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WATCH: We rank the weirdness of Shazam!
Do you think you know Shazam!? Well, think again! Warner Bros. and New Line's Shazam! movie did a good job of covering most of the mythology for the hero formerly known as Captain Marvel. But there's plenty of weirdness in Shazam's history.
Join SYFY WIRE hosts Jackie Jennings and Angelique Roche, as well as features editor Jordan Zakarin, for a new round of Rank That Weirdness! The first topic is about the fact that Shazam can't say his own superhero name without transforming back into Billy Batson. As recently as 2011, this wasn't a problem. DC was still using the Captain Marvel name in the comics, while using Shazam! as the name of the comics. For example, the '90s comic series was called The Power of Shazam!, but it was still allowed to use Captain Marvel, Captain Marvel, Jr., and Mary Marvel.
The next item on the agenda is the short-lived Shazam! live-action series from 1974. This is truly a weird one, as this Saturday morning show featured young Billy Batson, and his mentor, Mentor, as they traveled the country in 1973 Dodge Open Road motorhome as they looked for excuses to let Billy transform into Shazam and fight crime. BTW, Mentor's name really was "Mentor" on the show. And if you happen to doubt that, check out the series on DC Universe.
Finally, we're tackling Elvis Presley's unabashed love and admiration for Captain Marvel Jr., the superhero form of Shazam's friend, Freddy Freeman. Even Elvis' signature hairstyle cam from Freddy. In the comics that followed, Freddy was a big fan of Elvis' as well!
For more Shazam! weirdness, check out the entire video!