasons. It’s only when his Uncle Ben is murdered by a robber that Peter had earlier allowed to escape, that he sees the consequences of his actions. Thus Spiderman was born, and one of the greatest comic quotes was written, “With great power comes great responsibility.”
Top Ten Tree house of Horror Segments
Posted on: November 1, 2010 by admin.
Starting in 1990 The Simpsons has released a Treehouse of Horror episode, and it wasn't long before these annual customs have become a yearly tradition for the past 20 years. Always among the best episodes of the show, and always funny, here are the Top Ten Tree house of Horror Segments.
10. The Homega Man
What would you do if you were the last man alive? Strip down to your undies and dance to old Edwin Starr songs, of course. At least that’s what Homer does when he believes he’s the only one to survive a nuclear holocaust. Oh, and there are skin-eating zombies too, but Homer’s antics as the ‘last’ man alive are what make the episode.
9. Clown Without Pity
Thanks to this episode, people have been looking for a good Frogurt substitute since 1991; you know, because the toppings contain potassium benzoate (that’s bad). A spoof of the Chucky movies, this episode dealt with Homer buying a Krusty Doll that wanted to kill him. Hilarity ensued, and it’s only at the end that we find it was all a terrible misunderstanding. Thank god for Quality Control!
8. Homer3
When Homer finds himself trapped in a 3D pocket dimension, it’s up to the rest of the family, Police Chief Wiggum, Reverend Lovejoy, and Prof. Frink to save him. Not only did we get to see a computerized version of Homer (it was a big thing in ’95), but any episode that ends with erotic cakes definitely deserves a mention here! Mmm…erotic cakes….
7. Citizen Khang
This election spoof was great! Only the combined forces of Bob Dole and Bill Clin-ton can stop the evil plans of resident aliens Khang and Kodos. That is until Homer helps. What did I learn from this episode? That no one believes a man who smells of rum, and that a vote for a third party candidate is throwing your vote away.
6. Terror at 5 ½ Feet
Bart has to convince everyone on the school bus that a Gremlin is trying to make the school bus crash. Anything that pays tribute to the Twilight zone is definitely worth a spot on here.
5. The Shinning
Homer has taken a job as a caretaker of a reclusive resort owned by Mr. Burns. Unbeknownst him the spot the hotel was built on was home to satanic rituals, an Indian burial ground, and FOUR John Denver specials. Can the Simpsons make it through, or will no beer and no TV make Homer go something, something?
4. Dial Z for Zombie
Two words: Zombie Shakespeare. Nuff said.
3. The Devil and Homer Simpson
Homer sells his soul to the Devil (Ned Flanders) for one donut. At first outsmarting him, but later succumbing to the deliciousness and eating it. Like any good American, Marge disagrees and sues, and even though they win, the Devil is still the one who has the last laugh.
2. Bart Simpson’s Dracula
What horrors lurk in terrifying Pennsylvania? Only the Simpsons know. Mr. Burns plays the role of Dracula in this hilarious segment (well, if it isn’t little….boy), and does the job well. One of the all-time best. And speaking of the best…
1. The Raven
Leave it to the Simpsons to go the high road, and class up the show a little bit. Retelling the Edgar Allan Poe poem, and featuring the Simpsons family as the cast of characters, including Bart as the Raven, this has got to be one of the all-time best episodes. Afterwards you’ll be saying nevermore for a week, trust me.
10 Villians Who Didn't Even Have a Chance
Posted on: October 18, 2010 by admin.
In world’s where people have incredible strength, can leap tall buildings, and move at incredible speeds, it’s only natural that some would use those powers for their own ends. Sure, we’ve got super villains like Lex Luthor and Dr. Doom…but then we also have the other guys. You know the one’ s I’m talking about; People who should have never put their super suits on in the first place, and because of that mistake, routinely get their asses kicked. These are the villains who didn’t even have a chance.
10. Oddball
A former juggler who thought, “why the fuck can’t I be a supervillain?” Elton Healey traded in his blue balls (hehe) and donned one of the ugliest costumes ever seen. With a phenomenal 0-100 losing streak, Oddball was generously put out of his misery in a death tournament that he agreed to participate in. Thus proving that a strong set of balls isn’t very reliable without a good head (hehehe).
9. Armadillo
Like the Rhino, Antonio Rodriguez was given fantastic strength by having his cybernetic suit bonded to him. Unlike the Rhino, he didn’t read the fine print of his ‘animal villain’ contract, and ended up looking like a much less badass, much more comical Armadillo. Anyone whose super power involves rolling up into a ball when threatened definitely deserves to be here. Don’t they eat these things in Texas, too?
8. Stilt Man
Yes, I had to put him on this list somewhere. Stilt man was Wilbur Day, an engineer who invented hydrolytic stilts which could stretch to 250 feet, and allowed him to walk around the city, committing what were probably the most obvious crimes in the city. Fortunately his nemesis was blind so y’know…there was that. Sadly, Day was killed a few years ago by the Punisher while trying to go straight, denying people everywhere the chance to point and wonder why someone would be so stupid as to think being tall is a superpower.
7. Kangaroo
In what world is a Kangaroo dangerous??? Okay, maybe in Australia, but still! For some god-unknown reason Robert Gibs had a thing for the original Kangaroo villain (yes, there were two), and tried to emulate him by buying a Kangaroo battle suit out of a supervillain catalogue. With great leaping powers and super strength, Gibbs battled Spiderman a few times, eventually being captured by a Kraven wannabe and placed in a supervillain themed zoo. Later, he was later found dead in a pool of water. I’d like to say he deserved better…but I can’t with a straight face.
6 . Kite Man
Kite-Man is one of those wonderful leftovers from the Silver Age, an innocent time where anyone could go to their local hardware store and battle Superman the next day. He would use giant kites to fly over the city and commit robberies, occasionally coming up against Batman in his struggles. He’s on the list because any character that needs to check which way the wind is blowing before plotting a crime definitely needs to rethink his modus operandi.
5. The Turtle
A member of the Flash’s Rogue Gallery, the Turtle has the ‘super-power’ to move so incredibly slow that the Flash can’t predict his movements. Ever woken at 3 am and stumbled slowly in the dark to the bathroom? Congratulations, you’re now qualified to be a Flash villain.
4. Calendar Man
Calendar Man is a Batman villain who commits his crimes based around particular days of the year (Eg: Christmas, Anniversaries, etc...), a gimmick that might have been creative if it wasn’t so predictable. Seriously, Christmas day and the bank’s been robbed by Santa Claus? Hmm…wonder who that could be? Giant Easter Bunny tormenting downtown Gotham? That’ll be a mystery. I’m sure Batman doesn’t even have to try anymore, he just has the dates circled, and arrests CD before he even gets the chance to commit them.
3. Killer Moth
The original post-crisis Killer Moth set himself up as being an anti-Batman. Whenever criminals needed help with a caper, they could pay the Moth who would set up a distraction to help his cohorts escape. Let me repeat that: The man willfully took on Batman. Anyone who does that either has balls of steel or is extremely dumb. Unfortunately for him, it was the latter.
2. Unus the Untouchable
Unus was more a victim of circumstance than poor planning. Born a mutant, he could create a force field around himself that would protect him from any kind of harm. Unfortunately, as those wacky mutant powers tend to do, his force-field power started to malfunction after a fight with the Hulk, and went into overdrive. The result was the field became so thick that it repelled oxygen, and eventually he suffocated to death. If ever there was a man that needed to live in a bubble, this was him.
1. Porcupine
He impaled himself on his own costume. ‘Nuff said.
