Monday, May 01, 2006

LORHP

I have noticed recently that, while there are many wonderful comic book blogs of astonishly catholic tastes, there are also a growing number that focus on one particular genre or company.

This is a natural part of the evolution of knowledge. Once upon a time, it was possible for an intelligent man of leisure to know pretty much all that humanity knew.

But so far has civilization's accumulation of information broadened and its understanding of topics deepened that it's all one can do nowadays to remember the real names and home planets of all the Legionnaires. I myself have had to forgo offers to lecture on the structure of Propertius' Monobiblos in order simply to have time to contemplate the nature of Night Girl's hair. Life is full of difficult choices.

Still, as the more universalist bloggers never tire of reminding, it is important to maintain a breadth of knowledge across disciplines. One need read no further than James Gleick's famous Chaos, to understand how much can miss if one is too narrowly focused. Indeed, think how much sooner Complexity and Chaos Theory would have been uncovered had more scientists had Hawkman or Aquaman in their subs.

Nevertheless, for those of narrow intellect (such as I) focusing on one company is enough; the DCUniverse is enough for me to handle without adding Marvel's Manhattan on top.

Oh, many's the time I traipsed innocently about the blogosphere, scouting for signs of others who might call for the return of the Penny Plunderer, when, WHAMMO!, I would blindly turn a corner and find myself in the dark and sinister alleys of a Marvel-focused blog, staring down the barrel of a post on Baron Zemo. Save me, Joe Chill!

If only there were some signpost of security, some "Johnny DC" like symbol to let me know that I was safe and sound on a comics blog centered squarely in the wholesomeness of the good ol' DCU. Won't someone protect the children?

And so (at someone's insistence), I offer this symbol:


Look for the sign of the Loyal Order of the Rolling Head of Pantha before you read a blog too closely! When you see it, you'll know that you're safe with a blogger who understands that even the rolling head of Pantha has more iconic resonance and character potential than the entire X-Men roster.

With FWMP as our by-word, we members of the LORHP salute the DCUniverse, where every minor character, no matter how ill-conceived or obscure, brims over with the latent potential to become famous and beloved nearly overnight, a symbol of All That Is Right (Or Wrong) With Comics Today.

Much like the rolling head of Pantha. Who'da thunk it?


20 comments:

Anonymous said...

The rolling head of Pantha may just be the greatest sign for anything ever devised.

Ever.

In the history of everything.

Dorian said...

But, aren't you a classicist? Imbuing the rolling head of Pantha with that much symbolic import sounds dangerously close to semiotics.

Anonymous said...

This is off topic, but I thought Scipio would be interested in this. One of the guys on an Improv comedy message board asked the question which members of the JLA do the members of your Improv team correspond to.

Utah Improv duo Jokyr & Jesster had this response :
Joe - Hawkman
Me - Vibe

I am an Olympic level breakdancer... and I have a soul patch.

Joe improvises with a mace.

Anonymous said...

You'll regret it in 6 months, when they've brought her back because whoever the big writer is then decides he likes the charcter from the cartoon.

Of course she'll still be a symbol of what's wrong with comics then, but what do you want for $3.99 and a two-month shipping delay?

Sorry, maybe that's too negative.

As far as the X-Men roster goes, I defy you to find a more ill-conceived character who becomes almost overnight the symbol of what's wrong with comics than Wolverine.

Anonymous said...

Hmm... Another Wolverine?

Brett said...

I enjoy comics, I appreciate the companies have different styles but I still feel the whole Marvel vs. DC thing reminds me of Ford vs. Chevy. Who cares really? Write a good comic and fill it with good art and I will be there. I guess I am just not religious enough. Love the site, love the insights, could care less about the brand.

Gwen said...

as I had a cat in grade school named Pantha I don't think I can join the order... rest assured though, my blog will always have more DC goodness than anything about Marvel (except rants)

Scipio said...

Dorian, Danger is my Business.

Anonymous said...

LOHRP?

Oh, Pantha.

I thought this was about the Legion of Right-Handed Pitchers.

Moving on.

Anonymous said...

Now someone just needs to build a LOHRP-Signal spotlight.

"Look! It's the LOHRP Signal!"


It could even be animated.

(Hm. Actually, someone should make some little pantha-head buttons that rotate, and sell them at cons.)

Anonymous said...

et quaecumque super dispersa invenerit ossa/ montibus Etruscis/ haec sciat esse mea.

Propertian scholars feel the lack, baby.

Canton said...

Hmm... Another Wolverine?

Are you thinking of X-23?

Anonymous said...

It looks to me that someone's trying to start a Civil War in the comics blogosphere.

Bully said...

As the home blog of the rotating feature "Ben Grimm Totally Rocks," all I can say is...

Bring it on, Scipio! Bring it freakin' on!

Oh wait. Maybe I should get my posts up to date first.

Wait a couple days, Scipio. Then bring it on! Bring it freakin' on!

Harvey Jerkwater said...

Pantha's rolling head
Laden with symbolism?
FWMP! Thud thud thud thud.

Anonymous said...

Can't get into the rolling head of Pantha.

Y'all Worship NightGirl's Bouffant!

It's the greatest head of comic hair (well Sue Storm had a few fab Hair Helmets too!)

Alan

MarkAndrew said...

Marvel? DC? Pretty much all the same t'me. At least for the last thirty years.

Ragnell said...

This is because I reviewed Generation X #1, isn't it?

Marc Burkhardt said...

Sorry Scipio. My blog will always be 95 percent DC, but I was too much of a Marvel fan in my misbegotten youth to totally abandon my childhood faves to the evil Quesada.

Maybe I can post an icon of Wildebeast with a hole in his chest to indicate a DC-13 rating (Parental supervision advised for those averse to Marvel...)

Anonymous said...

I saw the rolling head of Pantha the other day. I gave it a quarter.