This is my new favourite episode. I absolutely loved everything about it.
The intro was kind of nostalgic, even if it speaks of awful video compression. As well as one of the worst video programs ever made. RealPlayer still haunts my nightmares.
I also laughed at the BASIC joke in there, and it reminded me how much of a nerd I really am.
Well Linkara, this episode has just convinced me to finally make my way through all ~150 episodes from beginning to end (I've seen random ones and out of order). This should be a fun ride.
Yeah...Major Disaster really is Major Dumbass. I think you gave him the perfect nickname for having so much power and just using it to make Superman be braindead enough to rely on a stupid computer. Really, all that power and all he wanted to do was throw in Kryptonite dust into his system and do that...what sort of nut was he?
And yes: the "Intermission" music from "Monty Python and the Holy Grail" never gets old, especially how it was used this time. Heck a lot of great jokes this time, such as the MST3K one and the "Wargames" one...oh boy, the "Wargames" one. Let's see those two dummies try to do what only Matthew Broderick can!
"Well Linkara, this episode has just convinced me to finally make my way through all ~150 episodes from beginning to end (I've seen random ones and out of order). This should be a fun ride."
Thanks! I just hope you have the patience to endure my early stuff. XD
I have to disagree a little with the "Major Dumbass" part; yes, killing Superman would be obvious and easier to do, but on the other hand, causing him to become disoriented and his powers to go haywire is a good idea for causing havoc in the city, especially with someone like Major Disaster, whose entire purpose is to cause havoc.What really makes him a dumbass is that he didn't follow through with that idea, instead just letting Superman go about his merry way without any way of properly directing the carnage or ensuring he couldn't just wait to have the effects ware off (btw, why in the hell wouldn't he make the kryptonite dust more permanent to ensure the havoc with his powers continue?).
"What? Are you not proud of your early stuff or something? ...Why not?
By the way, do you plan to update your theme song with new clips any time soon?"
There's a noticeable difference in my early stuff to how I am today in terms of pacing, volume, and lighting. Things got better over time, like with most internet shows.
And yep, there will be an update come late October for the AT4W anniversary.
Excuse me Mr.Entity, could you please use proper capitalization when leaving mysterious messages to scare/taunt people with? Also, its getting harder to see your messages, so it would be great if you could make them last more than half a second on the screen. Also, not to tell you how to do your job of destroying multiverse but I think that you should let Linkara know that you've been leaving messages for us fans for some time now. This would show him that you can manipulate his perception of reality and cause him to doubt himself. It would also let him know that his friends are alive, but are being tortured and have tried to get messages to him, and cause him to feel guilt over not knowing about they're suffering for so long.
From, ShatteredSanity
P.S. I really like your poetry, its very foreboding.
You gotta love the fact this villain done something Lex Luthor has been trying to do for YEARS but insted of using it on a leathal leval he chose to use t on the same leval as giving some one an inner ear infection or a muscle relaxer. Also, if Superman needed any one to help him calulate to use his powers based on physics I'd think Batman would've been a beter bet than the creepily/asshole-like kids he seems to be stalking. You can tell too this comic was written and drawn in the 70s before it was finnally released because of the one kid's afro and the others all wearing bellbottums and disco attire! they all look like they're fixing to go out dancing after school. Shouldn't those kids be scared when Superman comes crashing threw the floor? Also that's destory the foundation of the biulding! "Mrs.Lang"!? As in Lana Lang? Wait she was the teacher? or was he talking about some one else?
Finnally I would like to request you do a review of another oddball Superman comic from a few years befor this one, but is infamious! Superman #300: Superman 2001(1976) It's like an early Elseworld title, but before the Elseworld banner came along. It's a What if...? style title about what if Kal-El's came to earth in modern(76) time and insted of being raised by the Kents he was raised by the US government as a weapon against the USSR. Now why this comic was famious was he actually predicted the fall of communism and kind of predicts 9/11/01! What do you think?
I think it makes perfect sense that he comes in through the floor. Remember, for everything after the kryptonite incident Superman wasn't thinking straight. He should have done more insane things like that in the last half of the comic. His neighbor finding carpet on his celing would've been so funny!
Also, Major Disaster must have done an experiment on himself off panel to make him a dumbass.
Question 1: are the Whiz Kids part of DCU canon?
2: Is Superman really vulnerable to other radioactive materials? I don't remember any times that came up.
3: Does the comic explain how Superman is cured of his stupid?
Yes, the Action Ace (or the All Time Action Ace) was one of Superman's nicknames. I believe it was used in a poster for Superman and the Mole Men or one of the serials. Also, I think I saw it in a promo for The Adventures of Superman.
If the Wiz-Kids got rebooted, it would probably get a hard boot, followed by a complete reformat, and then big installations of brand new material! LOL ;-)
So, are there any promotional comic books that are even remotely good?
Major Disaster looks like a Bullseye knock-off action figure in Taskmaster's cloak and hood.
With that Radio Shack tie-in, it makes me wish that Marvel had a Transformers comic book like this one. It would have been fun to read the explanation as to why Shockwave is now gray and called Galactic Man.
Seeing as the early comics were by DC and the later ones (I think starting with the story where Alec and Shanna beat up a terrorist...totally not kidding) were by Archie, they may not be canon anymore.
I could be wrong, but I think Action Ace was a lesser nickname at the time that obviously never caught on. I kind of like it, though.
Maybe MD didn't think Superman would figure out Kryptonite was the reason behind his super brain's "fuzz effect"?
Man, those kids have some SERIOUS l33t programming skills, since they're in sixth grade, but they're writing programs that are utilizing some high level differential equations. They're not just plugging the raw data into the computer, they're writing the program from scratch and then plugging the variables in.
Then again, maybe this computer has the 1980 version of Matlab running on it (since that piece of mathematics software first came out in 1984) but if they are, that was really nice of Superman to spend big bucks to install college and buisness level software on a grade school computer. Matlab is used by engineers, scientists, and economists to do their highly complex number crunching.
A gritty reboot or relaunch for the TRS-80 Whiz Kids would or should be a lot like the one they did for Wonder Dog, Marvin, and Wendy in Teen Titans. If you don't know what I'm talking about read this Cracked article: http://www.cracked.com/article/151_5-superheroes-rendered-ridiculous-by-gritty-reboots/ judging by what all else is mentioned in this article i'm sure Linkara already has read it!
(translated from the Codex of the Brotherhood of χάος ) Procreation: Though χάος was locked away it still lapped up the fear and hatred dripping through the dimensional wall, the growls reverberating from it cracking continents, and his appendages clawing at the walls of its prison. Over time some of the locks weaken, letting out the tiniest slivers of itself. These slivers spawned horrendous creatures of tendrils and gaping maws that exist on the verge of our nightmares. Beings with power comparable to gods. The fear and worship they evoke feeds χάος from beyond the veil.
Speaking as an actual Alec, I'm a bit annoyed by the constant presence of this blond-haired idiot. He's got some serious bi-polar issues going on here, as he shifts from class clown to 'toaster.'
As for the TRS-80 comics, I have none. I've sent you far too many of my terrible comics as it is anyways, Linkara.
It is a shame that a villain with such a neat premise as Major Disaster was either a terrible villain in a goofy outfit or a giant guy in a suit who was killed off for no reason after being in the JLA (also for no reason).
P.S. He was also in the Justice League: Antarctica one-shot. How does he get to be in that and the real JLA?!?
My family owned a TRS-80 computer for a while. I remember I would program on it when I was 8 or 9 and make interesting little text games. Then, because we didn't have the tape adapter anymore to save any of my stuff, I would have to leave it on overnight to be able to show anyone else my program. :)
I know we had the tape adapter at one point, because my dad has this audio tape with a series of weird beeps on it (think R2D2 slowed down to half the speed and pitch). Supposedly that was a program he wrote. :P
I need to lye down. Either I've been watching these for too long or my brain is on automatic but not only did I predict every plot development but your snark as well.
Not that I'm complaining, but when I start thinking like you it gets a little worrying.
As for Superman's poisoning in this book. Well I'm fairly sure if I took Anthrax and tried to play about with it I'd still have something lethal, opposed to mildly inconvenient. If Superman's thought process was effected (by some other means) he still wouldn't be able to give such detail to the Whizz Kids. It would be far more likely that they'd have to fly him by remote. A camera and direct link bypassing his brain would be the only way.
On another note, why do they have the nay computers not running a virus? They aren't Apple Mac's and off the shelf computers would still run the same OS (basic DOS) as all the others? even worse with that sort for tech major Dumb-ass should have just set off a massive thunderstorm, creating a volley of EMP's (Which is possible and why light's flicker in a thunderstorm) to fry everything in the area?
All in all a dull, unimaginative, advert masquerading as a Superman comic. crappy writing hamstrung by the need to promote computers. This is completely ignoring the fact that most mobile smart-phones have enough computing power these days to put NASA's moon landing Apollo program to shame.
Thomas
PS the key difference between the organic brain and a computer is that our brains are capable of creative thought. Computers, no matter how powerful they are these days are still only capable of search and retrieve functions. In other words they get faster and faster at reading the dictionary while we can still add words and ideas too said dictionary
Spot on for the most part and a nice episode. Just one thing at the end.
Superman is immune to most radiation though as he can fly in space no protection needed and messed eith reactors before no problem. It's only the special frequencies produced by Kryptonite that actually harms him. Even in Dark Knight he nearly died because the fallout blocked the sunlight after he was drained by the blast not because of the radiation itself.
Fun fact: You are actually slower than superman's thinking when you use a TRS-80 (or even any modern computers) if you use any programming language. (Especially if you use an interpreting language like BASIC) Why? Well, of course there's the problem of you having to first program the computer to solve it. Programming takes time, time that Superman doesn't need to solve the problem.
Also: to those who claim Liz is the entity... which one are you talking of? Iron Liz? Judas Liz? Rammstein Liz? After all, there are at least two Liz's around...
Wow, that was bad. Not your review, that was great, the comic. Major Dumbass is right. Major Disaster has a magic screen that can watch heroes without needing obtrusive cameras, why not use it to spy on them? Find out their identities and weaknesses? Heck, just find out their schedules and strike when they're out of town fighting some other threat. Also, nice that the villain is captured off-screen. Major Disaster really is a footnote to the whizkids. I know, maybe their teacher really is a shape-changing alien and that's why she knows Superman well enough to insist he give her class special help. Your using the Warrior reminded me that that was one of the first one of your reviews I saw. Between it and the Superman at Earth's End Reference, I'd say some of your older stuff does hold up, even if over all quality has improved.
As mentioned above, this version of Superman was invulnerable to all radiation that wasn't either from Kryptonite or a red sun. This is the guy who would fly through the sun to clean his invulnerable costume.
No, I did not make that up.
@Mountain King, you should do like the sixth-graders in this book and learn some computing history. The TRS-80 predates DOS and viruses weren't a problem on that platform.
Yeah, I'm old. I used TRS-80s in college because they were cutting edge. And Linkara, I used the Commodore PET personal computer. Which came before the VIC-20. Which came before the Commodore 64, the one you think is so primitive.
Mike- The early episodes are a bit strange in that he seems really thin and kind of grows into his outfit kind of. It's hard to describe, but you will see what I mean. Also, they are mostly in order, I think I heard on a commentery US1#1 was episode 3 or something. Might be wrong though.
As for this episode. I would like to bore you with computer stuff, but can't since you don't care. :(
On a more serious note, I think this is one of your better single part episodes, (Captain America vs Asthma Monster being the best) and that's mostly because of the "Let's exposit about how we're going to die horribly" line and you snapping about Superman wasting his time. Although there was alot of good, memorible stuff here. Whatever you're doing, keep it up.
Yay, another Whiz Kids review! Sadly I used to have one of the original TRS-80 Model I's pictured in the comic. It does make me feel old to hear you reminisce about how "hard drives were only a few hundred megabytes" when you were a kid. "Hard drive", what's that? ;^b
I'll have to go back and watch your previous review and see what you might of said about the history of computers that generated heat, but I will say in all fairness to the comic Superman referencing ENIAC as the "first electronic computer" is probably close enough to let stand even today, at least with an asterisk. I'll save most of the technical blather since you don't care, but if you say that Superman's benchmark is "First all-electronic Turing-complete programmable computer" ENIAC's the winner. The closest pretenders to the throne, the Zuse Z3 and the Colossus machines, fail because they're respectively electromechanical and not Turing-complete. (ENIAC was around 1000 times faster than the Z3 or Harvard Mark I, so "all-electronic" does make a difference.) The only argument I'd possibly make is that essentially all modern computers use an architecture in which the program code is stored in memory and the first candidates for "first all-electronic stored program computer" didn't come along until about 1949, at which point you have several to choose from. Whee.
I agree that the Tandy Whiz Kids *totally* call for a grungy new-age reboot. It seems pretty easy, really. Just air-drop some TRS-80s into the hideout of those kids that teamed up with Bearded Idiot Future Superman. ("I AM A MAN!" *punch any key to continue*)
Lewis Lovhaug said... "There's a noticeable difference in my early stuff to how I am today in terms of pacing, volume, and lighting. Things got better over time, like with most internet shows."
I love your older reviews. The first one I saw was the Neutro review, because I was already a fan of Spoony. Soon after that I started searching through your list for familiar names like X-Men and Star Trek and the rest soon followed. Keep up the great work Lewis!
Another possible place to get where the Entity is from, "Chained in heaven are they. Seven is their number. Bred in depths of ocean, neither male or female are they. They are as the howling wind, which knoweth not mercy, which knoweth not pity.
Heedless are they to pray and supplication. They are the serpent. They are the furious beast. The windstorm.
Evil winds they are. The evil breath that heraldeth the baneful storm. They are mighty children. Heralds of pestilence. Throne bearers of Ereshigal.
They are the flood which rusheth through the land. Seven gods of might. Seven demons of oppression. Seven in heaven and seven on Olympia.
Of giant strenght and tread are they. Knowing no care they grind the land like corn.
Knowing no mercy they rage against mankind, to spill blood like rain and devour flesh.
Let they seven now rise from the abyss. Away be cast all chains. Freedom is to them. Power is to them.
As for why Superman didn't bother to do any damage control or fix people's houses, post a good conversation with "The Guardians" of Green Lantern fame, Superman didn't do that kind of stuff anymore.
given certain authors habits regarding revisiting obscure strange characters it may actually happen.
especially if you were to suggest to brian clevinger (who brought back US-1), who makes very strange pitches to the big comics publishers all the time.
"F̀ool̷i̕ş̶h͏ ́a͞m͝͠a̡t̛͢͝ę͜ur͠͞s̷̢͜ t̸͢r̴̶y̡i̧̕n̴ģ̢ ̵to ̷͟͠s̕p͞re̴͢á҉d ̴͟m̵y̷̴͘ ̡́w̨͡o̴͘͘r͝d. ̴̶͞I̧ a͘m̶ ͘ń͜͏o̷t ̢l̢ik̨͟e̕ ̶͞an͘y̸̧͝t̵̡h͜i͠n͏g̷͘ ̸̀͟y͢͜o̶̡u̡͢ ͟ç͘͝a̷̢n̷ ͡c͢҉̡o̡m̵̶͞p̵̢͠r̡͏͏e̴͏ḩ͡e̕n̴̶͘d̢͢.͘ ́͢I ͏kn҉ò̡̕w w̧͝h͜͞͝o҉ ̡͘y̛ò҉ù́ ̶́a̷҉̕r͞e̴.҉ ̷I̷̧̛ w̷̷i̵l̴҉̢l͝ n͠҉ǫt t̷o̶le̴͢͟r̡a̛t̷͞é̢ ͢͝y̶̴̸o̷͏u͡r̀ ̛f͏a͏į͜l͞e͞d̵ ̴̀͠m̨i̧̧̢m̨̛͞ic͠r̸͡͏y.͘ ̀͢I͜͡͠ ̧a̕͘m n̡̕͠ơ̡ţ͟͠ ̨̀s̨o̸ ҉̢̀ơ͞͞b͘͢v̢͘͞í̴o̶͝u͞s͟.̷̶̨ " Sure you are Entity... I know I'm goading you but this whole destroyer of Multiversi deal gets old when you start sounding like a Dalek.
Superman; not very bright. Did it not occur to him that the time he was taking to give a lecture there are probably people being robbed, killed, raped and otherwise victimized? I'm starting to think that he really is just a jerk.
As for the plane calculations, he would have to fly carefully because if he was too fast or too slow he'd just wreck the plane (though I doubt the writers knew that). However I have to admit that for him it'd be a matter of just adjusting his speed to match the plane's.
And I noticed a few weird moments at the end. Commercials back in the 80s must have had really bad quality.
How is it, the one Tandy Wiz Kids I remember reading is the one superhero one you haven't done? *sighs* Guess I'll be waiting for a while, since you'll have to wait for someone to find it and donate it, and even then, you did say it would be a while before you reviewed another one of "these."
Is it just me, or does the explanation of how Major Dumbass's K-Dust work sound like it should be a lot more dangerous? I mean, it sounds less like magic stupid dust to me and more like nerve gas.
Oh, and here's my guess on the nature of The Entity: it's Superboy Prime punching his way through reality to take his revenge on Linkara! Not even a reboot will stand in the way of his whiny rage.
Seriously, though, I can't wait to see how this pays off.
Just to be clear, (apologies for ruining the joke through explaining it), the joke about Superman "going Superman 2 on them" was a DBZ joke, yes? Or is there some second version of Superman I've never heard of?
"Just to be clear, (apologies for ruining the joke through explaining it), the joke about Superman "going Superman 2 on them" was a DBZ joke, yes? Or is there some second version of Superman I've never heard of?"
This is my new favourite episode. I absolutely loved everything about it.
ReplyDeleteThe intro was kind of nostalgic, even if it speaks of awful video compression. As well as one of the worst video programs ever made. RealPlayer still haunts my nightmares.
I also laughed at the BASIC joke in there, and it reminded me how much of a nerd I really am.
Well Linkara, this episode has just convinced me to finally make my way through all ~150 episodes from beginning to end (I've seen random ones and out of order). This should be a fun ride.
Yeah...Major Disaster really is Major Dumbass. I think you gave him the perfect nickname for having so much power and just using it to make Superman be braindead enough to rely on a stupid computer. Really, all that power and all he wanted to do was throw in Kryptonite dust into his system and do that...what sort of nut was he?
ReplyDeleteAnd yes: the "Intermission" music from "Monty Python and the Holy Grail" never gets old, especially how it was used this time. Heck a lot of great jokes this time, such as the MST3K one and the "Wargames" one...oh boy, the "Wargames" one. Let's see those two dummies try to do what only Matthew Broderick can!
what if they come out with Whiz Kids and the Death of Superman. I wonder how will they handle that one
ReplyDelete"Well Linkara, this episode has just convinced me to finally make my way through all ~150 episodes from beginning to end (I've seen random ones and out of order). This should be a fun ride."
ReplyDeleteThanks! I just hope you have the patience to endure my early stuff. XD
"I just hope you have the patience to endure my early stuff. XD"
ReplyDeleteWhat? Are you not proud of your early stuff or something? ...Why not?
By the way, do you plan to update your theme song with new clips any time soon?
I have to disagree a little with the "Major Dumbass" part; yes, killing Superman would be obvious and easier to do, but on the other hand, causing him to become disoriented and his powers to go haywire is a good idea for causing havoc in the city, especially with someone like Major Disaster, whose entire purpose is to cause havoc.What really makes him a dumbass is that he didn't follow through with that idea, instead just letting Superman go about his merry way without any way of properly directing the carnage or ensuring he couldn't just wait to have the effects ware off (btw, why in the hell wouldn't he make the kryptonite dust more permanent to ensure the havoc with his powers continue?).
ReplyDeleteTake that Mac guy! We have The Sisko!
ReplyDelete@̴&̕*͢2̀͠2̡̡9͏2k̴i̡͘d͏y͟ò҉ug̀o҉t̵̵t́a͏h̛ȩ̷̷e̕e̡͘l̡͡͠l̷̢p͏̷p̸͡p̵͢Ús̶̨͜Ss͢͝S̨͞sS̶s҉̸͢Ha̶H҉͏a̴͡H̸̀͡a҉H̵̷ą̧͠H҉̀a̵̢h̕A͡͠h͠A̶̵h̶̕Á͟H̀ÀH̕͢$#̛K͝L̀͡@̨$̵͟U͞҉̕@̨͞
ReplyDelete"What? Are you not proud of your early stuff or something? ...Why not?
ReplyDeleteBy the way, do you plan to update your theme song with new clips any time soon?"
There's a noticeable difference in my early stuff to how I am today in terms of pacing, volume, and lighting. Things got better over time, like with most internet shows.
And yep, there will be an update come late October for the AT4W anniversary.
Oooh the return of the Tandy Wiz kids and a hitchhiker's guide joke to boot.
ReplyDeleteThis was a pretty fun episode.
I really want to find some silver age comics of Major Dumbass now to see what his normal plots were like.
Wow, looks like the Entity has some Image problems.
ReplyDeletePun intended.
This, incompetent, reckless, and computer loving Superman is STILL better than the jerk in the reboot. That's sad.
ReplyDeleteThe "new" Superman probably does the things Linkara made fun of here too. Good luck sleeping at night Metropolis!
It has a prologue that's actually about something that happens later in the story.
ReplyDeleteI'm sorry, that just reminded me of the Twilight books. I have to go kill myself now.
Since you mention the Whiz Kids in the DC relaunch. I wonder will they go with the Dark and Gritty cyberpunk angle or the Hot and Sexy Jim Lee style.
ReplyDeleteBut in seriousness. Mr. Linkara had done a wonderful job in his 100-plus vids.
"i am beautiful"
ReplyDeleteYou are not! Still, I wonder what the entity means by this...
The glitch lasts longer here. I didn't even need to pause to see the message.
These kids use the most powerful weapon of all: Computers with less memory than a modern toaster.
ReplyDelete"i am beautiful"
ReplyDeleteExcuse me Mr.Entity, could you please use proper capitalization when leaving mysterious messages to scare/taunt people with? Also, its getting harder to see your messages, so it would be great if you could make them last more than half a second on the screen.
Also, not to tell you how to do your job of destroying multiverse but I think that you should let Linkara know that you've been leaving messages for us fans for some time now. This would show him that you can manipulate his perception of reality and cause him to doubt himself. It would also let him know that his friends are alive, but are being tortured and have tried to get messages to him, and cause him to feel guilt over not knowing about they're suffering for so long.
From,
ShatteredSanity
P.S. I really like your poetry, its very foreboding.
You gotta love the fact this villain done something Lex Luthor has been trying to do for YEARS but insted of using it on a leathal leval he chose to use t on the same leval as giving some one an inner ear infection or a muscle relaxer.
ReplyDeleteAlso, if Superman needed any one to help him calulate to use his powers based on physics I'd think Batman would've been a beter bet than the creepily/asshole-like kids he seems to be stalking.
You can tell too this comic was written and drawn in the 70s before it was finnally released because of the one kid's afro and the others all wearing bellbottums and disco attire! they all look like they're fixing to go out dancing after school.
Shouldn't those kids be scared when Superman comes crashing threw the floor? Also that's destory the foundation of the biulding!
"Mrs.Lang"!? As in Lana Lang? Wait she was the teacher? or was he talking about some one else?
Finnally I would like to request you do a review of another oddball Superman comic from a few years befor this one, but is infamious! Superman #300: Superman 2001(1976)
It's like an early Elseworld title, but before the Elseworld banner came along. It's a What if...? style title about what if Kal-El's came to earth in modern(76) time and insted of being raised by the Kents he was raised by the US government as a weapon against the USSR. Now why this comic was famious was he actually predicted the fall of communism and kind of predicts 9/11/01!
What do you think?
Of course the Tandy Whiz Kids got rebooted. Who do you think took over for Barbara Gordon as Oracle when she miraculously got use of her legs back?
ReplyDeleteAnyway, nice review. Surprised your story element of stuff missing hasn't come to a climax yet, it's been going on a really long time.
"Anyway, nice review. Surprised your story element of stuff missing hasn't come to a climax yet, it's been going on a really long time."
ReplyDeleteNot really. XD Mechakara lasted almost a year, same for Vyce. The Entity storyline is lasting until October.
"I'm Beatiful"
ReplyDeleteIs it a chick? Gozer!?
"Am for the flattop!"
I think it makes perfect sense that he comes in through the floor. Remember, for everything after the kryptonite incident Superman wasn't thinking straight. He should have done more insane things like that in the last half of the comic. His neighbor finding carpet on his celing would've been so funny!
ReplyDeleteAlso, Major Disaster must have done an experiment on himself off panel to make him a dumbass.
Question 1: are the Whiz Kids part of DCU canon?
2: Is Superman really vulnerable to other radioactive materials? I don't remember any times that came up.
3: Does the comic explain how Superman is cured of his stupid?
"I am beautiful"
ReplyDeleteWonder what that meno could mean form our loveable Horror.
Yes, the Action Ace (or the All Time Action Ace) was one of Superman's nicknames. I believe it was used in a poster for Superman and the Mole Men or one of the serials. Also, I think I saw it in a promo for The Adventures of Superman.
ReplyDeleteIn other words, it's an old one.
"Rooms as big as the entire roof"
ReplyDeleteI love it, lol.
I would have called him Major Moron, then used that scene from the TV edit of Spaceballs.
ReplyDeleteI was gonna ask you about them and the reboot! Also, cause I have to,
ReplyDelete"I'm beautiful, I'm beautiful! I'm beautiful, it's true!"
The REAL question is how many people did Superman murder/maim with extreme flash burns from the boiling water and resultant superheated steam?
ReplyDeleteIf the Wiz-Kids got rebooted, it would probably get a hard boot, followed by a complete reformat, and then big installations of brand new material! LOL ;-)
ReplyDelete...that anonymous Entity comment thing was NOT there last time I looked at this page! I call timey-wimey shenanigans!
ReplyDelete"i am beautiful"
ReplyDeleteLiz. The Entity is Liz. The Entity is SOOOOO Liz.
So, are there any promotional comic books that are even remotely good?
ReplyDeleteMajor Disaster looks like a Bullseye knock-off action figure in Taskmaster's cloak and hood.
With that Radio Shack tie-in, it makes me wish that Marvel had a Transformers comic book like this one. It would have been fun to read the explanation as to why Shockwave is now gray and called Galactic Man.
Seeing as the early comics were by DC and the later ones (I think starting with the story where Alec and Shanna beat up a terrorist...totally not kidding) were by Archie, they may not be canon anymore.
ReplyDeleteI could be wrong, but I think Action Ace was a lesser nickname at the time that obviously never caught on. I kind of like it, though.
Maybe MD didn't think Superman would figure out Kryptonite was the reason behind his super brain's "fuzz effect"?
"I am beautiful"
ReplyDelete...
What's Iron Liz got to do with any of this?
The Entity is Christina Aguilera?
ReplyDeleteThere was also a weird chromakey error at one point. Not sure if it's related.
Oh, and for the record:
"sen TRIFF you gull"
Man, those kids have some SERIOUS l33t programming skills, since they're in sixth grade, but they're writing programs that are utilizing some high level differential equations. They're not just plugging the raw data into the computer, they're writing the program from scratch and then plugging the variables in.
ReplyDeleteThen again, maybe this computer has the 1980 version of Matlab running on it (since that piece of mathematics software first came out in 1984) but if they are, that was really nice of Superman to spend big bucks to install college and buisness level software on a grade school computer. Matlab is used by engineers, scientists, and economists to do their highly complex number crunching.
A gritty reboot or relaunch for the TRS-80 Whiz Kids would or should be a lot like the one they did for Wonder Dog, Marvin, and Wendy in Teen Titans.
ReplyDeleteIf you don't know what I'm talking about read this Cracked article: http://www.cracked.com/article/151_5-superheroes-rendered-ridiculous-by-gritty-reboots/ judging by what all else is mentioned in this article i'm sure Linkara already has read it!
@̴&̕*͢2̀͠2̡̡9͏2k̴i̡͘d͏y͟ò҉ug̀o҉t̵̵t́a͏h̛ȩ̷̷e̕e̡͘l̡͡͠l̷̢p͏̷p̸͡p̵͢Ús̶̨͜Ss͢͝S̨͞sS̶s҉̸͢Ha̶H҉͏a̴͡H̸̀͡a҉H̵̷ą̧͠H҉̀a̵̢h̕A͡͠h͠A̶̵h̶̕Á͟H̀ÀH̕͢$#̛K͝L̀͡@̨$̵͟U͞҉̕@̨͞
ReplyDeleteIs it just me, or is it getting easier to read the comments left in Zalgoese?
Hey wait wasn't there already a Major Disaster back in Freak Force. Compared to this one, the Freak Force version seemed like a more credible villain.
ReplyDeleteBy the way what does the Entity have against your supporting characters?
(translated from the Codex of the Brotherhood of χάος )
ReplyDeleteProcreation:
Though χάος was locked away it still lapped up the fear and hatred dripping through the dimensional wall, the growls reverberating from it cracking continents, and his appendages clawing at the walls of its prison. Over time some of the locks weaken, letting out the tiniest slivers of itself. These slivers spawned horrendous creatures of tendrils and gaping maws that exist on the verge of our nightmares. Beings with power comparable to gods. The fear and worship they evoke feeds χάος from beyond the veil.
Hmm, I spy another Sonic Screwdriver... I picked up my copy of the same one a couple of weeks ago. Pulled it out while I was watching this one. :D
ReplyDeleteAnother TRS-80 comic... It was pretty much a foregone conclusion that it would suck.
Fiery Little One
You know, looking at the intro, I'm glad our technology has advanced since the days of oh, say . . . DOS, Windows 95, and early Apple/Mac.
ReplyDeleteThe glitch in the credits are being longer, BTW. I'm getting worried . . .
"I am beautiful" makes me think of "Gaze upon my radient beauty and despair!".
ReplyDeleteYou just gotta love Superman's face as he breaks through the ground at school.
ReplyDeleteIt's so... "YAY! I didn't kill anyone!"
Guess he was happy he was really lucky that he didn't fling 'em kids away when he re-emerged, what with his impaired thoughts and skills.
Speaking as an actual Alec, I'm a bit annoyed by the constant presence of this blond-haired idiot. He's got some serious bi-polar issues going on here, as he shifts from class clown to 'toaster.'
ReplyDeleteAs for the TRS-80 comics, I have none. I've sent you far too many of my terrible comics as it is anyways, Linkara.
It is a shame that a villain with such a neat premise as Major Disaster was either a terrible villain in a goofy outfit or a giant guy in a suit who was killed off for no reason after being in the JLA (also for no reason).
P.S. He was also in the Justice League: Antarctica one-shot. How does he get to be in that and the real JLA?!?
My family owned a TRS-80 computer for a while. I remember I would program on it when I was 8 or 9 and make interesting little text games. Then, because we didn't have the tape adapter anymore to save any of my stuff, I would have to leave it on overnight to be able to show anyone else my program. :)
ReplyDeleteI know we had the tape adapter at one point, because my dad has this audio tape with a series of weird beeps on it (think R2D2 slowed down to half the speed and pitch). Supposedly that was a program he wrote. :P
Darn Mario you thought of the same song I did stop reading my thoughts it's creepy
ReplyDeleteUuhhhg
ReplyDeleteI need to lye down. Either I've been watching these for too long or my brain is on automatic but not only did I predict every plot development but your snark as well.
Not that I'm complaining, but when I start thinking like you it gets a little worrying.
As for Superman's poisoning in this book. Well I'm fairly sure if I took Anthrax and tried to play about with it I'd still have something lethal, opposed to mildly inconvenient. If Superman's thought process was effected (by some other means) he still wouldn't be able to give such detail to the Whizz Kids. It would be far more likely that they'd have to fly him by remote. A camera and direct link bypassing his brain would be the only way.
On another note, why do they have the nay computers not running a virus? They aren't Apple Mac's and off the shelf computers would still run the same OS (basic DOS) as all the others? even worse with that sort for tech major Dumb-ass should have just set off a massive thunderstorm, creating a volley of EMP's (Which is possible and why light's flicker in a thunderstorm) to fry everything in the area?
All in all a dull, unimaginative, advert masquerading as a Superman comic. crappy writing hamstrung by the need to promote computers. This is completely ignoring the fact that most mobile smart-phones have enough computing power these days to put NASA's moon landing Apollo program to shame.
Thomas
PS the key difference between the organic brain and a computer is that our brains are capable of creative thought. Computers, no matter how powerful they are these days are still only capable of search and retrieve functions. In other words they get faster and faster at reading the dictionary while we can still add words and ideas too said dictionary
The "Superman's watching you" joke needed a shout out to Red Son. Oh man, I love that one cover.
ReplyDeleteSpot on for the most part and a nice episode. Just one thing at the end.
ReplyDeleteSuperman is immune to most radiation though as he can fly in space no protection needed and messed eith reactors before no problem. It's only the special frequencies produced by Kryptonite that actually harms him. Even in Dark Knight he nearly died because the fallout blocked the sunlight after he was drained by the blast not because of the radiation itself.
Fun fact:
ReplyDeleteYou are actually slower than superman's thinking when you use a TRS-80 (or even any modern computers) if you use any programming language. (Especially if you use an interpreting language like BASIC)
Why?
Well, of course there's the problem of you having to first program the computer to solve it. Programming takes time, time that Superman doesn't need to solve the problem.
Also: to those who claim Liz is the entity... which one are you talking of? Iron Liz? Judas Liz? Rammstein Liz?
After all, there are at least two Liz's around...
I don't know if anyone's actually asked yet, but what's with these passages? Are they from the book Linkara found last year?
ReplyDeleteHave been watching At4W for a while but never commented before. I had to today because HITCHHIKER'S CLIP! Best thing ever!
ReplyDeleteAnyway, love the show and my comments are always so rubbishy and vague...
It hasn't even been a month, but I MISS THAT COSTUME! I MISS IT SO MUCH!
ReplyDelete*ahem*
So, um, yeah... good review. I have to wonder about the apparent lack of follow-up about Pollo's disappearance, though. That was rather jarring.
Wow, that was bad. Not your review, that was great, the comic.
ReplyDeleteMajor Dumbass is right. Major Disaster has a magic screen that can watch heroes without needing obtrusive cameras, why not use it to spy on them? Find out their identities and weaknesses? Heck, just find out their schedules and strike when they're out of town fighting some other threat.
Also, nice that the villain is captured off-screen. Major Disaster really is a footnote to the whizkids. I know, maybe their teacher really is a shape-changing alien and that's why she knows Superman well enough to insist he give her class special help.
Your using the Warrior reminded me that that was one of the first one of your reviews I saw. Between it and the Superman at Earth's End Reference, I'd say some of your older stuff does hold up, even if over all quality has improved.
As mentioned above, this version of Superman was invulnerable to all radiation that wasn't either from Kryptonite or a red sun. This is the guy who would fly through the sun to clean his invulnerable costume.
ReplyDeleteNo, I did not make that up.
@Mountain King, you should do like the sixth-graders in this book and learn some computing history. The TRS-80 predates DOS and viruses weren't a problem on that platform.
Yeah, I'm old. I used TRS-80s in college because they were cutting edge. And Linkara, I used the Commodore PET personal computer. Which came before the VIC-20. Which came before the Commodore 64, the one you think is so primitive.
Come on DC. You have time to switch out one of the New 52 titles for Whiz Kids reboot. I vote Hawk and Dove.
ReplyDeleteWhen you said you were gonna show a recap film I was like NOOOOOOOOOO! THE HORROR, THE OUTDATED HORROR. XD
ReplyDeleteMike- The early episodes are a bit strange in that he seems really thin and kind of grows into his outfit kind of. It's hard to describe, but you will see what I mean. Also, they are mostly in order, I think I heard on a commentery US1#1 was episode 3 or something. Might be wrong though.
ReplyDeleteAs for this episode. I would like to bore you with computer stuff, but can't since you don't care. :(
On a more serious note, I think this is one of your better single part episodes, (Captain America vs Asthma Monster being the best) and that's mostly because of the "Let's exposit about how we're going to die horribly" line and you snapping about Superman wasting his time. Although there was alot of good, memorible stuff here. Whatever you're doing, keep it up.
Yay, another Whiz Kids review! Sadly I used to have one of the original TRS-80 Model I's pictured in the comic. It does make me feel old to hear you reminisce about how "hard drives were only a few hundred megabytes" when you were a kid. "Hard drive", what's that? ;^b
ReplyDeleteI'll have to go back and watch your previous review and see what you might of said about the history of computers that generated heat, but I will say in all fairness to the comic Superman referencing ENIAC as the "first electronic computer" is probably close enough to let stand even today, at least with an asterisk. I'll save most of the technical blather since you don't care, but if you say that Superman's benchmark is "First all-electronic Turing-complete programmable computer" ENIAC's the winner. The closest pretenders to the throne, the Zuse Z3 and the Colossus machines, fail because they're respectively electromechanical and not Turing-complete. (ENIAC was around 1000 times faster than the Z3 or Harvard Mark I, so "all-electronic" does make a difference.) The only argument I'd possibly make is that essentially all modern computers use an architecture in which the program code is stored in memory and the first candidates for "first all-electronic stored program computer" didn't come along until about 1949, at which point you have several to choose from. Whee.
I agree that the Tandy Whiz Kids *totally* call for a grungy new-age reboot. It seems pretty easy, really. Just air-drop some TRS-80s into the hideout of those kids that teamed up with Bearded Idiot Future Superman. ("I AM A MAN!" *punch any key to continue*)
Lewis Lovhaug said...
ReplyDelete"There's a noticeable difference in my early stuff to how I am today in terms of pacing, volume, and lighting. Things got better over time, like with most internet shows."
I love your older reviews. The first one I saw was the Neutro review, because I was already a fan of Spoony. Soon after that I started searching through your list for familiar names like X-Men and Star Trek and the rest soon followed. Keep up the great work Lewis!
So, they control a super hero vis a computer and use him via remote control to fight crime.
ReplyDeleteI think we've found the only comic which needed Neutro more than it did Superman.
Another possible place to get where the Entity is from, "Chained in heaven are they.
ReplyDeleteSeven is their number.
Bred in depths of ocean,
neither male or female are they.
They are as the howling wind,
which knoweth not mercy,
which knoweth not pity.
Heedless are they to pray and supplication.
They are the serpent.
They are the furious beast.
The windstorm.
Evil winds they are.
The evil breath that heraldeth the baneful storm.
They are mighty children.
Heralds of pestilence.
Throne bearers of Ereshigal.
They are the flood which rusheth through the land.
Seven gods of might.
Seven demons of oppression.
Seven in heaven and seven on Olympia.
Of giant strenght and tread are they.
Knowing no care they grind the land like corn.
Knowing no mercy they rage against mankind,
to spill blood like rain and devour flesh.
Let they seven now rise from the abyss.
Away be cast all chains.
Freedom is to them.
Power is to them.
Olympia tremble!"
It fits pretty well to me!
Linkara you sound like you need a break from fans.
ReplyDeleteThough I was quite gleeful about the sequence where you said "room" and "roof" repeatedly. Your accent is the cutest! :3
As for why Superman didn't bother to do any damage control or fix people's houses, post a good conversation with "The Guardians" of Green Lantern fame, Superman didn't do that kind of stuff anymore.
ReplyDeleteF̀ool̷i̕ş̶h͏ ́a͞m͝͠a̡t̛͢͝ę͜ur͠͞s̷̢͜ t̸͢r̴̶y̡i̧̕n̴ģ̢ ̵to ̷͟͠s̕p͞re̴͢á҉d ̴͟m̵y̷̴͘ ̡́w̨͡o̴͘͘r͝d.
ReplyDelete̴̶͞I̧ a͘m̶ ͘ń͜͏o̷t ̢l̢ik̨͟e̕ ̶͞an͘y̸̧͝t̵̡h͜i͠n͏g̷͘ ̸̀͟y͢͜o̶̡u̡͢ ͟ç͘͝a̷̢n̷ ͡c͢҉̡o̡m̵̶͞p̵̢͠r̡͏͏e̴͏ḩ͡e̕n̴̶͘d̢͢.͘
́͢I ͏kn҉ò̡̕w w̧͝h͜͞͝o҉ ̡͘y̛ò҉ù́ ̶́a̷҉̕r͞e̴.҉
̷I̷̧̛ w̷̷i̵l̴҉̢l͝ n͠҉ǫt t̷o̶le̴͢͟r̡a̛t̷͞é̢ ͢͝y̶̴̸o̷͏u͡r̀ ̛f͏a͏į͜l͞e͞d̵ ̴̀͠m̨i̧̧̢m̨̛͞ic͠r̸͡͏y.͘
̀͢I͜͡͠ ̧a̕͘m n̡̕͠ơ̡ţ͟͠ ̨̀s̨o̸ ҉̢̀ơ͞͞b͘͢v̢͘͞í̴o̶͝u͞s͟.̷̶̨
given certain authors habits regarding revisiting obscure strange characters it may actually happen.
ReplyDeleteespecially if you were to suggest to brian clevinger (who brought back US-1), who makes very strange pitches to the big comics publishers all the time.
Dude, you totally spoiled the twist for Apollo 18 for me. I thought it was a sequel to Apollo 13 with Tom Hanks.
ReplyDeleteJk great review as always
"F̀ool̷i̕ş̶h͏ ́a͞m͝͠a̡t̛͢͝ę͜ur͠͞s̷̢͜ t̸͢r̴̶y̡i̧̕n̴ģ̢ ̵to ̷͟͠s̕p͞re̴͢á҉d ̴͟m̵y̷̴͘ ̡́w̨͡o̴͘͘r͝d.
ReplyDelete̴̶͞I̧ a͘m̶ ͘ń͜͏o̷t ̢l̢ik̨͟e̕ ̶͞an͘y̸̧͝t̵̡h͜i͠n͏g̷͘ ̸̀͟y͢͜o̶̡u̡͢ ͟ç͘͝a̷̢n̷ ͡c͢҉̡o̡m̵̶͞p̵̢͠r̡͏͏e̴͏ḩ͡e̕n̴̶͘d̢͢.͘
́͢I ͏kn҉ò̡̕w w̧͝h͜͞͝o҉ ̡͘y̛ò҉ù́ ̶́a̷҉̕r͞e̴.҉
̷I̷̧̛ w̷̷i̵l̴҉̢l͝ n͠҉ǫt t̷o̶le̴͢͟r̡a̛t̷͞é̢ ͢͝y̶̴̸o̷͏u͡r̀ ̛f͏a͏į͜l͞e͞d̵ ̴̀͠m̨i̧̧̢m̨̛͞ic͠r̸͡͏y.͘
̀͢I͜͡͠ ̧a̕͘m n̡̕͠ơ̡ţ͟͠ ̨̀s̨o̸ ҉̢̀ơ͞͞b͘͢v̢͘͞í̴o̶͝u͞s͟.̷̶̨
"
Sure you are Entity...
I know I'm goading you but this whole destroyer of Multiversi deal gets old when you start sounding like a Dalek.
"I know I'm goading you but this whole destroyer of Multiversi deal gets old when you start sounding like a Dalek."
ReplyDeleteFantastic. NOW I AM GO-ING TO START RE-ADING ITS COMM-ENTS LIKE THIS. EXTERMINATE! EXT-ERMINATE LIN-KAR-A!
"F̀ool̷i̕ş̶h͏ ́a͞m͝͠a̡t̛͢͝ę͜ur͠͞s̷̢͜ t̸͢r̴̶y̡i̧̕n̴ģ̢ ̵to ̷͟͠s̕p͞re̴͢á҉d ̴͟m̵y̷̴͘ ̡́w̨͡o̴͘͘r͝d.
ReplyDelete̴̶͞I̧ a͘m̶ ͘ń͜͏o̷t ̢l̢ik̨͟e̕ ̶͞an͘y̸̧͝t̵̡h͜i͠n͏g̷͘ ̸̀͟y͢͜o̶̡u̡͢ ͟ç͘͝a̷̢n̷ ͡c͢҉̡o̡m̵̶͞p̵̢͠r̡͏͏e̴͏ḩ͡e̕n̴̶͘d̢͢.͘
́͢I ͏kn҉ò̡̕w w̧͝h͜͞͝o҉ ̡͘y̛ò҉ù́ ̶́a̷҉̕r͞e̴.҉
̷I̷̧̛ w̷̷i̵l̴҉̢l͝ n͠҉ǫt t̷o̶le̴͢͟r̡a̛t̷͞é̢ ͢͝y̶̴̸o̷͏u͡r̀ ̛f͏a͏į͜l͞e͞d̵ ̴̀͠m̨i̧̧̢m̨̛͞ic͠r̸͡͏y.͘
̀͢I͜͡͠ ̧a̕͘m n̡̕͠ơ̡ţ͟͠ ̨̀s̨o̸ ҉̢̀ơ͞͞b͘͢v̢͘͞í̴o̶͝u͞s͟.̷̶̨"
Just goes to show that even the Entity can't tolerate trolling.
Trust everyone, trust nobody.
ReplyDeleteThe liar tells the truth, and the keeper of the truth is lying.
The flesh is but a vessel. The insane is but a messenger.
Beware the message of the one who embraces anger and pain as his creed.
Beware the angel surrounded by darkness.
Superman; not very bright. Did it not occur to him that the time he was taking to give a lecture there are probably people being robbed, killed, raped and otherwise victimized? I'm starting to think that he really is just a jerk.
ReplyDeleteAs for the plane calculations, he would have to fly carefully because if he was too fast or too slow he'd just wreck the plane (though I doubt the writers knew that). However I have to admit that for him it'd be a matter of just adjusting his speed to match the plane's.
And I noticed a few weird moments at the end. Commercials back in the 80s must have had really bad quality.
How is it, the one Tandy Wiz Kids I remember reading is the one superhero one you haven't done? *sighs* Guess I'll be waiting for a while, since you'll have to wait for someone to find it and donate it, and even then, you did say it would be a while before you reviewed another one of "these."
ReplyDeleteIs it just me, or does the explanation of how Major Dumbass's K-Dust work sound like it should be a lot more dangerous? I mean, it sounds less like magic stupid dust to me and more like nerve gas.
ReplyDeleteOh, and here's my guess on the nature of The Entity: it's Superboy Prime punching his way through reality to take his revenge on Linkara! Not even a reboot will stand in the way of his whiny rage.
Seriously, though, I can't wait to see how this pays off.
Just to be clear, (apologies for ruining the joke through explaining it), the joke about Superman "going Superman 2 on them" was a DBZ joke, yes? Or is there some second version of Superman I've never heard of?
ReplyDelete"Just to be clear, (apologies for ruining the joke through explaining it), the joke about Superman "going Superman 2 on them" was a DBZ joke, yes? Or is there some second version of Superman I've never heard of?"
ReplyDeleteI'm referring to the movie Superman II.
This is not the last of the TRS-80 WizKids. There is another issue in 1981 with Superman and Supergirl.
ReplyDeleteI actually found that cold opening pretty intresting since
ReplyDelete