Where Goes Galactus, The Prime Directive Is... Retreat!

Often when researching material for a comics post, I come across an item or three that might pique my interest but may not be quite enough to build a post around--yet, collectively, they turn out to be fun stops along the way, something that many of you who read comics and recall amusing tidbits from scenes or panels can probably relate to. Here are a few that randomly came to mind for me, here and there in the past two weeks or so; in fact, I was surprised at how much I wanted to keep digging through my memories for more!

Let's start off with the Scarlet Witch, who it turns out speaks French quite well--thanks to a little inspiration from Captain Marvel, who's dropped in at light speed from her flat in New Orleans for Jarvis's famous continental breakfast:

Since we're eavesdropping, their conversation translates to:

CM: Eh, well, yes, of course!
SW: You speak french, madame?
CM: Not so well, sadly. My accent is from New Orleans ...
SW: Do not be so modest! You speak very well.

(CF: Je me demande si Pietro parle aussi le français?)

Speaking of Captain Marvel, when she was being introduced in hero circles there seemed to be a running joke circulating in her stories in terms of people being taken aback at hearing her name, since it must have seemed unusual for someone to claim the name of the late Mar-vell. The person who was meeting her for the first time always reacted the same, pausing in the middle of repeating her name back:

Not much of a joke, admittedly, and one with a short shelf life since people had to stop introducing her eventually--but perhaps it was simply an in-house point of amusement that ran its course.

Then there are those familiar images that a few artists occasionally slipped into their work that no doubt delighted those of us who enjoyed the nod to classic fictional material. Take, for instance, the Leader's manta-style ship that was keeping tabs on Bruce Banner, a ship which made it clear that the Leader was likely a big fan of the "War Of The Worlds" film from 1953:

(Artist Jack Kirby also made use of the same ship design for the Fantastic Four story which introduced the alien known as the "Infant Terrible.")

And, from an X-Men story, we learn that while the hulls of Shi'ar space vessels resemble insects, their interior design--to say nothing of their terminology--hails back to 1966.

Maybe the Shi'ar passed close enough to Earth that year to intercept some of our broadcast transmissions? (They don't seem to have been as taken with other shows from that year, such as Lost In Space, The Time Tunnel, or My Favorite Martian.)

Another space vessel went a little further with its outer design--the ship that the Guardians of the Galaxy christened the "Captain America":

Going back through Marvel comics we can also find quite a few examples of heroes engaging in combat when one of them doesn't realize the other has taken them on under false pretenses. A good example would be Cyclops of the X-Men, battling nearly his entire team in order to shake them out of their funk when a villain has recently shaken their confidence. There's also the Thing doing the same for Mr. Fantastic, at the point in time when Dr. Doom is poised to take over the entire world:

Captain America is also pretty good at pulling the wool over his teammates when necessary, though he goes a little overboard when a new character applies for Avengers membership:

Hawkeye, as we can see, sits back and enjoys the show, as Cap manipulates both Iron Man and Thor into cutting loose on the Vision. Not exactly a welcome mat the guy lays out, is it? A simple "How about a demonstration of your powers?" would probably have sufficed. Who is this guy, the Cap of the 1950s?

Hercules has his own way of shaking someone out of their self-pity when he encounters the Sub-Mariner, living in virtual exile from his subjects after being asked to abdicate his throne. Hercules' methods aren't exactly those of a support group, but then again he's dealing with someone as volatile and stubborn as himself.

And even Hercules can be a sport when it's himself who needs the lesson:

Finally, it's Herc who ends our sampling of tidbits, while his dignity is still intact. (Barely.)

Hercules doesn't strike me as the modest type when it comes to boasting about his *ahem* assets, but this once I'm not complaining.