Li'l Benjy in Christmas Crisis!

 

It’s that time of year once again; where we are supposed to be thinking of others, so I thought of you, faithful reader! Consider it a gift, because today I wanted to share an adorable aspect of the MC2 I don’t think I’ve ever covered before: Li’l Benjy! And because it’s Holiday Season, let’s kick things off with ‘Li’l Benjy the Spectacular Spider-Baby in “Christmas Crisis”

 

Created by Tom Defalco and Colleen Coover, Li’l Benjy was a series of short, silly and fun tales published as back-up stories starting in Amazing Spider-Girl #25. Are they canon? I see no reason why not! Shush! Anyway, in the pages of the following issue -Amazing Spider-Girl #26- we have “Christmas Crisis” wherein Benjy wonders why his mother Mary Jane appears so excited. His play date mate Shelly explains to the oblivious baby that it’s a special time of year called ‘Fat Day’ where some old Fat Man sneaks down chimneys to steal everyone’s money and leave clothes behind. Ever the courageous hero, Benjy uses his sister Mayday’s web-shooters to block off the Parker House’s chimney with webbing.

 

While this might keep your average Santa Claus from getting inside, we must remember that in the Marvel Universe, Santa is not only very much real, but also extremely powerful. The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A to Z Vol 10 tells us that among his abilities, Santa gains superhuman strength on Christmas Eve, can teleport, has a magical sack which is bigger on the inside and possesses the ability to fit through any chimney (or any alternative if a chimney is not available). Naturally, I’m now wishing we got more Li’l Benjy stories because I’d love to see him meet the real ‘Fat Man’.

 

Happy Holidays and I hope you all find yourselves surrounded by family because that’s truly magical and worth living to see in this scary world. Hug your loved ones, enjoy this time and stay safe everybody!

 

Until I manage to work the Elf with a Gun into a post, I remain

 

frogoat

Raptor Ramblings

 

 

While working on the Drago Family Tree I found some nice little details about Raptor that I wanted to share, but they didn’t really fit into that post. So, here’s a little entry detailing some more info about Brenda Drago: Raptor Ramblings.

 

Let’s start with something that might be kind of obvious but interesting nonetheless: Both Brenda and her father, Raniero ‘Blackie’ Drago wear protective headgear while flying. I mention this because it’s something originated by Blackie during his initial short-lived career as The Vulture (Amazing Spider-Man #48).

 

It’s also worth noting that Raniero rigged his helmet with a short-wave radio receiver. Brenda’s Raptor helmet keeps her in constant contact with her partner in crime (and abusive POS) Tony, both via audio and visual means (Spider-Girl #18). Later, as with all member of the New Warriors initially, Brenda’s helmet used an additional headset with microphone to maintain contact (Spider-Girl #43). While serving on Special Agent Weadon’s team Raptor apparently returned to using her helmet’s internal communication, as unlike her teammates, she is not shown to wear an earpiece with microphone (Spider-Girl #62).

 

Another nice piece of symmetry between Brenda and her father’s initial appearances is their choice of targets. Raniero attacks a wall street messenger who’s chained to his briefcase, flying off with the man and threatening to drop him him to get at the contents (Amazing Spider-Man #48). Brenda does nearly the same thing, targeting a diamond courier named Theo Rudolpho who’s chained to his briefcase, only this time the man is nearly killed when his briefcase handle breaks and he falls from a great height (Spider-Girl #18). Unlike her father, Brenda shows remorse for her actions and begins stealing food and leaving it at the man’s door, which eventually leads to her eventual redemption (Spider-Girl #28).

I’ve said in the past I love the Official Handbooks of the Marvel Universe, and I do, but I also understand they are limited by page-space and time-factors as well as simple human error. While the following aren’t really mistakes, they are small omissions from Raptor’s profile in the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A to Z Update #3 I’d like to see one day in an MC2 Handbook. In addition to the noted abilities of her winged suit, Raptor’s wings are able to be disengaged, folding up like a cape behind her and freeing up her arms (Spider-Girl #93, #97, Amazing Spider-Girl #26, #28). Finally, on at least one occasion, Brenda has made use of gas grenades which use gas that clings to their target and render them unconscious (Spider-Girl #62).

Okay, I think I’ve rambled enough for today. Brenda is a great character and a wonderful example of the redemption arc Spider-Girl has helped enable in members of her rogue’s gallery.

 

Until I run out of things to love about the MC2, I remain

 

frogoat

 

 

Allan Family Tree

 

Now that I’ve covered the Osborn Family Tree, I’ve opened the door to detailing the various families that intersect with it. The most obvious place for me to start was with the Allan Family Tree, and so here we are!

 

As mentioned previously, Elizabeth ‘Liz’ Allan first appeared in Amazing Fantasy #15 as an unnamed student and was identified as Liz Allan in Amazing Spider-Man (vol. 1) #4. Liz developed a crush on Peter Parker while they were in high school together, admitting this to him during their graduation in Amazing Spider-Man (vol. 1) #28. After this, Liz would not be seen for several years, save a cameo in Amazing Spider-Man (vol. 1) #30.

 

When we saw Liz next, it was over 100 issues later in Amazing Spider-Man #132-133, her surname was misspelt as ‘Allen,’ we learned what she had been up to during her long absence and we learned of a familial relationship previously unrevealed. That’s right, Mark Raxton aka The Molten Man is Liz Allan’s stepbrother. After graduating high school Liz became a Nurse (or Nurse Aid, according to some handbook entries) to provide him with care until he later escaped. This relationship between the two characters would become a reoccurring plot point as time went on.

Mark Raxton first appeared in Amazing Spider-Man #28 as the assistant to Spencer Smythe (see here)  who attempts to steal an experimental liquid metal alloy only to end up with it coated on his skin as The Molten Man. While a reoccurring villain initially, Raxton would attempt to rehabilitate in Web of Spider-Man #62 and afterwards worked to redeem himself while reconciling with his stepsister and her new family.

Now, the pertinent question is how are Liz and Mark stepsiblings? Let’s take a look at Liz’s parents to work it out. Mr Allan, Liz’s father, first appears in Amazing Spider-Man (vol. 1) #17 when his Avenue Dinner Club is offered as the location for Flash Thompson’s Spider-Man Fan Club. Technically, the character is misidentified as ‘Mr. Brant’ but this an obvious writing error, something the Official Marvel Index to the Amazing Spider-Man (1985) clarifies along with listing his next appearances as Amazing Spider-Man (vol. 1) #28. This latter appearance is also the first time we meet Mrs. Allan…or at least see the back of her head. While Mrs. Allan isn’t identified by first or last name here, the aforementioned Index identifies her as ‘Mrs. Allan’ and ‘Liz Allan’s mother; formerly Mrs. Raxton, the Molten Man’s mother’.

 

The issue with Mrs. Allan being both Liz and Mark’s mother is simple: having a shared mother would make them half-siblings rather than stepsiblings but they’ve consistently identified as stepbrother and sister for decades. I’ve given this a lot of thought and I think I have the solution. When discussing Mark in Web of Spider-Man #62, Liz states ‘when we were kids, he and his stepfather, my Dad, were always fighting’. From this we know for sure that Mr. Allan is not Mark’s biological father.

 

 The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe Update ’89 #5 profile for Molten Man lists a ‘Mr. Raxton (first name unrevealed, father, deceased)’ and ‘Mrs. Allan (first name unrevealed, stepmother)’ among his known relatives. From this we can deduce that Mark’s father died at some point and that Mrs. Allan is in fact his stepmother. Now the question becomes who is Mark’s mother, then? Untold Tales of Spider-Man #21 features the following seemingly throwaway line from Liz: ‘since my folks split up, I get to see him [Mr. Allan] every other weekend—and when he can spare the time.’ The relevant detail here is that Liz’s parents are no longer married and she no longer lives with her father. This story takes place prior to Liz’s high school graduation in Amazing Spider-Man #28.

Further confusing this point is the profile for Liz in the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe: Spider-Man 2005 -which isn’t strictly canon to this family tree due to their post-divergence publication date- but does provide us with first names for both Mr. and Mrs. Allan: Wilson and Doris, respectively. Notably, however, Doris is given the surname Raxton, despite being listed simply as Liz’s mother. Molten Man’s new profile in the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A to Z #7 hardcover similarly lists ‘Doris Raxton (mother)’. So what’s the truth?

 

I posit that there are actually two ‘Mrs. Allan’s’: Doris Raxton Allan- Mark’s biological mother and Mrs. Allan (first name unrevealed)- Liz’s biological mother. Mark Raxtonis born to Doris and Mr. Raxton and Elizabeth ‘Liz’ Allan is born to Mrs. Allan and Wilson Allan. At some point will Mark is young, Mr. Raxton dies. Liz’s parents separate or divorce and eventually Wilson and Doris get together and after some time marry with Doris either legally or otherwise adopting the surname Allan. This does leave it vague as to which Mrs. Allan was seen at Liz’s graduation, but that’s a minor issue!

 

Well, what do you think, does my explanation work? Let me know. Make sure to check out the Osborn Family Tree to see how this all connects to the MC2’s Normie Osborn. Looks like I’ll have to consider related Family Tree’s for Foggy Nelson and Brenda Drago soon, too. So be sure to look out for that one somewhere down the line.

 

Until I stop obsessing over such trivial details as a supporting character’s own supporting characters, I remain

 

frogoat

American Dream Handbook Correction

 

I'd like to preface this little post by saying I love the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe series and have a lot of respect for the hard work and dedication of the people who work on it's various entries. I'm also aware that there are time and space constraints and that no one is infallible and errors sometimes slip by unnoticed. So, with all that said, here's another really pointless correction I'd like to make.

So, in Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A to Z Update #1 (published in 2010) American Dream received a full-page entry. Now, I could point out that Shannon Carter’s level of education in the entry is listed as ‘unrevealed,’ despite the fact that we know that she obtained her job as a tour guide ‘right out of high school,’ as I mentioned in my last post. Here's the original handbook entry for reference:

 

But, that’s not what I really wanted to address today. It’s the section that mentions the Dream Team. According to the handbook entry ‘Barton dubbed his trainees the “Dream Team,” and intended them to replace the Avengers, who had fallen in battle years ago but before they could do so, a new team of Avengers formed.’ Obviously, this explicitly identifies the former Avenger Hawkeye aka Clint Barton as the one who named his group of special students the Dream Team. But this is clearly not the case, as we see in American Dream #4, where Brandon Cross aka Freebooter is inspired by fellow student Shannon’s speech and gives the group the name.

 

 

There are obviously other minor issues in the write up, but mostly these come down to compressing information to fit on the page, and usually don’t explicitly provide factual errors.

 

Until I stop picking nits, I remain

 

frogoat

 

Wild Thing Handbook Correction

I'd like to preface this little post by saying I love the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe series and have a lot of respect for the hard work and dedication of the people who work on it's various entries. I'm also aware that there are time and space constraints and that no one is infallible and errors sometimes slip by unnoticed. So, with all that said, here's a really pointless correction I'd like to make.

So, in All-New Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A to Z #12 (published in 2006) Wild Thing received a full-page entry. Now, I could point out the obvious error in the entry where Rina's place of birth is listed as 'Howlett Bay, Canada' but that's clearly a typo and is later corrected to 'Hudson Bay, Canada' when the entry was reprinted in Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A to Z Vol. 13 (published in 2010). Here's the original entry for reference:

What's not corrected in the updated entry is the mention of Colin Brewster's familial relationship to Cameron Bryce-Jones. Anyone who's read my Bryce-Jones Family Tree post will know that I did not include Colin as a member of that family. Yet, there it is in black and white:

If Colin and Cameron were related it would make the entire Wild Thing series very awkward, considering Cameron acted like the two were dating. So what gives? I believe the writer of Wild Thing's entry misinterpreted this scene from Wild Thing #5 where Rina questions Colin about his relationship with Cameron:

There you have it, Colin and Cameron are not related but have known one another since they were children and their parents are all friends. Oh, and the two aren't dating either, Rina! Hopefully that clears that matter up.

Until I find something more important to nitpick, I remain

frogoat