Jab’s Builds! (Beaker! Sam Eagle! Miss Piggy! The Swedish Chef!)
- Batgirl III
- Posts: 3626
- Joined: Tue Nov 08, 2016 6:17 am
- Location: Portland, Oregon
Re: Jab's Builds! (Santerians! Siege! Strong Guy! Schizoid Man! Miles Morales!)
I don't think Bumblebee being a "shelf warmer" should be read as any sort of signifier on race relations. As Jab points out, she's a D-List (C-List at best) character whose heyday in the comics was in the 1970s and whose only major recent appearance was as a tertiary cast-member of season two of the cruely cancelled Young Justice cartoon.
Wonder Woman has been a popular heroine since 1941... Supergirl debuted in 1958. Batgirl has been around since 1967. Their individual popularity has waxed and waned over the years, but we're talking serious pop culture inertia here.
I've heard it said that the Superman "S Shield" is almost as well recognized worldwide as the Christian cross or the American flag. The Batman symbol and Double-W are probably at least as well known in the U.S, Canada, and Western Europe.
The average "man on the street" who isn't a comics fan would most likely recognize Superfirl, Batgirl, or Wonder Woman if you showed them a picture... Pop culture osmosis would probably let them tell you a fair bit of basic biography on them too boot! Meanwhile, plenty of comics fans might have trouble identifying Bumblebee, Katana, Zatana, or some of the other cast members.
Wonder Woman has been a popular heroine since 1941... Supergirl debuted in 1958. Batgirl has been around since 1967. Their individual popularity has waxed and waned over the years, but we're talking serious pop culture inertia here.
I've heard it said that the Superman "S Shield" is almost as well recognized worldwide as the Christian cross or the American flag. The Batman symbol and Double-W are probably at least as well known in the U.S, Canada, and Western Europe.
The average "man on the street" who isn't a comics fan would most likely recognize Superfirl, Batgirl, or Wonder Woman if you showed them a picture... Pop culture osmosis would probably let them tell you a fair bit of basic biography on them too boot! Meanwhile, plenty of comics fans might have trouble identifying Bumblebee, Katana, Zatana, or some of the other cast members.
BARON wrote:I'm talking batgirl with batgirl. I love you internet.
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- Posts: 24689
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Supergirl
SUPERGIRL (Kara Zor-El)
Played By: Anais Fairweather
Role: Clumsy Girl
PL 9 (163)
STRENGTH 10 STAMINA 10 AGILITY 0
FIGHTING 6 DEXTERITY 0
INTELLIGENCE 2 AWARENESS 1 PRESENCE 3
Skills:
Deception 1 (+4)
Insight 3 (+4)
Investigation 3 (+4)
Perception 9 (+10)
Persuasion 2 (+5)
Ranged Combat (Heat Vision) 2 (+8)
Advantages:
Diehard, Great Endurance, Improved Critical (Unarmed), Improved Hold, Interpose, Quick Change, Ranged Attack 6, Takedown
Powers:
"More Powerful Than a Speeding Locomotive" Power-Lifting 1 (50 tons) [1]
Impervious Toughness 9 [9]
"Heat Vision" Blast 8 [16]
"Faster Than a Speeding Bullet" Flight 10 (500 mph) [20]
Senses 17 (Extended Vision & Hearing 4, Microvision 4, Vision Penetrates Concealment, Ultra-Hearing) [17]
Offense:
Unarmed +6 (+10 Damage, DC 25)
Heat Vision +8 (+8 Ranged Damage, DC 23)
Initiative +0
Defenses:
Dodge +8 (DC 18), Parry +6 (DC 16), Toughness +10 (+5 Impervious), Fortitude +10, Will +6
Complications:
Motivation (Doing Good)
Responsibility (Clumsy)- Supergirls' powers are prone to going off suddenly, and she often doesn't know her own strength.
Responsibility (Superman's Cousin)- Much is expected of Supergirl, owing to the great fame of Super Hero High's greatest graduate.
Total: Abilities: 64 / Skills: 20--10 / Advantages: 13 / Powers: 63 / Defenses: 13 (163)
-Supergirl is introduced after the first batch of Webisodes as the "New Recruit" of Super Hero High. She has to choose between several schools (including Skartaris, Korugar and more, giving us a few winks towards DC continuity), but ultimately chooses to hang out with Wonder Woman and her friends. Unfortunately, this verison of Kara is actually a bit of a well-meaning klutz, meaning that she causes a lot of accidents (her debut sees her set fire to her room's ceiling, and accidentally destroy a bookcase after tripping). This helps differentiate her a bit from the more capable Wonder Woman, though the two are on the same tier of power.
-Supergirl is a heavily-downgraded Kryptonian, being PL 9 only by virtue of her Dodge- every other part of her is at PL 8.
Last edited by Jabroniville on Tue Dec 27, 2016 9:31 am, edited 1 time in total.
Re: Jab's Builds! (Santerians! Siege! Strong Guy! Schizoid Man! Miles Morales!)
Also Linda Carter (Wonder Woman in 1975 TV series), playing US President on Supergirl, gets a line to the effect of "If you think Air Force One is cool, you should've seen my other jet".Batgirl III wrote:The CW!DC 'verse has lots of great "casting gags" using actors who previously played big(ish) roles in adaptations of the characters as supporting cast members of the new show: Dean Cain (Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman) and Helen Slater (Supergirl) as the adoptive parents of Supergirl; Laura Vanderhoweveryouspellhername (Smallville's Supergirl) as Brainiac/Indigo beating up Supergirl; John Shipp (start of the shortlived 1997 The Flash series) as Barry Allen's dad...
It's ingenious really.
- Batgirl III
- Posts: 3626
- Joined: Tue Nov 08, 2016 6:17 am
- Location: Portland, Oregon
Re: Jab's Builds! (Santerians! Siege! Strong Guy! Schizoid Man! Miles Morales!)
In other news: the most Canadian thing ever just happened.
BARON wrote:I'm talking batgirl with batgirl. I love you internet.
Re: Jab's Builds! (Santerians! Siege! Strong Guy! Schizoid Man! Miles Morales!)
Next to the Americans, in the snow, among the French and still known for their politeness, you've got to love the Canadians.Batgirl III wrote:In other news: the most Canadian thing ever just happened.
'A shared universe, like any fictional construct, hinges on suspension of disbelief. When continuity is tossed away, it tatters the construct. Undermines it'
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- Posts: 24689
- Joined: Fri Nov 04, 2016 8:05 pm
Re: Jab's Builds! (Santerians! Siege! Strong Guy! Schizoid Man! Miles Morales!)
yeah, I wasn't sure ENTIRELY what was to blame for Bumblebee's shelfwarming, as Clawdeen Wolf from Monster High seems to sell pretty well up here, despite a generally small proportion of black folks in town. The fact that the cartoon really doesn't focus on Bumblebee doesn''t help.Batgirl III wrote:I don't think Bumblebee being a "shelf warmer" should be read as any sort of signifier on race relations. As Jab points out, she's a D-List (C-List at best) character whose heyday in the comics was in the 1970s and whose only major recent appearance was as a tertiary cast-member of season two of the cruely cancelled Young Justice cartoon.
Wonder Woman has been a popular heroine since 1941... Supergirl debuted in 1958. Batgirl has been around since 1967. Their individual popularity has waxed and waned over the years, but we're talking serious pop culture inertia here.
I've heard it said that the Superman "S Shield" is almost as well recognized worldwide as the Christian cross or the American flag. The Batman symbol and Double-W are probably at least as well known in the U.S, Canada, and Western Europe.
The average "man on the street" who isn't a comics fan would most likely recognize Superfirl, Batgirl, or Wonder Woman if you showed them a picture... Pop culture osmosis would probably let them tell you a fair bit of basic biography on them too boot! Meanwhile, plenty of comics fans might have trouble identifying Bumblebee, Katana, Zatana, or some of the other cast members.
Last edited by Jabroniville on Fri Dec 23, 2016 11:49 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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- Posts: 24689
- Joined: Fri Nov 04, 2016 8:05 pm
Bumblebee
BUMBLEBEE
Played By: Teala Dunn
Role: The Black Friend
PL 8 (131)
STRENGTH 1/5 STAMINA 2 AGILITY 4
FIGHTING 6 DEXTERITY 4
INTELLIGENCE 5 AWARENESS 2 PRESENCE 2
Skills:
Deception 2 (+4)
Expertise (Science) 6 (+11)
Insight 2 (+4)
Investigation 3 (+5)
Perception 3 (+5)
Technology 6 (+11)
Advantages:
Evasion, Inventor, Ranged Attack 4
Powers:
"Bumblebee Costume" (Flaws: Removable) [50]
Blast 6 (Extras: Multiattack) (18)
Flight 4 (30 mph) (Flaws: Winged) (4)
Enhanced Strength 4 (8)
Shrinking 12 (Feats: Innate) (Extras: Normal Strength) -- (6 inches) (36)
(+6 Defenses, +12 Stealth, -6 Intimidation, -1 Speed)
-- (62 points)
Offense:
Unarmed +6 (+1 Damage, DC 16)
Enhanced Strength +6 (+5 Damage, DC 20)
Blast +8 (+6 Ranged Damage, DC 21)
Initiative +4
Defenses:
Dodge +8 (DC 18), Parry +8 (DC 18), Toughness +2, Fortitude +4, Will +6
"Shrunken" Dodge +14 (DC 24), Parry +14 (DC 24), Toughness +2, Fortitude +4, Will +6
Complications:
Motivation (Doing Good)
Total: Abilities: 52 / Skills: 22--11 / Advantages: 6 / Powers: 50 / Defenses: 12 (131)
-As always with these lines, there is an attempt at "Representation" by giving the main characters non-white friends, primarily with a black one. Hence, Bumblebee. A very, very minor-league character in the comics, Bumblebee came from the embarrassing 1970s Teen Titans run, and was ignored to history for decades until the cartoon came out and they redesigned her a bit, making her a tiny bit popular. A few failed attempts at pushing her came in the comics, but ultimately went nowhere. Bumblebee now sits as one of the "Core Group" of DC SuperHero Girls... but doesn't actually do anything. Whereas Monster High actually pushes Clawdeen very hard, and Ever After High makes rudimentary attempts at using Cedar Wood... there's not a lot of Bumblebee to be seen in this show. As a result (and because in Canada, the "Black Friend" dolls usually don't sell as well), her dolls are Shelfwarming like nuts in Edmonton stores. Which is too bad- her costume is actually one of the most well-designed of the series. The black & yellow honeycomb design is really cool, and works much better than the pretty plain costumes the other girls are wearing.
-Bumblebee is a standard Shrinking-style character, mixing the Wasp's power-set up with Enhanced Strength for some reason.
Last edited by Jabroniville on Tue Dec 27, 2016 11:00 am, edited 1 time in total.
Re: Jab's Builds! (Santerians! Siege! Strong Guy! Schizoid Man! Miles Morales!)
1990-'91. Actually, more recently John Wesley Shipp (why he's always credited with "Wesley" in there, I don't know), has been playing Jay Garrick, the older, red-and-blue clad, winged helmeted Flash from a parallel Earth.Batgirl III wrote:John Shipp (star of the shortlived 1997 The Flash series) as Barry Allen's dad...
Since Jay Garrick was my first Flash, and I loved the '90 Flash show, it actually got me to watch some Flash.
My Amazing Woman: a super-hero romantic comedy podcast.
When the most powerful super hero on Earth marries an ordinary man, hilarity ensues.
When the most powerful super hero on Earth marries an ordinary man, hilarity ensues.
Re: Jab's Builds! (Santerians! Siege! Strong Guy! Schizoid Man! Miles Morales!)
She was also in a handful of episodes of the Teen Titans cartoon, which I believe was the first time Karen started shrinking.Batgirl III wrote:I don't think Bumblebee being a "shelf warmer" should be read as any sort of signifier on race relations. As Jab points out, she's a D-List (C-List at best) character whose heyday in the comics was in the 1970s and whose only major recent appearance was as a tertiary cast-member of season two of the cruely cancelled Young Justice cartoon.
My Amazing Woman: a super-hero romantic comedy podcast.
When the most powerful super hero on Earth marries an ordinary man, hilarity ensues.
When the most powerful super hero on Earth marries an ordinary man, hilarity ensues.
Re: Jab's Builds! (Miles Morales! DC SuperHero Girls!)
The middle name may be a Union issue. Had a friend in highschool that had to come up with a completely different name for any acting roles he had.
We rise from the ashes so that new legends can be born.
Re: Jab's Builds! (Santerians! Siege! Strong Guy! Schizoid Man! Miles Morales!)
It's probably because there was already a John Shipp in show business and he needed the middle name to differentiate himself.Ken wrote: (why he's always credited with "Wesley" in there, I don't know)
EDIT: Ninaj'd by Spectrum
Re: Jab's Builds! (Santerians! Siege! Strong Guy! Schizoid Man! Miles Morales!)
Yeah, that would be Laura Vandervoort as Supergirl on Smallville.Batgirl III wrote:The CW!DC 'verse has lots of great "casting gags" using actors who previously played big(ish) roles in adaptations of the characters as supporting cast members of the new show: Dean Cain (Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman) and Helen Slater (Supergirl) as the adoptive parents of Supergirl; Laura Vanderhoweveryouspellhername (Smallville's Supergirl) as Brainiac/Indigo beating up Supergirl; John Shipp (start of the shortlived 1997 The Flash series) as Barry Allen's dad...
It's ingenious really.
- Batgirl III
- Posts: 3626
- Joined: Tue Nov 08, 2016 6:17 am
- Location: Portland, Oregon
Re: Jab's Builds! (Miles Morales! DC SuperHero Girls!)
Yeah, like I said: Laura Vanderhoweveryouspellhername...
BARON wrote:I'm talking batgirl with batgirl. I love you internet.
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- Posts: 24689
- Joined: Fri Nov 04, 2016 8:05 pm
Hawkgirl
HAWKGIRL
Played By: Nika Futterman
Role: The Vaguely-Ethnic One, "Married To The Job" Cop
PL 8 (99)
STRENGTH 3 STAMINA 4 AGILITY 4
FIGHTING 10 DEXTERITY 2
INTELLIGENCE 1 AWARENESS 3 PRESENCE 1
Skills:
Aerobatics 8 (+12)
Athletics 3 (+6)
Close Combat (Unarmed) 2 (+12)
Deception 2 (+3)
Expertise (Civics) 4 (+5)
Insight 1 (+4)
Intimidation 4 (+5)
Investigation 3 (+6)
Perception 4 (+7)
Stealth 1 (+5)
Advantages:
Equipment (Mace +3), Evasion, Fast Grab, Improved Critical (Unarmed), Move-By Action, Ranged Attack 4
Powers:
Flight 6 (120 mph) (Flaws: Winged, Source- Nth Metal) [3]
Offense:
Unarmed +12 (+3 Damage, DC 18)
Mace +10 (+6 Damage, DC 21)
Initiative +4
Defenses:
Dodge +12 (DC 22), Parry +12 (DC 22), Toughness +4, Fortitude +5, Will +7
Complications:
Obsession (Law & Order)- Hawkgirl spends most of her time obsessively watching over the halls of Super Hero High.
Total: Abilities: 56 / Skills: 32--16 / Advantages: 9 / Powers: 3 / Defenses: 15 (99)
-Hawkgirl is largely seen in the backgrounds of the show, flying about as the "Hall Monitor", which naturally in a school for SUPERHEROES is "Serious Business", and involves strict crack-downs on minor infractions. She ends up missing a lot of Cheetah's chicanery, however. Eventually, she gets her own Webisode, as she's sent by her friends to the local spa to finally relax and stop being so serious about enforcing law & order, but naturally she encounters Mrs. Clayface and it turns into a brawl. However, only Mrs. Clayface's HUSBAND is a criminal, so she's off the hook before things go too far. Hawkgirl also fills that "Quasi-Ethnic" role, being sort of light brown that could mean anything. I do like her VA, though- she's got a very raspy, gravelly voice that's very much like how Pamela Adlon voiced Spinelli on Recess, and it's got a lot of character to it.
-Hawkgirl flies and is a good fighter- that's all she's shown, really. I'm not even sure if the wings are natural or not. Apparently she can't fly without an Nth Metal Belt, and she HAS been seen with that Mace- she disarms Dark Opal with it, but is then hit with an Energy Blast.
Last edited by Jabroniville on Tue Dec 27, 2016 11:07 am, edited 1 time in total.
Re: Jab's Builds! (Miles Morales! DC SuperHero Girls!)
Lol. She is beautiful and was shown as being quite strong in the show.Batgirl III wrote:Yeah, like I said: Laura Vanderhoweveryouspellhername...