In some ways, this delightfully designed and written new book is more of the same
despite its decidedly evil bent. There are many, many more asinine characters
to make you giggle and cringe. 7ll’s enemy Brickbat is a schlub in a Batman
cowl who hits people with poison bricks. A nemesis of The Black Hood, The Crow
is an alcoholic opera singer who turns into a giant crow. The Dude gives
corpses makeovers. Big Cheese of the Big Gang wields killer cheese. Egg Fu is a
giant, offensive-ethnic-stereotype egg with a prehensile mustache who menaces
Wonder Woman.
That’s where Regrettable
Super Villains veers away from the wall-to-wall obscurities of Regrettable Superheroes. Some of these
baddies actually faced off against genuinely legendary heroes, proving that
even Wonder Woman, The Green Arrow, Captain Marvel, Captain America, Aquaman,
Daredevil, Spiderman, and others of their A-list ilk were not immune to the
taunts of D-list villains. One of these regrettable fellows— big-headed MONOK—
even proved so popular that he got into it with virtually every top-line Marvel
hero.
Some of these villains aren’t even all that regrettable.
Animal-Vegetable-Mineral Man is a rather ingenious creation who can
simultaneously take on the characteristics of all three of his namesake organic
matters, sprouting a dinosaur from half his face while ensnaring The Doom
Patrol in hands made of crystal and tree. And I don’t need to explain to
regular Psychobabble readers why I genuinely believe the natty simian Mod
Gorilla Boss to be a villain right out of my own wildest dreams. Plus, any
villain known to exclaim, “I am Bloor, dictator of Uranus” could hardly be
labeled regrettable.
