Seriously, does anyone know? Yes, this is off topic from my usual blog subjects. I love comics. Get over it. Ha. Ha. Ha. Batman is my favorite. Yesterday while playing the new Arkham City (which rocks by the way), I encountered Solomon Grundy.
I immediately recognized him from the comics (and a brief appearance on some cartoons), but I still have no idea who he actually is. All he tells you himself is he was "Born on a Monday, christened on a Tuesday, married on Wednesday."
Um...okaaaaay. I found the rest of that bizarre nursery rhyme and it told me nothing, but here it is. There's even a company in the UK named after this nursery rhyme. That's pretty freakin' macabre, even to me.
By James Orchard Halliwell published in 1842 with the lyrics:
Solomon Grundy,
Born on a Monday,
Christened on Tuesday,
Married on Wednesday,
Took ill on Thursday,
Grew worse on Friday,
Died on Saturday,
Buried on Sunday.
That was the end,
Of Solomon Grundy.
Well, that's pretty disturbing. My first impression when looking at Grundy is he looks like a zombie version of Frankenstein's monster. (He's got stitches along his biceps as if they are holding his arms together.) I did find a few references online that say he is in fact a "zombie supervillain." That's nice, but who the crap is he?
According to Penguin (Arkham City) he's immortal. Truthfully, I couldn't kill him. We just got to a point where he was subdued. Zombies, in any other work of fiction, can be killed. So, what the crap is he? Who made him? If you know, tell me. Please. It bugs me.
I also already know he was supposedly murdered in Slaughter Swamp (where ever the hell that is). I couldn't find if that meant something or not. The same article where I found this said that every time he is "killed" in his zombie form he is resurrected with different powers. That's cool and all, BUT WHY? You get what I'm saying?
Oh, and I also found out that Solomon Grundy is the name of a pickled fish dish served on Jamaican Cruises. Bleh! I've been to Jamaica before and nobody ever offered me Solomon Grundy on a cracker. Nasty!
Every site I went to says the same thing. (Not about the pickled fish thing.) He's a zombie supervillain who also fought the Green Lantern and some other people. Not to sound like an ass, but I don't care about that other stuff. I just want to know where he came from/who made him the way he is.
How can you have a badass zombie supervillain and not give him a decent backstory?
Okay, as I was about to hit "send" I decided to look into the Slaughter Swamp thing. Yay! I found some more information. It'd probably be easier to just post a link.
http://dc.wikia.com/wiki/Slaughter_Swamp
This is more like it. However, it still doesn't explain how he is at least 20 feet tall. That's my best guess in comparison to Batman who I estimate is about 6' 2".
Grundy was also a sideshow freak over the years. But, I've heard that he has more than one origin story. Anyone else know the rest?
Showing posts with label villains. Show all posts
Showing posts with label villains. Show all posts
Tuesday, December 20, 2011
Saturday, July 9, 2011
A Necessary Evil
A villain is known by many names, such as blackguard, scoundrel, knave, rascal, rogue, badman, or evildoer. Who among us has never heard these terms before? Do you ever stop to wonder what a story would be like without them? These residents of E-Ville do have their purpose. Without a villain, there is no conflict, and without a conflict, there is no story.
A hero is all of the things within us, we wish that we could be. They are the ones who stand up for what is right, regardless of the consequences, our knights in shinning armor. A hero gives us hope that there is some good left in humanity, and perhaps some good left within ourselves.
The world loves a hero, but without the villain, he would be just like everyone else. We love to read a story where good triumphs over evil, proving once more that there is good in the world. People are moved by the moment in a story when someone is bold enough to fight for what they believe in, to protect the innocent, and defend the defenseless.
Without a villain, there would be no reason to do any of these things. Beowulf, for example, measured his self –worth by his reputation. “They themselves looked on when, bloody from my foes, I came from the fight where I had bound five, destroyed a family of giants, and at night the waves slain water-monsters …”
If there were no monsters to defeat, he would not have this reputation. Where would that leave him? If there were no villains to provoke such noble qualities within our hero, he would be no different than the average person. Sure, Beowulf was a big, strong man. However, without monsters such as Grendel to prove the heroic worth of his abnormal strength, what is he good for? If not for an enemy to overcome, men like Beowulf might have lived life quietly and uneventfully as a peaceful, though somewhat oversized, farmer.
The purpose of establishing a villain’s reputation is to build up the hero. For example, if Grendel were not so evil, Beowulf would not sound so righteous. “Then from the moor under the mist-hills Grendel came walking, wearing God’s anger … From his eyes came a light not fair, most like a flame.” Every hideous expression, every claw, and every scale the evildoer possesses makes our hero seem all the more handsome. Everything that is told about Grendel is to make him pale in comparison to the goodness, and bravery of Beowulf.
The poet repeatedly refers to the darkness and evil of Grendel and his mother, as well as their surroundings. “It is not far from here, measured in miles, that the mere stands … [t]here each night may be seen fire on the flood, a fearful wonder.” If the mere were not so frightening, Beowulf would not appear to be brave for facing it. It takes no great bravery to approach a normal pool of water, but to approach a lake that boils with fire is not for the faint of heart.
It is also mentioned several times that Grendel and his mother are the descendants of Cain. “Then Cain went as an outlaw to flee the cheerful life of men, marked for his murder, held to the wasteland. From him sprang many a devil sent by fate.” Cain was thought to be the ancestor of all monsters. He is also the first recorded murderer. Whether or not he is the first person to actually commit murder remains to be seen, but the vileness involved in the act of killing ones own brother is great. This evil seems to be reflected in the physical appearance of his descendants.
One would think that a warrior fierce enough to defeat such evil must be favored by God. “Holy God of His grace has sent him to us West-Danes, as I hope, against the terror of Grendel.” This further builds the reputation of Beowulf.
Yes, the world would be more peaceful if there were no villains. Nevertheless, most news programs would have nothing to report, if not for crime. Authors would have no story to write without a conflict. How would we know what constitutes good, without evil as a comparison? Somewhere in the mix, there is a balance. Every truly great literary work has managed to achieve this balance. Beowulf’s story proves that although good may ultimately triumph, it needs evil to achieve its status.
A hero is all of the things within us, we wish that we could be. They are the ones who stand up for what is right, regardless of the consequences, our knights in shinning armor. A hero gives us hope that there is some good left in humanity, and perhaps some good left within ourselves.
The world loves a hero, but without the villain, he would be just like everyone else. We love to read a story where good triumphs over evil, proving once more that there is good in the world. People are moved by the moment in a story when someone is bold enough to fight for what they believe in, to protect the innocent, and defend the defenseless.
Without a villain, there would be no reason to do any of these things. Beowulf, for example, measured his self –worth by his reputation. “They themselves looked on when, bloody from my foes, I came from the fight where I had bound five, destroyed a family of giants, and at night the waves slain water-monsters …”
If there were no monsters to defeat, he would not have this reputation. Where would that leave him? If there were no villains to provoke such noble qualities within our hero, he would be no different than the average person. Sure, Beowulf was a big, strong man. However, without monsters such as Grendel to prove the heroic worth of his abnormal strength, what is he good for? If not for an enemy to overcome, men like Beowulf might have lived life quietly and uneventfully as a peaceful, though somewhat oversized, farmer.
The purpose of establishing a villain’s reputation is to build up the hero. For example, if Grendel were not so evil, Beowulf would not sound so righteous. “Then from the moor under the mist-hills Grendel came walking, wearing God’s anger … From his eyes came a light not fair, most like a flame.” Every hideous expression, every claw, and every scale the evildoer possesses makes our hero seem all the more handsome. Everything that is told about Grendel is to make him pale in comparison to the goodness, and bravery of Beowulf.
The poet repeatedly refers to the darkness and evil of Grendel and his mother, as well as their surroundings. “It is not far from here, measured in miles, that the mere stands … [t]here each night may be seen fire on the flood, a fearful wonder.” If the mere were not so frightening, Beowulf would not appear to be brave for facing it. It takes no great bravery to approach a normal pool of water, but to approach a lake that boils with fire is not for the faint of heart.
It is also mentioned several times that Grendel and his mother are the descendants of Cain. “Then Cain went as an outlaw to flee the cheerful life of men, marked for his murder, held to the wasteland. From him sprang many a devil sent by fate.” Cain was thought to be the ancestor of all monsters. He is also the first recorded murderer. Whether or not he is the first person to actually commit murder remains to be seen, but the vileness involved in the act of killing ones own brother is great. This evil seems to be reflected in the physical appearance of his descendants.
One would think that a warrior fierce enough to defeat such evil must be favored by God. “Holy God of His grace has sent him to us West-Danes, as I hope, against the terror of Grendel.” This further builds the reputation of Beowulf.
Yes, the world would be more peaceful if there were no villains. Nevertheless, most news programs would have nothing to report, if not for crime. Authors would have no story to write without a conflict. How would we know what constitutes good, without evil as a comparison? Somewhere in the mix, there is a balance. Every truly great literary work has managed to achieve this balance. Beowulf’s story proves that although good may ultimately triumph, it needs evil to achieve its status.
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