Bananaman facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Bananaman |
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|---|---|
| DC Thomson comic strip character(s) | |
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| Publication information | |
| Creator(s) | Steve Bright (writer) Dave Donaldson (writer) John Geering (artist) |
| Other contributors | Barrie Appleby Tom Paterson Wayne Thompson Nigel Auchterlounie Kev F Sutherland Cavan Scott Tommy Donbavand Danny Pearson |
| Current/last artist | Ned Hartley Wayne Thompson |
| First appearance | |
| The Beano | Issue #3618 (14 January 2012) |
| The Dandy | Electronic publication (2012) |
| Nutty | Issue #1 (16 February 1980) |
| Last appearance | |
| The Dandy | 2013 |
| Nutty | Issue #292 (14 September 1985) |
| Main character | |
| Name | Bananaman |
| Alias(es) | Eric Allan Eric Wimp Little Eric Eric Wenk Bannerman |
| Family | Bananagirl (cousin) |
| Friend(s) | Chief O'Reilly, Crow |
| Powers | Superhuman strength Flight Invulnerability Breathing in space Helium-boosted heat finger Also equipped with gadgets: Thermal Banana, Banana Laser Gun, electronic thermal underwear. |
| Weakness(es) | Immense stupidity (quoted as having "The muscles of twenty men, and the brains of twenty mussels") |
Bananaman is a funny superhero character from British comic books. He is a parody, which means he makes fun of traditional superheroes. Bananaman is actually a schoolboy who turns into a strong, caped hero when he eats a banana!
The character first appeared in the comic Nutty in 1980. He was drawn by John Geering. Since then, Bananaman has also appeared in other popular comics like The Dandy and The Beano.
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Bananaman's Comic Adventures
The original Bananaman comic strip was created by Dave Donaldson and Steve Bright. It was mostly drawn by John Geering for many years. The comic was a funny take on famous superheroes like Superman and Batman. It mixed silly comedy with a unique British sense of humor.
After John Geering passed away, other artists like Barrie Appleby and Tom Paterson continued drawing the strip. Later, Steve Bright, who helped write the original stories, also drew it for a while.
In 2010, Wayne Thompson started drawing Bananaman for The Dandy. His style changed over time, becoming more cartoon-like and detailed. Bananaman even got his own annual comic book from 1983 to 1986. These annuals were special because they had all new stories, unlike many other comic annuals that just reprinted old ones.
Bananaman joined The Beano comic in 2012. He continued to appear in The Dandy too. In The Beano, it was revealed that Bananagirl from the Super School comic strip is his cousin! Even after The Dandy print comic ended, Bananaman continued in its digital version. New Bananaman stories are still being made for The Beano today.
Who is Bananaman?
Bananaman's secret identity is Eric Wimp, an ordinary schoolboy. He lives at 29 Acacia Road in a town that changes names depending on the comic (Nuttytown, Dandytown, or Beanotown). When Eric eats a banana, he transforms into Bananaman!
Bananaman is an adult superhero with a blue and yellow costume. He wears a yellow cape that looks like a banana peel. His amazing superpowers include:
- The ability to fly high in the sky.
- Superhuman strength, often said to be like "twenty big men."
- He seems to be invulnerable, meaning he's very hard to hurt.
However, Bananaman has one big weakness: he's very naive and foolish. The comic often jokes that he has "the muscles of twenty men and the brains of twenty mussels." This means he's super strong but not very smart!
If Bananaman needs more power, he can eat more bananas. His loyal pet crow often helps him find them. If he eats too many bananas, he might get really big and round! Sometimes, if he eats a special kind of banana, he transforms in a different way. Once, when he couldn't find a banana, he drank banana milk and turned into a useless, liquid version of himself!
Bananaman's Origin Stories
Bananaman has a couple of different origin stories about how he got his powers.
- Moon Baby: One story says that Eric Wimp was sent to Earth from the Moon as a baby. He gained his powers because the crescent moon looks like a banana. This story also gives Bananaman a weakness to moldy bananas, similar to Superman's weakness to kryptonite. He even has a secret hideout at the North Pole, which is a giant banana!
- Saturnium Banana: In a 1991 comic annual, Bananaman's origin was changed. This story said he was a normal baby in a hospital. He got his powers by accident when he ate a banana that had a stolen substance called 'Saturnium' hidden inside it. However, later comics usually went back to the moon baby origin as the real one.
Early ideas for the comic included a "Bananagirl" named Margaret Wimp, who would be Eric's sister. This idea was later used in The Beano comic, where Bananagirl became Eric's cousin.
Friends and Foes
Bananaman often fights different supervillains. Many of them are funny parodies of villains from older superhero comics. His main enemy is General Blight, a criminal mastermind. Other villains include:
- Doctor Gloom, a mad scientist.
- Appleman, Bananaman's evil fruit counterpart.
- The Weatherman, who causes mischief with the weather.
- Captain Cream, who loves desserts.
Over time, Bananaman's character changed a bit. He got a talking crow sidekick named Crow. Bananaman also became even more silly, sometimes forgetting how to fly or even how to use a door! He even started going to school, even though he was an adult.
Bananaman works with Chief O'Reilly, a police chief. Chief O'Reilly often calls Eric, thinking Eric is Bananaman's helper. The Chief's police station is shaped like a giant police helmet, and Bananaman often accidentally destroys it, so it has to be rebuilt!
Bananaman on TV
From 1983 to 1986, the BBC aired a cartoon series based on Bananaman. Famous comedians from a group called The Goodies did the voices for the characters.
In the cartoon, Eric's name was changed to Eric Twinge. He also had a banana-shaped hairstyle. Bananaman even had a love interest named Fiona, who was a newsreader.
The show was popular in the UK and also aired in the United States and Australia. In 2021, it was announced that a new Bananaman TV series might be made!
Bananaman Movie Plans
In 2014, there were plans to make a Bananaman movie. DC Thomson, the comic publisher, announced it with a planned release date in 2015. They even showed a teaser poster for the film.
However, the movie faced delays. By 2015, the official website just said "coming soon." In 2016, a Facebook page for a Bananaman musical mentioned the movie was still "in development."
Later in 2016, Beano Studios was formed to bring their characters to TV, film, and live shows. It was hoped they would take over the Bananaman movie project. But by 2017, the movie's official site was gone. It seems the film plans were eventually cancelled.
