Comments on: Meanwhile, On Krypton…

By: Mike Blake

Mike Blake — Tue, 30 Sep 2008 02:55:28 +0000

I’m with Carl; that part of the story could be classified as a drug-induced nightmare. Thus Clark might easily visualize a doctor with an iconic appearance, but given a Kryptonian twist.

One wonders if it was done on purpose, this being Moore.

By: Tom

Tom — Sun, 28 Sep 2008 11:40:38 +0000

The last person I saw using a head mirror was an engineer – very good for picking out the detail in a metal fracture. It gives a similar effect to a ring flash on a camera.

By: The Tensor

The Tensor — Sun, 28 Sep 2008 06:50:40 +0000

I once went to an ear-nose-and-throat guy (this would have been around 1980) who used a head-mirror. I thought it was awesome! I was very aware that he was using a slightly old-fashioned but *absolutely iconic* piece of doc-fu on me.

The part where he sterilized a smaller mirror over a flame then, without much warning, held it *way* in the back of my throat where I could feel the heat and taste/smell the hot steel? Not so much fun…but effective.

By: webrunner

webrunner — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 14:03:01 +0000

I’ve noticed that there’s kind of a new visual shorthand recently:

Stethoscope hung behind neck on shoulders = Doctor

Before they’d keep the stethoscope in a pocket or something, but recently I’ve seen more and more TV doctors wearing them on their shoulders.

There’s also

Police Box = Doctor

But that’s a different sort of Doctor.

By: David Oakes

David Oakes — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 13:43:42 +0000

That’s not a head mirror, that’s a portable Phantom Zone projector. Whenever a kid refuses to open up or get a shot quietly, the Doctor can “put them in the box” until they are more willing to cooperate.

By: Sallyp

Sallyp — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 13:43:31 +0000

It’s interesting. I’ve NEVER seen a real doctor wear a head mirror, and yet I can automatically identify one in a comic, or book or movie or television show, due to that handy little piec of headgear. It serves as such a wonderful piece of shorthand, that I suppose it will never die.

By: Keith

Keith — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 13:04:19 +0000

He appears to have both a head mirror AND a head-mounted flashlight. That’s super-advanced technology!

By: Carl

Carl — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 11:35:27 +0000

That scene in For the Man Who Has Everything happens in Superman’s imagination. Superman was raised on Earth. It really doesn’t say much about how real Kryptonian doctors lit their patients.

By: Robert

Robert — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 05:19:42 +0000

I actually listened to a podcast interview with Greg Weisman, the Supervising Producer/Story Editor/Writer of The Spectacular Spider-Man, and he is a very big fan of the Stan Lee/Steve Ditko Spider-Man stories. He said his goal was to never “invent” a character and goes out of his way to name check even such minor characters as “Coach Smith”

Of course their are major changes to the ethnicity, personality, and roles of many of the characters. Greg Weisman made a point to say that these decisions were done with a purpose and were not because he “didn’t know the original stories”.

By: Dean

Dean — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 05:02:49 +0000

At least the Kryptonians are scientifically advanced enough to wear a head mirror correctly.