Pop culture has been obsessed with superheroes – we can just point to a whole series of movies based on them that have dominated the international movie scene to make the point.
But not all superheroes are even human! Some superheroes are superpowered versions of normal animals, mutants, or other-dimensional evolved animals. And in some cases, they are in comic book universes where everyone is an animal!
DON’T CALL THEM PETS!
Now, let’s make an important distinction here: We’re not talking about super-powered animal companions. We might get into that in another article, but in this one, we’re talking about independent and usually human-level sentient animals.
Do take note that these aren’t the most popular but definitely are among the interesting and influential (for their time) superhero animals.
MIGHTY MOUSE (WHAT A MOUSE!)
But of course, we had to start with one of the earliest examples of a superhero animal – and it ain’t the Other Great Mouse.
First appearing in an animated short in 1942, Mighty Mouse seemed to be an animal stand-in for Superman, with the title of his first appearance being “The Mouse of Tomorrow”. He was even called Super Mouse until around 1944, and his early costumes were similar to Superman’s own.
Animators later changed his costume to a yellow one, with a red cape and trunks.
While he’s had a long history in animation and comic books since his debut, Gen X fans no doubt remember him for his cartoons being a part of their Saturday morning TV shows, along with his now-iconic theme song.
SUPERPOWERS
Mighty Mouse was an analogue for Superman, though he seemed to rely more on the classic speed, strength, invulnerability, and flight combo. And just like Superman in the early days, MM picked up quite a lot of other powers as the story needed them.
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Apparently, Mighty Mouse influenced the creation of yet another legendary character, the Mighty Atom – known to us as Astro Boy! Creator Osamu Tezuka said that is why the original name had “Mighty” in it, and why Astro Boy’s trademark flight pose is the same as what Mighty Mouse does.
DARKWING DUCK (LET’S GET DANGEROUS!)
Okay, we’re going on a bit of a stretch here: Darkwing Duck has no superpowers. However, he is a full-blown “Peak of the human (no, duck!) abilities” type, similar to Batman.
The premise of the show is that he is a normal suburban dad by day, and superhero adventurer by night. This dovetailed nicely into the fact that the whole series (and Darkwing Duck himself) were a parody of important literary genres that predate comic books – and where comic books got their influences, such as pulp novels and the concept of science heroes.
The series also took elements from golden age superheroes, such as the gas gun used by the Sandman of DC Comics.
SUPERPOWERS
Darkwing Duck doesn’t have superpowers, though it’s fair to say his stubbornness (or determination – hard to say which) is a superpower in itself. He usually comes across as goofy or ineffective, but the moment he says his tagline, then he becomes hypercompetent.
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Even his actual name, Drake Mallard (how duck-ish!) is a tribute to the pulp hero he was based on: The Shadow. It should be noted this famous pulp hero was also an influence for Batman’s creation.
TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES (HEROES IN A HALF SHELL!)
Let’s admit it, these four turtles are probably the biggest superhero animals outside of the big cartoon and comic book companies.
These pizza-loving ninja kids are an example of how flexible and adaptable pop culture mainstays can be: They’ve been everything from goofy, to being parodies, to being super serious, and – judging by the amount of crossovers they have with other superheroes (including Batman!) – the most well-traveled, interdimensionally speaking. Cowabunga indeed.
SUPERPOWERS
Did we say they were parodies?
Their original origins actually tie them to Daredevil, as it is implied the same accident that blinded Daredevil and gave him echolocation abilities turned four abandoned pet Turtles into humanoid mutated versions of themselves. Still, they are extremely tough (I mean, you know, shells), and some cartoons show that they can still pull in their heads, arms, and legs into their shells, and that they can survive multi-story falls.
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Everyone knows, of course, that they were named after great artists (Donnatello, Leonardo, Michelangelo, and Raphael). But did you know that the debt to Daredevil is also apparent in the way Master Splinter is named?
Daredevil’s ninja sensei (from when his origins were expanded on, and it turns out he was trained by ninjas) was named Stick. So… Stick and Splinter. Yeah. Not surprisingly, the fact that the Turtles were a parody came back to haunt them: The Samurai Pizza Cats are considered a parody of them!
DYNOMUTT, DOG WONDER (HE’S A GO-GO DOG PERSON!)
One of the “minor characters” of Hanna-Barbera Productions, Dynomutt has gained a somewhat cult status for being stated as a sidekick, but is actually the (super)hero of the series.
His partner (not exactly master) is Blue Falcon, and Batman-esque superhero. Dynomutt and Blue Falcon often cross over with another Hanna-Barbera creation, Scooby Doo (and the meddling kids he’s always with).
Dynomutt was not just a parody of other superheroes; he became a unique superhero in his own right due to the unique way he was presented as the main character, but not exactly the main superhero.
SUPERPOWERS
Depending on which origin you believe, Dynomutt is either a robot Dog or a cyborg one. He has the ability to extend his limbs and his neck, and to have tools and weapons come out of various parts of his body, similar to how Dr. Gadget does. However, his effectiveness in using this power is only as good as his level of clumsiness and confusion while in the heat of battle.
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In a recent tweak to his origins in the Scooby-Doo Mystery Incorporate cartoon series, it turns out that there is a link to his superpowers and Dr. Benton Quest – Jonny Quest’s father! Also, another piece of trivia is that a version of Dynomutt had a crossover with the Super Sons – Batman’s and Superman’s sons!
ROCKET RACOON (AIN’T NO THING LIKE HIM ‘CEPT HIM!)
It would be fair to say that Rocket Raccoon is the breakout superhero character of Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy franchise. This grumpy, nasty, but lovable “don’t call him a Raccoon” Raccoon provides the heart and soul of the movies he’s in.
In the comic books, he’s gone through a lot of changes, many of which left him with a confused fanbase. It’s safe to say that his revised story in the Marvel Cinematic Universe changed how new fans looked at the Rocket Raccoon.
Without giving spoilers, it’s even safe to say that much of the story of the GotG trilogy is about how he develops as a character.
SUPERPOWERS
Depending on the comic book or the movies, Rocket is either genetically reengineered or is a cyborg – both would explain why he’s a bit more human-like than the normal Raccoon.
However, aside from his anthropomorphic form being a superpower in itself, it’s also important to note that his animal senses – which are already beyond human sensitivity – have probably been expanded on even more, either through mutation or cybernetic add-ons.
But his real superpower is his highly developed brain. In both the comic books and the movies, he is a brilliant strategist, though his “mad scientist” thing is emphasized in the movies.
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If his name sounds familiar, then you’re probably a Beatles fan, as his name is taken from the song “Rocky Raccoon.” The lyrics to the song have been used as narrative points in his early appearances – in fact, he was known first as Rocky! He also had a British manner of speaking, which is the farthest from how he has been voiced in the movies.
CAPTAIN CARROT AND HIS AMAZING ZOO CREW (HAVE NO FEAR, THE ZOO CREW IS HERE!)
Captain Carrot and the Zoo Crew are an ersatz animal version of the Justice League. They are part of the DC Multiverse, in a parallel universe where earth is populated by anthropomorphic animals.
They are something of a parody of Golden Age superheroes. The main character, Captain Carrot, is considered a Superman analogue, but his powers are close to the original human Hourman – when he eats some special carrots, he becomes much like Superman in terms of his superpowers.
The same goes for the rest of them, with superpowers that mimic Justice League or Justice Society members, with tongue-in-cheek names and animal types – their speedster, Fastback, happens to be a Turtle. I am not kidding.
SUPERPOWERS
Other members, like Alley-Kat-Abra, Pig-Iron, Rubber Duck, Little Cheese, and Yankee Poodle are analogues somewhat of Zatanna, Colossus (from Marvel), Elongated Man, and the Atom. Yankee Poodle is a bit of a mashup, but in effect she’s something like Polaris – a female magnetism user.
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The Earth that Captain Carrot and his crew live on is actually meant to be an “official” universe of sorts for DC. It’s the universe where most, if not all funny animal comics in DC’s history, have happened.
Sadly, these superhero animals were the last of the “funny animal superheroes” to be created by DC. They occasionally pop-up here and there in the current DC comics continuity.
PETER PORKER (THE AMAZING SPIDER-HAM!)
Now, many animal superheroes tend to be parodies of “real ones,” but in this case, it gets (arguably) weirder: Peter was a Spider (!) who lived in the mad scientist May Porker’s basement.
In an experiment with an atomic-powered hairdryer, May was irradiated and went berserk… and bit Peter, turning him into an anthropomorphic Pig (yes, it’s an “animal world” timeline). May ended up thinking she was Peter’s aunt, and Peter had May’s mad scientist know-how transferred to himself, allowing him to create the web-spinner gloves that replaced his original abilities.
While the character has been around since 1983, he’s lately become very popular because of appearances in recent Spider-Man cartoons and Spider-verse movies. He’s portrayed to be even more of a jokester than Spider-Man himself, and he tends to be unsurprised at anything really weird (given his own origins and his world…).
SUPERPOWERS
Aside from possessing all the proportional abilities of a Spider (same as Spider-Man), he has a unique ability: Spider-Nonsense. This allows him to be even more cartoonish the more he is in danger, which works to his advantage.
Like Deadpool, he is aware that he is a comic book character, and that he is a parody of Spider-Man.
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If the idea of his Spider-Nonsense sounds familiar, a more recent take on it is how Luffy in One Piece goes into his Gear 5 form, where Luffy manipulates not only his body, but also the environment around him for a more cartoonish fighting style.
A darker callback to this would be Spinel, the main villain from Steven Universe: The Movie. Her character design and “physics of movement” is influenced by the “rubber-hose” animation in the 1920s-1930s.
In all, the idea of physics-challenging, whimsical cartoonish animation used as a superpower might end up becoming a “new” thing!
ANIMALS ARE COOL, AND THEY RULE!
And there you go! Let it not be said that we humans don’t love our furry family members – even in pop culture, we want them to be heroes in their own right. Even as parodies or copies of human characters, it says a lot that we want our Animal Friends to be superhero friends as well.
