Greetings, humans. We here (by which I mean "I") continue Anthropomorphism Period of Time by looking at another rabbit. This one's cool, you see, because he's a rabbit in s-p-a-c-e.
Remember to tip your waitress and try the archive.
6/9/07
160. Bucky O'Hare
Ahh, Bucky O'Hare-- a candle in the wind of comics. Hah.
Created by writer Larry Hama and artist Michael Golden, the green, humanoid rabbit space captain Bucky O'Hare first appeared in the anthology Echo of Futurepast. This series, and the five-issue Bucky series that followed it, were published by Continuity Comics, the brilliant publishing house that gave us the "brilliant" Skateman. Their website also promotes Mr. T and the T-Force, though that was published through Now Comics. Hmm. I only mention that to sneak in a Mr. T reference. Hee.
So, right. Bucky O'Hare lives in a universe populated by anthropomorphic animals that are in a war: mammals vs. toads. The Toad Empire, you see, is a vast brainwashed organization led by the evil computer system KOMPLEX. Bucky belongs to S.P.A.C.E., which stands for "Sentient Protoplasm Against Colonial Encroachment." He captains a spaceship with the greatest name ever, the Righteous Indignation, and his crew consists of:
Jenny, the first mate, who had magical and psychic powers;
Deadeye Duck, a-- get this-- pirate duck! Awesome!!!!;
Blinky, an android-y sort of thing;
Willy DuWitt, a boy from our universe who was good at science or something.
The original series was reprinted in a graphic novel. Over in the UK, I hear it continued for 15 more issues with a different creative team, but I can't find anything else about it. Anyone versed in Bucky O'Hare knowledge? Anyone? No?
(Sorry I can't find a larger file of that middle one. It looks neat.)
The comic spawned a cartoon series that incorporated some other crew members, like a big fella named Bruiser. WordPress never lets me embed YouTube videos (I have no idea how Brian does it. He is like unto a wizard), so I'm just going to link you to the Bucky O'Hare animated series intro. It's one of the craziest theme songs of all time. Your brain may not forgive you. And if you look hard enough, I think you can find the entire run of the show on YouTube. Neal Adams actually did a lot of work in developing the show, so it's interesting for we comic fans.
The series only lasted thirteen episodes, but it produced a cult fan base and a ton of merchandising. There were toys and video games and arcade games and all sorts of weird stuff that I probably have sitting around somewhere in my house.
Bucky's fame was short-lived, however, and he vanished in the early 90's. Neal Adams has talked about resurrecting him in a new cartoon, and there's a computer animated thing floating around the internet (you can view it here on Adams' website), and a vague IMDB entry mentioning something in 2008, but there doesn't seem to be any more information on it. Will Bucky O'Hare return, or will he remain in limbo? Time will tell, I suppose.
A green rabbit and his crazy animal crew fighting against an army of amphibians for the fate of the universe-- my God, the premise just sounds brilliant. Combined with gorgeous Golden art and backed by crazy stories, you've got a good comic.
And now, a 21-laser salute for the lost Captain O'Hare. Also, a Wiki link.