Encyclopedia Rucola

For a while, I’ve been indexing certain content in DC and Marvel comics, and I decided it’s time to begin to share what I’ve compiled.

Here are the general tags I use for this blog:

#musical moment - Songs that a character is either singing or listening to intentionally

#time for a treat - Food being highlighted and enjoyed by a character in a panel!

#cozy campfire - Issues that feature a camping trip

#birthday buds - Assuming characters’ birthdates based on publication dates of birthday scenes

#caffeine club - Characters’ regular coffee/tea orders!

Please feel free to suggest additional categories. These are just the fun things that have caught my attention while reading comics over the years.

Next, these are the more specific tags for logging sheer numbers

#hallies head injuries - We know Hal Jordan's reputation for gonking his gourd. This is my attempt to log every instance of it from 1959 to the present.

#sultans of swoon - My quest to settle a score for Jean Grey. I believe that Scott, not Jean, is the swooningest of the original X-Men. Here is where I'm keeping the scorecard. **submissions closed as I'm tracking this one chronologically**

Here’s how you can help!

I welcome submissions to any of my categories, as long as they are from either Marvel or DC comics, and you have an issue number for your find! As long as it's not a post already in my queue, I'll give you credit.

Pa Kent buys hot chocolate for his boy, Pete Ross, and himself ♥︎

They’ve prepared quite a spread for Diana’s homecoming— yet I can’t identify a single food item on this table!

Madelyne Pryor goes into precipitous labor alone, while Scott, the X-Men, and the New Mutants are in Asgard.

The poor woman delivers her own baby on the kitchen floor in the completely empty mansion.

It is a heartbreaking moment for poor Maddy, and one that spells the beginning of the end for her and Scott’s marriage. However, by nature of her precipitous labor, we can call a precise birthday for her baby. Nathan Christopher Charles Summers aka Cable is born on September 10, putting him in Virgo season with your humble Encyclopedia editor!

Dick can play more than just accordion! At an informal school dance, his teacher and his classmates ask him to play guitar at the campfire.

Detective Comics (1938) #386

Later, as a college freshman, he mentors a young kid in the housing projects near Hudson University, and they share their love of guitar with each other. In this issue, we also learn he owns a twelve-string. Fancy boy! But did we expect anything less ostentatious from the Boy Wonder?

Batman (1940) #244

Then, Dick and Joey take over for the wedding band at Donna and Terry’s reception! Although I have to wonder what kind of racket they were making with two guitars and a trumpet player.

The New Teen Titans (1984) #50

Although Dick and Joey’s noise couldn’t possibly have been rowdier than these two hooligans, featured in a previous post! Which led my sister and preeminent Dick Grayson scholar, the Peaceful Samurai, to theorize that Dick must have been the person to teach Damian guitar! Which is a really lovely thought.

Dick Grayson gets “hired” to announce the radio at Gotham High (including some secret messages from a gang of thieves, disguised as radio bumpers)!

I don’t know if the AV teacher knew Dick was planning to play accordion! I love that attention to detail, though, as it is such a nice reflection of his Romani heritage.

As a little treat, here is the Liszt that Dick was going to broadcast for us.

When you think you’re going to throw up normal-style, but instead Sinestro punches your head off from inside of you…

Here are the go-to coffee orders that I’ve found so far for DC and Marvel characters. For all your fanfic needs!

Hal Jordan (Green Lantern)

Not a usual order, per se, but he mentioned Alfred making honey tea for him once, presumably when he was under the weather, and he asks for it again (Green Lantern (2005) #9)

Iris West

Extra-large latte with triple shot of espresso (The Flash (2016) #71)

Kyle Rayner (Green Lantern)

Cappuccino with double sugar (Research post)

Matt Murdock (Daredevil)

Organic coffee with cream and two sugars (Daredevil (2011) #1)

X-Men & New Mutants

Decidedly not cozy, but definitely a campfire.

Once again, it’s Hal’s jaw versus Superman’s punch. Tale as old as time…

Jean Grey is alive again, and it feels great to be back in the game!

Cause of swoon: Overwhelmed by her own memory transfer from the Shi’ar crystal

Score: Scott [55] | Jean [50]

Hal is even taking the head injuries as the Spectre!

Kyle and John teach us about their respective tastes in Europop…

And Kyle enjoys the DC Universe equivalent of They Might Be Giants!

The X-Force recruiter stops by when you’re just trying to enjoy some hamburgers…

From Legends of the Legion #2

Wow, what a fascinating find! Thank you for contributing your discovery to the Encyclopedia!