World Wildlife Day

 

World Wildlife Day!

Today is World Wildlife Day!

This is a day dedicated to raising awareness about the importance of wildlife conservation, as well as celebrating the biodiversity of the planet. 

On this day in 1973, the International Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna was signed. This is meant to ensure that international trade in specimens of wild animals and plants is not a threat to the species. This day was proclaimed as World Wildlife Day in 2013 by the United Nations General Assembly. 

Fantastic Four #45 (December 1965)

The Fantastic Four are a very important group in the Marvel Universe of the comic books. From an in-universe perspective, the group's debut helped ignite a new age of superheroes after the fall of the First Line in the 1980s. From a real-world perspective, the FF helped unleash a new wave of realism in superhero comics, as the group was a microcosm of the Marvel-style superhero: an origin story with a touch of the tragic, and emphasis on characterization. Unique for the era, they were portrayed as a dysfunctional yet loving family that ended up using their powers to fight crime.

The Fantastic Four also helped form the bedrock of the Marvel Universe as we know it today. Many of the concepts and characters introduced in Stan Lee and Jack Kirby's over 100-issue run are still used and emphasized over 60 years later, most notably the Black Panther and Wakanda. They also introduced a group of superhumans that would get an all-too brief time in the major spotlight: The Inhumans.

When the character of Gorgon was introduced, he was originally a villain. Lee and Kirby were brainstorming origins for the character and decided to have him come from a strange land in Europe where everyone was superpowered like him. Eventually, it was decided he would come from a place called Attilan. The name Attilan came from a 1941 story written and drawn by Kirby in Captain America Comics #1 (March 1941). That story focused on a caveman character named Tuk the Caveboy, describing that Attilan as an advanced city on a Stone Age-era Earth. The History of the Marvel Universe miniseries would end up connecting Tuk to the Inhumans. 

The Inhumans would end up getting a surge in spotlight thanks to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, thanks to Inhuman mythology being used in Agents of SHIELD, and the Royal Family appearing in the critically-panned one-season Inhumans series. Sadly, after the failure of the Inhumans series, the Inhumans would end up seemingly brushed aside and ignored. For example, when Kamala Khan and Lunella Lafayette (two Inhuman characters) were adapted to the MCU miniseries Ms. Marvel and the animated series Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur, their Inhumanity was erased (Kamala was made a mutant, and Lunella a non-powered heroine). And now with Disney's purchasing of 20th Century Fox (meaning they now have the live-action film rights to the X-Men back), it's likely the Inhumans will never get to make a big comeback. 

So, how did the Inhuman Royal Family make their big debut? Let's find out in Fantastic Four #45!

The cover is a Jack Kirby, Joe Sinnott, Stan Goldberg, and Art Simek piece. It gives mt the vibe of a movie poster, the heroes front and center, and the Inhumans being shown in a villainous light, looming over the FF while Black Bolt gets ready to hit them with a big rock.

"Among us Hide...The Inhumans"
Writer: Stan Lee
Penciler: Jack Kirby
Inker: Joe Sinnott
Colorist: Unknown
Letterer: Art Simek
Editor: Stan Lee

The story begins with Johnny Storm, the second Human Torch, rescuing his brother-in-law Reed Richards/Mr. Fantastic and Ben Grimm/The Thing from a collapsed building. They ended up being in this situation because of the events of the previous issue.

Basically, in the last issue, the FF fought the mechanical menace known as the Dragon Man, and he kidnapped Sue Richards/Invisible Girl (She would not be known as the Invisible Woman until John Byrne's run). Also, a mysterious horse-hoofed being called Gorgon made off with one of the Frightful Four's members: the equally mysterious Medusa, Mistress of the Living Hair. 

After the rescue, Reed orders Johnny to go scout for Sue and the Dragon Man. The Matchstick manages to find the two. 

"Dude, are you aware you are on fire?!"

The metal monster has Sue in his meaty metal claws, so Johnny can't give him the world's worst hotfoot. The Dragon Man, ripping off a certain Japanese King of the Monsters, tries to blast Johnny with its own version of atomic breath...in actuality, a thermal blast. Sue covers her eyes, allowing Johnny to blind the robot with his Nova Blast. This forces the Dragon Man to land and release Sue. She tells Johnny that she's got this handled. Makes sense, modern Sue is often seen as the most powerful and versatile member of the FF with her powers. However, before we see Sue potentially show why she could be a guest character in Mortal Kombat, the scene shifts to...a jail.

"Sand Man Walkin'!"

What, seriously? NOW the scene shifts?!

Yeah, what a bad bit of timing. Anyway, what's so special about this jail? Well, it contains two of the Frightful Four: Flint Marko/Sandman and Pete Petruski/Trapster (formerly Paste Pot Pete). Bentley Wittman/The Wizard is in the prison's hospital, still recovering from a Ben Grimm-provided beatdown. Sandman tries to punch his way through the window of his cell, but the designers of the cell kept that in mind, shocking the Sandman hard.

Meanwhile, Sue and Johnny return to the Baxter Building...thanks to the Dragon Man?!

Let me explain. You see, Dragon Man is a fearsome and destructive machine, but he also has the mind of a small child. She was able to convince the robot to bring her home safely. Johnny retreats to his room. He goes his phone, hoping to call his then-squeeze Doris Evans. He hadn't spoken to her in days. However, she tells him she has other plans, which Johnny grumbles about. Dude, you haven't spoken to her in days. Your own words, pal. You should not be surprised she decides to go off and do her own thing.

Feeling in a bit of a mood, Johnny decides to go out for a walk. He ends up wandering near some condemned buildings, where he finds a surprising sight.

This remake of The Seven Year Itch is WEEEEEIRD...

Johnny finds himself quite entranced by this orange-haired beauty. She is startled by his presence. The young lady screams at Johnny to stay back from her and kicks up some winds. Yes sir, Johnny Storm has just met Crystal Amaquelin, the younger sister of Medusa. And he finds her quite unforgettable, in more than one way. 

The next day, the FF are clearing out a room in the Baxter Building for Dragon Man to reside in. His mind is occupied by thoughts of Crystal, and it for some reason causes him to act grouchy towards his fellow Fantastic Four members. He leaves to get some air. He returns to the desolate neighborhood he encountered Crystal in hoping to see her again. Lady Luck is smiling on him as she is indeed there again.

He tries to talk to her, but she flees, saying "they" mustn't find her. She tries to scare Johnny off by creating a blaze, but Johnny's own powers allow him to tame the flames. Heh. I'm a poet and I didn't know it. Crystal thinks Johnny is a fellow Inhuman, so she introduces herself to him. Johnny asks her what she's doing here all alone, but the thing is, she isn't alone. She has the Inhumans' Best Friend with her: Lockjaw, everybody!

Lockjaw is going to lick Johnny's face so HARD...

That's right, Lockjaw! He likes hugs. The big dog guides them to a secret chamber built by a fellow called "Black Bolt". Johnny at this point is unaware of the Inhumans, so he is unsure who this "Black Bolt" is, and he knows Crystal isn't a mutant, because the X-Men would have known of her. So, how is moving Dragon Man into the Baxter Building going?

Oh, rather swimmingly. The Dragon Man is being surly and fighting with Reed and Ben. Sue ends the crisis with a tranquilizer gun...even though the Dragon Man is an android. 

Thankfully, Reed and Ben weren't too busted up by the Dragon Man's tantrum. Their powers helped with that. They notice that Johnny has never returned, but the Dragon Man, and Ben's own struggles with his self-worth are taking their attention at the moment. Back with Crystal and Johnny! 

Say hello to Karnak. He has the power to find the weak spot in any structure, which he uses with his martial arts skills to shatter just about anything. He also demonstrates his skills and strength by tossing Johnny like he's a burlap sack.

Johnny wakes up and sees Gorgon, Medusa, Triton, and Crystal. The orange-haired elemental manipulator reveals that Medusa is her sister. Crystal was unaware that Medusa was a member of the Frightful Four, so she's shocked when Johnny wants to layeth a fiery smacketh down on Medusa. They realize that Johnny is not an Inhuman...somehow. Gorgon knocks Johnny into a trap. It starts filling with water, but Johnny is able to escape and call the rest of the FF for help. 

Johnny leads them to the Inhumans' lair, but the Kree-enhanced beings are ready for our heroes. Karnak uses his power to bring a wall down on them. It doesn't work (thanks to Ben), but that's alright. 

Yup. There's still one Inhuman left. The mightiest one of all.

I'm Not-Batman!

The King of the Inhumans, Blackagar Boltagon, aka Black Bolt, has arrived. Yup, the Fantastic Four are in trouble. 

I did enjoy this issue. One thing did bother me. When Johnny first met Crystal, she said that "they" mustn't find her. Who was this "they" she was talking about? It couldn't have been the other Inhumans, they're her family. It couldn't have been from the Frightful Four, they were in jail. And she couldn't have been acting to lure Johnny into a trap.

What can I say about Jack Kirby's art that other people have not said, and well, a lot better? His art is very dynamic, and it has a strong sense of storytelling.

If you want to read this for yourself, I recommend tracking down the 2013 trade paperback The Inhumans: The Origin of the Inhumans. Thanks for reading this blog entry!

Text Play: Pokémon Xenoverse #38

Hello, and welcome to the Eldiw region! This is entry number 38 in my Text Play of Pokémon Xenoverse!

Now, as is tradition, I will be warning you, I will be spoiling this game.

As such, I highly recommend playing this game for yourself before you read these Text Play entries. You can do so here. Now with that out of the way, on with the show!

Last time, we started exploring Samuel Oak Airport. We were finally able to enter the building after defeating Wallace Daddy at the Hypelion Gym to get the Beat Badge, our sixth badge. Two more to go, baby.

Yeah, I was thrilled about that win, too. Now with that out of the way, let's explore the airport. After all, this game wouldn't have one if we were not intended to use it, right? Let's start on the staircase on the right side from the entrance.

Yes, this one I marked with the big yellow arrow. From there, we meet this guy who says that Wallace Daddy is the talk of his hometown.

I wonder where he is from. Anyway, you see that door with the red Pokéball sign and matching doormat? Well, it turns out that is the door of the Airport's Pokémon Center.

Wait...in the last entry, after battling that trainer named Ridge here in the airport in the last entry, he worried he'd miss his flight because he'd have to take his Pokémon to a Pokémon Center. I didn't think that was a big deal as Hypelion's was not too far away from the airport. It turns out this place has one of its own! He didn't have to worry at all! 

Although to be fair, I wasn't aware this airport has its own Center as well. The hoodie girl on the left is looking through some magazines. Makes sense, airports have lots of places that sell newspapers and magazines. The old lady on the right all dressed up like a martial arts master just laments that her age, even sitting is hard. So, yeah. That's everything here. Let's move on. Next to the Pokemon Center is another door, this one with a blue sign and doormat.

This door leads to a Poke Mart.

Personally, I think this place and the Center should be in the same place. I felt that was much more convenient. I've grown to really prefer the Center and Mart as the same place. Heal your Pokemon and stock up on supplies at the same place. Once we leave the Mart, we can go down the nearby stairs or go down the hall on the right. I'll go down the stairs first. Once we go down the stairs, we end up battling this...Pinkie Pie cosplayer?

...Huh? Yeah, I get he's supposed to be cosplaying as a Weedle. The pink hair and clown nose threw me off. Gimme a break.

Poke Maniac Flint
1st Pokémon: Galvantula (Lv. 41) - Given Leech Seed by Phantump, defeated by Palossand.
2nd Pokémon: Sosqwatch (Lv. 42) - Defeated by Trishout.

If we go to the left, we find this green door with, naturally, a matching doormat.

See that guy in the screenshot? Evidently someone stole his luggage. 

I mean, what kind of person does that?! The depravity of humanity never ceases to amaze and surprise me. Anyway, let's go inside the green-signed room, shall we?

Hey, it's another PokéMart! This one specializes in Technical Machines. I don't see why the other store doesn't just sell those, too. Yes, RPG logic, but still. Sell them in the other store and put a restaurant here. Whatever, let's move on. All the way at the end, there's this Chef standing here.

What's he doing there, staring at the poster of Alola? I mean, it is a nice poster. I do like it. I've played Sun/Moon, so in a way, I've been to Alola. It's a rather lovely place. Anyway, if you talk to him, he has a...question for you.

HEY WHOA WHOA WHOA WHOA WHOA!

Now, here's the thing. I am not against the idea of fangames tackling issues that "official" Pokémon games do not. I am not against the idea of a Pokémon fan work tackling an issue like racism. After all, artists are inspired by issues in the real world, and racism is sadly still a big one. However, this comes...right out of nowhere. This is just so...bizarre! 

If you disagree with him, he'll grumble there's nothing special about it. If you do agree with him, he'll give you a Fresh Water to "wash the bad taste away". 😒 Forget that! I like the fried shrimp at Chinese buffets, there's better ways to get Fresh Water anyway! 

With that unpleasantness behind us, let's head back to the main hall, and check out the other side of the airport.

Yeah, we have to go up these stairs here. These stairs take us to the baggage claim area.

Don't bother looking in that trash can in the screenshot, there's nothing in it but trash. Walking through the baggage area, I can't help but wonder if in the Pokémon world, people mysteriously lose their luggage in flight as well.

And it turns out, they do! Yup, the Airport Gods exist here, and they can be just as prickly as the real world. By the way, see that garbage bin in the screenshot? Yeah, don't bother. There's no items in that, either. I learned an interesting piece of gossip in this area, as well.

The Cluster Jungle, huh? I'll have to check that place out. I love Bulbasaurs, so having one on my team would be handy. I'd feel like a teenager again.

If we go downwards, we end up in the main check-in area, and a kid there wants to battle us to kill some time.

Let's do this.

(School Kid) Charlie
1st Pokémon: Roselia (Lv. 40) - Defeated by Trishout.
2nd Pokémon: Spiritomb (Lv. 42) - Defeated by Xatu after Spiritomb halved its HP thanks to Curse.

That was fun, and the kid got to kill a little time, so that's nice.

We got this airport all nice and explored, so let's get out of here.

The exit is located right near the check-in area. Right near the exit is this Korean speaker.

He's basically asking where the exit is. I'm going by Google Translate on this. It's...right there, bro. It's right near you. Do you not see it?

Although to be fair, English is not his first language. Anyway, we head outside...

...right to the tarmac. Where the planes are. 

Who designed this airport, Cocaine Ursaring?! This airport is begging for a lawsuit! Well, as long as we're here, let's take a look around. If we go to the left, we find this lady hanging out and a nearby box.

The young woman is bored. She hates waiting for presumably her flight. So, she challenges us to a battle to hopefully kill some time.

(Hip Hop) Zoey
1st Pokémon: Brionne (Lv. 42) - Defeated by Phantump with one Horn Leech.
2nd Pokémon: Bremand (Lv. 42) - Defeated by Palossand with Bulldoze.

Zoey isn't disappointed with losing. She wanted to kill a little time, and win or lose, she got to do. After all, she had been waiting for a whole five minutes. Anyway, remember that item box nearby? It contained a Max Repel. If we go downwards, we find a runway and a little luggage truck.

I don't know why, but I find that luggage truck adorable. I want a little toy car or a LEGO set like that. We can battle the trainer right here. He wanted to take some pictures of the jungle nearby (I'm guessing that's the Cluster Jungle that one girl in the airport mentioned), but would rather broadcast his Pokémon battles on Instagram. 

(Influencer) Berny
1st Pokémon: Gachigachoo (Lv. 42) - Defeated by Trishout.
2nd Pokémon: Hawlucha (Lv. 42) - Defeated by Xatu.

The battle didn't go the way he hoped, but he at least got some decent pictures. Now what filter to use on them...

Yeah, whatever. We head out to the right and find this DJ. 

Wait, the Game Boy games exist here? Is that some kind of...Poke-ception?!

(mind blown)

(DeeJay) Sheeran.
1st Pokemon: Charmander (Lv. 45) - Defeated by Pelipper.

If we go up, we meet another trainer, who is also eager for a battle. She's feeling a bit anxious, and maybe a battle can calm her nerves.

(Hippie) August
1st Pokémon: Chatot (Lv. 42) - Defeated by Harrowk.
2nd Pokémon: Lopunny (Lv. 42) - Defeated by Phantump with Leech Seed. 

Thankfully, the loss didn't worsen her anxiety. It actually helped calm her nerves. Well, that's a positive.

If we keep going up, we meet this backpacker.

We don't battle him. He is right about the planes, though. It's kind of cool how they can transport you to different places so much quicker than other forms of transport.

And that's where we'll have to stop for the month. Join me next time when we explore the Cluster Jungle next to the airport! Thanks for reading this blog entry! If you liked it, show it off! Take care of yourselves and each other! See you next time!