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89-451: In 1942, Fawcett Comics decided to add a cartoon animal comic book to accompany its line of superhero, action, and adventure comics. Chad Grothkopf, an artist with experience at DC Comics and Timely Comics , was tapped to come up with concepts for Fawcett's Funny Animals comic; his creations included Willie the Worm, Shelock Monk and Chuck, and Hoppy, a rabbit who dreamed of being strong. For

178-657: A Ghost , Keepers of the Earth , and The Orphan and the Polar Bear , just to name a few. In the Disney franchises of The Jungle Book and Tarzan , Mowgli along with Shanti and Ranjan can talk to the animals (such as a sloth bear, an elephant, a black panther, a tiger and a python) in the jungles of India, and Tarzan along with Jane and her father can talk to the animals: gorillas and elephants in African jungle. Out of

267-652: A charity dinner with Venus Sivana, during which Osiris first meets a talking crocodile (whom Osiris names Sobek). Osiris is accepted into the Teen Titans . Upon returning from a mission, he and the rest of the Black Marvel Family are attacked by the Suicide Squad . The Black Marvels defeat the Squad, but not before footage of them in battle (including Osiris's accidental killing of a Squad member who

356-755: A common element in mythology and folk tales , children's literature , and modern comic books and animated cartoons . Fictional talking animals often are anthropomorphic , possessing human-like qualities (such as bipedal walking, wearing clothes, and living in houses). Whether they are realistic animals or fantastical ones, talking animals serve a wide range of uses in literature, from teaching morality to providing social commentary. Realistic talking animals are often found in fables, religious texts, indigenous texts, wilderness coming of age stories, naturalist fiction, animal autobiography, animal satire, and in works featuring pets and domesticated animals. Conversely, fantastical and more anthropomorphic animals are often found in

445-460: A deadly disease before Adam kills him and his partner War. A gravely ill Isis saves Adam from Death using her powers to send Death into the sky with a geyser of lava and tells Adam with her dying breath that she was wrong to try to change his views on justice, and that he should avenge both her and Osiris. After the funeral in honor of his family, Adam attacks the neighboring Intergang-associated nation of Bialya in search of Death. Sick with grief over

534-523: A deal with the Egyptian god Set. The Mighty Adam serves as Egypt's champion for many centuries but becomes corrupted by the charms of a mysterious woman, revealed to be Shazam's evil daughter Blaze in disguise. The bewitched Adam is convinced that he and his mistress should rule Egypt, so he kills the Pharaoh and appoints himself ruler. Shazam learns of this and strips Adam of his powers, encasing them in

623-611: A failed attempt to defeat Superboy-Prime , he is transported to Earth-5 when he is punched too far from the Tower by Superboy-Prime. He joins the heroes in the Battle of Metropolis, destroying Amazo shortly after his arrival. Black Adam appears as a featured character in DC's weekly 52 comic book. Depicted as the violent protector of the nation of Kahndaq, Adam kills several supervillains in public and on television to demonstrate his views. As

712-582: A falling building. Marvel brings Theo Adam to Shazam, who wipes Adam's memory and takes away his voice, so that he cannot access his powers. This solution proves temporary, as Blaze re-enters her former lover's life and helps restore his voice, memory, and powers. Although Adam appears during the Power of Shazam! ongoing series' first year of publication as a villain, towards the end of the series' run, Adam returns and announces that Black Adam and Theo Adam are separate personalities. Black Adam stands trial again for

801-588: A fictional Middle Eastern country named Kahndaq, located at the southern tip of the Sinai Peninsula . Portrayed and seen as a hero who liberated his homeland of Kahndaq from slavery. Featured roles in such comic book series as Justice Society of America , Villains United , Infinite Crisis , and 52 have elevated the character's prominence in the DC Universe , culminating with DC's 2021 line-wide Infinite Frontier relaunch, wherein he joins

890-486: A handful of appearances in the revamped New 52 / DC Rebirth interpretation of Shazam! , beginning in 2012. Hoppy is a pink rabbit who lives in the town of Funny Animalville, along with an assortment of other funny animal characters. As revealed in the origin story from Fawcett's Funny Animals #1, Hoppy is a fan of Captain Marvel. One day, he decides to emulate his hero and speaks the magic word "Shazam!" Surprisingly,

979-594: A malignant tumor from Adam's brain. He is sent to battle Wildcat, and easily defeats him, showing how easily he could kill him by taking him about 25,000 feet above the ground—just high enough for them to talk while unable to go any higher without the human Wildcat freezing or suffocating—explaining the different ways he could kill him, and asking what he will give for his life. He shows him the Rock of Eternity where Sorrow has turned Shazam to stone with his cursed face that usually kills those that see him, also making contact with

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1068-593: A militant dictator whose actions had long been ignored by the United Nations. Late 2003 began the publication of a JSA / Hawkman crossover story arc titled "Black Reign", written by Geoff Johns alone, which features Adam and his militia's hostile takeover of Kahndaq. A war soon breaks out, with Adam, his comrades, and the Kahndaqi people on one side, and the Justice Society on the other. The dictator

1157-487: A mystical scarab necklace. Adam's depowered body rapidly experiences the aging process that the magic had staved off, and the former hero withers away into a dried cadaver in seconds. Shazam buries both the body and the scarab in the tomb of Ramesses II , where he plans for it to remain for all eternity. In death, the former hero is referred to as " Khem-Adam " ("Black Adam"). Disillusioned by what he perceived as Adam's betrayal, Shazam waits several millennia before appointing

1246-449: A nearby ship where he obtains a length of rope which he uses to bind and gag Billy, after which he throws him into the sea. However, Billy swims to the surface, and is rescued by a colonist rebel, and freed. He realizes the rebel is Paul Revere before returning to his own time. Adam comes to Captain Marvel to exact revenge, when during a short battle, Adam is once again tricked by Captain Marvel into saying "Shazam." Adam then gets amnesia as

1335-579: A part of the Native American family/community. Distinctions between humans and animals are more fluid. In these stories animals represent the ability to adapt and serve as mentors and guides. For example, in Louise Erdrich’s book Chickadee the protagonist is saved by a Chickadee, who instructs him in finding food and water, after he escapes a kidnapping. Other examples of Native American works with talking animal stories include How I Became

1424-539: A portion of his own power on the boy, as Captain Marvel did for Captain Marvel Jr. Isis's brother then becomes a new addition to the Black Marvel Family under the name Osiris . They help the Marvels beat the demonic Sabbac using their lightning strike on Halloween when he tries to sacrifice children to the demon Neron while several stories high. He is then moved to an unknown location. The Black Marvel Family also has

1513-558: A prisoner. Dr. Sivana tortures Adam for weeks using the electrical crown, which only serves to enrage Adam further, who vows to tear them all apart. The " Science Squad " makes a worldwide announcement that they plan to sell Black Adam as a living weapon to the highest bidder, resulting in the Justice Society assaulting the island to free Adam. It is revealed that Chang Tzu had built the Horsemen under orders of China, who wanted Adam and his family to be assassinated after Adam withdrew from

1602-644: A result of a powerful punch from Captain Marvel. After that, Black Adam is also involved with Karmang in the All-New Collectors' Edition #C-58 (Black Adam's third appearance, but second new appearance in the Bronze Age) and tries to destroy both Superman and Captain Marvel. After several more defeats at Captain Marvel's hands, Adam joins Mister Mind 's final pre- Crisis version of the Monster Society of Evil which stages an assault on

1691-631: A result, Hoppy acquires superpowers (flight and lightning-emitting eyes, among others) and his fur pattern reflects the lightning-bolt emblem of the Shazam Family . Hoppy has powers roughly similar to those of Captain Marvel/Shazam. He accesses his powers by yelling "Shazam!", but his pantheon differs. His patron deities are S alamander , H ogules , A ntlers , Z ebreus , A balone and M onkury . In American Comic Book Chronicles: 1940-1944 , Kurt Mitchell and Roy Thomas wrote: "It

1780-527: A result, he is distrusted by the superhuman community. In 52 , DC introduces Adrianna Tomaz, the "most beautiful slave from Egypt" offered to Adam by Intergang as a token to curry his favor, along with $ 2,000,000 in African gold. Black Adam sends Intergang a message by killing Noose, by tearing his face apart, and sending the rest of the Intergang members home, leaving Adrianna behind. During Week 10, he creates an international metahuman coalition against

1869-468: A revelation, and realizes that he is a reincarnation of Khem-Adam. Grasping his stolen scarab, Adam speaks Shazam's name and is transformed into the super-powered Black Adam. Black Adam reveals himself to Captain Marvel as the Batsons' killer, and the two battle. Captain Marvel emerges victorious by snatching Adam's scarab, and therefore his power, away from him. However, he saves him from being crushed by

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1958-580: A safe distance. For example, Charlotte’s Web introduces the concept of death when Charlotte dies and Wilbur is charged with taking care of her offspring. Similarly, naturalist animal fictions also provide a vehicle with which to provide commentary on the humane treatment of animals, animal rights, and the conservation of animals. A good example of this would be the Doctor Doolittle series. Finally, in this digital age where modern childhood generally has very little contact and exposure to animals in

2047-581: A second champion to fight evil in his name. During the late 20th century, an unscrupulous archaeological aide named Theo Adam is assigned to the Malcolm Expedition, financed by the Sivana Foundation to excavate the tomb of Ramesses II. Adam uncovers Khem-Adam's tomb in a secret passageway, and leads his superiors, C.C. Batson and his wife Marilyn, to the discovery. Upon first sight of Khem-Adam's scarab, Theo Adam becomes obsessed with

2136-534: A tool for inserting social commentary. In addition talking animals can be utilized for satirical purposes, for humorous purposes like in the case of Frog and Toad, and to decentralize and deemphasize the human experience. Talking animals can also be used to create analogies or allegories. For example, in Narnia , Aslan the Lion can be seen as an allegory for Christ. Finally, fictional works with talking animals challenge

2225-786: Is Captain Black Bunny, the lagomorph equivalent of Captain Marvel's foe Black Adam . Hoppy's stories include "Hoppy the Marvel Bunny and the Paper Dolls of Victory!", "The Keepers of the Winds" and "Hoppy Duels with Stinger Bee". For a span of five issues (#49–54, May–October 1947), Hoppy made no appearances in Fawcett's Funny Animals ; these issues featured Billy the Kid and Oscar as the lead feature. Beginning with #55, Hoppy returned as

2314-543: Is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics . He was created by Otto Binder and C. C. Beck , and first appeared in the debut issue of Fawcett Comics ' The Marvel Family comic book in December 1945. Since DC Comics licensed and acquired Fawcett's characters in the 1970s, Black Adam has endured as one of the most popular archenemies of the superhero Captain Marvel / Shazam and

2403-529: Is an ancient Egyptian named Teth-Adam (i.e., "Mighty Human"), who is chosen by the wizard Shazam to be his successor due to his presumed moral purity. This story is reprinted in DC's Shazam! #8 (1973), which is his first appearance in the Bronze Age. When Teth-Adam says the magic word "Shazam", he is transformed into Mighty Adam, but is corrupted by power. Originally, the wizard Shazam grants Adam powers derived from ancient Greco-Roman deities ; later in

2492-950: Is black and golden yellow, instead of red and golden yellow. Though Adam is defeated in the same story which he debuted, the DC version of Adam is resurrected and revitalized nearly 30 years later in Philadelphia by Doctor Sivana's reincarnation machine in DC Comics ' Shazam! revival of the Marvel Family characters. He then destroys the machine so it cannot be used against him, much to Sivana's annoyance. According to Shazam! #28 (Black Adam's first "Bronze Age" appearance, but second actual appearance, after The Marvel Family #1 ) Black Adam gets his powers from Shu (stamina), Heryshaf (strength), Amon (power), Zehuti ( Thoth ) (wisdom), Anpu (speed), and Menthu (courage). Black Adam accidentally time-travels back to 1776 while going to

2581-587: Is briefly seen in Limbo , where forgotten characters from DC continuity currently reside, pursued by Ace the Bat-Hound , during the events of Final Crisis in 2009. Following DC's 2011 New 52 reboot, Hoppy was reimagined as the pet of Mary Bromfield in the rebooted Shazam! franchise. In Shazam! #1 (February 2019), Hoppy is accidentally struck by magic lightning when Mary and her foster sister Darla Dudley say "Shazam!" and assume their superhero forms. As

2670-585: Is common in the fantasy genre. For example, in L. Frank Baum 's Land of Oz , creatures (such as the Cowardly Lion and the Hungry Tiger) talk. The chicken Billina gains the ability to talk when she is swept away by a storm to land near Oz, as do other animals, and Toto, as explained in a retcon , always had the ability since arriving in Oz, but never used it. In C. S. Lewis 's Chronicles of Narnia ,

2759-652: Is completely removed from the origin story, and Adam's rage is described as having resulted from the conquering of Kahndaq (and the murder of his wife and children) at the hands of a magically powered supervillain named Ahk-ton (whose powers resemble the future hero Metamorpho ), who is working with the notorious immortal Vandal Savage . The Mighty Adam kills Ahk-ton during the struggle and returns to Kahndaq to reclaim it by any means necessary, including murder. The wizard Shazam does not agree with Adam's actions, and robs Adam of his powers and kills him. In JSA #45 (2003), Black Adam and his teammate Atom Smasher both defect from

Hoppy the Marvel Bunny - Misplaced Pages Continue

2848-527: Is finally killed by Atom Smasher. By the end of the arc, the JSA leaves Adam in control of Kahndaq, provided that he does not leave its borders, convincing him that he cannot enforce his rule on the world or he is no better than the dictator he had defeated. Brainwave is saved by the JSA, Mister Mind is apprehended thanks to the Atom infiltrating Brainwave's head—as part of an undercover mission to confirm whether Adam

2937-462: Is grateful to meet Captain Marvel since Marvel's presence demonstrates that his legacy will survive him even with his children gone. When Marvel transforms back into Billy Batson, Adam expresses admiration for the young man's ability to handle the power of Shazam at such a young age, something he doubts he could have achieved himself. After returning to the present, Marvel notes that he has a better understanding of Adam's motives now after learning about

3026-528: Is still a handicap; when the Spectre attacked Kahndaq after being corrupted by Eclipso, Black Adam actually told his people that the JSA were also their enemy because he did not want to give his people the impression that he needed help to protect them, despite the fact that he was clearly outmatched by the Spectre's power. Black Adam is featured heavily in DC's 2005 Infinite Crisis crossover, primarily in

3115-521: Is trying to attack him, he transforms Adrianna into the superheroine Isis . Four weeks later, in Week 16, he proposes with a jewel given to Cleopatra by Caesar, and the two are married, with Captain Marvel and the rest of the Marvel Family as witnesses, Mary as bridesmaid. Renee Montoya and the Question prevent a suicide bomber, a child sent by Intergang, from ruining the wedding. For this they are awarded

3204-593: Is why humans are responsible for caring for animals. The talking creature concept is featured within much traditional literature , and several mythologies, including Greek , Chinese and Indian mythologies. A notable example from the Judaeo-Christian tradition is the talking serpent from the Book of Genesis , which tempts Eve to eat the forbidden fruit of the Tree of the knowledge of good and evil . In

3293-558: The Day of Vengeance storyline has reverted all magic in the DC Universe to a raw, chaotic structure, and the death of the wizard Shazam has transformed him into a tether that can be used to harness magic, allowing Alexander to use any member of the Marvel family to power his equipment if the wizard's name is spoken. By the end of the miniseries, Black Adam is freed by Superboy and Nightwing . Adam quickly kills Psycho-Pirate and, following

3382-648: The Sailor Moon franchise, the protagonist Usagi Tsukino and her friends awaken their powers as Sailor Guardians thanks to talking cats Luna and Artemis , who also serve as mentoring figures and advisors to them. In the Pokémon franchise. Meowth of Team Rocket is considered a unique Pokémon in that he can understand and use human language, even serving as a translator for his fellow Pokémon, where they can only usually call out their own names verbally. Black Adam Black Adam , real name Teth-Adam ,

3471-843: The Villains United miniseries as a member of the Secret Society of Super Villains (which he only joins to protect Kahndaq from the Society). Concurrently, in JSA , Atom Smasher leaves Adam's side to return to the JSA. The Society is run by Alexander Luthor Jr. , a character from the alternate world of Earth-Three , who disguises himself as the Lex Luthor of the Post- Crisis Earth. The Infinite Crisis limited series centers around Alexander Luthor's plan to restore

3560-757: The Justice League . In 2009, Black Adam was ranked as IGN 's 16th-greatest comic book villain of all time. Dwayne Johnson voiced Black Adam in DC League of Super-Pets (2022), before starring as him in his live-action debut in the DC Extended Universe (DCEU) film Black Adam (2022), following a silent digital cameo in Shazam! (2019). The canon version of Black Adam appeared only once during Fawcett's initial publication run of Captain Marvel comics. In The Marvel Family #1, Black Adam

3649-595: The Marvel Family alongside Doctor Sivana and Mister Mind . Black Adam was originally depicted as a supervillain and the ancient magical champion predecessor of Captain Marvel, who fought his way to modern times to challenge the hero and his Marvel Family associates. Since the turn of the 21st century, however, Black Adam has been redefined by DC Comics writers Jerry Ordway , Geoff Johns , and David S. Goyer as an ancient Kahndaqi and corrupted antihero attempting to clear his name and reputation. He came from

Hoppy the Marvel Bunny - Misplaced Pages Continue

3738-698: The Multiverse . Needing a member of the Marvel Family to power the apparatus he has designed to recreate the alternate Earths of the Multiverse, Luthor has the Society betray and capture Black Adam. With the help of the mind-controlling powers of the Psycho-Pirate , Luthor is able to control Adam and have him call down the Shazam magic lightning bolt to fuel the apparatus. The Spectre 's rampage during

3827-634: The Qur’ān , animals are seen as gifts from God and thus are meant to serve humans. Aside from a few animals being able to speak, they are never anthropomorphized, personified, or given names. There are only a handful of times that animals speak in the Qur’ān and most of these occurrences happen in relation to Solomon. For example, it is a hoopoe (a bird native to Africa, Asia, and Europe) that tells King Solomon of Queen Sheba’s idolatrous ways. In Native American mythology, animals are integral to human survival and thus

3916-501: The Spectre , who provides them with additional information. Adam soon betrays Sorrow, and he and the JSA defeat the Injustice Society. Black Adam briefly gives Flash the speed of Heru enabling him to defeat Johnny Sorrow by hitting him at near-lightspeed when he is paralyzed after Doctor Mid-Nite showed Sorrow a previously recorded image of his own face, sending him from Earth to another dimension. Flash meets Black Adam in

4005-641: The Blue Falcon and Tsarevitch Ivan, the Fire Bird and the Gray Wolf have the hero aided by a fox and a wolf respectively, but in the similar tale The Golden Bird , the talking fox is freed from a spell to become the heroine's brother, and in The Bird 'Grip' , the fox leaves the hero after explaining that it was the dead man whose debts the hero had paid. Whether shape-shifted or merely having

4094-529: The Greek Aesop’s Fables . The Panchatantra , a collection of Indian animal fables, is another early example. Both use talking animals for didactic purposes. More recent fables like Sarah Trimmer’s History of the Robins (1786) use talking animals to instruct children on how to behave in society as well as how to maintain the social order. They also reiterate the superiority of humans to animals which

4183-459: The Justice Society, expressing dissatisfaction with the team's refusal to cross certain lines. During the next few issues, Adam forms his own organization, which administers justice the way Adam wants it: "an eye for an eye". His roster includes a mix of DC heroes and villains, including Atom Smasher, Brainwave (who is possessed by Mister Mind ), Northwind and the rest of the society of Feithera, Nemesis , and former JSA museum curator Alex Montez,

4272-527: The Rock of Eternity to destroy Shazam at Sivana's request, as Sivana felt Adam's powers would be wiped out as well, but Captain Marvel accidentally throws him back in time. He and Captain Marvel battle, during which Black Adam realizes he will have to do something drastic and tricky to defeat Marvel. Adam gets his transformative lightning to strike Captain Marvel, transforming Captain Marvel back to Billy. He then seizes Billy and covers his mouth before he can finish saying his magic word, "SHAZAM!!". He then flies to

4361-533: The Rock of Eternity. The evil god of magic Oggar summons an evil army from the sands and dust of Egypt for Adam to lead after muting Billy with his magic. They escape, despite being defeated. When last seen during Crisis on Infinite Earths , Adam was fighting the heroes on the five remaining and partially merged Earths. Black Adam is reintroduced to the DC Universe in The Power of Shazam! graphic novel by Jerry Ordway in 1994 (an earlier Post-Crisis version of

4450-577: The animals, Sabor the leopard does not speak. In the French feral child comic book Pyrénée , Pyrénée can talk to the forest animals in the French mountains of Pyrenees . In Go, Diego, Go! and Dora the Explorer , Dora and her cousin Diego can talk to the animals in the rainforest. Animal fictions with more conservation-oriented themes allow young readers to engage with challenging messages at

4539-545: The artifact, and kills both Batsons to steal it. Escaping Egypt , Theo Adam soon made his way back to America. The Batsons' son, Billy, has been left behind in the United States , and is drafted by Shazam to become the wizard's second champion, Captain Marvel. When Theo Adam first encounters Captain Marvel, he notes both Marvel's identical appearance to C.C. Batson and the lightning-bolt insignia on Marvel's chest that had also decorated Khem-Adam's tomb. Adam therefore has

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4628-463: The character appeared in Shazam!: The New Beginning but this appearance is not considered canonical). In that story and the subsequent Power of Shazam! ongoing series, Adam is a deadly and evil adversary for Captain Marvel. In this revised origin, Teth-Adam was born on September 11, 1279, BC. Teth-Adam is the son of the ancient Egyptian Pharaoh Ramesses II , and impresses one of the high priests,

4717-446: The character's old-fashioned and militant ideals of justice, and his officious and strongly opinionated attitude. Despite this, he has stated on many occasions that he respects the Justice Society, particularly members such as Jay Garrick . Several other JSA members are shown to be skeptical of Adam's reformation; primary among them is the Atom Smasher , who later becomes Adam's close friend after Adam sympathizes with his decision to kill

4806-488: The country's highest honor, the Order of the Scarab, by Black Adam, although he is furious to find Renee is missing the ceremony while sleeping with a Kahndaqi woman from sorrow over killing a child. In 52 Week 23, Black Adam and Isis, with the assistance of the Question and Renee Montoya , find Isis's brother Amon. Due to a failed escape attempt, Amon suffers near-fatal wounds from repeated beatings, meaning that he will never walk again. To save his life, Black Adam bestows

4895-433: The creatures. This serves as a warning to mankind's thoughtless pursuit of technological advancement. Animated toys in fictional works are popular for expressing human developmental and existential concerns. In toy literature, there are a few common motifs talking toys are used to convey. For example, talking toys can embody human anxiety about what it means to be “real” as well as reflect struggles of power when they are at

4984-428: The death of his family, Adam proceeds to exterminate the entire 2,000,000-citizen population of Bialya in his hunt for his target. Upon confronting his family's killer, the enraged Adam battles a greatly enhanced Death, who has been feeding on the slaughter of Bialya's population. Despite his enhanced strength, Death is defeated by Adam with a barrage of mystic lightning. While torturing Death for an entire day, Adam learns

5073-423: The disposal of humans. Another common motif is the religious allusion to divine creation when humans create toys that come alive. Some examples of talking toy animals include the animals in Winnie the Pooh , the wooden toy dog in Poor Cecco , the Skin Horse and Velveteen rabbit in The Velveteen Rabbit , and the Slinky Dog toy and Tyrannosaurus Rex toy in Disney’s Toy Story . Anthropomorphism of animals

5162-406: The fairy tale, science fiction, toy story, and fantasy genres. The use of talking animals enables storytellers to combine the basic characteristics of the animal with human behavior, to apply metaphor, and to entertain children as well as adults. Animals are used in a variety of ways in fictional works including to illustrate morality lessons for children, to instill wonder in young readers, and as

5251-416: The home of the Marvel Family in the Pre- Crisis DC Universe. He aids the Marvel Family and Superman against Mr. Mind , Mr. Mxyzptlk , and King Kull . In this story, both Hoppy and Millie were depicted as white bunnies, instead of their usual pink. Hoppy next appears in Captain Carrot and His Amazing Zoo Crew! in The Oz-Wonderland War #2 (1986), where he fights alongside the Zoo Crew . His silhouette

5340-419: The human host of the demon Eclipso . Adam's collective executes Kobra , a villain who has been acquitted by the legal system (albeit because his followers had threatened to blow themselves up if he was not released) when the JSA could have spared them his escape and the hassle of a trial by simply killing Kobra when he was first captured. Adam then turns his attentions to his old homeland of Kahndaq, now ruled by

5429-648: The human-animal divide and they identify children as the members of society who take on the responsibility of being ecological/environmental changemakers. In textual representations the creature retains its original form, other than being able to speak. Sometimes it may only speak as a narrator for the reader's convenience. The rabbits in Watership Down who, except for the ability to discuss their actions, behave exactly as normal rabbits, also come under this category, as do characters from animated films like Happy Feet and The Lion King . The tradition of using talking animals in stories dates as far back as 550 BCE with

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5518-509: The human-animal divide. Other examples of animal autobiographies include The Life and Perambulations of a Mouse (1783), The Biography of a Spaniel (1806), The Adventures of a Donkey (1815), The Curious Adventures of a Field Cricket (1881), and Thy Servant, a Dog (1930). For some authors talking animals, rather than human characters, allowed them to publish their satirical commentary by protecting them from censure. Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales and Orwell’s Animal Farm are some of

5607-475: The identity and whereabouts of the Horsemen's masters, flying off to Oolong Island in search of the Science Squad . He easily gets past their defenses, even a weapon equivalent to the meteorite that killed the dinosaurs proving incapable of stopping him. Adam is subdued by the scientists, who projected a dimensional field into his mind the size of a football field, rendering him powerless. They then use an electro-crown to re-route his body's impulses and hold him as

5696-519: The latter character, Grothkopf added elements from Fawcett's popular Captain Marvel strips, and the lead strip for Funny Animals was set as Hoppy the Marvel Bunny . Hoppy debuted in Fawcett's Funny Animals #1, and appears in nearly every issue of that comic's run. He also starred in his own 15-issue series, Hoppy the Marvel Bunny (December 1945 – September 1947), which featured several Hoppy stories per issue, along with stories featuring his old co-stars from Fawcett's Funny Animals . One of his foes

5785-528: The lead story of that issue, Hoppy faces Captain Black Bunny, who is based on Captain Marvel's foe Black Adam . Captain Black Bunny wears a black costume similar to Black Adam's, though the evil bunny wears a cape like Hoppy and instead of a lightning bolt he has a yellow flame on his chest. Captain Black Bunny comes from deep within the Earth's core and is aided by a gang of imps. In Hoppy's first appearance in DC Comics (in DC Comics Presents #34), Hoppy and Millie find themselves magically transported to Earth-S,

5874-616: The lightning bolt from Marvel Bunny's suit and recolored the costume, changing his name to Magic Bunny and his magic word to "Alizam!". He is alternately referred to in various Charlton books as "Hoppy", "Happy", "Happy the Magic Bunny" and, according to one source, "Speedy". After the Fawcett characters were purchased by DC Comics, Hoppy returned in DC Comics Presents #34 (June 1981). Hoppy has turned up sporadically since, primarily in Captain Carrot and His Amazing Zoo Crew! in The Oz-Wonderland War #2, in The Power of Shazam! #29, and in Tiny Titans #15. A modernized version of Hoppy has made

5963-443: The loss of Adam's family. Adam rebuffs the offer, commenting that Marvel cannot truly understand him, stating that, while they are not enemies, they will never be friends. Johns and Goyer used this story arc to slightly alter Adam's origin. The hero now hails from the fictional west Asian nation of Kahndaq, not Egypt, although he serves the Egyptian prince Khufu (who is later reincarnated as JSA member Hawkman ). The character of Blaze

6052-421: The magic word transforms Hoppy into Captain Marvel Bunny. In Fawcett's Funny Animals #30 (July 1945), an explanation for Hoppy's powers is revealed. In the story "Hoppy Meets the Wizard Bunny", Hoppy is hit on the head and develops amnesia. The mysterious Wizard Bunny (or Bunny Wizard, both versions are used) is watching, and he flies down to help Hoppy regain his memory. A panel in this story states: "Because it

6141-440: The magical ability to speak, the talking creature is perhaps the most common trait of fairy tales . The motif is certainly present in many more tales than fairies. A good example of the science fiction genre is the webcomic Anima: Age of the Robots which uses anthropomorphism to portray an alternate world as modern as ours, but inhabited by creature-lookalikes. The intelligent robots that they have made do rebel and threaten

6230-399: The main feature. In Fawcett's Funny Animals #69 (February 1951), the Captain Marvel Bunny stories were dropped, replaced by more standard talking-animal stories with just Hoppy. There was no further mention of his career as Captain Marvel Bunny. In issue #80 the word "Fawcett's" was dropped from the title, making the remaining issues simply Funny Animals . The final issue of Funny Animals

6319-704: The most famous examples of this. Contemporary novels such as Alexis Wright 's The Swan Book , Colin McAdam 's A Beautiful Truth , Erin Hortle's The Octopus and I and Laura Jean McKay 's The Animals in That Country show animal voices alongside human characters. These novels portray animals as equally deserving of a place in the narrative. In the industries of illustration , cartooning , and animation , professionals refer to these types of creature characters as talking animals , funny animals , or anthropomorphic characters . Many fairy tales include talking creatures that prove to be shapeshifted people, or even ghosts . The fairy tales How Ian Direach got

6408-525: The murders of the Batsons, and is acquitted when it is revealed that his fingerprints do not match those of Theo Adam. The reformed Black Adam is still vulnerable to his murderous host's influence, and he attacks the Justice Society of America under Theo Adam's control in JSA #6 (1999). In subsequent issues, Adam joins supervillain Johnny Sorrow 's Injustice Society after Sorrow removes

6497-506: The natural environment, naturalist animal fictions allow authors to portray natural animal behavior. For instance Bambi , both the 1928 novel and the Disney film, realistically portrays the life cycle of deers. The hunting dogs in the film adaptation do not talk. Fictional works told from an animal’s perspective, like the horse in Black Beauty , encourage readers to empathize with animals. Furthermore, more generally they challenge

6586-472: The near-immortal Extant to save his mother. The writers also created added tension in the book by having Captain Marvel, who is wholly unconvinced that Adam has reformed, join the team. One JSA story arc (issues 39 through 44) features Marvel, Hawkgirl , and Mr. Terrific venturing back in time to ancient Egypt, where they meet the Mighty Adam before his corruption. During this visit, the Mighty Adam

6675-648: The past, where he has been sent due to the great speed he traveled, and again uses his speed, this time to return to his own time. After the Flash returns, Black Adam helps the JSA battle the Sin-Eater, a Thanagarian demon. Claiming to be free of Theo's evil influence again, a repentant Black Adam requests membership in the Justice Society, and is granted a probationary membership in JSA #21 (2002). During their tenure on JSA , writers Geoff Johns and David S. Goyer redefined Adam's personality and background, focusing on

6764-575: The perceived metahuman supremacy of the United States. He gets members of the Great Ten of China and Russia's Rocket Reds , among others, to join the coalition. Adrianna begins to counsel him and stays as a refugee. She makes him a ruler who shows more mercy and performs charitable acts. In Week 12 of the series, Adam gains a magical amulet, hidden on the scarab in which Shazam imprisoned him. With help from Captain Marvel, who first thinks Adam

6853-532: The powers he has come to hate. Osiris does so, only to be betrayed and brutally devoured by Sobek, while in his mortal form. Isis and Adam confront Sobek after finding Osiris's body, who reveals that he is Famine, the Fourth Horseman of Apokolips , one of four creatures created by Intergang to attack Black Adam. Adam swiftly disposes of Sobek by hyper-elongating his jaws and does battle with the other three Horsemen. One of them, Pestilence, infects Isis with

6942-421: The series, it was changed to ancient Egyptian deities . Deciding that he should rule the world, the Mighty Adam overthrows and kills the pharaoh and assumes the Egyptian throne. Angered by this betrayal, Shazam renames his errant champion Black Adam and—unable to revoke the powers he gave Adam—banishes him to the most distant star in the universe. Black Adam spends the next 5,000 years flying back to Earth. By

7031-512: The time he makes it back, in 1945, Shazam has appointed three new champions to take his place: Captain Marvel , Captain Marvel Jr. , and Mary Marvel . Adam's attempts to take over the world cause the Marvels to seek counsel with Shazam, who tells them about Black Adam. Adam succeeds in gagging Billy and Freddy while they are talking to Shazam. He then ties them up, planning to kill them later. Uncle Marvel releases them while Mary battles Black Adam, enabling them to transform. Adam does battle with

7120-419: The trio, known as the Marvel Family , but since all are equally invulnerable, the fight goes on without resolution. The non-powered Marvel Family member Uncle Marvel gets an idea from Shazam and tricks Adam into saying "Shazam," reverting him to Teth-Adam. As he is no longer immortal, he dies and crumbles into a skeleton. Black Adam's costume is almost identical to Captain Marvel's—except that Black Adam's costume

7209-563: The two battle until subdued by Isis and the Marvels. Osiris relents, seemingly accepting that he has repented enough for the Persuader's death, and accompanies the Black Marvel Family back home. However, when Osiris and his friend Sobek , the talking crocodile, are alone, he admits that he was only putting up a front to appease those around him and that he could never forgive himself for killing anyone, as Black Adam has. Sobek advises Osiris that he should say Black Adam's name and rid himself of

7298-444: The wisdom of Salamander, the strength of Hogules, the stamina of Antlers, the power of Zebreus, the courage of Abalone, and the speed of Monkury. Hoppy's stories occasionally feature his girlfriend Millie, who (like Lois Lane ) despises the meek Hoppy, but adores the heroic Captain Marvel Bunny. Millie has no idea that Hoppy can become Captain Marvel Bunny. A noteworthy foe appeared in Fawcett's Funny Animals #32 (Oct–Nov 1945). In

7387-422: The wizard Shazam , with his good deeds. The wizard gives Teth-Adam the power to become the superhero the Mighty Adam by speaking the name "Shazam", an acronym for the Mighty Adam's powers: the stamina of Shu , the swiftness of Heru ( Horus ), the strength of Amon , the wisdom of Zehuti ( Thoth ), the power of Aton , and the courage of Mehen . He does not draw powers from Shazam due to the demoness Blaze making

7476-487: The world of Narnia is ruled by a talking lion by the name of Aslan , and many minor characters are talking woodland animals, both of which interact with both the humans of Narnia, and the children who act as the protagonists of the books. The popularity of talking animals in Western fantasy has fluctuated over time, with a new wave of animal stories appearing in the 1970s, but they became less common in subsequent decades. In

7565-461: Was #83 (1953). After Fawcett cancelled Funny Animals , the rights to many of its characters were purchased by Charlton Comics. Charlton resumed publication of Funny Animals with #84 and continued the series to #91 (February 1956). Hoppy also appeared in Charlton's Atomic Mouse , though these stories appear to be edited reprints from Fawcett's Funny Animals . For these reprints, Charlton removed

7654-679: Was attacking Isis) is captured by Amanda Waller , who uses it to further ruin the Black Marvel Family's reputation. Meanwhile, Kahndaq is struck by a number of natural disasters, which seem to have a supernatural origin. He engages in more beneficial activities, like a charity dinner with the Sivanas. Wracked with guilt over the death of the Persuader , Osiris ventures to the Rock of Eternity and pleads with Captain Marvel to have his powers removed, as he fears Black Adam's influence (and those of his gods) has tainted him with evil. Black Adam arrives and

7743-448: Was brainwashing his comrades—and Nemesis and Alex both die during the battle when Alex loses control of Eclipso. Only Northwind and Atom Smasher remain at Adam's side, with Atom Smasher later leaving when a time-travelling clash with Degaton results in him meeting Al Pratt in the 1950s and re-evaluating his past motivations. As Kahndaq's ruler, Adam is depicted as fiercely working to protect his people and his nation, although his arrogance

7832-670: Was cover star Hoppy the Marvel Bunny who made FFA special. Creator Chad Grothkopf struck a balance in his stories between the usual cartoon animal tropes, fairy tale-style fantasy, and full-tilt super-heroics, the strip's only sticking point the tiresome gimmick of Hoppy never being able to remember his magic word. Whether battling piscine pirate Captain Kid Perch, the Witch, King Artist of Picture Land, or Simon Spider and his living dolls, Marvel Bunny always delivered big laughs and plenty of action". Cartoon animal Talking animals are

7921-720: Was he who bestowed the magic word and power upon Hoppy, the Bunny Wizard flies down to Earth to help Hoppy". Eventually, the Wizard gets Hoppy to say "Shazam!" and his memory is restored, along with his abilities. This is the Bunny Wizard's only known appearance. The word "Shazam!" has a slightly different meaning for Hoppy. According to the E. Nelson Bridwell -scripted story, Captain Carrot and His Amazing Zoo Crew! in The Oz-Wonderland War #2, Captain Marvel Bunny has

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