Yearly Archives: 2008

Each week I spend time thinking up a (hopefully) interesting poll question, and I'm always fascinated to see people vote. But why do they vote the way they do? Why wouldn't you automatically pick Firestorm's powers to help you through a post-nuclear-holocaust world -- the guy can make literally anything he can think of!

So starting this week, each Sunday when I put up the new poll, I'll do so in a post like this one, so people can leave comments if they so please on what they think of the various options, why they chose as they did, etc. So here's the first one:

I play poker every week and I've often wondered what super-powers would make for the best gambler. And then I wonder why so few super-heroes ever go to Vegas and actually gamble -- She-Hulk was there in one series I put in the Mashup last week, but she just beat the crap out of stuff. Why not hit the tables, too?! But then, taking the element of chance out of it pretty much ruins the fun, I suppose.

Of course, the actual heroes on the list would never use their powers this way, so that part of it's moot. But that's why the question is not "Which of these characters would you want to see go to Vegas" but rather "YOU have their powers, what would YOU like to be able to do"!

Flash: Move at super-speed and on one can see you affect the way the dice come up, or where the Roulette ball lands. You're a winner every time, invisibly!
Longshot: Megariffic luck, say no more.
Magneto: Why gamble when you can just rip the door off the safe? Seriously, the safest thing to do with Magneto's powers would be to simply maneuver the levers inside the slot machines to pay off.
Plastic Man: Similarly to Magneto, when inserting coins you could slip your finger into the machine and manually make the slots pay.
Professor Xavier: It's a lot easier to win at poker or blackjack when you can read your opponent's mind to see what they're holding.
Superman: X-Ray Vision for the card games. Super-speed for the dice and roulette games. How unfair is it that he's, like, five different super-heroes all at once? I guess that's why he's Big Blue.

That's what I was thinking, but I'd love to hear why you pick the one you pick. And stay out of my poker game!