Holy Lexicon!

April 29, 2004 10:04 AM

KAA-WHUUMPH! GGGRRRAAA! WHAM! A strange collection of comic book words, and citations as to just what comic they came from.
posted by jpburns (20 comments total)

Ugly site, but amazing references. Here's an example:

WHAM [Our Fighting Forces #111, 1968] The sound of a collision;The sound of an explosion: [Madballs vol.1 #7, 1987] The sound of an object hitting the ground: [Rag #1] A hitting sound: [Darkhold #10, 1993] The sound made by a slamming fist: [Pitt #1, 1993] The slamming sound of a body against a wall: [Madballs vol.1 #7, 1987] A banging sound, as upon a door: also WHAMB [Venom: Lethal Protector #3, 1993] The sound of an explosion: also WHAMM [G.I.Joe vol.1 #6, 1987] The sound of a heavy gun being fired.
posted by jpburns at 10:06 AM on April 29, 2004

I just didn't have enough onomatopoeias in my life until now. Thanks!

Though my all-time favorite is the "Grr. Arrgh!" sound made at the end of any Mutant Enemy production...
posted by WolfDaddy at 10:25 AM on April 29, 2004

See also The Unh! Project
posted by mookieproof at 10:30 AM on April 29, 2004

i would have liked to have seen more Don Martin references. entertaining read, though.
posted by ruddhist at 10:37 AM on April 29, 2004

I cannot believe they left out my favorite one: SNIKT!
posted by Ty Webb at 10:38 AM on April 29, 2004

As Ty pointed out- no Wolverine reference for SNIKT.
Also: no Spider-Man THWIP and no Nightcrawler BAMF.

I call shenanigans.
posted by dogwelder at 10:55 AM on April 29, 2004

My favorites have always been "Thwa-KRAKK!!," "BRZAPT!" (from original Marvel Star Wars adaptation), "Krakka-THOOM" (The Thing shredding something or other)...

... and of course, the best ever, "BAMF!" :)

on preview, dangit dogwelder! SHWAPFT! to you!

I'm with ya on Don Martin, ruddhist - I have a set of the Don Martin Sound Effect Stickers from MAD, carefully tucked away now. I've always drawn much inspiration from him. My faves there: "Floi-doip!" "Spangg!" and "Shploit!"

Priceless. :)
posted by zoogleplex at 11:03 AM on April 29, 2004

Correct me if I'm wrong, but didn't Don Martin do a terrific bit on phony comic book sound effects? I remember PLOOBADOOSH! 'The sound of Wonder Woman undoing her Amazonian brassiere.'
posted by steef at 11:24 AM on April 29, 2004

here we go. i especially like "McPWAF," the sound of Superman trying to catch a safe loaded with Kryptonite.
posted by ruddhist at 11:32 AM on April 29, 2004

steef: there's an option to view that list by date - the issue we're thinking of is #210.
posted by ruddhist at 11:36 AM on April 29, 2004

steef, Don Martin most certainly did. They're all on this exhaustive list, including my favourite of all time:

GEEEN: Plastic Man Giving A Guy On The 32nd Floor The Finger.

When I was about ten, I thought this was about the funniest thing I'd ever read.

As for the linked list, the S file is particularly robust. This, for example, is pure gold:

SHCHUKK [ROM #35, 1982] A sound made when slammed and pinned to a wall with a trident

And this is either some fantastic accidental humour or a very dry yiddish wit:

SHTUP [Clint #1, 1986] The sound of a bullet hitting upholstery

Great link.

(On preview, ruddhist beat me to the Don Martin punch - FWAPADA DAPADA - by a couple of minutes. Drat!)
posted by gompa at 11:37 AM on April 29, 2004

i propose "GRRRT NGH ARGH" - the sound of a MeFite being scooped on a great link. :)
posted by ruddhist at 11:43 AM on April 29, 2004

OH YEAH!! My favorite Don Martin of all time! Slipped my mind. It's a boxer pummeling his opponent like his head is a speed bag:

"BUKKIDA-BUKKIDA BAKKIDA-BAKKIDA!"

The man was a genius.
posted by zoogleplex at 11:46 AM on April 29, 2004

it's comics day on Metafilter and i for one couldn't be happier.

Don Martin took onomatopoeia to the level of an art form.
posted by Miles Long at 11:53 AM on April 29, 2004

Or how about the Tick: "TAKE!" when he snatches something away from Arthur.
posted by Ty Webb at 11:54 AM on April 29, 2004

I guess he did a lot of boxer pummeling sound effects, looking at that list... I gotta see if I can find that sticker sheet and scant it in for the edification of the masses.
posted by zoogleplex at 11:56 AM on April 29, 2004

ZOT! - lightning strike, the prime contribution of the much-reviled comic B.C.

But my two favorites, from the fearless Matt Feazell:

BRUM - a car, accelerating
ERT - a car, braking

There should also be more sound effects with umlauts.
posted by furiousthought at 12:56 PM on April 29, 2004

Hey, does "yoink" have a history before the Simpsons?
posted by furiousthought at 1:04 PM on April 29, 2004

"After watching a bit of anime or reading manga in Japanese, it will quickly become apparent that the Japanese have words for sounds that cannot be heard."
posted by kurumi at 2:43 PM on April 29, 2004

When I was in greece I (somehow) ended up with a penthouse or a playboy or something. It had erotic comics in it, and it was amusing to see how they interpreted various sounds, much like it is amusing to see what sound chinese people think cows and ducks make. I seem to recall, in particular, a "plikky" or maybe "plikkity" (this is of course transliterated). I long since gave away those issues as gifts when I got home, so I don't have them any more.

FYI: Foreign editions of playboy are great, particularly italian and greek.
posted by RustyBrooks at 10:08 PM on April 29, 2004