Daredevil Message Board

[jumonji]

Okay, so this is kind of a lame subject to start a topic on, but am I the only one who thinks that it's hilarious that the Owl's first name is Leland? I can't really explain why it's so funny, but it's just such a down to Earth name for a supervillain to have. What makes it even funnier is how DD addresses him by that name during fights. Any other names for comic book characters that strike people as being funny/interesting/weird?

[Francesco]

I find weird when I read Rockslide's (X-men rocky guy) real name, which is supposed to be "Santo Vacarro", with the usual misplacing of double letters in Italian words.

[Neilan]

My mechanic's name is Leland, though most people call him Lee, so maybe that's why the name doesn't strike me as all that funny. That and the fact that it sounds similar to my own name. What was funny, though, was how DD threw it in the Owl's face.

I always chuckled at the Stiltman's name, Wilbur (as if anyone needed another reason to laugh at him). When I was a kid there was a TV show called Mr. Ed about a talking horse whose owner's name was Wilbur. The horse would draw the name out when he said it, as in "O.K. Willllburrr". So that's what I always hear in my head whenever I see that name.

When I was around 6 or 7, my Dad took me to see the real Mr. Ed. That's right, the talking palomino was appearing live in Philadelphia. Unfortunately, we and the crowd of about 30, learned that Mr. Ed had a bad cold and was suffering from laryngitis that night and so he could only do math tricks. His trainer would ask him questions like "Mr. Ed, how much is 2 + 2?" and the horse would stomp 4 times. He could also do subtraction. It was somewhat impressive, but still disappointing.
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It's never too late to have a happy childhood!

[Gloria]

I find Bullseye surname "Poindexter" a bit funny... if he was named "Elmer" instead of "Benjamin" it would be a riot... Just imagine "Elmer Poindexter": "Be Vewwy, vewwy quiet, I'm hunting devils"

As Francesco, I must add that names of "foreign" characters are a source of endless derision, i.e. I have always wondered what the hell "Eloganto" means... surely it must be a bad transcription of "Elegante" (stilish, dandy).

Another one is the Black Tarantula "Carlos LaMuerto" the article and name which compose the surname have different gender! to sound correct it should be either "LaMuerta" o "ElMuerto", otherwhise, I'll have to address him as "Carlos, M'Has Matao (de risa)" ("Carlos, you're killing me!")
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Gloria
Devuélveme el rosario de mi madre y quédate con todo lo demás

"Para la cuesta arriba quiero mi burro, que la cuesta abajo yo me la subo"

[jumonji]

Poindexter! I forgot about that one! This may explain a lot about the guy. I mean, having a weird name can screw you up pretty badly. I suppose it would have been even worse if that was his first name, but having a last name that similar to Pointdexter would be enough to have people bullying you, which would then inevitably create the urge to throw sharp objects. Or something like that...

About foreign names in comics (or other fictional media for that matter), I totally know what you mean! LaMuerto is even funny to me and I only had three years of Spanish. Swedish (my native language) isn't exactly used much which reduces the odds of it being twisted beyond recognition by people who don't know what they're doing. Unless you count the movie A Beautiful Mind, where there's a written reference to the Noble Prize (as opposed to the Nobel Prize, awarded in honor of Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite...).

Either way, parents need to be careful. I know of a woman who named her kid Tingeling ("Tinkerbell" in Swedish). If she existed in the Marvel Universe, I'm sure that would lead to the kid growing up to become a pixie size supervillain with a magic wand.

[Gloria]

[Gloria]

I just found myself thinking on those names who must be a Timpanist daydream: Fing Fang Foom, Victor Von Doom... (She-boom, She-boom, tra-la-la-la...)

Another thing about funny names that keeps me wondering is why Franklin Nelson overtly prefers to be adressed as "Foggy"... I mean, this strucks me as a nickname originated with a derisory intention, yet Nelson sticks to it, even if "Franklin" sounds far more respectable and serious as a name.

I imagine there must be a story about it somewhere, which we'll be told some day
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Gloria
Devuélveme el rosario de mi madre y quédate con todo lo demás

"Para la cuesta arriba quiero mi burro, que la cuesta abajo yo me la subo"

[Francesco]

"I like it when you call me Franklin, it makes so much Irish Catholic". - Foggy Nelson, from "the Widow", part two.

[jumonji]

[Gloria]

Curiously, Matt almost never uses "Franklin" (more usually "Foggy" or "Fog". On the occasion you mention, Matt adresses him like that because he wants to be serious/put some distance between them.

When Foggy is sweet on a dame he will usually resort to "Just call me Foggy"
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Gloria
Devuélveme el rosario de mi madre y quédate con todo lo demás

"Para la cuesta arriba quiero mi burro, que la cuesta abajo yo me la subo"

[entzauberung]

[jumonji]

[Francesco]