M.C.F.A.T. XXV Answers

Last week I posted the TWENTY-FIFTH batch of the M.C.F.A.T., or Mysterious Cloaked Figure's Astonishing Test questions. The following brave souls answered the call(and questions):

B13.

Lorna.

Kev Bayer.

Darrell.

Sean.

And as for moi:

1) Where were you when America's new president was sworn into office? I know not everyone voted for the guy(I didn't), but it's hard not to notice the historical significance, and as much as I was dealing with in my personal life this past week, I definitely saw the effects of the inauguration on those around me, and I'm sure we all have interesting stories to share.
I neither agreed with nor liked Bill Clinton. I don't agree with Obama, from his stance on abortion to his proposed economic plans, but it's hard not to like the guy. He's a comic book geek and he has definite presence and charisma. The day of the inauguration, people began vanishing from their cubicles as we got close to noon, much to the chagrin of one supervisor who walked by and wondered where everyone went. Most gathered around the flatscreens in our dining area, watching in awed silence. I kept working, but I did get a streaming video up online in the corner of my monitor. I tried calling my parents at the nursing home but no one was answering the phone. I listened to more of the ceremony in my car on the way to lunch, and sat in a pizzeria watching as the new president led the old one to his helicopter. There was a genuine sense of history in the making, of a renewed sense of patriotism and inspiration. No president lives up to his speeches and promises, and reality always sets in, worse for some than for others. I genuinely hope this one turns out as good as people think he is, and only time will tell.


2) Who is your favorite legacy hero and why?
Legacy heroes are more common in DC Comics than Marvel. They've been around so much longer, they often have new characters take on the mantle of predecessors. The masks and powers might be the same even if the person underneath changes. I've heard good things about Captain America's replacement, though I haven't read any issues firsthand. Back in my collecting years, I could argue that Quasar was a legacy hero, in that the quantum bands that gave him his powers as Protector of the Universe were passed down to him. Other notable successors included Thunderstrike(Thor's replacement before making a name for himself after the thunder god returned), War Machine(who wore the Iron Man armor for a significant period of time before getting his own distinctive suit), and Spider-Man 2099(who had the distinction of a great science fiction origin that gave him, among other abilities, organic webbing, a concept the publisher would eventually adopt for both the screen and print depictions of the present-day character).

My absolute favorite legacy character is Terry McGuiness, Batman Beyond. This was a hip and stylish animated series that passed the hero's mantle on to a young rebel who grew into the role over the course of 52 episodes, mentored by his predecessor.


3) What was your best concert experience?
A week ago, I would have said Pearl Jam. They were my favorite band back in college, and up until recently the only major act I'd ever seen. It was an amazing outdoor show at Randall's Island, and I still have the t-shirt I bought as a souvenir as well as my favorite sunglasses, which flew out of my flannel shirt pocket while moshing along with my ticket stub. I could only grab one thing, and it was the stub that vanished in the mud and grass beneath the surging crowd.

Flash forward about a decade to Metallica, and now I'm not so sure Pearl Jam was my best experience. I was closer to the stage, younger, and outside, but there was something about seeing legends in person after so many years that was epic. It also marked a return, since they had a slew of subpar albums since the black album, the album I listened to the most when commuting back and forth to college in Queens. The set list was phenomenal, playing the perfect mix of new stuff and the best of their first five albums, completely ignoring the bad years. There were lasers and black beach balls and multicolored jets of flame and I still have a mild ringing in my ears. Life is inevitably full of regrets, and I'm ecstatic to be able to cross “never saw Metallica live” off of my list.


4) You're piloting a plane when geese fly into your engine; what do you do?
If I don't wake up from that nightmare, I run screaming from the cabin, “IS ANYONE HERE A PILOT?!” Hopefully, Chesley Sullenberger is on board, or we're all going to die.


SPECIAL BONUS QUESTION: Can you name all the GoBots in the following questionable clip?

I'll admit right now that I can only name two off the top of my head. Freaking GoBots....
Leader-1(and a doppelganger), Crasher, Cop-Tur and Herr Fiend. For the record, Leader-1 and Cop-Tur were the only two names I didn't have to look up. And though I couldn't recall her name, I did remember Crasher, the evil girl robot you know is a girl because of her lipstick. Freaking GoBots.