oHOTmu or NOT Ep.63: Lightspeed to Living Tribunal

A little girl who likes rainbows. A feathered princess. Another light guy. A cosmic judge. Which are hot, which are not? The Hot Squad's coverage of issue 7 continues!

Featuring permanent panelists Elyse, Isabel, Nathalie, Josée, Amélie and Shotgun.

Listen to Episode 63 below (the usual mature language warnings apply), or subscribe to oHOTmu OR NOT? on iTunes!

Relevant images and further credits at: oHOTmu or NOT ep.63 Supplemental

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30 responses to “oHOTmu or NOT Ep.63: Lightspeed to Living Tribunal

  1. Lightspeed – I am now wondering if Lauren Faust ripped off Lightspeed’s ability for Rainbow Dash in MLP. I mean both go fast, leave rainbow trails, and can break the speed of sound (the impressive Sonic Rainboom). Listening to the conversation, I was wondering if I could co-opt the ‘your butt is like a rainbow’ line but decided against it.

    Lilandra – count me on the side of not wanting space adventures for the Xmen. And I never quite felt chemistry between Xavier and her. No sparks flying when I read them together. The main image doesn’t do her any favors; the inset stuff by Byrne is much better.

    Living Tribunal – I love big cosmic ideas like this and as a kid this one intrigued me. The three heads of judgment was pretty cool. The degrees of being masked also cool. And the ‘heck I’ll destroy a planet if I want to’ power level was awesome. So I think this is the winner entry of the episode.

    Surprised they didn’t list the Tribunal’s kid Invention.
    I mean Necessity *is* the mother of Invention.

    Thanks for another fun episode!

  2. Great set of characters- Great Show-

    One of the guys I games with had a mom who bought the whole “Satanic Panic” anti-D&D thing. My solution was to shift to superhero’s. His mom talked to their church leader. He made booklets on xerox to explain “The Truth”
    This picture of Iliandrada was copied for a “Why comics are Satanic” anti-comics & roll play “booklet”. Claimed name “Shi’ar” meant “of Satanic nature”. Reference to “The Master of Dungeons” “Mr.Nullifier”, both me, as a “cult leader”. Sadly I have lost all my copies of it-

    (( I remember the Tribunal picture was also used in a “booklet”, but that one wasn’t aimed at me)) (( Same “Church Mom” would latter complain about “liberals using copyright law” to shut down the Church website in late 90’s.))

  3. Leave it to the girls to provide heretofore unthought of observations: Power Pack’s boots look like water bootles; LIving Laser’s shirt looks like Charlie Brown’s; and my favorite, Lilandra’s helmet looks like a…dildo.

    I wouldn’t be surprised to see the Living Tribunal show up in an MCU film. Such a stunning visual, even if some of it (like the hole in the chest) is unexplained. And speaking of visual, I love the kid-accurate body posture June Brigman gives Lightspeed. Very few artists in comics can successfully draw young kids, and she may be the all-time best.

    Thanks for some fun on a dreary fall Tuesday, gals and Siskoid!

    Chris

  4. Coming in ready to set the record straight with Power Pack. Don’t you tear down Julie Power. Those boots are awesome. I would kill for those. Julie is the caring and lovely and a great member of the team. One of our favorites on the team. And of course she passes with flying colors. It is not the costume, it is part of the power set that heals the kids.

    COSTUME ON!!!!

    Lilandra – I always liked the X-Men space adventures, but I agree that the Xaiver love interest was always odd.

    Got to go back to work. Will finish the episode later.

  5. Impressive podcast. Most impressive. Speed can be used offensively. See the old Flash line. A peace of straw in a hurricane can be thrown threw a telephone pole. So Light Speed could use it to fight crime. Does she still have those powers? Not sure. Last I saw of Power Pack was when her older Brother joined the New Warriors. And they were almost Adults. The costume is fine. The Artist kept it simple. And it works. The books ware from the Horse Allien whom died giving them his powers.

    He was kind of a my little Pony Man on 2 feet. Like something out of the TMNT Archie run or something. And his people fought Lzard men or were they sharks? Can’t remember. Snarks I think they were called. Also how come no one noted The Power Pack teams Fathers name is Jim Powers. Kind of Shocked Mego or WWE didn’t get annoyed at Marvel for that one. As a pay back for Hulk Hogan. Ah well. Not sure if the comic or the NES game of Jim Power came first. But, the Man is latterly named Dr. James Powers. I.E. Jim Powers.

    Wrestling Jober to the stars. Not the same guy, but still. First they have the Psi Lord bit from New Universe. Ware Hero’s get their powers from one super being who’s super powers split into many people. And now their dad is named Dr. Jim Powers.

    So Xavier dated a Bird woman. Yep it’s a but Anamie. But as Charcter she was fine. She was mainly there so Cocckrum could draw the LSH in the X-Men. Thuse The Imperal Guard. Lead by Super Boy…er Gladator. And the rest. And I guess they liked enough to bring her back. The Aromr is fine. A Sci Fi verson of Roman aromr. That’s been done a tones of times though it still kind of works.

    The living Lazer…yep that’s a mort. Orange and green and it’s not Halloween. Oy. Kind of a cheep Flash Gorden knock off out fit. Only thing Lazer about the costume is the Lazer on his chest. Not obly is it tacky, but it’s not even a thematic costume. The Tribunal… Fits for what he is I guess. That’s all I got. Though I now can’t look at him with out seeing the small towel on his head as ya’ll said. sigh. Cool Pod cast as always can’t wait to hear the next one.

    1. It’s Dr. James Power, no “s”, not the same name, so no, I don’t think there’s a conflict with Jim Powers the wrestler.

      Even if it were the same name (it’s not), Jim Powers started with the WWF in 1984. Power Pack debuted in 1984. It’s a coincidence and the dad was a supporting cast member no one would have really taken notice of. And it’s not like he’s the only Jim Powers… player for the Canucks, NFL quarterback, pitcher for the Brooklyn Gladiators…

      1. Had to look up the Brooklyn Gladiators — a one-season professional baseball team from 1890. That isn’t a deep cut, it’s a crevasse.

  6. Man, oh man, there is so much to say about these entries! (Reader discretion is advised for what follows.) Let’s get to it!

    I have a great deal of affection for LIGHTSPEED, because she reminds me so much of my big sister, who would have been close to Julie’s age at the debut of Power Pack. (I would have been much closer to Katie Power’s age at the time). Both are voracious readers, avid fantasy fiction fans, and were decidedly matronly towards younger siblings!

    I noticed something that struck me as odd, though, when viewing her OHOTMU page. Both sample panels taken from the comics and added to the entry show Julie carrying aloft young Franklin Richards, who is dressed in the same outfit in both panels.

    After digging through back issues, I learned that not only were both these images taken from the same issue of Power Pack (number 16), but both were lifted from the same page of that issue! Based on the publication dates, this looks to have been the most recent Power Pack comic drafted at the time this entry was created. I am left wondering if this was the only artwork available at publication time or if the editor was just plain lazy about this entry.

    Moving on, I have noticed quite a few comments about the seemingly tepid romance between Charles Xavier and LILANDRA posted on this very comments page. Fear not, fellow comics fans, for I have a theory to explain Xavier’s attraction!

    The first encounters Xavier had with the space princess came in the form of psychic attacks that plagued his dreams and made him question his sanity. It’s no surprise to me that a man who regularly mentally dominates his adversaries would then fall madly in love with the first large-breasted woman who could force upon him the same kind of psychic overload that he himself was so used to dishing out! It may be sick (and it’s definitely kinky) but the evidence is there!

    Now dig that crazy LIVING TRIBUNAL, Jack! This cat is so outta site, he is, like, cosmic, man! I hear he’s hung like a jury! — But seriously, folks, if only two of his three faces are obscured, can we honestly say that justice is blind?

    Thanks again for another highly entertaining episode. I can’t wait to hear what the Hot Crew makes of Lockjaw, Lockheed, and the comics version of Loki! See you all in the funny papers!

    P.S. I am so glad to learn that you, Siskoid, are also a Godzilla fan. The more I listen to Fire and Water podcast shows, the more kinship I feel with the hosts – you and Rob Kelly in particular. Keep doing what you do and I will remain your avid listener.

    1. Normally a character with a single page entry would have gotten just one panel under the main picture, so the horizontal paneling on that page probably made it possible to make more of a montage. If they’d gone with another issue, we probably would just have gotten one.

      1. Aha! That makes perfect sense! Since Julie is significantly shorter than your average OHOTMU character entry, there would be extra vertical clearance for a second image. Thanks for straightening that out! — and I mistyped the issue number in the above letter. Astute readers of Power Pack will recognize those OHOTMU panels from. Power Pack issue 17.

  7. Also Lilandra needs breasts. Or her butt would have to be a lot bigger. Look at an egg. A bird egg to be big enough for a human baby in it. Would need a lot more room in it.

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Egg

    So she could pass that her promotions would have to be lot bigger. So she needs the breasts so she produs milk. Her hips and but would have to be so large they’d need bigger doors. Look at a bird. Their built like that for a reason. So she would need to reproducer like a mammal. Thus the women of this bird like race need to be enough mammal like for them to reproduce. To make a humanoid baby in a egg would need more…em room. Leave it at that.

    Glad Marvel knew enough about Bio to not make her like Mass Effect 4 did. Nope that’s not how bio works.

    Anyway… onto Living Laser …

    Living Lazzer … He can have his own theme song for that outfit.

    Tacky By Weird Al.

  8. Lightspeed: Make no mistake, Julie is smart and conscientious, but she will totally bring a smack down when needed. Power Pack’s big enemy is the giant lizard aliens, the Snarks, like 7 feet tall. Julie has done a flying palm strike onto a Snark’s snout. AND! In one story when she didn’t have powers, she clobbered a Snark with a 2-by-4. JULIE 4 EVA!

    Lilandra: Of course her helmet is shaped like that. She can’t flatten her head feathers. The press would be all over her “bad crest day”.

    Living Laser: It’s all about the alliteration. The Living Ladder! The Living Lima Bean! The Living Lava Lamp! See? … Wait…

    Living Tribunal: Um, hello, he’s violating the alliteration rule! What the heck! It’s not the hard. The Towering Tribunal. The Tempestuous Tribunal. The Trigonometric Tribunal. You’d think this guy would be all about the rules.

    I admit, I made a bad joke about “sun burn” and “appeal”. But 5 minutes later, one of the squad does a law joke about “appeal”? Excuse me? Ok, that was funnier, so sue me.

    Thanks for the laughs, Hot Squadders!

  9. Lightspeed: Tim covered it well.

    Lilandra: It’s interesting to me when people complain about how the romance between two characters in fiction doesn’t make sense. Do couples make sense in real life? They often seem random to me, at least at first. I think Lilandra and Chuck might have bonded over their “leader pursuing greater good ruthlessly” qualities. They probably feel like no one else understands them.

    Living Laser: Everything you said about LL is true, EXCEPT: It isn’t a lame name. A comic book character’s code name should succinctly tell you that there’s something unusual or interesting about a character right off the bat, and most do. Even the names that are just animals, like Porcupine, qualify because you know without looking the Porcupine is going to be a person with quills. Black Canary and Red Bee are even more interesting, because those are the wrong colors for those animals. Green Lantern works because you know it’s going to be a guy dressed in green, hanging on a hook or branch, glowing.

    Wait, no, Green Lantern doesn’t work. It’s never worked. My dad has a green Coleman lantern we used to go camping with. It’s a fine piece of gear, but I wouldn’t want to read about its adventures. Those characters had to earn 100% of the cachet associated with that name.

    So anyway, back to Living Laser. See, the hook is he’s a laser that’s alive. Except that, for all his earliest appearances, he wasn’t. It was a bald-faced lie. But, “Lasersuit Guy” isn’t as good a hook.

    Weirdly, I have a favorite Living Laser story. He gets powered up by his behind-the-scenes benefactor (how’s the alliteration, Tim?) and attacks two Captains America in New Avengers #62 — Steve Rogers and Bucky, who had the suit and shield at the time. As they fight, Steve-Cap is talking to LL like a human being — using his real name, asking how he’s doing, telling him the baddies he’s working for don’t have his best interests at heart, and how the Avengers can help him. It doesn’t make LL stop shooting, but it really throws him off his game. Bucky and Luke Cage take him down without Living Laser ever seeing them coming. (Luke Cage had arrived mid-fight to retrieve his daughter’s favorite binky, which she had previously dropped at the scene.) It was a great characterization scene for everyone involved.

    Living Tribunal: We’re back to my name rules, now. Living Tribunal fails miserably. Why? All Tribunals are living. Seriously, just try and get a timely decision out of a dead tribunal. I mean, I get what the creator was going for, (three judges, one dude) but “The Somewhat Unitary Tribunal” or “The Tribunal Who Walks Like a Man!” is more to the point. And I kinda like that second one. They probably should’ve gone with one of Tim’s names above.

    That’s it. Thanks for a wonderful diversion, as always!

      1. Tim, you are a kind and gracious human yourself. Why should I deny you kindness? I think you are saying you don’t deserve the respect I show your opinions. I refuse to concede even one iota of that point, but even if I did, who cares? Are respect and kindness In such short supply that we should ration them out to those we deem deserving? In the spirit of Gene Hendricks (another kind and gracious human), I say thee nay! (I just learned a little markup language for blog comments; can you tell?)

        But this is a side rant. I’m really replying to tell you I have a name that fits both our criteria: The Towering Triune Tribunal! I find it eminently descriptive and superlatively alliterative, though I feel immodest for pointing those things out. I hereby give it to Marvel Comics to do with what they will, free of charge or copyright claim, in gratitude for the hours of entertainment and inspiration they have given me. As payment for my debt, it is negligible in comparison to the money I’ve given them over the decades, but they can add it to the pile.

        I had a good day. Can you tell?

  10. Well done on another great show, everyone! I always enjoy oHOTmu when it comes out and this was no exception. In fact, to borrow one of the ladies’ comments, the oHOTmu squad is the pot of gold at the end of the podcast rainbow!

    Lilandra – Agreed, Siskoid. X-Men in deep space is dumb and I never got this bird lady.

    Living Laser – HOW MANY SENTIENT ENERGY BEAMS ARE THERE IN THIS UNIVERSE?!?!?!?

    Living Tribunal – This is a character that I always thought was neat when I saw him, but I didn’t read a lot of stories with him in it. So the small sample size made him seem mysterious and cool. Having read the comments from Tim and Capt.E, now I want the Living Tribunal to change his name. I feel he would play everything by the book and make sure there was no copyright, trademark, or branding issues when choosing his name. Maybe his name was chosen by committee or, dare I say, tribunal? I’m sorry……

    Thanks for the compliment! I’m so fine I receive a fine? Okay, but what do I have to pay? When is it due by? Do I have to appear in court? Will I be sentenced to some sort of oHOTmu community service?!?!?

    Thanks for the laughs and the insight! Keep up the great work!

    1. Mike, just contact Siskoid’s lawyer. He explains it all very clearly.

      You know, between Siskoid’s frequent filings against me and that one fishing regulation mix-up in the eighties (all good now; I was allowed back into Ontario until COVID hit), I think I have more experience with the Canadian legal system than y’all do.

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