Some comics are based on myth, others on science fiction. But every once in a while, you get a title based on collectible statues, and that’s when things get weird. Welcome to Ten Things: Ten DC Ame-Comi Heroes!
Whooshman-Bicarbonate Films, in conjunction with An Amateur Comics Historian and sexy corset-waisted lady Darkseid, for some reason, Presents:
TEN THINGS: TEN DC AME-COMI HEROES!
10) THE FLASH
The universe of Ame-Comi Girls features a number of Rule 63 characters, which is to say female heroes whose Earth-0 counterparts are male. Oddly, though, it’s not consistent in this application, as this world’s Flash is Jesse Chambers, sometimes called Jesse Quick, and not a Barry Allen. In fact, there is a Barry Allen in this world, which utterly confuses me. As for The Flash, though, she handles the requisite super-speed rescues, as well as taking a stint as White Lantern during the battle with the leader of the Yellow Lantern Corps (whom we’ll get to in a minute).
9) CYBORG
Remember how I mentioned that inconsistency? The identity of this member of the Teen Titans-analogue team, The Teen Hellions, has never been revealed, but given that she serves with a Tempest and a Beast Girl, it seems likely that this is some iteration of a Victoria Stone. I’m a big fan of the locs, and I appreciate that her exposed flesh also means exposing scars and injuries from the accident that made her.
8) THE ATOM
Professor Avril Palmer’s role and abilities are clearly the same as her counterpart, Ray Palmer, including her shrinking abilities and her scientific intellect. During a battle with Brainiac (who, yes, presents as female here), she gives the Ame-Comi squad much-needed support.
I’m not sure what’s up with her boots.
7) ALANA STRANGE
Half-human, half-Rannian, thanks to her mother’s outer-space adventures, Alana Strange has the abilities, courage and jet-pack of Adam Strange, but the name and face of his wife and partner, Alana. It’s another moment that makes me wonder about the rules of this reality, and whether Alana has an Adam at home waiting for her?
6) POWER GIRL
The aesthetics of Ame-Comi are highly manga-influenced, which can lead to some odd moments like this reality’s Power Girl, Kara Jor-El, in a mecha-influenced costume that uncharacteristically covers more of her skin than the prime version’s. The equivalent of Superman in this reality, Kara teams with her cousin Kara ZOR-El, who adventures as Supergirl, which just plain broke my brain the first time I read it.
5) STEEL
A member of the Justice League, this Steel is Natasha Irons, who joined The Flash as one of the White Lantern ring bearers assembled by Metra of the New Gods to fight off a Blackest Night scenario. Natasha is not exactly the best team player in the League, though, as she can be off-putting to her colleagues, as “high intelligence” always seems to mean “low social skills” in comics.
4) WHITE CANARY
A mysterious metahuman, real name unrevealed, The White Canary was successful enough as a solo act that the Justice League of the Ame-Comi reality approached her to become a member. Because of her terrific sonic power, she actually couldn’t speak normally until the team gave her an inhibitor necklace to modulate her Canary Cry. Though there are elements of Dinah “Black Canary” Lance, the White Canary name is a puzzling one, as the highest-profile White Canary was Sarah Lance, seen on the CW’s Legends of Tomorrow.
3) SINESTRA
The Ame-Comi take on Thaal Sinestro, the wicked former Green Lantern who mastered the power of fear, Sinestra arrived to kick off her own version of the Corps Wars and is roughly the same character, albeit with no shirt, somehow?
It’s another example of how the balance of “here’s a female version of a character” and “here’s a new take on an existing distaff version” is unbalanced and incomprehensible.
2) GREEN LANTERN
On the other hand, Jade Yifei is an entirely new and different character than Hal Jordan (who still manages to show up in the Ame-Comi stories AS a Green Lantern). A blind woman from China, Jade is the official Lantern of Sector 2814, and because of her visual impairment, uses a modified version of the oath created for The F-Sharp Bell, a Green Lantern from a world with no light, and thus no concepts of a lantern or the color green:
In Loudest Din or Hush Profound
Your ears detect Evil’s sound!
Let those whose song
calls for darkest night,
Fear the Music
In Green Lantern’s Light!
1) BIG BARDA
She’s a space pirate! Yarrrrrr!
Once again, this week’s topic, Ten DC Ame-Comi Heroes, is all me, but feel free to follow along @MightyKingCobra to suggest a topic of your own! There’s always more Ten Things madness on my Twitter or check out the full Twitter archive here! As with any set of like items, these aren’t meant to be hard and fast or absolutely complete, because if they can turn a line of statues into a shared universe, we’re not that far from a 24-issue crossover about the heroes on 1970s Burger King collector’s glasses. Either way, the comments section is below for just such an emergency, but, as always: Please, no wagering!
Dear Spoilerite,
At Major Spoilers, we strive to create original content that you find interesting and entertaining. Producing, writing, recording, editing, and researching requires significant resources. We pay writers, podcast hosts, and other staff members who work tirelessly to provide you with insights into the comic book, gaming, and pop culture industries. Help us keep MajorSpoilers.com strong. Become a Patron (and our superhero) today.
Once upon a time, there was a young nerd from the Midwest, who loved Matter-Eater Lad and the McKenzie Brothers... If pop culture were a maze, Matthew would be the Minotaur at its center. Were it a mall, he'd be the Food Court. Were it a parking lot, he’d be the distant Cart Corral where the weird kids gather to smoke, but that’s not important right now... Matthew enjoys body surfing (so long as the bodies are fresh), writing in the third person, and dark-eyed women. Amongst his weaponry are such diverse elements as: Fear! Surprise! Ruthless efficiency! An almost fanatical devotion to pop culture! And a nice red uniform.