Gadget Spotlight: Iron Man HUD

I hate when I don't have a definitive first appearance, but I'm confident about this one, so here we go.

In the movie Iron Man (2008), we frequently cut to Tony's face inside the helmet, using a HUD that tells him power level, altitude, and lots of other information. I think it's pretty safe to say that this style of shot was created for the films as a way to get their lead actor on screen without having to take his mask off (although they do their fair share of that as well).

It doesn't really make sense visually - I'm sure he has a HUD, but I imagine it'd be localized to his eyeholes - but it's more of an "illusion of reality" type of thing. It gives you the information you need to know, but makes it more visually appealing for the audience.

Of course, being such an iconic visual, it made its way into the comics as well. I first noticed it in Invincible Iron Man #1 (October 2015), and thought it was an All-New, All-Different Marvel Now! change, like the quinjets.

But I did some digging, and I was able to find one in Iron Man #1 (October 2012).

Now, I can't be certain without looking through every appearance of Iron Man from 2008 to 2012, but I'm willing to say this is the first appearance for a few reasons:

1) This would put it after The Avengers, which means there have been three movies to cement in the minds of the general audience that this is how Tony interacts with his armor.

2) This issue features him trying out an experimental armor, which is a good place to introduce a new feature such as this.

3) This issue is part of Marvel NOW!, which is also a good place to introduce new features like this.

4) This was the last panel of the first issue, which definitely says "hey! look at this new thing!" to me.

Gadget Spotlight: Mechanical Monsters

I previously mentioned the Mechanical Monsters waaaaaay back in the Superman Super-Post Part 1, where I said this:

The Mechanical Monsters

The Mechanical Monsters are thieving robots that first appeared in the Superman animated short of the same name (November 1941).  After a whopping 70 years, they received a cameo on a variant cover of Action Comics #1 (September 2011).


Admittedly, I jumped the gun on that one. When I first saw the cover, I thought they'd appear inside (y'know, because that's what covers are supposed to do). When I found out they didn't, I had already included them and didn't want to take them out. It was a huge bummer. Thankfully, Rebirth has fixed this! (and so much more from what I here.

At the beginning of Superman #1 (June 2016), we get a montage of Superman's past. And right up top, there he is, punching out a Mechanical Monster. Good job, Superman! And good job, Peter J. Tomasi!

Appearance Spotlight: Quinjet

Quinjets did not debut in the MCU. In fact, their comics counterpart is quite different. It first appeared in The Avengers #61 (1968) as the Avengers' transport ship, which was designed by Wakandans. It was so named because it had five jets. Simple enough.

As seen in Marvel's The Avengers (2012), however, quinjets are a SHIELD fighter jet that can also be used for transport.

This version later appeared in the same capacity in October 2015 in two different issues: Captain America: Sam Wilson #1 and Howling Commandos of SHIELD #1.

Now, I can't guarantee that these are the absolute first appearance of this model. But what I can say is that I've looked at several issues of various series and miniseries between those two dates, and the quinjet always looks like the original model. And every quinjet I've seen since October 2015 has been the new model. The new model also coincides with All-New Marvel Now!, so that makes sense.

That being said, if anyone CAN find an earlier appearance of the SHIELD quinjet, let me know!

Character Spotlight: Eliza and Jeremiah Danvers

This is the type of thing DC's Rebirth should be doing. Bringing back elements from the pre-new 52 DCU is all well and good, but where possible, they should also be making their properties closer resemble their adaptations tv shows. And in this instance, they've done just that. But first some history:

When Supergirl first appeared, Kara Zor-El was an orphan that went by the name Linda Lee on Earth. After a few years, however, she was adopted by Fred and Edna Danvers to become Linda Danvers. That was the status quo until Supergirl died in Crisis in Infinite Earths.

Post-Crisis, Supergirl was a [long story] named Matrix. But when she got her own series in 1996, part of the premise was that she bonded with a teenage girl named Linda Danvers, and could switch back and forth between them. Linda's parents were Fred and Sylvia Danvers.

Eventually, a Kara Zor-El version of Supergirl arrived post-Crisis. She lasted into the New 52, but neither of these versions had adoptive parents (well, at first; more on this in a bit).

Last year (2015), Supergirl got her own tv series. In it, she was adopted by Jeremiah and Eliza Danvers and started going by Kara Danvers. As Supergirl, she would work for the Department of Extranormal Operations, and over the course of the first season, we would learn that Jeremiah did as well.

Supergirl Rebirth #1 (August 2016) continues the story of the New 52 Superman, but changes it to match the show as much as it can. Supergirl is now working for the DEO in National City (where she lives in the show), which is led by Cameron Chase (who also appears in the show) instead of Director Bones. She is given two DEO agents, Jeremiah and Eliza Danvers, to be her handlers and "parents". Therefore, Supergirl now has Kara Danvers as a secret identity, and has the same brown hair/ponytail/glasses look she does on the show. It's not exactly adoption, but maybe it'll be made legit down the road.

And no word yet on whether they have a daughter named Alex, but I'm sure she'll show up sooner than later.