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51-471: Created by artist Keith Giffen as an intentionally silly character, Ambush Bug first appeared in DC Comics Presents #52 (Dec. 1982) and would make appearances in several other Superman -related comic books in the early 1980s. Paul Kupperberg , who wrote Ambush Bug's first story, recalled, "as Keith was in the office, he sat in on the plotting and offered up Ambush Bug as an antagonist. The Bug

102-539: A Magog ongoing series . Giffen co-wrote the 26-issue biweekly Justice League: Generation Lost with Judd Winick , which saw the return of Justice League International, and wrote an arc of Booster Gold with DeMatteis and artist Chris Batista . In 2011 and 2012, he co-wrote and drew OMAC with Dan DiDio for eight issues before its cancellation. DC announced in October 2011 that Giffen would be co-writing Superman vol. 3 with Dan Jurgens and their first issue

153-550: A DC/Wildstorm crossover and Reign in Hell , an eight-issue limited series , with artists Tom Derenick and Bill Sienkiewicz , about various DC Comics magical characters in Hell. On February 7, 2009, it was announced at the New York Comic Con that he would be spearheading a revival of Doom Patrol , a title which he has long said he wanted to write. He finished Grant Morrison 's run on The Authority and writing

204-626: A group of fictional characters in the future of the DC Comics universe . The "Subs", as they are often called, are rejected Legion of Super-Heroes applicants who band together to prove that their powers are not as useless as they claim. They first appeared in Adventure Comics #306 (March 1963), and were created by Edmond Hamilton and John Forte . The group were depicted as reasonably effective superheroes until Keith Giffen , during his tenure as Legion writer, began depicting

255-486: A hiatus, his style was more precise and reminiscent of George Pérez and Jim Starlin , and helped make Legion of Super-Heroes DC's second most popular comic after Pérez's New Teen Titans . It was his work on the Legion that rocketed him to comic book artist fame. He peppered his artwork with in-jokes such as upside down Superman logos, hidden Marvel characters, eyeball creatures, and scrawled humorous messages on signs in

306-796: A one-panel cameo in a series exploring variations on the JLA acronym, JLA: Justice League of Amazons . Ambush Bug is largely considered an absurd character and is rarely used by other writers, though he still exists in the DC Universe and occasionally still appears in some DC Comics. His popularity amongst creators has led to many "cameos", sometimes with as little as his antennae being visible. In 2006, he appeared as part of Firestorm 's short-lived Justice League of America in 52 #24 (a comic Giffen did layouts for). His powers appeared in proxy in Countdown to Final Crisis #32. Jimmy Olsen briefly gains

357-522: A series about young adult versions of Sugar and Spike, drawn by artist Bilquis Evely and published as one of the series in DC's Legends of Tomorrow anthology. In 2019, he worked with artist Jeff Lemire on an Inferior Five series, one that shared nothing with the original 1960s superhero humor other than the title. Giffen died from a stroke in Tampa, Florida , on October 9, 2023, at the age of 70. DC Comics ran

408-567: A series of memorials in comics that were released on Giffen's 71st birthday and Marvel Comics followed suit a week later. Giffen's art took on many styles over the years. His early work tended towards a heavy influence from Jack Kirby . After an early stint at Marvel, he began doing layouts for artist Wally Wood during the 1976 revival of the Justice Society of America in All Star Comics . When he returned to comics after

459-859: A strong and durable alien. Versions of Infectious Lass, Polar Boy, Night Girl, Stone Boy, Fire Lad, and Chlorophyll Kid similar in appearance to their Pre- Crisis on Infinite Earths counterparts appear in the Tales of the Unexpected limited series and the Superman and the Legion of Super-Heroes story arc in Action Comics . In part five of the Superman and the Legion of Super-Heroes story arc in Action Comics , Fire Lad, Stone Boy, Chlorophyll Kid, and Rainbow Girl are called in to help battle

510-527: A style influenced by his Justice League artist Kevin Maguire that was midway between the tight, controlled pencils of his early Legion days and the freer but less anatomically realistic style he had later adopted. For many years, Giffen plotted and did the panel-to-panel break-downs for stories he drew, but did not write the final script. He relied on others such as Robert Loren Fleming and Tom and Mary Bierbaum to supply captions and dialogue, even when he

561-586: A three-issue limited series titled The Immortal Dr. Fate (Jan. 1985 – March 1985). He was one of several artists on Wonder Woman #300 (Feb. 1983) and was one of the contributors to the DC Challenge limited series in 1986. Giffen plotted and was breakdown artist for an Aquaman limited series and one-shot special in 1989 with writer Robert Loren Fleming and artist Curt Swan for DC Comics . Giffen worked on titles owned by several different companies including Woodgod , All Star Comics , Drax

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612-627: A title that he had drawn in the 1970s, Marvel Comics ' The Defenders . Giffen later confessed concerning his 1970s run, "Back then, I was the kind of moron that I now warn new guys against becoming. ... When I think of Defenders , I think of what could have been if I'd had an ounce of professionalism in my body at that time." The Giffen/DeMatteis/Maguire trio also produced the Metal Men backup feature which appeared in Doom Patrol . Giffen and DeMatteis collaborated with artist Joe Abraham on

663-535: Is also a character in the book. During his own four-part series in 1985, he picks up a doll and, thinking it is alive, "adopted" it as a partner called "Cheeks, The Toy Wonder", complete with its own costume. In 2001, Ambush Bug appears as a member of the "Justice League of Anarchy" alongside Plastic Man , the Creeper , Harley Quinn , 'Mazing Man , and the Trickster . This group of DC Universe troublemakers made

714-532: Is completely immobile when using his power. After receiving a Legion flight belt as a consolation prize, the five disconsolate teenagers decide to form a group that can pinch hit for the Legion. After several failures as a team, the Subs save the Earth from an invasion by Plant Men while the Legion is off planet fighting a decoy armada of robot spaceships. At first operating in secrecy, the Legion of Substitute Heroes

765-432: Is entirely Keith's creation ..." Giffen has stated that both Ambush Bug and Lobo were derived from Lunatik , a character he created in high school. Giffen said that his original pitch was " Bugs Bunny as a super-villain". In response to positive reader reaction to the character's first appearance, editor Julius Schwartz directed Giffen to create another Ambush Bug story for DC Comics Presents #59. At first, Ambush Bug

816-618: Is formed, consisting of former Legion of Super-Heroes members Cosmic Boy , Bouncing Boy , and Duo Damsel , as well as Night Girl, a new Karate Kid (Myg of Lythyl), and Comet Queen . During the events of Legion of Super-Heroes (vol. 4), the "Subs" come into their own as an insurgent group that helps the Terran resistance to the Dominators . Here, old Subs Fire Lad, Stone Boy, Chlorophyll Kid, Color Kid, and Porcupine Pete, are joined by new allies such as Ron-Karr and Grinn. Following

867-483: Is gradually recognized as a valuable asset, most notably after the assault on the Citadel of Throon when the regular Legionnaires are all defeated and Polar Boy and Night Girl are left to lead an effective attack and end the siege. Later recruits to the Legion of Substitute Heroes include Antennae Lad, Color Kid, Double-Header, Infectious Lass, Porcupine Pete, Dream Girl , and Star Boy . The team fell into disuse during

918-421: Is short for "subterfuge". In the Legion series launched in 2004 , Polar Boy and Chlorophyll Kid (renamed Plant Lad ) appear as a part of the new Wanderers led by Mekt Ranzz . This version of Polar Boy can only slow molecular movement. Night Girl applies for membership in the Legion but is rejected and made a reserve member (as part of the "Legion Reserve"), along with Sizzle, an energy manipulator, and Turtle,

969-521: Is unclear from his statement whether it affected it because he was revealed as swiping, or because the new style was less popular than the old. Giffen's work for DC shifted from being primarily an artist to becoming a writer who did layouts for other artists to finish. This was part of a pattern at DC that also saw veteran artists Mike Grell and George Perez shift to writing scripts for other artists, on Green Arrow and Wonder Woman respectively. Giffen continued during this period to draw occasional issues of

1020-431: Is usually characterized by a biting wit that is seen as much less zany than dialogue provided by longtime collaborators DeMatteis and Robert Loren Fleming . He is known for his humorous takes on existing characters, often focusing on their personality clashes . He has a tendency to poke fun at trends in comic books or character archetypes. His Ambush Bug miniseries is especially noted for its in-jokes such as Villian

1071-615: The Legion of Super-Heroes title in the 1980s and 1990s. Giffen and writer Paul Levitz crafted " The Great Darkness Saga " in Legion of Super-Heroes vol. 2, #290–294 in 1982. In August 1984, a third volume of the Legion of Super-Heroes series was launched by Levitz and Giffen. Giffen plotted and pencilled the fourth volume of the Legion which began in November 1989. After successfully experimenting with his unorthodox brand of humor in

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1122-652: The Zero Hour: Crisis in Time! reboot, the Subs appear in Legionnaires #43 during Legion tryouts. Infectious Lass, Fire Lad, and Color Kid are on the cover, while Stone Boy, Chlorophyll Kid, Night Girl, and Polar Boy all try out. In the Legion Worlds one-shot focusing on Braal, Cosmic Boy along with Invisible Kid , Leviathan , and Chuck Taine call themselves the "Legion of Subs"; the word 'Subs'

1173-579: The Bronze Age of Comic Books since their simple, young-readers-oriented concept left them out-of-place in the dark, socially relevant stories of the era. The Legion of Substitute Heroes were first presented as a starring feature in DC Comics Presents #59 (July 1983). Writer/artist Keith Giffen had been asked to do a story featuring the villain Ambush Bug , and decided that the Legion of Substitute Heroes would be appropriate heroes to pit against

1224-742: The Canterbury Cricket . They are formed to fight the Amazons , but all save for the Canterbury Cricket are killed. Ambush Bug appears in the Batman: The Brave and the Bold series finale "Mitefall!", voiced by Henry Winkler . He tries to thwart Bat-Mite 's attempts to make the show jump the shark and force its cancellation while assisting Batman and Aquaman in fighting Gorilla Grodd . While Bat-Mite succeeds and has

1275-587: The Justice League of Earth, a tyrannical, alien-hating association formed out of super-powered beings also rejected by the Legion; other Legion members draw a distinction between how the Substitutes had genuine power issues that stopped them from becoming full members while the super-beings who joined the Justice League of Earth were rejected because of their darker psychological issues. After

1326-528: The Legion of Super-Heroes for issues #17 and 18 in 2013. Giffen reunited with J. M. DeMatteis on the Justice League 3000 series launched in October 2013. In 2014, he and Jeff Lemire , Dan Jurgens , and Brian Azzarello co-wrote The New 52: Futures End . That same year, Giffen and Dan DiDio reunited on Infinity Man and the Forever People . In 2016, Giffen wrote the scripts for

1377-827: The "Breakdowns" storyline in 1991 and 1992. The two writers and Maguire reunited in 2003 for the Formerly Known as the Justice League miniseries and its 2005 sequel, "I Can't Believe It's Not the Justice League", published in JLA Classified . Giffen created the alien mercenary character Lobo (with Roger Slifer ) as well as the irreverent "want-to-be" hero Ambush Bug . A Doctor Fate series of back-up stories, written by Martin Pasko and drawn by Giffen appeared in The Flash #306 (Feb. 1982) to #313 (Sept. 1982). DC later collected Pasko and Giffen's stories into

1428-508: The 1985 Legion of Substitute Heroes Special , Giffen began employing this style in many of his works. He co-created the humorous Justice League International series in 1987 with J. M. DeMatteis and Kevin Maguire . The success of that series led to a spinoff in 1989 titled Justice League Europe also co-written with DeMatteis, and later with Gerard Jones , and featuring art by Bart Sears . The Giffen/DeMatteis team worked on Justice League for five years and closed out their run with

1479-645: The Destroyer , Heckler , Nick Fury's Howling Commandos , Reign of the Zodiac , Suicide Squad , Trencher , T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents , and Vext . He was responsible for the English adaptation of the Battle Royale and Ikki Tousen manga, as well as creating "I Luv Halloween" for Tokyopop. He worked for Dark Horse from 1994 to 1995 on their Comics Greatest World /Dark Horse Heroes line, as

1530-538: The Villain, Cheeks the Toy Wonder, and the use of DC editor Julius Schwartz as a character. Giffen was also known for sudden plot twists and abrupt often tragic turns of fate. During his late 1980s-early 1990s run on the Legion of Super-Heroes , light comical issues were often followed by darker ones where popular characters were maimed or killed. Work from 2007 included writing The Programme #3, Dreamwar

1581-447: The appearance of Ambush Bug and subconsciously uses his power of "Dumb Luck" to locate Forager . An Ambush Bug miniseries, Ambush Bug: Year None , debuted in 2008, plotted and pencilled by Giffen, and written by Fleming, with Jann Jones serving as editor. The final issue was published almost a year after the rest of the series. Dan DiDio claims to have lost issue #6 and instead they skipped it to finish off with issue #7. Ambush Bug

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1632-461: The background of his panels in the alternate futuristic alphabet Interlac . As Giffen's style loosened up, he found himself drawn to the work of José Muñoz (see Controversy ). Soon thereafter he developed a scratchier, more impressionistic style, using a highly stylized method of drawing directly with ink, on titles such as Trencher , Lobo Infanticide and Images Of Shadowhawk . After his lengthy sabbatical from comics work, Giffen returned with

1683-625: The co-creator of Lobo , Rocket Raccoon , and Jaime Reyes . Keith Giffen was born in Queens, New York , on November 30, 1952. His first published work was "The Sword and The Star", a black-and-white text story featured in Marvel Preview #4 (Jan. 1976), with writer Bill Mantlo . Giffen and Mantlo created Rocket Raccoon in Marvel Preview #7 (Summer 1976). Giffen is best known for his long runs illustrating and later writing

1734-607: The comics' plots. Ambush Bug's primary power is teleportation. At first, this was a function of his suit; he was limited to teleporting to where small receiver bugs were located. Later, after an explosion, Ambush Bug internalized this power. It became apparent, in DC Comics Presents #81, that the Bug used to have to say "Simon says" to teleport, but it is no longer necessary. Ambush Bug is also aware of his fictionality and aware of events in other publishers' comic books. He once

1785-547: The creator-owned title Hero Squared for Boom! Studios . The two-issue mini-series Planetary Brigade chronicled the adventures of characters originating from this series. Giffen was the breakdown artist on the DC Comics title 52 , a weekly series following in the wake of the Infinite Crisis crossover, written by Geoff Johns , Greg Rucka , Mark Waid and Grant Morrison . He continued in that role with

1836-1138: The follow-up weekly series Countdown to Final Crisis . He was the lead writer for Marvel Comics 's " Annihilation " event, having written the one-shot prologue, the lead-in stories in Thanos and Drax , the Silver Surfer as well as the main six issue mini-series . He wrote the Star-Lord mini-series for the follow-up story Annihilation: Conquest . Between 2005 and 2007 he co-created and often authored or co-authored independent comics such as 10 , Tag and Hero Squared for Boom! Studios , Zapt! and I Luv Halloween for Tokyopop , Common Foe and Tabula Rasa for Desperado Publishing / Image Comics and Grunts for Arcana . Many of these were co-authored with Shannon Denton . Giffen co-wrote OMAC with Dan DiDio as part of The New 52 company-wide relaunch until its cancellation with issue #8. In October 2011, he became writer of Green Arrow from issues #4–6. Giffen and Paul Levitz collaborated on

1887-496: The magazine's allegation that Giffen was copying, or " swiping " the work of Argentinian cartoonist José Antonio Muñoz . The Comics Journal returned to the subject two years later, accusing Giffen of swiping from Muñoz again in a 1988 story drawn by him for the anthology Taboo . At that point in his career, Giffen was one of the most popular comic book artists in the industry. The shift in style hurt Giffen's career, according to statements Giffen made in an interview, although it

1938-623: The power to teleport by himself. While trying to fix one of the miniature bugs, it explodes, causing a chain reaction and a blast that destroys all of the bugs and tints Ambush Bug's costume temporarily black; he then becomes capable of teleporting even without the bugs (briefly considering changing his moniker to Black Beetle instead). Ambush Bug became popular enough to be featured in two comic book miniseries and several specials, plotted and pencilled by Keith Giffen and scripted by Robert Loren Fleming . The series contains many comic book-enthusiast and DC in-jokes and satire; series editor Julius Schwartz

1989-846: The process. An intergalactic bounty hunter based on Ambush Bug and Marvel Comics 's Lunatik called Ambush the Lunatik appears in Amalgam Comics ' Lobo the Duck #1 (April 1997). A heavily armored Ambush Bug appears in Elseworld's Finest: Supergirl & Batgirl as a member of the Justice Society of America . A group called the "Ambush Bugs" appear in the Flashpoint tie-in The Canterbury Cricket , consisting of Queen Bee , Blue Beetle , Firefly , Cockroach, and

2040-429: The series replaced with a Batgirl series, Ambush Bug reveals it will have a dark tone and will not feature Bat-Mite before organizing a wrap party for the series' cast. Keith Giffen Keith Ian Giffen (November 30, 1952 – October 9, 2023) was an American comics artist and writer. He was known for his work for DC Comics on their Legion of Super-Heroes and Justice League titles as well as for being

2091-417: The team as something of a joke. The Subs regain some respect when founding member Polar Boy joins the main Legion, and a new Legion of Substitute Heroes is formed. The Legion of Substitute Heroes is founded by Polar Boy, Night Girl , Stone Boy, Fire Lad, and Chlorophyll Kid, five young heroes whose powers are not sufficient to earn them membership in the Legion of Super-Heroes — Stone Boy, for example,

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2142-698: The titles he wrote and to draw various mini-series . Giffen acknowledged Muñoz's influence, and in 2000 referred to the controversy this way: I had a bad incident with studying somebody's work very closely at one point, and I resolved never, ever to do it again. I can get so immersed in somebody's work that I start turning into a Xerox machine and it's not good. . . . There was no time I was sitting there tracing or copying, no. Duplicating, pulling out of memory and putting down on paper after intense study, absolutely. Keith Giffen received an Inkpot Award in 1991. As artist unless otherwise noted. Legion of Substitute Heroes The Legion of Substitute Heroes are

2193-409: The villain since they were somewhat "goofy" and obscure enough that he could do what he wanted with them without fear of arousing controversy. Exceptionally good sales on the humor-driven issue led to DC publishing a Legion of Substitute Heroes Special on April Fool's Day , 1985. Again written and drawn by Giffen, the Legion of Substitute Heroes Special became regarded as a seminal work, and Giffen

2244-467: The villainous group is defeated, the Subs claim their satellite base as their own. At an early point in their timeline, the Substitutes team up with the Inferior Five in a failed attempt to steal the Legion's thunder and destroy a primeval black hole. In the pages of " The New Golden Age ", Legion of Substitute Heroes members Rainbow Girl, Animal Lad, and Stone Boy arrive in the present to ask

2295-625: The writer of two short-lived series, Division 13 and co-author, with Lovern Kindzierski , of Agents of Law . For Valiant Comics , Giffen wrote X-O Manowar , Magnus, Robot Fighter , Punx and the final issue of Solar, Man of the Atom . Giffen took a break from the comic industry for several years, working on storyboards for television and film, including shows such as The Real Ghostbusters and Ed, Edd n Eddy . Giffen and his Justice League colleagues, J.M. DeMatteis and Kevin Maguire, have applied their humorous brand of storytelling to

2346-529: Was #7 (cover dated May 2012). In February 1986 writer Mark Burbey published "The Trouble with Keith Giffen" in The Comics Journal , an examination of then-recent dramatic changes in Giffen's drawing style. The article pointed out that Giffen had changed from a slick, clean Jim Starlin -esque style to an avant-garde, heavily inked one. The article displayed several panels side by side to illustrate

2397-440: Was a villain, named after a type of insect, and having a green, skintight suit with two orange antennae containing miniature robot bugs that enable him to teleport. After attacking Superman and other heroes, Ambush Bug decides instead to be a superhero as well. He also fancies himself Superman's friend, which only annoys the hero even more than his early villainy. The costume then becomes permanently affixed to his body, and he gains

2448-419: Was emboldened to employ the issue's boundary-pushing, often metafictional comedy in his later works. After a colorful, if not exactly impressive, career, Polar Boy disbanded the Legion of Substitute Heroes, and went on to attain full Legion membership. Many of the remaining members eventually join the Legion as well during the "Five Year Gap". Shortly before the "Five Year Gap", a new Legion of Substitute Heroes

2499-401: Was seen in the new Doom Patrol series in 2010 at the end of issue #9, arriving with his luggage and Cheeks. He appeared semi-regularly until the series ended. Ambush Bug made another appearance, in issue #46 of the outside of regular DC continuity Tiny Titans series. In The New 52 continuity reboot, Ambush Bug appears as a news reporter in the feature "Channel 52", which summarizes

2550-455: Was shown being able to follow the internal dialogue between Firestorm's component personalities. Ambush Bug also shows surprising agility and skill at unarmed combat, such as gouging the eyes of enemies attacking him from behind or knocking out members of the Legion of Substitute Heroes with a single blow. His unusual way of thinking is also a great advantage and often allows him to guess opponents' tactics and outmaneuver them, humiliating them in

2601-469: Was the main creative force behind the book. He co-wrote the Freak Force series with Erik Larsen and co-wrote two SuperPatriot mini-series. Beginning with Trencher , Giffen started writing comics fully by himself, although he still collaborates when the project calls for it. Giffen was known for having an unorthodox writing style, often using characters in ways not seen before . His dialogue

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