Jump to content

Radioactive Man (The Simpsons character)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by 75.0.68.81 (talk) at 14:50, 23 June 2007. The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

For other uses, see Radioactive Man.
Radioactive Man
File:Rm bongo 1972.jpg
Radioactive Man and Fallout Boy (as a hippie). From the cover of Radioactive Man #216.
Publication information
PublisherBongo Comics
First appearanceOn Simpsons TV show: Bart the Genius (first mention), The Telltale Head (first appearance of comic book)
In Bongo Comics: Radioactive Man #1, 1994
Created byMorty Mann (fictional creator), Matt Groening (real creator)
In-story information
Alter egoClaude Kane III
Team affiliationsSuperior Squad
Notable aliasesRadio Man, Radiation Man
AbilitiesStrength, speed, flight, invulnerability, power to fire beams of "clean, nuclear heat" from eyes

Radioactive Man, within the world of the animated series The Simpsons, is a comic book superhero who acquired his powers after surviving an atomic bomb explosion. His sidekick is Fallout Boy, and his catchphrase is "Up and atom!"

Profile

Within the Simpsons universe, Radioactive Man has been portrayed in many media since his debut in "Radioactive Man" #1 in 1952. In addition to comic books, he was featured in at least one 1940s or 1950s era black-and-white serial, sponsored by Laramie Cigarettes. A parody of Adam West and George Reeves Dirk Richter, reportedly born 1922 (he was said to be 73 years old (and dead) in 1995), played Radioactive Man and Buddy Hodges played Fallout Boy. Dirk Richter was apparently shot to death in a bordello sometime in the 1960s (a reference to the mysterious death of George Reeves, the first actor to portray Superman on television). Somewhere in the 80s Troy McClure portrayed Radioactive Man in a Radioactive Man movie trilogy. Radioactive Man III featured Krusty the Clown as the presumably main villain Krusto the Evil Clown (a parody of the Joker) and featured Buddy Hodges as Fallout Boy's great grandfather. The trilogy consisted of:

  • "Radioactive Man"
  • "Radioactive Man II: Bring On The Sequel"
  • "Radioactive Man III: Oh God, Not Again"

In 1995, a Hollywood studio attempted to film a Radioactive Man movie in Springfield. The movie starred Rainier Wolfcastle (Springfield's answer to Arnold Schwarzenegger), as Radioactive Man. The role of Fallout Boy was cast from local children. Bart Simpson, a huge Radioactive Man fan, tried out for the part, but it went to his pal, Milhouse Van Houten due to Bart being an inch too short. The origin of Fallout Boy was changed for the movie: Rod Runtledge acquires superpowers after getting run over by an x-ray truck and blasted in the face by the x-ray machine it was transporting. Still trapped under the truck, he meets Radioactive Man when the superhero arrives on the scene to lift it off him. Krusty the Clown was cast as villains Dr. Clownius and Silly Sailor. Wolfcastle is incapable of saying the "Up and Atom!" catchphrase correctly; it always comes out as "Up and at them!". The movie was never completed due to budget overruns caused by constant price-gouging by Springfield vendors, and Milhouse snapping from the pressure of the role, and refusing to continue to portray Fallout Boy - former child actor Mickey Rooney attempted to take over the role, with predictably miserable results. The unfinished project was presumably shelved. There was also a campy early 1970s TV series suspiciously resembling the Batman TV series, and boasted the appearance of an extremely flamboyant supervillain called "The Scoutmaster", who resembled Paul Lynde.

A knock-off of Radioactive Man exists. This comic book character is known as "Radiation Dude". Instead of using Radioactive Man's common catchphrase "up and atom!" he just says "up and let's go."

The Bongo Comic

Radioactive Man has escaped from the fictional world of Bart Simpson to appear in a real comic book intermittently published by Bongo Comics, which has also published, since 1994, a number of comics featuring Bart Simpson, the Simpson family, and other characters from the television show.

Issue #1 of the Bongo comic differs from RM #1 as seen in Simpsons episode "Three Men and a Comic Book". While featuring a similar scenario and accident (Claude getting his trousers caught on barbed wire just before a mega-bomb explodes), the Bongo series' Claude was not wearing tattered clothes. In the books, Claude's survival is due in part to a large thunderbolt shaped chunk of metal being attached to his head. Throughout the book series the shard of metal was always attempted to be removed, but each attempt has nasty consequences which results in it being put back in his scalp again.

Maintaining the satirical standards of the television show, these comics often parody genre comic books, and the reader can follow the evolution of Radioactive Man from a 1950s irradiated hero through the politically reactionary or radical years of the 1960s and 1970s, and the dark, troubled years of the 1980s and 1990s comic book hero. Indeed, one comic displays a startling similarity to Alan Moore's Watchmen, with Radioactive Man taking the part of state-supported hero Doctor Manhattan. The comics are published as if they were the actual Simpsons universe's Radioactive Man comics; a "1970s"-published comic features a letter written by a ten-year-old Marge Bouvier, for instance.

Within the Bongo Comics, Radioactive Man is secretly Claude Kane III, a millionaire playboy whose personality was well-intentioned, but bumbling and not overly bright. In addition (which became a recurring storyline element), Claude's personality was permanently stuck in a conservative 1950s outlook on everything, no matter what the time era in question was.

The following character desciptions are inclusive of all the material related to the concept of Radioactive Man in his many forms. Where possible issue numbers, episode numbers and other points of reference will be included in the description.


Heroes

Radioactive Man lived in the fictional city of Zenith; among his associates includes:

  • Radioactive Boy: a parody of Superboy. Comes from an alternate what if styled dimension where Claude Kane III gained his powers when he was 10 years old.
  • Glowy: a parody of Superman's Pet Dog Krypto the Superdog. Radioactive Man's super pet dog with all of the powers as him. Glowy began life as a cute little turtle, which Radioactive Man purchased as a birthday gift for Bug Boy. When Bug Boy decided to test his new atomic weapon on the impervious Radioactive Man, he did not realize that the irradiated superhero was holding the turtle in a paper bag. The radiation mutated the turtle into a dog, and since Bug Boy is allergic to canines, Radioactive Man kept him as his superpet -- Glowy, the Radioactive Dog!
  • Radioactive Man 1995: the Radioactive Man of the future of 1995. Gloria Grand met him when she accidentally fast forwarded to the future. He was revealed to be the future Rod Runtledge who was known as Fallout Boy.
  • Gloria Grand: a parody of Lois Lane and Gloria Glad, girlfriend of Richie Rich. Gloria was a reporter for television station WZEN (in the "1950s" and "early 1960s" comics, WZEN was a radio station). Despite Claude's feelings for her, Gloria regarded him as an annoying dunce, and preferred Radioactive Man (parodying the Lois Lane-Superman-Clark Kent "triangle").
  • Radioactive Girl: (aka Gloria Grand)a parody of Supergirl and all other female copies of male heroes. For a brief period Gloria gained almost identical powers to Radioactive Man as a result of a deflected beam of energy from one of Dr. Crab's ray guns.
  • Rod Runtledge, also known as Fallout Boy: Radioactive Man's sidekick, Rod was an orphan who lived with his Aunt June until Claude took him in as his ward. Early on (as revealed in a flashback in a "1962" comic), Rod gained powers similar to Radioactive Man's, and adopted a crimefighting identity. In the comic he would have gotten spider powers from a radioactive spider, but flicked it off causing it to land on another teenager (Peter Parker) who became Radioactive Spider. Fallout Boy was a parody of Batman's sidekick, Robin.
  • Radioactive Gorilla:
  • Radio Man: Radioactive Man's "1940s" counterpart/predecessor who had power over radio waves.
  • The Superior Squad: A superhero team that Radioactive Man is the leader of. The team's 1940s predecessor was known as the "Superior Squadron." The Superior Squad operated out of the Mando Building. It was an amalgamation of the Justice League and The Avengers, and took its name from Marvel Comics Squadron Supreme. Members of the Superior Squad included:
    • Captain Squid: a parody of Aquaman or Namor the Sub-Mariner. Capt. Squid possessed squidlike tentacles beneath his gloves, and has an unrequited crush on Lure Lass. Radioactiveman's 2nd in command and partner parodying the Batman/Superman partnership.
    • Lure Lass: real name Laura Lasser, a parody of Scarlet Witch who possessed an "alluring power". Has an unrequited crush on Captain Squid.
    • Bug Boy: a buglike mutant but revealed to be the sole survivor of an alien race (which he accidentally wiped out) among whom he was considered stupid because of an I.Q. of 315 (which was considered quite low on his homeworld). Bug Boy was a child genius and the team's scientist. He could also control other insects. As of a "1984" comic, he now goes by his real name, Dr. Bix Bentley, in an attempt to restore some dignity.
    • Weasel Woman: a parody of Wolverine, Weasel Woman possessed razor-sharp nails.
    • Plasmo the Mystic: a mystical sorcerer, similar to Doctor Strange, whose face was hidden under a hooded cloak. Later comics heavily implied that he was a pothead.
    • Bleeding Heart: a parody of Green Arrow and Iron Man, with a little bit of Batman for good measure. His real name was Miles Mando, who (unknown to the others) was the millionaire financier of the team, as Iron Man/Tony Stark was to the Avengers. In the "1960s" comics, his original name was "Purple Heart", which he later changed to "Bleeding Heart" in "1972" after briefly losing his fortune and adapting a socially conscientious attitude (similar to Green Arrow's actions in the 1970s). In "1986," Miles Mando once again changed his name, this time to "Heart of Darkness" (possibly as a parody of The Dark Knight Returns and other "darker" comic books of the 1980s). In the 1990s, a lawsuit necessitated that he start calling himself "Purple Badge of Courage." He has also called himself "Braveheart" at some point in time. Bleeding Heart was the only team member without any superpowers.
    • Black Partridge: a parody of Shirley Partridge from the tv show, The Partridge Family and honourary member of the Superior Squad. This masked superheroine uses the power of psycadelic projection to overwhelm and disorient her opponents
    • Purple Haze: A seldom seen member of the squad with a name derived from a Jimi Hendrix track of the same name. He is a stereotypical jive talkin' brothuh influenced by the sixties lifestyle.


Villains

Radioactive Man also encountered a variety of diabolical criminals; among his enemies includes:

  • Dr. Crab: (aka Dr. Vladamire Krabokov) A Russian evil genius mutated by his constant tinkering with radiation and love of sea food. Over time he changed from human to crab-like in appearance. He has become Radioactive Man's arch-nemesis and is always lurking in the shadows waiting to unhatch yet another scheme for world domination.
    • Boris & Ivan: Two atypical Russian spies who have been henchmen of Dr. Crab since the very early days of his villainy.
    • Crabots: These crustacean-inspired robots of doom are the muscle behind Dr. Crab's attempts to thwart his enemies.
  • Brain-O the Magnificent: (aka Brendon O-Bane) A giant brain floating in a bulletproof glass casing that sits atop tank treads, it is armed with various weaponry that suits the needs of any given combat scenario. This criminal 'mastermind' is a constant source of villainy and diabolical scheming.
  • Hypno Head: The malevolent master of mind control. He uses the power of hypnosis to achieve his nefarious goals with a hypnotic spiral etched into his oversized forehead.
  • Magmo the Lava Man:
  • Radioactive Worm: A worm of incredible intelligence and psychic ability, it gained its powers from the very same atomic explosion that gave Radioactive Man his powers.
  • Pneumatica: This robotic machine of chaos and doom was discovered to be Claude Kane's mother, who had been missing for many years, ultimately to be revealed as having been turned into Radioactive Man's enemy.
  • Nega-Pneumatica: A colossal size Negativityverse version of Pneumatica who plans to destroy all life and rebuild the various universes in her own image.
  • The Scoutmaster: A campy villain dressed in the uniform of a scout leader.
  • Larceny Lass: The captivating kleptomaniac who has tried in vain for years to win the heart of Radioactive Man or steal it from him. She is known for using goons to carry out her bidding whilst plotting to remove any obstacles for Radioactive Man's affections.
    • Delinquent Teens: The minion of choice for Larceny Lass, these rebellious rock 'n roll loving youngsters are the perfect tools of petty crime.
  • Larva Girl: A beautiful green villainess of maggot-like dimensions. She is consumed by the need to gain all the worldly things a woman deserves, from diamonds and luxury to a marriage with a worthy gentleman (i.e. Radioactive Man). She employs the aid of Maggot Men to perform her acts of villainy.
  • The Crazy Cat Lady: The name says it all. This lady uses minions dressed in cat suits and an army of unfriendly felines to achieve her evil goals. She is the villainous representative of all those crazy elderly ladies with an unhealthy habit of collecting stray cats.
  • The Purple Pansy: A backgroud character seldom seen. This muscular villain wears purple spandex and it is assumed that he is a "pansy."
  • Dr. Broome: An evil genius known for concocting unusual contraptions and tinkering with robotics. There does not seem to be a specific motive for his actions with the exception of the fact he is an evil doctor. He is a lone operative who has been linked with Dr. Crab on occasion. Probably named after DC Comics writer John Broome.
  • The Swamp Hag: A foe only mentioned in the video game Bartman Meets Radioactive Man and an episode of the Simpsons. She is a fowl swamp sludge swinging villain with an as yet uncertain motive for battling the irradiated hero.
  • Libby Biaz:
    • The Bang Gang:
  • Parker Peterman: A parody of Peter Parker, the real identity of Spider-Man.
  • The Threatening Threesome: An atypical super villain Team-up using alliteration to describe themselves as a group.
    • Mr. Kidney Punch: A masked villain with a cape and business suit. As the name suggests, his power is the ability to accurately punch his opponents in the kidney. Beyond this, he has no other known powers.
    • The Human Lawn Dart:
    • The Scarlet Floozy:
  • Eczema:
    • Madame Eczema: (aka Ultimate Eczema) A villainess with a tortured childhood affected by a range of skin irritations. She started as a low-ranking member of the group and murdered her way to the top.
    • Eczematous-Prime: A robotic killing machine built to serve the needs of Eczema.
  • The Bonfire Club: A name derived from the Hell Fire Club from Marvel's X-Men. A secretive organization pulling strings behind the scenes to corrupt and manipulate world events. They have agendas so sinister and miscellaneous there is no knowing what they will be conspiring from one day to the next. The members include:
    • Richard Nixon: The Simpsons, in all its forms, has a history of taking shots at the disgraced former President Nixon. This comic series is no exception. He is a leading member of the Bonfire Club and is associated with a host of evil plots.
  • The Cane Gang:


Supporting Characters

Within the city of Zenith are a host of supporting characters; these include:

  • Dr. Claude Kane II: this brilliant and wealthy physicist/ explorer is the father of Radioactive Man's alter ego. His fortune has afforded his son the ability to live a vapid life as a socialite layabout, a fact that Dr. Kane is not impressed by.
  • Gretchin Grille : the nosy gossip columnist at WZEN Radio. She likes fame, glamour and solcialites, as such she has longed for the attention of Claude Kane III (Radioactive Man's alter ego).
  • Bobby Bond:
  • Police Chief Hoolihan:


Locations

The heroic and mundane aspects of the series take place in a variety of settings; such locations include:

  • Zenith City: a parody of Metropolis from the Superman series. The series takes place in this ever-changing metropolitan setting riddled with villainous masterminds and valiant heroes.
  • The Containment Dome: Radioactive Man's secret hideout (a parody of Superman's Fortress of Solitude), a geodesic dome-like facility that lacked a door (which Radioactive Man constantly kept forgetting to put in).
  • The WZEN Building:
  • Kane Estates: the lavish home of the Kane family, this mansion is equipped with all of the ammenities expected from the home of a trillionaire family fortune.


Other Associated Characters

  • Morty Mann: As shown in Simpsons Comics and Stories #1, Radioactive Man (within the Simpsons universe) was created by Morty Mann, a fellow resident at Grandpa Simpson's retirement home. Mann had sold the rights to Radioactive Man for a minuscule sum, but thanks to Bart, regained a role in producing a new Radioactive Man comic.
  • Bartman: During the final part of the three part story "When Bongos Collide," Bart (as his alter ego Bartman) materialized Radioactive Man into the real world.

Powers and abilities

Throughout most of the Simpsons TV series, very few references to Radioactive Man's actual super powers have been made. As a result, the extent of his powers are not known. It can be inferred that Radioactive Man has some level of superhuman strength and invulnerability. In one Simpson episode, Bart shows Lisa a comic where Radioactive Man is seen throwing a villain into the sun only to state 'Hot enough for you?'. In the planned Radioactive Man movie, a stunt was filmed in which he easily lifts a car off Fallout Boy. The Bongo comics expanded on his powers, giving him several which parodied those of Superman including super speed, flight, and the power to fire beams of "clean, nuclear heat" from his eyes. He is also bulletproof, but unfortunately for him he still feels pain from the bullets impacting on him (something he tries to hide behind a stoic face while cursing inwardly).

Appearances on The Simpsons

The Radioactive Man character has appeared numerous times over the course of the series. Some notable appearances include.

  • "Three Men and a Comic Book" - First appearance. Bart, Millhouse and Martin collaborate and buy a mint Radioactive Man Issue #1, with bad results...
  • "Radioactive Man" - Two Hollywood directors try to film a Radioactive Man movie in Springfield.
  • "Treehouse of Horror III" - Millhouse dresses as Radioactive Man for Halloween.

Notes

There is a villain in Iron Man named Radioactive Man; he is unrelated to the Simpsons character.

The rock group Fall Out Boy is named for Radioactive Man's sidekick (though the band didn't realize this, as the name was suggested by a fan).

Radioactive Man made an appearance in a NES video game; Bartman Meets Radioactive Man

Comic bibliography

Bongo publishes new issues of Radioactive Man twice a year. A list of the issues published so far, plus all other known appearances of Radioactive Man (organized by order released):

Pre-Bongo

  • Simpsons Comics & Stories #1: Features a page from Radioactive Man #418.
  • Bartman and Radioactive Man #1:This comic book features in a magazine, "Hero Illustrated", in 1994. It contains a mini poster of Bartman and Radioactive Man. It is known as an 'ash can comic' as most bonus books in sealed price guides and magazines and usually read and then thrown away

Volume 1 (written by Steve Vance; publishing started 1994)

  • Radioactive Man #1 ("1952"): The first appearance and origin of Radioactive Man; a parody of Golden Age comics.
  • Radioactive Man #88 ("1962"): features a "retelling" of the origin of Fallout Boy; a parody of Silver Age Marvel comics.
  • Radioactive Man #216 ("1972"): a parody of the "relevant" age of 1970s comics, Radioactive Man discovered that Fallout Boy was a hippie spoofing issue #85 of Green Lantern/Green Arrow in which Green Arrow discovered his sidekick Speedy was a heroin addict
  • Radioactive Man #412 ("1980"): a parody of the "Dark Phoenix" storyline in the X-Men comics.
  • Radioactive Man #679 ("1986"): a parody of several 1980s comic storylines, particularly Crisis on Infinite Earths, Watchmen and Batman: The Dark Knight Returns.
  • Radioactive Man #1000 ("1995"): a parody of 1990s comics, including Image Comics' Spawn.
  • Radioactive Man 80-Page Colossal: a "reprint" of various "previous" Radioactive Man stories; a parody of various Silver Age DC Comics stories, as well as DC's 80 Page Giants, a series of 80-page-long reprints of previous material that DC published in the 1960s.

Between Volumes

  • Simpsons Comics #36-39 / Radioactive Man #160 ("1968"): the flip-sides from all four issues form a parody of Jim Steranko's Nick Fury: Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. comics. Features Purple Haze, a character who parodies Luke Cage's affinity for ebonics.
  • Simpsons Comics #50 / Radioactive Man #99 ("1963"): features a one-page ad parodying the old comic advertisements for Hostess confections; also a backup story, "Planet of the Strange-O's," spoofing Bizarro from Superman's comics.

Volume 2 (written by Batton Lash; publishing started 2001)

  • Radioactive Man #100 ("1963")
  • Radioactive Man #222 ("1973"): a parody of the early 1970s Marvel Comics.
  • Radioactive Man #136 ("1966"): a parody of Archie Comics's Mighty Comics line.
  • Radioactive Man #4 ("1953"): a parody of Marvel Comics science-fiction comics.
  • Radioactive Man #575 ("1984"): a parody of various independent 1980s comics, particularly Howard Chaykin's American Flagg (Chaykin drew the cover for this issue).
  • Radioactive Man #106 ("1963"): a parody of Gold Key Comics
  • Bongo Super-Heroes #7
  • Radioactive Man Movie Special: the "official" comic book adaptation of the Radioactive Man movie (as seen in the Simpsons episode "Radioactive Man")
  • Radioactive Man #197 ("1971"): a parody of the New Gods comics created by Jack Kirby.

Despite winning an Eisner, volume 2 was cancelled, and Batton Lash and Radioactive Man were moved into writing smaller stories alongside Bartman stories and other miscellaneous Simpsons vignettes as part of Simpsons Super Spectacular.[1]

post-Volume 2

  • Simpsons Super Spectacular #1: Flip side of comic has Radioactive Man in a parody of Charlton Comics's Captain Atom. Three stories are all based on early 1960s Captain Atom stories, as is the cover.
  • Simpsons Super Spectacular #2: "Bongos" a parody of Kurt Busiek/Alex Ross's Marvels.
  • Simpsons Super Spectacular #3: Lure Lass and Weasel Woman team-up adventure, battling the Crazy Cat Lady. Radioactive Man makes a short appearance at the end.
  • Simpsons Super Spectacular #4: Radioactive Man battles the Cane Gang. After a run-in with them, he becomes deathly afraid of radioactivity, an obstacle he overcomes by the end of the issue.

References

  1. ^ http://www.comicon.com/cgi-bin/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=36;t=004181 Accessed: 17 Mar 2007

Template:Simpsons characters

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Radioactive_Man_(The_Simpsons_character)&oldid=140117060"