Character Spotlight: Bud and Lou

This is a pretty cut-and-dried one, so it'll be quick.

In the Batman: The Animated Series episode "Harley and Ivy" (1993), we learn that Harley Quin has two pet hyenas named Bud and Lou, after Bud Abbot and Lou Costello.

Not long after Harley Quinn got her own series, Bud and Lou appeared as well, in Harley Quinn #4 (January 2001).

And, although this is a bit surprising, they survived the New 52, appearing here on the cover of her first issue (September 2011), although they didn't actually appear within a New 52 comic until Suicide Squad #15 (December 2012).

Character Spotlight: Condiment King

I've previously included Condiment King in the Batman the Animated Series Super-Post, where I said this:

Condiment King

The Condiment King, aka Mitchell Mayo, is a comic relief villain that first appeared in the Batman: The Animated Series episode "Make 'Em Laugh" (1994).  He first appeared in comics in Birds of Prey #37 (January 2002), also in a comic relief role, although chronologically he first appeared in Batgirl: Year One #8 (September 2003), where his costume and equipment has a much more home-made vibe.


Except for a couple issues of Final Crisis Aftermath: Run! (2009), those were the extent of his comic appearances. He belongs to an important-but-overlooked class of villains that's good for cameos and brief fight scenes but not much else. And there's nothing wrong with that.

It's in that regard that he makes a post-Rebirth appearance, locked up in Arkham in Batman #9 (October 2016):

Character/Team Spotlight: The Awesome Threesome

This is one of those tricky ones, and I never would've known about it without the tip from user shadzane. Thanks!

The Awesome Threesome is a trio of supervillains that first appeared in Aquaman #36 (September 1967). The team is comprised of Torpedoman, Claw, and Magneto.

Torpedoman also appeared in the Aquaman cartoon episode "Treacherous is the Torpedoman", which debuted in October 1967. He returned in the November 1967 episode "The Torp, The Magneto, and The Claw", which featured the debuts of Claw and Magneto (obviously).

So why are these on this site? They clearly showed up in comics before animation. Well, not so fast. First, both of these episodes and the issue were written by Bob Haney. Furthermore, we've seen several times before that the lead time for animation can cause characters created for animation to jump over to comics before the animation airs. And beyond that, check out the cover to Aquaman #36.

It's the only issue to feature that banner at the top, so I'm pretty sure this issue was meant to promote the cartoon by featuring characters created for the cartoon. I think that also holds true for Tusky the Walrus, as seen last week.

Update - 11/7/25:

The Awesome Threesome are back! They somehow missed Post-Crisis Earth, New Earth, Earth-0, Prime Earth, and any minor continuity refreshes along the way, but in the anything-goes present-day "Dawn of DC" DC Universe, they're back. From Batman/Superman: World's Finest #15 (June 2023).

Character Spotlight: Tusky the Walrus

This is one of those tricky ones, and I never would've known about it without the tip from user shadzane. Thanks!

Tusky is a very intelligent walrus who is sort of Aquaman's equivalent of Krypto. He debuted in the first episode of the Aquaman cartoon, "Menace of the Black Manta" (September 1967).

He first appeared in comics in Aquaman #36, which was also in September 1967.

And both the episode and the issue were written by Bob Haney. So which came first? Well, we've seen several times before that the lead time for animation can cause characters created for animation to jump over to comics before the animation airs. And beyond that, check out the cover to Aquaman #36.

It's the only issue to feature that banner at the top, so I'm pretty sure this issue was meant to promote the cartoon by featuring characters created for the cartoon. You'll see more of those next week.

Group Spotlight: Peregrinator's Club (Earth-0)

This is not the first time I've featured the Peregrinator's Club, but the other time was on Earth-12 and in the future. This is on Earth-0 and in the present. And this is actually the TRUE first appearance, so it's more important.

The Peregrinator's Club is a men's club where the Gotham Police Department held a party for Commissioner Gordon in the episode "Joker's Favor" (1992), which is also notable for featuring the debut of Harley Quinn.

That episode was written by Paul Dini, and about fifteen years later, Dini started a run on Detective Comics. So in his very first issue - Detective Comics #821 (July 2006) - he featured the Peregrinator's Club as a setting.

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!