I don't know about you but I'm ready for some more put downs from the Bard. I am continually amazed at his use of common words in uncommon ways to create fabulous burns. So gentle people let the games begin.
I do desire we may be better strangers.
Thou frothy flap-mouthed minnow.
You scullion! You rampallian! You Fustilarian! I'll tickle your catastrophe.
Thou puking dismal-dreaming horn.
Villain, I have done thy mother.
Thou spleeny flap-mouthed harpy.
They lie deadly when they tell you, you have good faces.
Thou rank beef-witted measle.
Thou art the son and heir of a mongrel bitch.
Thou churlish fen-sucked strumpet.
Away, moldy rogue, away!
I think thou wast created for men to breathe themselves upon you.
More of your conversation would infect my brain.
I wonder that you still be talking. Nobody marks you.
Well, that's all for now. I challenge you to use one of these pithy phrases on an acquaintance who doest thou find irksome.
The new 'Avengers' movie will feature the Hyper-Villain Ultron. I recently started up a conversation about this massively powerful super creep. In the entire group I was in, no one even knew who this bad guy was.
Also, with the upcoming crossover between 'Arrow' and 'The Flash' which features Captain Boomerang, I wondered who might appreciate a heads up about this guy - although with all the mega-humans coming out of the woodwork on 'Flash', I'm thinking it might not be the same guy. In any event, I'm going to give you the low down on several of the coolest, weirdest, baddest super (and not so super) villains in both the Marvel and DC universe.
Let's begin with Ultron - First of all, Ultron is a robot, albeit one with a mind of its own (no three laws for him). Henry Pym (The Ant Man, a superhero destined to have a movie of his own in the near future) created Ultron and implanted his own brain patterns into his creation. Ultron rebelled and decided that the human race needed to be exterminated. Go Figure. Like Wolverine, Ulton - or at least a subsequent upgrade of the robot - is made of indestructible Adamantium. He is also incredibly strong (we're talking Hulk strong), almost invulnerable, can fly, and can put large numbers of folks in a trace with just a glance. And one more thing, if he is defeated, like the robot in the 'The Incredibles', he recreates himself with new enhancements. At last count, there was an Ultron 15.
Captain Boomerang - Alias George 'Digger' Harkness, the good Captain is an enemy of The Flash. First of all, he uses boomerangs like Batman uses the weapons in his utility belt or Arrow uses his specialized arrows. On top of that, he had, in a limited sense, the ability to match Flash's bursts of speed. He has tangled with the Flash on more than one occasion and of course lost.
Dormammu - Rumor has it that Marvel is planning to release a Doctor Strange movie. As a fan of the super-mystic Strange, I am looking forward to this one. Anyway, one of the most powerful adversaries - and I believe the very enemy that Strange will face in the movie - Dormammu is a bad ass. Demonlike, he appears surrounded in a corona of fire. Like Strange he is a master of the Mystic Arts. He has conquered and subjugated a butt-load of alternate dimensions but the one he has set his sights on is ours. He can travel effortlessly between these dimensions, alter his size and strength, travel in time, and is a master of telepathy. Oh yeah, he can transform others into copies of himself and equip them with his powers.
Gorilla Grodd - Recently on the TV show 'The Flash' the mysterious wheel-chaired mastermind Harrison Wells (Just who the heck is this guy anyway?) went into his secret sanctum and addressed a creature in a cage marked Gorilla Grodd. I said--out loud at the time--wait a minute, one of Flash's big time adversaries is Gorilla Grodd. This bad simian is a member of a race of super-apes who have kept their existence a secret from humanity. Grodd can control the minds of others, transfer his consciousness into others, transform matter with his will, and if all of this wasn't bad enough, he is a genius on the order of Lex Luther. What the heck is he doing in a cage in a back wing of Harrison Well's abode?
The Absorbing Man - If you're a fan of Marvel's Agents of Shield you've seen this nightmare on two different episodes. Carl 'Crusher' Creel is featured on the show as a thrall of Hydra (Hail Hydra!!!) but the original Creel was a creation of Asgard (who are also featured from time to time on Marvel's Agents of Shield). Loki, Thor's evil half-brother endowed Creel with the power to absorb and become anything he touches. This includes energy or even sometimes the powers of his adversaries, one of which was Thor the Thunder God. He had fought the Hulk to a standstill by absorbing his strength. He carries a ball and chain which he uses the way Thor uses his hammer.
The Penguin - One of my favorite shows this season is 'Gotham' and my favorite character on this excellent show is Oswald Chesterfield Cobblepot. On the TV show he is a manipulative genius, a ruthless adversary, and someone who seems destined to rise up through the ranks of Gotham's underworld. In graphic novels (and one so-so movie) he is a foe of Batman. Like Moriarity of Sherlock Holmes fame, The Penguin prefers to remain behind the scenes doing nefarious deeds in secret - pulling the strings as it were. Occasionally he confronts Batman and Robin directly, usually in some plot involving birds. He has also teamed up with a few other of Batman's enemies and has come close to putting the Caped Crusader on ice.
The Riddler - Another character on 'Gotham' is a criminologist named Edward Nigma. Currently, he is just an annoying fidget who seems obsessed with puzzles and riddles. This scenario is slightly different from the one presented in the comics of my youth but the outcome appears to heading the same way. E. Nigma (get it?!) will eventually decide to go to the dark side and will become the criminal The Riddler. In this persona, he will, like The Penguin, become a foe of Batman and Robin. A genius with puzzles, Nigma can't resist leaving riddling clues which eventually lead to his downfall.
I can't deny it. I love movies. For less than ten dollars (sometime a whole lot less) I get to enjoy a film that might cost a half billion dollars to make.
That said, it's a real treat when a movie not only touches my heart, but uplifts it as well.
The Theory of Everything is a significant section of the life of Stephen Hawking - from 1963 when he was a Science student at Cambridge trying to decide on a direction for his thesis to close to the present. It is not science heavy but more revolves around the relationship between him and his wife Jane Wilde. And of course there is his neurological disorder.
The acting is superb. The writing is funny, poignant, sweet, and articulate. I do believe Eddie Redmayne (think Les Miserables) as Hawking never lets us forget there is a living breathing man inside the deteriorating shell of the scientist. There's a scene where he plays with his children, careening around his living room on his electric wheelchair--lovely. Felicity Jones as his courageous wife Jane is powerful at the same time as being breathtaking in her depth. The supporting cast is terrific as well, from David Thewlis as Dennis Sciama, Stephen's mentor who became his lifelong friend to Charlie Cox a music teacher who became so much more.
I could go on and on but I hope I've convinced you to give this one a try. You won't be disappointed.
Once I got hooked on famous steeds and their equally famous riders, I found myself staring at an even more fascinating group of equines - Famous Fictional Horses. Here are a few. I hope you find them as entertaining as I did.
Shadowfax - Lord of the Rings fans will know this magical horse who aligned himself with Gandalf. This steed belonging to the city of Gondor, would be Gandalf's (both as Gandalf the Grey and Gandalf the White) companion through all of his battles to save Middle Earth.
Fatty Lumpkin - While were talking about LOTR we can't forget Tom Bombadil (although Peter Jackson did in his three movie series). Bombadil rode Fatty as he accompanied the Hobbits on a leg of their quest to keep the infamous Ring of Power out of the hands of the Black Riders.
Arion - Some horses in mythology are not altogether normal. Arion the steed of Hercules, had the feet of a human on his right side.
Sleipnir - Another horse that was different from your run of the mill equine, Sleipnir belonged to Father god Odin. And oh yeah, he had eight legs--which strikes me as bit arachnid.
Tornado - It didn't matter if he was being chased by one horse or an army, Tornado, the jet black steed of swordsman Zorro, could not be caught.
Widowmaker - Some horses won't put up with just anybody riding them. This lightning bolt of a pony belonging to the rootenest, tootenest cowboy in the whole west, Pecos Bill, did not take a shine to Bill's girlfriend Slufoot Sue. When she plopped herself down on his back he bucked her clear to the moon. That is why coyotes, to this day, bay at the moon every night.
And let's end with a biblical equine, although this one is a donkey.
Balaam's Ass - It came as quite a surprise to Balaam when what he thought was an ordinary donkey started talking. Balaam who was in the process of disobeying the God of the Old Testament, couldn't see that God intended to slay both rider and donkey but the ass could. After simply balking and refusing to ride into certain destruction, the donkey turned to Balaam and called him a fool.
Don't ask me why, but I recently became obsessed with famous people and the horses they rode in on. Hopefully, you'll also enjoy a bit of back story to go with your horsey facts. Soooooo, without further ado, Here are the equines:
Bucephalus - When Alexander was a mere stripling, this formidable steed was deemed unrideable. The beast would have been killed if little Alex hadn't interceded on it's behalf. The deal was that if Alexander could bend the animal to his will, the horse would his. Truth was, the horse from Hell almost killed Alexander on more than one occasion but in the end horse and rider became fast friends. Bucephalus would become the warhorse that Alexander the Great rode into battle.
Traveler - This horse, belonging to General Robert E Lee was considered the 'finest looking horse I ever laid eyes on'. The man doted on Traveler, being seen in the company of the animal in over a dozen photographs. Needless to say, Lee rode his favorite horse into more than one battle.
Comanche - Belonging to General George Custer, Comanche was one of the few horses to survive the battle of Little Big Horn. The victorious Sioux and Arapaho recognized a good horse when they saw one and kept the animal to its dying day.
Nelson & Blueskin - At Valley Forge, Washington didn't just have one horse, he had two as he struggled through the bitter winter of 1775. Not much is known of these two noble steeds except that both horses, like Washington himself, survived the ordeal.
Incitatus - This horse, belonging to crazy-as-a-bedbug Roman Emperor Caligula lived a charmed life. While the mad emperor was setting fire to friends and members of the senate, he pampered Incitatus, making him a Roman Consul and feeding him powdered gold.
Morengo - Napolean is shown riding Morengo in the famous painting by Jacques-Louis David. Many scholars question if this horse of legend actually existed while other claim this was the animal that Napolean rode into the Battle of Waterloo.
Brown Beauty - The truth is that Paul Revere did not own the horse he rode on his famous ride. In fact, many scholars say that name of the steed in unknown, but a select group of historians say the horse Paul borrowed that night from chair-maker Samuel Larkin was indeed named Brown Beauty.
Red Fox - If you rob banks and trains for a living, you need a fast horse. Jesse James had what many people considered the fastest horse in the west. After Jesse quit his thieving ways, he made a bundle (before being shot from behind by Bob Ford) racing Red Fox.
Old Bob - Not much is know about this horse with a less than impressive name except that he was the favorite horse of Abraham Lincoln.
I have never met anyone who didn't know some of the Bard's put downs - 'Cankerblossom' comes to mind.
For this list I have chosen some that I think are richer, more textured, and might even be used today - Shakespeare is nothing if not timeless. I will first give the play, so you can go look up the insult in context if you so desire. So without further ado (about nothing, hee hee) let the insults fly.
As You Like It - Let's meet as little as we can.
Henry IV, part 1 - Why, thou clay-brained guts, thou knotty-pated fool, thou whoreson obscene greasy tallow-catch.
All's Well That Ends Well - Methinks thou art a general offense, and every man should beat thee.
Henry V - Thou damned and luxurious mountain goat.
King John - There is not yet so ugly a fiend of hell as thou shall be
King Lear - Thou art a boil, a plague sore, an embossed carbuncle in my corrupted blood.
Measure for Measure - Come, you are a tedious fool.
Timon of Athens - Would thou were clean enough to spit upon.
Troilus and Cressida - Thou hast no more brain than I have in my elbows.
A Midsummer's Night's Dream - I am sick when I look upon thee.
And now one that gets right to the point.
The Winter's Tale - Go rot!
Obviously, comic book superheroes are fictional characters, so this list is really character names Chapter 3.
A superhero, theoretically, needs a secret identity to protect the folks he or she cares about from bad guys seeking revenge. If you were say, the wife of Batman and the Joker, who everyone generally concedes is bat-shit crazy, knew it, your life wouldn't be worth much. Now that is not to say that every superhero had a secret identity. In the Marvel Universe, Iron Man and Mister Fantastic (Reed Richards) both have come out of the closet, so to speak.
For this post I have concentrated on mostly the well known characters. The next graphic novel post will visit lesser know entities. And for the sake of brevity, I have limited myself to ten from DC and ten from Marvel, but be sure to look at the end.
DC
1. Batman - Millionaire playboy Bruce Wayne
2, Superman - Reporter for the Daily Planet, Clark Kent
3. Green Lantern (the original, silver age) - Hal Jorden, Test Pilot
4. Flash (again, the original, silver age) - Barry Allen, Forensic Police
5. Martian Manhunter - John Jones, Police
6. Wonder Woman - Diana Prince
7. Green Arrow - Oliver Queen
8. Plastic Man - Circus performer, Patrick O'Brian
9. Aquaman - King of Atlantis, Authur Curry
10. Captain Marvel (Shazam) - Child, Billy Batson
Marvel
1. Spiderman - Student and Reporter, Peter Parker
2. Iron Man - Industrialist, Tony Stark
3. The Hulk - Scientist, Bruce Banner
4. The Thing - Pilot, Ben Grimm
5. Wolverine - Adventurer, James 'Logan' Howlette
6. Black Widow - Spy, Claire Voyant
7. Captain America - Soldier, Steve Rogers.
8. Hawkeye - Agent of Shield, Clint Barton
9. The Cyclops (X-man) - Student, Scott Summers
10. The Beast (X-man) - Hank McCoy
Next up - Names, powers, and identities of supervillians
