Dance, D-Man, Dance!

I glommed this pretty little number by Rusty Shackles from the LET'S DRAW D-MAN! tumblr, which is chock full of Dennis Dunphy. More Dennis Dunphy than any man can handle, really. Do not look directly at the Dennis Dunphy, lest his awesomeness blind you.

Villains With Potential-Dr. Bong

I haven't done one of these in a while, so I thought I'd start it off with a BONG! Get it? Bong? Bang? No? Too New Yorker?

Anyway, Dr. Bong. God love him, he's a useless sort of villain. If you make him edgy, you eradicate the limited amount of cool he has. If you keep him whacky, he'll be a long-term resident of comic-book purgatory. Or, as in Dr. Bong's case, you get your arms cut off by Deadpool and handed over to the Secret Avengers after an over-complicated plot involving clones.

Bong started off as a quirky Frankenstein, playing with the building blocks of creation in order to...well, nobody really knows. To get girls? It wasn't really clear. Howard the Duck was involved. It was a crazy time. Then he reappeared, having gotten himself a doctorate in psychology, which, frankly, is where he should have stayed.

There's a lot of potential there...a super-villain psychiatrist. We've seen the face version numerous times, but a heel? That has potential. Even bad guys need therapy, after all. In fact, one might be inclined to think that the baddies, on the whole, probably need it more than the goodies.

See, the kicker is that Bong is actually a competent therapist. He's just not a very nice one. Which makes him the perfect guy to help the Shocker overcome his feelings of inferiority and go on to bigger and better things. Or to help the Trapster realize his true potential. Bong, despite (or perhaps because of) his inherent ridiculousness, is a master manipulator second to none, propping up his peers in the world of costumed villainy with rousing mantras and pep-talks. He makes Mandrill realize that his Oedipal obsessions will never be fulfilled and aids the Owl in regaining focus.

Dr. Bong, motivational speaker, is available for engagements of any size. Need to get the legions of Hydra pumped? Call Dr. Bong.* Need to improve the workplace environment of AIM's Manhattan facilities? Dr. Bong is adept at improving office inter-relations.** Got a paralyzing fear of short Canadians with hygiene issues and Bowie knives sprouting from between their knuckles? Dr. Bong can show you the power of positive thinking!***

*Mind-altering drugs provided at no extra charge.

**Body disposal extra.

***Dr. Bong is not responsible for any spontaneous disembowelment, decapitation or mutilation which may occur.

He's Bluffing...

Brian Hurtt's version of the iconic poker games. Glommed from here. That is a thing of beauty right there. And is that the Beyonder back there? Lovely.

Prepare To Be Boarded!

Colleen Coover gets piratical with a commission for Bully, the Little Stuffed Bull, which is naut(ical) but awesome. Lucky little bull.

Ha! Get it? 'Naut'? Like naught? Get it? No?

I'll stop now.

"None of us will leave this room alive!"

Anyone who knows me knows I'm a big fan of history, particularly the history of the early Twentieth Century, so you'll understand when I say that this book here looks like it'll be hitting every one of my interest buttons. Rasputin? Check. British agents? Check. Inferences of the Great Game, between Great Britain and the Russian Empire? Check. Webleys? Check. Do yourself a favor and check out the twenty page preview over at Comics Alliance.

Strange Tuesdays

First off, head over to the Black Gate Magazine blog and check out this wonderful rundown on Dr. Strange by Matthew David Surridge. It's a nice long in-depth examination of his first appearance, and Surridge makes some interesting points, which dovetail nicely with my own thoughts on the subject. Definitely give it a read.

And if that's not enough, take a look at these awesome redesigns of Strange's rogues gallery by the amazingly talented Jemma Salume! Gimme MGK on writing and Salume on art and you've got me by the wallet.