Ethnic Super Heroes

[megowgsh]

Since getting this shirt from my wife for my birthday (I'm wearing now actually)



I started thinking about the bad/unfair rap Hanna Barbera has received over the years for "inventing" Black Vulcan, Samurai and Apache Chief (not to mention El Dorado) for Challenge of the Super Friends almost as if to fill a "quota".

Did Marvel not introduce, just 3 years earlier, Thunderbird, Storm, Colossus, Nightcrawler and Wolverine to the X-Men? I mean, come on now, all of a sudden the Xavier Institute was the new United Nations for goodness sake. AND they had a handicapped guy as their leader.

Will HB and the Super Friends ever live this down? They are continuously the butt of so many "super hero" jokes and undeservedly so in my opinion.

[jds1911a1]

I think the major riff was Black vulcan is so obviously a replacement for Black lightning to save a royalty.

Golden Pharoah and Cyclotron are part of the same boat

the superfriends was just ahaead of it's time for PC balance

[BlackKnight]

I've never really heard of these jokes on the Ethnic Super Hero Characters ..., or maybe didn't pay that close attention, and still don't.


El Dorado is the Worst Flipp'in Super Hero Ever.
So this guy has the power to somewhat Teleport with his cape,.. or whatever like Nightcrawler ...., then Magically Still manages to get himself Caught. .... whatever.

[jwyblejr]

The only time I've heard anything bad was what they've had on [adult swim].

[The Toyroom]

I LOVE Apache Chief and Samurai.... Not so much Black Vulcan....El Dorado is useless IMO

[Hector]

El Dorado does suck...lol.

But I always thought the villain Tarantula was a baddazz...

[Random Axe]

I realize I'm showing my comic book ignorance here, but were these characters ever introduced into mainstream continuity? I'm trying to visualize Samurai on the pages and cannot outside of the Super Powers mini books.

I think, if done right, these guys could make a pretty cool team book. It would have to be toungue-in-cheek as nobody would ever give them proper respect. If it had that JLI vibe going on, I'd buy it.

Scott

[Hector]

However...my favorite ethnic superhero was probably Shang Chi...Master of Kung Fu...

[megowgsh]

Come On !

Am I the only one who sees how these guys are treated? They are ALWAYS referred to as HB/DC going PC but Marvel and the culturally, racially diverse X-men have never been referred to as such. Never has Tunderbird been referred to as the Native American superhero like Apache Chief was.

Why?

[The Toyroom]

I realize I'm showing my comic book ignorance here, but were these characters ever introduced into mainstream continuity? I'm trying to visualize Samurai on the pages and cannot outside of the Super Powers mini books.

I think, if done right, these guys could make a pretty cool team book. It would have to be toungue-in-cheek as nobody would ever give them proper respect. If it had that JLI vibe going on, I'd buy it.

Scott

There was an Apache Chief wannabe a few years back in JLA known as Manitou Raven....and a "Samurai" just turned up in the JLA 80 page Giant. But they're analogs of the characters and not the actual characters themselves

[The Toyroom]

Come On !

Am I the only one who sees how these guys are treated? They are ALWAYS referred to as HB/DC going PC but Marvel and the culturally, racially diverse X-men have never been referred to as such. Never has Tunderbird been referred to as the Native American superhero like Apache Chief was.

Why?

Probably because those XMen characters were created in an attempt to revitalize a failing franchise.... Whereas the SF probably were an attempt at being PC more so than reviving the franchise.

[BlackKnight]

My Favorite Ethnic Super Hero is Probably Cyborg. I can't think of someone I like better.
I do also like WarPath ..., which is Thunderbird's Brother ..
& For the Ladies ..., I'd have to go Psylock or Black Widow with the Russian Accent.

[Riffster]

El Dorado had other powers other then teleporting..
Another of his frequently used powers was the ability to generate illusions. Defined as "holograms," these illusions were also capable of fooling other senses, as they sometimes generated noise and could be touched; he once created a sea monster which roared loudly, and on another occasion generated a pile of fake dolls a villain was forced to physically dig through.

He also exhibited some degree of mental powers, including telepathy[episode needed]. During the series' opening theme, he is at one point shown to be hovering, suggesting flight capabilities, and he would sometimes enter from the side of the screen as if he were just landing.

He may have also possessed superhuman strength, as he once competed directly against Kalibak in physical combat[episode needed] and was also seen on several occasions to lift heavy objects with little effort[episode needed]. No origin was ever given to explain El Dorado's past, nor the method through which he had acquired these powers. Knowledgeable about Pre-Columbian history (yet vague in his explanations), he assisted the Super Friends whenever they were forced to enter unfamiliar ruins or areas in Latin America[episode needed].

In later incarnations[clarification needed], his powers were more well-defined[citation needed]. He had telepathic powers and the ability to create illusions.[citation n

[GaryPlaysWithDolls]

Do you ever notice with ethnic superheroes (especially African-American heroes)
That a hero is either:
1. Named black _____. (or)
2. Has more skin showing than the average hero.

Examples:
Black Panther is covered head to toe.
but, Black Goliath has bare arms and belly.

Storm is practically naked and Black Lightning is wearing a mostly covering suit.

Black Vulcan has bare legs and Luke Cage wore no mask and has a shirt open to the belly.

War Machine's armor IS black.

It's like they are afraid to waste the blackness.

I think I lost track of where I was going with this.

[BlackKnight]

El Dorado had other powers other then teleporting..
Another of his frequently used powers was the ability to generate illusions. Defined as "holograms," these illusions were also capable of fooling other senses, as they sometimes generated noise and could be touched; he once created a sea monster which roared loudly, and on another occasion generated a pile of fake dolls a villain was forced to physically dig through.

He also exhibited some degree of mental powers, including telepathy[episode needed]. During the series' opening theme, he is at one point shown to be hovering, suggesting flight capabilities, and he would sometimes enter from the side of the screen as if he were just landing.

He may have also possessed superhuman strength, as he once competed directly against Kalibak in physical combat[episode needed] and was also seen on several occasions to lift heavy objects with little effort[episode needed]. No origin was ever given to explain El Dorado's past, nor the method through which he had acquired these powers. Knowledgeable about Pre-Columbian history (yet vague in his explanations), he assisted the Super Friends whenever they were forced to enter unfamiliar ruins or areas in Latin America[episode needed].

In later incarnations[clarification needed], his powers were more well-defined[citation needed]. He had telepathic powers and the ability to create illusions.[citation n

None of that, even makes Him cool ...., He still sucks and will forever suck, because of his Lame-O Scripts on Super Friends.