Random Coolness (Part 2)

To paraphrase Maria from The Sound of Music, here's a few more of my favorite things from the world of superhero comics.  Whether they're big things or small things, they're all things I personally think are pretty cool.  Your mileage may vary.

1. Starting us out is something that probably got terrible gas mileage, but who the heck cares when it's as cool as the original Batmobile?  Although I'd question Batman's wisdom in giving the wheel to Robin (who couldn't have been more than 9 or 10 years old at the time), I commend his taste in highly intimidating automobile design.  If criminals weren't scared of Batman, the eerie "sunken eyes" of the giant bat head barreling toward them probably sent them shrieking for the safety of the nearest police precinct.  I also got a kick out of how the original Batmobile was always drawn using such dramatic perspective angles.  Usually at a 3/4 view, the looming bat-head and windshield area would swiftly taper back and down toward the much smaller back fenders (as you can see in the example below).  Eternally classic and forever cool.

2.  While I'm on the subject of cool vehicles, another one that easily makes the cut is the Fantastic Four's Fantasti-Car.  A vast improvement over the "flying bathtub" of their earliest adventures, the Fantasti-Car could fly as either a single unit or detach into four separate "scout" modules.  As a long-time F.F. fan, I also like how even the name "Fantasti-Car" evokes the slightly square "family feel" of the Fantastic Four.  Like any family, they've got a "family car".  The coolest one around, mind you, but a "car" nonetheless.

3.  The jaggy, heavy-duty treads on the Flash's boots. Sure, the entire costume of the so-called "Silver Age Flash" was perfectly designed for high-speed running, but it's those nifty boot treads that really make the costume for me.  Of course a guy who logs as many miles as Barry Allen (and his successors) are going to need something more rugged than the typical superhero boot...and long before Nike became a household name, Barry had the coolest "running shoes" around.

4.  Steve Ditko's mindblowing mystical landscapes from Doctor Strange.  Already far more interesting than the countless magicians that preceded the good Doctor, it was Ditko's surreal supernatural dimensions that made the early adventures of Sorcerer Supreme a singular (and vaguely unsettling) reading experience.

Speaking of "surreal", was it coincidence or something more that Doctor Strange bore a striking resemblance to a young surrealist painter named Salvador Dali? (click on the photo for a larger, more surreal view)

5.  The art-deco wonder of Superman's Secret Citadel. An early prototype of Superman's Fortress of Solitude, the Secret Citadel was located in a mountain range near Metropolis.  Originally appearing in Superman #17 (1942), the Secret Citadel later became the headquarters of the "Earth-2 Superman", a version of Superman who retained many discarded elements from the early years of the character's history (such as slightly differing origin details and "S" shield design).

If I were given the opportunity to somehow visit five fictional locations, the gleaming, golden facade of the Secret Citadel (preferably at sunset) would definitely be on the itinerary.

Oh, and I'd probably stand just like Superman while visiting it.