Anybody who points a judgmental finger at the comics of the ’90s really needs to take a step back and look at that odd little decade for what it was: the last real time of constant character invention in Marvel comics.
Ideas were being spat out at an alarming rate, so much so that the sheer glut of them meant that dozens would fail to catch on and slink into obscurity, while others would prosper. So while Deadpool, Carnage, and Cable have become household names (at least to households that know what they’re talking about), the great creation Slapstick languished in limbo for quite a while. But then Lord of the Manor Dan Slott dusted him off and inserted him into the Avengers: Initiative comic.
And the peasants rejoiced.
For a brief moment there it looked like Slapstick was going to break out and finally become something. The “Civil War” stuff had (finally, stupidly) ended, and the Initiative was starting up and Slapstick was in a prime spot to grab the spotlight. Unfortunately, that didn’t happen, and he has gone from obscurity back to obscurity.
And the peasants booed.
Slapstick debuted in a 4-issue limited series at the dawn of the ’90s, back when new characters were getting brand new series left and right. Taking inspiration from The Mask from Dark Horse Comics (this was before Jim Carrey’s movie) and Looney Tunes cartoons, Slapstick introduced a human cartoon into the Marvel Universe. Literally, a human cartoon — class clown gets extra-dimensional powers and can do anything a cartoon can do. And if you’re a fan of cartoons, then you know exactly how much that covers. Cartoons aren’t burdened by mundane reality. A comic character can get away with outrageous things that stagger even the most unwavering suspension of disbelief because they’re a cartoon character. When the Coyote falls a couple hundred feet, splats into the canyon floor, and then dusts himself off, nobody says, “Surely that fall would have killed him.”
Well, Shirley disagrees.
So when a cartoon character with all of that potential was introduced into the Marvel Universe, thus was created one of the most powerful heroes of all. And one with limitless potential.
And then, of course, everyone forgot about him. I’m going to blame X-Force for that. And Rob Liefeld.
Time passed with no sign of Slapstick. It seemed as if he would be yet another quarter-bin tragedy. Until Dan Slott and The Initiative. For a brief time, things were looking good. Slapstick had a great storyline going there for a while. Was he evil? Was he crazy? A normal kid, trapped in the body of a cartoon, able to do almost anything he wanted . . . was it a case of absolute power corrupting? Bugs Bunny was no saint either, you know.
And then Slapstick slid into obscurity again. He made a few cameo appearances, but it seemed like he was destined to miss out on that big break.
That’s just depressing. Even more depressing when I look at an excellent series like Ms. Marvel with brand new character Kamala Khan and can almost see an indirect connection between the two, with the stretching and the body-morphing and the teen coming to grips with their place in the world with so much power thrust on them and such. Maybe there can be a team-up.
Regardless, Slapstick would make a fantastic Marvel Legends figure. He could be loaded down with a decent amount of accessories and would make an extremely unique figure. I’m taking a look at some of the characters that are being released lately, and I’m seeing more possibilities than ever before. All a character needs is love and attention, and Slapstick is due for both in the toy world and the comic world. And, hell, even in the movie world. Slapstick: the Movie.
Yeah, I like the sound of that.
Coming soon to a theater near you.
And maybe one day to a toy aisle near us all.