Knock-off Characters

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Has there ever been a knock-off character that is better than the original? And is that anything to do with the potential in the character rather than just decent writing.

I was considering this when thinking about the current She-Hulk series. I prefer it to any Hulk comic I have read, and think on the whole the Hulk is quite limited. But equally is the current quality of She-Hulk comic anything to do with the potential in the character, who is - when you boil it down - a relatively generic strong character. Her unique selling points seem to be
a) Female & strong (doesn't exactly narrow her down)
b) link to Hulk
c) Lawyer
d) (Since Byrne, fun-loving rep)
None of which seem all that unique.

Thorts? Knock-off, spin-offs, shameless copyright protection scams...

― Pete (Pete), Monday, 12 June 2006 11:48 (twenty years ago)

e) Equally intelligent in both forms, but actually acts smarter in human form because she can't just hit things. Though this is probably just Slott's take on her than an intrinstic character attribute.

Cerebus
Depending on who you believe, Swamp Thing
Black Racer

― Andrew Farrell (afarrell), Monday, 12 June 2006 12:03 (twenty years ago)

"She-Thing"

Huh-huh-huh, huh-huh-huh.

― 100% CHAMPS with a Yes! Attitude. (Austin, Still), Monday, 12 June 2006 12:50 (twenty years ago)

Moon Knight

― David R. (popshots75`), Monday, 12 June 2006 13:03 (twenty years ago)

I guess, initially, Hawkeye was more interesting than Green Arrow. then, the original imitiated the imitator.

― veronica moser (veronica moser), Monday, 12 June 2006 13:47 (twenty years ago)

Power Girl was a knock off of Supergirl but seemed to do better because she actually had a personality (even tho it was often just "I've got big tits and I don't care!")

― Mark Co (Markco), Monday, 12 June 2006 14:15 (twenty years ago)

That's quite a personality.

― DV (dirtyvicar), Monday, 12 June 2006 15:33 (twenty years ago)

Tom Strong is a far more interesting character than Superman.

― DV (dirtyvicar), Monday, 12 June 2006 15:40 (twenty years ago)

I'M NOT SO SURE

― David R. (popshots75`), Monday, 12 June 2006 16:22 (twenty years ago)

Tom Strong's not really a direct Supes knock off either - he's more like an amalgamation of Supes and the FF.

― chap who would dare to be a nerd, not a geek (chap), Monday, 12 June 2006 16:25 (twenty years ago)

And Doc Savage, no? (i've never read Tom Strong, but, just from the covers)

― Huk-L (Huk-L), Monday, 12 June 2006 16:32 (twenty years ago)

Yeah, there's certainly a strong thirties pulp element. You should give it a shot, Huk, I think it would be up your street. It has a talking gorilla and a robot butler and immortal Nazis and good stuff like that.

― chap who would dare to be a nerd, not a geek (chap), Monday, 12 June 2006 16:47 (twenty years ago)

IMMORTAL SEX NAZI LADIES. Yes, Tom Strong is the best comic ever.

My favourite bit is when he met all the alternate universe Tom Strongs, including White Trash Tom Strong.

Actually, my real favourite bit is when he went into an alternate universe and met his cartoon analogue - Warren Strong, the Coney of Courage (who was a rabbit, hence the soriquet).

― DV (dirtyvicar), Monday, 12 June 2006 20:13 (twenty years ago)

convince me to buy tom strong too

― s1ocki (slutsky), Monday, 12 June 2006 20:23 (twenty years ago)

If I moved to Mtl, could we be pals, Slocki?

― Huk-L (Huk-L), Monday, 12 June 2006 20:49 (twenty years ago)

you better believe it

― s1ocki (slutsky), Monday, 12 June 2006 21:21 (twenty years ago)

Tom Strong is fine—not awesome—just fine. its companion book, Terra Obscura, is not very good at all.

― veronica moser (veronica moser), Monday, 12 June 2006 21:41 (twenty years ago)

how much of it is actually written by alan moore?

― s1ocki (slutsky), Monday, 12 June 2006 21:42 (twenty years ago)

Tom Strong: Up till halfway through volume four.
Terra Obscura: Plotted by Moore, scripted by Hogan.

p.s. Slocki, you should buy Tom Strong.

― chap who would dare to be a nerd, not a geek (chap), Monday, 12 June 2006 22:08 (twenty years ago)

IMMORTAL SEX NAZI LADIES.

So is Tom Strong Alan Moore's version of SuperHellboy?

― c(''c) (Leee), Monday, 12 June 2006 22:23 (twenty years ago)

If the books just collected the Alan Moore (and Leah Moore) Tom Strong stories, they would rock total balls.

― kit brash (kit brash), Tuesday, 13 June 2006 14:38 (twenty years ago)

fucking hell, i'm going to have to buy tom strong, aren't i

― s1ocki (slutsky), Tuesday, 13 June 2006 14:45 (twenty years ago)

bwah hah hah

IIRC, the Brubaker / Casey issues were pretty good, too.

― David R. (popshots75`), Tuesday, 13 June 2006 14:50 (twenty years ago)

those ABC books are eminently buyable. also i love mr. moore.

― s1ocki (slutsky), Tuesday, 13 June 2006 14:52 (twenty years ago)

The Hogan stories in vol 4 are pretty good, but the Geoff Johns story is terrible. First thing I've read by Mr. Johns, by the way.

― chap who would dare to be a nerd, not a geek (chap), Tuesday, 13 June 2006 16:15 (twenty years ago)

The second volume of Tom Strong is the shit, and also the point at which Moore starts to indulge his "League Of Extraordinary Gentlemen" type giant universe building, every-panel-a-reference fetish, which is probably my favourite thing about him in general. Moore's old quote about ABC Comics being sort of like paralell universe comics, that all of them are the hypothetical results of what could've happened if comics had gone in a diferent direction sometime along their evolution...I think Tom Strong represents that ethos best of all.

Also:

"B-but what about people who don't read A.B.C. books?"

"Why, they're just scum, Timmy."

"Ha ha ha ha!"

― Daniel_Rf (Daniel_Rf), Tuesday, 13 June 2006 16:24 (twenty years ago)

ok daniel make me buy this stuff even more. go ahead, try.

― s1ocki (slutsky), Wednesday, 14 June 2006 00:26 (nineteen years ago)

Well, you know, the first volume is just awesome straight-ahead adventure stories, coasting by on the gigantic cool factor of TALKING MONKEY/ROBOT BUTLER. The second is like the comics equivalent of someone making you a really great mixtape - I mean, it has something for everyone, Golden Age superheroism, funny animal styles, "2000 AD" tech madness, weirdo sci-fi, Young Tom Strong even reminds me a lot of the european adventure comic tradition...and the thing is, all of it is done with this utter sense of fun, it probably counts as pastiche somewhat, I mean there's a lot of winking involved, but not so much that it becomes hateful towards the genres it's playing with, Moore's love of comics really shines through. And the art is so awesome, too, changes its mood according to genre of course, but maintains a pretty high quality throughout (well, I'm not too fond of the Space Family Strong thing, but I'm not too into that style of drawing, anyway.)

At one part, Tom Strong gets trapped somewhere where the atmosphere is tricking him by making his youthful dreams come alive - these include a sequel book to "Finnegan's Wake" ("Finn Wakes Agen") and a Marx Brothers movie with a script by Salvador Dali!

― Daniel_Rf (Daniel_Rf), Wednesday, 14 June 2006 01:01 (nineteen years ago)

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