Htrae
Encyclopedia
The Bizarro World is a fictional planet in the DC
comics universe. Introduced in the early 1960s, Htrae is a cube-shaped planet, home to Bizarro
and his companions, all of whom were initially Bizarro versions of Superman
, Lois Lane
and their children. Later, other Bizarros were created to add to the population including Wonderzarro, Bizarro Flash, "the Yellow Lantern
", Bizarro-Kltpzyxm and Batzarro
, the World's Worst Detective.
Originally a normal planet, Htrae is now cube-shaped. This is due to the intervention of Superman, who - after being convicted of doing something perfect on Htrae, which would normally be a capital offense - pointed out that the planet was shaped like a normal spheroid and agreed to cube it if his sentence were commuted.
Later stories introduced Bizarro versions of Superman's supporting cast, including Bizarro-Perry White
and Bizarro-Jimmy Olsen
, created by using the duplicator ray on characters other than Superman and Lois Lane, as well as the children of Bizarro and Bizarro Lois. There was even a Bizarro-Justice League
and Legion of Super-Heroes
: the Bizarro League and the Legion of Stupor-Heroes. Bizarro-Batman sported a Futility Belt full of cigarette butts and chewed gum and other such priceless Bizarro treasures. Yellow Lantern had no power from his powerless Ring. Bizarro-Aquaman could not swim. There is even a Bizarro-Marilyn Monroe
, the ugliest of them all.
Despite their differences, Bizarro and Superman have teamed up on occasion. One notable example happened in Superman #379 when a strange creature appeared to be devouring Bizarros. Fearing he would end up alone Bizarro tried to steal Superman's duplicator ray. Superman convinced Bizarro he would be better off trying to stop the monster before making any more Bizarros. The creature eventually devoured Bizarro, but Superman soon figured out that the creature was not trying to kill the Bizarros, but using their combined strength to defeat another creature which was trying to destroy Htrae. The first creature was created as part of a plan developed by none other than the Bizarro Lex Luthor
, who Bizarro referred to as a "punk hero."
"Tales of the Bizarro World" became a recurring segment in Adventure Comics
from 1961 to 1962. Animated Blue Kryptonite golems once erupted from the Htrae surface, bent on defeating the Bizarros and were cheered on by the Bizarro Loises.
On one occasion, Keith Giffen
portrayed Htrae itself as being sentient — "Me am the Bizarro World. Planet Earth not think ... therefore, me do" — and its only sane inhabitant was the Bizarro Ambush Bug
.
In the new comic books, Bizarro lives in a Metropolis graveyard he calls The Graveyard of Solitude.
In the imaginary story, Superman: Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow?
, which served as an ending to Silver Age Superman continuity, Bizarro #1 (the original Bizarro and the world's leader/greatest hero), was influenced to bad ends by the now evil Mr. Mxyzptlk. Realizing that to truly fulfill the Bizarro Code he should stop being a "imperfect perfect duplicate" of Superman and be a "perfect imperfect duplicate" of Superman. To that end, Bizarro #1 destroyed Bizarro World, reasoning that if Superman's homeworld (Krypton) was destroyed in an accident, Bizarro must destroy his own world on purpose.
After the Crisis on Infinite Earths
, the Superman: Man of Steel
miniseries rebooted Superman continuity. The editors and writers did not reintroduce Bizarro World in the reboot. Later, in Superman (vol. 2) #87, the second Post-Crisis Bizarro clone creates a "Bizarro World" which is a warehouse made to look like a surreal Metropolis. The Fifth-Dimensionally empowered Joker recreates Earth into the cube-shaped Bizarro-Earth, populated by various odd and bizarre inhabitants . Eventually the Joker is defeated and Earth is returned to its normal state.
A Bizarro World appeared in Adventure Comics vol. 2 #1. There Bizarro demands that a technician at a SETI
like installation broadcast his diary. Having no choice, the technician looks over the diary, which retells the story of the classic cube-shaped backwards Bizarro World. Superman accidentally finds himself there and, to allay people's fears of him, goes on a "constructive rampage." The original Bizarro, aka Bizarro #1, goes to Earth and attempts to stop Superman with the help of his friends. However, when the other Bizarros try to kill Superman, #1 stops them, saying that killing is the earthly thing that they must, above all, do the opposite of. Realizing that, however strange Bizarro World might be, its inhabitants are safer and happier than those of Earth thanks to Bizarro #1's leadership, Superman apologizes. To show his sincerity he hides a copy of the Bizarro Code where nobody will ever see it. The people hold a parade in #1's honor and with his loving wife Bizarro Lois #1 and their son, Bizarro Junior #1 at his side, Bizarro cries saying "Me am ... happiest creature in universe." When the technician finishes reading the story, he sees Bizarro is gone and, horrified, asks - what if the journal itself is no exception to the Bizarro Code? Elsewhere, the truth is revealed; Bizarro, who has no home and has no family and is held in contempt by Superman, weeps because he is the most miserable thing in the universe.
The distinctive cube-shaped Earth of Bizarro World briefly appeared in the pages of Infinite Crisis
alongside the other Earths in space. A close-up, labeled Earth-0, is seen wherein a smiling Bizarro is strangling a smiling Bizarro-Lois, with Bizarros Hawkman, Jimmy Olsen, and Perry White standing alongside and laughing.
A cube-shaped planet, populated by assorted Bizarros, was discovered orbiting a blue sun by a Thanagarian patrol ship.
In Action Comics #855, Bizarro captures Jonathan Kent and takes him to the cube-shaped world, prompting Superman to follow him.
The DC Universe Halloween Special 2009 features several stories showcasing Bizarro World. The opening shows Bizarro reading a comic book to a large audience of Bizarro men and women clad in halloween costumes. All of the audience members are bound and gagged, implying that they are being read to against their will as opposed to the traditional practice of gathering around to hear a story. Another tale reveals that Halloween in Bizarro World involves trick-or-treaters giving fruit to the houses they visit. The final story also reveals that Bizarro works at a Bizarro version of the Daily Planet
, and also shows Bizarro versions of staff members like Jimmy Olsen
and Cat Grant
.
Superman #695 has Bizarro fleeing from Mon-El after a battle. In Bizarro-speak, Bizarro informs the hero that he is retreating to Bizarro World, and claims that he will soon return with a Bizarro Mon-El in order to help him defeat the original. This story was never followed up on, as Mon-El was sent into the Phantom Zone shortly after this encounter.
Bizarro World was seen again several months later in Supergirl
#55. In it, Bizarro Supergirl recounts her origin, revealing that she was bound, gagged and locked inside of a spaceship sent from the cube-shaped world to Earth after it was attacked by a being known as the Godship. The issue ended with the modern Supergirl, Kara Zor-El, heading toward the Bizarro World to liberate it from the Godship.
Superman attacks Htrae, unfortunately experiencing loss of his abilities due to the super-heavy gravity pull of Htrae as it retreats back to its own realm, as well as Doppler shift which replicates the effects of red sun radiation, eroding his superpowers. On this revisionist Htrae, Superman encounters Bizarro duplicates of Jor-El
("Le-Roj") and an imperfect clone of Bizarro himself (Zibarro, who is essentially a powerless, rational human). The area Superman lands resembles a destroyed city. There is also an imperfect duplicate of the Statue of Liberty
visible in the background, although unnamed. Htrae vanishes back into the Underverse, a newly discovered dimension, at story's end.
", the 137th episode of American sitcom Seinfeld
. In the episode, Elaine
makes a new group of friends who represent inverted types of the normal Seinfeld gang. Jerry labels them a Bizarro world. These characters are kind, considerate, curious about the world around them, and good citizens. Though Elaine is initially attracted to their friendly ways, she is ultimately turned off by the formality and lack of simple camaraderie which she enjoys with her old, selfish, shortsighted group. A second reason for her leaving the Bizarro group is the fact that she is "normal" Elaine. Conceivably, her Bizarro version would be ladylike. If you look in the background of the Bizarro apartment you will see a Bizarro figure on a shelf, just as a Superman figure sits on a shelf in Jerry's apartment.
from the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel
referenced the concept on several occasions.
Buffy Summers
also referenced "Bizarro World" in the season 6 episode "Gone
." Following an argument with her then lover Spike, Buffy walks home grumbling to herself "I don't believe this. He threw me out. Did I, like, fall into some backward dimension here? Is this Bizarro World?"
did a series of sketches with a humorous depiction of life on Earth taking place on the Bizarro World in an opposite manner. Inhabitants of Bizarro World would do things such as turn up the air conditioning to warm up and quench their thirst with glasses of sand while their Earthly counterparts would use furnaces and water.
, as is a Bizarro Captain Hero who is never given any name except Bizarro Captain Hero. Though it is not the same place it maintains many of the same features as Bizarro World except that the speech is normal. Captain Hero in "Drawn Together" believes he was in Bizarro Land, rather than a public restroom at a bus station that sells Bizarro Land postcards, when he had a sexual encounter with his Bizarro duplicate.
In Friends
Season 1 Episode "The One With Mrs.Bing", after Ross kissed Chandler's mother, Joey says: "No big deal". Ross says: "Okay" and Joey says: "In Bizarro World!!"
In "I Am Furious Yellow
", an episode of the thirteenth season of The Simpsons
, Comic Book Guy
receives a less-than-friendly visit from Marvel Comics executive Stan Lee
. As Lee exits the shop, Comic Book Guy utters, "Stan Lee insulted me! But in Bizarro World, that means he likes me!"
DC paid tribute to Bizarro World in Cartoon Network Presents issue #12. The main story had Peter Potamus
and So-so visiting a version of Bizarro World, inhabited by reverse versions of other Hanna-Barbera
characters, where Yogi Bear
would rather clean up Jellystone Park than steal picnic baskets, Mr. Peebles does not want to sell Magilla Gorilla
, and Wally Gator
wants to stay at the zoo. This version of Bizarro World was later visited by Elroy Jetson in The Flintstones
and The Jetsons
#19. In both comics, the Bizarro World is shaped like a pyramid instead of a cube.
WWE Raw
commentator Jerry "The King" Lawler refers to Canada as Bizarro World because Canadians will root for the bad guys (heels
) if the wrestler is from Canada.
Episode 17 of Sealab 2021
features "Bizarro" versions of all of the main characters that hold the crew of Sealab hostage. These Bizarro counterparts include Captain Murphy with an eyepatch and Debbie DuPree with a robotic arm and pink hair.
UK
celebrities Katie Price and Alex Reid
have been referred to as the Bizarro version of Angelina Jolie
and Brad Pitt
.
In the White Collar
episode "Bottlenecked," Peter talks about Neal's Bizarro. Tim DeKay
, who plays Peter, also played the Bizarro Jerry in Seinfeld
.
DC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. is one of the largest and most successful companies operating in the market for American comic books and related media. It is the publishing unit of DC Entertainment a company of Warner Bros. Entertainment, which itself is owned by Time Warner...
comics universe. Introduced in the early 1960s, Htrae is a cube-shaped planet, home to Bizarro
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...
and his companions, all of whom were initially Bizarro versions of Superman
Superman
Superman 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...
, Lois Lane
Lois Lane
Lois Lane is a fictional character, the primary love interest of Superman in the comic books of DC Comics. Created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster, she first appeared in Action Comics #1 ....
and their children. Later, other Bizarros were created to add to the population including Wonderzarro, Bizarro Flash, "the Yellow Lantern
Yellow Lantern
Yellow Lantern is a fictional DC Comics supervillain. He is the Bizarro version of Green Lantern, created by Bizarro, the imperfect clone of Superman...
", Bizarro-Kltpzyxm and Batzarro
Batzarro
Batzarro is a fictional comic book supervillain in the DC Comics Universe. He is a twisted doppelgänger of Batman, in the same vein as Bizarro, the similar doppelganger to Superman...
, the World's Worst Detective.
History
In the Bizarro world of "Htrae" ("Earth" spelled backwards), society is ruled by the Bizarro Code which states "Us do opposite of all Earthly things! Us hate beauty! Us love ugliness! Is big crime to make anything perfect on Bizarro World!" In one episode, for example, a salesman is doing a brisk trade selling Bizarro bonds: "Guaranteed to lose money for you". Later, the mayor appoints Bizarro No. 1 to investigate a crime, "Because you are stupider than the entire Bizarro police force put together". This is intended and taken as a great compliment.Originally a normal planet, Htrae is now cube-shaped. This is due to the intervention of Superman, who - after being convicted of doing something perfect on Htrae, which would normally be a capital offense - pointed out that the planet was shaped like a normal spheroid and agreed to cube it if his sentence were commuted.
Later stories introduced Bizarro versions of Superman's supporting cast, including Bizarro-Perry White
Perry White
Perry White is a fictional character who appears in the Superman comics. White is the Editor-in-Chief of the Metropolis newspaper the Daily Planet.White maintains very high ethical and journalistic standards...
and Bizarro-Jimmy Olsen
Jimmy Olsen
Jimmy Olsen is a fictional character who appears mainly in DC Comics’ Superman stories. Olsen is a young photojournalist working for the Daily Planet. He is close friends with Lois Lane, Clark Kent/Superman and Perry White...
, created by using the duplicator ray on characters other than Superman and Lois Lane, as well as the children of Bizarro and Bizarro Lois. There was even a Bizarro-Justice League
Justice League
The Justice League, also called the Justice League of America or JLA, is a fictional superhero team that appears in comic books published by DC Comics....
and Legion of Super-Heroes
Legion of Super-Heroes
The Legion of Super-Heroes is a fictional superhero team in the 30th and 31st centuries of the . The team first appears in Adventure Comics #247 , and was created by Otto Binder and Al Plastino....
: the Bizarro League and the Legion of Stupor-Heroes. Bizarro-Batman sported a Futility Belt full of cigarette butts and chewed gum and other such priceless Bizarro treasures. Yellow Lantern had no power from his powerless Ring. Bizarro-Aquaman could not swim. There is even a Bizarro-Marilyn Monroe
Marilyn Monroe
Marilyn Monroe was an American actress, singer, model and showgirl who became a major sex symbol, starring in a number of commercially successful motion pictures during the 1950s....
, the ugliest of them all.
Despite their differences, Bizarro and Superman have teamed up on occasion. One notable example happened in Superman #379 when a strange creature appeared to be devouring Bizarros. Fearing he would end up alone Bizarro tried to steal Superman's duplicator ray. Superman convinced Bizarro he would be better off trying to stop the monster before making any more Bizarros. The creature eventually devoured Bizarro, but Superman soon figured out that the creature was not trying to kill the Bizarros, but using their combined strength to defeat another creature which was trying to destroy Htrae. The first creature was created as part of a plan developed by none other than the Bizarro Lex Luthor
Lex Luthor
Lex Luthor is a fictional character, a supervillain who appears in comic books published by DC Comics, and the archenemy of Superman, although given his high status as a supervillain, he has also come into conflict with Batman and other superheroes in the DC Universe. Created by Jerry Siegel and...
, who Bizarro referred to as a "punk hero."
"Tales of the Bizarro World" became a recurring segment in Adventure Comics
Adventure Comics
Adventure Comics was a comic book series published by DC Comics from 1935 to 1983 and then revamped from 2009 to 2011. In its first era, the series ran for 503 issues , making it the fifth-longest-running DC series, behind Detective Comics, Action Comics, Superman, and Batman...
from 1961 to 1962. Animated Blue Kryptonite golems once erupted from the Htrae surface, bent on defeating the Bizarros and were cheered on by the Bizarro Loises.
On one occasion, Keith Giffen
Keith Giffen
Keith Ian Giffen is an American comic book illustrator and writer.-Biography:Giffen was born in Queens, New York City....
portrayed Htrae itself as being sentient — "Me am the Bizarro World. Planet Earth not think ... therefore, me do" — and its only sane inhabitant was the Bizarro Ambush Bug
Ambush Bug
Ambush Bug is a fictional character who has appeared in several comic books published by DC Comics.His real name is supposedly Irwin Schwab, but he has mental problems that prevent him from truly understanding reality around him, so even his true identity might be no more than a delusion on his part...
.
In the new comic books, Bizarro lives in a Metropolis graveyard he calls The Graveyard of Solitude.
In the imaginary story, Superman: Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow?
Superman: Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow?
"Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow?" is a 1986 comic book story featuring the DC Comics character of Superman. The story was published in two parts, beginning in Superman #423 and ending in Action Comics #583, both published in September 1986...
, which served as an ending to Silver Age Superman continuity, Bizarro #1 (the original Bizarro and the world's leader/greatest hero), was influenced to bad ends by the now evil Mr. Mxyzptlk. Realizing that to truly fulfill the Bizarro Code he should stop being a "imperfect perfect duplicate" of Superman and be a "perfect imperfect duplicate" of Superman. To that end, Bizarro #1 destroyed Bizarro World, reasoning that if Superman's homeworld (Krypton) was destroyed in an accident, Bizarro must destroy his own world on purpose.
After the Crisis on Infinite Earths
Crisis on Infinite Earths
Crisis on Infinite Earths is a 12-issue American comic book limited series and crossover event, produced by DC Comics in 1985 to simplify its then 50-year-old continuity...
, the Superman: Man of Steel
The Man of Steel (comic book)
The Man of Steel is a six-issue comic book limited series released in 1986 by DC Comics, several months after the twelve-issue limited series Crisis on Infinite Earths completed. The Man of Steel was written and penciled by John Byrne and inked by Dick Giordano.-Overview:The mini-series was...
miniseries rebooted Superman continuity. The editors and writers did not reintroduce Bizarro World in the reboot. Later, in Superman (vol. 2) #87, the second Post-Crisis Bizarro clone creates a "Bizarro World" which is a warehouse made to look like a surreal Metropolis. The Fifth-Dimensionally empowered Joker recreates Earth into the cube-shaped Bizarro-Earth, populated by various odd and bizarre inhabitants . Eventually the Joker is defeated and Earth is returned to its normal state.
A Bizarro World appeared in Adventure Comics vol. 2 #1. There Bizarro demands that a technician at a SETI
SETI
The search for extraterrestrial intelligence is the collective name for a number of activities people undertake to search for intelligent extraterrestrial life. Some of the most well known projects are run by the SETI Institute. SETI projects use scientific methods to search for intelligent life...
like installation broadcast his diary. Having no choice, the technician looks over the diary, which retells the story of the classic cube-shaped backwards Bizarro World. Superman accidentally finds himself there and, to allay people's fears of him, goes on a "constructive rampage." The original Bizarro, aka Bizarro #1, goes to Earth and attempts to stop Superman with the help of his friends. However, when the other Bizarros try to kill Superman, #1 stops them, saying that killing is the earthly thing that they must, above all, do the opposite of. Realizing that, however strange Bizarro World might be, its inhabitants are safer and happier than those of Earth thanks to Bizarro #1's leadership, Superman apologizes. To show his sincerity he hides a copy of the Bizarro Code where nobody will ever see it. The people hold a parade in #1's honor and with his loving wife Bizarro Lois #1 and their son, Bizarro Junior #1 at his side, Bizarro cries saying "Me am ... happiest creature in universe." When the technician finishes reading the story, he sees Bizarro is gone and, horrified, asks - what if the journal itself is no exception to the Bizarro Code? Elsewhere, the truth is revealed; Bizarro, who has no home and has no family and is held in contempt by Superman, weeps because he is the most miserable thing in the universe.
The distinctive cube-shaped Earth of Bizarro World briefly appeared in the pages of Infinite Crisis
Infinite Crisis
Infinite Crisis is a 2005 - 2006 comic book storyline published by DC Comics, consisting of an eponymous, seven-issue comic book limited series written by Geoff Johns and illustrated by Phil Jimenez, George Pérez, Ivan Reis, and Jerry Ordway, and a number of tie-in books...
alongside the other Earths in space. A close-up, labeled Earth-0, is seen wherein a smiling Bizarro is strangling a smiling Bizarro-Lois, with Bizarros Hawkman, Jimmy Olsen, and Perry White standing alongside and laughing.
A cube-shaped planet, populated by assorted Bizarros, was discovered orbiting a blue sun by a Thanagarian patrol ship.
In Action Comics #855, Bizarro captures Jonathan Kent and takes him to the cube-shaped world, prompting Superman to follow him.
The DC Universe Halloween Special 2009 features several stories showcasing Bizarro World. The opening shows Bizarro reading a comic book to a large audience of Bizarro men and women clad in halloween costumes. All of the audience members are bound and gagged, implying that they are being read to against their will as opposed to the traditional practice of gathering around to hear a story. Another tale reveals that Halloween in Bizarro World involves trick-or-treaters giving fruit to the houses they visit. The final story also reveals that Bizarro works at a Bizarro version of the Daily Planet
Daily Planet
The Daily Planet is a fictional broadsheet newspaper in the , appearing mostly in the stories of Superman. The building's original features were based upon the AT&T Huron Road Building in Cleveland, Ohio...
, and also shows Bizarro versions of staff members like Jimmy Olsen
Jimmy Olsen
Jimmy Olsen is a fictional character who appears mainly in DC Comics’ Superman stories. Olsen is a young photojournalist working for the Daily Planet. He is close friends with Lois Lane, Clark Kent/Superman and Perry White...
and Cat Grant
Cat Grant
Catherine "Cat" Jane Grant is a fictional DC Comics character appearing in Superman comics. She first appeared in Adventures of Superman #424 as a gossip columnist for the Daily Planet...
.
Superman #695 has Bizarro fleeing from Mon-El after a battle. In Bizarro-speak, Bizarro informs the hero that he is retreating to Bizarro World, and claims that he will soon return with a Bizarro Mon-El in order to help him defeat the original. This story was never followed up on, as Mon-El was sent into the Phantom Zone shortly after this encounter.
Bizarro World was seen again several months later in Supergirl
Supergirl
Supergirl is a female counterpart to the DC Comics Superman. As his cousin, she shares his super powers and vulnerability to Kryptonite. She was created by writer Otto Binder and designed by artist Al Plastino in 1959. She first appeared in the Action Comics comic book series and later branched out...
#55. In it, Bizarro Supergirl recounts her origin, revealing that she was bound, gagged and locked inside of a spaceship sent from the cube-shaped world to Earth after it was attacked by a being known as the Godship. The issue ended with the modern Supergirl, Kara Zor-El, heading toward the Bizarro World to liberate it from the Godship.
Other versions
Outside mainstream DC continuity, All-Star Superman #7-8 featured the return of Htrae and Bizarro, in which the sentient cubic Htrae attacked Earth until Superman interfered. Manifestations of Earth inhabitants attacked en masse, killing and absorbing many. The duplicates have a weakness against steroids; they cannot absorb people who use them. Superman believed that Htrae was a manifestation of an entity called a 'planet eater'.Superman attacks Htrae, unfortunately experiencing loss of his abilities due to the super-heavy gravity pull of Htrae as it retreats back to its own realm, as well as Doppler shift which replicates the effects of red sun radiation, eroding his superpowers. On this revisionist Htrae, Superman encounters Bizarro duplicates of Jor-El
Jor-El
Jor-El is a fictional character, an extraterrestrial in the . He was created by the writer Jerry Siegel and the artist Joe Shuster, and he first appeared in a newspaper comic strip in 1939 as Superman's biological father....
("Le-Roj") and an imperfect clone of Bizarro himself (Zibarro, who is essentially a powerless, rational human). The area Superman lands resembles a destroyed city. There is also an imperfect duplicate of the Statue of Liberty
Statue of Liberty
The Statue of Liberty is a colossal neoclassical sculpture on Liberty Island in New York Harbor, designed by Frédéric Bartholdi and dedicated on October 28, 1886...
visible in the background, although unnamed. Htrae vanishes back into the Underverse, a newly discovered dimension, at story's end.
In other media
- Bizarro World is depicted in several episodes of Super FriendsSuper FriendsSuper Friends is an American animated television series about a team of superheroes, which ran from 1973 to 1986 on ABC as part of its Saturday morning cartoon lineup...
: "The Revenge of Bizarro" from 1980, "Bizarowurld" from 1981, and "The Bizarro Super Powers Team" in 1985. - In the Superman: The Animated SeriesSuperman: The Animated SeriesSuperman: The Animated Series is an American animated television series starring DC Comics' flagship character, Superman. The series was produced by Warner Bros. Animation and aired on The WB from September 6, 1996 to February 12, 2000. Warner Bros...
episode "Bizarro's World", Bizarro finds the Fortress of Solitude where he interacts with Brainiac and discovers his "origin". Soon he creates his own Krypton on a section of Metropolis and uses a theater as the House of El. Later, Superman gives Bizarro his own world to protect, a moon with vegetation and a green sky showing a Saturn-like planet, and several other moons. Bizarro is astute enough to realize he may be set up when he complains "This crummy planet! How can me be defender when there is no one here to defend?" However, Superman states he thought of that issue and allows Bizzaro to adopt one of the endangered species from the Fortress, whom Bizarro aptly names "Krypto". The episode is based on the comic book Superman (vol. 2) #87. In a followup episode, "Little Big Head Man", Bizarro had populated his world with mannequins he made of boulders and twigs, and pretended to "protect" the populace. In his own "Fortress of Solitude", there are twig mannequins of his "mama" and "dada" holding a large cube-shaped boulder, a crude mirror image of Superman's statue in the Fortess of Jor-ElJor-ElJor-El is a fictional character, an extraterrestrial in the . He was created by the writer Jerry Siegel and the artist Joe Shuster, and he first appeared in a newspaper comic strip in 1939 as Superman's biological father....
and Lara Lor-Van holding up a globe of Krypton. Mr. Mxyzptlk appears and tricks him into returning to Earth and attacking Superman. Bizarro is eventually returned to his world with his new sidekickSidekickA sidekick is a close companion who is generally regarded as subordinate to the one he accompanies. Some well-known fictional sidekicks are Don Quixote's Sancho Panza, Sherlock Holmes' Doctor Watson, The Lone Ranger's Tonto, The Green Hornet's Kato and Batman's Robin.-Origins:The origin of the...
-- Mxyzptlk, who had been temporarily stripped of his powers.
In popular culture
The concept of "Bizarro" has been ingrained in popular culture where it has come to mean a weirdly mutilated version of anything, not confined to characters in DC Comics publications and as such, so has the concept of Bizarro World.Seinfeld
The concept of "Bizarro World" is a fundamental element in "The Bizarro JerryThe Bizarro Jerry
"The Bizarro Jerry" is the 137th episode of the American television sitcom Seinfeld. This was the third episode for the eighth season. It was originally broadcast on the NBC network on October 3, 1996. The title and plot extensively reference the Bizarro and Bizarro-Earth concepts that originally...
", the 137th episode of American sitcom Seinfeld
Seinfeld
Seinfeld is an American television sitcom that originally aired on NBC from July 5, 1989, to May 14, 1998, lasting nine seasons, and is now in syndication. It was created by Larry David and Jerry Seinfeld, the latter starring as a fictionalized version of himself...
. In the episode, Elaine
Elaine Benes
Elaine Marie Benes is a fictional character on the American television sitcom Seinfeld , played by Julia Louis-Dreyfus. Elaine's best friend is her ex-boyfriend Jerry Seinfeld; she is also good friends with George Costanza and Cosmo Kramer...
makes a new group of friends who represent inverted types of the normal Seinfeld gang. Jerry labels them a Bizarro world. These characters are kind, considerate, curious about the world around them, and good citizens. Though Elaine is initially attracted to their friendly ways, she is ultimately turned off by the formality and lack of simple camaraderie which she enjoys with her old, selfish, shortsighted group. A second reason for her leaving the Bizarro group is the fact that she is "normal" Elaine. Conceivably, her Bizarro version would be ladylike. If you look in the background of the Bizarro apartment you will see a Bizarro figure on a shelf, just as a Superman figure sits on a shelf in Jerry's apartment.
Buffyverse
The character Cordelia ChaseCordelia Chase
Cordelia Chase is a fictional character created by Joss Whedon for the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer; she also appeared on Buffy's spin-off series Angel...
from the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel
Angel (TV series)
Angel is an American television series, a spin-off of the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The series was created by Buffys creator, Joss Whedon, in collaboration with David Greenwalt, and first aired on October 5, 1999...
referenced the concept on several occasions.
- In the Buffy Season 2 episode "Reptile Boy"Reptile Boy (Buffy episode)"Reptile Boy" is episode five of season two of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The episode was written and directed by co-executive producer David Greenwalt...
, Cordelia tells Xander HarrisXander HarrisAlexander LaVelle "Xander" Harris is a fictional character in the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer, as well as in numerous items in the series Expanded Universe, such as comic books, tie-in novels and video games...
that his being accepted into a fraternity of rich and powerful men would only happen "in the Bizarro World." - In the Buffy Season 3 episode "The Wish"The Wish (Buffy episode)"The Wish" is the ninth episode of season 3 of Buffy the Vampire Slayer.- Plot synopsis :Following Xander and Willow's kiss in "Lovers Walk", Oz has called a time-out on his relationship with Willow and Cordelia is decidedly avoiding any contact with Xander. Cordelia returns to school only to be...
, an alternate reality is brought about by a wish made by Cordelia. After learning that the AU vampire versions of Xander Harris and Willow RosenbergWillow RosenbergWillow Rosenberg is a fictional character created for the fantasy television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer . She was developed by Joss Whedon and portrayed throughout the TV series by Alyson Hannigan...
are partners, Cordelia exclaims "No way! I wish us into bizarro-land, and you guys are still together?! I cannot win!" - In the Angel Season 5 episode "You're Welcome"You're Welcome (Angel episode)"You're Welcome" is the twelfth episode of season five of the television show Angel. Written and directed by David Fury, it is the 100th episode of the series, and originally broadcast on February 4, 2004 on the WB network. In "You're Welcome", former series regular Charisma Carpenter returns as a...
, Cordelia awakens from a coma to discover that Spike has regained his soul and Angel is working for Wolfram & HartWolfram & HartWolfram & Hart − Attorneys at Law is a fictional international, and interdimensional law firm featured in the television series Angel, as well as other extended materials in Joss Whedon's Buffyverse.-Fictional history:...
. Cordelia remarks to Angel "OK, Spike's a hero, and you're CEO of Hell, Incorporated. What freakin' bizarro world did I wake up in?!"
Buffy Summers
Buffy Summers
Buffy Summers is a fictional character from Joss Whedon's Buffy the Vampire Slayer franchise. She first appeared in the 1992 film Buffy the Vampire Slayer before going on to appear in the television series and subsequent comic book of the same name...
also referenced "Bizarro World" in the season 6 episode "Gone
Gone (Buffy episode)
"Gone" is the 11th episode of season 6 of the television show Buffy the Vampire Slayer.-Plot synopsis:Buffy feels life spinning out of control. In the previous episode, Willow got high on the magic and crashed a car, breaking Dawn's arm. Willow is still distraught. Dawn is ignoring Buffy...
." Following an argument with her then lover Spike, Buffy walks home grumbling to herself "I don't believe this. He threw me out. Did I, like, fall into some backward dimension here? Is this Bizarro World?"
Saturday Night Live
In the early 1980s, Saturday Night LiveSaturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live is a live American late-night television sketch comedy and variety show developed by Lorne Michaels and Dick Ebersol. The show premiered on NBC on October 11, 1975, under the original title of NBC's Saturday Night.The show's sketches often parody contemporary American culture...
did a series of sketches with a humorous depiction of life on Earth taking place on the Bizarro World in an opposite manner. Inhabitants of Bizarro World would do things such as turn up the air conditioning to warm up and quench their thirst with glasses of sand while their Earthly counterparts would use furnaces and water.
Other references
"Bizarro Land" is referred to by Captain Hero in the episode "Gay Bash" of animated series Drawn TogetherDrawn Together
Drawn Together is an American animated television series, which ran on Comedy Central from October 27, 2004 to November 14, 2007. The series was created by Dave Jeser and Matt Silverstein, and uses a sitcom format with a TV reality show setting...
, as is a Bizarro Captain Hero who is never given any name except Bizarro Captain Hero. Though it is not the same place it maintains many of the same features as Bizarro World except that the speech is normal. Captain Hero in "Drawn Together" believes he was in Bizarro Land, rather than a public restroom at a bus station that sells Bizarro Land postcards, when he had a sexual encounter with his Bizarro duplicate.
In Friends
Friends
Friends is an American sitcom created by David Crane and Marta Kauffman, which aired on NBC from September 22, 1994 to May 6, 2004. The series revolves around a group of friends in Manhattan. The series was produced by Bright/Kauffman/Crane Productions, in association with Warner Bros. Television...
Season 1 Episode "The One With Mrs.Bing", after Ross kissed Chandler's mother, Joey says: "No big deal". Ross says: "Okay" and Joey says: "In Bizarro World!!"
In "I Am Furious Yellow
I Am Furious Yellow
"I Am Furious " is the eighteenth episode of The Simpsons thirteenth season. It first aired in the United States on the Fox network on April 28, 2002. In the episode, Bart creates a comic book series based on his father Homer's anger problems, which turns into a popular Internet cartoon series...
", an episode of the thirteenth season of The Simpsons
The Simpsons
The Simpsons is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical parody of a middle class American lifestyle epitomized by its family of the same name, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie...
, Comic Book Guy
Comic Book Guy
Comic Book Guy is a recurring fictional character in the animated television series The Simpsons. He is voiced by Hank Azaria, and first appeared in the second-season episode "Three Men and a Comic Book", which originally aired on May 9, 1991. He is the proprietor of a comic book store, The...
receives a less-than-friendly visit from Marvel Comics executive Stan Lee
Stan Lee
Stan Lee is an American comic book writer, editor, actor, producer, publisher, television personality, and the former president and chairman of Marvel Comics....
. As Lee exits the shop, Comic Book Guy utters, "Stan Lee insulted me! But in Bizarro World, that means he likes me!"
DC paid tribute to Bizarro World in Cartoon Network Presents issue #12. The main story had Peter Potamus
Peter Potamus
Peter Potamus is an animated television series produced by Hanna-Barbera and first broadcast on September 16, 1964. -Premise:Peter Potamus was a syndicated series divided into three segments; one of Peter Potamus and So-So, one of...
and So-so visiting a version of Bizarro World, inhabited by reverse versions of other Hanna-Barbera
Hanna-Barbera
Hanna-Barbera Productions, Inc. was an American animation studio that dominated North American television animation during the second half of the 20th century...
characters, where Yogi Bear
Yogi Bear
Yogi Bear is a fictional bear who appears in animated cartoons created by Hanna-Barbera Productions. He made his debut in 1958 as a supporting character in The Huckleberry Hound Show. Yogi Bear was the first breakout character created by Hanna-Barbera, and was eventually more popular than...
would rather clean up Jellystone Park than steal picnic baskets, Mr. Peebles does not want to sell Magilla Gorilla
Magilla Gorilla
The Magilla Gorilla Show is an animated series for television produced by Hanna-Barbera for Screen Gems between 1963 and 1967, and originally sponsored in syndication by Ideal Toys from 1963 through 1966. The show also had other recurring characters, including Punkin' Puss & Mushmouse, and Ricochet...
, and Wally Gator
Wally Gator
Wally Gator is one of the segments from The Hanna-Barbera New Cartoon Series. The other segments that compose this trilogy are Lippy the Lion & Hardy Har Har and Touché Turtle and Dum Dum. The segment consisted of 52 episodes over two seasons....
wants to stay at the zoo. This version of Bizarro World was later visited by Elroy Jetson in The Flintstones
The Flintstones
The Flintstones is an animated, prime-time American television sitcom that screened from September 30, 1960 to April 1, 1966, on ABC. Produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions, The Flintstones was about a working class Stone Age man's life with his family and his next-door neighbor and best friend. It...
and The Jetsons
The Jetsons
The Jetsons is a animated American sitcom that was produced by Hanna-Barbera, originally airing in prime-time from 1962–1963 and again from 1985–1987...
#19. In both comics, the Bizarro World is shaped like a pyramid instead of a cube.
WWE Raw
WWE RAW
WWE Raw ) is a sports entertainment television program for WWE that currently airs on the USA Network in the United States...
commentator Jerry "The King" Lawler refers to Canada as Bizarro World because Canadians will root for the bad guys (heels
Heel (professional wrestling)
In professional wrestling, a heel is a villain character. In non-wrestling jargon, heels are the "bad guys" in professional wrestling; the term heel coming from the term take to you heels, which means to run away which heel champions tend to do to avoid losing their titles.storylines...
) if the wrestler is from Canada.
Episode 17 of Sealab 2021
Sealab 2021
Sealab 2021 is an American animated television series. It was shown on Cartoon Network's adult-oriented programming block, Adult Swim. It premiered on November 23, 2000 and the final episode aired on April 25, 2005...
features "Bizarro" versions of all of the main characters that hold the crew of Sealab hostage. These Bizarro counterparts include Captain Murphy with an eyepatch and Debbie DuPree with a robotic arm and pink hair.
UK
United Kingdom
The 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...
celebrities Katie Price and Alex Reid
Alex Reid
Alex Reid is a British actress, born and raised in Cornwall and trained at the Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art.-Acting:She portrayed the probation officer Sally in E4's Misfits and also the character of Captain Caroline Walsh in Seasons 1 and 2 of ITV's SAS drama Ultimate Force.She played...
have been referred to as the Bizarro version of Angelina Jolie
Angelina Jolie
Angelina Jolie is an American actress. She has received an Academy Award, two Screen Actors Guild Awards, and three Golden Globe Awards, and was named Hollywood's highest-paid actress by Forbes in 2009 and 2011. Jolie is noted for promoting humanitarian causes as a Goodwill Ambassador for the...
and Brad Pitt
Brad Pitt
William Bradley "Brad" Pitt is an American actor and film producer. Pitt has received two Academy Award nominations and four Golden Globe Award nominations, winning one...
.
In the White Collar
White Collar (TV series)
White Collar is a USA Network television series created by Jeff Eastin, starring Matt Bomer as con-man Neal Caffrey and Tim DeKay as Special Agent Peter Burke. It premiered on October 23, 2009. In December 2009, White Collar was renewed for a second season that began on July 13, 2010...
episode "Bottlenecked," Peter talks about Neal's Bizarro. Tim DeKay
Tim DeKay
Timothy Robert DeKay is an American character actor. His first on screen acting job was as corporate giant Larry Deon on seaQuest 2032. He was a cast member of the series Party of Five from 1997–1999, Carnivàle from 2003–2005 and Tell Me You Love Me in 2007...
, who plays Peter, also played the Bizarro Jerry in Seinfeld
Seinfeld
Seinfeld is an American television sitcom that originally aired on NBC from July 5, 1989, to May 14, 1998, lasting nine seasons, and is now in syndication. It was created by Larry David and Jerry Seinfeld, the latter starring as a fictionalized version of himself...
.