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A Brief Survey of Motorcycles in Comics & Superhero Media (Since 1970)

Kevin LaPorte writes,

Allow me to preface this review of motorcycles as story vehicles (get it?!) in comic books/comic-inspired movies with a disclaimer that I take no ownership of expertise on this topic. Aside from being a reader of comics since the mid-1970's, I've not researched motorcycle motifs or biker culture as represented in our favored medium beyond a cursory review of relevant properties to include in the discussion that follows. In other words, if I missed a motorcycle title that matters to you, or if I glance over some grand allegory fueled by the use of motorcycle themes in a particular story, you can't blame me!

I became interested in the topic as I wrote my own comic, Roadkill du Jour, the story of a lone biker cursed to eat only roadkill by a witch from a rival gang who also annihilated his entire gang and family. On a meta-level, I was also curious as to why motorcycles infiltrated my story to the extent that they did. One portion of that answer is my close following of Kurt Sutter's amazing Sons of Anarchy television series in recent years, but I also realized motorcycles and their unique cultural and aesthetic influences had permeated much of what I consider cool.

Did I mention that Roadkill du Jour is now funding on Kickstarter? That was rhetorical…OF COURSE, it's funding on Kickstarter, and you can check it out RIGHT HERE:

RDJ Cover Re-Dress KSRDJ-2 Cover Dress - SMALLRDJ-3 Cover Dress - Web

Now that you know, on to the related topic at hand…

Batcycle

Being born in 1970, the 1966 Batman television program was in heavy syndication on weekday afternoons by the time I reached school age, and that monumental show – camp and all – conspired with Star Trek to utterly warp my little brain into nerd shape. I mean, West and Ward were merchandising when merchandising wasn't cool – Bat-Boat, Bat-Copter, Bat-Mobile and…Bat-Cycle, COMPLETE with Robin sidecar. When you're 5 years-old, sidecars are the ultimate, because there's that chance, that possibility, that you'll get to sit in it by yourself, since, you know, no actual driving required!

Bat-Cycle Cool Factor (1-10): 10!

And then there was THIS:

m5

The 70's Captain America television series, featuring Evel Knievel rip-off motorcycle and the PERMANENT motorcycle helmet! Naturally, at 7 or 8 years-old, this bike was the end-all, especially with the shield-as-windshield feature! Nowadays, looking at the same star-spangled get-up, I get a nice, self-depricating chuckle at the fact that kid-me once loved this show, especially when Conan O'Brien repeatedly uses the hokiest possible clips from it as faux trailers for the modern Captain America films. As easy it is for me to recall the Bat-Cycle's sleek design from memory now, Motor-Cap's bike is just as easily forgotten…

Cap-Cycle Cool Factor (1-10): 2

Speaking of Evel Knievel, real-life 70's motorcycle daredevil and pop culture hero (yeah, he had his own comic…), he was clearly more Captain America than glam Steve Rogers of that era ever was.

m1Jet Cycle

I mean, come on, he had a JET CYCLE and his own TV specials back in the day! All of his motorcycles were cool, not just because of the dizzying levels of stars-and-stripes emblazoned across them all, but because they were real. These bikes really jumped umpteen buses or starving Great Whites or whatever. Evel entered the realm of pop culture fiction at times, but that was HIM attempting to jump the Grand Canyon. What an entertainment legend. And, in his later years, he bore a striking resemblance to Tobin Bell – Jigsaw of Saw horror film fame – Evel indeed…

m2

Evel Knievel Jet Cycle Cool Factor (1-10): 10!

Some combination of Evel, Motor-Cap and early 80's hallucinogens converged into THESE guys:

m3

Team America, Marvel's ongoing comic featured a full team of groovy stunt riders, including R. U. Ready, Honcho and Wrench, the five of whom could merge into one mega-rider, Marauder or…er…The Black Rider… Being the early 80's, as mutant mania was cresting on the back of the Claremont glory days, some writer's meeting became an instant joke when it was decided to make Team America mutants. That's right, trained by Chuck Xavier and all. If there IS a God, somewhere there's a discarded panel of Professor X ramping over a Danger Room obstacle in his wheelchair followed by Team America…

Team America Cool Factor (1-10): 1

Easily the most renowned motorcycle in comics belongs to Ghost Rider, of course, and with good reason.

Ghost Rider 70s Ghost Rider 90s

Regardless of which version of the character you read, Johnny Blaze or Dan Ketch or Nick Cage, it must be admitted that the bike itself is cool. I'm a 90's Ghost Rider guy, myself, and can instantly recall images of Javier Saltares and Mark Texeira's flame-spewing machine tooling up the sides of buildings amidst a hail of shuriken. Even in those god-forsaken Ghost Rider movies, the highlights were the bike effects, just the sheer inferno of cool of the live action motorcycle was worth the price of admission (to me, anyway).

Ghost Rider's Motorcycle Cool Factor: 10!

Motorcycles continue to maintain a heavy presence in pop and comics culture. Sons of Anarchy is now a comic book:

Sons of Anarchy

And, while the motorcycle-straddling Ghost Rider is now relegated to a seemingly ill-conceived membership in Thunderbolts, and the currently-headlining Ghost Rider is driving a car (but that's one helluva read – I recommend it), you can get your comics motorcycle fix in Roadkill du Jour by backing our Kickstarter campaign.

RDJ-3-02-03-STANDARDRDJ-3-02-03-STANDARD

It's fun to go through all these motorcycle memories, but, for this writer's money, the greatest motorcycle hero is – and always WILL be – this guy:

 

Prince Cycle


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Rich JohnstonAbout Rich Johnston

Founder of Bleeding Cool. The longest-serving digital news reporter in the world, since 1992. Author of The Flying Friar, Holed Up, The Avengefuls, Doctor Who: Room With A Deja Vu, The Many Murders Of Miss Cranbourne, Chase Variant. Lives in South-West London, works from Blacks on Dean Street, shops at Piranha Comics. Father of two. Political cartoonist.
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