It's been a while since I did one of these, and it seems like everyone always enjoys them. Certainly, I do. So it's time for another Hardcore, Take-No-Prisoners Trivia Contest!

This time, it's all about Imaginary Stories. You know, alternate-universe, What If, Elseworlds... anything that riffs on alternate outcomes to the REAL history of Marvel and DC characters. We might even throw in a couple of TV superfolks too.

Let's review the rules.

* DON'T POST YOUR ANSWERS IN THE COMMENTS SECTION. If you do I will delete them as soon as possible, and probably I will also gently mock your intelligence and reading comprehension skills. No, you must EMAIL YOUR ANSWERS to ghatcher79 (at) gmail.com. Putting "Trivia quiz" in the subject line would be helpful, as well.

* USING GOOGLE AND WIKIPEDIA IS FROWNED UPON. I've tried very hard to make this as internet-proof as I can, but we all know that really can't be done. So I implore you to cowboy up and try to do this without cheating. Come on, any idiot can type names into a search engine. If you MUST look things up, there's certainly no rule against it, that would just be mean. But meet me halfway on this -- for God's sake, pull out the real comics and look at them.

* CONTEST ENDS AT MIDNIGHT PACIFIC TIME ON THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 23RD. Because the answers will go up in Friday's column on the 24th.

* THE FINAL RULING ON WHAT CONSTITUTES CORRECT ANSWERS WILL BE MINE. I learned on the last couple of these that many of you are more thorough than me, often offering multiple possible correct answers or bringing up an angle I might not have considered. So if arbitration should become necessary, I will certainly try to be fair and award points to answers that deserve them, but I reserve the right to say, "Hey, it's my contest, and I'm doing it this way." In case of a tie score, the prize goes to the email with the earliest timestamp.

* AND DON'T POST YOUR ANSWERS IN THE COMMENTS SECTION! I know, I already said that, but it bears repeating. Seriously, it ruins the fun for everyone.

And what are they playing for, Greg?

Books! Some comics-related stuff, some things that are more in the pulp area, and some that are just cool.





Last Son of Krypton by Elliott Maggin, the first of his two original Superman novels, and Science Fiction of the 50s, a collection of pulpy goodness edited by Greenberg and Olander.

And additionally we have...





Volumes one and two of Avengers/Thunderbolts -- The Nefaria Protocols and Best Intentions. Written by Kurt Busiek and Fabian Nicieza, with art from Bagley and Perez on the first and Grummett and Kitson on the second.

And finally, we have...





Two from the 1970s Laser Books series, Seeds of Change by Thomas Monteleone and Herds by Stephen Goldin.

These are all fun books, but I somehow managed to acquire doubles on them during various outings like our recent bookscouting sojourn. So I'd like them to go to good homes. I'll happily ship them to the winner.

But of course we all know the REAL prize is showing that your nerd-fu is the mightiest of all. So let's see what you've got. Ready? Here we go.

1. According to What If #4, how many people served as Captain America? Who were they?





How about according to #5?

2. Lord knows DC has given us a bunch of characters using the name Supergirl, and even quite a few Superwomen.



We've had Linda Danvers, Matrix, Cir-El, Kristin Wells, Lucy Lane, the villainess from Earth-3, and so on. But in addition to them, we've had quite a few IMAGINARY super-ladies that either met or in some instances replaced Kal-El, as well. Who were Supermaid and Krypton Girl?

3. Who was the Master of the Future?

4. What was the NAME of the young lady who helped Conan the Barbarian when he Walked the Earth Today in What If #13?



And what was her parting gift to the Cimmerian?

5. Lex Luthor reformed when he was adopted by the Kents in Superman #175.



But who turned EVIL?

6. Who joined forces -- sort of -- to break up Peter Parker's wedding to Gwen Stacy?

7. You've all heard of Superboy... but who was Batboy, and what was his connection to the Boy of Steel?

8. Another Superboy Bat-question. When Superboy met the embittered young Bruce Wayne in Superboy #182, he was already well on his way to becoming the Batman. But Bruce wasn't going to call himself Batman at first, but instead planned to adopt another costumed persona that was even nastier.



What was it?

9. Who was Kitty Grimalkin, and what role did she play in Batman's life during World War II?

10. According to Valeria, how many members were predicted to be in the Fantastic Four by THE END?

11. The idea that the entire El family made it to Earth after Krypton exploded isn't a new one.

Only in the Weisinger-era version, the Kents did not adopt Kal-El. Indeed, in that version, a different person entirely is destined to eventually assume the role of Superman. Who is it?

12. On the short-lived SPIDER-MAN UNLIMITED animated series, why exactly did Peter Parker journey to a parallel Earth?



And what was the advantage he gained by changing to a new outfit when he did it?

13. Can you name ALL the participants brawling in the initial super-fight that resulted in the death of Frank Castle's family, that set him on the path to Kill The Marvel Universe?

14. On the TV show LOIS & CLARK, Lois journeys to a parallel world courtesy of H.G. Wells, only to find that that world's Lois is dead and Clark Kent is not a superhero. Who is Clark's loved one that objects so strenuously to his going out and helping people with his super abilities?





And for bonus points -- at the end of the episode, who's the former President that shows up to endorse Perry White at his mayoral rally?

15. Which variety of Kryptonite began as a plot point in a purely Imaginary Superboy story?



And who used it on Superboy?

16. In Evil's Might, how does the young Kyle Rayner manage to score a date with hot suffragette Carol Ferris?

....and that's despite her engagement to Inspector Hal Jordan. How does Carol excuse stepping out on her fiance?

17. And finally...WHO exactly does young Tallant have to battle to join the Brotherhood of the Bat?



There you go. Good luck -- and I'll see you next week.

P.S.... Don't put your answers down below in the Comments. Yeah, I know, but by the time you get all the way down here, I guarantee you someone will have forgotten. Thanks.