Geek Tee Friday - Villains & Vigilantes

Check out my other Geek Tee BLOGS

For this week's Geek Tee I have dug out a really old shirt that I printed up myself as I doubt there was ever any official merchandise of this, at least not as far as I know! This is from a really great RPG that gave me hours of fun and entertainment back in the day called Villains & Vigilantes or V & V for short. The video tells everything really about my history/love for the game but here's a bit of history.

Designed by Jack Herman & Jeff Dee, the 1st edition was released by Fantasy Games Unlimited in 1979 but I got it from the 2nd edition that was released in 1982. I think I was perhaps 17 when I got this game so about '86 I think. I was an avid reader of Marvel & DC comics and knew that both had RPGs out but I wanted to create my own characters not play as somebody else's. And just look at that cover!! How could I resist, that cover tells a story that just dragged me in.

The rules are a bit tricky initially but once you get a bit of practice in they are pretty simple really and character creation is again slow to begin with but once you get used to it I was rolling up characters in probably 10 minutes maximum. You do need a calculator though I will say that.

An updated version of the game has since been released, if you are interested in trying out the games, try either of these two links. 

www.drivethrurpg.com

Fantasy Games Unlimited

*****************************************

The idea was to play as yourself so I created a NPC (Non-player character) of myself who was called Photon, he has light powers, strength and illusions and his origin was that the Alien Protector was engaged in an aerial battle with a super-villain (I forget which one?) and got fatally wounded, he crashed down on top of a bus shelter as I walked past and with his dying moments he reached down and grabbed my hand channeling his powers into me. (I realise now how derivative of Green Lantern's origin it is!) Later on in the campaign the persona of the Alien Protector started to try and take control of my psyche.

I had a ton of fun doing these games and will sign off with the names of some of the player characters I remember. My sister was The Elementalist, my little bro was Mindwing, my big bro was The Hermit (crab powers!), Raj was Transflame, Dave was The Crimson Knight, Martin was Sonic Speeder, Mosquito, The Crab (and a couple more I am sure but I forget!) and my cousin Amos was Beast Man, Protac, Titan (I think), and Gauntlet.

As an interesting snippet of information, Bill Willingham of Fables fame wrote a couple of early V&V campaign books, Death Duel with the Destroyers and The Island of Dr. Apocalypse.

Update: I just got a comment on my video by Jeff Dee the games co-creator. His YouTube channel shows game sessions of him playing the new version of V & V HERE

******************************************

   

Geek Tee Friday - Wayne Aerospace

Check out my other Geek Tee BLOGS

Here we go another Geek Tee Friday post with the 4th of the shirts I got from Loudshop which I did an opening video of HERE

This was probably the least exciting of the shirts I got for my mind, it doesn't scream "Superhero" to me and I'd imagine that anyone not versed on the Batman character might think it's a shirt from a real company!! Perhaps they'll think I'm in the employ of a leading scientific tech company and think I'm a super-science boffin!! So maybe it's cool for that. 

This shirt came with a Justice League movie label but I can't say I recall it from the movie at all!? (Check out my blog HERE if you wanna see my thoughts on the film) So I thought I'd do a blog about it, as you do! I actually found a real company called Wayne Corporation which later became Divco-Wayne and had some dabbling in aerospace tech for a time!! This is from Wikipedia,

From 1958 to 1959, the company owned Divco-Wayne Electronics. In a $1.5 million purchase of the Electronics Division of Gruen Watch Company of Cincinnati, Ohio, Divco-Wayne sought to enter the aerospace technology segment. After poor results, the Electronics Division was sold off.

For the purposes of Batman though we have to talk about Wayne Enterprises, Inc, also know as WayneCorp, that operates out of Gotham from it's headquarters of Wayne Tower. The company along with the charitable organisation the Wayne Foundation, also headed by Bruce "Batman" Wayne, is ran day-to-day by Lucius Fox, a very capable and trusted employee. I am unsure if in current canon Fox knows of Wayne's other hero self, I do recall that he does in Nolan's Batman movies, where he is played by Morgan Freeman. 

Originally founded as a merchant house back in the 18th century by brothers Judge Solomon Wayne and Joshua Simon Wayne, it soon flourished with the city of Gotham springing up around it. Alan Wayne, Bruce's great, great grandfather turned it into a corporate company in the 19th century, it was made into a green company too, trying to be aware and take steps to limit it's environmental impact. It's among the oldest companies in the DC Universe and has a vast array of interests, with branches for Security, Research, Foods, Shipping, Biotech, Electronics, Chemicals, Steel, Entertainment and Medical to name but a few.

Here is the entry for Wayne Aerospace stolen straight from Wikipedia for you to check out!!

Wayne Aerospace

Wayne Aerospace is a subsidiary of Wayne Technologies and remains one of the more highly successful divisions of Wayne Enterprises. It has its own airline called Wayne Airlines and an aviation division called Wayne Aviation. The aerospace division is a major military defense contractor within Gotham and the United States. W.A. currently owns 20% of Lockheed Martin's weapons division. The W.A. is mostly known for its extremely well structured, luxurious and exclusive corporate and private jets and airliners. Much like the Gulfstream, Wayne Enterprises tries to keep the Slipstream corporate jets out of the hands of celebrities and sells them mostly to large corporations. This in turn has made the Slipstream into a cult item among the rich because it is fashionable to have a plane as a status symbol of wealth. Wayne Aerospace's experimental aviation branch produces experimental and the research planes built for NASA. The military aviation branch designs and manufactures highly successful jet fighters and helicopters for the United States Air Forces. The most notable models of these are the W-4 Wraith fighter and the Kestrel attack helicopter. As the most prominent aerospace company in the region, Wayne Aerospace has a working partnership with Eagle Air Force Base near Gotham City. Wayne Aerospace is also responsible for maintaining the systems and the planes for the Archie Goodwin International Airport in Little Stockton, in Gotham. Wayne Aerospace maintains good natured competition with other aerospace corporations like Ferris Air and its nemesis, LexAir.

The division has generated millions of dollars for Wayne Enterprises. The company's government contracts and space exploration contracts with NASA have been very lucrative. Wayne Aerospace's most important mission is to provide the latest technology and information for the Batman.

I don't remember hearing about an Archie Goodwin Airport before but it's obviously named in honour of the late great writer, editor and artist. Check out his full bio HERE but short version he did horror comics for Warren, cut his superhero teeth as the 1st writer for Iron Man in 1968, co-created Luke Cage in 1972, did a lot of work on Star Wars titles for Marvel & Epic comics and finished his career doing a lot of great work on Batman over at DC. I found this cool interview he did which sadly turned out to be his last, check it out HERE

There is even a character homage to him in Batman Adventures with a villain called Mr Nice!

Cheers for checking out my blog, please have a browse at my other pages 😀

****************************************************

     

Geek Tee Friday - The Hulk

Check out my other Geek Tee BLOGS

This Friday's geek tee is one of the Hulk taken from the Thor: Ragnarok movie from 2017. This is the 3rd of the 4 mystery shirts I got for £15 and did a bag opening in this BLOG here. Check it out.

I wasn't too impressed with this one at 1st it seems a bit muted colour wise and I am sure there are better Hulk shirts out there but hey ho it is what it is, I'm sure it will grow on me!

As a character the Hulk has been around since May 1962  when he was created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby. He 1st appeared in The Incredible Hulk #1, a book that only ran for 6 issues before the big Green/Grey one was moved to Tales to Astonish which was later renamed as The Incredible Hulk in April 1968. It ran under a few different names up till 2013 when it was replaced by The Indestructible Hulk as part of Marvel's Marvel NOW! relaunch.

I remember that Marvel UK had a Hulk comic too that I know I read some of as a kid but I would expect that my 1st encounter with the very angry one was when Lou Ferrigno played him in the TV show of the 70's. It was pretty big in it's day this show I seem to recall, with Bill Bixby playing the role of the mild mannered scientist David (not Bruce??!!) Banner. The show ran for 5 seasons, (82 episodes) on CBS in America from 1978 - 1982 apparently. Wow, I didn't realise it was as many as that, I wonder if we got to see them all in the UK. 

It was a cool show, he was always on the move from town to town, working on cures for his Hulk problem and he'd end up befriending and helping someone with the big green one's aid and have to move on again at the end of the show. The poignant music would play out as he trudged off, (normally in the rain I seem to recall), to a new town and new adventures. 

They also made 3 films the 1st of which, The Incredible Hulk Returns features him meeting up, I am sure for the 1st time on screen, with the thunder god Thor himself. See they really are old friends from work!!

The Incredible Hulk Returns - 1988

He also met up with Daredevil in The Trial of The Incredible Hulk (1989) and in The Death of The Incredible Hulk (1990) he falls in love with an Eastern European spy (Black Widow surely!!)

I have quite a few issues of Hulk in my collection, I'd guess I must have collected him for 3/4 years but I need to go dig them out to confirm this. I know I have quite a few of the Peter David era of the big green goliath. He united his Banner/Hulk personas for a time during this period and we also learned that Bruce was abused by his father making Hulk ostensibly his childhood fury manifest. When Hulk refused to emerge during Avengers: Infinity Wars I theorized that his inner child bully Hulk was scared after the beat down that he received from Thanos. I think he might need a little lie-down on Doc Samson's sofa once again to get his head right. Also a lot of fun during David's run was when Hulk went grey again and had dominance over Banner, he became Mr Fixit for a time, a mob enforcer cracking heads to order for a crime boss. He was no where near as strong at this point, he had better intelligence and reasoning so he couldn't channel his boundless rage into strength.

I wonder if Hulk has featured in more Marvel movies than any other character. Does anyone have the figures at all? Maybe he is the character that has fronted the most movies. He has the 3 TV tie-in ones that I already mentioned and then he has had 2 others, Hulk (2003) with Eric Bana as Bruce Banner and The Incredible Hulk (2008) with Edward Norton in that role. He's also been in 3 Avengers movies, (I think) with Mark Ruffalo as Banner, and of course Thor Ragnarok where he has a tumultuous & fun battle with the titular hero. 

Fights between The Hulk and Thor have been plentiful over the years with many a debate being had between fans over who would win in such a battle. Hulk (in some versions), has brute strength that seemingly has no limits, increasing as his anger does, but Thor is a god, a skilled warrior with the might of Mjolnir and the power of thunder. I tried to find out when they 1st battled in the comics, the earliest encounter I could find was Journey Into Mystery #112 from January 1965. 

I am sure we will see him next in Infinity Wars Part 2 but I wonder if there are any plans to have him star in his own movies again at some point. I certainly hope so as I for one will NEVER tire of the Superhero genre, I don't remember a time when I haven't loved them and I can't picture there being one in the future either. Keep 'em coming I say.

*************************************************

Geek Tee Friday - Gotham City Villains

Check out my other Geek Tee BLOGS

I love this shirt!! It's so cool, featuring some of the worst villains that have ever plagued Gotham's finest hero over the decades. I got this shirt as part of the random 4 T's for £15 deal that I did the other day, check out the blog about that for more info.

So let's go into depth about the quintet of villainous vileness my new shirt is adorned with.

1st of course is that clown Prince of crime, The Joker, I actually went into more depth about him last week as I got a Joker solo shirt too, check out last week's blog for more info on him.

Then top-left is the only lady of this felonious fivesome, the lovely but deadly Poison Ivy. Pamela Lillian Isely loves plants more than people and they seem to love her too as she is able to get them to do her bidding! She has toxins in her blood giving her a kiss that is able to control the minds of men as well as kill them if she chooses. She commits crimes to fund her eco-terrorism and is somewhat fixated on Batman after he showed himself able to resist her toxic charms. 

In current continuity she gained her powers and perhaps her madness through the experimentations of Dr. Jason Woodrue who later became the Floronic Man. She is very good friends with Harley Quinn, perhaps the only human she likes and I am sure I read that they had moved on to being more than just friends but I am not up on current stories cos I don't have the funds anymore 😥

She appeared first in Batman #181 in June 1966!! (Happy 52nd birthday Pam, you're still looking good!) and was created by Robert Kanigher & Sheldon Moldoff.

In the 1997 movie Batman & Robin she was played by Uma Thurman and has been played by Maggie Geha and Peyton List in the tv show Gotham.

******************************************

He's not on the cover of Detective Comics #58 but here's a great cover with him

The middle villain of the piece is that waddling, trick umbrella obsessed ornithologist Oswald Chesterfield Cobblepot, otherwise known as The Penguin. Created by Bill Finger and Bob Kane he 1st showed his big-nosed face in Detective Comics #58 in December 1941. Inspired from the then advertising mascot of Kool cigarettes – a penguin with a top hat and cane. Finger thought the image of high-society gentlemen in tuxedos was reminiscent of emperor penguins. He is rare amongst Batman's rogue's gallery in the fact that he is completely sane, although he is no less dangerous or ruthless because of this. 

He's been played superbly in film and television over the years as well by Burgess Meredith in the classic 60's TV show, by Danny DeVito in Batman Returns and Robin Lord Taylor in Gotham.

***********************************

Detective Comics #66

To the right of Penguin is the tragic Harvey Dent AKA Two-Face, he was once Batman's closest confidante in his early days as a crimefighter. As a District Attorney he would help Batman target the villains and then ensure that he could put them away for a long time. Then one fateful day in court Sal Maroni threw acid into Harvey's face, leading to the terrible disfigurement and helping to trigger the latent split personality within Dent's psyche. Obsessed with duality, the number two and chance he utilises a double-headed coin to make his decisions for him. One side is normal the other scarred like himself, he tosses the coin and if it comes up scarred then you're in trouble.

The character was created by Bill Finger and Bob Kane and first appeared in Detective Comics #66 (Aug. 1942). He's featured in two Batman films played by Tommy Lee Jones in 1995's Batman Forever and Aaron Eckhart in The Dark Knight (2008)

In animation he's been voiced by Star Wars star Billy Dee Williams (Lando Calrissian) and Star Trek star William (Captain James T. Kirk) Shatner!! Also fun fact if the Batman 60's series had got a 3rd season none other than Clint Eastwood was tipped to play the role!!

***************************************

Finally on this most epic of shirts we have that enigma Edward Nigma himself, aka The Riddler! This mastermind of crime delights in the employment of riddles and puzzles to confound the forces of law and order. Since an early age Ed loved puzzles and this led him to commit flamboyant crimes, leaving clues to match wits with the police, he sees Batman as a foe worthy of his intellect. The fact he is often caught makes me think that he's not as smart as he likes to think he is.

He was created by Bill Finger and Dick Sprang and 1st took to crime in Detective Comics #140 in October 1948. He was very much a c-list villain in the comics though and pretty much forgotten, not featuring again until 1965. It was his portrayal by Frank Gorshin and John Astin in the 60's Batman series that boosted him to the major popularity he has today. He was also played by Jim Carrey in Batman Forever and Cory Michael Smith in the TV series Gotham.

*********************************************

     

Geek Tee Friday - Wanted! - The Joker

Check out my other Geek Tee BLOGS

My geek tee for today is of that arch villain, the clown prince of crime, The Joker! And rather a snazzy little shirt it is too, showing him in all his insane glory. It's one of the four I picked up recently in my blog HERE, check it out.

The Joker was created by Bill Finger, Bob Kane, and Jerry Robinson and debuted in Batman #1 by DC Comics on 25th April 1940 which makes him 78 years and 1 month old today!! 

Although he has no super powers he has a mad cunning intellect and is a master at planning crazy schemes. He revels in chaos, mayhem and murder. For a time during the comics code regulations of the 50's he was more of a goofy prankster but more often than not now his japes are deadly. He is responsible for a lot of pain to the Bat-family, killing the 2nd Robin, Jason Todd, in  brutal fashion in Batman: A Death in the Family and also crippling Barbara Gordon, Bat Girl in the iconic story The Killing Joke.

He's been played by a number of actors over the years both on TV and films. Cesar Romero was The Joker of my youth, playing him for 3 seasons of the Batman TV show that ran from 1966 - 68 and the spin-off movie. Jack Nicholson starred as him in the Batman movie of 1989, a film I must admit I despised when I 1st saw it! Heath Ledger received many accolades for his crazed portrayal of him in The Dark Knight (2008). His was a tough act to follow indeed and many hated Jared Leto's Joker in Suicide Squad (2016). I thought the dislike for his Joker was unfair and actually rather enjoyed his manic take on the character.

Top: Cesar Romero & Jack Nicholson

Bottom: Heath Ledger & Jared Leto

In animation Joker has been voiced by a number of actors most notably Mark Hammil who is a Sci-fi hero after his portrayal of Luke Skywalker in the Star Wars series. It was interesting to see that a hero from another Sci-fi franchise, Brent Spiner, who played Data in Star Trek: The Next Generation also voiced him too! 

********************************************

   

DC Exhibition: Dawn of Super Heroes

So, I'd seen the ads, I'd seen people's posts about it on Facebook and I decided that I had to go and see it for myself, so off I jolly well trotted to the O2 at North Greenwich at 12 O'clock today to go and see the DC heroes on display. And jolly glad I am that I did cos it was fab. 

Click to enlarge

The venue was pretty quiet today which was nice, I could take my time poring over all the cool vintage art from 80 years of comics action. All the great names I knew from my collecting days and even a fair few I'd not heard of were on display. I was fascinated with the way it was put together with annotations in the borders and with the lettering and page banners etc all applied on top of the drawn page. You could see the alterations made as well and penciled guidelines. 

I love the older comics with their hokey stories and dated notions of romance, they have a kind of naive innocence of a bygone era that always tickles me.

If you are more interested in the movies rather than their source material then you shouldn't be upset as there are a wealth of props, models, costumes, concept art and storyboards from all the DC hero films and even some focus on the old 60's and animated Batman shows. The display rooms were divided by characters with focus on the more recent crop of movies. So Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Suicide Squad & The Justice League all got plenty of coverage. I would have liked a Green Lantern dedicated room as well but with the unfair negative feedback that movie got there was no chance of that!

Upon entering the exhibition you can get an audio exhibition guide which was easy enough to use and gave some fascinating insight into the comics world. My only real gripe was the lighting which was very muted. The info plaques were black with the white text on them in pretty small font and it made them hard to read. I also missed a load of the audio guide number prompts probably due to the lack of light also. (Although I am not sure if that was the fault of the light's dimness or my own!) Perhaps I was too enraptured by the art to notice the numbers.

Another small gripe but probably only specific to old bums with flat feet like me was that there could've been a few more seats to park weary butts in for a while.

Anyway, in summary I thoroughly enjoyed my couple of hours and thought it was excellent value for money. If it sounds like your cuppa tea the exhibit runs till September the 9th. 

Click HERE for more info.

********************************************