posted
What is it about Brainiac 5 and guns? In the last issue (#14), there was reference to Brainy helping out with that armory of deadly weapons, and Phantom Girl not surprised at the news.
I suspect it's something in their brains and their culture. They've overdeveloped the logic part of the brain and let the instinctive part atrophy - the part that reminds you to look behind you, to sense danger... so they compensate by inventing big guns and nasty things like the postboot prison Hell.
There have been a fair number of scenes of Brainy with big guns. One is from the Adventure story in which they move into their new HQ (#367) with Brainy very proudly showing off the Weapons room.
Maybe it's a failing of genius. There's a character in one of the Discworld books who's a super-smart inventor being kept prisoner of The Patrician, and the inventor doodles butterflies and weapons to destroy the universe, on the same piece of paper (as I recall).
Faraway Lad
Senator of the UP. Permanent Ambassador to the Court of Saint James
posted
Ah! The noble Leonard of Quirm. Discworlds version of Leonardo da Vinci
(taken from the Discworld Wiki)
Like the early Leonardo he has designed a great number of war machines, and like the later Leonardo he holds war to be the worst of human activities. It has been noted, however, that the sketches which he makes of the devices he imagines variously show ". . . numbered parts and a list of instructions . . . " or ". . . practically include glue and transfers". Still others have noted that the sketches deal with the swift removal of inconveniently placed mountains, or show dying sailors leaping from burning ships into a boiling sea.
Despite this, Leonard views all his martial designs as intellectual exercises, and refuses to believe anyone would be mad enough to make them. His magnum opus in this department was an invention mentioned in The Fifth Elephant, which was described as a weapon of such destructive power, it would render war meaningless, as no one would ever dare use it.
I had never really applied this to Brainy but can see how it could be very apt.
-------------------- Faithfull
From: Newcastle upon Tyne England | Registered: Jul 2003
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posted
Leonard of Quirm - that's the guy! I wish Brainy was written more like that - the distracted genius off in his own world, not some smug jerk who talks down to everyone.
posted
There are billions of ways to harm and kill, many of them involving words not metal. The cultural aspect of "guns" IMO is more social-political than evolution of the brain or change of instincts. Maybe there's some symbiotic relation?
It would seem instinctive to me for a person with no protective powers to develop something to stop threat at a distance. That doesn't seem a failure to me. If the means for accomplishing that is called a "gun" so be it.
Likewise "smugness" can be cultural interpretation and not intent. A facial expression or posture in one culture has a different interpretation in another. Brainy hasn't put himself before others any more than any other Legionnaire. He doesn't shy away from danger or personal harm. His motives are as altruistic as anyone's. It's his means that are not understood.
It's grating because we are not of the same culture but who wouldn't want him on their team?
From: East Toledo | Registered: Jul 2003
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Eryk Davis Ester
Created from the Cosmic Legends of the Universe!
posted
Brainy didn't design the weapons that are contained in facility, though. I take it the point is that is supposed to house pre-existing weapons that need to be kept under lock and key. Of course, why the U.P. feels the need to keep stuff like the Atomic Axe rather than destroying it is a little mysterious, but whatever...
From: Liberty City | Registered: Jul 2003
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posted
The military/weapon theme is one aspect of my interest in what a Coluan society could be like and how it's been portrayed throughout Legion history.
The current Coluans themselves seem pretty helpless, based on the #0 story. It's not unlike the scene from The Magic Wars when, after tech collapses, they're all lost and complaining (although they did manage to make a fire).
Postboot Coluans were more devious and enterprising - they had more of a defensive mindset. DnA's Coluans contributed to the attack on Robotica by calculating, not by building a weapon. The 3booters were all about data, and were apparently incapable of resisting Lemnos. Only in Superboy's Legion did we have what one might call a truly evolved spiritual society - which had hidden itself (IIRC) as a means of defense.
Of course, any genius is going to be of great interest to any military and Brainy does seem to enjoy or have an inclination to working with defensive weapons. I wonder to what degree it's academic interest, without much regard to consequence, or a particular love of weaponry, or if he does see himself as the best one to develop or understand weapons for the good of the Legion and the U.P. - a needs must situation.
posted
In Postboot LSH69, Brainy and Lyle face the Composite Durlan. Brainy tries to go in for a better look. Lyle stops him, telling him to "think like our enemy for once - the first thing he'll do is take out our genius..."
and the Durlan fries both of them with lightning.
Brainy learned, though. When they got the clone Superboy from the past, Brainy developed his forcefield bet to stop Superboy from manhandling him again.
I think that forcefield belt is a good insight into Brainy's character. It's very defensive, but can be used offensively when needed - like trapping an enemy in the forcefield. It would later become an intrinsic part of him, and Brainy would use it creatively to push enemies away and knock them out via forcefield fists to the head.
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From: Wouldn't you like to know? | Registered: Oct 2003
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Eryk Davis Ester
Created from the Cosmic Legends of the Universe!
posted
The most important even in Coluan history that we're aware of seems to be it's takeover by the Computer Tyrants. So, I guess that leads to two questions: 1) What would lead their culture to build computers that would be capable of ruling over them? and 2) What effects would that event and their subsequent liberation have on their society?
Besides that, there's the two great technologies traditionally associated with Colu, namely force shields and shrinking rays. Both of these can be thought of as heavily defensive techs, especially if one uses the shrinking rays primarily to hide stuff. Whatever stealth tech they used to hide the planet in Superboy's Legion is part of this same theme.
I've always had the impression that Coluans in general were kind of lazy, but I can't put my finger on exactly why I have that impression.
From: Liberty City | Registered: Jul 2003
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posted
1) I think goes into the anyone can miscalculate. 2) I can see them doing it again. They really do not have a presence in the universe. Whatever motivates them to be so mentally centered and to continue to push the limits of their technology doesn't seem to have anything to do with any big picture. They are simply scratching itches.
From: East Toledo | Registered: Jul 2003
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posted
Re lazy Coluans, the Postboot made a big deal about how Coluans did most of their research on theory, but weren't interested in the practical applications. Lyle and Brainy had a bit of a rivalry over it, and it was explained (I think) that the Coluans eschewed practical/applied research for a millenium because the original Brainiac almost took voer Colu in the 21st century. So maybe that's why.
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From: Wouldn't you like to know? | Registered: Oct 2003
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Set
There's not a word yet, for old friends who've just met.
posted
It might be fun to take a meta-textual view on this.
We all know, out of story, why so many Earth inventions go wildly out of hand (since all the stories are set on Earth), and, in some cases, threaten the entire universe, but it might be an interesting in-story 'fact' that these universe threatening inventions or discoveries are never made on Colu, because the Coluans are just generally too smart (and experienced, and cautious, after their experiences with the original Brainiac) to develop technology or conduct research that could blow up their planet, or awaken Krona / the blue baby of doom, or create a new ultimate weapon like the Atomic Axe.
While, out of story, the reason they never invent anything that can threaten the universe is the same as why such things never happen on Braal or Imsk or New New New New Tamaran, because the comic is Earth-centric, it could be used as an 'excuse' for why Colu never seems to develop world-shattering tech.
Registered: Aug 2006
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