Brother Power the Geek
Encyclopedia
Brother Power the Geek is a comic book
character
created in the late 1960s
for DC Comics
by Joe Simon
. He first appeared in Brother Power the Geek #1 (October 1968
).
According to Simon, the concept behind Brother Power was derived heavily from Mary Shelley
's Frankenstein
, right down to reanimation with the use of lightning. At the same time, Simon was also attempting to capture the sort of "wandering outcast philosopher" characterization that made Marvel Comics
' Silver Surfer
a cult hit amongst the college student readers of the period.
According to Scott Shaw!
, the character was originally supposed to be called The Freak, but was renamed to The Geek due to concerns by DC Comics
management over the possible drug reference "freak" implied at the time.
abandoned in an empty tailor's shop. The shop was taken over by hippies Nick Cranston and Paul Cymbalist, who dressed up the dummy in Paul's wet and bloodied "hip threads" to keep them from shrinking, having been attacked by Hound Dawg and other war hawks. Forgotten for months, but eventually struck by lightning, Brother Power was brought to life and endowed with super power and speed.
Shortly after his creation, Brother Power was kidnapped by the "Psychedelic Circus". The freaks in the Freakshow at the "Psychedelic Circus" were all based on the styles of "Big Daddy" Ed Roth
and Harvey Kurtzman
, both of whom were good friends of Simon. After escaping, he was fixed up and given a face by another hippie named Cindy, and attempted to run for United States Congress
. His misadventures with the establishment led to finding work and encouraging other hippies to do so, eventually getting hired by the J.P. Acme Corporation just as it was taken over by the wicked Lord Sliderule. Brother Power's ingenuity still made the assembly line run more efficiently. Brother Power was last seen being shot into space on orders from Governor Ronald Reagan
, after trying to prevent the sabotage of a rocket launch by Mad Dawg and his gang, knowing it would be blamed on hippies.
While sales of the title were modest, Brother Power was not popular among the staff. DC Comics artist Carmine Infantino
claimed in several interviews following his retirement from comics that Superman
editor Mort Weisinger
disliked the character very strongly, and petitioned DC publisher Jack Liebowitz to shut down the title. According to Infantino and others who knew and worked with "Unca Mort", Weisinger harbored an admitted dislike for the hippie subculture of the 60's, and felt that Simon portrayed them too sympathetically. It did not help that Mad Dawg and his cronies appeared with uniforms and gadgetry evocative of Nazis in the second issue. According to Joe Simon
, the third issue was canceled just before the finished artwork was to be set up for print duplication, and to this day Simon refuses to discuss exactly what the plot of this issue was about, nor release any of the original art.
Despite Mort Weisinger
's concerns over the Hippie subculture and the level of drug abuse
it represented, drug, substance and alcohol intake are not depicted.
Simon was not, in fact, the artist on the book's two issues. The actual artwork was by Al Bare, who had been working with Simon at Sick. Simon had hired Bare to "ghost" the art, and was subsequently credited with the art as was custom for the industry at the time.
Three years after Brother Power was canceled, Simon created Prez
, a tale about the "first teen President of the US". In later years, Simon has hinted that some of the more "psychedelic" elements of Prez were recycled from plot ideas he had for Brother Power that were never used due to that book's sudden cancellation. Some comic book historians have speculated that Simon's idea of having a young adult as President was derived as much from the Geek's attempt to run for Congress as it was from the film Wild in the Streets
. Again, as Simon has been highly reluctant to discuss the Geek in recent years, this remains as speculation.
, several aspiring comic book writers attempted to pitch revivals for the character to DC Comics
. All of these were rejected with the justification given that Steve Englehart
, then-writer of DC's Green Lantern
, had plans to rescue the Geek and make him a member of the Green Lantern Corps
. This never occurred.
The character was revived briefly in the 1990s
, first in a short story by Neil Gaiman
in Swamp Thing
Annual #5 (reprinted in Neil Gaiman's Midnight Days
), and then a Vertigo one-shot by Rachel Pollack
and Mike Allred titled Corruption of the Innocent or "Homeland of the Dolls". Gaiman was supposed to succeed Rick Veitch
as writer on Swamp Thing, but turned in this story, in which the title character never appears, in fulfillment of his contract, due to disgust that Veitch's story had been censored.
In Gaiman's story, Brother Power is revealed to be an imperfect elemental
, similar to the Swamp Thing
, and he is connected to all human simulacra such as dolls, dummies, statues, etc. The story resumes with the rocket's return to earth, guided into Tampa Bay
by Firestorm
after an unsuccessful attempt to destroy it. His newfound ability to change his size at will led to a call to Batman
, who deferred to Abigail Cable
. Ultimately, a former hippie named Chester was able to calm him down. Pollack's story featured a brief return of Brother Power's adversary, Lord Sliderule, now in a business suit, and depicted Brother Power being forced to perform as a circus geek
, eating live animals for the first time. Eventually, after more misadventures with the establishment, he is reunited with Cindy, now a prostitute, and is destroyed saving her life, but survives by possessing one of her dolls.
In one issue of the crossover miniseries Legends
, a marquee in the background reads "Brother Power the Geek: The Movie".
He is among the superheroes briefly summoned by Snapper Carr
in the Blasters
Special.
In Grant Morrison
's Animal Man
, Brother Power is mentioned several times as someone who escaped from comic book limbo, in spite of other limbo dwellers' expectations, and his name appears in graffiti
.
He appeared briefly in Tom Peyer
's Totems, as a guest at John Constantine
's 1999 New Year's Eve party.
Brother Power made a return appearance in The Brave and The Bold #29 (November, 2009). This issue presented Cindy as having been a doctor at a free clinic, but after some tragedy, opening a toy store that was burned before the story began. The story also cast doubts over Brother Power's true origin, as it was explained that conflicting urban legends stated that Brother Power was both a reanimated dummy and an elemental. In addition, it is also established that the events of the original series had taken place in Gotham City
(they had previously been explicitly set in San Francisco with "the governor" clearly drawn as Reagan). After awakening in 2009, Brother Power wanders aimlessly through the streets of Gotham, until he stumbles upon a burning building where several innocent people have been left tied up and gagged inside. Though Batman
tries to convince Power to abandon the building and let him take care of the victims, he refuses, remarking that he does not belong in the modern world. The issue ends with the dazed and badly-injured Brother Power staggering through the sewers, where he eventually collapses. In the closing narraration, Batman finds comfort in the idea that Brother Power will one day reawaken in a time closer to his own.
Although more open to the topic for the first two decades after the book's cancellation, Joe Simon
has been reluctant to discuss Brother Power in recent years. His official website has no mention of the book, and his son Jim Simon responds to all queries about his father and Brother Power that "Joe prefers not to discuss that particular work". He has also refused to comment on the two Vertigo revivals.
mini-series Conjurors.
In the 1997 Tangent Comics
title The Joker, there was a human character who called himself "Brother Power," but whom Joker called "The Geek."
A version of the character appears in Planetary
#7, where it appeared at the funeral of a man named Jack Carter (who bore a strong resemblance to John Constantine
).
Comic book
A comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...
character
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
created in the late 1960s
1960s in comics
See also:1950s in comics,other events of the 1960s,1970s in comics and thelist of years in comics-1961:See also: 1961 in comics*Amazing Adventures #1 - Marvel Comics*Fantastic Four #1 - Marvel Comics-1962:...
for DC Comics
DC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. is one of the largest and most successful companies operating in the market for American comic books and related media. It is the publishing unit of DC Entertainment a company of Warner Bros. Entertainment, which itself is owned by Time Warner...
by Joe Simon
Joe Simon
Joseph Henry "Joe" Simon is an American comic book writer, artist, editor, and publisher. Simon created or co-created many important characters in the 1930s-1940s Golden Age of Comic Books and served as the first editor of Timely Comics, the company that would evolve into Marvel Comics.With his...
. He first appeared in Brother Power the Geek #1 (October 1968
1968 in comics
See also:1968 in comics,other events of 1968,1969 in comics,1960s in comics and thelist of years in comics- Year overall :* With Kinney National Company's acquisition of Warner Bros., DC Comics becomes part of what eventually will be known as Warner Communications.* DC Comics art director Carmine...
).
According to Simon, the concept behind Brother Power was derived heavily from Mary Shelley
Mary Shelley
Mary Shelley was a British novelist, short story writer, dramatist, essayist, biographer, and travel writer, best known for her Gothic novel Frankenstein: or, The Modern Prometheus . She also edited and promoted the works of her husband, the Romantic poet and philosopher Percy Bysshe Shelley...
's Frankenstein
Frankenstein
Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus is a novel about a failed experiment that produced a monster, written by Mary Shelley, with inserts of poems by Percy Bysshe Shelley. Shelley started writing the story when she was eighteen, and the novel was published when she was twenty-one. The first...
, right down to reanimation with the use of lightning. At the same time, Simon was also attempting to capture the sort of "wandering outcast philosopher" characterization that made Marvel Comics
Marvel Comics
Marvel Worldwide, Inc., commonly referred to as Marvel Comics and formerly Marvel Publishing, Inc. and Marvel Comics Group, is an American company that publishes comic books and related media...
' Silver Surfer
Silver Surfer
The Silver Surfer is a Marvel Comics superhero created by Jack Kirby. The character first appears in Fantastic Four #48 , the first of a three-issue arc that fans call "The Galactus Trilogy"....
a cult hit amongst the college student readers of the period.
According to Scott Shaw!
Scott Shaw (artist)
Scott Shaw is a United States cartoonist and animator, and is also an esteemed conductor of the concert band at Mary Institute and Country Day School...
, the character was originally supposed to be called The Freak, but was renamed to The Geek due to concerns by DC Comics
DC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. is one of the largest and most successful companies operating in the market for American comic books and related media. It is the publishing unit of DC Entertainment a company of Warner Bros. Entertainment, which itself is owned by Time Warner...
management over the possible drug reference "freak" implied at the time.
Original appearance
The original series lasted only two issues. Brother Power was originally a mannequinMannequin
A mannequin is an often articulated doll used by artists, tailors, dressmakers, and others especially to display or fit clothing...
abandoned in an empty tailor's shop. The shop was taken over by hippies Nick Cranston and Paul Cymbalist, who dressed up the dummy in Paul's wet and bloodied "hip threads" to keep them from shrinking, having been attacked by Hound Dawg and other war hawks. Forgotten for months, but eventually struck by lightning, Brother Power was brought to life and endowed with super power and speed.
Shortly after his creation, Brother Power was kidnapped by the "Psychedelic Circus". The freaks in the Freakshow at the "Psychedelic Circus" were all based on the styles of "Big Daddy" Ed Roth
Ed Roth
"Big Daddy" Ed Roth was an artist, cartoonist, custom car painter, and pinstriper who created the hot-rod icon Rat Fink and other extreme characters. As a custom car builder, Roth was a key figure in Southern California's Kustom Kulture and hot-rod movement of the late 50's and 1960's...
and Harvey Kurtzman
Harvey Kurtzman
Harvey Kurtzman was an American cartoonist and the editor of several comic books and magazines. Kurtzman often signed his name H. Kurtz, followed by a stick figure Harvey Kurtzman (October 3, 1924, Brooklyn, New York – February 21, 1993) was an American cartoonist and the editor of several comic...
, both of whom were good friends of Simon. After escaping, he was fixed up and given a face by another hippie named Cindy, and attempted to run for United States Congress
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
. His misadventures with the establishment led to finding work and encouraging other hippies to do so, eventually getting hired by the J.P. Acme Corporation just as it was taken over by the wicked Lord Sliderule. Brother Power's ingenuity still made the assembly line run more efficiently. Brother Power was last seen being shot into space on orders from Governor Ronald Reagan
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
, after trying to prevent the sabotage of a rocket launch by Mad Dawg and his gang, knowing it would be blamed on hippies.
While sales of the title were modest, Brother Power was not popular among the staff. DC Comics artist Carmine Infantino
Carmine Infantino
Carmine Infantino Carmine Infantino Carmine Infantino (born May 24, 1925, in Brooklyn, New York is an American comic book artist and editor who was a major force in the Silver Age of Comic Books...
claimed in several interviews following his retirement from comics that Superman
Superman
Superman is a fictional comic book superhero appearing in publications by DC Comics, widely considered to be an American cultural icon. Created by American writer Jerry Siegel and Canadian-born American artist Joe Shuster in 1932 while both were living in Cleveland, Ohio, and sold to Detective...
editor Mort Weisinger
Mort Weisinger
Mortimer Weisinger was an American magazine and comic book editor best known for editing DC Comics' Superman during the mid-1950s to 1960s, in the Silver Age of comic books...
disliked the character very strongly, and petitioned DC publisher Jack Liebowitz to shut down the title. According to Infantino and others who knew and worked with "Unca Mort", Weisinger harbored an admitted dislike for the hippie subculture of the 60's, and felt that Simon portrayed them too sympathetically. It did not help that Mad Dawg and his cronies appeared with uniforms and gadgetry evocative of Nazis in the second issue. According to Joe Simon
Joe Simon
Joseph Henry "Joe" Simon is an American comic book writer, artist, editor, and publisher. Simon created or co-created many important characters in the 1930s-1940s Golden Age of Comic Books and served as the first editor of Timely Comics, the company that would evolve into Marvel Comics.With his...
, the third issue was canceled just before the finished artwork was to be set up for print duplication, and to this day Simon refuses to discuss exactly what the plot of this issue was about, nor release any of the original art.
Despite Mort Weisinger
Mort Weisinger
Mortimer Weisinger was an American magazine and comic book editor best known for editing DC Comics' Superman during the mid-1950s to 1960s, in the Silver Age of comic books...
's concerns over the Hippie subculture and the level of drug abuse
Drug abuse
Substance abuse, also known as drug abuse, refers to a maladaptive pattern of use of a substance that is not considered dependent. The term "drug abuse" does not exclude dependency, but is otherwise used in a similar manner in nonmedical contexts...
it represented, drug, substance and alcohol intake are not depicted.
Simon was not, in fact, the artist on the book's two issues. The actual artwork was by Al Bare, who had been working with Simon at Sick. Simon had hired Bare to "ghost" the art, and was subsequently credited with the art as was custom for the industry at the time.
Three years after Brother Power was canceled, Simon created Prez
Prez (DC Comics)
Prez: First Teen President was a four issue comic series by writer Joe Simon and artist Jerry Grandenetti, released by DC Comics in 1973 and 1974...
, a tale about the "first teen President of the US". In later years, Simon has hinted that some of the more "psychedelic" elements of Prez were recycled from plot ideas he had for Brother Power that were never used due to that book's sudden cancellation. Some comic book historians have speculated that Simon's idea of having a young adult as President was derived as much from the Geek's attempt to run for Congress as it was from the film Wild in the Streets
Wild in the Streets
Wild in the Streets is a 1968 film featuring Christopher Jones, Hal Holbrook, and Shelley Winters. It was produced by American International Pictures and based on a short story by writer Robert Thom...
. Again, as Simon has been highly reluctant to discuss the Geek in recent years, this remains as speculation.
Later appearances
During the 1980s1980s in comics
This article lists major events in the field of comics during the 1980s.Publications: 1980 - 1981 - 1982 - 1983 - 1984 - 1985 - 1986 - 1987 - 1988 - 1989-1982:*Akira by Katsuhiro Otomo debuts in Young Magazine.- March :...
, several aspiring comic book writers attempted to pitch revivals for the character to DC Comics
DC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. is one of the largest and most successful companies operating in the market for American comic books and related media. It is the publishing unit of DC Entertainment a company of Warner Bros. Entertainment, which itself is owned by Time Warner...
. All of these were rejected with the justification given that Steve Englehart
Steve Englehart
Steve Englehart is an American novelist. In his earlier career he was a comic book writer best known for his work at Marvel Comics and DC Comics, particularly in the 1970s...
, then-writer of DC's Green Lantern
Green Lantern
The Green Lantern is the shared primary alias of several fictional characters, superheroes appearing in comic books published by DC Comics. The first Green Lantern was created by writer Bill Finger and artist Martin Nodell in All-American Comics #16 .Each Green Lantern possesses a power ring and...
, had plans to rescue the Geek and make him a member of the Green Lantern Corps
Green Lantern Corps
The Green Lantern Corps is the name of a fictional intergalactic military/police force appearing in comics published by DC Comics. They patrol the farthest reaches of the DC Universe at the behest of the Guardians, a race of immortals residing on the planet Oa...
. This never occurred.
The character was revived briefly in the 1990s
1990s in comics
See also:1980s in comics,other events of the 1990s,2000s in comics and thelist of years in comicsPublications: 1990 - 1991 - 1992 - 1993 - 1994 - 1995 - 1996 - 1997 - 1998 - 1999-1992:See also: 1992 in comics...
, first in a short story by Neil Gaiman
Neil Gaiman
Neil Richard Gaiman born 10 November 1960)is an English author of short fiction, novels, comic books, graphic novels, audio theatre and films. His notable works include the comic book series The Sandman and novels Stardust, American Gods, Coraline, and The Graveyard Book...
in Swamp Thing
Swamp Thing
Swamp Thing, a fictional character, is a plant elemental in the created by Len Wein and Berni Wrightson. He first appeared in House of Secrets #92 in a stand-alone horror story set in the early 20th century . The Swamp Thing then returned in his own series, set in the contemporary world and in...
Annual #5 (reprinted in Neil Gaiman's Midnight Days
Neil Gaiman's Midnight Days
Neil Gaiman's Midnight Days is a 1999 compilation of new and previously released stories written by Neil Gaiman and published by the Vertigo imprint of DC Comics.-Background:...
), and then a Vertigo one-shot by Rachel Pollack
Rachel Pollack
Rachel Pollack is an American science fiction author, comic book writer, and expert on divinatory tarot...
and Mike Allred titled Corruption of the Innocent or "Homeland of the Dolls". Gaiman was supposed to succeed Rick Veitch
Rick Veitch
Richard "Rick" Veitch is an American comic book artist and writer who has worked in mainstream, underground, and alternative comics.-Early career:...
as writer on Swamp Thing, but turned in this story, in which the title character never appears, in fulfillment of his contract, due to disgust that Veitch's story had been censored.
In Gaiman's story, Brother Power is revealed to be an imperfect elemental
Elemental
An elemental is a mythological being first appearing in the alchemical works of Paracelsus in the 16th century. Traditionally, there are four types:*gnomes, earth elementals*undines , water elementals*sylphs, air elementals...
, similar to the Swamp Thing
Swamp Thing
Swamp Thing, a fictional character, is a plant elemental in the created by Len Wein and Berni Wrightson. He first appeared in House of Secrets #92 in a stand-alone horror story set in the early 20th century . The Swamp Thing then returned in his own series, set in the contemporary world and in...
, and he is connected to all human simulacra such as dolls, dummies, statues, etc. The story resumes with the rocket's return to earth, guided into Tampa Bay
Tampa Bay
Tampa Bay is a large natural harbor and estuary along the Gulf of Mexico on the west central coast of Florida, comprising Hillsborough Bay, Old Tampa Bay, Middle Tampa Bay, and Lower Tampa Bay."Tampa Bay" is not the name of any municipality...
by Firestorm
Firestorm (comics)
Firestorm is the name of several comic book superheroes published by DC Comics. Ronnie Raymond and Martin Stein, the first Firestorm, debuted in Firestorm, the Nuclear Man #1 , and was created by Gerry Conway and Al Milgrom. Martin Stein, by himself as Firestorm, debuted in Firestorm the Nuclear...
after an unsuccessful attempt to destroy it. His newfound ability to change his size at will led to a call to Batman
Batman
Batman is a fictional character created by the artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger. A comic book superhero, Batman first appeared in Detective Comics #27 , and since then has appeared primarily in publications by DC Comics...
, who deferred to Abigail Cable
Abby Holland (comics)
Abigail "Abby" Arcane Cable Holland is a fictional comic book character in the DC Comics Universe. She is the wife and partner of the Swamp Thing and is the mother of Tefé Holland. Holland possesses natural shining white hair, the color of fresh snow, with two overlapping black streaks of hair...
. Ultimately, a former hippie named Chester was able to calm him down. Pollack's story featured a brief return of Brother Power's adversary, Lord Sliderule, now in a business suit, and depicted Brother Power being forced to perform as a circus geek
Geek
The word geek is a slang term, with different meanings ranging from "a computer expert or enthusiast" to "a carnival performer who performs sensationally morbid or disgusting acts", with a general pejorative meaning of "a peculiar or otherwise dislikable person, esp[ecially] one who is perceived to...
, eating live animals for the first time. Eventually, after more misadventures with the establishment, he is reunited with Cindy, now a prostitute, and is destroyed saving her life, but survives by possessing one of her dolls.
In one issue of the crossover miniseries Legends
Legends (comics)
"Legends" was a comic book crossover story line that ran through a six-issue, self titled limited series and various other titles published by DC Comics in 1986 and 1987...
, a marquee in the background reads "Brother Power the Geek: The Movie".
He is among the superheroes briefly summoned by Snapper Carr
Snapper Carr
Lucas "Snapper" Carr is a fictional character in the DC Comics universe, most famous as a supporting character to the superhero team the Justice League of America . He has often been referred to as the team's mascot...
in the Blasters
Blasters (comics)
The Blasters are a fictional DC Comics team of superhumans who first appeared in the miniseries Invasion! #1 by Keith Giffen, Bill Mantlo and Todd McFarlane...
Special.
In Grant Morrison
Grant Morrison
Grant Morrison is a Scottish comic book writer, playwright and occultist. He is known for his nonlinear narratives and counter-cultural leanings, as well as his successful runs on titles like Animal Man, Doom Patrol, JLA, The Invisibles, New X-Men, Fantastic Four, All-Star Superman, and...
's Animal Man
Animal Man
Animal Man is a fictional character, a superhero in the . As a result of being in proximity to an exploding extraterrestrial spaceship, Buddy Baker acquires the ability to temporarily “borrow” the abilities of animals...
, Brother Power is mentioned several times as someone who escaped from comic book limbo, in spite of other limbo dwellers' expectations, and his name appears in graffiti
Graffiti
Graffiti is the name for images or lettering scratched, scrawled, painted or marked in any manner on property....
.
He appeared briefly in Tom Peyer
Tom Peyer
Tom Peyer is an American comic book creator and editor.He is probably best known for his 1999 revisioning of Golden Age super-hero Hourman, as well as his work on the Legion of Super-Heroes in the 1990s. An editor at DC Comics/Vertigo from 1987 to 1993, he served as assistant editor on Neil...
's Totems, as a guest at John Constantine
John Constantine
John Constantine is a fictional character, an occult detective anti-hero in comic books published by DC Comics, mostly under the Vertigo imprint. The character first appeared in Swamp Thing #37 , and was created by Alan Moore, Steve Bissette, John Totleben and Rick Veitch...
's 1999 New Year's Eve party.
Brother Power made a return appearance in The Brave and The Bold #29 (November, 2009). This issue presented Cindy as having been a doctor at a free clinic, but after some tragedy, opening a toy store that was burned before the story began. The story also cast doubts over Brother Power's true origin, as it was explained that conflicting urban legends stated that Brother Power was both a reanimated dummy and an elemental. In addition, it is also established that the events of the original series had taken place in Gotham City
Gotham City
Gotham City is a fictional U.S. city appearing in DC Comics, best known as the home of Batman. Batman's place of residence was first identified as Gotham City in Batman #4 . Gotham City is strongly inspired by Trenton, Ontario's history, location, atmosphere, and various architectural styles...
(they had previously been explicitly set in San Francisco with "the governor" clearly drawn as Reagan). After awakening in 2009, Brother Power wanders aimlessly through the streets of Gotham, until he stumbles upon a burning building where several innocent people have been left tied up and gagged inside. Though Batman
Batman
Batman is a fictional character created by the artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger. A comic book superhero, Batman first appeared in Detective Comics #27 , and since then has appeared primarily in publications by DC Comics...
tries to convince Power to abandon the building and let him take care of the victims, he refuses, remarking that he does not belong in the modern world. The issue ends with the dazed and badly-injured Brother Power staggering through the sewers, where he eventually collapses. In the closing narraration, Batman finds comfort in the idea that Brother Power will one day reawaken in a time closer to his own.
Although more open to the topic for the first two decades after the book's cancellation, Joe Simon
Joe Simon
Joseph Henry "Joe" Simon is an American comic book writer, artist, editor, and publisher. Simon created or co-created many important characters in the 1930s-1940s Golden Age of Comic Books and served as the first editor of Timely Comics, the company that would evolve into Marvel Comics.With his...
has been reluctant to discuss Brother Power in recent years. His official website has no mention of the book, and his son Jim Simon responds to all queries about his father and Brother Power that "Joe prefers not to discuss that particular work". He has also refused to comment on the two Vertigo revivals.
Alternate versions
An alternate-universe human-like version of Brother Power the Geek appeared in the ElseworldsElseworlds
Elseworlds is the publication imprint for a group of comic books produced by DC Comics that take place outside the company's canon. According to its tagline: "In Elseworlds, heroes are taken from their usual settings and put into strange times and places — some that have existed, and others...
mini-series Conjurors.
In the 1997 Tangent Comics
Tangent Comics
Tangent Comics was a DC Comics imprint created in 1997–1998, developed from ideas created by Dan Jurgens. The line, formed from various one-shots, focused on creating all-new characters using established DC names, such as the Joker, Superman, and the Flash...
title The Joker, there was a human character who called himself "Brother Power," but whom Joker called "The Geek."
A version of the character appears in Planetary
Planetary (comics)
Planetary is an American comic book limited series created by writer Warren Ellis and artist John Cassaday published by the Wildstorm imprint of DC Comics...
#7, where it appeared at the funeral of a man named Jack Carter (who bore a strong resemblance to John Constantine
John Constantine
John Constantine is a fictional character, an occult detective anti-hero in comic books published by DC Comics, mostly under the Vertigo imprint. The character first appeared in Swamp Thing #37 , and was created by Alan Moore, Steve Bissette, John Totleben and Rick Veitch...
).
Television
- The Batman: The Brave and the BoldBatman: The Brave and the BoldBatman: The Brave and the Bold is an American animated television series based in part on the DC Comics series The Brave and the Bold which features two or more super heroes coming together to solve a crime or foil a super villain...
episode "Time Out For Vengeance!" features a brief scene where Guy GardnerGuy GardnerGuy Gardner may refer to:*Guy Gardner *Guy Gardner , DC Comics character who primarily operates as a Green Lantern...
is shown reading an issue of Brother Power the Geek while relaxing on the Justice League SatelliteJustice League SatelliteThe Justice League Satellite is the name of two fictional locations, both of which were used as bases of operations for the DC Comics superhero team the Justice League of America.-First satellite:...
.
Miscellaneous
- Brother Power the Geek makes an appearance in the 15th issue of the comic book tie-in of Batman: The Brave and the BoldBatman: The Brave and the BoldBatman: The Brave and the Bold is an American animated television series based in part on the DC Comics series The Brave and the Bold which features two or more super heroes coming together to solve a crime or foil a super villain...
. He appears in the beginning assisting Batman in stopping Mad ModMad ModMad Mod is a fictional character in the DC Universe. He was until recently an enemy of the superhero team, the Teen Titans.-Fictional character biography:...
by telling the clothes to stop attacking people.