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[Superworld] Build These Heroes Contest


seneschal

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I believe the movie was based on this iteration of the heroine http://www.giantsizegeek.com/2011/03/introducing-new-wonder-woman.html.

I have all those Mrs. Peel Wonder Woman issues. They're pretty good for the most part and the Mike Sekowsky art is great. Don't really believe the Crosby version was based on it, though, as I don't see much similarity. Seems more like a misguided "improvement" by TV writers/producers, not unlike the recent David Kelley "improved" version. 'Cause obviously folks who never have and never would read the comics know better.

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More info on the Diana Prince series:

http://www.fanzing.com/mag/fanzing37/feature7.shtml

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I_Ching_%28comics%29

And the source material for my write-up:

Wonder Woman 1974 Pt 1

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cT8QJbTWlXs

Wonder Woman 1974 Pt 2

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=amIxivB3QT0

Wonder Woman 1974 Pt 3

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oo8AMnRt3P0

Wonder Woman 1974 Pt 4

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_UECuEoin4A

Wonder Woman 1974 Pt 5

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m0FqPdLdGAI

You can judge for yourself how cool or how lame the Crosby version was. ;) And compare it with the mod late Sixties version of Wonder Woman. Since this was just a pilot, a pitch demo, who knows what might have happened with a series? Different lead actress, better special effects, more developed plots. True, the 1974 Wonder Woman pilot didn't measure up to the Linda Carter series, but it was at least as good as the 1977 Spider-Man live action show, which did get a green light. Ah, the Seventies! ;D

Anyone up for write-ups of the TV versions of Hulk, Spider-Man, Linda Carter Wonder Woman, Dr. Strange, or Captain America? Or The Man From Atlantis, the Six-Million-Dollar Man, the Bionic Woman, M.A.N.T.I.S., Automan, Street Hawk, Manimal, Gemni Man, the Invisible Man (both of them), or NightMan?

Edited by seneschal
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More info on the Diana Prince series:

http://www.fanzing.com/mag/fanzing37/feature7.shtml

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I_Ching_%28comics%29

And the source material for my write-up:

Wonder Woman 1974 Pt 1

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cT8QJbTWlXs

Wonder Woman 1974 Pt 2

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=amIxivB3QT0

Wonder Woman 1974 Pt 3

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oo8AMnRt3P0

Wonder Woman 1974 Pt 4

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_UECuEoin4A

Wonder Woman 1974 Pt 5

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m0FqPdLdGAI

You can judge for yourself how cool or how lame the Crosby version was. ;) And compare it with the mod late Sixties version of Wonder Woman. Since this was just a pilot, a pitch demo, who knows what might have happened with a series? Different lead actress, better special effects, more developed plots. True, the 1974 Wonder Woman pilot didn't measure up to the Linda Carter series, but it was at I have all those Mrs. Peel Wonder Woman issues. They're pretty good for the most part and the Mike Sekowsky art is great. Don't really believe the Crosby version was based on it, though, as I don't see much similarity. Seems more like a misguided "improvement" by TV writers/producers, not unlike the recent David Kelley "improved" version. 'Cause obviously folks who never have and never would read the comics know better. least as good as the 1977 Spider-Man live action show, which did get a green light. Ah, the Seventies! ;D

Anyone up for write-ups of the TV versions of Hulk, Spider-Man, Linda Carter Wonder Woman, Dr. Strange, or Captain America? Or The Man From Atlantis, the Six-Million-Dollar Man, the Bionic Woman, M.A.N.T.I.S., Automan, Street Hawk, Manimal, Gemni Man, the Invisible Man (both of them), or NightMan?

I would rank the '77 Spider-Man show high above Crosby WW; indeed, I like it better than the Spidey movies.

Would LOVE to see write-ups of TV super heroes. That's the power level I prefer for my games. Don't forget the Rex Smith Daredevil done as a backdoor pilot in Trial of the Incredible Hulk!

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A postscript on Cathy Lee Crosby. In 1975, while Linda Carter was starring as Wonder Woman, Crosby played another immortal heroine from ancient Greek myth. She was a villainous Helen of Troy in an episode of Kolchak: The Night Stalker, "The Youth Killer." Seems she maintained her eternal beauty by siphoning off the youth of healthy specimens located by her computer dating service, causing her unwitting sacrifices to Hecate to die of extreme old age in a matter of minutes. Evil, yes. But she looked terrific in that white Grecian dress. ;) And she had that same knowing air of assurance she'd had as Wonder Woman. Too bad. She bested Ricardo Montalban only to be defeated by Darrin McGavin. ;D

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And looping back around to comic books: When Atlas started up in '75 (or so), the creative types wanted to do a licensed Kolchak comic book, but the publisher was too cheap to pay the fees. Thus was born The Cougar, subject of a two-part entry on my blog.

Would love to see some Superworld/BRP write-ups of the Atlas heroes: The Cougar, The Brute, Tiger-Man, The Destructor, et al.

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Moonstone Books is currently publishing a Kolchak comics series, FYI. ;) They also publish a bunch of titles based on vintage comics, radio drama and pulp characters -- and occasionally mix and match them.

http://moonstonebooks.com/shop/category.aspx?catid=25

On to more heroes. He was from the Nineties rather than the Seventies, but one of my favorite TV superheroes was M.A.N.T.I.S., an interesting character with a cool costume. Unfortunately, fantasy and science fiction programs are fragile things subject to early cancellation, and M.A.N.T.I.S. survived only one season (now out on DVD, BTW).

M.A.N.T.I.S.

Dr. Miles Hawkins was a wealthy physician and medical researcher, founder and CEO of his own medical technology company. He bitterly withdrew from the world when he was paralyzed from the waist down after being shot in the back by a police sniper during a riot. Dr. Hawkins wasn’t participating in the riot; he was an innocent bystander who attempted to assist injured people near him. He was persuaded to come back to work by his friend and chief engineer, John Stonebrake, who threatened to quit otherwise. After a series of crises in his home city, he was persuaded to use his futuristic technology to become the vigilante M.A.N.T.I.S., donning an exoskeleton (the Mechanically Augmented Neuro Transmitter Interception System) which enabled him to walk again, proved bulletproof, and also granted him super strength, heightened agility, and the ability to make fantastic leaps. The exoskeleton didn’t really make Hawkins look like a praying mantis, but he certainly did look bug-like. Refusing to use guns, since he’d been crippled by one, the M.A.N.T.I.S.’ signature weapons were tiny electromagnetic darts which paralyzed the target for one hour. He used them to freeze crooks into immobility until the police arrived. Like any good pulp vigilante, he also left his emblem on his captives’ bodies, small metal praying mantises. The exoskeleton’s helmet originally possessed a narcotic gas and strobe light system that enabled the vigilante to hypnotize and interrogate suspects. Hawkins discontinued using it when he discovered that it might cause his subjects permanent neural damage. He continued to operate as a vigilante even after Stonebrake warned him that prolonged use of the exoskeleton could further damage his own nervous system, preventing future recovery. M.A.N.T.I.S. patrolled the skies of Port Columbia in a sleek hovercraft/flying car, the Chrysalid, which used holographic projection to camouflage its parking places. M.A.N.T.I.S. was hunted by police Lt. Leora Maxwell, a hardnosed lady cop who couldn’t help falling for the suave, handsome Dr. Hawkins. The vigilante was assisted in his investigations by bicycle courier Taylor Savage, who had lots of contacts on the street.

M.A.N.T.I.S. was a 1994 TV series that lasted only one season, 24 episodes, killed by poor writing in the latter half. Its cancellation was unfortunate because the characters, costumes, acting, and special effects were good. The series was notable in that it featured TV’s first live action black superhero. It had been preceded by a television movie/pilot with a different location (Ocean City), different supporting characters (a TV newsman and an assistant medical examiner/love interest), and a blaxpoloitation storyline straight out of the Seventies. In the pilot, the riot in which Dr. Hawkins had been crippled was part of a plot by evil white policemen to stir up violence in black neighborhoods so that the cops would have an excuse to crack down hard on the community and win a mayoral bid by the police commissioner. The incumbent mayor was, naturally, African-American. As M.A.N.T.I.S., Hawkins wore a suit over the exoskeleton, the skeleton’s eye pieces making him look like a cybernetic Malcolm X. He was assisted by a pair of foreign exchange students whose primary qualification was that they were straight off the boat from Africa, since a black American scientist surely couldn’t receive aid from fellow countrymen who happened to be Caucasian. Fortunately, the writers dropped all that nonsense in the series.

Powers, Abilities, and Weaknesses

Dr. Hawkins was a skilled physician and, with Stonebrake’s technical input, a brilliant medical inventor. Bitter and acerbic at the series’ beginning, he warmed up to become a charming and persuasive person after the exoskeleton restored his mobility (at least part of the time) and gave him new purpose for living. He learned to mask his turbulent thoughts and emotions beneath an air of smooth urbanity. Who could suspect this polished, and physically handicapped, professional of being the weird, energetic urban legend sought by the authorities?

In terms of abilities, M.A.N.T.I.S. was sort of an amalgam of Batman and Iron Man. The black and gunmetal grey exoskeleton enabled Hawkins to move normally by bypassing his damaged spinal cord; the artificial stimulation also granted him enhanced strength, incredible agility, and leaping ability. Exactly how strong it made him is hard to determine. The vigilante could toss thugs around easily and at one point wrestled a robot, but he couldn’t stop cars in their tracks or burst through walls. The exoskeleton’s neural headpiece effectively masked his features and disguised his voice. The suit’s batteries weren’t inexhaustible, however, and M.A.N.T.I.S. occasionally found himself helpless when it ran out of juice, usually when criminal goons were closing in on him. The exoskeleton was also vulnerable to water and electricity, both of which disrupted its functions. Fortunately, his paralytic darts still worked when his suit didn’t. The Chrysalid could function underwater as well as in the air and was housed in a secret submerged base from which Hawkins and his helpers conducted their operations.

STR 11/25

CON 14

SIZ 14

INT 17

POW 14

DEX 16/23

APP 16

Move: 0/10

Hit Points: 14 (28 CON + SIZ option)

Damage Bonus: +1D4/+1D6

Armor: 20 AP kinetic, 3 heat and cold

Attacks: Brawl 69%, 1D3 + DB; Grapple 69%, 1D3 + DB; Paralytic Dart 76/90%, STR 14 Entangle

Skills: Climb 40%, Craft (Medical Equipment) 52%, Dodge 76/90%, First Aid 74% , Jump 69%, Language (English) 85%, Medicine 52%, Persuade 59%, Pilot (The Chrysalid) 45%, Projection 76/90%, Research 69%, Science (Biophysics) 49%, Spot 69%, Status 59%, Technical (Computer Use) 45%

Powers:

Armor 17 (kinetic), 3 (heat/cold), 23 points

Extra Energy, +50 energy points, 5 points

Leap, 4 levels (+8 meters horizontal, +4 meters vertical), 4 points

Paralytic Darts – Snare Projection, 14 levels, 42 points

Super Characteristic – +14 STR, 14 points; + 7 DEX, 21 points

Failings:

Superhero identity must be turned on in an obvious, preventable manner; is dependent on a removable item (the exoskeleton), +2 character points

Physical frailty (paraplegia), fulltime, +3 character points

Hunted by Port Columbia police, +2 character points

Notes: Dr. Hawkins had 102 starting character points based on his characteristics, plus 7 more for Failings, total 109. He had 500 professional skill points plus 170 personal skill points based on INT, total 670. Profession: Doctor

Sources:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M.A.N.T.I.S.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0108843/

http://vimeo.com/59934396

http://www.tv.com/shows/mantis/

http://www.tv.com/shows/mantis/episodes/

http://blip.tv/thescarletspider/mmm-mantis-tv-series-or-m-a-n-t-i-s-pilot-6534239

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http://www.atlasarchives.com/index.html

Re:Atlas/Seaboard Comics. I'd seen pictures of Tiger-Man while poking around on the web, but the only Atlas hero whose comic I've actually read is The Tarantula. In 1975 my junior high school library in San Diego inexplicably had an issue (which one I'm not sure). I recall he was more horror than hero, a nobleman cursed to become a were-spider with the culinary lifestyle that implies. A more realistic, if ickier, take on having spider powers than the whole Peter Parker thing. Other comics publishers were putting out titles featuring vampires, werewolves, etc., around the same time, so Count Eugene Lycosa fit right into the mix. Given that most of Atlas' lines lasted only two or three issues, it is a miracle I met The Tarantula at all. I'm just grateful it was by proxy rather than in person. =O

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  • 4 months later...

I've posted Superworld/BGB write-ups of The Penguin, Birdman, and Hawkman in the Superworld thread in the More Games section.

http://basicroleplaying.com/showthread.php/3425-Superworld/page6

Without meaning to, I somehow got on a bird theme. However, here's a non-avian villain (although he did oppose Hawkman):

The Shadow-Thief

Source: The Brave and the Bold #36, June-July 1961

Convicted burglar Carl Sands spent his incarceration brooding over the fact that his shadow had given away his hiding place to the police. After his release, he became an amateur physicist, making a particular study of the properties of light. One of his experiments opened a portal to a parallel dimension, where a trapped alien being was calling for help. Sands rescued the alien, who rewarded him with an unearthly wrist-mounted gadget called the Dimensiometer, which enabled him to shift his body partially into another world, leaving only his shadow behind. Accompanying the device was a pair of long gloves which would enable Sands to grasp objects on Earth while in shadow form. Sands, of course, immediately applied these well-meant gifts to crime and persisted in his activities even after his alien benefactor warned him the Dimensiometer’s continued use would eventually bring on a new ice age, ending life on Earth.

Card Sands is a wiry Mediterranean-looking man with a Vandyke beard. In addition to possessing burglary skills, he has become a competent scientist and inventor. As the Shadow-Thief he wears a ninja-like catsuit and hood (though these have no affect on his powers) along with the Dimensiometer. When intangible, he appears only as an elongated silhouette and is able to seize valuables and walk through walls while remaining unaffected by bullets, gas, flame, nets, sonic attacks, electricity, or grasping hands. His shadow form can’t fly, so gravity still affects him. His initial crime spree ended when Hawkman tricked him into plummeting from a great height, requiring Sands to turn off the Dimensiometer so that the Winged Wonder could rescue him.

Sands isn’t a brawler since he’s intangible; police and bystanders can’t touch him, and he likewise can’t punch an opponent. He uses various energy pistols he has invented to throw pursuers off his track. The Shadow-Thief is more interested in getting away than in beating up his foes, since he’s anxious to spend his ill-gotten gains. He usually targets small but expensive items that he can stuff in his intangible handbag such as bundled bank notes, gems, jewelry, rare coins, or small but expensive statuary. But he’ll also commit less-profitable thefts just for the thrill of it and because it will hasten Earth’s demise (he’s confident that he can escape into another dimension).

STR 13

CON 18

SIZ 13

INT 16

POW12

DEX10

APP 11

Move: 10

Hit Points: 16 (31 CON+SIZ)

Damage Bonus: +1D4

Armor: 10 (electricity, light, sound, wind)

Attacks: Brawl 25%, 1D3+DB; Grapple 25%, 1D3+DB; Energy Pistol 67%, 1D6

Skills: Appraise 62%, Bargain 52%, Climb 40%, Fast Talk 52%, Fine Manipulation 52%, Heavy Machine 48%, Hide 57%, Jump 25%, Knowledge (Locksmithing) 52%, Projection 67%, Science (Physics) 50%, Repair (Electronics) 62%, Repair (Mechanical) 62%, Research 72%, Sleight of Hand 52%, Stealth 57%,

Powers:

Dimensiometer – Intangibility, 26 levels, can move self and up to 80 pounds of loot through one meter of wall per round, costs 1 power point per SIZ plus 1 per round, limit – can’t “air walk” (+26 power points), (26)

Energy Pistol – Energy Projection (radiation), 1 level, 1D6, 1 power point per use (10)

He’s Not All There – Armor 10 each vs. electricity, light, sound, wind (40)

Extra Energy – +210 power points (21)

Failings: Greed (+2); Super ID must be turned on, can take away Dimensiometer (+1); Member of socially excluded group – ex-convict (+1)

Notes: Shadow-Thief had 93 power points based on unmodified, randomly rolled characteristics, plus 4 more for Failings, total 97. He had 500 skill points plus 160 personal skill points based on INT. The Shadow-Thief's armor against assorted energy types is tied to his Intangibility. His defenses go away when he becomes solid again. Intangibility already protects him against kinetic, heat and cold damage.

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  • 2 weeks later...
  • 2 weeks later...

http://www.atlasarchives.com/index.html

Re:Atlas/Seaboard Comics. I'd seen pictures of Tiger-Man while poking around on the web, but the only Atlas hero whose comic I've actually read is The Tarantula. In 1975 my junior high school library in San Diego inexplicably had an issue (which one I'm not sure). I recall he was more horror than hero, a nobleman cursed to become a were-spider with the culinary lifestyle that implies. A more realistic, if ickier, take on having spider powers than the whole Peter Parker thing. Other comics publishers were putting out titles featuring vampires, werewolves, etc., around the same time, so Count Eugene Lycosa fit right into the mix. Given that most of Atlas' lines lasted only two or three issues, it is a miracle I met The Tarantula at all. I'm just grateful it was by proxy rather than in person. =O

I've managed to acquire about 75-80% of Atlas' comics output via bargain bins over the past decade, one or two comics at a time. I really enjoy their super heroes. Grittier than Marvel, without any baggage or history to be sorted, drawn by good artists and usually pretty well written. They get a bad rap sometimes by folks who claim they were aping Marvel, but I say (1) the first couple of issues were clearly NOT aping Marvel and in fact came at super heroes from a whole other angle and (2) the few that suddenly did ape Marvel due to publisher fiat for one final issue before cancellation : tell me, aside from Archie, who WASN'T aping Marvel? DC hired Marvel guys explicitly to Marvelize DC comics in hopes of emulating Marvel's sales (in the process removing anything that actually made DC an alternative for those not enamored of the Marvel soap opera style).

I recommend Tiger-Man, the first 2 Destructor issues, The Cougar, and The Brute!

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  • 7 months later...

I have all those Mrs. Peel Wonder Woman issues. They're pretty good for the most part and the Mike Sekowsky art is great. Don't really believe the Crosby version was based on it, though, as I don't see much similarity. Seems more like a misguided "improvement" by TV writers/producers, not unlike the recent David Kelley "improved" version. 'Cause obviously folks who never have and never would read the comics know better.

I've been watching what is apparently the third season of Wonder Woman on MeTV, and I'm surprised at how much the Carter version came to resemble the Crosby version once the setting was updated from the Forties to the Seventies.  Linda Carter's Wonder Woman is an agent for a government intelligence agency; her boss is Steve Trevor (and he isn't her lover); and she can put the smackdown on goons even as Diana Prince, although she usually switches to super form to interrogate the bad guys.  Since her secret identity doesn't always wear glasses and lets her hair down when dressing casually, it is a wonder nobody ever notices the resemblance between the two.  At least Superman is consistent about it as Clark Kent.  ;)

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