In the history of wacky comic book crossovers, this may not rank in the top 10, but when DC Comics teases a crossover with the Looney Tunes by including Lobo and Jonah Hex, things are bound to get a little crazy.
Last year, I wrote a column for the Place to Be Nation detailing one of my favorite crossovers, the Superman & Bugs Bunny miniseries from 2000. While it’s a fun tale, the company hasn’t revisited the concept, despite both sets of characters being under the same corporate umbrella.
Well… until now.
Last week, DC Comics teased four crossover comics between DC Comics characters and their Looney Tunes counterparts with a series of covers. No story synopsis, no creative teams, not even a release date for any of the issues. Let’s take a look at what the company offered:
Well, that one’s pretty obvious: Marvin the Martian going up against J’onn J’onzz, the Martian Manhunter. You can’t fault anyone for that combination. Next?
Alright, that’s Wile E. Coyote hiring intergalactic bounty hunter Lobo, the last Czarnian, to hunt down the coyote’s nemesis, the Roadrunner. What a weird combination that also makes a certain amount of sense, given Lobo’s inexplicable popularity.
And in yet another weird combination of characters that makes a certain amount of sense, the cartoon gunslinger, Yosemite Sam, is put together with DC Comics’ Wild West gunslinger, Jonah Hex. I imagine a lot of things will be shot with this combination.
Finally, in the truest WTF moment of them all, Elmer Fudd calls off Wabbit Season in order to hunt a giant bat. I can’t imagine what could possibly link Fudd and Batman, unless somehow the Dodo mixes Bugs Bunny with The Joker. Hey now…
Remember when I said there were no creative teams announced? Shortly after DC Comics leaked the cover images, Batman writer Tom King took to Twitter, and he seemed pretty excited.
Did I mention that I'm currently writing an elmer Fudd/Batman noir?
FUDD: You seem to take a wot of wong turns at Albuquerwque.
— Tom King (@TomKingTK) February 22, 2017
OK, I’ll admit, that sounds pretty great. Actually, despite the craziness of the character team-ups, all of these sound pretty great. Although it might be a bit jarring to watch Lobo eat the Roadrunner. And then Wile E. Coyote, too. But I guess if Lobo can lose to Wolverine (like he did in the DC vs. Marvel crossover from the mid-1990s), I suppose the Roadrunner has a shot, too.
We can only wait to see when these issues will be officially announced and if there will be any more.