Peter Porkchops
Encyclopedia
Peter Porkchops is a fictional funny animal
pig
who appeared in stories published by DC Comics
. Peter was created by Otto Feuer, and first appeared in Leading Comics
#23 (February/March 1947).
Golden
Peter's adventures mostly consisted of light-hearted fare, usually involving his neighbor A. Wolf (or "Wolfie" as Peter called him). The stories consisted mainly of Wolfie getting up to crafty get-rich-quick schemes with Peter thwarting him at every turn. In spite of this, it was an essentially friendly relationship.
Peter became one of DC's most successful funny animal characters, gaining his own comic in December 1949. Peter appeared throughout the 1950s, with Leading Comics canceled with its 77th issue in 1955; Peter's own comic was canceled with Peter Porkchops #62 in December 1960. He then ceased to appear (except for a few reprints) for the next several decades.
Bronze Age
In 1982, Peter was brought back in a special insert
in New Teen Titans #16 (February 1982). In this incarnation he is a steel mill
worker in the city of "Piggsburg
." While working one day over a vat, an irradiated meteor
fragment slams into Peter, knocking them both into the molten steel; when he emerges, Peter finds himself transformed into a super-strong being of living metal, and soon becomes a superhero
named Pig Iron (a reference to the word "pig iron
", a part of the steel making process).
As Pig Iron, Peter joins the Zoo Crew in Captain Carrot and His Amazing Zoo Crew
, and embarks on various adventures, including facing off against his former neighbor Wolfie, who has been transformed into a "Wuz-Wolf" (his world's version of a werewolf
; in this case, a wolf who turned into a monstrous human
). Pig Iron's personality, unlike Peter's, tended to be much more aggressive and abrasive, similar to that of the Fantastic Four
's Thing
, although this character finds his metal form to his liking.
With Captain Carrot and His Amazing Zoo Crew canceled after its 20th issue in 1983, Peter (as either Pig Iron or his normal self) once more fell into disuse, and didn't appear in a DC comic for many years.
Modern Age
Peter appears in the miniseries Captain Carrot and the Final Ark. During a battle with the villain Starro
, Pig Iron falls into the flooded world of Earth-26. The Zoo Crew, in the midst of leaving the planet, are unable to go back for him. However, he is next seen in Final Crisis
#7, alive and well and participating in the climatic battle.
Funny animal
Funny animal is a cartooning term for the genre of comics and animated cartoons in which the main characters are humanoid or talking animals, with anthropomorphic personality traits. The characters themselves may also be called funny animals...
pig
Pig
A pig is any of the animals in the genus Sus, within the Suidae family of even-toed ungulates. Pigs include the domestic pig, its ancestor the wild boar, and several other wild relatives...
who appeared in stories published 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...
. Peter was created by Otto Feuer, and first appeared in Leading Comics
Leading Comics
Leading Comics was a comic book published by what is now DC Comics during the 1940s and early 1950s, a period known to fans and historians as the Golden Age of Comic Books. At the title's inception, DC was actually two companies, National Comics and All-American Publications...
#23 (February/March 1947).
GoldenGolden Age of Comic BooksThe Golden Age of Comic Books was a period in the history of American comic books, generally thought of as lasting from the late 1930s until the late 1940s or early 1950s...
and SilverSilver Age of Comic BooksThe Silver Age of Comic Books was a period of artistic advancement and commercial success in mainstream American comic books, predominantly those in the superhero genre. Following the Golden Age of Comic Books and an interregnum in the early to mid-1950s, the Silver Age is considered to cover the...
Ages
Peter's adventures mostly consisted of light-hearted fare, usually involving his neighbor A. Wolf (or "Wolfie" as Peter called him). The stories consisted mainly of Wolfie getting up to crafty get-rich-quick schemes with Peter thwarting him at every turn. In spite of this, it was an essentially friendly relationship.Peter became one of DC's most successful funny animal characters, gaining his own comic in December 1949. Peter appeared throughout the 1950s, with Leading Comics canceled with its 77th issue in 1955; Peter's own comic was canceled with Peter Porkchops #62 in December 1960. He then ceased to appear (except for a few reprints) for the next several decades.
Bronze AgeBronze Age of Comic BooksThe Bronze Age of Comic Books is an informal name for a period in the history of mainstream American comic books usually said to run from 1970 to 1985. It follows the Silver Age of Comic Books....
In 1982, Peter was brought back in a special insertDC Comics insert previews
DC Comics insert previews were 16-page comic book stories inserted into issues of existing DC Comics series to promote new series usually debuting the next month. Running from 1980 to 1985, they consisted of a front cover, 14 pages of story, and a back cover that depicted the cover of the actual...
in New Teen Titans #16 (February 1982). In this incarnation he is a steel mill
Steel mill
A steel mill or steelworks is an industrial plant for the manufacture of steel.Steel is an alloy of iron and carbon. It is produced in a two-stage process. First, iron ore is reduced or smelted with coke and limestone in a blast furnace, producing molten iron which is either cast into pig iron or...
worker in the city of "Piggsburg
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh is the second-largest city in the US Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Allegheny County. Regionally, it anchors the largest urban area of Appalachia and the Ohio River Valley, and nationally, it is the 22nd-largest urban area in the United States...
." While working one day over a vat, an irradiated meteor
METEOR
METEOR is a metric for the evaluation of machine translation output. The metric is based on the harmonic mean of unigram precision and recall, with recall weighted higher than precision...
fragment slams into Peter, knocking them both into the molten steel; when he emerges, Peter finds himself transformed into a super-strong being of living metal, and soon becomes a superhero
Superhero
A superhero is a type of stock character, possessing "extraordinary or superhuman powers", dedicated to protecting the public. Since the debut of the prototypical superhero Superman in 1938, stories of superheroes — ranging from brief episodic adventures to continuing years-long sagas —...
named Pig Iron (a reference to the word "pig iron
Pig iron
Pig iron is the intermediate product of smelting iron ore with a high-carbon fuel such as coke, usually with limestone as a flux. Charcoal and anthracite have also been used as fuel...
", a part of the steel making process).
As Pig Iron, Peter joins the Zoo Crew in Captain Carrot and His Amazing Zoo Crew
Captain Carrot and His Amazing Zoo Crew
Captain Carrot and His Amazing Zoo Crew! is a DC Comics comic book about a team of funny animal superheroes called the Zoo Crew. The characters first appeared in a special insert in The New Teen Titans #16 , followed by a series published from 1982 to 1983. The Zoo Crew characters were created by...
, and embarks on various adventures, including facing off against his former neighbor Wolfie, who has been transformed into a "Wuz-Wolf" (his world's version of a werewolf
Werewolf
A werewolf, also known as a lycanthrope , is a mythological or folkloric human with the ability to shapeshift into a wolf or an anthropomorphic wolf-like creature, either purposely or after being placed under a curse...
; in this case, a wolf who turned into a monstrous human
Human
Humans are the only living species in the Homo genus...
). Pig Iron's personality, unlike Peter's, tended to be much more aggressive and abrasive, similar to that of the Fantastic Four
Fantastic Four
The Fantastic Four is a fictional superhero team appearing in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The group debuted in The Fantastic Four #1 , which helped to usher in a new level of realism in the medium...
's Thing
Thing (comics)
The Thing is a fictional character, a founding member of the superhero team known as the Fantastic Four in the Marvel Comics universe. He was created by Jack Kirby and Stan Lee in The Fantastic Four #1...
, although this character finds his metal form to his liking.
With Captain Carrot and His Amazing Zoo Crew canceled after its 20th issue in 1983, Peter (as either Pig Iron or his normal self) once more fell into disuse, and didn't appear in a DC comic for many years.
Modern AgeModern Age of Comic BooksThe Modern Age of Comic Books is an informal name for the period in the history of mainstream American comic books generally considered to last from the mid-1980s until present day...
Peter appears in the miniseries Captain Carrot and the Final Ark. During a battle with the villain StarroStarro
Starro is a fictional supervillain that appears in comic books published by DC Comics. The character first appeared in Brave and the Bold #28 , and was created by Gardner Fox and Mike Sekowsky....
, Pig Iron falls into the flooded world of Earth-26. The Zoo Crew, in the midst of leaving the planet, are unable to go back for him. However, he is next seen in Final Crisis
Final Crisis
Final Crisis is a crossover storyline that appeared in comic books published by DC Comics in 2008, primarily the seven-issue miniseries of the same name written by Grant Morrison. Originally DC announced the project as being illustrated solely by J. G. Jones; artists Carlos Pacheco, Marco Rudy and...
#7, alive and well and participating in the climatic battle.