The eponymous character of the Tank Girl comic and the 1995 film. Tank Girl drives a tank, which is also her home, and undertakes a series of missions for a nebulous organization. Her boyfriend, Booga, is a mutant kangaroo. The British comic’s style was heavily influenced by punk visual art. The strip was initially set in a stylized post-apocalyptic Australia.
The main character of The Amazing Screw-On Head, a comic book written and drawn by Mike Mignola and published by Dark Horse Comics in 2002. In the 1860s, Screw-On Head is an agent for President Abraham Lincoln. A brilliant animated pilot, based on the plot of the comic, was made by the Sci-Fi Channel in 2006.
A fictional character created by Ben Edlund in 1986 as a newsletter mascot for a chain of Boston-area comic book stores. He is an absurdist spoof of comic book superheroes. The character later spun off into an independent comic book series in 1988, and gained mainstream popularity through an animated TV series on Fox in 1994.
The handsome hero of a science fiction adventure comic strip originally drawn by Alex Raymond. First published in 1934, the strip was inspired by and created to compete with the already established Buck Rogers adventure strip. Flash Gordon and his companions travel to the planet Mongo, which is ruled by the evil Ming the Merciless.
A fictional superhero in the Marvel Comics universe. Iron Man is otherwise known as Tony Stark, a billionaire playboy, industrialist and ingenious engineer. Stark suffers a severe chest injury during a kidnapping in which his captors attempt to force him to build a weapon of mass destruction. He instead creates a powered suit of armor to save his life and escape.
A fictional superhero who appears in Marvel Comics publications. The character, based on the Thor of Norse mythology, first appeared in 1962. He is a member of the superhero team The Avengers with Captain America, Iron Man and others.
A DC Comics superheroine who first appeared in 1941, during World War II. She is a Princess of the Amazons (based on the Amazons of Greek mythology) and is known in her homeland as Diana of Themyscira. She utilizes the Lasso of Truth, which forces those bound by it to tell the truth, and has an invisible airplane.
A fictional superhero in the Marvel Comics universe who first appeared in 1941, during World War II. Captain America is the alter ego of Steve Rogers, a frail young man who was enhanced to the peak of human perfection by an experimental serum in order to aid the U.S. war effort. He wears a costume that bears an American flag motif.
Note: A moment of silence on Patriot Day. Hard to believe that 10 years have passed since the 9/11 attacks. I love this tribute poster from Extra Credit Projects.
A fictional web-slinging superhero, created by Marvel Comics, who first appeared in 1962. He became Marvel’s flagship character and company mascot. The character is the alter ego of Peter Parker, an orphan being raised by his aunt and uncle. As a teenager, Parker deals with the normal struggles of adolescence in addition to those of a costumed crime fighter.
A fictional superhero in the Marvel Comics universe who first appeared in 1962. Created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, the Incredible Hulk is the emotional and impulsive alter ego of physicist Dr. Bruce Banner. The Hulk appears shortly after Banner is accidentally exposed to the blast of a test detonation of a gamma bomb he invented. Hulk smash!
Like many kids in the 1980s, I recall happily jumping across furniture to avoid my house’s lava floor while wearing Hulk-themed Underoos.
A fictional superhero created by Hanna-Barbera in the 1960s. In his original incarnation, he fought supervillains in outer space. In the 1990s, he was the host of the animated parody talk show Space Ghost Coast to Coast on Cartoon Network and Adult Swim, which I quite enjoyed. In the 2000s, he was revamped as a serious superhero by DC Comics.
The Man of Steel is a DC Comics superhero and icon of American culture who was created in 1932. He was born on the planet Krypton, before being rocketed to Earth as an infant by his scientist father. After being discovered and adopted by a Kansas farmer and his wife, he was raised as Clark Kent.
The Dark Knight is a DC Comics superhero who first appeared in 1939. By day he is billionaire playboy Bruce Wayne; by night he is a caped crime-fighter with no actual superpowers. He successfully defeats Gotham City villains by being an excellent detective and martial artist who’s unbelievably rich.
A comic book superhero who appears in DC Comics. He can breathe underwater and communicate with sea creatures. He was humorously appropriated by South Park as Seaman. This 8-bit sprite completes the Super Best Friends religious group.
Charlie Brown – No. 218
The lovable protagonist in the comic strip Peanuts by Charles M. Schulz. Good ol’ Charlie Brown made his first appearance in 1950 and failed at almost everything he did until Schulz’s death in 2000. Cursed with self-doubt, insecurities and frequent bad luck, Charlie is often taken advantage of by his peers.
Watching A Charlie Brown Christmas (1965) is an annual holiday tradition. Dance!