Monday Fun: Superhero Cops and Van Camp

Need a little levity for your Monday? Freaking News covers the news by asking its readers to enter contests that require both computer design skills and a healthy sense of humor. Recently, after two policemen dressed as Batman and Robin apprehended an alleged drug offender, the website ran a contest for readers to modify police uniforms by giving them the superhero treatment. Our favorites were the Reno 911 Donut Cop as well as Green Lantern Al Gore, but there's a freaking whole lot more for you to laugh on Freaking News. Check out all the Super Police pics at the link. [Link]

While you're out web cruising, drop by Maxim Magazine online. It's not a site we often visit, and it's interesting to see how the Maxim guys tackle superhero news from their particular perspective. As we expected, muscle machines and automobiles with overdrive were a big part of their coverage, though the wet bikini-clad models were missing. Nevertheless, that small oversight didn't keep us from enjoying their 12 Superheroes Who Belong on 70's Vans.

Maxim doesn't reveal how they found their vans, but we're glad they did. Dazzler, the mutant disco dancer with a better light show than a Palm Springs circuit party, begins their countdown, and the Mighty Thor finds his way onto their list, too. Apparently, the Thor van's stereo has only one sound -- loud - and can play just one song, Led Zeppelin's Immigrant Song, at full volume. Although Stairway to Heaven might have been a better choice, there's no doubt the van's owner will be in Nirvana once Kenneth Branagh's film opens in 2011. Maxim has ten more superhero-studded mystery machines and plenty of snarky comments waiting for you at the link. [Link]

Abbracadabbling at the Movies

If the unofficial if not mischievous Thor teaser we had on the blog yesterday is any indication, the superhero 'cinemaniac' crowd has Photoshop prowess - and free time - to spare. Empire had the stellar idea to tap into that talent and, as we're certain you'll agree, direct it to a very creative end. When the movie and video news site recently asked its legion of readers to get clever and mash-up classic film posters with 50 different themes - from politics to Star Trek and the Bible to cheese, the response was, well, abbracadabbling. .

In fact, so many of the submissions Empire received were so good (and overwhelming), we had a tough time picking just a few to post. In the end, we narrowed our selection down to our favorite superhero and cartoon mash-ups -- mostly.

We know blog space is at a premium these days, but we did say mostly. Plus, we'd like to see you pass-up Uma Thurman starring in Pulp Pictionary, one of the absolute best non-role-playing games invented by Man? Well, neither could we. Empire's Board Game Mash-ups are here. [Link]

We've kind of been waxing nostalgic for old Atari ever since the PlayStation turned 15 last week -- weird, isn't it? -- and after we checked out the first twenty-five Video Game Mash-ups [Link], it felt only fair to give a nod to the little guys who taught us how to use our joysticks long before puberty even hit. The pixelated ghosts up front are priceless, and we'd pay double admission to see how the father of modern horror gets those guys spooky.

For the record, no one at the Springfield Home Office comes even close to being a Mel Gibson fan. But we've got nothing against Jerry Seinfeld or his show, and we've been intrigued by crop circles and their odd appeal to little green men since junior high. While not every Sitcom on the site tickled our clever bone, there were several gems in the bunch, too. Our fave was the sign feld mash-up, but the rest are just waiting for you to see here. [Link]

Cartoon character mash-ups [Link] came in at number-two, and they, like the superhero mash-ups, are a showcase of creativity. We laughed our asses off, in fact. And yes, we can say 'asses' on the comicsblog if we want to, okay?

Watchmen, er -- Brockman (LOL) -- is a great segue for us to show you just a few of the superhero-themed mashes before you get antsy in your seat. The very subtle yet unmistakable dark humor lurking in Kryptonite, And Good Luck and About a Boy Wonder is awesome, so well done. And while Emma Frost Nixon, like Riddler on the Roof, works for the rhyming, whoever made the mash-up must have read Grant Morrison's New X-Men or even Joss Whedon's Astonishing X-Men. Emma's White Queen is at least as much of a bitch as Nixon ever was, and for our money, even more of one. (Is it any wonder she's also the star of Friday's Winter One-derland?)

Get yourself over to Empire and plan to stay a while. We estimate they've got at least 1,250 mash-ups on the site, and the number could reach as high as 1500 or more. They're all listed by theme here [Link]. Or cut to the chase and go right to the Superhero section, which begins here. [Link]

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