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The Million Dollar Debut of Batgirl. Cover by Carmine Infantino & Murphy Anderson.
Editor Julius Schwartz claimed that when planning the new Batgirl’s comic book debut, he had considered the character to be a vehicle that might attract a female viewership to the Batman television series of the sixties. When producers William Dozier and Howie Horowitz saw rough concept artwork by artist Carmine Infantino during a visit to DC offices, they optioned the character in a bid to help sell a third season to the ABC television network. Actress Yvonne Craig portrayed the character in the show’s third season. When interviewed on his involvement with creating Batgirl, Infantino states-
Batgirl came up in the mid-60s. The atman TV producer called Julie and said Catwoman was a hit, could we come up with more female characters? Julie called me and asked me to do that. I came up with Batgirl, Poison Ivy and one I called the Grey Fox, which Julie didn like as much. Bob Kane had had a Bat-Girl for about three stories in the 50s but she had nothing to do with a bat. She was like a pesky girl version of Robin. I knew we could do a lot better, so Julie and I came up with the real Batgirl, who was so popular she almost got her own TV show.
Barbara Gordon and alter ego Batgirl debuted in Detective Comics #359 (cover-dated 1967, although the comic was actually released in late 1966) as the daughter of Gotham City’s Police Commissioner James Gordon. Barbara Gordon Batgirl had been preceded by an earlier Bat-Girl character, who was depicted as niece and sidekick to Batwoman. Gordon exceeded these earlier figures in popularity, and readers requested for her to appear in other titles. In an open letter to readership in Detective Comics #417 (1971), DC responded to the fan-based acclaim and criticism of the new character:
I’d like to say a few words about the reaction some readers have to Batgirl. These are readers who remember Batwoman and the other Bat-girls from years back… They were there because romance seemed to be needed in Batman’s life. But thanks to the big change and a foresighted editor, these hapless females are gone for good. In their place stands a girl who is a capable crime-fighter, a far cry from Batwoman who constantly had to be rescued from Batman.
Yvonne Craig reading Detective Comics #359.
Following the comic book debut of Barbara Gordon, Craig also promoted the comic book incarnation of her character. The actress was featured in photo shoots reading her avorite comic of all time, “The Million Dollar Debut of Batgirl.” While actress Yvonne Craig as Batgirl appeared every week in the new season of Batman, DC Comics featured Batgirl on several covers of Detective Comics, often overshadowing Batman and Robin in order to promote the new hero. On the cover of Detective Comics #369, Batgirl argues with Batman over whose sidekick Robin should be.
Batgirl became a lighthearted departure from the tortured characters of Batman and Robin, each depicted as fighting crime to avenge the death of their parents. Gordon’s motivation for crime fighting was written as being completely altruistic and, unlike Batwoman and Bat-Girl, independent of a male superhero. In her civilian identity, Dr. Barbara Gordon Ph.D. is not only depicted as an independent woman with a doctorate in library science, she is head of Gotham City public library; “presumably one of the largest public libraries in the DC Comics version of reality.” The character’s civilian career as a library professional, coupled with her alter ego as a crimefighter is considered to be symbolic of the women’s empowerment movement of the 1960s.
Batgirl continued to appear in DC Comics publications throughout the late sixties and seventies as a supporting character in Detective Comics, in addition to guest appearances in various titles such as Justice League of America, World’s Finest Comics, The Brave and the Bold, Action Comics, and Superman. The character was also given a starring role in DC’s Batman Family comic book which debuted in 1975. The original Robin Dick Grayson became her partner in the series and the two were frequently referred to as the “Dynamite Duo: Batgirl & Robin.” Although this series ended after three years of publication, Batgirl continued to appear in back up stories published in Detective Comics until DC officially retired the hero in the one-shot comic Batgirl Special #1 (July 1988). Although currently retired, Barbara Gordon’s incarnation as Batgirl remains one of the most popular and high profile characters of the Silver Age of Comic Books.
Batman: The Killing Joke (1988)
Main article: Batman: The Killing Joke
The Joker critically injures Barbara Gordon in Batman: The Killing Joke.
In this graphic novel, the Joker shoots and paralyzes Barbara in an attempt to get Batman’s attention. Although events in The Killing Joke exert a great impact on the character, the story has little to do with her. She is deployed as a plot device to cement the Joker vendetta against Commissioner Gordon and Batman (see Women in Refrigerators). Critical reception of The Killing Joke has been mixed while some commentators have been appalled by the treatment of Barbara Gordon, others have regarded The Killing Joke as one of the greatest Batman stories of all time.
Despite Moore’s writing, Valerie D’Orazio, a former editor at Acclaim Comics and DC Comics, has denounced the book, saying “It doesn’t take the perspective of a woman into account. It doesn’t take into account that some women might be so very disgusted with the book [and] what happens to Barbara Gordon in it.” In response, Laura Hudson, Senior editor of Comic Foundry Magazine comments, “Youe supposed to be disgusted with what happens to Barbara Gordon…because it disgusting…As a woman and as an adult, I can deal with fictional characters performing reprehensible acts towards women… When theye used not gratuitously but for a purpose, as I believe they were in The Killing Joke, that’s exactly what they’re supposed to do.” Following the release of the graphic novel, comic book editor and writer Kim Yale discussed how distasteful she found the treatment of Barbara Gordon with her husband, fellow comic writer John Ostrander. Rather than allow the character to fall into obscurity, the two decided to revive her as a character living with a disability.
Oracle (1988resent)
Yale and Ostrander oversaw the development of Barbara Gordon’s new persona as Oracle for the next several years. The character made her first comic book appearance as Oracle in Suicide Squad #23, anonymously offering her services to the government’s Task Force X. In the following two years, Oracle, under pen of Ostrander and Yale, made guest appearances in various DC titles until her identity was revealed to be Barbara Gordon in Suicide Squad #38 (1990) and she officially becomes a member of the Squad in issue #48 following an invitation from Amanda Waller. In 1992, Dennis Oeil gave Barbara Gordon Oracle a starring role in Batman: Sword of Azrael #1, where she became Batman sole source of information. This newly forged partnership established Oracle status as Batman’s intellectual equal.
The success of Chuck Dixon Black Canary/Oracle: Birds of Prey (1996) led to the comic series Birds of Prey starring the two title characters. Kim Yale and John Ostrander tell the origin of Oracle in “Oracle: Year One,” a story arc contained in Batman Chronicles #5. Since the launch of Birds of Prey, the Oracle character has become a high-profile figure in the DC Comics universe – moving beyond her ties to the Batman Family and forging alliances with groups such as the Justice League of America. Gail Simone took over as writer of Birds of Prey with issue #56, taking the series in a “Bold New Direction!” In an interview with columnist Jennifer Contino, Simone explains her fondness for Barbara Gordon:
Kim Yale and John Ostrander picked up the character and made her into a brilliant master computer operator and one of the most fascinating characters in comics. From there, Chuck Dixon did wonderful things with her in his Birds of Prey run … She fantastic because even just sitting in a chair in a dark room by herself, she tremendously compelling. The DCU without her would be a much less interesting place.
Throughout the course of the character’s history, Barbara Gordon’s intelligence has been one of the character’s defining attributes. According to BusinessWeek, Oracle is listed as one of the top ten most intelligent fictional superheroes appearing in American comics, and is the only female character to appear on the list.
Critical and editorial commentary
Despite the establishment of Gordon’s persona as Oracle, some observers have argued for the character’s mobility to be restored. Reacting to Batman: The Killing Joke and Barbara Gordon’s later character development as Oracle in Batman: Gotham Knights, Ray Tate, a reviewer at Comics Bulletin, writes,
Let’s get this out of the way first. There is absolutely no reason why Barbara Gordon should be in a wheelchair. Alan Moore and Brian Bolland meant The Killing Joke as an imaginary tale dealing with the iconography of Batman and the Joker. . . . [Batman] himself is a certifiable genius in biochemistry. There are countless examples of Batman employing that which is only theoretical in his fight against crime. His knowledge of stem cell technology should surpass that of the real world. There is simply no reason for Barbara Gordon to be confined to that wheelchair.
Regarding Gordon’s representation as a character living with a disability, and her effectiveness as a hero compared to her incarnation as Batgirl, Tate comments,
It’s ridiculous to think somebody wakes up thinking how lucky they are to be confined to a wheelchair, and yet the attitude around DC and among the fans is that Oracle is the better character over Batgirl because of her handicap. Rubbish. Batgirl has fought more crime and done more to aid Batman as Batgirl than she has as Oracle. Batgirl has saved Batman’s life on numerous occasions. Oracle has not. Barbara in this incarnation is not a bad character, but she is not better because she no longer hunts the night in cape and cowl.
As a counterpoint, Joey Esposito, a writer at CraveOnline, argues the following:
It’s a tough question to crack, because it’s a Catch-22 almost any way you look at it. One could argue that curing Barbara and allowing her to be Batgirl again would simply allow her to do more good fighting crime than she ever could in a wheelchair, but then you look insensitive to the ability and usefulness she has in other capacities as Oracle. Conversely, you could say that removing Barbara from her wheelchair drastically alters her character, but then wouldn’t that indicate that this is a character defined by her handicap? This begs the question of why so many fans adore her: is it because she’s a bold and daring leader that rivals the Calculator in brains? Or is it because she’s all of that, but stuck in a wheelchair? Think about the question, and surely many of you will find an answer you don’t like.
Alex Ross and Paul Dini have made attempts to return the character to her original conception. Ross explains in an interview:
Paul Dini had this idea of putting Barbara Gordon in the Lazarus Pit to revive her. . . . I thought it was a great idea, and we pitched then-Batman editor Denny O’Neil with these drawings of that costume design. The idea of using the red instead of the traditional yellow was meant to invoke the idea that coming from the Lazarus Pit, she was in a way, more compromised as a character…And…that went nowhere. Denny shot it down, because, according to him, everybody loves Barbara Gordon as Oracle and as a handicapped character. The theory was that DC didn’t have enough handicapped characters, so they weren’t going to do anything with Barbara as she was. And the design went into the drawer.
Kate Kane, the modern Batwoman introduced during 52, wears a variation of Gordon’s Batgirl costume designed by Ross. Some argue that the Barbara Gordon character provides a greater service to DC Comics and its readers in her current status, regardless of the events that preceded Oracle’s creation. DC Senior Vice President Dan DiDio comments, “Some stories… are so strong that undoing them would be a crime. The DCU would be a lesser place without [former Flash Barry Allen]’s sacrifice, or the crippling of Barbara at the hands of the Joker.” (Though DiDio has undone Flash’s death but not Gordon’s paralysis.) Although critical reception of Barbara Gordon’s evolution into Oracle have been mixed among critics and other observers, according to John Ostrander- “We have, over the years, on those occasions when I have worked with the character, gotten some letters from those who have disabilities of one stripe or another and all have been very supportive. I feel very proud for my part in creating Oracle.” Ostrander has also spoken about the value of Oracle to both DC Comics and its fan base:
What makes the runaway success of the Oracle character more remarkable is that it began during an era where bleak heroes with big guns were ruling the day. Without much fanfare, Barbara Gordon has become the most popular handicapped character since Charles Xavier. In fact, Oracle’s nature as a handicapped superhero and a role model is almost never mentioned by the company or fans…There WAS some idea of her being a role model, I think… We wanted her to cope with what had happened to her and becoming, in many ways, more effective as Oracle than she ever was as Batgirl. And we knew that others with disabilities might look at her and feel good reading about her…I don’t think people ‘dance around’ her disabilities as they don’t want to focus on them, but on her character. These shouldn’t be stories about a disabled person; they are stories about a compelling fascinating character who HAPPENS to be in a wheelchair and I think that’s correct. Barbara isn’t her handicap; there’s more to her than that.
Similarly, James B. South’s chapter “Barbara Gordon and Moral Perfectionism” in the 2004 book Superheroes and Philosophy analyses how the changes in Barbara’s life “from librarian to Batgirl to Oracle” drive her to pursue a higher self, illustrating the philosophical theory of moral perfectionism.
Fictional character biography
Silver Age
Barbara Gordon’s classic Batgirl design drawn by Kevin Nowlan.
In her original adventures during the Silver Age of Comics, Batgirl is depicted as a librarian by day, and a spirited crimefighter by night. In her debut story, while driving to a costume ball dressed as a female version of Batman, Barbara Gordon intervenes in a kidnapping attempt on Bruce Wayne by the villainous Killer Moth, attracting the Dark Knight’s attention and leading to a crime-fighting career. After a handful of guest appearances in Batman stories, she was given her own back-up strip in Detective Comics. The character was fleshed out considerably, with the shy, mousy, bookworm version of Barbara Gordon giving way to a more modern, confident character. Devoid of her plain-Jane glasses and hair bun, Barbara dates a succession of boyfriends, including Vietnam-veteran-turned-private-investigator Jason Bard. In addition to her appearances in both Detective Comics and Batman, Batgirl made a guest appearance in World’s Finest Comics #169 (1967) where she met Superman, Supergirl, Bat-Mite, and Mxyzptlk for the first time. She also fights alongside the Justice League of America against the villainous Queen Bee. Supergirl and Batgirl meet again in Adventure Comics #381 (1969) when both heroes separately investigate a female criminal gang.
Her back-up stories appear sporadically in Detective Comics until the mid 1970s. Although she occasionally partners with Robin, she more frequently works with Jason Bard, a Vietnam War veteran with a chronic knee injury who becomes a private detective. Bard is also a romantic interest of Barbara. Batgirl reveals her secret identity to her father (who had already discovered it on his own), and serves as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives. She moves to Washington, D.C., intending to give up her career as Batgirl and in June 1972, appeared in a story entitled “Batgirl’s Last Case.” Editor Julius Schwartz brought her back a year later in Superman #268 (1973), in which she has a blind date with Clark Kent, establishing their friendship, and fights alongside Superman. Batgirl and Superman team up twice more, in Superman #279 and DC Comics Presents #19. Batgirl also guest-starred in other Superman related titles such as #453 of Adventure Comics, and in Superman Family #171, where she teams with Supergirl.
Bronze Age
In 1975, DC created the Batman Family comic book, which ran for 20 issues before ending to enable its characters to be added to DC’s then-flagging title “Detective Comics”. Batgirl was one of the main features in the book, frequently teaming with Robin. Batgirl meets Batwoman in Batman Family #10, when the retired superhero briefly returns to crime-fighting (before Kane is murdered by the Bronze Tiger). The two fight Killer Moth and Cavalier, and learn about each other’s secret identities. When Batman Family ended at issue #20, stories featuring these characters were merged with Detective Comics, beginning with issue #481 in 1979, and Batgirl continued her adventures there. Even after the “Batman Family” feature left Detective Comics, Batgirl continued to appear with regularity in main and back-up stories through issue #519 (October 1982).
Crisis on Infinite Earths, a limited miniseries published in 1985, was written in order to reduce the complex history of DC Comics to a single continuity. Although Batgirl is a featured character, her role is relatively small- she delivers Supergirl’s eulogy at the conclusion of the story. The conclusion of Crisis on Infinite Earths changed DC Universe continuity in many ways. Following the reboot, Barbara Gordon is born to Roger and Thelma Gordon, and she is Jim Gordon’s niece/adopted daughter in current canon.
Post-Crisis, Supergirl does not arrive on Earth until after Gordon has established herself as Oracle; many adventures she shared with Batgirl are now retroactively described as having been experienced by Power Girl. In Secret Origins #20: Batgirl and the Golden Age Dr. Mid-Nite (1987), Barbara Gordon’s origin is rebooted by author Barbara Randal. Within the storyline, Gordon recounts the series of events that lead to her career as Batgirl, including her first encounter with Batman as a child, studying martial arts under the tutelage of a sensei, memorizing maps and blue prints of the city, excelling in academics in order to skip grades, and pushing herself to become a star athlete.
Modern Age: Exit Batgirl, enter Oracle
The Modern Age of Comic Books had significant changes to the comic book industry as characters became darker and psychologically complex, abandoning the light-hearted themes of earlier ages. After her back-up series of stories ended, Barbara Gordon continued to be Batgirl, but increasingly felt inconsequential in a world filled with superpowered heroes. After capturing the Cormorant in Batgirl Special #1 (1988), Gordon retires her Batgirl persona. In Batman: The Killing Joke (1988), the Joker shoots Barbara, intending to drive her father James Gordon into madness by forcing him to see a series of degrading photos of Barbara in an undressed and tortured state. The bullet severs her spine, permanently paralyzing her from the waist down. Gordon is grief-stricken upon learning the extent of her injuries, as is her ally and off-on again lover Dick Grayson, the original Robin who was then known as Nightwing. This also has led Barbara to develop an intense obsession with the Clown Prince of Crime, as evident in the Last Laugh arc, as she repeatedly hacks into the prison surveillance of the Joker and even argues with Grayson that they should make an exception of him by killing the the Harlequin of Hate.
Initially, Gordon’s paralysis plunges her into a state of reactive depression. However, she soon realizes that her aptitude for and training in information sciences have provided her with tremendous skills that could be deployed to fight crime. In a world increasingly centered on technology and information, she possesses a genius-level intellect; photographic memory; deep knowledge of computers and electronics; expert skills as a hacker; and graduate training in library sciences. One night, Gordon has a dream in which an all-knowing woman (similar to Oracle at Delphi of Greek mythology) has her own face; it’s then that she adopts “Oracle” as her codename. She serves as an information broker, gathering and disseminating intelligence to law enforcement organizations and members of the superhero community. In “Oracle: Year One,” Oracle also trains under the tutelage of Richard Dragon, one of DC’s premiere martial artists, to engage in combat (using eskrima) from her wheelchair. She develops her upper-body strength and targeting skills with both firearms and batarangs. In her second appearance as a hacker in the DC Comics universe, Oracle is featured in the 12-issue miniseries The Hacker Files (1993).
In 2003, comic book authors Scott Beatty and Chuck Dixon revised Barbara Gordon origin with the miniseries Batgirl: Year One. Gordon is a highly gifted child having graduated from high school early, but initially desires to join law enforcement as opposed to vigilantism in the previous origin myths.
Birds of Prey
Main article: Birds of Prey (comics)
Cover to Birds of Prey: Of Like Minds featuring Oracle, Black Canary, and The Huntress. Author Gail Simone and Artist Ed Benes.
Following her paralysis and recovery from depression, Oracle founds the Birds of Prey, a team of female heroes, whom she employs as agents and extended members of the Batman team. After her unsuccessful partnership with Power Girl, Oracle later joins forces with the superheroine Black Canary. During Chuck Dixon’s crossover series Hunt for Oracle, Barbara Gordon and Dinah Lance meet in person and establish a long-term friendship. They form the nucleus of the Birds of Prey organization. While Oracle serves as the basic head of operations, Black Canary becomes her full-time employee and field agent.
During the 2004 crossover event War Games, Black Mask commandeers Oracle’s computers and satellites and engages in a fight to the death with Batman. In order to prevent Batman from killing his adversary, Oracle initiates the Clock Tower’s self-destruct sequence, provoking Batman to rescue her rather than continue the battle. This results in the destruction of Gordon’s home and headquarters in the clock tower. Subsequently, Oracle decides to move on, and leaves Gotham City altogether. She cuts her ties with Batman, and after a temporary world trip with her team, relocates to Metropolis.
In the events comprising Gail Simone’s Birds of Prey: Between Dark and Dawn (2005), and Birds of Prey: The Battle Within (2005), Oracle is possessed by arch-villain Brainiac, an artificial intelligence entity, in order to become a biological being. Although Oracle overpowers Brainiac and expels him from her body, the advanced virus delivered by him remains despite his absence. The virus steadily causes cybernetic attachments to sprout all over her body. Oracle develops cyberpathic powers that allow her to psychically interact with computer information systems. Although she loses these abilities after the virus is rendered dormant following an operation by Doctor Mid-Nite, she discovers she can move her toes. However, this proves to be short-lived; Gordon remains paralyzed.
Oracle as she appears infected with the Brainiac virus. Art by Adriana Melo.
During the company wide crossover Infinite Crisis (2005), Oracle teams with the Martian Manhunter in Metropolis to coordinate a counterstrike to the Secret Society’s global jailbreak. The renewed romance between Barbara Gordon and Dick Grayson is also cut short by the Infinite Crisis storyline. When DC continuity jumps forward one year after the events of Infinite Crisis, Oracle and her team continue to work in Metropolis. Oracle works with Batman, although not on a regular basis as before. Oracle continues to lead the Birds of Prey, and expands the ranks of the operation. In Birds of Prey #99, Black Canary leaves the team and The Huntress becomes the team’s de facto field leader, while Big Barda has been brought in as the group’s heavy-hitter alongside a larger, rotating roster; Oracle also makes an attempt to reforge her alliance with Power Girl, however, when Oracle invites her to rejoin the team, she replies that she’ll do so “when Hell freezes over.” In “Whitewater,” Gail Simone’s final story arc on Birds of Prey (2007), Oracle and her team struggle for power with Spy Smasher, a government agent who has taken over the Birds of Prey organization. Eventually, Spy Smasher is forced to admit her defeat and returns control of the Birds of Prey organization to Oracle. At the conclusion of the arc, Oracle also adopts Misfit into the Birds of Prey.
Barbara Gordon has also been romantically linked to Dick Grayson, aka Nightwing. At a young age they shared their passion as Robin and Batgirl. Nightwing was shocked and disturbed to learn of the effects of the Killing Joke, resulting in Barbara’s paralysis. After the events of No Man’s Land, the two fall in love. Before Infinite Crisis, Nightwing drops to one knee and proposes. Barbara tearfully accepts. When Batman asks Nightwing to help him rediscover himself, Dick is hesitant due to his engagement to Barbara. She allows him to go, telling him they were not ready for marriage. Before Dick leaves, he sends her an envelope with her engagement ring and picture of them together as Robin and Batgirl.
During the events of One Year Later, Cassandra Cain (the fourth Batgirl) took over the League of Assassins and killed several people. Later it is revealed[when?] that Cassandra was under the control of her father David and Deathstroke and was freed due to Robin’s anti-toxin. Cassandra desired to kill her father and Deathstroke as a result of the events. While she searches for them on the Batcomputer, Cassandra is interrupted by Oracle, who states she knows what Cassandra is up to but does not attempt to stop her. Instead, Oracle offers to delete all records of Cassandra accessing the computer, but Nightwing finds out, confronts Oracle, and leaves angrily afterwards. After Cassandra and a couple of her friends raid Deathstroke and Cain’s school, Cassandra deduces that Cain and Deathstroke seek to kill Oracle. Cassandra takes a Batwing and flies to Oracle’s base of operations, where she confronts, and defeats her father in one-on-one combat.
In Countdown (2007), Oracle dispatches the Question and Batwoman to capture Trickster and Piper following their role in the murder of the Flash. She struggles to keep the identities of the world’s heroes from being stolen and coordinates the response to a global crisis engineered by the Calculator, a villainous hacker and information broker. In issue #5 of the comic book series The All-New Booster Gold (2007), the title hero is given the mission of traveling back in time in order to prevent “a tragedy that he discovers never should’ve happened the Joker shooting and paralyzing Barbara Gordon, Batgirl.” Although Booster Gold makes several attempts to prevent the events which took place in Batman: The Killing Joke, he ultimately fails and Barbara Gordon’s chronological history remains unchanged.
Final Crisis and Battle for the Cowl
In the Final Crisis storyline, Darkseid who has finally gained control of the Anti-Life Equation attempts to put the mind-control equation on the Internet. Both Oracle and Mister Terrific make desperate attempts to stop Darkseid, even attempting to shut down the entire Internet. Unfortunately, they both fail and those affected ended up mindless slaves of Darkseid.
Freed from Darkseid control after the restoration of the Multiverse, she attempts to shut down the criminal Unternet set up by her opposite number, the Calculator, as a Darkseid-free replacement for the regular Internet and still used by tech-savvy criminals. However, the Calculator, preventing her moves, takes control of the Kilg%re, gaining the ability to thrive in cyberspace by controlling digital and cybernetic avatars, and tracks Oracle down with his newfound powers. Even though Oracle foils him, she starts doubting her abilities and fears she’s losing her edge and brilliance, which results in her disbanding the Birds of Prey team to do some soul-searching.
Following the events of Batman R.I.P. and the Final Crisis, Oracle has returned back to Gotham, and although the Birds of Prey are disbanded, she continues to summon them to help Nightwing and Robin deal with the growing crime in Gotham.
The Calculator’s plans finally come to their fruition, and Kuttler, hoping to save her dying daughter Wendy takes on the Babbage alias and begins prowling the digital world of Alta Viva, a virtual world game, for fragments of the Anti-Life Equation unleashed by Darkseid.
Oracle, now living in a dilapidated condo in Gotham, becomes aware of Kuttler’s activities when Cheesefiend, one of her informants, is brutally killed, with the Anti-Lfe Equation itself, after coming in contact with Babbage.
Hoping to stop the Calculator and prevent him from piecing together the fragments of the Anti-Life Equation in his possession, Oracle travels to Hong Kong, hoping to steal them back by the means of an advanced supercomputer programmed to track the chunk of data left behind by Babbage. However the Calculator discovers her attempts, swearing vengeance upon her.
She manages to defeat Calculator, curing the Anti-Life Equation’s fragments.
Working with Leslie Thompkins, Barbara has begun to mentor the Calculator’s daughter, Wendy, who was crippled following an attack at the Titans Tower, which took the life of her brother Marvin. Recently it came to Barbara’s attention (thanks to Dick Grayson) that Cassandra Cain has once again stepped down from the role of Batgirl, and has been replaced by Stephanie Brown. Still seeing Stephanie as an impulsive young girl, Barbara tries to talk her out of being Batgirl. When a new recreational drug known as “Thrill” is hitting the streets of Gotham, Barbara and Stephanie work together to stop the drug trade which they discovers to be run by Scarecrow and Black Mask. After Stephanie defeated Scarecrow and proved her worth and maturity, Barbara gives Stephanie an unused Batgirl costume that was supposedly designed for Barbara. Barbara also takes a job as an assistant professor at Gotham University.
After Dick discovers that Barbara have approved of Stephanie as Batgirl, he and Barbara had an intense argument of Barbara’s decision which eventually made him left to resume his patrol in the city. Her father has been trying to set Barbara a blind date with Gotham PD’s newest recruit from Coast City, Detective Nicholas Gage. After they’ve finally meet there was a miscommunication between the two: as Barbara thought the detective was discriminating her because of her disability but it is really because Gage senses Barbara wants to be with someone else (Dick Grayson). His instincts prove to be somewhat true, as Dick and Barbara begin working together on a kidnapping case, and despite some early attitude, begin to flirt playfully like they used to. Oracle also helps the Web design his specialized website, allowing people from across the world to contact him for help.
Blackest Night
During Blackest Night, Green Lantern crashes into the Batsignal after a fight with the Black Lantern Martian Manhunter. Barbara and Commissioner Gordon are both present. Origins & Omens hints towards an involvement in the storyline. After sending Green Lantern’s intel to every superhero community across the planet of the Black Lanterns, the Gordons find themselves being attacked by the original Dark Knight’s deceased rogue gallery members, whom are all reanimated by the Black Lantern Corps, Barbara and her father are forced to fight for their lives as they witnessing the Black Lanterns are massacring everyone on sight at Gotham Central. During the crisis, Barbara is being possessed by Deadman, channeling Barbara’s athletic capability and apparently using his own super-natural ability to allow her to stand, to save Commissioner Gordon from the reanimated King Snake and the Trigger Twins. After being rescued by Batman, Robin, and Red Robin, the Gordons are later being attacked by Batman and Red Robin’s parents with their saviors, the reanimated Graysons and the Drakes. While Grayson and Drake battling the Black Lanterns, Robin takes the Gordons to their underground base where Alfred tends her and her father’s wounds.
Romance
Barbara Gordon has been romantically linked to Dick Grayson, aka Nightwing. At a young age they shared their passion as Robin and Batgirl. Nightwing was shocked and disturbed to learn of the effects of the Killing Joke, resulting in Barbara’s paralysis. After the events of No Man’s Land, the two fall in love. Before Infinite Crisis, Nightwing drops to one knee and proposes. Barbara tearfully accepts. During the Crisis, Grayson was shocked by raw energy, and was taken into care of Barbara’s arms. When Batman asks Nightwing to help him rediscover himself, Dick is hesitant due to his engagement to Barbara. She allows him to go, telling him they were not ready for marriage. Dick sends her engagement ring with a picture of them as Robin and Batgirl, promising to return to her when the time is right.
Both show genuine romantic affection towards the other, though not as a couple anymore. Grayson is rejoining the JLA with Starfire, however a recent issue of Titans stated that Dick has moved on of his past relationship with her. Barbara’s father has start trying to set her up with a hotshot young detective who’ve just transferred from Coast City, Nicholas Gage, although he’s apparently more interested in the newest Batgirl (Stephanie Brown).
Another brief romance was with Jason Bard, her ex-fiancee. When Grayson left Gotham and rejoined Koriand’r, Babs found comfort in the young man’s arms. The relationship fizzled and the engagement was cancelled. In a Birds of Prey comic book, the two are reunited on a mission. However, this does not last as Babs shoves him out of her life once again in favor of Grayson.
Past all this, her one true love remains Dick Grayson. The engagement ring still hangs on its chain from her neck as their memories of love, young and old, sought into their hearts.
Powers and abilities
Martial artistry
According to the character’s fictional biography, Barbara Gordon took numerous self-defense classes in judo and karate, earning brown belts, prior to her tenure as Batgirl and is described as being a “star athlete.” Following the events of The Killing Joke, Barbara Gordon continued to train in the martial arts as Oracle, despite being paralyzed from the waist down. She has extensive skills with eskrima fighting sticks, small firearms, and batarangs; she customarily keeps a pair of eskrima sticks stored in the armrests of her wheelchair as a contingency. Those able to possess her like Deadman are able to bypass her paralysis and make her run and fight like a normal person but when they leave her body her paralysis will return completely.
Technological skills
Prior to the character’s career as a vigilante, Barbara Gordon developed many technological skills, including vast knowledge of computers and electronics, and having, expert skills as a hacker, and graduate training in library sciences. Gordon is also written as having a genius-level intellect and naturally possessing a photographic memory. Like Batman, Barbara Gordon originally used a wide variety of computer electronics and gadgets during her early adventures as Batgirl. These included an infrared scanner built into the cowl of her costume, various bat-inspired weaponry, and the “Batgirl Cycle.” According to Gail Simone, Oracle maintains control over the twelve technologically advanced satellites that were created by Lex Luthor during his tenure as President of the United States.
Information broker
Oracle places her considerable skills and knowledge at the disposal of many of the DC universe’s heroes. She is a skilled hacker, capable of retrieving and dispersing information from private satellites, military installations, government files, and the properties of Lex Luthor. Batman, himself a genius with a wide knowledge base and access to vast information resources, routinely consults Oracle for assistance.
In other media
Main article: Barbara Gordon in other media
Since the character’s debut in 1966, Barbara Gordon has been adapted in live action television series such as Batman and Birds of Prey, as well as animated television series such as Batman: The Animated Series, The New Batman Adventures, and The Batman in her alter egos as both Batgirl and Oracle. Barbara Gordon was also the inspiration for the version of Batgirl portrayed by actress Alicia Silverstone in the live action film Batman & Robin.
Television
Yvonne Craig as Batgirl.
When the Batman television series of the 1960s sought to renew the program for a third season, DC editor Julius Schwartz along with artist Carmine Infantino created the “new” Batgirlarbara Gordont the explicit request of television producer William Dozier. Batgirl’s addition to the comic book medium was inspired to tie in with the television program in order to bring in a female audience. Yvonne Craig was cast as Batgirl after starring in a seven minute promotional short which was presented to the ABC television network. Although Yvonne Craig’s addition to the cast was able to renew the program for a third season, it did not save the series from cancellation. In 1972, three years after the Batman television series ended, Craig appeared again as Batgirl in a public service announcement for the United States Department of Labor advocating equal pay. In an interview with Femme Fatales Magazine (1998), Craig describes her experience playing the comic book icon as one of her best experiences. According to Craig, her portrayal as Batgirl remains a symbol for women’s empowerment.
I meet young women who say Batgirl was their role model… They say its because it was the first time they ever felt girls could do the same things guys could do, and sometimes better. I think that lovely.
In 2002, Warner Bros. produced the television series Birds of Prey, loosely based on the comic book series of the same name. Dina Meyer became the first actress to portray Barbara Gordon as Oracle. The series followed Barbara’s origins, though with several large differences, such as Barbara taking in Bruce’s daughter Helena Wayne after the death of Catwoman and Batman’s disappearance. Unlike previous interpretations, Barbara is not a librarian nor a computer designer, but a high school teacher.
Animation
Barbara Gordon made her animated debut as Batgirl in the Filmation animated series Batman with Robin the Boy Wonder (originally known as The Batman/Superman Hour) which originally aired on CBS in 1968. Batgirl also played a supporting role in The New Adventures of Batman, also produced by Filmation and aired on CBS in 1977. She was voiced by Melendy Britt.
Batgirl in Batman: The Animated Series.
During the 1990s – after the Batman franchise experienced a revitalization due to the commercial success of Tim Burton’s feature film Batman – Barbara Gordon was adapted into the series of animated television programs produced by Warner Bros. Animation collectively known as Bruce Timm and Paul Dini’s DC animated universe. These series of animated programs began with Batman: The Animated Series which debuted on the Fox network in 1992, first voiced by Melissa Gilbert. Barbara Gordon in this continuity, made her first appearance in the two part episode “Heart of Steel.” Furthermore, to build audience anticipation of her adoption of the Batgirl identity, Barbara’s subsequent appearances in that season make no mention of that inclination. In the following season, Gordon finally becomes Batgirl in the two part episode “Shadow of the Bat” (1993). In the character’s third appearance, Barbara Gordon played a starring role in the series finale “Batgirl Returns” (1994). Following the launch of The WB network and at the request of Warner Bros. Entertainment, Batgirl was given a recurring role in The New Batman Adventures, voiced by Tara Strong (1997), where she had a relationship with Nightwing, and also made a brief cameo appearance in the 2002 Justice League episode “The Savage Time”, kissing Dick Grayson.
In 1999, The WB premiered the animated television series Batman Beyond, which conforms to the continuity of the DCAU, yet depicts a future in which Bruce Wayne has retired as Batman. The elder Barbara Gordon in this series also retired her Batgirl persona and serves as Police Commissioner of Gotham City and married to Gotham’s District Attorney, Sam Young. It is said she retired as Batgirl after being shot with a machine gun, most likely a reference to the comics when the Joker shot her in the back, paralyzing her and ending her crime fighting career. Unlike her father, Barbara has no desire to work with the new Batman, Terry McGinnis, which occasionally results in friction when their activities overlap in a negative manner. They do collaborate on occasion, though, and she eventually comes to respect Terry. It was also hinted that she and Bruce had a romantic relationship in the past.
Although the DCAU did not end until the finale of Justice League Unlimited in 2006, Warner Bros. Animation launched a new animated series titled The Batman in 2004 which established its own continuity. Barbara Gordon was introduced as Batgirl in the two part episode “Batgirl Begins” (2005). Due to Robin being used in the Teen Titans cartoon series, Barbara was introduced before him, acting in an unofficial sidekick role. Robin would be introduced the following season as Batman’s official sidekick, while Barabra would play a more secondary role. This series also marked the animated debut of Barbara Gordon as Oracle with the futuristic episode “Artifacts” (2007). Video games
She appears in LEGO Batman for the PC, PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Wii, DS, and PlayStation Portable. She also appears (as Oracle) in Batman: Arkham Asylum for the PC, PlayStation 3, and Xbox 360, but only her voice can be heard in the game, where she serves as Batman’s guide through Arkham, and is voiced by Kimberly Brooks.
Collected Editions and Graphic Novels
Showcase Presents: Batgirl, Vol. 1 ISBN 1401213677; collects early Batgirl appearances (19671975) (Release date 2007) Softcover
Batman: Batgirl (1997) ISBN 978-1563893056
Batman: The Killing Joke (1988) ISBN 0930289455
Batman: Thrillkiller ISBN 1563894246; collects Thrillkiller: Batgirl & Robin and the ‘62 special (1998)
Elseworld’s Finest: Supergirl & Batgirl (1998)
Birds of Prey (1999) ISBN 156389484X
Birds of Prey: Old Friends, New Enemies (2003) ISBN 1563899396
Batgirl: Year One (2003) ISBN 140120080X
Birds of Prey: Of Like Minds (2004) ISBN 140120192X
Birds of Prey: Sensei & Student (2005) ISBN 1401204341
Birds of Prey: Between Dark & Dawn (2006) ISBN 1401209408
Birds of Prey: The Battle Within (2006) ISBN 978-1401210960
Birds of Prey: Perfect Pitch (2007) ISBN 1401211917
Birds of Prey: Blood and Circuits (2007) ISBN 9781401213718
See also
Alternate versions of Barbara Gordon
List of fictional hackers
Notes
^ a b c Arant, Wendi; Candace Benefiel (2002). The Image and Role of the Librarian. Haworth Press. pp. 7778. ISBN 0789020998. http://books.google.com/books?id=RXsa43PYarQC.
^ MacPherson, Don (2003). “Critiques on Infinite Earths”. http://www.thefourthrail.com/reviews/critiques/121602/batgirlyearone1.shtml. Retrieved 2007-12-19.
^ a b “Yvonne Craig as Batgirl in a Public Service Announcement for the U.S. Department of Labor”. 1972. http://www.yvonnecraig.com/up_close_tv.php. Retrieved 2007-10-14.
^ Daniels, Les (2004). Batman: The Complete History. Chronicle Books. pp. 113. ISBN 0811842320. http://books.google.com/books?id=73wknu2cVIkC.
^ a b “Batgirl Promotional Short”. 1967. http://www.tvobscurities.com/articles/batgirl.php. Retrieved 2007-09-11.
^ a b Daniels, Les (1995). DC Comics: Sixty Years of the World’s Favorite Comic Book Heroes. Bulfinch. pp. 141. ISBN 0-8212-2076-4.
^ Fitzgerald, Michael (2007). “CARMINE INFANTINO: DECADES AT DC AND BEYOND”. http://www.wizarduniverse.com/magazine/wizard/004812442.cfm. Retrieved 2007-11-23.
^ Fox, Gardner (1967). Detective Comics #359. DC Comics.
^ Detective #417. DC Comics. 1971.
^ Fred Grandinetti. “Remembering Kathy Kane: The First Batwoman”. Newsarama. http://www.newsarama.com/dcnew/Batwoman/BatwomanHistory.htm. Retrieved 2007-09-19.
^ Aly, Don (2002). “Mini-Interview”. http://www.donaly.com/celebrity_gossip_C15.html. Retrieved 2007-09-11.
^ Detective #363. DC Comics. 1967.
^ Detective #369. DC Comics. 1967.
^ Detective #371. DC Comics. 1968.
^ Sanderson, Peter (2007). “Comics in Context #67: Catch As Cats Can”. http://comics.ign.com/articles/595/595646p7.html. Retrieved 2007-11-22.
^ a b Fox, Gardner (1968). Justice League of America #60. DC Comics.
^ Bates, Cary (1968). World’s Finest Comics #176. DC Comics.
^ Haney, Bob (1968). The Brave and the Bold #78. DC Comics.
^ a b Bates, Cary (1969). Action Comics #381. DC Comics.
^ Maggin, Elliot (1975). Superman #268. DC Comics.
^ Maggin, Elliot (1975). Batman Family #1. DC Comics.
^ Reed, David (1978). Batman Family #20. DC Comics.
^ a b Randall, Barbara (1988). Batgirl Special #1. DC Comics.
^ a b Moore, Alan (1988). Batman: The Killing Joke. DC Comics. ISBN 978-0930289454.
^ Rosenbaum, Itai (2007). “Behind The Panels #5 – The Killing Joke”. www.comicsbulletin.com. http://www.comicsbulletin.com/news/story.php?a=4407. Retrieved 2007-11-24.
^ D’Orazio, Valerie (2007). “Oh, You Like Woman? Here Is Cookie! Good Job!”. occasionalsuperheroine.blogspot.com. http://occasionalsuperheroine.blogspot.com/2007/08/oh-you-like-woman-here-is-cookie-good.html. Retrieved 2007-12-11.
^ Hudson, Laura (2007). “The Killing Joke: “Not for women”? WTF”. myriadissues.blogspot.com. http://myriadissues.blogspot.com/2007/08/killing-joke-not-for-women-wtf.html. Retrieved 2007-12-11.
^ a b Cronin, Brian (2007). “A (Perhaps Unnecessary) Guide to Oracle Formative Years”. http://goodcomics.comicbookresources.com/2007/02/15/a-perhaps-unnecessary-guide-to-oracles-formative-years. Retrieved 2007-09-11.
^ Ostrander, John (2007). Suicide Squad (Vol. 1) #23. DC Comics. ISBN 1401214916. http://www.dccomics.com/graphic_novels/?gn=8207.
^ Oeil, Dennis (1993). Batman: Sword of Azrael #1. DC Comics. ISBN 978-1563891007.
^ Dixon, Chuck; Chuck Dixon, Jordan Gorfinkey (1996). Black Canary/Oracle: Birds of Prey. DC Comics. ISBN 156389484X.
^ Contino, Jennifer (2006). “Interview with Gail Simone”. Mania Comics. http://www.mania.com/53133.html. Retrieved 2007-09-12.
^ Pisani, Joseph (2006). “The Smartest Superheroes”. BusinessWeek. http://images.businessweek.com/ss/06/05/smart_heroes/index_01.htm. Retrieved 2007-11-25.
^ Khouri, Andy (2007). “CCI: DC GROUP THERAPY”. http://www.comicbookresources.com/news/newsitem.cgi?id=11343. Retrieved 2007-11-23.
^ http://www.comicsbulletin.com/
^ a b Tate, Ray (2000-12-31). “LINE OF FIRE REVIEWS: Batman Gotham Knights #12″. http://www.comicsbulletin.com/reviews/97832472765596.htm. Retrieved 2007-11-25.
^ The Life and Times of Barbara Gordon
^ Johnson, Dave (2006). “ALEX ROSS: GIVING BATWOMAN HER LOOK”. Newsarama. http://www.newsarama.com/dcnew/52/Batwoman/BatwomanRoss.html. Retrieved 2007-09-12.
^ Johns, Geoff; Geoff Johns (Author), Grant Morrison (Author), Greg Rucka (Author), Mark Waid (Author), Keith Giffen (Illustrator), J.G. Jones (Illustrator) (2007). Infinite Crisis. DC Comics. ISBN 978-1401213534. http://www.dccomics.com/graphic_novels/?gn=7125.
^ Jordan, Justin (2005). “WW PHILLY: Crisis counseling with Dan DiDio: DC jumps one year into the future”. http://www.comicbookresources.com/?page=article&id=5129. Retrieved 2009-10-01.
^ a b Yarbrough, Beau (1999). “OSTRANDER ON ORACLE, MARTIAN MANHUNTER AND MARVEL’S WESTERN HEROES”. Comic Book Resources. http://www.comicbookresources.com/columns/index.cgi?article=326. Retrieved 2007-11-22.
^ South, James B. (2004). “Barbara Gordon”. in Morris, Tom. Superheroes and Philosophy. Chicago: Open Court. pp. 89-101. ISBN 0-8126-9573-9.
^ Bates, Cary (1967). World Finest Comics #169. DC Comics.
^ Detective Comics #424. DC Comics. 1972.
^ The Amazing Adventures of Superman #268. DC Comics. 1973.
^ Batman Family #10. DC Comics. 1977.
^ Wolfman, Marv (1985). Crisis on Infinite Earths. DC Comics. ISBN 1-56389-750-4.
^ Wolfman, Marv (1985). Crisis on Infinite Earths. DC Comics. pp. 215. ISBN 1-56389-750-4.
^ a b c Randal, Barbara (1987). Secret Origins # 20 Batgirl and the Golden Age Dr. Mid-Nite. DC Comics.
^ The Batman Chronicles #5. DC Comics. 1996.
^ Shiner, Lewis (1993). The Hacker Files. DC Comics.
^ Dixon, Chuck; Scott Beatty, Chuck Dixon (2003). Batgirl: Year One. DC Comics. ISBN 978-1401200800.
^ Dixon, Chuck (1996). Black Canary/Oracle: Birds of Prey. DC Comics.
^ Dixon, Chuck (2003). Nightwing: Hunt for Oracle. DC Comics. ISBN 978-1563899409.
^ Brubaker, Ed; Bill Willingham (2004). Batman: War Games. DC Comics. ISBN 1401204317.
^ Simone, Gail (2005). Birds of Prey: Between Dark and Dawn. DC Comics. ISBN 1401209408.
^ Simone, Gail (2005). Birds of Prey: The Battle Within. DC Comics. ISBN 978-1401210960.
^ Johns, Geoff; Phil Jimenez, George Perez, Jerry Ordway, Ivan Reis, Andy Lanning (2005). Infinite Crisis. DC Comics. ISBN 978-1401209599.
^ Andreyko, Marc (2007). Nightwing Annual 2. DC Comics.
^ Simone, Gail (2007). Birds of Prey: Blood and Circuits. DC Comics. ISBN 978-1401213718.
^ Simone, Gail (2007). Birds of Prey: Whitewater. DC Comics.
^ Dini, Paul; Paul Dini, Sean McKeever (2007). Countdown #39. DC Comics.
^ Johns, Geoff; Jeff Katz (2007). The All-New Booster Gold #5. DC Comics.
^ “The All-New Booster Gold #5″. DC Comics. 2007. http://www.dccomics.com/comics/?cm=8496. Retrieved 2008-01-13.
^ Birds of Prey #127
^ Oracle: The Cure #1
^ Oracle: The Cure #2
^ Oracle: The Cure #3
^ Batgirl #1 2009
^ Batgirl #3 2009
^ Batgirl vol. 2 #5
^ Batgirl vol. 2 #6
^ Blackest Night #2
^ Blackest Night: Batman #2
^ Titans #11 (2009)
^ a b Peterson, Scott (1994). A Little Knowledge Showcase 94 #12. DC Comics.
^ Brady, Matt (2007). “THE SIMONE FILES I: BIRDS OF PREY – UPDATED”. www.newsarama.com. http://forum.newsarama.com/showthread.php?t=98825. Retrieved 2007-12-19.
^ Simone, Gail (2006). Birds of Prey #80. DC Comics.
^ Armus, Adam; Kay Foster (2002-11-27). “Lady Shiva”. Birds of Prey. www.tv.com. http://www.tv.com/birds-of-prey/lady-shiva/episode/194250/summary.html. Retrieved 2008-01-02.
^ a b Reaves, Brynne (1993-09-13). “Shadow of the Bat”. Batman: The Animated Series. www.tv.com. http://www.tv.com/batman-the-animated-series/shadow-of-the-bat-part-1-of-2/episode/72331/summary.html. Retrieved 2008-01-02.
^ Dini, Paul (1997-09-13). “Holiday Knights”. The New Batman Adventures. www.tv.com. http://www.tv.com//holiday-knights/episode/115343/summary.html. Retrieved 2008-01-02.
^ a b Jelenic, Michael (2005-09-17). “Batgirl Begins”. The Batman. www.tv.com. http://www.tv.com/the-batman/batgirl-begins-1/episode/416142/summary.html. Retrieved 2008-01-02.
^ McNeill, Dustin (2005). “Review of Batman & Robin”. http://www.dvdactive.com/reviews/dvd/batman-and-robin.html?page=2. Retrieved 2007-10-14.
^ Brooker, Will (2001). Batman Unmasked: Analyzing a Cultural Icon. Continuum International Publishing Group. pp. 187. ISBN 0826413439.
^ a b Schiff, Laura (1998). “Interview With Yvonne”. http://yvonnecraig.com/up_close_interviews.php. Retrieved 2007-11-30.
^ “The Batman/Superman Hour”. 1968. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0062544/. Retrieved 2007-12-20.
^ “Pest”. The New Adventures of Batman. www.tv.com. 1977-02-10. http://www.tv.com/the-new-adventures-of-batman/the-pest/episode/194782/summary.html. Retrieved 2008-01-02.
^ Reaves, Brynne (1992-11-16). “Heart of Steel”. Batman: The Animated Series. www.tv.com. http://www.tv.com/batman-the-animated-series/heart-of-steel-part-1-of-2/episode/69011/summary.html. Retrieved 2008-01-02.
^ Reaves, Michael; Brynne Chandler Reaves (1994-11-12). “Batgirl Returns”. She had a sexual attraction to Dick Grayson/Robin. The New Adventures of Batman & Robin. www.tv.com. http://www.tv.com/justice-league-unlimited/the-savage-time-3/episode/166100/summary.html. Retrieved 2008-01-02.
^ Nolen-Weathington, Eric (2004). Modern Masters Volume 3: Bruce Timm. TwoMorrows Publishing. pp. 58. ISBN 1893905306.
^ Berkowitz, Stan (2002-11-09). “The Savage Time”. Justice League. www.tv.com. http://www.tv.com/justice-league-unlimited/the-savage-time-3/episode/166100/summary.html. Retrieved 2008-01-02.
^ Berkowitz, Stan (1999-01-10). “Rebirth Part 2″. Batman Beyond. www.tv.com. http://www.tv.com/batman-beyond/rebirth-2/episode/44985/summary.html. Retrieved 2008-01-02.
^ Game Informer features a two-page gallery of the many heroes and villains who appear in the game with a picture for each character and a descriptive paragraph. See “LEGO Batman: Character Gallery,” Game Informer 186 (October 2008): 92.
References
Daniels, Les. Batman: The Complete History. Chronicle Books, 2004. ISBN 0811842320
Daniels, Les. DC Comics: Sixty Years of the World’s Favorite Comic Book Heroes. Bulfinch, 1995. ISBN 0-821-22076-4
Arant, Wendi. Benefiel, Candace. The Image and Role of the Librarian. Haworth Press, 2002. ISBN 0789020998
Brooker, Will. Batman Unmasked: Analyzing a Cultural Icon. Continuum International Publishing Group, 2001. ISBN 0826413439
Nolen-Weathington, Eric. Modern Masters Volume 3: Bruce Timm. TwoMorrows Publishing, 2004. ISBN 1893905306
External links
Barbara Gordon at DC Database Project
Barbara Gordon at the Grand Comics Database
Batgirl (Barbara Gordon) at the Comic Book DB
Barbara Gordon (Post-Crisis) at the Comic Book DB
Oracle (Barbara Gordon) at the Comic Book DB
Barbara Gordon at the Internet Movie Database
Batgirl at the Internet Movie Database
Oracle at the Internet Movie Database
Canarynoir: Home of Birdwatching – Birds of Prey
TVObscurities.com – Batgirl Promotional Short
Barbara Gordon in The Batman
Yvonne Craig as Batgirl in a Public Service Announcement for the U.S. Department of Labor
v d e
Batman
Creators
Bob Kane Bill Finger Other creators
Supporting characters
Alfred Pennyworth Commissioner James Gordon Harvey Bullock Lucius Fox Renee Montoya Talia al Ghul Vicki Vale Crispus Allen
Batman Family
Shared codenames
Robin Batwoman Batgirl Nightwing Huntress Azrael Red Robin
Individual characters
Ace the Bat-Hound Bat-Mite Helena Bertinelli Stephanie Brown Cassandra Cain Catwoman Tim Drake Dick Grayson Barbara Gordon Betty Kane Jason Todd Damian Wayne Helena Wayne
Alternate versions of Batman Alternate versions of Robin Alternate versions of Barbara Gordon
See also: Batman in other media Robin in other media Barbara Gordon in other media
v d e
19661968 Batman television series
Characters adapted
for the series
Alfred The Archer Batgirl / Barbara Gordon Batman / Bruce Wayne Catwoman Clock King Aunt Harriet Cooper False-Face Commissioner James Gordon The Green Hornet The Joker Kato The Mad Hatter Mr. Freeze The Penguin The Puzzler The Riddler Robin / Dick Grayson
Characters created
for the series
Egghead King Tut Chief O’Hara
Vehicles & gadgetry
Batmobile Batboat Batcopter Batcycle Batsuit Bat phone Batcomputer
In story locations
Gotham City Batcave Wayne Manor Londinium
Related topics
Shows
Legends of the Superheroes The New Adventures of Batman Return to the Batcave: The Misadventures of Adam and Burt The Green Hornet
Films
Batman (1966 film)
Music
“Batman Theme”
Lists
Episodes (List) List of Batman television series cast members
Other
Batusi
See also: Batman franchise media Joker’s appearances in other media Robin in other media Barbara Gordon in other media
Categories: 1967 comics characters debuts | Characters created by Gardner Fox | DC Comics martial artists | DC Comics superheroes | Fictional adoptees | Fictional detectives | Fictional hackers | Fictional lawyers | Fictional librarians | Fictional professorsHidden categories: Character pop | Converting comics character infoboxes | Vague or ambiguous time
An unnamed rabbit bearing some of the personality, if not physical characteristics of Bugs, first appeared in the cartoon short Porky’s Hare Hunt, released on April 30, 1938. Co-directed by Ben Hardaway and an uncredited Cal Dalton (who was responsible for the initial design of the rabbit), this short had a theme almost identical to that of the 1937 cartoon, Porky’s Duck Hunt (directed by Tex Avery), which had introduced Daffy Duck. Porky Pig was again cast as a hunter tracking another silly prey who seemed less interested in escape than in driving his pursuer insane; this short replaced the black duck with a small white rabbit. The rabbit introduces himself with the odd expression “Jiggers, fellers”, and Mel Blanc gave the rabbit nearly the voice and laugh that he would later use for Woody Woodpecker. This cartoon also features the famous Groucho Marx line that Bugs would use many times: “Of course you know, this means war!” The rabbit developed a following from the audience viewing this cartoon which inspired the Schlesinger staff to further develop the character.
First incarnation of the rabbit debuts in Porky’s Hare Hunt (1938)
The rabbit’s second appearance came in 1939’s Prest-O Change-O, directed by Chuck Jones, where he is the pet rabbit of unseen character Sham-Fu the Magician. Two dogs, fleeing the local dogcatcher, enter his absent master’s house. The rabbit harasses them, but is ultimately bested by the bigger of the two dogs.
His third appearance was in another 1939 cartoon, Hare-um Scare-um, directed by Dalton and Hardaway. This short, the first where he was depicted as a gray bunny instead of a white one, is also notable both for the rabbit’s first singing role. Charlie Thorson, lead animator on the short, was the first to give the character a name. He had written “Bugs’ Bunny” on the model sheet that he drew for Hardaway, implying that he considered the rabbit model sheet to be Hardaway’s property. In promotional material for the short (such as a surviving 1939 presskit), the name on the model sheet was altered to become the rabbit’s own name: “Bugs” Bunny (quotation marks only used at the very beginning), evidently named in honor of “Bugs” Hardaway.
In Chuck Jones’ Elmer’s Candid Camera the rabbit first encounters Elmer Fudd. This rabbit has more of a physical resemblance to the present-day Bugs, being taller and having a more similar face. The voice for this rabbit, however, was not similar to the well-known Brooklyn-Bronx accent, but spoke in a rural drawl. In Robert Clampett’s 1940 Patient Porky, a similar rabbit appears to trick the audience into thinking that 750 rabbits have been born (however the design is of the earlier white rabbit).
In his later years, Mel Blanc stated that a proposed name was “Happy Rabbit”. Ironically, the only time the name “Happy” was used was in reference to Bugs Hardaway. In the cartoon Hare-um Scare-um, the newspaper headline reads, “Happy Hardaway”.
Bugs Bunny emerges
The official debut of Bugs Bunny in A Wild Hare (1940)
Bugs’ appearance in A Wild Hare, directed by Tex Avery and released on July 27, 1940, is considered the first appearance of both Elmer and Bugs in their fully developed forms. It was in this cartoon that he first emerged from his rabbit hole to ask Elmer Fudd, now a hunter rather than a photographer, “What’s up, Doc?” Animation historian Joe Adamson counts A Wild Hare as the first “official” Bugs Bunny short. It is also the first cartoon where Mel Blanc uses a recognizable version of the voice of Bugs that would eventually become the standard.
Bugs’ second appearance in Jones’ Elmer’s Pet Rabbit finally introduced the audience to the name Bugs Bunny, which up until then had only been used among the Termite Terrace employees. However, the rabbit here is absolutely identical to the one in Jones’ earlier Elmer’s Candid Camera, both visually and vocally. It was also the first short where he received billing under his now-famous name, but the card, “featuring Bugs Bunny”, was just slapped on the end of the completed short’s opening titles when A Wild Hare proved an unexpected success. He would soon become the most prominent of the Looney Tunes characters as his calm, flippant insouciance endeared him to American audiences during and after World War II.
Bugs would appear in five more shorts during 1941: Tortoise Beats Hare, directed by Tex Avery and featuring the first appearance of Cecil Turtle; Hiawatha’s Rabbit Hunt, the first Bugs Bunny short to be directed by Friz Freleng; All This and Rabbit Stew, directed by Avery and featuring a young African-American hunter (based heavily on racial stereotypes) as Bugs’ antagonist; The Heckling Hare, the final Bugs short Avery worked on before being fired and leaving for MGM; and Wabbit Twouble, the first Bugs short directed by Robert Clampett. Wabbit Twouble was also the first of five Bugs shorts to feature a chubbier remodel of Elmer Fudd, a short-lived attempt to have Fudd more closely resemble his voice actor, comedian Arthur Q. Bryan.
World War II
By 1942, Bugs had become the number one star of the Merrie Melodies series, which had originally been intended only for one-shot characters in shorts after several early attempts to introduce characters failed under Harman-Ising, but had started introducing newer characters in 1937 under Schlesinger. Bugs’ 1942 shorts included Friz Freleng’s The Wabbit Who Came to Supper, and the Robert Clampett shorts The Wacky Wabbit and Bugs Bunny Gets the Boid (which introduced Beaky Buzzard). Bugs Bunny Gets the Boid also marks a slight redesign of Bugs, making his front teeth less prominent and his head rounder. The man responsible for this redesign was Robert McKimson, at the time working as an animator under Robert Clampett. The redesign at first was only used in the shorts created by Clampett’s production team but in time, it would be adopted by the other directors, with Freleng and Frank Tashlin the first to adopt this design. Upon his own promotion to director, McKimson created yet another version with more slanted eyes, longer teeth and a much larger mouth, which he (and, for the one Bugs Bunny cartoon he directed, Art Davis) used until 1949, when he started using the version he had designed for Clampett. Jones would come up with his own slight modification, and the voice as well would vary mildly between the units.
An alternate version of Bugs used by Robert McKimson and Art Davis between 1946 and 1949.
Other 1942 Bugs shorts included Chuck Jones’ Hold the Lion, Please, Freleng’s Fresh Hare and The Hare-Brained Hypnotist (which restored Elmer Fudd to his previous size), and Jones’ Case of the Missing Hare. He also made cameo appearances in Tex Avery’s final Warner Bros. short, Crazy Cruise, and starred in the two-minute United States war bonds commercial film Any Bonds Today.
Bugs was popular during World War II because of his free and easy attitude, and began receiving special star billing in his cartoons by 1943. By that time, Warner Bros. was the most profitable cartoon studio in the United States. Like other cartoon studios, such as Disney and Famous Studios had been doing, Warners put Bugs in opposition to the period’s biggest enemies: Adolf Hitler, Benito Mussolini, and the Japanese. The 1944 short Bugs Bunny Nips the Nips features Bugs at odds with a group of Japanese soldiers. This cartoon has since been pulled from distribution due to its racial stereotypes.
Since Bugs’ debut in A Wild Hare, he had appeared only in color Merrie Melodie cartoons (making him one of the few recurring characters created for that series in the Leon Schlesinger era prior to the full conversion to color, alongside Elmer’s prototype Egghead, Inki, Sniffles, and Elmer himself – who was heard but not seen in the 1942 Looney Tunes cartoon Nutty News, and made his first formal appearance in that series in 1943’s To Duck or Not To Duck). While he did make a cameo appearance in the 1943 Porky and Daffy cartoon Porky Pig’s Feat marking his only appearance in a black-and-white Looney Tune cartoon, he did not star in a cartoon in the Looney Tunes series until that series made its complete conversion to only color cartoons beginning with 1944 releases. Buckaroo Bugs was Bugs’ first cartoon in the Looney Tunes series, and was also the last WB cartoon to credit Leon Schlesinger.
Among his most notable civilian shorts during this period are Bob Clampett’s Tortoise Wins by a Hare (the sequel to Tortoise Beats Hare from 1941), A Corny Concerto (a spoof of Disney’s Fantasia), Falling Hare, and What’s Cookin’ Doc?; and Chuck Jones’ Superman parody Super-Rabbit, and Freleng’s Little Red Riding Rabbit. The 1944 short Bugs Bunny and the Three Bears introduced Jones’ The Three Bears characters.
In the cartoon Super-Rabbit, Bugs was seen in the end wearing a USMC dress uniform. As a result, the United States Marine Corps made Bugs an honorary Marine Master Sergeant.
A scene from George Pal’s Jasper Goes Hunting (1944).
From 1943-1946, Bugs was the official “mascot” of Kingman Army Air Field, Kingman, Arizona, where thousands of aerial gunners were trained during World War II. Some notable trainees included Clark Gable and Charles Bronson. Bugs also served as the mascot for 530 Squadron of the 380th Bombardment Group, 5th Air Force, USAF, which was attached to the Royal Australian Air Force and operated out of Australia’s Northern Territory from 1943 to 1945, flying B-24 Liberator bombers.
In 1944, Bugs Bunny actually made a cameo appearance in Jasper Goes Hunting, a short produced by rival studio Paramount Pictures. In this cameo (animated by Robert McKimson, with Mel Blanc providing the voice), Bugs pops out of a rabbit hole, saying his usual catchphrase; Bugs then says, “I must be in the wrong picture” and then goes back in the hole. He also appeared fleetingly in the 1947 Arthur Davis cartoon The Goofy Gophers.
The post-war era
A scene from Bewitched Bunny (1954)
A slight variation of how the character was drawn in the 1950s can be seen in the frame from Bewitched Bunny (1954). The inner pinkish parts of the ears have been reduced becoming more v-shaped at the top end and the ovalness of the eyes also replaced with a more top v shaped look. His cheeks protrude out more, and body is more compacted, when compared how he was drawn in the 1940s, arising to the distinct look of how he is drawn today.
Since then, Bugs has appeared in numerous cartoon shorts in the Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies series, making his last appearance in the theatrical cartoons in 1964 with False Hare. He was directed by Friz Freleng, Robert McKimson, Arthur Davis and Chuck Jones and appeared in feature films, including Who Framed Roger Rabbit (which featured the first-ever meeting between Bugs and his box-office rival Mickey Mouse), Space Jam (which co-starred Michael Jordan), and the 2003 movie Looney Tunes: Back in Action.
The Bugs Bunny short Knighty Knight Bugs (1958), in which a medieval Bugs Bunny traded blows with Yosemite Sam and his fire-breathing dragon (which has a cold), won the Academy Award for Best Short Subject: Cartoons of 1958. Three of Chuck Jones’ Bugs Bunny shorts–Rabbit Fire, Rabbit Seasoning, and Duck, Rabbit, Duck!— comprise what is often referred to as the “Duck Season/Rabbit Season” trilogy, and are considered among the director’s best works. Jones’ 1957 classic, What’s Opera, Doc?, features Bugs and Elmer parodying Wagner’s Der Ring des Nibelungen, and has been deemed “culturally significant” by the United States Library of Congress and selected for preservation in the National Film Registry. It was the first cartoon short to receive this honor.
Bugs appeared in the 1957 short Show Biz Bugs with Daffy Duck, which features a controversial finish in which Daffy Duck, in an attempt to wow the (partisan) audience, did a dangerous magical act in which he (in sequence) drank gasoline, swallowed nitroglycerine, gunpowder, and uranium-238 (in a greenish solution), jumped up and down to “shake well”, and finally swallowed a match that detonated the whole improbable mixture. That incident caused some TV stations, and in the 1990s the cable network TNT, to edit out the dangerous act, fearing that young kids might try to imitate it.
In the fall of 1960, The Bugs Bunny Show, a television program which packaged many of the post-1948 Warners shorts with newly animated wraparounds, debuted on ABC. The show was originally aired in prime-time. After two seasons, it was moved to reruns on Saturday mornings. The Bugs Bunny Show changed format and exact title frequently (the packaging was completely different, with each short simply presented on its own, title and all, though some clips from the new bridging material was used as filler), but it remained on network television for 40 years.
After the classic cartoon era
When Mel Blanc died in 1989, Jeff Bergman, Joe Alaskey and Billy West became the new voices to Bugs Bunny and the rest of the Looney Tunes, taking turns doing the voices at various times.
Bugs has also made appearances in animated specials for network television, mostly composed of classic cartoons with bridging material added, including How Bugs Bunny Won the West, and The Bugs Bunny Mystery Special. 1980’s Bugs Bunny’s Busting Out All Over, however, contained no vintage clips and featured the first new Bugs Bunny cartoons in 16 years. It opened with “Portrait Of The Artist As a Young Bunny”, which features a flashback of Bugs as a child thwarting a young Elmer Fudd, while its third and closing short was “Spaced Out Bunny”, with Bugs being kidnapped by Marvin the Martian to be a playmate for Hugo, an Abominable Snowman-like character (a new Wile E. Coyote and Road Runner short filled out the half hour). Also, there have been various compilation films, including the independently produced Bugs Bunny: Superstar (utilizing the vintage shorts then owned by United Artists), while Warner Bros. assembled The Bugs Bunny/Road Runner Movie, The Looney Looney Looney Bugs Bunny Movie, Daffy Duck’s Fantastic Island, Bugs Bunny’s 3rd Movie: 1001 Rabbit Tales and Daffy Duck’s Quackbusters. He also made guest appearances in episodes of the 1990s television program Tiny Toon Adventures as the principal of Acme Looniversity and the mentor of Babs and Buster Bunny, and would later make occasional guest cameos on spinoffs Taz-Mania, Animaniacs and Histeria!
He appears in the beginning of Gremlins 2: The New Batch, where he tries to ride the opening Warner Bros logo, but is interrupted by Daffy Duck.
Bugs has had several comic book series over the years. Western Publishing had the license for all the Warner Brothers cartoons, and produced Bugs Bunny comics first for Dell Comics, then later for their own Gold Key Comics. Dell published 58 issues and several specials from 1952 to 1962. Gold Key continued for another 133 issues. DC Comics, the sister/subsidiary company of Warner Bros., has published several comics titles since 1994 that Bugs has appeared in. Notable among these was the 2000 four-issue miniseries Superman & Bugs Bunny, written by Mark Evanier and drawn by Joe Staton. This depicted a crossover between DC’s superheroes and the Warner cartoon characters.
Bugs Bunny’s star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Like Mickey Mouse for The Walt Disney Company, Bugs has served as the mascot for Warner Bros. Studios and its various divisions. He and Mickey are the first cartoon characters to have a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
In the 1988 animated/live action movie Who Framed Roger Rabbit, Bugs is shown as one of the inhabitants of Toontown. However, since the film was being produced by Disney, Warner Bros. would only allow the use of their biggest star if he got an equal amount of screen time as Disney’s biggest star, Mickey Mouse. Because of this, both characters are always together in frame when onscreen. They appear in a scene where they are skydiving while Eddie Valiant (Bob Hoskins) has no parachute, so Bugs offers him a “spare” which turns out to be a spare tire. They appear in the end as well, along with all the other toons. For the same reasons, Bugs never calls Mickey by his name, only referring to him as “Doc” (while Mickey calls him “Bugs”).
Bugs Bunny came back to the silver screen in Box Office Bunny in 1990. This was the first Bugs Bunny cartoon short since 1964 to be released to theaters, and it was created for the Bugs Bunny 50th anniversary celebration. It was followed in 1991 by (Blooper) Bunny, a short that has gained a cult following among some animation fans for its edgy humor.
Bugs made an appearance in the 1990 drug prevention video Cartoon All-Stars to the Rescue. This special is notable for being the first time that somebody other than Mel Blanc voiced Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck (they were voiced by Jeff Bergman.)
In 1997, Bugs appeared on a U.S. postage stamp, the first cartoon to be so honored, beating the iconic Mickey Mouse. The stamp is number seven on the list of the ten most popular U.S. stamps, as calculated by the number of stamps purchased but not used. The introduction of Bugs onto a stamp was controversial at the time, as it was seen as a step toward the ‘commercialization’ of stamp art. The postal service rejected many designs, and went with a postal-themed drawing. Avery Dennison printed the Bugs Bunny stamp sheet, which featured “a special ten-stamp design and was the first self-adhesive souvenir sheet issued by the U.S. Postal Service.”
A younger version of Bugs is the main character of Baby Looney Tunes, which debuted on Cartoon Network (United States) in 2002. In the action comedy Loonatics Unleashed, his definite descendant Ace Bunny is the leader of the Loonatics team and seems to have inherited his ancestor’s Brooklyn accent and comic wit. Lexi Bunny who is Lola Bunny’s confirmed descendant seems to be his second in command and likely love interest. Danger Duck, a descendant of Daffy, has a similar relation with him to that between Bugs and Daffy – envy (jealousy in the extreme case) mixed with a grudging respect.
Bugs has appeared in numerous video games, including the Bugs Bunny’s Crazy Castle series, Bugs Bunny Birthday Blowout, Bugs Bunny: Rabbit Rampage and the similar Bugs Bunny in Double Trouble, Looney Tunes B-Ball, Space Jam, Looney Tunes Racing, Looney Tunes: Space Race, Bugs Bunny Lost in Time, and its sequel, Bugs Bunny and Taz Time Busters, and Looney Tunes: Back in Action and the new video game Looney Tunes: Acme Arsenal.
Personality and catchphrases
Bugs has feuded with Elmer Fudd, Yosemite Sam, Marvin the Martian, Beaky Buzzard, Daffy Duck, Tasmanian Devil, Cecil Turtle, Witch Hazel, Rocky and Mugsy, Wile E. Coyote, Count Blood Count, and a host of others. Bugs almost always wins these conflicts, a plot pattern which recurs in Looney Tunes films directed by Chuck Jones. Concerned that viewers would lose sympathy for a protagonist who always won, Jones had the antagonist characters repeatedly attempt to bully, cheat or threaten Bugs who has been minding his own business. He’s also been known to break the 4th wall by “communicating” with the audience, either by explaining the situation (ex. “Be with you in a minute folks!”), describing someone to the audience (ex. “Feisty, ain’t they?”), etc.
Bugs will usually try to placate the antagonist and avoid conflict, but when an antagonist pushes him too far, Bugs may address the audience and invoke his catchphrase “Of course you realize, this means war!” before he retaliates, and the retaliation will be devastating. This line was taken from Groucho Marx and others in the 1933 film Duck Soup and was also used in the 1935 Marx film A Night at the Opera. Bugs would pay homage to Groucho in other ways, such as occasionally adopting his stooped walk or leering eyebrow-raising (in Hair-Raising Hare, for example) or sometimes with a direct impersonation (as in Slick Hare).
Other directors, such as Friz Freleng, characterized Bugs as altruistic. When Bugs meets other successful characters (such as Cecil Turtle in Tortoise Beats Hare, or, in World War II, the Gremlin of Falling Hare), his overconfidence becomes a disadvantage.
During the 1940s, Bugs was immature and wild, but starting in the 1950s his personality matured and his attitude was less frenetic. It’s worth noting, however, that some feel this shift in Bugs’s personality marked a significant decline in the quality of his cartoons. Though often shown as highly mischievous and violent, Bugs is never actually malicious, and only acts as such in self-defense against his aggressors; the only cartoon where Bugs ever served as a true villain was Buckaroo Bugs.
Bugs Bunny’s nonchalant carrot-chewing standing position, as explained by Chuck Jones, Friz Freleng, and Bob Clampett, originated in a scene in the film It Happened One Night, in which Clark Gable’s character leans against a fence, eating carrots rapidly and talking with his mouth full to Claudette Colbert’s character. This scene was well known while the film was popular, and viewers at the time likely recognized Bugs Bunny’s behavior as satire.
The carrot-chewing scenes are generally followed by Bugs Bunny’s most well-known catchphrase, “What’s up, Doc?”, which was written by director Tex Avery for his first Bugs Bunny short, 1940’s A Wild Hare. Avery explained later that it was a common expression in his native Texas and that he did not think much of the phrase. When the short was first screened in theaters, the “What’s up, Doc?” scene generated a tremendously positive audience reaction. As a result, the scene became a recurring element in subsequent films and cartoons. The phrase was sometimes modified for a situation. For example, Bugs says “What’s up, dogs?” to the antagonists in A Hare Grows in Manhattan, “What’s up, Duke?” to the knight in Knight-mare Hare and “What’s up, prune-face?” to the aged Elmer in The Old Grey Hare. He might also greet Daffy with “What’s up, Duck?” He used one variation, “What’s all the hub-bub, bub?” only once, in Falling Hare. Another variation is used in Looney Tunes: Back In Action when he greets a lightsaber-wielding Marvin the Martian- “What’s up, Darth?”
Several Chuck Jones shorts in the late 1940s and 1950s depict Bugs travelling via cross-country (and, in some cases, intercontinental) tunnel-digging, ending up in places as varied as Mexico (Bully For Bugs, 1953), the Himalayas (The Abominable Snow Rabbit, 1960) and Antarctica (Frigid Hare, 1949) all because he “shoulda taken that left toin at Albukoikee.” He first utters that phrase in Herr Meets Hare (1945), when he emerges in the Black Forest, a cartoon seldom seen today due to its blatantly topical subject matter. When Hermann Gring says to Bugs, “There is no Las Vegas in ‘Chermany’” and takes a potshot at Bugs, Bugs dives into his hole and says, “Joimany! Yipe!”, as Bugs realizes he’s behind enemy lines. The confused response to his “left toin” comment also followed a pattern. For example, when he tunnels into Scotland in 1948’s My Bunny Lies Over The Sea, while thinking he’s heading for the La Brea Tar Pits in Los Angeles, California, it provides another chance for an ethnic stereotype: “Therrre’s no La Brrrea Tarrr Pits in Scotland!” (to which Bugs responds, “Uh…what’s up, Mac-doc?”). A couple of late-1950s shorts of this ilk also featured Daffy Duck travelling with Bugs (”Since when is Pismo Beach inside a cave?!”).
Bugs Bunny has some similarities to figures from mythology and folklore, such as Br’er Rabbit, Nanabozho, or Anansi, and might be seen as a modern trickster (for example, he repeatedly uses cross-dressing mischievously). Unlike most cartoon characters, however, Bugs Bunny is rarely defeated in his own games of trickery. One exception to this is the short Hare Brush, in which Elmer Fudd ultimately carries the day at the end; however, critics note that in this short, Elmer and Bugs assume each other’s personalitieshrough mental illness and hypnosis, respectivelynd it is only by becoming Bugs that Elmer can win. However Bugs was beaten at his own game. In the short Duck Amuck he torments Daffy Duck as the unseen animator, ending with his line, “Ain’t I a stinker?” Bugs feels the same wrath of an unseen animator in the short Rabbit Rampage where he is in turn tormented by Elmer Fudd. At the end of the clip Elmer gleefully exclaims, ‘Well, I finally got even with that scwewy wabbit!”
Although it was usually Porky Pig who brought the WB cartoons to a close with his stuttering, “That’s all, folks!”, Bugs would occasionally appear, bursting through a drum just as Porky did, but munching a carrot and saying in his Bronx-Brooklyn accent, “And dat’s de end!”
The name “Bugs” or “Bugsy” as an old-fashioned nickname means “crazy” (or “loopy”). Several famous people from the first half of the twentieth century had that nickname. It is now out of fashion as a nickname, but survives in 1950s-1960s expressions like “you’re bugging me”, as in “you’re driving me crazy”.
Bugs wears white gloves which he is only known to remove in Long-Haired Hare. In this episode, Bugs pretends to be the famed conductor Leopold Stokowski and instructs opera star “Giovanni Jones” to sing and to hold a high note. As Giovanni Jones is turning red with the strain, Bugs slips his left hand out of its glove, leaving the glove hovering in the air in order to command Jones to continue to hold the high note. Bugs then nips down to the mail drop to order, and then to receive, a pair of ear muffs. Bugs puts on the ear defenders and then zips back into the amphitheater and reinserts his hand into his glove as singer Jones is writhing on the stage, still holding that same high note).
Bugs Bunny is also a master of disguise: he can wear any disguise that he wants to confuse his enemies: in Bowery Bugs he uses 5 disguises: fakir, gentleman, women, Baker and finally policeman. This ability of disguise makes bugs famous because we can recognize him while at the same time realizing that his enemies are trapped. Bugs has a certain preference for the female disguise: Taz, Elmer Fudd, Yosemite Sam were fooled by this sexy bunny (woman) and in Hare Trimmed, Sam discovers the real face of “Granny”(Bugs disguise) in the church where they attempt to get married.
Rabbit or hare?
The animators throughout Bugs’ history have treated the terms rabbit and hare as synonymous. Taxonomically they are not synonymous, being somewhat similar but observably different types of lagomorphs. Hares have much longer ears than rabbits, so Bugs might seem to be of the hare family, and many more of the cartoon titles include the word “hare” rather than “rabbit.” Within the cartoons, although the term “hare” comes up sometimes (for example, Bugs drinking “hare tonic” to “stop falling hare” and being doused with “hare restorer” to bring him back from invisibility), Bugs as well as his antagonists most often refer to the character as a “rabbit”. The word “bunny” is of no help in answering this question, as it is a synonym for both young hares and young rabbits.
In Nike commercials with Michael Jordan, Bugs had been referred to as “Hare Jordan.”
The opening and closing
In the opening of many of the Bugs Bunny cartoons, the Merrie Melodies and Looney Tunes rings contain Bugs Bunny’s head after the Warner Bros. shield (generally from 1944 and 1949 onward). Others have Bugs Bunny relaxing on top of the Warner Bros. shield: He chews on his carrot, looks angrily at the camera and pulls down the next logo (Merrie Melodies or Looney Tunes) like a window shade (generally on cartoons between 1945 until early 1949). Then he lifts it back up, to now be seen lying on his own name, which then fades into the title of the specific short. In some other cases, the title card sometimes fades to him, already on his name and chewing his carrot then fade to the name of the short. At the finish of some, Bugs breaks out of a drum (like Porky Pig) and says, “And that’s the end”.
Voice actors
The following are the many voice actors who have voiced the character Bugs Bunny over the last seventy years:
Mel Blanc voiced the character for 49 years, from Bugs’ debut in A Wild Hare (1940) until Blanc’s death in 1989. Blanc described the voice as a combination of Bronx and Brooklyn accents; however, Tex Avery claimed that he asked Blanc to give the character not a New York accent per se, but a voice like that of actor Frank McHugh, who frequently appeared in supporting roles in the 1930s and whose voice might be described as New York Irish. In Bugs’ second cartoon Elmer’s Pet Rabbit, Blanc created a completely new voice for Bugs, which sounded like a Jimmy Stewart impression, but the directors decided the previous voice was better. Though his best-known character was the carrot-chomping rabbit, munching on the carrots interrupted the dialogue. Various substitutes, such as celery, were tried, but none of them sounded like a carrot. So for the sake of expedience, he would munch and then spit the carrot bits into a spittoon rather than swallowing them, and continue with the dialogue. One oft-repeated story, possibly originating from Bugs Bunny: Superstar, is that he was allergic to carrots and had to spit them out to minimize any allergic reaction but his autobiography makes no such claim; in fact, in a 1984 interview with Tim Lawson, co-author of The Magic Behind The Voices: A Who’s Who of Cartoon Voice Actors (University Press of Mississippi, 2004), Blanc emphatically denied being allergic to carrots.
Jeff Bergman was the first to have the honor of voicing Bugs (and several other Looney Tunes characters) after Mel Blanc died in 1989. He got the job by impressing Warner Bros. higher-ups with a tape of himself re-creating the voices of several of Blanc’s characters, including Bugs Bunny. He had rigged the tape player so that he could use a switch to instantly toggle back and forth between the original recording of Blanc and Bergman’s recording of the same lines. Upon doing this, it was almost impossible for the producers to tell which voice was Blanc’s and which voice was Bergman; thus his vocal ability was established and his career launched.
Bergman first voiced Bugs during the 1990 Academy Awards and then in Box Office Bunny, a 4-minute Looney Tunes short released in 1990 to commemorate Bugs’ fiftieth anniversary. Bergman would next voice Bugs Bunny in the 1991 short (Blooper) Bunny, a Greg Ford-directed cartoon also produced to coincide with Bugs Bunny’s fiftieth anniversary. However, the short never received its intended theatrical release and was shelved for years, until Cartoon Network rediscovered it and broadcast it on their channel several years later. (Blooper) Bunny has since garnered a cult following among animation fans for its use of edgy humor. Other works for which Bergman provided Bugs’ voice include Invasion of the Bunny Snatchers (an obvious parody of the 1950s sci-fi classic Invasion of the Body Snatchers), Tiny Toon Adventures (a popular television program of the early nineties that featured the classic Looney Tunes characters as mentors to their younger counterparts) in the first season, and Cartoon All-Stars to the Rescue (a television special exposing children to dangers of marijuana). Bergman would continue to do the voice of Bugs Bunny until 1993.
Greg Burson first voiced Bugs in later episodes of Tiny Toon Adventures. He was then given the responsibility of voicing Bugs in 1995’s Carrotblanca, a well-received 8-minute Looney Tunes cartoon originally shown in cinemas alongside The Amazing Panda Adventure (US) and The Pebble and the Penguin (non-US); it has since been released on video packaged with older Looney Tunes cartoons and was even included in the special edition DVD release of Casablanca, of which it is both a parody and an homage. Burson next voiced Bugs in the 1996 short From Hare to Eternity; the film is notable for being dedicated to the memory of the then-just deceased Friz Freleng, and for being the final Looney Tunes cartoon that Chuck Jones directed. Greg Burson also provided Bugs’ voice in The Bugs and Daffy Show, which ran on Cartoon Network from 1996 to 2003. He died in 2008.
Billy West has been in television since the late 1980s. His first role was for the 1988 revived version of Bob Clampett’s Beany and Cecil. West’s breakthrough role then came almost immediately, as the voice of Stimpy and later Ren in John Kricfalusi’s Ren & Stimpy. West has since been the voice talent for close to 120 different characters, including some of the most iconic animated figures in television history. Perhaps West’s most notable film work came in the 1996 movie Space Jam. Starring alongside Michael Jordan, West provided the voice of both Bugs Bunny and Elmer Fudd. West would go on to reprise the roles of Bugs in subsequent Looney Tunes productions, including his cameos on Histeria!, the Kids’ WB! promotional spots, and the 2006 Christmas-themed special Bah, Humduck! A Looney Tunes Christmas and the DVD compilations “Reality Check” and “Stranger Than Fiction”, along with several Looney Tunes-centric CDs, cartoons, and video games. Billy West is, along with fellow voice artist Joe Alaskey, credited as one of the current successors of Mel Blanc in impersonating the voice of Bugs Bunny.
Joe Alaskey, like Jeff Bergman, is well-known for his ability to successfully impersonate many Looney Tunes characters. In fact, Alaskey voiced Yosemite Sam in Who Framed Roger Rabbit, as original voice actor Mel Blanc had found it too hard on his vocal cords. (This makes Sam one of the few voices created by Blanc to be voiced by someone else during his lifetime.) Joe Alaskey’s first performance as Bugs Bunny came in the 2003 feature film Looney Tunes: Back in Action, although he had tested performing the role in a few earlier projects, such as Tweety’s High-Flying Adventure. While still best known for providing the voice of Daffy Duck, Alaskey has also gone on to do Bugs’ voice in several subsequent productions, including Daffy Duck for President (which was released on The Looney Tunes Golden Collection: Volume 2 and dedicated to then-just deceased Chuck Jones) and several recent video games. Joe Alaskey is, along with fellow voice actor Billy West, credited as one of the current successors of Mel Blanc in impersonating the voice of Bugs Bunny.
Samuel Vincent served as the voice of Bugs in the Cartoon Network TV series Baby Looney Tunes.
Noel Blanc, Mel Blanc’s son, voiced Bugs for the Tiny Toons special It’s a Wonderful Tiny Toon Christmas Special. The elder Blanc claimed in his later years that Noel substituted for Mel in various cartoon studios, including doing Bugs at Warner Bros., while he was recovering from a near-fatal car wreck. Noel can also be seen doing Bugs’ voice with his father in the documentary on the making of the film Who Framed Roger Rabbit. Noel voiced Elmer Fudd in a cut-away scene for the animated TV series Family Guy (in “Stewie Griffin: The Untold Story”).
Cameos
Bugs Bunny has had cameo appearances in several cartoons, including one Private SNAFU short. For his appearance in The Goofy Gophers his voice was sped up.
Crazy Cruise (1942)
Porky Pig’s Feat (1943) This marks Bugs’ only appearance in a black-and-white Looney Tunes short.
Jasper Goes Hunting (1944, for Paramount)
Odor-able Kitty (1945)
The Goofy Gophers (1947)
The Lion’s Busy (1950)
Duck Amuck (1953)
Justice League: The New Frontier (2008, as one of the forms of The Martian Manhunter )
International
Bugs Bunny cartoons air in countries outside of the United States. In most cases, the original US cartoons are simply redubbed in the native language and the characters are usually given names more fitting for the country in which they are appearing. For example, in Finland, Bugs Bunny is called Viski Vemmelsri.
Current popularity
In 2002, TV Guide compiled a list of the 50 greatest cartoon characters of all time as part of the magazine’s 50th anniversary. Bugs Bunny was given the honor of number 1. In a CNN broadcast on July 31, 2002, a TV Guide editor talked about the group that created the list. The editor also explained why Bugs pulled top billing: “His stock…has never gone down…Bugs is the best example…of the smart-aleck American comic. He not only is a great cartoon character, he’s a great comedian. He was written well. He was drawn beautifully. He has thrilled and made many generations laugh. He is tops.” Additionally, in Animal Planet’s 50 Greatest Movie Animals (2004), Bugs was named #3, behind Mickey Mouse and Toto.
Bugs Bunny’s enduring impact on comedic actors also cannot be overestimated. During an interview for Inside the Actors Studio, comedian Dave Chappelle cited Bugs Bunny as one of his earliest influences, praising voice actor Mel Blanc.
According to Time Warner, Bugs Bunny became the current official mascot for Six Flags theme parks beginning with their 45th anniversary.
Awards
Academy Awards
Knighty Knight Bugs (1958)
Academy Award nominations
A Wild Hare (1940)
Hiawatha’s Rabbit Hunt (1941)
See also
List of Bugs Bunny cartoons
Looney Tunes
References
^ a b “Bugs Bunny tops greatest cartoon characters list”. CNN.com. 2002-07-30. http://archives.cnn.com/2002/SHOWBIZ/TV/07/30/cartoon.characters/index.html. Retrieved 2008-02-27.
^ Carragher, Sarah (2002-07-29). “Nearly One-Third of TV Guide’s ‘50 Greatest Cartoon Characters Of All Time Come From Warner Bros.”. TimeWarner.com. http://www.timewarner.com/corp/newsroom/pr/0,20812,669402,00.html. Retrieved 2008-02-27.
^ a b c Barrier, Michael (2003-11-06). Hollywood Cartoons: American Animation in Its Golden Age. United States: Oxford University Press. p. 672. ISBN 978-0195167290.
^ Adamson, Joe (1990). Bugs Bunny: 50 Years and Only One Grey Hare. Henry Holt. ISBN 0-8050-1855-7.
^ Lehman, Christopher P. (2008). The Colored Cartoon: Black Representation in American Animated Short Films, 1907-1954. Amherst, Massachusetts: University of Massachusetts Press. p. 73. http://books.google.com/books?id=xMWhTUFFuqoC&pg=PA73&lpg=PA73&dq=”any+bonds+today”+”bugs+bunny”+theatrical+cartoon&source=bl&ots=gEClzGwbx4&sig=P8w8dPT-Wy3Y0hZIDzIOrtT4rg0&hl=en&ei=qf2kSaW7NJm1jAeWk-XQBQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=10&ct=result#PPA73,M1. Retrieved 2009-02-25.
^ Audio commentary by Paul Dini for Super-Rabbit on the Looney Tunes Golden Collection: Volume 3 (2005).
^ “History of the 380th Bomb Group”. 380th.org. http://380th.org/380-History.html. Retrieved 2010-01-07.
^ a b “”Jasper Goes Hunting” information”. Bcdb.com. http://www.bcdb.com/cartoon/36556-Jasper_Goes_Hunting.html. Retrieved 2009-09-20.
^ Looney Tunes: Bugs Bunny stamp. National Postal Museum Smithsonian.
^ “Transcript of ”Duck Soup””. Script-o-rama.com. http://www.script-o-rama.com/movie_scripts/d/duck-soup-script-transcript-marx.html. Retrieved 2009-09-20.
^ “”It Happened One Night” film review by Tim Dirks”. Filmsite.org. http://www.filmsite.org/itha.html. Retrieved 2009-09-20.
^ Adamson, Joe (1975). Tex Avery: King of Cartoons. New York: De Capo Press.
^ a b Knight, Richard. “Consider the Source”. Chicagoreader.com. http://www.chicagoreader.com/movies/archives/2001/0101/010126.html. Retrieved 2009-09-20.
^ “Piirroselokuvien taitaja Chuck Jones kuollut”. Mtv3.fi. February 23, 2002. http://www.mtv3.fi/uutiset/arkisto.shtml/arkistot/kulttuuri/2002/02/101933. Retrieved 2009-12-06.
^ “List of All-time Cartoon Characters”. CNN.com. CNN. July 30, 2002. http://archives.cnn.com/2002/SHOWBIZ/TV/07/30/cartoon.characters.list/index.html. Retrieved April 11, 2007.
^ “CNN LIVE TODAY: ‘TV Guide’ Tipping Hat to Cartoon Characters”. CNN.com. CNN. July 31, 2002. http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0207/31/lt.20.html. Retrieved April 11, 2007.
Bibliography
Adamson, Joe (1990). Bugs Bunny: 50 Years and Only One Grey Hare. New York: Henry Holt. ISBN 0-8050-1855-7.
Beck, Jerry; Friedwald, Will (1989). Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies. New York: Henry Holt. ISBN 0-8050-0894-2.
Blanc, Mel; Bashe, Philip (1989). That’s Not All, Folks!. Clayton South, VIC, Australia: Warner Books. ISBN 0-446-39089-5.
Jones, Chuck (1989). Chuck Amuck: The Life and Times of an Animated Cartoonist. New York: Farrar Straus & Giroux. ISBN 0-374-12348-9.
Maltin, Leonard (1987). Of Mice and Magic: A History of American Animated Cartoons (Revised ed.). New York: Plume Book. ISBN 0-452-25993-2.
External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Bugs Bunny
Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Bugs Bunny
Bugs Bunny at the Internet Movie Database
Warner Bros. Studios
Bugs’ Toonopedia profile
v d e
Warner Bros. animation and comics
Looney Tunes,
Merrie Melodies
and other characters
Primary
Bugs Bunny Daffy Duck Porky Pig Yosemite Sam Speedy Gonzales Elmer Fudd Sylvester Tweety Granny Wile E. Coyote and Road Runner Foghorn Leghorn Marvin the Martian Tasmanian Devil Pep Le Pew
Secondary
Babbit and Catstello Bosko Clyde Rabbit Buddy Goopy Geer Evolution of Bugs Bunny Foxy Piggy Beans The Barnyard Dawg Rocky and Mugsy Hector the Bulldog Henery Hawk Melissa Duck Goofy Gophers Cecil Turtle Sylvester, Jr. Gabby Goat Spike and Chester Gossamer Hippety Hopper Marc Antony and Pussyfoot Witch Hazel The Three Bears Hatta Mari Hubie and Bertie Claude Cat Sniffles Ralph Phillips Beaky Buzzard Willoughby Charlie Dog Pete Puma Crusher Count Blood Count Private Snafu Wolf and Sheepdog Egghead Jr. Slowpoke Rodriguez K-9 Blacque Jacque Shellacque Nasty Canasta Bunny and Claude Merlin the Magic Mouse and Second Banana Quick Brown Fox and Rapid Rabbit Cool Cat Penelope Pussycat Conrad the Cat Playboy Penguin Inki Colonel Shuffle Petunia Pig Michigan J. Frog
Comics and TV shows
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Television
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Animaniacs
Yakko, Wakko, and Dot Ralph the Guard Thaddeus Plotz Dr. Otto Scratchansniff Pinky and the Brain Slappy Squirrel Buttons and Mindy The Goodfeathers Rita and Runt Chicken Boo Mr. Skullhead Minor characters
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v d e
Chicago Bulls
Founded in 1966 Based in Chicago, Illinois
The Franchise
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Persondata
NAME
Bunny, Bugs
ALTERNATIVE NAMES
SHORT DESCRIPTION
Looney Tunes character
DATE OF BIRTH
1940
PLACE OF BIRTH
Brooklyn, New York
DATE OF DEATH
PLACE OF DEATH
Categories: Corporate mascots | DC Comics titles | Dell Comics titles | Fictional anthropomorphic characters | Fictional characters from New York City | Fictional hares and rabbits | Gold Key Comics titles | Honorary United States Marines | Looney Tunes characters | 1940 introductionsHidden categories: Articles needing additional references from December 2007 | All articles needing additional references
Comics historian and movie producer Michael Uslan traces the origin of the “Silver Age” term to the letters column of Justice League of America #42 (Feb. 1966), which went on sale December 9, 1965. Letter-writer Scott Taylor of Westport, Connecticut wrote, “If you guys keep bringing back the heroes from the [1930s-1940s] Golden Age, people 20 years from now will be calling this decade the Silver Sixties!” According to Uslan, the natural hierarchy of gold-silver-bronze, as in Olympic medals, took hold. “Fans immediately glommed onto this, refining it more directly into a Silver Age version of the Golden Age. Very soon, it was in our vernacular, replacing such expressions as … ‘Second Heroic Age of Comics’ or ‘The Modern Age’ of comics. It wasn’t long before dealers were … specifying it was a Golden Age comic for sale or a Silver Age comic for sale”.
History
Background
Superman, as depicted in a 1941 Fleischer Studios cartoon, was created during the Golden Age of Comic Books.
Spanning World War II, when comics provided cheap and disposable escapist entertainment that could be read and then discarded by the troops, the Golden Age of comic books covered the late 1930s to the late 1940s. A number of major superheroes were created during this period, including Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, and Captain America. The brief so-called Atomic Age followed, between 1945 and 1956, but in subsequent years comics were blamed for a rise in juvenile crime statistics, although this rise was shown to be in direct proportion to population growth. When juvenile offenders admitted to reading comics, it was seized on as a common denominator; one notable critic was Fredric Wertham, author of the book Seduction of the Innocent (1954), who attempted to shift the blame for juvenile delinquency from the parents of the children to the comic books they read. The result was a decline in the comics industry. To address public concerns, in 1954 the Comics Code Authority was created to regulate and curb violence in comics, marking the start of a new era.
DC Comics
The Silver Age began with the publication of DC Comics’s Showcase #4 (Oct. 1956), which introduced the modern version of the Flash. At the time, only three superheroesuperman, Batman, and Wonder Womanere still published under their own titles. According to DC comics writer Will Jacobs, Superman was available in “great quantity, but little quality.” Batman was doing better, but his comics were “lackluster” in comparison to his earlier “atmospheric adventures” of the 1940s, and Wonder Woman, having lost her original writer and artist, was no longer “idiosyncratic” or “interesting.” Jacobs describes the arrival of Showcase #4 on the newsstands as “begging to be bought”; the cover featured an undulating film strip depicting the Flash running so fast that he had escaped from the frame. Editor Julius Schwartz, writer Gardner Fox and artist Carmine Infantino were behind the Flash’s revitalization.
Julius Schwartz, an instrumental figure at DC during the Silver Age.
With the success of Showcase #4, several other 1940s superheroes were reworked during Schwartz’s tenure, including Green Lantern, the Atom, and Hawkman, as well as the Justice League of America. The DC artists responsible included Murphy Anderson, Gil Kane and Joe Kubert. Only the characters’ names remained the same; their costumes, locales, and identities were altered, and imaginative scientific explanations for their superpowers generally took the place of magic as a modus operandi in their stories. Schwartz, a lifelong science fiction fan, was the inspiration for the re-imagined Green Lanternhe Golden Age character, railroad engineer Alan Scott, possessed a ring powered by a magical lantern, but his Silver Age replacement, test pilot Hal Jordan, had a ring powered by an alien battery and created by an intergalactic police force.
In the mid-1960s, DC established that characters appearing in comics published prior to the Silver Age lived on a parallel Earth the company dubbed Earth-Two. Characters introduced in the Silver Age and onward lived on Earth-One. It was established that the two realities were separated by a vibrational field that could be crossed, should a storyline involve superheroes from different worlds teaming up.
Although the Flash is generally regarded as the first superhero of the Silver Age, the introduction of the Martian Manhunter in Detective Comics #225 predates Showcase #4 by almost a year, and some historians consider this character the first Silver Age superhero. However, comics historian Craig Shutt, author of the Comics Buyer’s Guide column “Ask Mister Silver Age”, disagrees. Shutt notes that when the Martian Manhunter debuted, he was a detective who used his alien abilities to solve crimes. Although he did ultimately become a charter member of the Justice League of America, originally he was just a “quirky detective”, like other contemporaneous DC characters who were “TV detectives, Indian detectives, supernatural detectives, [and] animal detectives.” Schutt feels the Martian Manhunter only became a superhero in Detective Comics #273 (Nov. 1959), when he received a secret identity and other superhero accoutrements. Said Schutt, “Had Flash not come along, I doubt that the Martian Manhunter would’ve led the charge from his backup position in Detective to a new super-hero age.” Another hero that predates Showcase #4 is Captain Comet, who debuted in Strange Adventures #9 (June 1951). Comic Book Resources columnist Steven Grant considers him to be the first Silver Age superhero.
Marvel Comics
The Fantastic Four #1 (Nov. 1961), the cornerstone of Marvel Comics. Cover art by Jack Kirby (penciller) and unconfirmed inker.
DC Comics sparked the superhero’s revival with its publications from 1955 to 1960. Marvel Comics then capitalized on the revived interest in superhero storytelling with sophisticated stories and characterization. In contrast to previous eras, Silver Age characters were “flawed and self-doubting”.
DC added to its momentum with its 1960 introduction of Justice League of America, a team consisting of the company’s most popular superhero characters, Martin Goodman, a publishing trend-follower with his 1950s Atlas Comics line,note 1 directed his comic-book editor, Stan Lee, to create a series about a team of superheroes. Lee recalled in 1974 that “Martin mentioned that he had noticed one of the titles published by National Comics seemed to be selling better than most. It was a book called The [sic] Justice League of America and it was composed of a team of superheroes. … ‘ If the Justice League is selling ‘, spoke he, ‘ why don’t we put out a comic book that features a team of superheroes?’” Marvel Comics’s Fantastic Four was the result.
Under the guidance of writer-editor Stan Lee and artists/co-plotters such as Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko, Marvel began its own rise to prominence. Introducing dynamic plotting and more sophisticated characterization into superhero comics, Marvel began targeting teen and college-aged readers in addition to the children’s market. Based on the success of The Fantastic Four, Lee and his artists created eleven new series over the next two-and-a-half years, with Spider-Man and, after a slow start, the Hulk among the most popular new characters. Other significant and enduring Marvel Silver Age heroes include Iron Man, Thor, Daredevil, the X-Men, and Marvel’s own all-star group, the Avengers. Captain America, a hero from the Golden Age, was revived in Avengers #4 (March 1964).
Comics historian Peter Sanderson compares the 1960s DC to a large Hollywood studio. Having reinvented the superhero genre, by the latter part of the decade he believes DC was suffering from a creative drought. The audience for comics was no longer just children, and Sanderson sees the 1960s Marvel as the comic equivalent of the French New Wave, developing new methods of storytelling that drew in and retained readers who were in their teens and older and thus influencing the comics writers and artists of the future. Comics historian Craig Shutt compares DC’s and Marvel’s differing styles: according to Schutt, DC heroes were straightforward in their dealings with each other, quickly banding together to defeat an enemy. In contrast Marvel’s heroes trusted each other less, and would frequently oppose each other before resolving their differences and joining against a common foe. DC’s approach settled conflicts between heroes without violence; Marvel’s “addressed the age-old, little-kid question of which hero would win in a fight”.
Other publishers
Harvey Comics focused on children during the Silver Age with characters such as Casper the Friendly Ghost, seen here in a 1948 cartoon.
One of the top comics publishers in 1956, Harvey Comics discontinued its horror comics when the Comics Code was implemented and sought a new target audience. Harvey’s focus shifted to children from 6 to 12 years of age, especially girls, with characters such as Richie Rich, Casper the Friendly Ghost, and Little Dot. Many of the company’s comics featured young girls who “defied stereotypes and sent a message of acceptance of those who are different.” Other publishers, such as Dell Comics and Gold Key Comics, made similar changes. Although its characters have inspired a number of nostalgic movies and ranges of merchandise, Harvey comics of the period are not as sought after in the collectors’ market as DC and Marvel titles.
With the popularity of the Batman television show in 1966 publishers that had specialized in other forms began adding superhero titles to their lines. As well, new publishers sprang up, often using creative talent from the Golden Age. Harvey Comics released Double-Dare Adventures, starring new characters such as B-Man and Magic-Master. Dell Comics published superhero versions of Frankenstein, Dracula and the Werewolf. Gold Key Comics published licensed versions of television shows such as Captain Nice, Frankenstein Jr. and The Impossibles, and continued the adventures of Walt Disney Pictures’ Goofy character in Supergoof. Charlton Comics published a short-lived superhero line with new characters that include Captain Atom, Judo-Master, the Question, and Thunderbolt. American Comics Group gave its established character Herbie a secret superhero identity as the Fat Fury, and introduced the characters of Nemesis and Magic-Man.Even the iconic Archie Comics teens acquired superpowers and superhero identities in comedic titles such as Archie as Pureheart the Powerful and Jughead as Captain Hero.
Archie Comics also launched its own standard, non-humorous superhero characters. The Archie Adventure line (subsequently titled Mighty Comics) included the Fly, the Jaguar, and the Shield, a revamped Golden Age hero. The success of the Avengers and the Justice League of America prompted Archie to create its own team title, The Mighty Crusaders, which saw the Comet and Flygirl join with three characters with their own titles.
The Archie series mixed typical superhero fare with the 1960s’ camp style of the Batman television series.
One of the new publishers that emerged briefly in the late 1960s was Lightning Comics, which released 3 issues of Fatman the Human Flying Saucer by Otto Binder and C.C. Beck, the writer and artist team responsible for many of the Golden Age Captain Marvel stories. Another was M. F. Enterprises which published 5 issues of a series also called Captain Marvel; this was a new character from Carl Burgos, Golden Age creator of the Human Torch, which bore no relation other than some in-joke allusions to the Golden Age Captain Marvel.
Most of these new series began in 1966 or 1967 and lasted no more than a year. Tower Comics, which published such characters as Dynamo, Noman and Undersea Agent, was longer lived; thier flagship title Thunder Agents debuted in late 1965 and lasted for 20 issues, ending in 1969.
According to John Strausbaugh of The New York Times, traditional comic book historians feel that although the Golden Age deserves study, the only noteworthy aspect of the Silver Age was the advent of underground comics. One commentator has suggested that underground comics are considered legitimate art because they were typically written and drawn by a single person; artists like Robert Crumb and Gilbert Shelton produced comics described as raw and instinctual. While most comics of the era were pure fantasy, underground comics targeted adults and reflected the counterculture movement of the time, being printed by ad-hoc publishers and distributed in head shops.
End
Artist Neal Adams, whose work with writer Denny O’Neil on Green Lantern/Green Arrow marks one possibility for the end of the Silver Age.
Various events have been identified as marking the end of the Silver Age. One suggestion has been the 1969 publication of the last 12 cent comics, while others have focused on the publishers that were its driving forces: Marvel and DC. According to Will Jacobs, the Silver Age ended in April 1970 when the man who had started it, Julius Schwartz, handed over Green Lantern to Denny O’Neil and Neal Adams in response to reduced sales. John Strausbaugh also connects the end of the Silver Age to Green Lantern. He observes that in 1960, the character embodied the can-do optimism of the era, declaring, “No one in the world suspects that at a moment’s notice I can become mighty Green Lantern with my amazing power ring and invincible green beam! Golly, what a feeling it is!” However, by 1972 Green Lantern had become world weary; “Those days are gone gone forever the days I was confident, certain … I was so young … so sure I couldn’t make a mistake! Young and cocky, that was Green Lantern. Well, I’ve changed. I’m older now … maybe wiser, too … and a lot less happy.” Strausbaugh writes that the Silver Age “went out with that whimper.” Comics scholar Arnold T. Blumberg places the end of the Silver Age in June 1973, when Spider-Man’s girlfriend Gwen Stacy was killed in a story arc later dubbed “The Night Gwen Stacy Died”, saying the era of “innocence” was ended by “the ’snap’ heard round the comic book world the startling, sickening snap of bone that heralded the death of Gwen Stacy.”
Aftermath
The Silver Age of comic books was followed by the Bronze Age. The demarcation is not clearly defined, but there are a number of possibilities. Scott, of Comic Book Resources, lists several commonly cited touchstones, including changes in personnel and the publication of particular individual issues. Among the latter are Conan #1 (1970) and Green Lantern/Green Arrow #76 (April 1970), “often cited as the first books of the Bronze Age.” He also notes Jack Kirby’s move from Marvel to DC in 1970, and Superman editor Mort Weisinger’s retirement that same year. Another possible candidate is the return of horror comics, and the arrival of stories with self-consciously promoted social relevancy. Arnold T. Blumberg has argued that the shift was a gradual process that lasted from the late 1960s until 1973, ending with the death of Gwen Stacyn “event that many name as the single most memorable moving moment in collective fan recall”. He writes that there was a willingness by creators and publishers to tackle more mature themes, even if they “were filtered through the somewhat simplistic lens of the superhero”, thus bringing an end to “the light-hearted, carefree Silver Age”.
Alan Moore, who began the “neo-silver movement” with a 1986 Superman story
According to historian Peter Sanderson, the “neo-silver movement” that began in 1986 with Superman: Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow? by Alan Moore and Curt Swan, was a backlash against the Bronze Age with a return to Silver Age principles. In Sanderson’s opinion, each comics generation rebels against the previous, and the movement was a response to Crisis on Infinite Earths, which itself was an attack on the Silver Age. Neo-silver comics creators made comics that recognized and assimilated the more sophisticated aspects of the Silver Age.
Legacy
The Silver Age marked a decline in the prominence of comics in genres such as horror, romance, teen and funny animal humor, or westerns, which were more popular than superhero adventures in the late 1940s through the mid-1950s, and fans of these genres see the Silver Age as a decline from that earlier era.
An important feature of the period was the evolution of the character makeup of superheroes. Young children and girls were targeted during the Silver Age by certain publishers; in particular, Harvey Comics attracted this group with titles such as Little Dot. Adult oriented underground comics also began during the Silver Age. There are several suggested endpoints for the Silver Age, including changes in the Green Lantern series and the death of Spider-Man’s girlfriend in The Amazing Spider-Man #121 (June 1973).
Some critics and historians argue that one characteristic of the Silver Age was that science fiction and aliens replaced magic and gods. Others argue that magic was an important element of both Golden Age and Silver Age characters., and many Golden Age writers and artists were science-fiction fans or professional science-fiction writers who incorporated SF elements into their comic-book stories. Science was a common explanation for the origin of heroes in the Golden Age .
The Silver Age coincided with the rise of pop art, an artistic movement that used popular cultural artifacts, such as advertising and packaging, as source material for fine, or gallery-exhibited, art. Roy Lichtenstein, one of the best-known pop art painters, specifically chose individual panels from comic books and repainted the images, modifying them to some extent in the process but including in the painting word and thought balloons and captions as well as enlarged-to-scale color dots imitating the coloring process then used in newsprint comic books. An exhibition of comic strip art was held at the Musee des Arts Decoratifs of the Palais de Louvre in 1967, and books were soon published that contained serious discussions of the art of comics and the nature of the medium.
In January 1966, a live-action Batman television show debuted to high ratings. Like pop art, the show took comic-book tropes and reenvisioned them in the context of a different medium. Voiceover narration in each episode articulated the words of comic-book captions while fight scenes had sound effects like “Biff”, “Bam” and “Pow” appear as visual effects on the screen, spelled out in large cartoon letters. Circulation for comic books in general and Batman merchandise in particular soared. Other masked or superpowered adventurers appeared on the television screen, so that “American TV in the winter of 1967 appeared to consist of little else but live-action and animated cartoon comic-book heroes, all in living colour.” Existing comic-book publishers began creating superhero titles, as did new publishers. By the end of the 1960s, however, the fad had faded; in 1969, the best-selling comic book in the United States was no superhero series, but the teen-humor book Archie.
Artists
Further information: List of Silver Age comics creators
Arlen Schumer, author of The Silver Age of Comic Book Art, singles out Carmine Infantino’s Flash as the embodiment of the design of the era: “as sleek and streamlined as the fins Detroit was sporting on all its models.” Other notable artists of the era include Gene Colan, Steve Ditko, Gil Kane, Jack Kirby, Joe Kubert, and Curt Swan.
Two artists that changed the comics industry dramatically in the late 1960s were Neal Adams, considered one of the country’s greatest draftsmen, and Jim Steranko. Adams’ breakthrough was based on layout and rendering. Best known for returning Batman to his somber roots after the campy success of the Batman television show, his realistic depictions of anatomy, faces, and gestures changed comics’ style in a way that Strausbaugh sees reflected in modern graphic novels.
The cover of Nick Fury: Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. #7 (December 1968) by Jim Steranko. His art owes a large debt to Salvador Dal.
One of the few writer-artists at the time, Steranko made use of a cinematic style of storytelling. Strausbaugh credits him as one of Marvel’s strongest creative forces during the late 1960s, his art owing a large debt to Salvador Dal. Steranko started by inking and penciling the details of Kirby’s artwork on Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. beginning in Strange Tales #151, but by Strange Tales #155 Stan Lee had put him in charge of both writing and drawing Fury’s adventures. He exaggerated the James Bond-style spy stories, introducing the vortex beam (which lifts objects), the aphonic bomb (which explodes silently), a miniature electronic absorber (which protected Fury from electricity), and the Q-ray machine (a molecular disintegrator)ll in his first 11-page story.
Top 20 comics
As of 2008, the collecting of Silver Age comics was on the rise. Possible reasons are that certain Golden Age comics are becoming too expensive or that baby boomers fondly remember the comics from their youth. Amazing Fantasy #15, the first appearance of Spider-Man, is considered the “holy grail” of Silver Age comics. The Official Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide #38 (2008) lists the following 20 comics as the most sought-after by collectors:
Title
Issue
Publisher
Relevance
Amazing Fantasy
15
Marvel
First appearance of Spider-Man
Showcase
4
DC Comics
First appearance of Barry Allen as the Flash
Fantastic Four
1
Marvel
First appearance of the Fantastic Four
Amazing Spider-Man
1
Marvel
Spider-Man gets his own series
Hulk
1
Marvel
First appearance of Hulk
X-Men
1
Marvel
First appearance of X-Men
Showcase
8
DC Comics
Second Silver Age appearance of the Flash
Journey Into Mystery
83
Marvel
First appearance of Thor
Showcase
9
DC Comics
Lois Lane stars in her own adventure
The Flash
105
DC Comics
First Flash comic book since Flash Comics was cancelled with issue #104
Tales of Suspense
39
Marvel
First appearance of Iron Man
Brave and the Bold
28
DC Comics
First appearance of the Justice League of America
Adventure Comics
247
DC Comics
Superboy meets the Legion of Super-Heroes
Justice League of America
1
DC Comics
First Issue
Showcase
22
DC Comics
First appearance of Silver Age Green Lantern
Fantastic Four
5
Marvel
First appearance of Dr. Doom
Tales to Astonish
27
Marvel
First appearance of Hank Pym
Fantastic Four
2
Marvel
Second appearance of the Fantastic Four, first appearance of the Skrulls
Green Lantern
1
DC Comics
First issue
Amazing Spider-Man
2
Marvel
First appearance of the Vulture
Action Comics
252
DC Comics
First appearance of Kara “Supergirl” Zor-El
See also
Golden Age of Comic Books
Bronze Age of Comic Books
Modern Age of Comic Books
Footnotes
^ Apocryphal legend has it that in 1961, Timely and Atlas publisher Martin Goodman was playing golf with either Jack Liebowitz or Irwin Donenfeld of rival DC Comics (then known as National Periodical Publications), who bragged about DC’s success with the Justice League, which had debuted in The Brave and the Bold #28 (February 1960) before going on to its own title.
Film producer and comics historian Michael Uslan later contradicted some specifics, while supporting the story’s framework:
Irwin said he never played golf with Goodman, so the story is untrue. I heard this story more than a couple of times while sitting in the lunchroom at DC’s 909 Third Avenue and 75 Rockefeller Plaza office as Sol Harrison and [production chief] Jack Adler were schmoozing with some of us … who worked for DC during our college summers…. [T]he way I heard the story from Sol was that Goodman was playing with one of the heads of Independent News, not DC Comics (though DC owned Independent News). … As the distributor of DC Comics, this man certainly knew all the sales figures and was in the best position to tell this tidbit to Goodman. … Of course, Goodman would want to be playing golf with this fellow and be in his good graces. … Sol worked closely with Independent News’ top management over the decades and would have gotten this story straight from the horse’s mouth.
Notes
^ Reynolds, Richard. Super Heroes: A Modern Mythology (1994), University Press of Mississippi p.8-9. ISBN 0878056947
^ a b c Alter Ego vol. 3, #54 (November 2005), p. 79
^ a b c d e Mooney, Joe (April 19, 1987). “It’s No Joke: Comic Books May Help Kids Learn to Read”. Seattle Post-Intelligencer. http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/archives/1987/8701100104.asp. Retrieved 2008-09-23.
^ a b c d e f g h i Strausbaugh, John (December 14, 2003). “ART; 60’s Comics: Gloomy, Seedy, and Superior”. The New York Times. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9A0CEED81E3DF937A25751C1A9659C8B63. Retrieved 2008-06-28.
^ Over street, Robert M. Official Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide 38th Edition New York:2008 (Glossary Pages1026-1031) Page 1026
^ “In graphic terms…”. The San Diego Union-Tribune. July 17, 2006. http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/features/20060717-9999-mz1c17terms.html. Retrieved 2008-09-23.
^ CBR News Team (July 2, 2007). “DC Flashback: The Flash”. Comic Book Resources. http://www.comicbookresources.com/?page=article&id=10649. Retrieved 2008-06-27.
^ Zicari, Anthony (August 3, 2007). “Breaking the Border – Rants and Ramblings”. Comics Bulletin. http://www.silverbulletcomics.com/news/story.php?a=5706. Retrieved 2008-06-27.
^ a b c d e f g h i Jacobs, pp. 3-4Jacobs 1985
^ a b c Nash, Eric (February 12, 2004). “Julius Schwartz, 88, Editor Who Revived Superhero Genre in Comic Books”. New York Times. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9E0DE2DC133AF931A25751C0A9629C8B63. Retrieved 2008-09-23.
^ a b Pethokoukis, James (February 26, 2004). “Flash Facts”. U.S. News and World Report. http://www.usnews.com/usnews/tech/nextnews/archive/next040226.htm. Retrieved 2008-06-27.
^ a b c Janulewicz, Tom (1 February 2000). “Gil Kane, Space-Age Comic Book Artist, Dies”. Space.com. http://www.space.com/sciencefiction/gil_kane_000201.html. Retrieved 2008-06-27.
^ a b Singer, Matt (June 27, 2006). “Superfan Returns”. Village Voice. http://www.villagevoice.com/2006-06-27/books/superfan-returns/. Retrieved 2008-09-23.
^ Shaw, Scott (September 22, 2003). “Oddball Comics”. Comic Book Resources. Archived from the original on 2003-10-20. http://web.archive.org/web/20031020180208/http://www.comicbookresources.com/columns/oddball/index.cgi?date=2003-09-22. Retrieved 2008-09-04.
^ a b c d Shutt, Craig. Baby Boomer Comics: The Wild, Wacky, Wonderful Comic Books of the 1960s!(Krause Publications, Iola, Wisconsin, 2003), P. 21. ISBN 0-87349-688-X
^ Grant, Steven (February 18, 2004). “Permanent Damage”. Comic Book Resources. http://www.comicbookresources.com/?page=article&id=14633. Retrieved 2009-02-20.
^ St.Louis, Herv (October 9, 2005). “Is DC Comics Spearheading a New Age in Super Hero Comics?”. Comic Book Bin. http://www.comicbookbin.com/comicbookrevival001.html. Retrieved 2008-07-15.
^ Reif, Rita (October 27, 1991). “ANTIQUES; Collectors Read the Bottom Lines of Vintage Comic Books”. New York Times. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9D0CEEDD1E3EF934A15753C1A967958260. Retrieved 2009-02-03.
^ a b c Stan Lee, Origins of Marvel Comics (Simon and Schuster/Fireside Books, 1974), p. 16
^ Mark, Norman. “The New Super-Hero Is a Pretty Kinky Guy”. Eye Magazine, Hearst Corporation, vol. 2, #2 (February 1969). Reprinted in Alter Ego #74 (December 2007), pp. 16-25
^ a b O’Neil, Keith (September 27, 2007). “The history of comics”. Keene Equinox. http://media.www.keeneequinox.com/media/storage/paper537/news/2007/09/27/AE/The-History.Of.Comics-2993374.shtml. Retrieved 2009-01-29.
^ a b c Sanderson, Peter (October 10, 2003). “Comics in Context #14: Continuity/Discontinuity”. IGN. http://comics.ign.com/articles/595/595576p1.html. Retrieved 2009-02-20.
^ a b c O’Shea, Tim (February 2, 2004). “Fun with Mr. Silver Age: Craig Shutt”. Comics Bulletin. http://www.comicsbulletin.com/features/107577856868634.htm. Retrieved 2008-06-30.
^ a b c d e Jackson, Kathy Merlock; Mark D. Arnold (2007). “Baby-Boom Children and Harvey Comics After the Code: A Neighborhood of Little Girls and Boys”. ImageText (University of Florida). http://www.english.ufl.edu/imagetext/archives/v3_3/jackson/.
^ a b c d Weiland, Jonah (July 15th, 2003). “‘The Mighty Crusaders: Origin of a Super-Team’ ships November”. Comic Book Resources. https://www.comicbookresources.com/?page=article&id=2390. Retrieved 2009-02-02.
^ For specific bibliographical information, see listings by title in Robert Overstreet, infra.
^ For specific bibliographical information about these publications, see listings by title in Robert Overstreet, infra.
^ Ault, Donald (2004). “Preludium: Crumb, Barks, and Noomin: Re-Considering the Aesthetics of Underground Comics”. ImageText (University of Florida). http://www.english.ufl.edu/imagetext/archives/v1_2/intro.shtml.
^ a b Heer, Jeet (September 28, 2003). “Free Mickey!”. The Boston Globe. http://www.boston.com/news/globe/ideas/articles/2003/09/28/free_mickey/. Retrieved 2009-02-02.
^ Keys, Lisa (April 11, 2003). “Drawing Peace In the Middle East”. The Forward. http://www.forward.com/articles/8598/. Retrieved 2008-12-22.
^ Wood, Beth; Jerry McCormick (July 17, 2006). “In graphic terms…”. The San Diego Union-Tribune. http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/features/20060717-9999-mz1c17terms.html. Retrieved 2008-12-22.
^ Radfored, Bill (April 26, 2000). “May to see return to Silver Age of comics”. The Gazette. http://www.accessmylibrary.com/coms2/summary_0286-7282623_ITM. Retrieved 2008-06-27.
^ Jacobs, p. 154Jacobs 1985
^ a b c Blumberg, Arnold T. (Fall 2003). “”‘The Night Gwen Stacy Died:’ The End of Innocence and the Birth of the Bronze Age”". Reconstruction: Studies in Contemporary Culture. ISSN 1547-4348. http://reconstruction.eserver.org/034/blumberg.htm. Retrieved 2009-02-20.
^ a b c d Scott (September 16, 2008). “Scott’s Classic Comics Corner: A New End to the Silver Age Pt. 1″. Comic Book Resources. http://goodcomics.comicbookresources.com/2008/09/16/scotts-classic-comics-corner-a-new-end-to-the-silver-age-pt-1/. Retrieved 2008-09-23.
^ Scott (September 18, 2008). “Scott Classic Comics Corner: A New End to the Silver Age Pt. 3″. Comic Book Resources. http://goodcomics.comicbookresources.com/2008/09/18/scotts-classic-comics-corner-a-new-end-to-the-silver-age-pt-3/. Retrieved 2008-09-23.
^ a b c Sanderson, Peter (2004). “Comics in Context #33: A Boatload of Monsters and Miracles”. IGN. http://comics.ign.com/articles/595/595589p6.html. Retrieved 2008-07-15.
^ See, e.g. Robbins, Trina. From Girls to Grrrlz, Chronicle Books, San Francisco, 1999, pp. 45, 52-54, 67, 69-70, 76-7 and throughout
^ Callahan, Timothy (2008-08-06). “In Defense of Superhero Comics”. Comic Book Resources. http://www.comicbookresources.com/?page=article&id=17623. Retrieved 2008-09-05.
^ Dick O’Donnell, “It’s Magic”, The Comic-Book Book, Arlington House, 1973, revised edition Krause Publications, 1998
^ On Jerry Siegel, Joe Shuster and Jack Kirby as science-fiction fans, see Benton, Mike, Masters of Imagination, Taylor Publishing, 1994, pp. 17-18, 28; on Otto Binder as SF fan and writer, see Steranko, Jim, The Steranko History of Comics 2, Supergraphics, 1972.
^ Jules Feiffer, The Great Comic Book Heroes, Dial Press, 1965, pp. 22-23
^ Pierre Couperie, Maurice Horn et al. A History of the Comic Strip, translated from the French by Eileen Hennessy (Crown Publishing : New York, 1968), and George Perry and Alan Aldridge, ‘ The Penguin Book of Comics, Penguin Books (1967). See especially the forward, introduction, and chapters 10-12 of Couperie et al, and chapter 6 of Perry and Aldridge.
^ Ronin Ro, Tales To Astonish (Bloomsbury Publishing, 2004) pp. 110-111.
^ Perry and Aldridge, above, p. 224
^ Robbins, above, p. 69.
^ “Superb record of the superheroes’ silver age”. Canberra Times. January 17, 2004. http://www.accessmylibrary.com/coms2/summary_0286-20016738_ITM. Retrieved 2008-06-28.
^ a b Baker, R.C. (November 18, 2003). “America Gods”. Village Voice. http://www.villagevoice.com/news/0347,baker,48773,1.html. Retrieved 2008-06-28.
^ a b Grant, Steven (April 5, 2000). “Master of the Obvious 4-5-2000″. Comic Book Resources. http://www.comicbookresources.com/?page=article&id=13276. Retrieved 2008-09-23.
^ a b Jacobs, p. 144Jacobs 1985
^ “Silver Age Drives Weekly Heritage Auction”. DiamondGalleries.com. August 20, 2008. http://scoop.diamondgalleries.com/public/default.asp?t=1&m=1&c=34&s=262&ai=73554&arch=y&ssd=8/20/2008 12:01:00 PM. Retrieved 2009-03-14.
^ “Amazing Fantasy #15 CGC 8.5 in ComicLink February/March Featured Auction”. DiamondGalleries.com. January 22, 2009. http://scoop.diamondgalleries.com/public/default.asp?t=1&m=1&c=34&s=262&ai=79136&arch=y&ssd=1/22/2009 12:01:00 PM. Retrieved 2009-03-14.
^ Overstreet, Robert (2008). The Official Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide #38. New York: Random House. pp. 154. ISBN 0375722394.
^ Sinclair, Tom (June 20, 2003). “Still a Marvel!”. Entertainment Weekly. http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,458355_2,00.html. Retrieved 2009-02-01.
^ Michael Uslan letter published in Alter Ego #43 (December 2004), pp. 43-44
References
^ , Jacobs, Will; Gerard Jones (1985). The Comic Book Heroes: From the Silver Age to the Present. New York, New York: Crown Publishing Group. ISBN 0517554402.
External links
Silver Age – Television Tropes & Idioms
The Comic Page
Sullivan, Missy. “Adviser Soapbox: Comic Book Superheroes Hit Six Figures”, Forbes.com, April 22, 2005
v d e
Comics: Genres & themes
Formats
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Creators
Category:Comics artists Category:Comics writers
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Adult comics Alternative comics Bad girl art Crime comics Fantasy comics Good girl art Horror comics Romance comics Science fiction comics Superhero comics War comics
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Categories: History of comics | Silver ages | Silver Age of Comics
Remember when you had been young and wanted your favorite action hero to come and walk with you anywhere you wanted? Those were the glorious days. These days, these action heroes are legends and still invoke emotional feelings. From Batman, Big Jim, the A Team, GI Joe, Justice League, and numerous far more, you can now own these vintage figures nowadays.
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The film (set from 1953-1960) begins with an unknown entity (voiced by Keith David) explaining how it has witnessed the evolution of life on Earth:
Like all things on this hurtling sphere, I emerged from the molten center of creation. But mine has been a exclusive path. Isolated, I developed attributes beyond those of lesser beings. Then the sphere was struck by a vast celestial stone. Black chunks of death filled the skies and the world became a chaotic garden of doom. Soon the sphere began to nurture new kinds of life. And there was one that stood above the rest. Its fragile shell belied its vicious nature. And in what seemed like a heartbeat, these issues proliferated in both number and destructive means. Now they have harnessed the most destructive force. And I, The Centre, have concluded that the sphere should be cleansed of them.
This explanation is shown being written and illustrated under the title “The Last Story” by a mysterious individual who then shoots himself.
The film cuts to the end of the Korean War, where United States Air Force pilot Hal Jordan (voiced by David Boreanaz) and his wingman, Kyle “Ace” Morgan (voiced by John Heard), are attacked by enemy pilots not yet informed of the cease-fire. Hal is shot down in the ensuing conflict, and forced to kill a North Korean soldier after ejecting to safety. The trauma of this event leads Hal to a mental ward within a hospital for two years.
Elsewhere, at Gotham Observatory, the last survivor of the Green Martian race, J’onn J’onzz (voiced by Miguel Ferrer), is inadvertently teleported to Earth by a scientist, Dr. Saul Erdel. The shock of J’onn’s appearance causes Erdel to succumb to a heart attack, though not prior to he apologizes for stranding the Martian. Unable to return to Mars, he disguises himself as Dr. Erdel.
The following year, Superman (voiced by Kyle MacLachlan) meets Wonder Woman (voiced by Lucy Lawless) in Vietnam, where she celebrates with a group of ladies she rescued from political rebels. The Amazon allowed them to exact their own brand of fatal justice upon their captors, which Superman is horrified to learn. He reminds Diana that the government is distrustful at best of the heroes, which has led to the Justice Society’s disbanding and Hourman’s death, as well as Batman’s branding as a fugitive vigilante. Superman also tries to remind her that mitigating the general public’s fear is why they signed loyalty oaths to the United States government. Diana, even so, resolves that she ought to do what she feels is appropriate. The two part at odds, and Diana later leaves America to return to Paradise Island. Superman later confides in Lois Lane (voiced by Kyra Sedgwick) about Wonder Woman and Batman, neither of whom, he says, would sacrifice their principles for every other.
In Gotham City, J’onn J’onzz has been living quietly under the guise of Dr. Erdel, although studying what he can about humans and Earth society by means of television. He shape-shifts into different guises throughout his nightly viewing, such as Groucho Marx and Bugs Bunny, just before settling on the form of a film noir detective.
In Las Vegas, reporter Iris West (voiced by Vicki Lewis) is on assignment to interview singer Buddy Blake, at the exact same casino where Hal Jordan and Ace Morgan are enjoying themselves. Although Iris is on the phone with her boyfriend Barry Allen (voiced by Neil Patrick Harris), Captain Cold (voiced by James Arnold Taylor) arrives to rob the casino. Hearing the events on the phone, Barry races to Vegas from Central City as The Flash and confronts Cold, who tells him he has hidden six cryogenic bombs around Vegas set to go off in 90 seconds. Flash zips around the city and locates five of the bombs, but deduces the sixth is a decoy, and captures Cold before he can escape by helicopter. Just before being subdued, Cold is possessed by the unknown entity from the prologue, who asks Flash why he is faster than “the other lesser beings” prior to leaving the Rogue.
Hal and Ace leave the casino and head into the desert. Hal is unclear about their destination, which Ace keeps a surprise. Ace notices Hal has been acting differently, and Jordan confesses things haven’t been the identical since the war and his time in the hospital. He also admits his past hospitalization has kept him from getting a job with a top aircraft firm. It’s after Hal confides in Ace that the two arrive at Ferris Aircraft, where an opening as a test pilot is indeed waiting for Hal, thanks to a recommendation from his friend.
Back in Gotham, J’onn joins the Gotham City Police Department under the name John Jones, and with his integrity, cunning analytical skill, and telepathy, rapidly rises to the ranks of detective in just two years. After investigating a kidnapping of a child which was later discovered to be component of a sacrificial ritual for a cult that worships some thing known as The Centre, J’onn and his partner Slam Bradley (voiced by Jim Meskimen) meet Batman (voiced by Jeremy Sisto) for the first time as he is also investigating the kidnapping. The two cops join Batman in battle against the cult, but a fire is started in the course of the fight, rendering J’onn powerless until Slam extinguishes it. Afterward, when Batman attempts to free of charge the boy from his bonds, the child is terrified at the sight of him. J’onn arrives to calm the boy down and then he and his partner totally free the child themselves. The entity which possessed Captain Cold speaks by way of the incapacitated cult leader, identifying itself as “The Centre” and warning of an impending judgment.
Hal Jordan begins training exercises under Col. Rick Flagg (voiced by Lex Lang) at Ferris Industries. His joking, devil-might-care attitude rubs Flagg the wrong way, but Carol Ferris (voiced by Brooke Shields) is understanding and recognizes Hal’s natural capability. Carol also recognizes that Hal needs to know the true nature of his training, which she soon reveals to him: the government has commissioned Ferris Aircraft to create a spacecraft capable of travel to Mars. Special agent King Faraday (voiced by Phil Morris) is assigned to oversee the project, which is in response to Dr. Erdel’s contact with Mars and J’onn’s arrival.
Back in Gotham, the Dark Knight reveals his knowledge of J’onn’s accurate nature in his apartment, as he is able to locate a way to shield his mind from J’onn’s telepathy, and suggests that they should form an alliance as they are both investigating the cult that is rising throughout the world cult that worships the Centre. J’onn’s demonstration of kindness toward the boy led Batman to believe that he can be a trusted ally. Nonetheless, he warns J’onn that really should he betray him, he is fully conscious of and willing to use the Martian’s vulnerability to fire against him.
In Central City, The Flash defeats Gorilla Grodd (or, rather, a robotic duplicate), but is targeted by government agents, as they attempt to capture him in an effort to find out the secret of his powers. Though he narrowly escapes, the expertise leads the Flash to contemplate retiring from his crimefighting career.
J’onn J’onzz interrogates Harry Leiter, a former Ferris employee apprehended for murder while under the influence of the Center. In the course of the questioning, Harry lets word slip about the launch to Mars. Leiter’s ramblings are confirmed when Faraday arrives to take him into custody. J’onn briefly glimpses into the agent’s mind and learns the truth. After watching the Flash announce his retirement on live television, and seeing the public contemptuous response, a disheartened J’onn attempts to stow away on the rocket so that he may return house. Prior to leaving, he arrives in Batman’s headquarters, the Batcave, revealing that he’s been conscious of Batman’s secrets for very some time (employing his cunning detective skills instead of his telepathy), and gives him the last of his analysis on The Centre. J’onn reveals to Batman that he’s losing faith in humanity, as he sees that there’s too much hatred, ignorance, and conformity within the folks around him, which made him choose to leave Earth. Batman’s response is cold and brief, as he tells J’onn some folks don’t have the luxury of leaving Earth.
Although attempting to board the ship, J’onn is seen on camera by Faraday, who confronts J’onn and fights him on the launchpad. J’onn is able to beat Faraday, but saves him from the rocket exhaust by flying him to a platform before collapsing. The rocket is damaged and malfunctions shortly after exiting the atmosphere. Hal wants to attempt a landing, but his co-pilot, Col. Rick Flagg, reveals that the rocket is loaded with weapons of mass destruction, and as such he won’t risk it. After a brief struggle, Hal is ejected from the cockpit. Though he is saved by Superman, the distraction makes it possible for Flagg to detonate the rocket.
J’onn J’onzz is held as a prisoner by Faraday. Superman blasts Faraday for treating J’onn differently from him (a Kryptonian and thus also an alien), just simply because J’onn looks radically distinct. He also points out the captivity is entirely J’onn’s decision since he can escape at any time utilizing his powers.
On Paradise Island, Wonder Woman trains with Mala, and tells her of how America has changed because the war. Her training partner says the island has changed as well, and that several Amazons desire a change in leadership. Though Diana speedily fends off a challenge from her fellow Amazon, the two of them are soon beset upon by the approaching Center.
Hal Jordan is later found by Abin Sur (voiced by Corey Burton), the Green Lantern of Sector 2814. The destruction of the rocket badly wounds him as he enters Earth’s atmosphere, so he instructs his ring to find a worthy replacement. He leaves his ring with Hal, and tells him of The Centre, which he describes as a “monstrous creature” that fears humans and seeks their destruction.
In the Batcave, Superman reviews J’onn’s research with Batman and meets Robin (voiced by Shane Haboucha) for the very first time. Batman has altered the design of his suit so it won’t frighten an innocent, but is still able to strike terror in the heart of a guilty. As they discuss the Centre, they hear Lois reporting on the attack of a giant pterodactyl at Cape Canaveral. Superman arrives at the scene and speedily defeats the creature. Virtually immediately afterwards, Wonder Woman’s invisible jet makes a crash landing, its cockpit smeared with blood. Prior to losing consciousness, Wonder Woman warns Superman that the Centre is coming.
Faraday eventually befriends J’onn who saved his life, and occasionally plays chess with him. J’onn reveals to Faraday that he decided to stay at the agent’s base willingly simply because of the upcoming battle with The Centre, and had telepathically looked into the agent’s mind in the course of their battle at the platform. J’onn discovered that Faraday believes that 1 day the world won’t be living in fear and hate. Discovering that within Faraday, J’onn has renewed hope for humanity and decides to participate in the battle to save Earth. Before leaving with Faraday, J’onn adopts a new Martian/human superheroic hybrid form as the Martian Manhunter, believing it is honest to his heritage with a friendly appearance to human perception.
The Centre
Following this, the Centre begins its attack in earnest at the coast of Florida, finally revealed as a massive flying island, with an army of mutated dinosaurs to guard it. The threat draws heroes such as Flash (whom Iris talks into coming out of retirement), Green Arrow, Adam Strange, the Challengers of the Unknown, and the Blackhawks, who clash with the soldiers on base. The conflict is stopped by Superman, who advocates cooperation between the two sides. He is unexpectedly seconded by Faraday, accompanied by J’onn, who agrees that the government and the heroes must work together for freedom. With that, Superman heads out to do reconnaissance on the Centre, but is swiftly and shockingly defeated.
Moved by his effort, the rest of Earth’s superheroes and military forces band together to defeat the Centre. Batman interrupts a meeting between Faraday, J’onn, Will Magnus (voiced by Townsend Coleman), and the Challengers. Batman brought with him Ray Palmer, a scientist known for his work with matter reduction. When one of the Challengers argues the technology is too unreliable, destabilizing anything it shrinks, Batman replies that’s precisely the point, and a plan is formed to use Palmer’s reduction ray to destabilize the island. The heroes will distract the Centre with a frontal assault (while Hal and Ace fly a bombing mission into the creature), leaving Flash to quickly crisscross the island with the ray.
Although the aerial assault (including Batman and Green Arrow as pilots) is nearly outmatched prior to the intervention of the Blackhawks, Faraday’s ground forces are ambushed by a herd of rampaging mutant dinosaurs. J’onn is overwhelmed by the psychic impact from The Centre and is rescued by Faraday, who is shortly thereafter captured by a dinosaur. As he is about to be eaten by a tyrannosaurus, Faraday grabs two hand grenades and pulls the pins. The dinosaur swallows Faraday and right away afterwards its head explodes from the grenade detonation, killing both it and Faraday. The shock of his friend’s death helps J’onn shake off the Centre’s hold, and he and a recovered Wonder Woman assist turn the tide of the ground battle.
Hal Jordan and Ace Morgan manage to shoot their way into the core of the creature, but are disoriented at very first by its hallucinogenic effects. The creature secretes a thick red fluid that jams their weapons and almost suffocates them. It is then that Hal’s ring activates, relaying directions from the Guardians of the Universe (voiced by Robin Atkin Downes) as to its use. Ace manages to detonate his payload, and is rescued by Hal–now dressed in a costume identical to Abin Sur’s–just before his plane explodes.
The explosion gives the ground crew their opening as they prepare to send Flash to finish the creature. The speedster is struck by the gravity of the scenario and his role in it, but J’onn reassures him that everyone will be behind him. Flash races across the ocean and leaps onto the Centre’s surface, covering the entire surface on foot prior to leaping into the ocean. The Centre begins to shrink, but realizing its imminent destruction, it heads toward land to destroy the humans along with it. Hal realizes what he ought to do, and envelops the island in green energy, then tows it into space where it explodes.
The whole world celebrates the Centre’s defeat. As several participants in the battle attend a ceremony, Hal celebrates the victory his own way by pursuing his lifelong dream: flying by way of space with the aid of his new power ring. During the celebration, Superman is revealed to be injured but still alive, saved by a man named Arthur (voiced by Alan Ritchson) who claims to be from an underwater kingdom. He and his subjects treated Superman’s wounds in the course of the battle with the Centre. Superman is reunited with Lois and the rest of the heroes, who are touted so on the front page of the Daily Planet.
This monumental victory and display of teamwork changes public opinion about superheroes, and a montage of different heroes and villains (with cameos by Supergirl, the Teen Titans, Black Manta, Brainiac, Captain Marvel, Darkseid, Black Canary, Physician Light, Doctor Sivana, Gentleman Ghost, Harley Quinn, Joker, Key, Lex Luthor, Monocle, Plastic Man, Ra’s al Ghul, Riddler, Robin, Star Sapphire, Two-Face, and Ultra-Humanite) as well as the birth of the world’s second generation superhero team: Justice League, set to the titular John F. Kennedy speech, is shown just just before the film ends.
Cast
Voice actor
Character
David Boreanaz
Harold “Hal” Jordan/Green Lantern
Miguel Ferrer
J’onn J’onzz/John Jones/Martian Manhunter
Neil Patrick Harris
Bartholomew “Barry” Allen/The Flash
John Heard
Kyle “Ace” Morgan
Lucy Lawless
Princess Diana of Themyscira/Wonder Woman
Kyle MacLachlan
Kal-El/Clark Kent/Superman
Phil Morris
King Faraday
Kyra Sedgwick
Lois Lane
Brooke Shields
Carol Ferris
Jeremy Sisto
Bruce Wayne/Batman
Alan Ritchson
Orin/Arthur Curry/Aquaman
Keith David
The Centre
Vicki Lewis
Iris West
Lex Lang
Rick Flagg
Shane Haboucha
Dick Grayson/Robin
Townsend Coleman
Dr. Will Magnus
James Arnold Taylor
Leonard Snart/Captain Cold
Robin Atkin Downes
Guardians of the Universe
Corey Burton
Abin Sur
Jim Meskimen
Samuel “Slam” Bradley
Critical reception
Justice League: The New Frontier received mostly positive reviews. Screener copies had been sent to those who reviewed them on web sites a month prior to the DVD’s official release. Even then, most of the reviews had been positive and geared up the film’s release even more.
Newsarama reviewed the DTV before its Feb. 26th release, saying that it was “one of the very best things to ever come out of [Bruce] Timm stable.” Commenting also that the acting was exceptional. The World’s Finest, a fansite dealing with DC Animations, said that it was “the first animated feature in a long time that Ie felt entirely satisfied even though walking away from.” A reviewer from Ain’t it Cool News said that it was “my favorite film of 2008″ and also said that it was “every thing I had hoped for.” Other internet sites, including some non-fansites, had comparable reactions. From IGN giving the film and DVD total an 8., ENI saying it was enjoyable, and DVDTalk.com labeling its advice as “Recommended”.
Entertainment Weekly, talking about direct-to-videos and Superman Doomsday, revealed that pre-orders for The New Frontier had been tracking further ahead than expected.
The New Frontier was nominated for an Emmy under the category of Outstanding Animated Program (for Programming One Hour Or Far more) in 2008.
DVD
Justice League: The New Frontier is accessible in both single and two-disc editions. The cover of the single disc includes the pan shot from DC: The New Frontier with the heroes going forth, whilst the two-disc, HD DVD and Blu-ray editions consists of Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman above the title logo with Martian Manhunter, Green Lantern, Flash and other people below it. Very best Acquire had an exclusive with a Green Lantern action figure from DC Direct with the DVD package. This Green Lantern figure stands under three inches tall. Wal-Mart had a single DVD package exclusive with “The New Frontier Green Lantern” CD-ROM Comic Book inside. The single, two-disc and Blu-ray editions were released on February 26, 2008, with the HD DVD edition released on March 18, 2008.
The unique features range from a documentary on the forty-seven year history of the Justice League, commentaries, a documentary on how the early mythological villain archetypes were adapted into the Justice League stories, a featurette on the themes, elements from the comic to film versions of New Frontier, 3 episodes of Justice League Unlimited and finally a 10 minute preview to the next animated film Batman: Gotham Knight.
Soundtrack
Like Superman: Doomsday, Justice League: The New Frontier had a soundtrack released by La La Records on March 18, 2008. The music was composed by Kevin Manthei, the track listing is as follows.
Justice League: The New Frontier (Soundtrack From The DC Universe Animated Original Movie)
“Hal’s Mission Revealed / Batman Surprises J’onzz / The Flash Fights Gorilla” (2:52)
“Crazy Scientist” (1:37)
“J’onzz Contemplates / J’onzz is Leaving” (1:18)
“To Space” (1:27)
“Mars Mission Mess” (4:13)
“New Green Lantern” (three:56)
“Superman Ties It Up / J’onzz Bonds” (2:41)
“Island Revealed / Superman Down” (5:22)
“Plan to Action” (2:35)
“Thick of Battle” (4:32)
“The Flash vs. Centre / Last Bit of Business” (three:37)
“Victory” (3:09)
“End Credits” (three:01)
References
^ Justice League DVD news: Release Date for Justice League: The New Frontier | TVShowsOnDVD.com
^ Animated Shorts: Justice League: The New Frontier Review – Newsarama
^ Harry discovers JUSTICE LEAGUE: THE NEW FRONTIER!!! – Ain’t It Cool News: The very best in movie, TV, DVD, and comic book news
^ IGN: Justice League: The New Frontier Review
^ Entertainment Reviews – Justice League: The New Frontier – ENewsI.com
^ DVD Talk Review: Justice League – The New Frontier
^ Direct-to-DVD movies growing in popularity – Entertainment News, Weekly TV, Media – Variety
^ The 60th Primetime Emmy Awards and Creative Arts Emmy Awards Nominees are…
^ The World’s Finest
^ The World’s Finest
^ The World’s Finest
^ The World’s Finest
External links
Justice League: The New Frontier Official Movie Website
Justice League: The New Frontier at the Net Movie Database
Justice League: The New Frontier Myspace page
Justice League: The New Frontier @ The World’s Finest
First article releasing on the DTV
Justice League: The New Frontier Press Release
Justice League: The New Frontier Trailer Trailer (Windows Media)
Justice League: The New Frontier Trailer Trailer (Quicktime)
v d e
DC Comics animated films
Stand-alone films
Superman (1941) Gen (1998) The Batman vs. Dracula (2005) Superman: Brainiac Attacks (2006) Teen Titans: Trouble in Tokyo (2006)
Original Animated Movies
Superman: Doomsday (2007) Justice League: The New Frontier (2008) Batman: Gotham Knight (2008) Wonder Woman (2009) Green Lantern: First Flight (2009) Superman/Batman: Public Enemies (2009) Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths (2010)
Batman: Gotham Knight
Have I Got A Story For You Crossfire Field Test In Darkness Dwells Working By means of Pain Deadshot
DC animated universe
Batman: Mask of the Phantasm (1993) Batman & Mr. Freeze: SubZero (1998) Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker (2000) Batman: Mystery of the Batwoman (2003)
v d e
Justice League
Creators
Gardner Fox
Founding Members
Superman Batman Wonder Woman Green Lantern Flash Aquaman Martian Manhunter
Related teams
Justice League Elite Justice Society of America Justice League Antarctica Justice League (Smallville) Outsiders Super Buddies Teen Titans Young Justice Justice Guild of America
Enemies
Amazo Amos Fortune The Appelaxians Asmodel Brainiac Crime Syndicate of America Copperhead Darkseid The Demons Three Despero Physician Destiny Physician Light Doomsday Eclipso Epoch the Lord of Time The Extremists Felix Faust Funky Flashman Gamemnae The General Gentleman Ghost The Injustice Gang The Injustice League Kanjar Ro The Key Kobra Lex Luthor Libra Magog Morgaine le Fey Neron Professor Ivo Prometheus Queen Bee The Queen of Fables Qwsp Rama Khan Red King The Royal Flush Gang The Secret Society of Super Villains Shaggy Man Starbreaker Starro T. O. Morrow The Ultra-Humanite Vandal Savage The Wizard The White Martians
Headquarters
Secret Sanctuary Justice League Satellite Justice League Watchtower The Hall
Present series
Justice League of America (vol. 2) Super Friends
Previous series
Justice League of America Justice League International Justice League Europe Justice League Quarterly Justice League Job Force Extreme Justice JLA Justice Justice League Antarctica JLA: Classified
Storylines
“World War III” JLA: Earth 2 JLA/Avengers “The Lightning Saga” “Pain of the Gods”
Limited series
The Nail Developed Equal Act of God Destiny Age of Wonder Yet another Nail Justice League: Cry for Justice
Animation
The Superman/Aquaman Hour of Adventure Super Friends Justice League Justice League Unlimited Justice League: The New Frontier Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths
Live-action
Legends of the Superheroes Justice League of America Justice League (Smallville)
Miscellanea
In other media
Video games
Justice League Task Force Justice League: Injustice for All Justice League: Chronicles Justice League Heroes
Categories: English-language films | 2008 films | Warner Bros. Animation films | DC animation | Justice League films | Warner Bros. Batman films | DC Universe Original Animated Movies | Superhero films | Direct-to-video films | Films set in the 1950s | Animated Batman films | Animated Superman filmsHidden categories: Film articles making use of deprecated parameters | Wikipedia articles with plot summary needing attention from February 2009 | All Wikipedia articles with plot summary needing attention
Chris Moshier checks out the Justice League fugures at the Mattel booth, WWCC 2007. Host: Chris Moshier, Camera/Editing: Allen Freeman, www.fanaticpressfilms.com
Review of Mattel’s JLU / Justice League Action Figure Stands Basically, they don’t work Video Rating: 4 / 5
Searching for great toys on-line?, there’s only one spot and that’s Massive Bad Toy Store, click the link to see far more! www.bigbadtoystore.com On today’s Spot, we’ll be having a look at the Justice League Animated series 1st Wave Batman figure Music for The Review Spot’s Intro supplied by http a thank you to Bjorn Lynne who composed this piece You can now follow the Review Spot on Twitter at twitter.com Myspace at www.myspace.com Video Rating: 4 / 5
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