Trying to Please Everyone: Or Converting multiple Pop Culture Utopias into a Timeline.

[Marco Incognito]

Considering the alternate list of American presidents ITTL, how did prohibition and the mafia turn out?

Prohibition still happened, was repelled, and Capone arrested(Not in that order). The Mafia was significantly reduced in power. They did help kill off the KU Klux Klan as they wanted them gone too. The Klan targeted some of their members. The would be assassins then showed up as Severed heads in front of the Klan headquarters with a letter calling the entire group amateurs. Once the Klan was dead the Government targeted the Mafia, which was reduced to power to the extent they could not help enough to get Kennedy elected. Partly this was because of the firing of J Edgar Hoover and his replacement with Elliot Ness. The Mafia were effectively dead by the early 60's but rumors of their survival persist in popular culture and other crimelords existing which call themselves the Mafia. There's apparently a branch of the Mafia that shakes up Comic Book creators that depict the Mafia, resulting in the creation of the Maggia in Marvel Comics as a substitute for the Mafia. That is not the Case here

 

[Marco Incognito]

I'm unsure but I don't think these are happening anymore for the foreseeable

Doctor Who was a request and I do have plans to do them. It's just that not all suggestions are meaty enough for their own post.

 

[Marco Incognito]

I've been meaning to ask these questions for a while, but how much changes from these two divergences? Is there an independent Mayan state in Southern Mexico? is there Anglo influence in modern day Peru?

Mayan Culture is more prevalent in Mexico than OTL since the Mayans basically went unaffected by the Spaniards OTL. The answer to your second question is yes.

 

[TheDetailer]

I really like and enjoy talking about all these things outside of popular culture, alongside popular culture itself.

 

[Marco Incognito]

I really like and enjoy talking about all these things outside of popular culture, alongside popular culture itself.

Honestly I don’t care at all about it since it’s not the focus. But I’ll still commit to it if asked.

 

[TheNextGamer]

Can you do one on Steven Universe?

I can't wait to see the reason why the episodes "the New Lars", "Kiki's Pizza Delivery Service", "Onion Gang", and "Future Boy Zoltron" were rejected in this timeline!

 

[Marco Incognito]

Can you do one on Steven Universe?

I can't wait to see the reason why the episodes "the New Lars", "Kiki's Pizza Delivery Service", "Onion Gang", and "Future Boy Zoltron" were rejected in this timeline!

Actually yeah I can. There's enough Material for a Decent sized Post I can knock out Pretty quickly.

 

[Marco Incognito]

I had time to quickly knock out a Fan Request.

Steven Universe

Original Poster for Steven Universe​

Steven Universe was a cartoon created by Rebecca Sugar. The series starred the young boy Steven, who was the hybrid child of the Human Rock Star Tom Universe(OTL this was the first name for the character since Tom Scharpling was always intended to play him), and the interdimensional Magical girl Rose Quartz, who hails from Gemworld. This information is learned by Steven early in the series after being largely kept from him for most of his life in order to protect him. Steven meets the Crystal Gems and discovers he is the son of Rose Quartz partly through the series. It is explained that the Gems hail from the magical alternate Universe, home to a being known as the Mother that has since become antagonist towards Earth and now seeks to destroy Humanity. Among the members of the Crystal Gems, the group defending Earth, are Garnet, Amethyst and Pearl. Now joined by Steven(Relationships are different from OTL, given the pilot version. The artstyle is more realistic, Amethyst and Pearl get along better, Pearl teases Steven, and Steven and Lars both dislike each other. The Temple is "The Crystal Palace". The Big Donut is across from it. Garnet's gauntlets are golden and have her gem on them. Rose is skinnier with long hair(While an original pilot element that is held onto ITTL, this also butterflies away the infamous incident in which an artist who drew Rose Quartz skinny IOTL was bullied online into attempting suicide and then continued to be bullied, leading to Rebecca Sugar stepping in to attempt to stop the bullying only to be targeted herself. None of that happens here since that art would be

Changes from OTL include, Steven having dreams about Rose trying to speak to him, waking up surrounded by Roses when this happens. The Gems are closer in appearance to teenagers and can disguise themselves as humans(implied to be via bending light). Pearl specifically is usually disguised as a chauffeur and driving(OTL allusion to this is the moments in which they drive). Steven meets and befriends a girl named Priyanka(TTL's Connie, though in OTL that name went to her mother instead). They eventually learn to fuse into Stryanka.

Casting​

Thing get somewhat confusing regarding casting as actors were reassigned to different roles in the series. As a result hardly any actors were completely dropped and instead voice different characters. Matthew Moy(OTL's Lars) voices Steven(Which butterflies away the episode "The New Lars" which was built around the joke that Lars's voice actor nearly played Steven by having the two swap bodies. Without that the episode does not exist ITTL). Deedee Magno-Hall voices Pearl and Sadie(whom she also auditioned for OTL). Shelby Rabara plays Garnet(OTL she auditioned for all four main characters and Stevonnie but Garnet was the one she came closest to getting). Jennifer Paz(OTL's Lapis Lazuli) plays Amethyst(a nod to this exists in OTL's episode "The New Crystal Gems" which is built around Peridot, Lapis and Connie impersonating the Crystal Gems. Since two of the impersonations are based on the casting choices that almost happened the Episode likely doesn't exist ITTL). Erica Luttrell still plays Sapphire(a given since Rebecca Sugar wanted to work with her). Charlyne Yi voices Ruby and Stevonnie(Auditioned for OTL). Christina Vee voiced Spinel.

The Crystal Gems

Character Designs​

Alterations regarding the human characters include the addition of a stand in for Ian-Jones Quartey(OTL this concept grew into the Pizza Family. Here its just one guys, thus butterflying away episodes like Kiki's Pizza delivery Service). Ronaldo does not exist ITTL. His role is taken by a character named "Baby", an incompetent would be Crime Fighter, who believes himself to be a Superhero. Often throwing Soda Cans at people. As such the Ronaldo episodes do not exist ITTL since Baby's schtick cannot support an episode on its own, instead appearing trying and failing to fight Gem Monsters when they appear. The Gems interact with more Human characters than OTL, having Steven's same degree of knowledge of the people of Beach City.

Lion has a different appearance, resembling an ancient Chinese Guardian Lion Statue. Garnet is still revealed to be a permafusion but it is revealed that the reason they are permanently fused is because of Sapphire suffering an injury that would kill her if they became unfused(an OTL rejected concept, though the status of the relationship remains and Sapphire dying would not be immediate, akin to bleeding to death slowly. This means there are significantly less episodes where the two are separated as they would not unfuse willingly, butterflying away episodes like "Keystone Motel").

For the the design of other gems, Bismuth and Sardonyx specifically are largely same as OTL since their designs were figures out early on. The Rubys Leggy and Eyeball have their gems on the other side of the bodies as do the other Rubies. Which effectively butterflies away the nicknames of each Ruby. The Off Colors include two Quartzes named Flint and Chert who went AWOL(OTL they later appear in Future).

Plot​

The first episode of Steven Universe was "The Shield" and focused on Steven trying to summon his Gem Weapon, succeeding when he needed to save his father from being hit by a car. The Gems disguised themselves as humans to go out in public with Pearl driving. Steven appeared to Steven in a dream. The song in the first episode is titled "The Meatball Sub Song"

The Episode "Tiger Millionaire" still exists and concerns all the Crystal Gems entering a tournament in human disguises. A larger amount of Pro Wrestlers are put on display than OTL, usually in montage sequences as the fights consist of the bulk of the Episode.

"Mirror Gem" instead uses a clip of Steven shouting "No!" due to Mayor Dewey announcing he would sing to a crowd.

"Ocean Gem" was built as a possible series finale since the crew did not know if the series would get renewed. It eventually was. In this episode, Tom Universe loses his leg(OTL he was originally going to but broke his leg instead), leading to its replacement with a robotic one. Something Lapis feels great guilt over.

"Lion 3: Straight to Video" (35th) and "Story for Steven" (48th) have been swapped in order. Allowing Steven to see a message from Rose before being told more about her by Tom. Lion 3 has a song in a Dream sequence.

The Episode Gem Droid(OTL's Marble Madness) has A Robonoid fall to Earth. The Gems activate it to follow it and tell Steven to stay behind. He follows in secret and ends up falling into the Kindergarten while the Droid escapes and runs into him, leading Steven to befriend it and follow it, resulting in his discovery of several underground facilities at the Kindergarten.

A scene parodying A Charlie Brown Christmas is added to the Barn arc concerning Peridot trying to discover the true meaning of a fictional Holiday in one episode.

The Episode "Mr.Tom" has Pearl hurl cars at Tom in anger during a breakdown.

The Episode "Bubbled" instead revolves around Steven running out of oxygen in space while trapping himself in a bubble. In his dream, he is a private detective investigating Pink Diamond's murder. While this plot was abandoned OTL as Steven just found out she was dead. Here Steven's dream sees an appearance by Rose Quartz herself in this context, meaning Steven actually is in a position to talk to and ask Rose in his own dream.

The Barn Arc ended with an episode titled "Tom's Brother" which introduces Andy(similar to OTL's "Gem Harvest" but a season earlier). However, elements of the arc, specifically Lapis learning to forgive Peridot, leak over when Bismuth is introduced into the cast. Lapis is terrified of Bismuth as she was the one who poofed Lapis, leading to her imprisonment in the mirror(Something implied OTL but never followed up on). This leads to an episode about Bismuth apologizing for doing so, never intending for Lapid to be imprisoned.

"Steven's Dream" is two episodes. In the first episode Steven foes into Rose's room and ends with Steven and Greg going to Korea. The Second Episode is titled "Steven Abroad" which is a Vacation Episode leading into the Out of This World Rescue Arc. The Out of This World Rescue Arc has Tom befriend the Famethyst immeidately and appear wearing a Red Jacket.

The Episode "I Am My Mom" focuses on the Lars and Sadie relationship more with Sadie pouring her heart out. Lars still hides during the battle with Topaz and is stuck on the ship, but tells Sadie "I'll never abandon you again!". The Crystal Gems are also depicted more competently in their effort to rescue Steven and the others.

The Episode "Off Colors" ends with Lars's Death. His resurrection occurring in the next episode. The Future Music playing at the Homeworld ball in "Together Alone" is sung by a Vocaloid(Almost happened OTL but changed). Steve and Lars both return to Earth. Unlike OTL Steven and Connie immediately make up and Connie is happy to see him. There being fewer filler Episodes( and to an extent fewer episodes in the series as it is largely plot driven, thereby removing most of the Beach City Episodes with the plot elements from them being used offhandedly in Gem centered Episodes since the Gems can disguise themselves as human ITTL, removing Onion Gang and Future Boy Zoltron, which is boiled down to an episode where the Gems need to get Jobs, with Garnet substituting in the role of Zoltron instead. Since this is a subplot it is focused on much less). This means that episodes that are released continue the story.

Unlike OTL, It is not revealed Rose Quartz is Pink Diamond.

Sapphire and Ruby​

Peridot reveals that she has found a way to heal Sapphire and to the un fuse. This gives the two a chance to get married(Which unlike OTL there was no resistance from the Network). Here there being a more justifiable reason for why they never could given Sapphire's condition. This leads into a war with the Diamonds. However, this is not resolved peacefully due to the Rose Quartz is Pink Diamond twist not existing. Consequently the Diamonds are not redeemed and the rest of the season essentially depicts the war with Diamonds, while revealing White Diamond(or Mother) as the Final Antagonist. The title song of "Change Your Mind" does not exist ITTL, due to being born out of Rebecca Sugar's frustration over the Network's resistance to Ruby and Sapphire's wedding and that not existing here.

The Series continued, as a result the Movie, and for that matter the distinction between the Movie and Future do not exist. The next Season introduced Spinel in a similar plot to the film, albeit being an arc instead and without Spinel's motivation being to avenge Pink Diamond's death at the hands of Rose Quartz. Priyanka is also present in the story, it taking place slightly earlier time wise, meaning she is about to leave to space camp. The scene of Steven and Amethyst in Vidalia's garage is longer with Amethyst shape shifting into more objects and Vidalia herself appearing, with Steven explaining the situation and Vidalia trying to help bring Amethyst's memort back(cut for time but since the film is now part of the series, it was added back in to be part of an episode).

Steg, the fusion of Steve and Greg occurs much earlier in the first season as the two perform in a Battle of the Bands. The Fusion is instead called Mr.Multiverse and lacks the two arms, having a punk rock style haircut instead. Marty is featured in the episode. Consequently Steg is not used to bring back Pearl's memory.

Other Episodes after the Spinel Arc and leading up to the battle with the Diamonds are one diving into Rhodonite's Past(the amount of ideas could've made for a complete miniseries on its own. Hence why they are included in the extended series. A Dive into the origins and ancient mythology of the Gems. DogCopter's Partner in "Growing Pains" being a human caricature of one of the artists.

Finally the series ended in a Television Movie(which was also shown in Theatres by Fandom Events) titled Homeworld Bound. In that story, Homeworld attacks Beach City and destroys it, with many of the residents fighting back in the battle, though several characters are killed and Steven is traumatized when he shatters Jasper(Who ITTL is canonically dead). The Crystal Gems then take the fight to Homeworld itself, leading to a massive battle. Blue Diamond does not fight back as she is killed by Yellow Diamond after refusing to fight. Steven frees the imprisoned Rose Quartzes. Yellow Diamond is killed when Peridot performs a self sacrifice to activate a bomb of the same type that corrupted all the gems on Earth millennia ago, devastating Homeworld, and ending when Steven confronts White Diamond, fusing with each of them during the battle(the longer Series means each Fusion between Steven and a gem occurred at a significant moment like with Amethyst and had its own devoted episode. While she corrupts the other Crystal Gems, Steven is able to get into her head and she appears to start to turn around only to lash out, resulting in her own destruction. The survivors return to Earth and begin the long process of rebuilding in the aftermath of the Gem War.

 

[TheDetailer]

Honestly I don’t care at all about it since it’s not the focus. But I’ll still commit to it if asked.

Personally, I think you do a good job at it, worthy of atleast a little pat on the back.

Steven Universe

I personally don't watch Steven Universe, so I can't really comment on this. The ATL artstyle is interesting, although I don't mind the OTL one either.

 

[Marco Incognito]

Before Marvel: The History of Timely and Atlas Comics

Martin Goodman

Pulp Magazine publisher Martin Goodman created Timely Publications in 1939. Goodman had started a brand of Western Pulp in 1933 and wanted to expand into the new medium of Comic Books. Timely’s first office was therefore the existing company’s 330 West 42nd Street in New York City. Goodman took the titles of editior, managing director and business manager. Martin also made his brother Abraham a publisher.

Marvel Comics #1(October 1939)

Timely’s first Comic( cover dated October 1939) was Marvel Comics #1. That one issue introduced both the Human Torch(Not to be confused with the later Fantastic Four version), An android which burst into flame created by Carl Burgos, and Namor the Sub-Mariner, created by Bill Everett. The issue was a success and sold 900,000 Copies in the next month. Once getting itself off the ground, Timely broke away from its outside packager Funnies, Inc and soon was its own company. Joe Simon became the company’s first editor and Jack Kirby became an artist on the book. Simon and Kirby together created one of the first Patriotic Superheroes in Captain America in Captain America Comics #1 in March 1941. The Comic was a hit and sold nearly one million copies. At the time, America was surprisingly pro Nazi. Simon and Kirby received death threats and asked the Mayor for protection. They got it as it turns out the Mayor was a huge Captain America fan. When Simon and Kirby worked on Captain America, they would have armed guards just outside their door. This lasted until Pearl Harbor brought the US into the war.

Beyond the Human Torch, Namor: the Sub-Mariner, and Captain America, no other characters reached their level of success. A few of the notable heroes created would later be reintroduced, making appearances and flashbacks:

The Whirlwind(OTL’s The Whizzer). Renamed as the name became a source of mockery for the character OTL. Marvel’s first speedster. Miss America(Same as OTL). She witnessed an accident grant someone superpowers and then recreated the accident on herself in order to become a Superheroine. Stan Lee worked on the Comic while an intern, which helped to shift his writing of women more towards feminism rather that the mild sexism sometimes prevalent in the female characters he wrote in the 60's.

The Destroyer. The most successful of Stan Lee’s creations prior to the Fantastic Four. Unlike OTL, The Destroyer matches his retconned identity from years later. Instead of Keen Marlow, he is Brian Falsworth, a British ambassador who was in Germany when war was declared. He was sent to a concentration Camp and given a super soldier serum from a man who worked with Abraham Erskine, who created Captain America’s Super Soldier Serum. His stories were notably set behind enemy lines. The Series ended with Falsworth returning to Britain.

The Vision. The Original concept for the Vision was an alien police officer from Smokeworld that could enter our world. The Angel(Same as OTL). One of the few 100% Human vigilantes in Marvel’s roster and notably does not use a mask.

Agent Carter. A British female Agent, who became a love interest to Captain America(OTL the comic character was created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, so here they created the character earlier, fitting them into World War II).

Powerhouse Pepper(Subversion. The female character is the one who actually beat up the group. The Man ITTL is basically their sidekick).

Other more Comedic Comic characters included Basil Wolverton’s Powerhouse Pepper(Who is female ITTL, rather than male as OTL), who posesses super strength, which is often used to put down criminals and men who engage in lewd behavior. Powerhouse Pepper, like many characters from this era, would find new life in the 60’s where she was reintroduced as Pepper Potts the love interest of Iron Man.

Ziggy Pig Silly Seal Comics #6(Cover Artist Unknown)

A line of Children’s comics was created featuring Super Rabbit(who was later sold to rival DC, becoming the main character in their series Super Rabbit and the Zoo Crew Series. There was also the duo of Ziggy Piggy and Silly Seal. Ziggy Piggy in particular finding minor success after being bought out and becoming the mascot of a restaurant chain bearing his name.

Marvel revolutionized Comics when the Human Torch and the Sub-Mariner met and did battle, providing the first example of a Shared Universe.

Stanley Lieber in 1941

On One faithful day, Goodman Hired his wife’s 16 year old Cousin, Stanley Lieber as an Office assistant. Simon left the company in 1941 and Lieber was made interim editor until they found someone who could replace Simon. He would end up keeping the position for decades due to his military service in World War II. During the war, the writer for Captain America was unavailable, leaving Stanley Lieber frantically searching for a replacement. When none was found it was Jack Kirby who suggested Stan write the story himself, which he did. Stan wrote the story under the Pen name Stan Lee, hoping to hide that he was also the editor. The issue had Captain America travel to an African Nation that had resisted an attempted Occupation by the Nazis. There he meet their King, who was also the Superhero known as the Black Panther. Together the two battled an attempted invasion by the Red Skull, during which Cap’s shield was crushed. The King of Wakanda made him a new Shield made of the element Vibranium, which was unbreakable. Cap learned he could throw it like a frisbee and it returned to his hand. With this new Shield, Cap defeated the Red Skull and returned home. The story was a huge hit and Stan Lee was kept on as writer. Lee and Kirby formed a friendship as they formed the “Marvel Method” as the Writer and Artist wrote the script together.

Stan Lee's First Publication

Stan Lee had been surprisingly progressive in his depiction of Wakanda and he carried this over to his creation of an African American Superhero. Adam Bradley was a volunteer for the Super Soldier serum and while Abraham Erskine was killed after granting Steve Rogers the formula that allowed him to become Captain America, the closest attempt resulted in Adam Bradley AKA the Patriot. African American writers would take Bradley in bold new directions in later publications, something Stan Lee hoped would happen when he wrote the character.

As World War II came to a close, Superheroes began to fade into popularity. Many Marvel Heroes had been brought together as the Superhero team known as the Invaders. Stan Lee made the shocking decision(With Joe Simons and Jack Kirby’s blessing) to kill off Captain America and Bucky(only Seemingly as it would turn out). Cap and Bucky were sent on a mission to stop Red Skull from launching a rocket to New York. Cap and Bucky battled Red Skull on the rocket itself. Cap was able to kick Red Skull off, proclaiming “I have…had…Enough of you!” Before succeeding in kicking Red Skull off the rocket, leading him to be incinerated by the rocket’s engines. Cap then meets Bucky on the rocket but he’s gotten his hand stuck trying to defuse it. Bucky says sorry. Cap asks what for. Bucky says “Sorry but the world needs Captain America more than Bucky” and kicks Cap off, causing him to fall. Shortly afterwards the rocket explodes. Cap is seen falling into the water. As he sinks narration of a letter he left to Peggy Carter play, apologizing that he won't be coming back from the war and saying that he loves her.

After Cap’s supposed Death, in the comics, the government recruited an imposter hero called the Spirit of 76’ and a young man to act as Bucky to make it appear as though they never died. The Invaders continued to operate until the war ended with the Human Torch killing Adolf Hitler in the comics, burning him to death in his bunker. The series continued after the war but dropped in sales.

One of the Final stories had the Human Torch coming home to meet his creator, only to find him being held hostage by another of his creations, an evil Android, who seeked to kill and replace world leaders. In the story, the Evil Android tried to kill Harry Truman, which was fortunately averted at the cost of the life of the New Captain America.

The Human Torch and the Sub-Mariner battled for one final time. With the War over, Namor resumed his attempts to invade the surface and summoned a tidal wave to devastate New York. The Human Torch battled him and both appeared to perish in the battle when the Human Torch exploded in a self sacrifice to defeat the Sub-Mariner. Both vanished from the Golden Age.

With Superheroes falling out of fashion, Goodman shifted Timely’s attention towards other genres including Horror, Western, Comedy, Funny Animals, Adventure, Medieval and Bible Stories among others. Stan Lee himself contributed to this genre, elements of which would find their way in later Superhero stories. For example, Fin Fang Foom and Groot were both giant Monsters that appeared in Comics which would both appear in Marvel Stories(The Groot story concluding with the giant monster seemingly destroyed only for a tiny tree like creature to pop out of the ground and proclaim "I AM GROOT!" in the last panel).

Groot's first appearance

These works were distributed via the Atlas News Company, which distributed them through newsstands. This phase of the company’s history is known as the Atlas era and lasted from 1951 until 1957. Another company, Kable News, also distributed the works, all of which were from Shell companies named everything from Animirth Comics to Zenith Comics. However, the brands followed what was popular. Which was emphasized by the character of Dan DeCarlo’s Homer the Happy Ghost, meant to parody/rip off Casper the Friendly Ghost, which then became Homer Hooper in order to cash in on Archie Andrews instead. There were attempts to bring back Superheroes but these failed. Stan Lee and Jack Kirby wrote a story in which Adam Bradley became a Superhero called the Blue Marvel, who wore a mask to conceal his identity. The Super Soldier Serum had increased over time, turning his powers from a pastiche of Captain America to a pastiche of Superman. The series did not last long and ended with Blue Marvel’s mask breaking, exposing his ethnicity. He was then told by the President to retire, lamenting that the world was not ready for a Black Superhero.

Reprint Cover for the Agents of A.T.L.A.S.

Atlas itself was going under. Stan Lee commented that they lasted as long as they did because they produced Comics fast and of passable quality. Lee and Kirby wrote a final issue published by Atlas and titled Agents A.T.L.A.S. the comic involved a group of superheroes coming together to battle the 40’s villain the Yellow Claw and save President Eisenhower. The team consisted of Namora(Namor’s sister), Venus(from a 1948 series, the literal goddess), Marvel Boy, The Gorilla-Man, M-11 the Human Robot, Jann of the Jungle, and Captain 3-D. All were assembled by Jimmy Woo, an agent of A.T.L.A.S.(which later evolved into S.H.I.E.L.D.) to battle his father the Yellow Claw. While they succeeded. The group was disbanded. Stan Lee had a similar scene to the last Blue Marvel story where he had the characters in the story comment that the world wasn’t ready for a Superhero team. Hindsight has proven that three years later, they would be.​

 

[TheNextGamer]

What characters die in your AU's version of the Steven Universe series finale?

 

[Marco Incognito]

What characters die in your AU's version of the Steven Universe series finale?

The Baby(who replaces Ronaldo ITTL, dying as a hero he always believed he was)
Lars(for real this time)
Onion(Possibly. Appears to fall to their deaths but doesn't scream and seems to just let themselves fall).
Jasper(Similar to her shattering in OTL's Future but shown on screen)
Bismuth(wounded but passes on the weapon that allows shattering to Steven, though it ends up destroyed by White Diamond).
Peridot(activates a Bomb that devastates Homeworld).
Blue Diamond(killed by Yellow Diamond)
Yellow Diamond(Killed by Peridot's bomb)
White Diamond.
Possibly other Diamond loyal gems such as Aquamarine.

 

[TheNextGamer]

What is the fate of your AU's Steven Quartz Universe?

 

[Marco Incognito]

What is the fate of your AU's Steven Quartz Universe?

The implication is he will live peacefully on Earth and is presumed to eventually marry Priyanka(AU Connie).

 

[TheDetailer]

Are there any plans for Pixar, Laika, and Aardman and their films ITTL?

 

[Marco Incognito]

Are there any plans for Pixar, Laika, and Aardman and their films ITTL?

Yes, but I feel like that's a lot in terms of details there.

 

[Marco Incognito]

I needed a break from my writing of Doctor Who and other entries. So I threw this together while going back to old Posts. Since I'm planning to overhaul the Comic Stuff, I was thinking of doing a series of posts covering multiple Media per "Age" i.e. Golden Age, Silver Age, Bronze Age, and Modern Age, since very early on there are not enough entries in one Medium to justify their own post. As we move up in time, they will obviously split up a bit such as having Spider-Man, X-Men and Fantastic Four centered posts covering their Films with the same happening to Television, Animation and Video Games.

Before Marvel: Timely and Atlas in Film and Television

Film Serial

Captain America:
Production Studio: Republic Pictures
Number of Chapters: 15
Release Date: 1944

Due to Marvel not existing yet. This is the Film Serial under the Timely Name. The Serial concerns Captain America trying to stop the release of a deadly gas known as "The Purple Death". Differences from OTL include Captain America actually using his Shield in addition to his gun. The inclusion of Bucky Barnes. The renaming of the Gail Richards character into Peggy Carter, making her more competent, and the replacement of the villain the Scarab into the Red Skull.

Televison Series

Namor
Release Date: 1954
Producers: Frank Saverstein, Herb Shriner, Arthur Godfrey
Story Consultant: Bill Everett

Like with Captain America and Timely, Namor was the only non comic release by its successor Atlas Comics. The Series adapted stories from the 30's and 40's, intentional as Creator but moved the action to the 1950's. While Namor still attacked the shores of America, he would also battle Soviets instead of Nazis, demolishing their submarines. He was far more antagonistic that Superman and would go on rampages while working to limit casualties. His only friend on the New York police force was the attractive Betty Dean.
​

An Interview between Bill Everett and Roy Thomas from the Late 1960's.

Roy Thomas: Would you mind telling me about the Sub-Mariner TV series?

Bill Everett: Yes, I can tell you as little as I know about it. I was called into the business manager's office, one day, just out of a clear blue sky.

Thomas: This was about '53 or '54?

Everett: '54. And I was introduced to a man by the name of Frank Saverstein, whose father was a producer, and he was following in his footsteps, and producer of some pretty good stuff. He was involved, I think, with Goodson-Todman and a few things. He had an idea to produce a Sub-Mariner series. He had been a great Sub-Mariner fan. He had Herb Shriner, the Hoosier comedian, who was also a Sub-Mariner fan.

Thomas: This was also during the time when the Superman show had been very popular. That was probably the influence.

Everett: Yes, they figured if you could do it with Superman, you could do it with The Sub-Mariner. And it would be different, quite a different thing and different to film, and novel. And so then they got the money interests; they had Arthur Godfrey backing them, moneywise. They went so far as to buy a PT Boat and get all kinds of underwater equipment, even before they got to the business negotiations. They were that sold on the idea of making the pilot.

Thomas: Did they have a star in mind?

Everett: Yes, they had Richard Egan planned from the start. I guess he agreed to do it. I couldn't quite see it, but that was beside the point.

Thomas: Was Egan personally acquainted with the Sub-Mariner character before filming?

Everett: I don't know anything about that. All I know is that Frank said they had the actor picked out. They wanted Richard Egan and he had agreed to make the pilot. That's all I know. I don't know how much interest Egan had in it before or after.

Thomas: You never met him in connection with the negotiations?

Everett: No, no, not at all. I was only in on the sessions that determined what we could do. Actually, it was designing responsibility. I was the story consultant, but the scripts would be written by their company. But I was to okay them and to advise them as to what The Sub-Mariner could and couldn't do. I think that they wanted to go with the original Sub-Mariner, as I understand it. Frank and Herb both were fans of the original Sub-Mariner, as he was before the war, but wanted to bring him into modern situations.

Thomas: Probably with the same anti-Communist thing which you were doing in comics.

Everett: Main discussions were about who's going to get credit and who's going to get paid for this, how we were going to run the operation.

 

[Marco Incognito]

Before DC: National Comics and The Golden Age

Fanzine commemorating Major Malcolm Wheeler-Nicholson

The Company that would become DC was founded as National Allied Publications in Autumn 1934 by Entrepeneur Major Malcolm Wheeler-Nicholson. Its first published work was the tabloid-sized New Fun: The Big Comic Magazine #1, later retitled More Fun Comics with a cover dated February 1935. The Superhero trend had not taken off yet and so the series was instead an anthology of original stories in an age where most comic books reprinted newspaper strips, this included Western and Adventure. The first character created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster was Doctor Occult in December 1935 within Issue 6 of New Fun Comics. Arguably the first Superhero despite lacking a colorful costume, instead be an occult detective. More Comic Book lines would be launched with more serious tones such as New Comics, the first issue being released in December 1935, which kicked off the Adventure Comics series.

The final title released by Wheeler-Nicholson was Detective Comics, which began in December 1936 but was delayed three months and released in 1937 instead. Like the others it was an anthology focusing on Detective Stories and is the longest running ongoing comic series. At the time the most notable character to exist in its pages was the hard hitting Detective Slam Bradley, who was created by the combined force of Malcolm-Wheeler-Nicholson, Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster. Problems arose in 1937, when the company owed a debt to Printing Plant owner and Magazine distributor Harry Donenfeld. Donenfeld also published pulp magazines and was a Principal in the magazine distributorship Independent News. As a result of owing him, Wheeler-Nicholson were forced to take Donenfeld on as a partner to get Detective Comics No 1 off the ground. This was when the company Detective Comics, Inc was formed. The credited founders being Wheeler-Nicholson, and Donenfeld's accountant Jack S.Liebowitz. This resolved a money problem, which led to Major Wheeler Nicholson kicking Jack S.Liebowitz, with this motion, Detective Comics, Inc was dissolved and National Allied was set up in its place.

Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster
In 1938, Max Gaines formed the sister company All-American Publications. National Allied also launched a new title with Action Comics #1. For this comic, Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster reworked an old story they had written called "Reign of the Superman" in which a scientist grants a man powerful psychic powers which he then uses to terrorize the world, killing the scientist only to discover his powers were only temporary and return to being an unknown normal man. The reworking instead concerned Superman, who as a baby was sent to Earth from the planet Krypton prior to the planet's destruction(unlike OTL, Jor-El and Lara are glimpsed here for the first time rather than years later). He was then raised by an elderly couple known as the Kents, who name him Clark Kent. As an adult, Clark Kent dons the costume of Superman to fight crime while maintaining a secret identity and falling in love with reporter Lois Lane, who from the very beginning suspects he is Superman, not falling for his obvious disguise but struggles to prove it. Superman is credited with being the first Superhero, with the costume and secret identity aspect established. Others argue that Doctor Occult should be considered, or even earlier examples such as the french Nyctalope, or the Scarlet Pimpernel. One of the disputed contenders for the title ironically shared a spot with Superman in Action Comics #1. Lee Falk, famous for his creation of Mandrake the Magician in 1934 and The Phantom in 1936 had left his comfortable nest egg at William Randolph Hearst's King Syndicate and moved to work for National Allied. He brought Mandrake the Magician and the Phantom with him. Mandrake was given a spot in Action Comics #1(This action butterflies away Giovanni Zatara, known in mainstream Comics as the Father of Magician Superhero Zatanna, by providing a Magician Character already in existence but still provides a chance for Zatanna to exist thanks to Mandrake's inclusion). The Phantom meanwhile was thrown into Detective Comics.

Action Comics #1
Action Comics #1 also included the Texas born adventurer Tex Thompson, created by Ken Finch and Bernard Baily. With these additional properties, Action Comics #1 was a massive hit(more so than OTL thanks to Mandrake the Magician, a pre-established character, making his National Allied Debut and people checking in to see how different if any the stories are compared to King's Syndicate). Despite costing 10 cents at release, copies of Action Comics #1 are now worth millions of dollars, making it one of the most expensive and valuable comics of all time.

Detective Comics #20 premiered in October 1938. National Allied had been given the rights to create a Comic Book series out of the Green Hornet Radio Show. This issue marked the Green Hornet's Comic Debut(OTL the first Green Hornet Comics were published by Helnit Comics and attributed to Frans Striker, serving largely as adaptations of the radio stories. Here with National Allied the Comic Series will be much more successful. This also butterflies away the creation of the Crimson Avenger, who bares many similarities to the Green Hornet).

In Action Comics #6 from November 1938, An unnamed Office Boy later retconned into being Jimmy Olsen is introduced by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster.

Detective Comics #27
Batman first appeared in Detective Comics #27 in March 1939. Created by Bill Finger and Bob Kane, Batman was depicted as a Bat themed vigilante who beat down criminals(unlike OTL he does not kill them in his first appearance and does not use guns, similar to Superman, who also does not kill). Many iconic elements of Batman were established in his first appearance. He is seen in a Cave, driving a Bat themed Cark and catching criminals wearing a Batsuit. The point of view character is Police Commissioner James Gordon, who is tasked with discovering the identity of the Batman. He interviews Billionaire Bruce Wayne during his investigation but is convinced it is not him. Gordon and the Batman both go after criminals, tracking down a mob boss named Jack Napier to a chemical plant, where despite Batman's attempt to save him, he falls into a vat of chemicals. Batman and Gordon talk briefly before Batman leaves. Batman's identity and history is then revealed to the reader. When Bruce Wayne was young his parents were murdered before his eyes. He then devoted himself to training to fight crime and catch his parent's killer. He tried going out in street clothes to fight crime but was badly beaten. Returning home, he saw a Bat fly through his window and took it as a sign, donning the costumed identity of the Batman.

In April 1939, All American Publications released its first Comic Series All American Comics.

Superman became the First Superhero to get his own Comic Book Series rather than be featured in an anthology. A Newspaper Strip was also launched.

In Action Comics No. 13(June 1939) The first supervillain is introduced in the form of the Ultra-Humanite. Ultra-Humanite is Bill Dunn, the character from Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster's The Reign of the Superman. After losing his powers he now seeks a way to bring them back. He's retained an enhanced intelligence but has been paralyzed, using his intelligence to combat Superman.

In Detective Comics #29(July 1939), Batman's Utility Belt is fully introduced in a story by Gardner Fox.

First Issue of Wonder Comics
In August 1939, National Allied Publishing's rival , Fox Feature Syndicate founded by Victor S. Fox, decided to get into Comics. He set up his office in the same building as National Allied Publishing and founded Fox Feature Syndicate. He then released a Superhero of his own in The Blue Beetle. The Blue Beetle was an archeologist named Dan Garrett, who found a mystical scarab in Egypt that granted him super powers. Will Eisner was contacted by Fox and drew the first issue of Wonder Comics, which introduced Wonder Man. Wonder Man was secretly radio engineer Fred Carson, who worked for the International Broadcasting Corporation. While in Tibet and surviving a crash, an old monk gave Carson a ring with magical abilities that were almost exactly like those of Superman. In his first issue he travels to the war torn nation of Tatonia and defeats Dictator General Attila and stops a war. He then rescues his boss's daughter, a Red Cross nurse named Brenda, who becomes his girlfriend.

National Allied Publications noticed the similarities between Wonder Man and Superman and sued Fox Feature Syndicate for Copyright infringement. The case was brought to court as National Allied Publications v. Bruns Publications, Inc.

In Action Comics #16(September 1939), Superman's Home city of Metropolis was first named, which helped to distinguish it from Wonder Man being active in New York.

In Detective Comics #31(September 1939), The Batarang, the Batplane, and a love interest for Batman in the form of Julie Madison were all introduced.

In November 1939. The Superman newspaper strip first named the Newspaper Clark Kent works at the Daily Planet(Never named the Daily Star ITTL).

Fawcett Comics emerged as DC's original main competitor in 1939.

Superman and Batman met for the first time in a story depicting the two teaming up at the Metropolis World's Fair to defeat a villain known as the Phantom of the Fair, later revealed to be Superman's archenemy the Ultra-Humanite.

National vs Fawcett

The Trial of National Allied Publications v. Bruns Publications, Inc. was underway in 1940. An excerpt from the trial:

"Each publication portrays a man of miraculous strength and speed called "Superman" in "Action Comics" and "Wonderman" in the magazine of Bruns. The attributes and antics of "Superman" and "Wonderman" are closely similar. Each at times conceals his strength beneath ordinary clothing but after removing his cloak stands revealed in full panoply in a skintight acrobatic costume. The only real difference between them is that "Superman" wears a blue uniform and "Wonderman" a red one. Each is termed the champion of the oppressed. Each is shown running toward a full moon "off into the night", and each is shown crushing a gun in his powerful hands. "Superman" is pictured as stopping a bullet with his person and "Wonderman" as arresting and throwing back shells. Each is depicted as shot at by three men, yet as wholly impervious to the missiles that strike him. "Superman" is shown as leaping over a twenty story building, and "Wonderman" as leaping from building to building. "Superman" and "Wonderman" are each endowed with sufficient strength to rip open a steel door. Each is described as being the strongest man in the world and each as battling against "evil and injustice."

In the aftermath of the trial, new rules regarding Copyright and Parody were established. Fox paid a large fine, but Wonder Man had reached a level of popularity thanks to the trial. The stories were required to be wholly original and not be caught tracing art from the Superman stories or risk being forced to be dropped. Blue Beetle and Wonder Man remained mainstays of Fox Comics. National Allied Publications also sued Fawcett Comics over their character of Master Man, who bore similar powers to Superman, including Superstrength, Superspeed, and flight. This lawsuit, due to the earlier rules set out by Copyright and Parody, went nowhere. Master Man would ultimately be dropped when the US entered the War due to fear he may have been promoting Nazi ideologies unintentionally given he claimed to be from a Master Race and was blonde haired and blue eyed. This would come full circle with the character later being repurposed as a Nazi Supervillain posing as a Superhero.

After several critics mocked National Allied Publications by abbreviating their initials as NAP, using this to claim their books were of dull quality and mock them during the trial, the company changed its name to National Comics Publications in 1946. Despite the name change, people had begun to refer to National Comics as "DC" due to the success of Detective Comics. The Company by now had multiple rivals emerging such as Fawcett Comics, Quality Comics, Charlton Comics, Fox Comics and, to a lesser extent, Timely Comics. A new company emerged led by none other than Max Gaines and Liebowitz. The two had started their own comic company to compete with National Comic in the form EC, or Entertaining Comics. In the late 1940's, facing competition and angered by the their failed effort to get Wonder Man, a blatant ripoff in their eyes, cancelled, National Comics became aggressive towards what it perceived as copyright violations. This culminated in a lawsuit towards Fawcett Comics over the character of Captain Marvel. Captain Marvel was a child granted the power by the wizard Shazam to turn into an adult Superhero. Captain Marvel was hugely profitable for Fawcett, being the first Superhero adapted into Film in 1941's The Adventures of Captain Marvel and by 1940 was the most popular Superhero in the country and sold the most issues. Fawcett had created an entire line of spinoff characters whom Captain Marvel had granted the powers of Shazam to such as Captain Marvel Jr, Mary Marvel, Uncle Marvel(ITTL, Mary Batson's actual uncle), and Hoppy the Marvel Bunny. Elements of the Captain Marvel stories had gone into the Superman stories and this was used against National Comics, including a bald nemesis in Lex Luthor, which Captain Marvel had done first in Dr.Sivana, and stories focused on Superboy, which were paralleled by the adventures of Captain Marvel Jr.

National Comics sent multiple ceased and desist orders to Fawcett but nothing happened and they filed a lawsuit. Republic Pictures was listed as Co-Defendant due to demands that they withhold the release of The Adventures of Captain Marvel, which were ignored. At the trial(Occurring earlier than OTL in the early 40's, meaning Captain Marvel is at the height of its popularity), National Comics presented over a binder of over pages in length showcasing Superman performing heroic feats and then panels of Captain Marvel doing the same event at a later date, Fawcett provided examples fo Captain Marvel doing the feats earlier than Superman and by providing examples of earlier heroes like Popeye and Tarzan doing the same thing. Fawcett employees were brought in and testified as well. However, what determined the trial was the a pending lawsuit from Superman creators from Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, who were fighting for the rights to the character of Superman, since Superman's rights were involved, the cases were folded together. Siegel and Shuster were given custody of Superman and asked about their opinion on Captain Marvel. The trial was decided in Fawcett's (Captain Marvel's) favor because of information Fawcett's lawyers had uncovered about Superman's copyright status. The defense lawyers provided evidence that National Comics and the McClure Syndicate failed to copyright several of their Superman newspaper comic strips, and the trial judge decided that National had abandoned its Superman copyright such that it was no longer valid. Fawcett had won the lawsuit and would survive into the new age.

Panel from Mad Magazine strip parodying the National Comics/Fawcett Trial(Yes I know Fawcett Comics Survives already used this panel in much the same way. This is the last time this will happen I assure you).

Due to the lawsuit, National Comics took a major risk and approved the 1940 Siegel and Shuster story, The K-Metal from Krypton(A story rejected by the editors OTL which would have forever changed the Superman mythos while also adding elements introduced later in canon such as Kryptonite). The story was approved because National Comics wanted to differentiate itself more from Captain Marvel and the elements it had copied. Superman was depowered by a passing Meteorite made out of K metal(TTL's Kryptonite). Superman suddenly becoming weaker led to the Superhero discovering he was an alien(which he himself was not aware of at this time, believing himself to be a human born with extraordinary abilities). The readers however were aware of this as his origin was told to the audience and that he was sent to Earth as a baby and his parents deceased by his adulthood. He was also introduced to K Metal proper by a scientist, who revealed the element granted ordinary men extraordinary abilities. In the story, the scientist demonstrates this by lifting his desk with one hand, in addition to weakening Superman. Clark Kent and Lois Lane are trapped in a cave by criminals. Just then the Meteor passes and Clark's powers return. He now sees no choice but to reveal his identity as Superman and does so, as well as saving Lois. Lois proposes she work as his partner now that she knows. Superman decided to do away with his Clark Kent identity permanently.

While the meteor passed, it was later revealed pieces had fallen to Earth, providing the new element of K Metal as a constant threat. Lois took more of a sidekick role, aiding Superman when she could. The story sent ripples through the comic book world. The Secret Identity was now far more optional and the trope of the love interest not knowing a Hero's true identity outdated.

Superman reveals his identity to Lois Lane, The K Metal from Krypton, 1940, Reprint

Going into the years of the War, National Comics released several new Heroes within this period. Many of which were grouped together in the Justice Society of America, which by mandate was required to have Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman as members in every issue(OTL Wonder Woman was a secretary and Superman and Batman were largely kept out). Together these heroes were depicted fighting Nazis and later the Japanese. However, due to many Japanese-Americans signing up to combat the Japanese Empire, propaganda against them was toned down, Japanese caricatures were more subdued and propaganda focused on avenging the attack on Pearl Harbor such as "Remember Remember the 7th of December".

Wonder Woman was a feminist Icon at the time, though admittedly created by William Marston, who often included aspects of his own fetishes into his creation, and as such there was a great deal of bondage in the early works. Marston was also the inventor of the lie detector, hence the choice of Wonder Woman's Lasso of Truth. As the series went on it gained more feminist elements as well as more science Fiction elements. Marston and his artist Murchison wrote a finale for the series in 1947 which brought back Wonder Woman's old villains, including Hypnota and the slavers of Saturn and a plot to start a war between Saturn and Earth which would see Slavery be abolished on Saturn. This was the last thing Marston wrote before his death.

By the late 1940's, the popularity of Superheroes began to fade and National Comics shifted to focusing on Science Fiction, Western, humor, crime and Romance. National Comics also dived into Horror, which was tame compared to their competitors, allowing them to avoid the backlash against other Horror Comics at the time. Their competitor Entertaining Comics, known for their Horror, shifted to Humor. The result was their longest living title Mad Magazine, which delighted in taking pot shots at their old enemy, mocking the Superman and Captain Marvel controversy in their first issue. National Comics was able to survive the 50's, unlike most companies. Action Comics and Detective Comics, the longest running titles, would survive, as would Superman(thanks in part to the success of The Adventures of Superman), Batman, Wonder Woman and a few others. Nearing the 60's, it was decided that a shake up was needed, starting with the company's name. It was already being called Detective Comics from both the staff and the fans. Why not make it official? And so DC was officially born.​

 

[TheDetailer]

How are Los Angeles, New York City, and other 'entertainment capitals' doing ITTL? You mentioned there's no 9/11, which means the Twin Towers are still there.

 

[Marco Incognito]

How are Los Angeles, New York City, and other 'entertainment capitals' doing ITTL? You mentioned there's no 9/11, which means the Twin Towers are still there.

In General, they're doing fine, there's a bit more focus on the environment so Hurricanes are less common. There is however a harder fight against things such as the drought in California and helping New York deal with its garbage problem.