Bananaman is a
BritishThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
comic bookA comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...
fictional characterA character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
. He originally appeared in
NuttyNutty was a British comic that ran for 292 issues from 16 February 1980 to 14 September 1985, when it merged with The Dandy. Published by D. C. Thomson & Co. Ltd, Nutty was an attempt to create a more lively and chaotic comic compared to many on sale at the time. Its strips included:* Bananaman as...
as the backpage strip in
Issue 1Issue 1 is an expression which refers to the first edition of a publication such as a magazine, comic, or e-zine, and is also used to denote the initial direction or output of creativity.Issue 1s are often sought for the following reasons:...
, dated 16 February 1980 drawn by
John GeeringJohn Keith Geering was a British cartoonist with a distinctive, occasionally flamboyant style, most famous for his work for DC Thomson comics including Sparky, The Topper, Cracker, Plug, Nutty, The Beano and The Dandy....
.
Original strip
The original strip, written by Steve Bright and mostly drawn by
John GeeringJohn Keith Geering was a British cartoonist with a distinctive, occasionally flamboyant style, most famous for his work for DC Thomson comics including Sparky, The Topper, Cracker, Plug, Nutty, The Beano and The Dandy....
until his death in 1999, is essentially a parody of
SupermanSuperman is a fictional comic book superhero appearing in publications by DC Comics, widely considered to be an American cultural icon. Created by American writer Jerry Siegel and Canadian-born American artist Joe Shuster in 1932 while both were living in Cleveland, Ohio, and sold to Detective...
with shades of
Captain MarvelCaptain Marvel is a fictional comic book superhero, originally published by Fawcett Comics and later by DC Comics. Created in 1939 by artist C. C. Beck and writer Bill Parker, the character first appeared in Whiz Comics #2...
and his British twin,
MarvelmanMarvelman, also known as Miracleman for trademark reasons in his American reprints and story continuation, is a fictional comic book superhero created in 1954 by writer-artist Mick Anglo for publisher L. Miller & Son. Originally intended as a United Kingdom home-grown substitute for the American...
and occasionally other
Silver AgeThe Silver Age of Comic Books was a period of artistic advancement and commercial success in mainstream American comic books, predominantly those in the superhero genre. Following the Golden Age of Comic Books and an interregnum in the early to mid-1950s, the Silver Age is considered to cover the...
characters, while also combining comic slapstick with a heavy dose of eccentric
British humourBritish humour is a somewhat general term applied to certain comedic motifs that are often prevalent in comedic acts originating in the United Kingdom and its current or former colonies...
similar to
Alan MooreAlan Oswald Moore is an English writer primarily known for his work in comic books, a medium where he has produced a number of critically acclaimed and popular series, including Watchmen, V for Vendetta, and From Hell...
's contemporary work on
Captain BritainCaptain Britain , briefly known as Britannic, is a fictional character, a superhero appearing in the comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by Chris Claremont and Herb Trimpe, he first appeared in Captain Britain Weekly, #1...
. In the strip,
Eric Wimp, an ordinary schoolboy, living at 29 Acacia Road, Nuttytown (later changed to Dandytown after Nutty's demise), eats a
bananaBanana is the common name for herbaceous plants of the genus Musa and for the fruit they produce. Bananas come in a variety of sizes and colors when ripe, including yellow, purple, and red....
to transform into Bananaman, an adult
superheroA superhero is a type of stock character, possessing "extraordinary or superhuman powers", dedicated to protecting the public. Since the debut of the prototypical superhero Superman in 1938, stories of superheroes — ranging from brief episodic adventures to continuing years-long sagas —...
, sporting a distinctive cowled blue and yellow outfit complete with a yellow two-tailed
capeCape can be used to describe any sleeveless outer garment, such as a poncho, but usually it is a long garment that covers only the back half of the wearer, fastening around the neck. They were common in medieval Europe, especially when combined with a hood in the chaperon, and have had periodic...
resembling a banana skin. His
superpowerA superpower is a state with a dominant position in the international system which has the ability to influence events and its own interests and project power on a worldwide scale to protect those interests...
s include the ability to fly, superhuman strength (often quoted as
"twenty men... twenty big men" but sometimes limitless, with "nerks", "women" and "snowmen" all being used in place of "men"), and seeming invulnerability.
If Bananaman needs extra power, bananas can be eaten for strength boosts, provided by his faithful pet
crowCrows form the genus Corvus in the family Corvidae. Ranging in size from the relatively small pigeon-size jackdaws to the Common Raven of the Holarctic region and Thick-billed Raven of the highlands of Ethiopia, the 40 or so members of this genus occur on all temperate continents and several...
; if he does not have enough strength to shatter an ice block, for example, after eating another banana, he will have enough. If he eats lots of bananas in one sitting, he quickly becomes obese in his transformation; if he eats bananas that are not full, he transforms with extra weight in the lower part of his body. There have also been comics where he has eaten a variant on normal bananas, and transforms differently, reflecting the difference in that banana. The effects of eating the bananas are not consistent from story to story.
After
John GeeringJohn Keith Geering was a British cartoonist with a distinctive, occasionally flamboyant style, most famous for his work for DC Thomson comics including Sparky, The Topper, Cracker, Plug, Nutty, The Beano and The Dandy....
died in 1999,
Barrie ApplebyBarrie Appleby is a British comics artist who works mainly for Scottish publisher D. C. Thomson & Co., drawing strips such as Dennis the Menace and Roger the Dodger for The Beano since the 1970s. He has also drawn Cuddles and Dimples for The Dandy, as well as strips for Nutty, Hoot, Monster Fun and...
took over and later
Tom PatersonTom Paterson is a Scottish comic artist who drew characters for Fleetway in 1973–1990, and D.C Thomson from 1986-onwards. He lives in Leith, with three kids, and is a Hearts supporter.He is famous for drawing comics such as:-Fleetway:...
. In 2003, the original scriptwriter, Steve Bright drew it, until he was sacked in 2007.
Sporidically from 2007 to 2010 the character appeared in reprinted strips from the John Geering era. For a short time, in late 2008, artist Chris McGhie reinvented Bananaman in a series of new strips. Chris' other work included The Three Bears for the
BeanoThe Beano is a British children's comic, published by D.C. Thomson & Co and is arguably their most successful.The comic first appeared on 30 July 1938, and was published weekly. During the Second World War,The Beano and The Dandy were published on alternating weeks because of paper and ink...
(in 2002) and the characters on
YoplaitYoplait is a brand of yogurt produced by a company owned by two French holdings, SODIAAL and PAI Partners.-History:In 1964, 100,000 French farmers merged their regional dairy cooperatives to sell nationally. In 1965, two co-ops, "Yola" and "Coplait", merged, becoming "Yoplait"...
's 'Wildlife' product range. Two new strips appeared that year drawn by
Barrie ApplebyBarrie Appleby is a British comics artist who works mainly for Scottish publisher D. C. Thomson & Co., drawing strips such as Dennis the Menace and Roger the Dodger for The Beano since the 1970s. He has also drawn Cuddles and Dimples for The Dandy, as well as strips for Nutty, Hoot, Monster Fun and...
as well.
Since the Dandy revamp occurring in October 2010; Wayne Thompson took over drawing Bananaman, a popular artist in
The DandyThe Dandy is a long running children's comic published in the United Kingdom by D. C. Thomson & Co. Ltd. The first issue was printed in 1937 and it is the world's third longest running comic, after Detective Comics and Il Giornalino...
who has previously drawn Jak, Agent Dog 2-Zero and, occasionally,
Bully Beef and ChipsBully Beef and Chips were fictional characters who had their own strip in the UK comic The Dandy. It started in the 1960s and originally continued until 1997. The strip told the story of two warring boys - a tall, ugly thug called Bully Beef and a softer, more cunning lad called Chips...
. In Issue 3515, Wayne's style notably changes and looks more cartoony and detailed. As of spring 2011, Thompson's version of Bananaman appears in full colour over two pages.
In the summer of 2011, a running story developed featuring Fat Cat (who had featured previously in an 8 page adventure previously with The Banker) trying to steal famous landmarks like Nelson's Column, Big Ben, Blackpool Tower, among others. This storyline ended in Issue 3550, Fat Cat hasn't been seen since.
From 1983-1986, Bananaman also had his own yearbook, the 1984 one was a Marks & Spencer exclusive, the next one was titled "Bananaman Annual 1985". This is unusual for two reasons - Nutty comic never had an annual, and all other DC Thomson annuals of that era were called "The (title) Book". The remaining two are called "Bananaman, Your TV Hero" with the year (1986 and 1987) after that. Unlike
Dennis the MenaceDennis the Menace, later called Dennis the Menace and Gnasher and now Dennis and Gnasher, is a long-running comic strip in the British children's comic The Beano, published by D. C...
and Bash Street Kids, these annuals were entirely new material.
Varying origins
Eric was rocketed to Earth from the
moonThe Moon is Earth's only known natural satellite,There are a number of near-Earth asteroids including 3753 Cruithne that are co-orbital with Earth: their orbits bring them close to Earth for periods of time but then alter in the long term . These are quasi-satellites and not true moons. For more...
as a baby, and gained his powers because the crescent moon resembles a banana. Bananaman resembles Superman in two respects. Firstly, he has a
kryptoniteKryptonite is a fictional material from the Superman mythos —the ore form of a radioactive element from Superman's home planet of Krypton. It is famous for being the ultimate physical weakness of Superman, and the word kryptonite has since become synonymous with an Achilles' heel —the one weakness...
-style weakness to mouldy bananas. Furthermore, he even has a
Fortress of SolitudeThe Fortress of Solitude is the occasional headquarters of Superman in DC Comics. Its predecessor, Superman's "Secret Citadel", first appeared in Superman #17, where it was said to be built into a mountain on the outskirts of Metropolis...
-style building at the North Pole, made out of a giant banana. During early board meetings, the designers thought of the aspect of Bananagirl to accompany the series. The girl would have been called Margaret Wimp, and be the "sister" of Eric. This idea was scrapped later on in production, because the concept of two children being related without parents would be too far-fetched for children to understand, however the idea was revived for a
Beano comic stripSuper School is a comic strip, which started in November 2008 and is drawn by Lew Stringer. This strip, which is stated in the book The History of The Beano: The Story So Far as originally having the name The Ultras in the planning stages, and was inspired by the X-Men...
.
In the 1991
Dandy AnnualThe Dandy Annual is the current name of the book that has been published every year since 1938, to tie in with the children's comic The Dandy. there have been 74 editions, with another presumably to follow in 2012. The annuals are traditionally published in August, in time for Christmas, and...
, Bananaman's origin was changed to that of being a normal Earth baby in a maternity hospital, who obtained his powers after unintentionally eating a banana in which General Blight had hidden a stolen supply of Saturnium (presumably similar to
uraniumUranium is a silvery-white metallic chemical element in the actinide series of the periodic table, with atomic number 92. It is assigned the chemical symbol U. A uranium atom has 92 protons and 92 electrons, of which 6 are valence electrons...
,
neptuniumNeptunium is a chemical element with the symbol Np and atomic number 93. A radioactive metal, neptunium is the first transuranic element and belongs to the actinide series. Its most stable isotope, 237Np, is a by-product of nuclear reactors and plutonium production and it can be used as a...
or
plutoniumPlutonium is a transuranic radioactive chemical element with the chemical symbol Pu and atomic number 94. It is an actinide metal of silvery-gray appearance that tarnishes when exposed to air, forming a dull coating when oxidized. The element normally exhibits six allotropes and four oxidation...
), and accidentally left it next to Eric. However, later issues referred to the first origin as the real one.
Other characters
Bananaman initially faced a different
pasticheA pastiche is a literary or other artistic genre or technique that is a "hodge-podge" or imitation. The word is also a linguistic term used to describe an early stage in the development of a pidgin language.-Hodge-podge:...
supervillainA supervillain or supervillainess is a variant of the villain character type, commonly found in comic books, action movies and science fiction in various media.They are sometimes used as foils to superheroes and other fictional heroes...
each week, who were often lampoons of the kind of single-issue, uncreatively-named villains that heroes fought during the
Silver AgeThe Silver Age of Comic Books was a period of artistic advancement and commercial success in mainstream American comic books, predominantly those in the superhero genre. Following the Golden Age of Comic Books and an interregnum in the early to mid-1950s, the Silver Age is considered to cover the...
, or tips-of-the-hat to famous supervillains.
Enemies include:
- Syndney aka Toymaster 10 year old parody of Toyman
The Toyman is the name of three comic book supervillains and one adolescent superhero in the DC Comics universe. They mostly appear in Superman stories. The first Toyman appeared in Action Comics #64 . His real name is Winslow Schott.The Toyman uses toy-based or toy-themed devices and gimmicks in...
- Witchy Woman parody of Scarlet Witch
The Scarlet Witch is a fictional comic book character that appears in books published by Marvel Comics. The character first appears in X-Men #4 and was created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby...
- Doctor Gloom, a Doctor Doom
Victor von Doom is a fictional character who appears in Marvel Comics publications . Created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, the character first appeared in Fantastic Four #5 wearing his trademark metal mask and green cloak...
homage, Blight's sidekick
- Appleman, Bananaman's arch-enemy in the early strip, parody of Bizarro
Bizarro is a fictional character that appears in publications published by DC Comics. The character was created by writer Otto Binder and artist George Papp as a "mirror image" of Superman and first appeared in Superboy #68...
, created by Dr Gloom. In later comics, he becomes an ally to Bananaman
- General Blight, Bananaman's current arch enemy, and a parody of Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
. A generic criminal mastermind who in later strips largely replaced the inventive criminal-of-the-week
- Weatherman works for General Blight
- Clayman parody of Clayface
Clayface is an alias used by several DC Comics fictional characters, most of them possessing claylike bodies and shape-shifting abilities. All of them have been enemies of Batman.-Publication history:...
- The Heavy Mob, a group of thieves led by Eddie the Gent, who appeared as recently as 2008.
- Auntie, a nanny
A nanny, childminder or child care provider, is an individual who provides care for one or more children in a family as a service...
with remote controlA remote control is a component of an electronics device, most commonly a television set, used for operating the television device wirelessly from a short line-of-sight distance.The remote control is usually contracted to remote...
-led balls of knitting wool as weapons; possibly a parody of Granny GoodnessGranny Goodness is a fictional character, a deity and supervillain published by DC Comics. Created by Jack Kirby, Granny Goodness was modeled on comedienne Phyllis Diller and first appeared in Mister Miracle vol...
- Impossible Man, complete with a quiff
The quiff is a hairstyle that combines the 1950s pompadour hairstyle, the 50s flattop, and sometimes a mohawk. The etymology of the word is uncertain but may derive from the French word "coiffe" which can mean either a hairstyle or, going further back, the mail knights wore over their heads and...
who performs impossible things such as hopping at 100 mph
- Foul Five parody of Famous Five
The Famous Five is the name of a series of children's novels written by British author Enid Blyton. The first book, Five on a Treasure Island, was published in 1942....
- Scotsman, who controls haggis
Haggis is a dish containing sheep's 'pluck' , minced with onion, oatmeal, suet, spices, and salt, mixed with stock, and traditionally simmered in the animal's stomach for approximately three hours. Most modern commercial haggis is prepared in a casing rather than an actual stomach.Haggis is a kind...
with a set of bagpipesBagpipes are a class of musical instrument, aerophones, using enclosed reeds fed from a constant reservoir of air in the form of a bag. Though the Scottish Great Highland Bagpipe and Irish uilleann pipes have the greatest international visibility, bagpipes of many different types come from...
- The Nerks, an alien race bent on conquering Earth, led by King Zorg
- Bubblegum Bert
- Evil Taco a character that was planned to be part of the cartoon but was removed because parents said it would promote racism.
- Skunk Woman, an homage to Catwoman
Catwoman is a fictional character associated with DC Comics' Batman franchise. Historically a supervillain, the character was created by Bill Finger and Bob Kane, partially inspired by Kane's cousin, Ruth Steel...
- Captain Cream
- Mouseman, a gigantic mouse
- The Mole, only appeared in TV series, he has control on a drill
- Fat Cat evil cat who tried to steal Big Ben and Blackpool Tower, among other things, appeared in summer 2011
- Zookeeper a lazy psychic, who says she can control animals
- Kiwi Fruit Girl Bananaman hates kiwi fruit, so fat cat sent for her to kill him, but he knocked her out
The strip's medium-subverting elements became toned down as the strip gained in popularity, becoming more simplistic to appeal to the new audience. Bananaman gained a talking crow sidekick called simply
Crow, and became so stupid he often forgot how to fly or to use the door. Eventually, Bananaman even began to go to school despite being an adult.
Bananaman is allied with
Chief O'Reilly, a stereotyped Irish policeman (apparently an homage to
BatmanBatman is a fictional character created by the artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger. A comic book superhero, Batman first appeared in Detective Comics #27 , and since then has appeared primarily in publications by DC Comics...
's
James GordonJames Worthington Gordon, Sr. is a fictional character, an ally of Batman that appears in comic books published by DC Comics. The character first appeared in Detective Comics #27 , and was created by Bill Finger and Bob Kane...
or the equally stereotyped Chief O'Hara in the 1960s
BatmanBatman is an American television series, based on the DC comic book character of the same name. It stars Adam West as Batman and Burt Ward as Robin — two crime-fighting heroes who defend Gotham City. It aired on the American Broadcasting Company network for three seasons from January 12, 1966 to...
TV series). He used to wear an Indian feather headdress as a visual pun on
Chief, and in later strips wore a hat with a flashing blue light on the top. Chief works in a police station shaped like a giant police helmet, which frequently has to be rebuilt after Bananaman accidentally destroys it. O'Reilly rings up Eric to get him to talk to Bananaman, presumably thinking Eric is Bananaman's assistant of some kind, as in the cartoon series it is made clear that the Chief is not aware of Eric's being the big blue superhero.
Television cartoon series
In 1983, the
BBCThe British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
made a
cartoonA cartoon is a form of two-dimensional illustrated visual art. While the specific definition has changed over time, modern usage refers to a typically non-realistic or semi-realistic drawing or painting intended for satire, caricature, or humor, or to the artistic style of such works...
series which included a catchy theme tune and featured the voices of
The GoodiesThe Goodies are a trio of British comedians who created, wrote, and starred in a surreal British television comedy series called The Goodies during the 1970s and early 1980s combining sketches and situation comedy.-Honours:All three Goodies now have OBEs...
. It was produced by 101 Film Productions (Later Flicks Films). Parts of the character were changed for the series: he was now called
Eric Twinge, had a distinctive banana-shaped hairstyle rather than punk stubble, and had a love interest (only when transformed) in the form of Fiona, a newsreader based on
Selina ScottSelina Scott is a British newsreader, journalist, television producer and presenter.- Background and early life :Scott was born in Scarborough, North Riding of Yorkshire in 1951, the eldest of five children...
.
Graeme GardenDavid Graeme Garden OBE is a Scottish author, actor, comedian, artist and television presenter, who first became known as a member of The Goodies.-Early life and beginnings in comedy:...
(incorrectly credited as
Greame Garden on some episodes) voiced the characters of Bananaman, General Blight and Maurice of The Heavy Mob,
Bill OddieWilliam "Bill" Edgar Oddie OBE is an English author, actor, comedian, artist, naturalist and musician, who became famous as one of The Goodies....
voiced the characters of Crow, Chief O'Reilly, Doctor Gloom and the Weatherman, and
Tim Brooke-TaylorTimothy Julian Brooke-Taylor OBE is an English comic actor. He became active in performing in comedy sketches while at Cambridge University, and became President of the Footlights club, touring internationally with the Footlights revue in 1964...
voiced the characters of Eric, King Zorg of the Nurks, Eddie the Gent, Auntie and Appleman, as well as narrating the episodes. Jill Shilling voiced Fiona and any additional female characters, including Eric's cousin Samantha (but not Auntie). It lasted for forty episodes between 3 October 1983 and 15 April 1986.
Bananaman was aired in the United States by the
NickelodeonNickelodeon, often simply called Nick and originally named Pinwheel, is an American children's channel owned by MTV Networks, a subsidiary of Viacom International. The channel is primarily aimed at children ages 7–17, with the exception of their weekday morning program block aimed at preschoolers...
cable network as a companion piece to
DangermouseDanger Mouse is a British animated television series which was produced by Cosgrove Hall Films for Thames Television. It features the eponymous Danger Mouse, an English mouse who works as a superhero/secret agent. The show is a loose parody of British spy fiction, particularly James Bond and the...
, but
Bananaman never came close to reaching that series' American popularity. The show also aired during the Australian Broadcasting Corporation's (ABC) after school timeslot and is considered one of the
Classic ABCClassic ABC is a segment on the Australian Broadcasting Corporation featuring children's favourite classics.Many of the shows were BBC productions or Japanese anime.The List of Shows include:-A Shows:*Abbott and Costello*Adventures of the Little Koala...
shows.
Some of these episodes would eventually re-appear in print form in
The Dandy in 1998, coinciding with the BBC repeating the series that year, and were reprinted in the comic in Spring 2007, now promoting the DVD. Each episode was roughly five minutes from start to end. Phrases from the show, "twenty big men" and "ever alert for the call to action", are still used in the comic today.
Credits
- Painters : Richard Adams, Jane Beecham, Marianne Coldner, Paul Heyward, John Tillet, Anne Whitford
- Tracers : Janine Arthy, Jacqueline Millar, Olive Scott, Phyllis Vince, Anne Ward, John Tillet, Linda Butcher
- Checker: Katherine J. Cowan
- Animators : Richard Cox, Joan Garrick, Geoff Loynes, Janet Nunn, Alan Green
- Layouts : Gil Potter
- Backgrounds : Russell Peerman
- Editing : Morgan Daniels Limited
- Rostrum Camera : Stephen Williams, Trevor Bond Associates Ltd
- Music : Dave Cooke
- Production Controller : Thomas Barker
- Production Coordination : Thomas Barker, Pat C. Morton
- Script Writers : Bernie Kay, Terry Ward
- Producers : Trevor Bond, Terry Ward
- Director : Terry Ward
- Made by : 101 Productions
- Copyright Bananaman Productions Ltd 1983
External links