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Fun with Acronyms/Comic Books: Difference between revisions
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{{trope}}
Examples of [[{{TOPLEVELPAGE}}]] in [[{{SUBPAGENAME}}]] include:
* '''M.O.D.O.K.''', the '''M'''ental '''O'''rganism '''D'''esigned '''O'''nly For '''K'''illing, a frequent foe of the Avengers and [[Incredibly Lame Pun|head]] of '''A.I.M.''', '''A'''dvanced '''I'''dea '''M'''echanics.
** In one variant of M.O.D.O.K.'s origin story, he was originally named M.O.D.O.C., with the last initial standing for "Computation".
** After M.O.D.O.K.'s death (he got better later), A.I.M. created a more efficient female version called M.O.D.A.M. ("Mental Organism Designed for Aggressive Maneuvers"); there also was M.O.D.O.G, who was 'designed for genocide', and M.O.D.O.T. who was originally conceived to talk AIM command into raising the budget for his local branch of the organization.
** In the [[Lighter and Softer]] series ''[[The Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes
** A.I.M. has a splinter group called R.A.I.D. or Radically Advanced Ideas in Destruction.▼
** The kid-friendly parody ''[[The Superhero Squad Show]]'' was actually able to use its [[Never Say "Die"]] policy to have some fun with this:
* One '70s-era ''[[Captain America]]'' story had him battling the '''C'''ommittee to '''R'''estore '''A'''merica's '''P'''rinciples, a [[No Celebrities Were Harmed|thinly-veiled]] vesion of the '''C'''ommittee to '''RE'''-'''E'''lect the '''P'''resident (see below). Assemble the acronym yourself, and remember that "to" doesn't count...▼
{{quote|'''Gray Hulk:''' Ah, M.O.D.O.K. The Mental Organism Designed Only for Kick-ball.
** He also fights the '''U'''nderground '''L'''iberated '''T'''otally '''I'''ntegrated '''M'''obile '''A'''rmy '''T'''o '''U'''nite '''M'''ankind. ▼
'''M.O.D.O.K.:''' Yes, it—''Hey!'' That's not what it stands for!}}
* The [[Marvel Universe]] has '''S.H.I.E.L.D.''', Nick Fury's UN-backed paramilitary and intelligence organization. The acronym originally stood for '''S'''upreme '''H'''eadquarters, '''I'''nternational '''E'''spionage, '''L'''aw-'''E'''nforcement '''D'''ivision but this was changed in the early nineties to stand for '''S'''trategic '''H'''azard '''I'''ntervention, '''E'''spionage and '''L'''ogistics '''D'''irectorate. Within the confines of the [[Ultimate Marvel|Ultimate Marvel Universe]], Ultimate [[Spider Man]] has admitted that he has ''no clue'' what S.H.I.E.L.D. stands for, even though he has regular encounters with them and Nick Fury.▼
:* In another episode, however, he says the "K" stands for "Kick-butt."
:* In a story in the second ''[[West Coast Avengers]]'' story, he tried to find a girlfriend (no, seriously) by cloning an attractive, hunky, male body for himself and called himself B.R.O.D.O.K, Bio-Robotic Organism Designed Overwhelmingly for Kissing. It... [[Casanova Wannabe|wasn't his best idea]], and thankfully, he made sure to make the process reversible.
* ''[[Captain America (comics)|Captain America]]'' had quite a few foes like this:
▲** One '70s-era
▲** He also fights the '''U'''nderground '''L'''iberated '''T'''otally '''I'''ntegrated '''M'''obile '''A'''rmy '''T'''o '''U'''nite '''M'''ankind.
** The giant robot T.E.S.S.-One, '''T''' otal '''E'''limitantion '''O'''f '''S'''uper '''S'''oldiers, ([[I Call It Vera| Called "Tessie"]] by some villains who have used it.) Ironically, this was built by the same government agency that was behind the Super Soldier program that gave Cap his powers, intended to be a failsafe in case their Soldiers ever turned against them. T.E.S.S.-One itself, however, tends to be used as a pawn of Cap's enemies.
▲* The [[Marvel Universe]] has '''S.H.I.E.L.D.''', Nick Fury's UN-backed paramilitary and intelligence organization. The acronym originally stood for '''S'''upreme '''H'''eadquarters, '''I'''nternational '''E'''spionage, '''L'''aw-'''E'''nforcement '''D'''ivision but this was changed in the early nineties to stand for '''S'''trategic '''H'''azard '''I'''ntervention, '''E'''spionage and '''L'''ogistics '''D'''irectorate. Within the confines of the [[Ultimate Marvel|Ultimate Marvel Universe]], Ultimate [[Spider
** And in the recent movies it stands for '''S'''trategic '''H'''omeland '''I'''ntervention, '''E'''nforcement and '''L'''ogistics '''D'''ivision.
** In order to get even more mileage out of the acronym, S.H.I.E.L.D.'s extraterrestrial-focused counterpart was known as '''S.W.O.R.D.''', the '''S'''entient '''W'''orld '''O'''bservation and '''R'''esponse '''D'''epartment. Marvel UK had the British equivilent '''S.T.R.I.K.E.''', the '''S'''pecial '''T'''actical '''R'''eserve for '''I'''nternational '''K'''ey '''E'''mergencies, and in the 90's Marvel novels gave the UN-backed S.H.I.E.L.D. a US-backed counterpart: '''S.A.F.E.''', the '''S'''trategic '''A'''ction '''F'''or '''E'''mergencies. S.A.F.E. has apparently since been replaced by '''H.A.T.E.''', the '''H'''ighest '''A'''nti-'''T'''errorism '''E'''ffort.
*** Hank McCoy's [[Lampshade Hanging|lampshading]] of S.W.O.R.D. in AXM #6;
{{quote|
'''Hank McCoy:''' The government and their acronyms. Honestly, it's adorable. }}
▲** At least one spoof had '''S'''illy '''H'''umans '''I'''n '''E'''xtremely '''L'''ethal '''D'''anger
▲** Spoofed with '''H.A.M.M.E.R.''' which after Osborn named it, hired someone to come up a meaning for it. What it stands for has yet to be revealed.
▲*** Much more darkly spoofed in ''Dark Reign: Zodiac,'' in which Zodiac quizzes a H.A.M.M.E.R. Agent on what the acronym actually stands for... and when he doesn't answer, he kills him.
:*
▲**** "It's stitched on your colorful new uniform and you don't even know. Well, here's what blind faith will get you."
:* S.H.I.E.L.D. also had a (now disbanded) splinter group called W.A.N.D., the Wizardry Alchemy Necromancy Department, which is in charge handling of magic-related threats to national security.
▲*** Well, it seems it just stands for the mythologic monster itself, known for being (almost) impossible to destroy, reflecting their thoughts on their own organization. It's just that, despite always being written in ALL CAPS, HYDRA is not actually an acronym.
▲** The 2010 ''[[SHIELD]]'' miniseries has the [[Retcon]] that "The Shield" is an [[Ancient Tradition]] dating back to [[Ancient Egypt]], which presumably implies the relatively recent S.H.I.E.L.D. incarnations were backronyms ''within the story''.
* Parodied in Jim Valentino's ''normalman'', which had a superspy organization dubbed '''S.C.H.M.U.C.K.''', but as the footnotes claim, the name "Stands for Nothing in Particular."
* In DC Comics' ''Stars and S.T.R.I.P.E.'', the writers didn't bother to figure out what '''S.T.R.I.P.E.''' stood for. A fan suggested '''S'''pecial '''T'''actics '''R'''obotic '''I'''ntegrated '''P'''ower '''E'''nhancer, which DC adopted.
** Possibly at least partially [[Justified]] by the creator of the S.T.R.I.P.E. suit being Pat Dugan, a.k.a. Stripesy, the former sidekick of the original Star-Spangled Kid. He may not have thought about what STRIPE meant either, it being a [[Shout
* Those who didn't like [[Frank Miller]]'s job with '''''A'''ll-'''S'''tar'''s''' '''B'''atman '''A'''nd '''R'''obin'' often get a sick glee out of pointing out how the title spells '''[[All Star Batman and Robin|A.S.S.B.A.R.]]'''
** Similarly, fans of [[Grant Morrison]]'s '''A'''ll-'''S'''tar '''S'''uperman enjoy mentioning how much they enjoy "Grant Morrison's [[All
** ''[[All-Star Squadron]]'', a DC super-teamup comic in the 1980s (taking place during World War II), had similar acronym issues.
*** This was lampshaded by the Golden Age Superman in one of the first few issues, where he says that people should be careful how they abbreviate the group's name.
* S.T.A.R. Labs (Itself an acronym for Scientific and Technological Advanced Research) has a device called the '''A'''mbient '''N'''uclear '''U'''ltra '''S'''pectrograph. Lampshaded when Jimmy Olsen says that it's an overly long name and they should just use the acronym. The scientist operating it replies "You just think about that..."
* The ''[[Legion of Super
** The Legion has to deal with the '''R'''evolutionary '''E'''lite '''B'''rigade to '''E'''radicate '''L'''egion '''S'''upremacy.
* In [[
* Similarly, in Matt Fraction's ''[[Casanova (
* DC Comics also has the '''H.I.V.E.''' or '''H'''ierarchy for '''I'''nternational '''V'''engeance and '''E'''xtermination. In alternate universes where they are ''good' they are the Hierarchy for International Virtuous Empowerment.
* A [[The Simpsons (Comic Book)|Krusty the Clown]] comic involved the titular character in a spy spoof, with the A.C.R.O.N.Y.M. suit on the first page (entirely spelled out in footnotes) setting the tone for a [[Running Gag]].
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** And of course, Rosa's signature '''D.U.C.K.''' which he likes to hide in his various stories, and stands for '''D'''edicated to '''U'''nca '''C'''arl from '''K'''eno
* Joe Carioca's recurring "villains" are '''ANACOZECA''': '''A'''ssociacao '''NA'''cional dos '''CO'''bradores do '''ZE''' '''CA'''rioca, or in English, the National Association of Joe Carioca's Debt Collectors. It cheats a lot (and thus usually isn't written with dots), but at least you can pronounce the acronym as a word.
* In ''[[Twisted
* Of course, the first and most famous acronym in comics is the wizard [[Shazam]]'s name (also Captain Marvel's magic word), which indicates Captain Marvel has the wisdom of '''S'''olomon, the strength of '''H'''ercules, the stamina of '''A'''tlas, the power of '''Z'''eus, the courage of '''A'''chilles and the speed of '''M'''ercury.
** His [[Evil Counterpart]], Black Adam, uses the same word to draw on the power of ancient Egyptian gods. He has the stamina of '''S'''hu, the swiftness of '''H'''eru (Horus), the strength of '''A'''mon (Amun), the wisdom of '''Z'''ehuti (another name for Thoth), the power of '''A'''ton (Aten), and the courage of '''M'''ehen.
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* ''[[Grendel]]'', in the later arcs involving [[Ax Crazy|Eppy Thatcher]] and [[Magnificent Bastard|Orion Assante]], features the corrupt '''C'''onfederacy '''O'''f '''P'''olice. All of their equipment says "COP" on it, in case you didn't get it the first time around.
* With S.H.I.E.L.D., S.W.O.R.D., and A.R.M.O.R. temporarily out of the picture in Marvel comics, Mighty Avengers has introduced a new secret acronym organization: The '''G'''lobal '''R'''eactionary '''A'''gency for '''M'''ysterious '''P'''aranormal '''A'''ctivity. Enter Hank Pym: Agent of '''G.R.A.M.P.A.'''
** More likely Hank Pym, The Man From G.R.A.M.P.A.(riffing on [[The Man
* ''The Order'' faced the mysterious MIB The M.A.N. from S.H.A.D.O.W. He's eventually revealed to be working for the '''S'''uper '''H'''uman '''D'''evelopment and '''O'''peration organization, SHDO; apparently writing it as "SHADOW" is just an aesthetics thing. The "M.A.N." part doesn't mean or stand for anything, it's just to make him seem even more mysterious.
* Wally Wood's [[
* Notorious spanish comic book [[Mortadelo Y Filemon]] has '''TIA''', which when pronounced in Spanish sounds similar to tía (aunt), making it both an allegory to the CIA and a [[Shout
* A subversion happens in the swedish comic ''James Hund'' with the supercomputer KENT (which, thanks to phone taps and a tendency to take everything serious, ends up killing hundreds by public demand). His inventor is interviewed on TV and the talk show host asks what K.E.N.T. stands for, but the inventor reveals that he actually named it "Kent" because it's a nice name and he used to have a budgie named Kent.
* Classic ''[[Strontium Dog]]'' had an organisation called the '''C'''ommittee for '''U'''ltimate '''R'''etribution.
* Marvel's super-man Sentry had a super-computer which allowed him to decide which disasters to respond to in order to save as many lives as possible - '''CLOC''', the '''C'''entrally '''L'''ocated '''O'''rganic '''C'''omputer, which only received this illustrious name with the second volume of the series. In the same series, the Sentry's [[Evil Twin]] the Void was revealed to possess '''COLC''', the '''C'''omputer for '''O'''bliterating '''L'''ife '''C'''ompletely.
* Not sure if this falls under Comics or Real Life, but, once after Hal Jordan went crazy and Kyle Rayner became the only [[
* ''[[
* And then there's DC Comics itself. When the company first began in 1937, it was called "Detective Comics, Inc." Fans quickly began calling it "DC Comics," and eventually the company took this name officially. This has the unfortunate side effect of the company's full name being "[[Department of Redundancy Department|Detective Comics Comics]]."
* Played with in ''[[Dork Tower]]'' with '''G'''amers '''F'''or '''P'''ersonal '''H'''ygiene -- [http://www.dorktower.com/2006/07/12/comics-archive-807/ explained here.]
* A spoof comic by Michael Kupperman has a boy encounter an old man who promises to give him powers whenever he says '''SKREWPA'''. The old man explains the word is an acronym and starts listing what it stands for, but after E, the boy points out, "[[Parallel Porn Titles|Those are all porn movie titles!]]" The old man admits he forgot the actual words.
* In ''[[Quantum and Woody]]'', [[Team Pet]] Vincent Van Goat has the alias [http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/haedus HAEDUS] — '''H'''eavily '''A'''rmored '''E'''spionage '''D'''eadly '''U'''ber-'''S'''heep.
* '''A.C.R.O.S.T.I.C.''': '''A''' '''C'''abal '''R'''ecently '''O'''rganized '''S'''olely '''T'''o '''I'''nstigate '''C'''rimes, enemies of ''[[
* The [[Kingdom of Loathing]] comic mentions the '''F'''amiliar '''U'''nderground '''C'''ommunity of the '''K'''ingdom. Jill lampshades it: "What a long name... weird how they never came up with a clever acronym."
* After being vague as possible about just what happened on [[Spider
* ''[[PS238]]'' has [http://ps238.nodwick.com/comic/2017-08-04/ OOPS] ("[[MacGuffin|Objects of Overwhelming Power and Significance]]").
{{tropesubpagefooter}}
▲"[[Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers]]" featured a group of rednecks known as '''A'''mericans '''S'''ecretly '''S'''erving '''H'''igher '''O'''rder '''L'''aw '''E'''nforcement '''S'''ubservience. Yeah, you can figure that one out.
▲* After being vague as possible about just what happened on [[Spider Man|Peter and MJ's]] wedding day in the new timeline that the [[One More Day]] [[Cosmic Retcon]] caused, Marvel announced that a new storyline and sequel of sorts to One More Day would be released. As One More Day was considered to be an absoulte train wreck with the whole Peter and MJ were now never married thing and served as a vechile to do little more than break up the pairing, this was a bit of a hot button topic. The story in question was called '''O'''ne '''M'''oment '''I'''n '''T'''ime. [[Word of God]] said it was intentional. The fandom was not amused (especially not so when the story turned out to be, if possible, even crappier than One More Day).
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