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Which Comic Character Is the Greatest Engineer?

ptorrone writes "From Bruce Wayne to Lex Luthor to Tony Stark — the most popular comic heroes are more than just beefy guys in skin tight suits, they're also business persons, titans of industry and brilliant engineers. While there will always be a lot of debate on who is the strongest or fastest, MAKE has an overview of their 14 top comic book engineers, scientists and hackers."

316 comments

  1. I can think of one by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    Also missing from the list is Retardo. Hes the guy who makes up all the stupid internet Top 10 type of lists.

    1. Re:I can think of one by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Sorry, this is top 14 so not lame at all

    2. Re:I can think of one by nbast · · Score: 1

      Clearly. I thought of Agatha Heterodyne immediately when I saw the post.

      http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php for those unfamiliar with the Folios' genius.

    3. Re:I can think of one by nbast · · Score: 1

      ack, this was supposed to be a reply to the Girl Genius post...

    4. Re:I can think of one by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      And GayPloto, who writes all the new Dr. Who's.

    5. Re:I can think of one by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Only in secular socialist America God doesn't make no. 1 of any of those lists

    6. Re:I can think of one by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Exactly. Slashdot has just jumped the shark...

    7. Re:I can think of one by elrous0 · · Score: 1

      Retardo is also a guy who thinks that comic books are a place to find serious science and engineering, in spite of the fact that most of them are set in universes where guys like the Flash and Superman can run/fly along the ground at near-light speed and not leave a path of destruction in their wake.

      --
      SJW: Someone who has run out of real oppression, and has to fake it.
    8. Re:I can think of one by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      So what you are saying is God is a fictional character?

  2. My vote... by Q-Hack! · · Score: 5, Funny

    Wiley Coyote... Super Genius.

    Though, his reliance on ACME for equipment, should be reconsidered.

       

    --
    Some days I get the sinking feeling Orwell was an optimist.
    1. Re:My vote... by MightyMartian · · Score: 1

      Wiley Coyote... Super Genius.

      Though, his reliance on ACME for equipment, should be reconsidered.

      Yes well, aren't we all dogged by shitty suppliers.

      --
      The world's burning. Moped Jesus spotted on I50. Details at 11.
    2. Re:My vote... by master5o1 · · Score: 2

      Wile E. Cyote is more like a script kiddie; he just uses the products without much change.

      --
      signature is pants
    3. Re:My vote... by guspasho · · Score: 1

      Can one be considered great if every single one of his "inventions" fails spectacularly?

    4. Re:My vote... by Master+Moose · · Score: 5, Interesting

      Am I the only one that would get frustrated that he would always give up with the equipment after just one attempt?

      He usually had a *sound* plan with a sure-fire method which was thwarted by poor execution or random variables that statically would not affect a 2nd, 3rd or 4th attempt at the same method.

      --
      . . .gone when the morning comes
    5. Re:My vote... by skeptikos · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Wiley Coyote... Super Genius.

      Though, his reliance on ACME for equipment, should be reconsidered.

       

      I always thought that Wiley Coyote depicts very well the agony of working as an engineer. The laws of nature seem to work against you. Murphy's laws are against you. The tools/equipment do not behave according to the specs, and tend to fail at the worst possible time. Good ideas fail because of implementation details or even bad luck. Yet, you cannot let the problem go, you have to fix it! One last try, ok, maybe another one!

    6. Re:My vote... by jimmydevice · · Score: 1

      This thread is full of WIN. My first thought was Batman, No superhuman abilities, strictly devices. But, Wile E. Coyote, an example of the total failure of technology.

    7. Re:My vote... by jimmydevice · · Score: 1

      Correction: The application and misapplication of technology

    8. Re:My vote... by ackthpt · · Score: 1

      Wiley Coyote... Super Genius.

      Though, his reliance on ACME for equipment, should be reconsidered.

       

      You have my sword.

      --

      A feeling of having made the same mistake before: Deja Foobar
    9. Re:My vote... by MrHanky · · Score: 1

      Minnie Mouse. Since social engineering is the most noble kind of engineering.

    10. Re:My vote... by robow · · Score: 1

      Are you going to risk falling off a cliff more than once???

    11. Re:My vote... by Martin+Blank · · Score: 1

      I think there were a few occasions where he tried multiple times. An attempt at launching himself with a giant rubber band, for example, was repeated until he got things right (after being crushed and caught up in the rubber band on different occasions) and actually caught up to the Road Runner. However, he hadn't the foresight to take into account... something. I forget what happened, but it of course did not go well for him.

      --
      You can never go home again... but I guess you can shop there.
    12. Re:My vote... by syousef · · Score: 2

      Minnie Mouse. Since social engineering is the most noble kind of engineering.

      Careful of that slippery slope. Once you start considering social engineering and mouseketeers there's a risk that Britney Spears will be named best engineer here on slashdot. Of course at that point the universe would no longer be able to sustain the paradox and would implode!

      --
      These posts express my own personal views, not those of my employer
    13. Re:My vote... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      http://qntm.org/coyote
      A dramatization of this.

      For my hubris, I have been sent to a world which obeys no scientific laws. For my crime of trying to understand, I have been delivered into Pandemonium, the malfunctioning universe, the cackling Vindictiverse. There is a God, a malevolent God, ACME is his name and the Bird is his demon sent to torment me.

    14. Re:My vote... by JDeane · · Score: 2

      and Murphy's Law.

    15. Re:My vote... by atomicbutterfly · · Score: 1

      However, he hadn't the foresight to take into account... something. I forget what happened, but it of course did not go well for him.

      If I recall correctly, he forgot to take into account that even though he caught up with the Road Runner, he was unable to stop. Hilarity ensures.

    16. Re:My vote... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      If I recall correctly, an encounter with the only road sign for a thousand miles resulted in rapid, unplanned deceleration.

    17. Re:My vote... by gstoddart · · Score: 4, Interesting

      Wile E. Cyote is more like a script kiddie; he just uses the products without much change.

      Script kiddy?? I don't think so.

      The ACME Catalog didn't show him how to take the roller skates, bicycle helmet, #3 solid rocket booster, 200 feet of rope, a pulley system, an umbrella and a ramp ... put it altogether, and end getting burned, dropped off a cliff, crushed and then rained on (with accompanying lightining strike).

      Wil E. Coyote is a frigging Rube Goldberg machine waiting to happen. He didn't just run something as shipped ... He put it together into amazingly strange combinations.

      Script kiddie? You, sir, did not watch NEARLY enough Bugs Bunny growing up. (And, I, apparently far too much. ;-p)

      --
      Lost at C:>. Found at C.
    18. Re:My vote... by budgenator · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Wile should get extra points for being an old-school hacker, every Acme product he used was for a purpose unintended by the manufacturer.

      --
      Apocalypse Cancelled, Sorry, No Ticket Refunds
    19. Re:My vote... by gstoddart · · Score: 1

      Can one be considered great if every single one of his "inventions" fails spectacularly?

      Was Lex Luthor still a genius if he was always foiled in his plans?

      Did Pinky still call him Brain? None of his schemes worked out.

      Hell, Blofeld had sharks and frickin' lasers. He lost to Bond how many times?

      Measure not the "inventions", but the opponent.

      Wile E. Coyote may well have been a super genius, but he never was the match for the Road Runner.

      --
      Lost at C:>. Found at C.
    20. Re:My vote... by gstoddart · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Are you going to risk falling off a cliff more than once???

      You actually saw the show, right? ;-)

      Some times he fell off a cliff half a dozen times in a single episode. In other episodes, he was repeatedly smashed with the same rock, no matter how far away he got and what he hid under.

      He did repeat these things -- over and over again. That's what made it funny.

      Wile E. Coyote was all about the scientific method, and multiple trials. Contrary to what the GP thinks, it wasn't just a statistical fluke. ;-)

      --
      Lost at C:>. Found at C.
    21. Re:My vote... by Shauni · · Score: 2

      Just goes to show, science doesn't work if the world is out to get you. =P

    22. Re:My vote... by gstoddart · · Score: 1

      Just goes to show, science doesn't work if the world is out to get you. =P

      Oh, more like my favorite de-motivational poster of all time.

      Failure. When your best just isn't good enough.

      The science part is fine. ;-)

      --
      Lost at C:>. Found at C.
    23. Re:My vote... by gstoddart · · Score: 1

      I always thought that Wiley Coyote depicts very well the agony of working as an engineer.

      It's more like Moby Dick or something equally obsessive. Think of the Road Runner as unobtanium or the Grail. ;-)

      Of course, deep down, we're all rooting for him to catch the little bugger. And, really ... if he had the money to order all of that crap from ACME, why didn't he just order a pizza?

      --
      Lost at C:>. Found at C.
    24. Re:My vote... by russotto · · Score: 1

      Road Runner was the best hacker. He not only figured out exactly what Wile E. Coyote was going to do with those Acme products, he used his position as President of Acme to sabotage the products so they would fail in the most amusing way possible.

    25. Re:My vote... by gstoddart · · Score: 1

      You have my sword.

      I put on my robe and wizard hat. ;-)

      --
      Lost at C:>. Found at C.
    26. Re:My vote... by gstoddart · · Score: 2

      Road Runner was the best hacker.

      See, I never really could empathize with the Road Runner.

      I always found it far more hilarious to see Wile E. Coyote get his ass handed to him by Bugs Bunny than the Road Runner.

      When Bugs decided you needed to be taught a lesson, he made damned sure you knew he was teaching it to you. ;-)

      --
      Lost at C:>. Found at C.
    27. Re:My vote... by The+Grim+Reefer2 · · Score: 1

      Are you going to risk falling off a cliff more than once???

      Are you gong to be able to fall off of a cliff more than once?

    28. Re:My vote... by Vectormatic · · Score: 1

      my problem with batman as an engineer is that in the reboot, all the tech is built by julius fox (if i remember mr. Freemans character correctly) and his skunk works department within wayne industries. Bruce himself is nothing but a whiney MBA going emo over his killed parents and how his sweetheart cant handle him being batman.

      I'm not exactly sure how batman got his tech in the older material, but new style batman is rather uninteresting, hell, even alfred is a more interesting character then bruce wayne in the dark knight.

      --
      People, what a bunch of bastards
    29. Re:My vote... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      If you change four letters in ACME, you get PERL.

      COINCIDENCE?

    30. Re:My vote... by AK+Marc · · Score: 1

      Best Engineer: Dilbert.

      Oh wait. The headline was wrong, the question was best builder, not engineer.

    31. Re:My vote... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Yeah, sure. Being hit by a truck coming out from a tunnel painted in a wall is totally Murphy's law.
      I would like to see all those who think Coyote is a failure in an environment with such fucked up physics laws (specially that sick gravity they got in that planet).

    32. Re:My vote... by Bacon+Bits · · Score: 3, Funny

      He didn't just run something as shipped ... He put it together into amazingly strange combinations.

      Oh, he writes Perl, then.

      --
      The road to tyranny has always been paved with claims of necessity.
    33. Re:My vote... by rts008 · · Score: 1

      When Bugs decided you needed to be taught a lesson, he made damned sure you knew he was teaching it to you. ;-)

      No joke.
      Bugs didn't mess around with you, except for his amusement...then he made an example out of you; it was a lose/lose scenario for his adversary.

      What's up, Doc?

      --
      Down With Slashdot BETA!!! I've been around the corner and seen the oliphant; you can only abuse me from your perspecti
    34. Re:My vote... by rts008 · · Score: 1

      Awww, give him a break!

      Was it his fault that Demon Murphy liked to hang out in his tail fur?

      Cut him some slack, will ya'?

      --
      Down With Slashdot BETA!!! I've been around the corner and seen the oliphant; you can only abuse me from your perspecti
    35. Re:My vote... by rts008 · · Score: 1

      Of course, deep down, we're all rooting for him to catch the little bugger. And, really ... if he had the money to order all of that crap from ACME, why didn't he just order a pizza?

      Despite your lower UID, I have to ask...
      Do you not recall the widespread popularity of the "Beep! Beep! Your Ass!" tee shirts in the early to mid 1970's?
      IIRC, the usually depicted Wiley Coyote jerking Roadrunner off the ground by his long, slender neck with one hand, and the other hand either cocked back in a fist, or holding a melee weapon, ready to strike.

      Order a pizza, indeed.
      You're missing the point of his popularity.
      (see my reply to 'Q-Hack (37846)' #35751618- the part about the 'Wiley Coyote Award')

      Side note:
      The fact that we were rooting for him for so long, made his distributors some profit, until Looney Tunes became 'politically incorrect' for promoting violence, and taken off the airwaves in the USA.

      --
      Down With Slashdot BETA!!! I've been around the corner and seen the oliphant; you can only abuse me from your perspecti
    36. Re:My vote... by AmiMoJo · · Score: 1

      Sometimes he did re-try the same plan several times, but each time it would fail in a different and seemingly more painful way. The logical conclusion would be that Acme products are not manufactured to a very high standard. Then again how many manufacturers of rocket boosters would sell them to the public at a price affordable by a coyote?

      --
      const int one = 65536; (Silvermoon, Texture.cs)
      SJW, n: "Someone I don't like, and by the way I'm a fuckwit" - AC
    37. Re:My vote... by JosKarith · · Score: 1

      I remember the 80's craze for "Beep Beep now you b4stard" t-shirts with Wile.E.Coyote pinning the Roadrunner down and slipping it a length...

      --
      'Don't worry' said the trees when they saw the axe coming, 'The handle is one of us.'
    38. Re:My vote... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      That's not true! There were at least 4 episodes that I can remember where he would reset and try again at least once! However, usually wearing even more bruises and band-aids than the previous attempt.

    39. Re:My vote... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      And my axe! oh sh...

    40. Re:My vote... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      How many slashdotters go to work and have to use Dell?

    41. Re:My vote... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      If you haven't had an "if I see this goddamn machine one more time, I'm going to fucking shoot it" afternoon at least a dozen times, you're not an engineer.

    42. Re:My vote... by sorak · · Score: 1

      He didn't just run something as shipped ... He put it together into amazingly strange combinations.

      Oh, he writes Perl, then.

      No. Others can understand his work when he's done with it. :)

    43. Re:My vote... by sorak · · Score: 1

      Can one be considered great if every single one of his "inventions" fails spectacularly?

      Bill Gates?

    44. Re:My vote... by sorak · · Score: 1

      I used to feel that way about GI Joe. I can't remember any specific examples now, but Cobra Commander would have some nearly fool-proof plan, that would be done in by some crazy fluke, or oversight, and he would just throw the whole thing out the window.

    45. Re:My vote... by sorak · · Score: 1

      Minnie Mouse. Since social engineering is the most noble kind of engineering.

      Careful of that slippery slope. Once you start considering social engineering and mouseketeers there's a risk that Britney Spears will be named best engineer here on slashdot. Of course at that point the universe would no longer be able to sustain the paradox and would implode!

      And yet somehow only the copyrights would survive.

    46. Re:My vote... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You have to wonder what purpose did Acme intend for their magnetic bird seed product.

    47. Re:My vote... by gstoddart · · Score: 1

      Do you not recall the widespread popularity of the "Beep! Beep! Your Ass!" tee shirts in the early to mid 1970's?

      Thankfully, most of the early mid 70s I was far too young to remember a lot of the cultural stuff ... I think I was eight when Star Wars came out. :-P

      Order a pizza, indeed.
      You're missing the point of his popularity.

      Not at all ... I wasn't seriously advocating that he order pizza, that would have made the show completely lame.

      It's more that he was willing to expend vast amounts of energy on complex schemes to try to catch the Road Runner. Hence my assertion the Road Runner was more of a Moby Dick kind of thing -- an obsession that he can't put down. I think in one or more cases, he actually used food as a lure for the Road Runner, giving credence to the notion that he could have eaten something else.

      When he squared off against Bugs Bunny, he was clearly the bad guy, and deserved it. But, the Road Runner was just sort of this overly cute character who didn't invoke any empathy, and therefore it would have been hilarious if he'd gotten caught.

      Even when they morphed the Coyote somewhat to go up against the Sam the Sheepdog, there was tension, and you had a sense of a 'just' (if not silly) conflict. They had a job to do, and the Coyote/Wolf character was just outmatched.

      I just never found a reason to root for the Road Runner. It always seemed more that he was taunting the Coyote just for the fun on it.

      The fact that we were rooting for him for so long, made his distributors some profit, until Looney Tunes became 'politically incorrect' for promoting violence, and taken off the airwaves in the USA.

      Alas, a sad time in history. I remember watching them years later after they'd been edited to hell and were no longer funny.

      Cheers

      --
      Lost at C:>. Found at C.
    48. Re:My vote... by darth+dickinson · · Score: 1

      Obviously, to grow magnetic birds with...duh...

    49. Re:My vote... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Have you seen the Road Runner part of the Bugs Bunny movie?

      There's at least three segments where Wile E. tries to use a catapult to throw a rock at the Road Runner.

      He tries that exact thing many times and it fails in increasingly spectaular fashions. The final time it fails has to be seen to be believed. :D

    50. Re:My vote... by KingBenny · · Score: 0

      Sir, i think your sig is dubbleplusgood

      --
      Free speech was meant to be free for all... how can anyone grow up in a nanny state ?
    51. Re:My vote... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I remeber atleast one epp where he had a catapult and he tryed it 3 or 4 times each time modifying the device slightly, and each time it failing in a new and more fantastic manner. In a later epp he sued the acme corp and a person from the co claimed nothing is wrong with the catapult and demonstrated its use by firing it. so he does sometimes retry things he just sucks at using their tools and their manuals are clearly poorly written.

  3. Luthor? by kuzb · · Score: 1

    Since when did Lex Luthor become a hero?

    --
    BeauHD. Worst editor since kdawson.
    1. Re:Luthor? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      The moment moral relativity took over, and the criminal became the victims, and the victims criminals.

    2. Re:Luthor? by bigsexyjoe · · Score: 1

      Since when is "Comic Character" synonymous with hero?

    3. Re:Luthor? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Ahh to live in a simple black and white world! To be 10 forever!

    4. Re:Luthor? by master5o1 · · Score: 1

      Lex Luther stole forty cakes.
      That's as many as four tens.
      And that's terrible.

      --
      signature is pants
    5. Re:Luthor? by Seumas · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Lex Luthor has always been a hero. He is nearly the only person on earth making it his life's duty to fight off the alien from another planet with super powers that imposes his will on our world and is a threat to us all.

    6. Re:Luthor? by jimmydevice · · Score: 1

      What? you like roadrunners?

    7. Re:Luthor? by grouchomarxist · · Score: 1

      Since the (bad) description for this article.

    8. Re:Luthor? by bheerssen · · Score: 1

      And he's an innovative businessman out to turn a buck. Nothing wrong with that.

      --
      (Score: -1, Stupid)
    9. Re:Luthor? by sorak · · Score: 1

      And he's an innovative businessman out to turn a buck. Nothing wrong with that.

      Oh, that's great. There should be a "tea party superman". The comic could revolve around Lex Luther's attempts to make money and prevent the world from succumbing to a socialist agenda. When superman wanted to rid the world of nuclear weapons, Lex Luther fought it. When corporations were being denied their personhood, Lex Luther fought for the rights of the powerful, yet unfairly oppressed.

      When superman wanted to build a fortress of solitude within 5 blocks of ground zero, Lex Luther led the protests against it!

      I think this could work.

    10. Re:Luthor? by ackthpt · · Score: 1

      Lex Luthor has always been a hero. He is nearly the only person on earth making it his life's duty to fight off the alien from another planet with super powers that imposes his will on our world and is a threat to us all.

      He's probably also a super hero to the Republican Party.

      --

      A feeling of having made the same mistake before: Deja Foobar
    11. Re:Luthor? by Seumas · · Score: 1

      I'm not sure what that has to do with Lex Luthor defending mankind from an alien invader.

      Anyway, this isn't always something I've always thought about. It's also the topic of Superman: The Black Ring

      "It's the story of Lex Luthor as he's trying to put together a vast new source of power for himself. Lex Luthor is an interesting character because he's about an inch from being a superhero. He thinks he's continually saving the world from a terrifying super-powered alien. And in this story we put him up against a bunch of villains that are worse than he is!"

      source: http://geek-news.mtv.com/2011/03/25/paul-cornell-talks-about-superman-the-black-ring-vol-1/

      source: http://www.wired.com/underwire/2011/03/lex-luthor-superman-black-ring/

    12. Re:Luthor? by benhattman · · Score: 1

      I'm not sure what that has to do with Lex Luthor defending mankind from an alien invader.

      Would it be more clear what the relationship is between Luthor and the republican party if DC released a comic where Luthor pushes legislation through that forces Metropolis police to check the ID of anyone they suspect of being an alien?

    13. Re:Luthor? by Seumas · · Score: 1

      Seriously? We're comparing actual alien invaders with super-powers to human beings crossing a border without official documentation or processes? I think we're just being a wee extreme here. :P

  4. Greatest Engineer by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Interesting

    DILBERT!!!

    1. Re:Greatest Engineer by Jake+Griffin · · Score: 2

      +1

      --
      SIG FAULT: Post index out of bounds.
  5. Easy by guspasho · · Score: 1
    1. Re:Easy by Seumas · · Score: 1

      Military Intelligence!

    2. Re:Easy by ackthpt · · Score: 1

      Girl Genius.

      Ah, but she's a shadow of her mother Lucretia Mongfish, Barry Heterodyne, Bill Heterodyne or Baron Wolfenbach .. well dang, there's buckets of geniuses in there!

      --

      A feeling of having made the same mistake before: Deja Foobar
    3. Re:Easy by Zen_Sorcere · · Score: 1

      Hear hear. He was the first one I thought of.

    4. Re:Easy by sapphire+wyvern · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Nonsense. Agatha's far more powerful (albeit still less experienced) than Lucrezia Mongfish or the Heterodyne Boys. She made _mechanical Sparks_ as one of her very first projects! And she's clearly outclassing Gilgamesh and Tarvek, who are both first-rate Sparks in their own right.

    5. Re:Easy by Hartree · · Score: 1

      You beat me too it.

      Besides, what other cartoon engineer has her own religion in Russia.

      Hey, I've seen far worse things worshipped.

    6. Re:Easy by Leekle2ManE · · Score: 1

      Same here. TFA (or TFB? [blog]) states that Forge can make anything he can imagine and then says he only built a few things. Made me think the blogger just did a quick google search of Forge Inventions and left it at that. It's been ages since I collected, but I seem to recall Forge building items from practically nothing in a matter of moments to provide anything from simple structural supports to weaponry.

    7. Re:Easy by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      For Science!

    8. Re:Easy by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      "girl genius" that's an oxymoron if there ever was one.

    9. Re:Easy by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Agreed. This was the first thing that popped into my head as well.

    10. Re:Easy by nbast · · Score: 3, Informative

      Clearly. I thought of Agatha Heterodyne immediately when I saw the post.

      http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php for those unfamiliar with the Folios' genius.

    11. Re:Easy by Jaysyn · · Score: 1

      I was wondering if anyone would remember him. Being a super-engineer was basically his power.

      --
      There is a war going on for your mind.
    12. Re:Easy by eheldreth · · Score: 1

      She schmells gooot too!!!!

      --
      The perversity of the Universe tends towards a maximum. - O'Toole's Corollary
    13. Re:Easy by Ogi_UnixNut · · Score: 1

      OMG wow! I've not seen that in ages. Used to be my favorite show when I was a kid! Thanks for the link :)

      (Now will just need to find some of the old episodes to watch again). Gadget was also my fave as a kid. I wonder how much of my tinkering and taking stuff apart was due to watching that show, and all the cool stuff she made....

    14. Re:Easy by Hobart · · Score: 1
      --
      o/~ Join us now and share the software ...
  6. Dilbert is the closest to reality by Moof123 · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Just saying,

    There are days i envy Dilbert, his company is better run than some I have worked at.

    1. Re:Dilbert is the closest to reality by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Seriously, how could they not include Dilbert?

    2. Re:Dilbert is the closest to reality by captjc · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Plus all the insubordination has yet to cost anyone their job. I would love to call my boss and coworkers idiots to their face and deliberately sabotage them for my own amusement and face no consequences whatsoever.

      --
      Slow Down Cowboy! It's been 1 hour, 47 minutes since you last successfully posted a comment
    3. Re:Dilbert is the closest to reality by Seumas · · Score: 4, Interesting

      Dilbert is a corporate tool intended to placate all of the cubicle-drones because they can have a chuckle and identify with him and think "well, gosh, things aren't so bad!" and move on with the status-quo.

    4. Re:Dilbert is the closest to reality by ShavedOrangutan · · Score: 1

      I would love to call my boss and coworkers idiots to their face and deliberately sabotage them for my own amusement and face no consequences whatsoever.

      Or have him stuffed by a taxidermist.

      --
      Godaddy is a scam and a ripoff.
    5. Re:Dilbert is the closest to reality by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Dilbert is a corporate tool intended to placate all of the cubicle-drones because they can have a chuckle and identify with him and think "well, gosh, things aren't so bad!" and move on with the status-quo.

      Sure, until Dilbert is as the OP stated a story describing something better than where you work. Sometimes, most of the time now, paranoia of the media is warranted...but Dilbert is a bit of an exception - large businesses hate the comic and the show was canceled for a reason. It's drawn by an engineer who wanted to mock corporate life - the fact corporate life is now worse than Dilbert makes it not only a sad view of reality, but definitely not to make office drones complacent. I mean the devil is a frequent character, the HR character routinely burns coworkers alive, and everyone is more or less the plaything for a dog's amusement - who routinely experiments on them and holds things they value over them in exchange for physical torture - its really sad that it is in fact a nicer glimpse of corporate life than reality - but not meant to make people complacent - he hasn't sold out completely yet.

    6. Re:Dilbert is the closest to reality by ozmanjusri · · Score: 2

      I would love to call my boss and coworkers idiots to their face and deliberately sabotage them for my own amusement and face no consequences whatsoever.

      You can call me an idiot later.

      --
      "I've got more toys than Teruhisa Kitahara."
    7. Re:Dilbert is the closest to reality by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Intended as such by... Scott Adams? Really?

    8. Re:Dilbert is the closest to reality by timeOday · · Score: 3, Insightful
      A) Bullshit

      B) The theory isn't even plausible because nobody can force a particular comic to be popular among millions of people. Not the secret super-corporation that controls all corporations, the CIA, or anybody else.

    9. Re:Dilbert is the closest to reality by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Seumas is a corporate tool intended to placate all of the cubicle-drones because they can have a chuckle and identify with him and think "well, gosh, things aren't so bad!" and move on with the status-quo.

    10. Re:Dilbert is the closest to reality by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Or failing that, think "Well, I guess its like this at other places. Otherwise Dilbert wouldn't exist!"

    11. Re:Dilbert is the closest to reality by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Christ you are stupid. Have you ever read scott adams writings?

    12. Re:Dilbert is the closest to reality by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      so how do you explain Justin Bieber?

    13. Re:Dilbert is the closest to reality by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      In the dilbert series there is an even better engineer its the guy who takes the garbage from the streets.
      When dilbert died he got him back to life, and some people ask complexer things to him.
      For this garbage guy it is all so simple, just ask and he makes you a teleport device that return you from mars before a football match starts.
      He has no limits at all.

    14. Re:Dilbert is the closest to reality by Ihlosi · · Score: 1
      Dilbert is a corporate tool intended to placate all of the cubicle-drones because they can have a chuckle and identify with him and think "well, gosh, things aren't so bad!"

      What company are you referring to and where do I send my resume?

      Or do you just assume that real-life engineering jobs must be better than what's depicted in Dilbert? I'm sorry.

    15. Re:Dilbert is the closest to reality by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Dilbert is a corporate tool intended to placate all of the cubicle-drones because they can have a chuckle and identify with him and think "well, gosh, things aren't so bad!" and move on with the status-quo.

      Sounds like someone has a poor sense of humor.

    16. Re:Dilbert is the closest to reality by elrous0 · · Score: 1

      It's like Karl Marx always said: "Dilbert is opium for the masses."

      --
      SJW: Someone who has run out of real oppression, and has to fake it.
    17. Re:Dilbert is the closest to reality by Just+Some+Guy · · Score: 1

      I once told a good friend in another city that "when Dilbert is no longer funny, it's time to move on." We laughed. One day, he stopped laughing and moved on, and later thanked me for the advice.

      --
      Dewey, what part of this looks like authorities should be involved?
    18. Re:Dilbert is the closest to reality by sorak · · Score: 1

      so how do you explain Justin Bieber?

      Girls think he's cute. I saw a movie with my wife yesterday, and they were promoting the Justin Bieber movie. It was during that ad that I realized, something. I have seen that little punk on posters and commercials, there were three versions of his movie playing in my area (normal, 3d, and Director's Cut), and yet I had never heard a single one of his songs, until I saw the promo for "eight mile: the early years", or whatever that movie is called.

      If I saw him walking down the street, I would recognize him and know his name, but he never gets played on the radio, or at least his music doesn't follow the "play this song once per hour" rule that other popular music follows. I just think that if this kid had acne, he'd be working at McDondald's right now.

    19. Re:Dilbert is the closest to reality by SleazyRidr · · Score: 1

      A) Probably
      B) What's to say this is their only attempt, they may have had several artists start up similar strips with slight differences, and Dilbert was the one that hit the spot the best, so they went with it.

    20. Re:Dilbert is the closest to reality by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Nope, all it takes is a driven lone wolf with a pen (mightiest of all weapons)!

    21. Re:Dilbert is the closest to reality by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Dilbert is a corporate tool intended to placate all of the cubicle-drones because they can have a chuckle and identify with him and think "well, gosh, things aren't so bad!" and move on with the status-quo.

      A) Bullshit

      B) The theory isn't even plausible because nobody can force a particular comic to be popular among millions of people. Not the secret super-corporation that controls all corporations, the CIA, or anybody else.

      :) Somebody got their feelings hurt.

      :( The parent said "move on with the status-quo" which implies voluntary submission. Just because someone voluntarily chooses to be a drone doesn't make them less of a drone. They are even more droneful.

      :) Dilbert depends on corporate idiocy in order to mock it. The corporations depend on the fact those who idolize Dilbert will always still show up for work tomorrow. They share a symbiotic existence.

      :( The joke is on those who make fun of one without making fun of the other.

      $) Profit!

  7. I had only one thought when I read this. by eflester · · Score: 4, Insightful

    It's probably Alice. Although Wally is my personal hero.

    1. Re:I had only one thought when I read this. by ShavedOrangutan · · Score: 2
      Agreed.

      "Why haven't you returned my calls?"
      "I tried, but when I put the phone to my ear, it pressed my tragus over my ear hole and I couldn't hear a thing."

      I'm going to use this someday.

      --
      Godaddy is a scam and a ripoff.
    2. Re:I had only one thought when I read this. by __aagmrb7289 · · Score: 1

      Come on guys! It's Asok the Intern! He has super powers! And he's humble! And he's an engineer! And he's a comic (well, in one)!

    3. Re:I had only one thought when I read this. by JBL2 · · Score: 1

      Dilbert's Garbage Man. "Who would throw away a perfectly good robot, when all it needs is a neuro-spectrum field calibration?" "You can borrow my __X__ [time machine, ...]." But yes, Asok and Alice are up there.

    4. Re:I had only one thought when I read this. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Loud Howard is the best Now all he has to do is meet the new guy "White Noise" and the world is perfect!

  8. Dilton Doliey by metlin · · Score: 3, Insightful

    I know this sounds weird, but one of the first "geeky" comics character I was blown away by was Dilton Doiley, part of Archie's crew, in the Strange Science editions.

      It was short, it was funny, and he was a geek who got the girl. All these other guys are great, but they had supernatural powers or wealth, or other things going for them. Dilton just... conducted home experiments! Of course, he had his own lab, but still, as a regular kid, you could aspire to be him.

    The other character I remember from childhood, of course, was Tom Swift. Amazingly inspirational -- although, not a lot of comics of him out there (I've seen a few, but not many).

    1. Re:Dilton Doliey by MightyMartian · · Score: 2

      Until this day I never met anybody aspired to be Dilton.

      I mean, even Jughead had a girl chasing him.

      --
      The world's burning. Moped Jesus spotted on I50. Details at 11.
    2. Re:Dilton Doliey by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Oddly enough, I know what you mean. Geeky or not, there were clear undertones of respect for his intellectual prowess here and there in the strip. I still remember (although lord knows I'll probably never find out where I saw it, given the amount of material out there for that strip) a story about a quiz contest where Doiley was considered a heavyweight star. (Of course, Moose had the "save the day" moment, but what else were they going to do to make it a story.)

    3. Re:Dilton Doliey by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      It could be worse. You could aspire to be the fucking Juggernaut, unable to procreate with beings smaller than an elephant.

    4. Re:Dilton Doliey by ackthpt · · Score: 2

      Pfft. Dilton wasn't a patch on Calvin.

      --

      A feeling of having made the same mistake before: Deja Foobar
    5. Re:Dilton Doliey by VolciMaster · · Score: 1

      I know this sounds weird, but one of the first "geeky" comics character I was blown away by was Dilton Doiley, part of Archie's crew, in the Strange Science editions.

      It was short, it was funny, and he was a geek who got the girl. All these other guys are great, but they had supernatural powers or wealth, or other things going for them. Dilton just... conducted home experiments! Of course, he had his own lab, but still, as a regular kid, you could aspire to be him.

      The other character I remember from childhood, of course, was Tom Swift. Amazingly inspirational -- although, not a lot of comics of him out there (I've seen a few, but not many).

      Wow - somebody else who knows of Tom Swift.

      Which series did you like more, the original, or the one with Tom Jr?

      Repelletrons FTW!

    6. Re:Dilton Doliey by scottrocket · · Score: 1
      "You could aspire to be the fucking Juggernaut"

      What??? He nailed She-Hulk!!

    7. Re:Dilton Doliey by metlin · · Score: 1

      It's a stupid reason to like a character because he had girls after him -- especially if getting girls wasn't a problem in school anyway (or for that matter, at any point in life).

      You like fiction because it inspires you, and Dilton inspired me. Girls and relationships were... too much like real life.

    8. Re:Dilton Doliey by MightyMartian · · Score: 1

      When you're 13 years old and you're seeing Archie being chased around by babes like Betty and Veronica, and then you see Dilton hanging out with his Bunsen burner... well, I think you get the idea.

      --
      The world's burning. Moped Jesus spotted on I50. Details at 11.
  9. Best comic engineer? None of the above! by damn_registrars · · Score: 4, Funny
    The correct answer is Wally, from Dilbert. He saved the Apollo 13 mission and invented the cursor. Easily, the answer to your question of

    Which Comic Character Is The Greatest Engineer?

    --
    Damn_registrars has no butt-hole. Damn_registrars has no use for a butt-hole.
  10. If including cartoons... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Dexter

    1. Re:If including cartoons... by master5o1 · · Score: 1

      Mandark.

      --
      signature is pants
    2. Re:If including cartoons... by Master+Moose · · Score: 1

      Its amazing the work that kid could do. Building the most advanced machines by seemingly only ever tightening a bolt with a spanner

      --
      . . .gone when the morning comes
    3. Re:If including cartoons... by denzacar · · Score: 1
      --
      Mit der Dummheit kämpfen Götter selbst vergebens
    4. Re:If including cartoons... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Stewie Griffin

  11. Where's Gyro Gearloose? by Doghouse+Riley · · Score: 1

    Along with a couple of posters at the linked site, I thought of him first before starting to read the article....

    1. Re:Where's Gyro Gearloose? by Required+Snark · · Score: 1
      Gyro is the epitome of unintended consequences. All geeks should keep Gyro in mind because our best laid plans oten go astray.

      http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gyro_Gearloose

      --
      Why is Snark Required?
    2. Re:Where's Gyro Gearloose? by Z00L00K · · Score: 1

      Good example of good intentions that sometimes goes wrong,

      Probably one of the more realistic Geek Engineer characters that exists in comics.

      Another exists in the Swedish Comic Magazine Bamse, the turtle Skalman. The magazine is for small children.

      But don't forget the TV comic Dexter's Laboratory.

      And then we have Willie Garvin in the comic Modesty Blaise.

      But nothing is useful until we have an end user; The weird end user of technology Wile E. Coyote.

      --
      If builders built buildings the way programmers wrote programs, then the first woodpecker would destroy civilization.
  12. Don't forget the terrorists! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Seriously. Have you ever noticed that a disproportionate number of terrorists are from an engineering background? My theory is that it is because, compared to others, an engineer has knowledge and aptitude to take matters into his own hands.

    This is directly relevant to the current discussion, as one mans superhero is another man's terrorist.

  13. Surely... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    There is but one prophet and Dilbert is his name.

  14. My favorites by rossdee · · Score: 1

    Gyro Gearloose and Ludwig Von Drake

    and of course Rodney Copperbottom

    1. Re:My favorites by ackthpt · · Score: 1

      Gyro Gearloose and Ludwig Von Drake

      and of course Rodney Copperbottom

      Somewhere I have a Captain Marvel where he performs nuclear fusion to create an invulnerable material, with his bare hands.

      --

      A feeling of having made the same mistake before: Deja Foobar
    2. Re:My favorites by arth1 · · Score: 1

      Hear, hear! Gyro Gearloose and Emil Eagle, that is - Ludwig van Drake is a shrink and scholar, and not the engineering type.

      I was flabbergasted and flummoxed that the article didn't mention any of the old school toonies.

    3. Re:My favorites by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Yes, Gyro Gearloose FTW!

    4. Re:My favorites by apharmdq · · Score: 1

      It warms my heart that even though there are so many overblown, superpowered, mentally gifted, overwritten superheroes out there that can fall into this category, many members of /. are dropping mention for a simple bumbling inventor whose inventions don't always work as intended. (It's probably because the stories tend to be more interesting that way.)

    5. Re:My favorites by Jesus_666 · · Score: 1

      I would've taken him for granted but then again I'm from Gemany and the German mainstream comic market has been dominated by Disney since just about forever. Tony Stork? Victor von who? Who the hell are those guys? Never seen them around Duckburg.

      Of course it helps that Gyro has a nifty name in Germany. Translated back you get "Daniel Jetboost", which does convey a nice feeling of him giving us progress at a breakneck pace even if "breakneck" often describes the final result rather well.

      --
      USE HOT GRITS WITH STATUE OF NATALIE PORTMAN (NAKED AND PETRIFIED)
    6. Re:My favorites by Ecuador · · Score: 1

      I can't believe there are so few comments about Gyro! Growing up in the 80s I loved the comic books and of course DuckTales!

      --
      Violence is the last refuge of the incompetent. Polar Scope Align for iOS
  15. Easy by geekoid · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Girl Genius.

    --
    The Kruger Dunning explains most post on /. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning%E2%80%93Kruger_effect
  16. None for me thanks by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Comics have the fine tradition of using fictional technological invention as a little more than a convenient plot device. This makes it little more than a magic item replacement for the technological age.

  17. Also missing... by QRDeNameland · · Score: 1

    Professor Butts...a name probably not as well known as his creator.

    --
    Momentarily, the need for the construction of new light will no longer exist.
    1. Re:Also missing... by jd · · Score: 2

      Rube Goldberg wasn't as good as Heath Robinson, in my honest opinion, and the best Professor of all time has to be Professor Brainstawm.

      --
      It's a small world and it smells funny; I'd buy another if it wasn't for the money; Take back what I paid (SoM)
  18. Well... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I would like to nominate a european contestant: Professor Balthazar.
    I know, cartoons are not the same as comic books but still...
    http://youtu.be/fMZKky5LZl4

  19. The Daily Chimpout by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Today, featuring Africans in Tel Aviv

  20. Tony Stark build this in a cave! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    ...out of scraps!

  21. I would have to say... by jd · · Score: 1

    Stone De Croze, the Original Guernseyman. The rest had the benefit of education, textbooks and suppliers. Stone De Croze invented stuff before inventing had been invented.

    --
    It's a small world and it smells funny; I'd buy another if it wasn't for the money; Take back what I paid (SoM)
  22. Scotty by captjc · · Score: 2

    Star Trek has been a comic franchise since the 70's. It is only fair that Scotty should be on that list.

    Now, if only MacGyver had a comic book...

    --
    Slow Down Cowboy! It's been 1 hour, 47 minutes since you last successfully posted a comment
    1. Re:Scotty by ackthpt · · Score: 1

      Star Trek has been a comic franchise since the 70's. It is only fair that Scotty should be on that list.

      Nah, he kenna change the laws of physics.

      --

      A feeling of having made the same mistake before: Deja Foobar
    2. Re:Scotty by Nyeerrmm · · Score: 2

      I've always preferred O'Brien when it comes to Star Trek engineers -- an ordinary family man who is occasionally called on to go above and beyond at times.

      Of course Geordi is just a plain old nerd, so there's a lot of identification there.

    3. Re:Scotty by LordNacho · · Score: 1

      Not knowledgeable about ST, but isn't he an engine room guy? As a guy with a Masters in Engineering, I feel I should remark that certain people who are called Engineers are actually mechanics. Not a slight to mechanics, just saying it takes a long time and effort to get this degree, and a dude who happens to sit in a spaceship can call himself one? (Or a train for that matter. Or a guy who fixes your fridge.)

      Also, the times I've seen "Engineers" in ST, they seem to be operators rather than designers. Sure, sometimes they come up with novel uses from whatever resources are available, which I suppose is engineering, but really, they're users, not designers.

    4. Re:Scotty by arb+phd+slp · · Score: 1

      I think they use the word "engineer" in the nautical sense rather than the academic degree sense. You need to be an engineer to be a "ship's engineer". I think traditional nautical terminology predates academic titles like yours, so there's not much you can do about it.
      On ST, when things are going normally, they are simply operators of equipment that others have constructed. When things go weird, Geordi did have to redesign things. I don't know how many others on his team had the skills to do that. (Besides O'Brien and Barclay, they were all just redshirts who happened to wear yellow, so it's hard to say).

      --
      There's a perfect xkcd for my sig but I'm too lazy to look it up. sudo someone go find it.
    5. Re:Scotty by arb+phd+slp · · Score: 1

      crap, I meant "DON'T need to be an engineer to be a ship's engineer." I previewed it and everything and still missed it.

      --
      There's a perfect xkcd for my sig but I'm too lazy to look it up. sudo someone go find it.
    6. Re:Scotty by Just+Some+Guy · · Score: 1

      Not knowledgeable about ST,

      Get out. Now. Your kind is not welcome here.

      --
      Dewey, what part of this looks like authorities should be involved?
    7. Re:Scotty by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      But is "re-routing the plasma conduit" every other episode really considered notable?

    8. Re:Scotty by LordNacho · · Score: 1

      Not knowledgeable about ST,

      Get out. Now. Your kind is not welcome here.

      I swear I have a temporary nerd permit (pending Manga test written in Klingon)! Please let me stay!

    9. Re:Scotty by Just+Some+Guy · · Score: 1

      Well... for now. But we have our eye on you.

      --
      Dewey, what part of this looks like authorities should be involved?
  23. There is only one answer. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    DOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!!

    Because he is the only one so awesome he has mastered both magic AND science. Not to mention politics. Did you know Latveria has a 100% literacy rate? Did you know that Doom enjoys 100% popular support? Did you know that there is no starvation, unhappiness or disease in Latveria?

    It is all because of DOOM!

    1. Re:There is only one answer. by blair1q · · Score: 1

      With stats like that, our next Republican President will be attacking Latveria before the bible is put away.

  24. Obvious missing person. by MobileTatsu-NJG · · Score: 4, Insightful

    My vote would have been for Alice. She's the top engineer in her company, she's developed patents that earned her company 2 billion dollars in revenue, and her fist-of-death is legendary. All this after she overcame the handicap of being a woman....

    --

    "I like to lick butts!" by MobileTatsu-NJG (#32700246) (Score:5, Informative)

    1. Re:Obvious missing person. by ImABanker · · Score: 1

      Are you kidding? She can't even manage to send the simplest message to Bob without it getting intercepted.

  25. Not quite comics... by thegrammarjedi · · Score: 1

    But Dexter from Dexter's Lab is a contender.

  26. Calvin and Hobbes FTW! by furgle · · Score: 1

    I vote for calvin and hobbes - more specifically hobbes. His ideas when playing calvin ball are excellent.

    1. Re:Calvin and Hobbes FTW! by Quiet_Desperation · · Score: 1

      Pfft!

      Calvin made a transmogrifier, time machine *and* an instacloner out of the *SAME* cardboard box!

    2. Re:Calvin and Hobbes FTW! by furgle · · Score: 1

      So he can create any machine out of a single cardboard box. What a Nerd! Hobbes can pick up chicks, or rather gets picked up by them, if you know what I mean.

    3. Re:Calvin and Hobbes FTW! by AaxelB · · Score: 1

      Instacloner? What instacloner? I distinctly remember a duplicator with an ethicator (and built-in moral compromise spectral release phantasmatron, naturally), but instacloner isn't ringing a bell.

      And don't forget about the transmogrifier gun! A great advance in the field of transmogrification.

    4. Re:Calvin and Hobbes FTW! by furgle · · Score: 1

      I must say Calvin's best discovery is his thought experiment on the equation 5+6

      He examins the problem by taking two planets of size 5 and 6 and colliding them. The collision obliterates planet 5, leaving only 6. Therefore 5+6 = 6

      But the thing is Tigers don't need math.

    5. Re:Calvin and Hobbes FTW! by Quiet_Desperation · · Score: 1

      The duplicator. "Instacloner" was the eventual commercial name. :)

  27. Doc Savage by MicroBiscuit · · Score: 1

    Doc Savage in the library with a pipe wrench, WINNING!

    1. Re:Doc Savage by TobinLathrop · · Score: 1

      Doc even though there were a few comic books is more of a Pulp Hero. It amazes me that a lot of the fantastic gadgets and such in those stories are now commonplace technology.

    2. Re:Doc Savage by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Doc is THE hero. Batman wants to be Doc when he grows up. The "First Wave" comics put them in their proper place. Doc is the elder statesman of mystery men, Batman is the upstart, good ideas, but a pale impersonation.

  28. Not just comics by Master+Moose · · Score: 1

    Comics have the fine tradition of using fictional technological invention as a little more than a convenient plot device. This makes it little more than a magic item replacement for the technological age.

    Since when was this the sole domain of the comic books?

    Sonic Screwdriver anyone?

    --
    . . .gone when the morning comes
  29. Why the Western bias? by RyuuzakiTetsuya · · Score: 1

    Bulma from Dragon Ball/Dragon Ball Z!

    The only woman Vegeta fears...

    --
    Non impediti ratione cogitationus.
  30. TMNT by asylumx · · Score: 3, Informative

    Come on, can't forget Donatello!

  31. Forge FTW by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    It's not even close. It's Forge from the X-men. Building things is literally his superpower.

  32. How about ... by PPH · · Score: 1

    .... Doctor Impossible.

    --
    Have gnu, will travel.
  33. Easy by Quiet_Desperation · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Gadget Hackwrench

    http://rangerwiki.net/images/e/e9/Gadget_extra_parts.jpg

    Yes, there is a Chip & Dale's Rescue Ranger's wiki site. God bless you, Intertoobs.

  34. Also, he is Jesus... by denzacar · · Score: 1

    At least if you ask Grant Morrison.

    --
    Mit der Dummheit kämpfen Götter selbst vergebens
  35. Manhattan? by blair1q · · Score: 2

    I was going to say they left out Dr. Manhattan, but then they included Ozymandias.

    (galactically huge spoilers here)

    Hard choice there. They say Ozymandias out-smarted Manhattan, but really he merely got him out of the way long enough to succeed at his plan. And failed to kill him, which was part of his original plan. If Manhattan had known of the plan, and it had become a battle of wits, it's no question who'd win. But since by the time Manhattan knew of it it had already occurred, Manhattan merely had to accept it as logical. Which, in fact, he might have done anyway if Ozymandias had merely included him in on it. Manhattan wasn't emotional about humanity and didn't become concerned about humanity until Ozymandias displaced him, giving Laurie a reason to think Manhattan had to be convinced to come home.

    So Ozymandias probably chose the wrong strategy with Manhattan. And not remembering that Manhattan was capable of reforming his intrinsic field was a massive joke.

    Yup. Manhattan. If it's a matter of engineering, and not sneaky politics, he wins this whole thing without lifting a finger.

  36. to bad macgyver is not a Comic Character as he by Joe+The+Dragon · · Score: 1

    to bad macgyver is not a Comic Character as he would top all of the people listed hear.

  37. Calvin's Dad is a Slashdot superhero by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Really, he's a patent lawyer. Where else could he be a hero?

  38. No Reed Richards/Mr Fantastic yet? by PRMan · · Score: 1

    Everyone in the Marvel Universe gets their cool stuff from him, even Tony Stark...

    And what about Victor Von Doom/Dr Doom?

    --
    Peter predicted that you would "deliberately forget" creation 2000 years ago...
    1. Re:No Reed Richards/Mr Fantastic yet? by eXFeLoN · · Score: 0

      agreed, Reed was the first character to come to my mind.

      --
      My other sig is a knife wound.
    2. Re:No Reed Richards/Mr Fantastic yet? by scottrocket · · Score: 1

      Reed Richards is so obvious, he should be excluded from consideration. All others walk in his shadow. 'Nuff said.

    3. Re:No Reed Richards/Mr Fantastic yet? by 3vi1 · · Score: 1

      >> "Reed Richards was in the mix too, but I tend to like regular humans who just have brains â" as opposed to some type of powers."

      The author doesn't seem to be thinking this through. Reed Richards used his brains to give himself powers, not the other way around. People don't seriously still think the cosmic rays gave them super powers, when they normally just give you cancer, without the ship being specifically designed to make it so?

      If Tony Stark had half of Reed's brains, he'd build nanites to repair his heart and give himself the Iron Man powers without need for a suit.

      I wonder how well the War Machine armor would fair if you fired the Nevada Gun at it?

    4. Re:No Reed Richards/Mr Fantastic yet? by painandgreed · · Score: 1

      If Tony Stark had half of Reed's brains, he'd build nanites to repair his heart and give himself the Iron Man powers without need for a suit.

      Congratulations! You just described the Ultimate universe reboot of the Marvel characters that came out over a decade ago. Reed Richards gave his group powers by transporting them to the Negative Zone and Tony Stark is now dependant on his nanites to keep him alive.

  39. Calvin from Calvin and Hobbes by Jason+Levine · · Score: 1

    What other engineer can take a cardboard box, turn it into a transmorgifier, then make it into a time travel machine and then make it into a duplicator? Not to mention that, when he added an ethicator to his duplicator, he built in a moral compromise spectral release phantasmatron. Sheer genius!

    http://www.gocomics.com/calvinandhobbes/2011/04/05/

    --
    My sci-fi novel, Ghost Thief, is now available from Amazon.com.
    1. Re:Calvin from Calvin and Hobbes by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      But wasn't all that stuff showcasing the power of imagination?

  40. Tony still "only" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    The author states he choose Tony over Reed because Tony is "just" human. But I wonder... Is this still really true? Extremis literally rewrote his dna, giving him arguably superpowers. Sure it's man made but still....

  41. Brainiac 5 by ASDFnz · · Score: 1

    How could it possably be anyone else?

    1. Re:Brainiac 5 by aapold · · Score: 1

      You do realize his great engineering solution you described consisted of destroying the Miracle Machine. This machine, which somehow was impervious to 30th century science, the combined might of Supeboy, Mon-El, Wildfire, Supergirl, Ultra Boy et al combined..... was destroyed when he had Matter-Eater Lad ate the bloody thing.

      --
      "Waste not one watt!" - CZ
  42. Phineas and Ferb by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    nuff said.

  43. Dexter Boy Genius by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    A ten years old kid that has built with his own hands a secret lab, a super computer with the most adavanced IA, tons of robots and a freakin three story tall super robot should be the ONLY canditate here.

  44. Hank Pym by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    When he's not busy raping people he tore up physics in the comic world by somehow shrinking and growing himself violating and raping every branch of physics possible.http://hardware.slashdot.org/story/11/04/07/2218220/Which-Comic-Character-Is-the-Greatest-Engineer?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Slashdot%2Fslashdot+%28Slashdot%29&utm_content=Google+Reader#

    1. Re:Hank Pym by Culture20 · · Score: 1

      And he's also Earth-616's Scientist Supreme. http://marvel.wikia.com/Scientist_Supreme So says Eternity. http://www.comicvine.com/hank-pym/29-2247/since-pyms-been-recognized-as-the-scientist-supreme-by-eternity/92-532715/
      But I hear Eternity gave Hank the title under duress (Dr. Pym threatened to rape Eternity).

  45. No Spidey? by dkleinsc · · Score: 2

    Specifically, his webbing, which is entirely Peter Parker's creation (regardless of what the movie suggested). I mean, that and all his playing around with advanced physics and chemistry.

    --
    I am officially gone from /. Long live http://www.soylentnews.com/
    1. Re:No Spidey? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Nice try. Web designers are not engineers.

    2. Re:No Spidey? by voidphoenix · · Score: 1

      +1? C'mon, mods, this was witty.

    3. Re:No Spidey? by AmiMoJo · · Score: 1

      Peter Parker had everything: athletic and muscular body, brilliant intellect and understanding of the sciences, a hot girlfriend, a good job as a freelance photographer, super powers and a sense of humour. Even without super powers would would have been pretty awesome.

      --
      const int one = 65536; (Silvermoon, Texture.cs)
      SJW, n: "Someone I don't like, and by the way I'm a fuckwit" - AC
    4. Re:No Spidey? by dkleinsc · · Score: 1

      Yeah, that definitely deserves a rim shot.

      --
      I am officially gone from /. Long live http://www.soylentnews.com/
    5. Re:No Spidey? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I'm glad I'm not the only one who thinks he atleast deserves an honorable mention.

  46. Batman. There isn't even reasonable doubt. by metrix007 · · Score: 1
    Batman is the more realistic of the lot due to actually training himself for over a decade in all the skills he is a master in. No one compares, to the extent he has trained his mind. Someone significantly weaker than his superpowered counterparts and can regularly beat them with ease. Making is not just physical objects, but look at what else he has made. He single handle changed Gotham and inspired a new generation of heroes.

    Anyway enough mancrushing..., lets look at the competitors.

    • Lex Luthor
    • - A genius top be sure, but not so much a maker. He is much better at manipulating people....his powersuits and such don't often accomplish their goals....

    • Tony Stark (Ironman)
    • - A drunk with access to nice toys. That's it.

    • Reed Richards (Mr. Fantastic)
    • - Impressive, but always just makes whats needed in the nick of time, doesn't compare to Batman.

    • Querl Dox (Brainiac 5)
    • - Access to 1000 years of technological progress, and should be disregarded.

    • Ted Kord (Blue Beetle) - Like Cyborg, benefitted from Technology, didn't really engineer it.
    • Victor Stone (Cyborg)
    • - Not really an engineer, someone who benefited from advanced technology.

    • Phineas Mason (The Terrible Tinkerer)
    • - No Idea

    • Jonathan Silvercloud Forge (Also called: The Maker, Genesis)
    • - No Idea.

    • Michael Holt (Mister Terrific)
    • - No Idea

    • Adrian Veidt (Ozymandias)
    • - Not really an engineer at all...nothing he made was particular impressive...unless you count the whole squid plan....

    • Angela “Angie” Spica (Engineer)
    • - No Idea

    • Paul Norbert Ebersol (The Fixer)
    • - No Idea

    • Victor von Doom (Doctor Doom)
    • - Relies on powers and political power more than engineering anything, at the most at reed's level.

    Batman wins.

    --
    If you ignore ACs because they are anonymous - you're an idiot.
    1. Re:Batman. There isn't even reasonable doubt. by Gaygirlie · · Score: 1

      Batman is the more realistic of the lot due to actually training himself for over a decade in all the skills he is a master in. No one compares, to the extent he has trained his mind. Someone significantly weaker than his superpowered counterparts and can regularly beat them with ease.

      That doesn't make him an engineer. And the question was indeed who is the greatest engineer. Batman doesn't really craft much or anything so out-of-ordinary (in the comic world, not the real world) that he'd be somehow above everyone else. Batman is simply good at using the tools, not at crafting them, especially if you count his body as one of the tools.

      While as a character I really love Batman, I mean he is a plain human being without some fancy superpowers, he has reached his status by immense amounts of training and sheer willpower, and hell, he is utterly sexy, I still wouldn't say he is the ultimate engineer.

    2. Re:Batman. There isn't even reasonable doubt. by voidphoenix · · Score: 2

      Between the number of "No Idea" entries you have, especially:

      Jonathan Silvercloud Forge (Also called: The Maker, Genesis)

      - No Idea.

      and this:

      Tony Stark (Ironman)

      - A drunk with access to nice toys. That's it.

      I really don't see how you can declare a "winner".

      I'm a fan of the Batman, too, but this is about who the best engineer is. Bruce is a pretty good engineer but his real strengths are criminology and investigation. You know those "nice toys" Tony Stark has? He designed and built them, and in many cases invented the enabling technologies.

  47. Guardians of Oa by BearRanger · · Score: 1

    There are other aliens on his list, so this is fair game. First they created an army of super robots to enforce justice in the form of the Manhunters. Then they created the ultimate weapons and power sources in the Green Lantern rings and power batteries. And never underestimate the social engineering skill it takes in building an organization made up of hundreds of races, genders and species in the Green Lantern Corps.

  48. Inspector Gadget? by JoeRobe · · Score: 1

    Or maybe it should be Penny...

    --
    The best way to predict the future is to invent it.
  49. Bugs Bunny by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Tunneled all the way to Baghdad after turning right at Albuquerque. And without any tools.

    1. Re:Bugs Bunny by ChrisMaple · · Score: 1

      The unnamed "Evil Scientist" should get an honorable mention. Also the inventor of the portable hole.

      --
      Contribute to civilization: ari.aynrand.org/donate
  50. Not a comicbook hero, but needs mentioned by CrazyJim1 · · Score: 3, Informative

    Ash from Army of Darkness. The dude invents a working artificial hand in just a few days, using midevil engineering supplies.

    1. Re:Not a comicbook hero, but needs mentioned by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      For a person with severe brain damage, you have pretty good taste in movies.

    2. Re:Not a comicbook hero, but needs mentioned by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Consider this guy: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/G%C3%B6tz_von_Berlichingen - Medieval technology, but made his own hand.

  51. Not a problem. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Nah, Latveria is in Europe, and the population is all Whites. That means it is safe, the Republicans only attack Brown and Yellow people.

    Also, there's no oil, the only natural resource is Gypsy music. Which nobody really wants.

  52. Don't comment on comics w/o experience. by Culture20 · · Score: 2

    Missing from the list [...] Ray Palmer (The Ant) [...] I think maybe Professor X could make it in, but 14 was quite a bit

    Ray Palmer is the Atom.
    Professor X has little to no technical expertise. The Danger Room was made by his space alien girlfriend.
    Ozymandias didn't do most of the work for his "engineering", he just set up a pyramid scheme of scientists and engineers (including Dr. M), and put it all together.
    Forge makes stuff all the time. He's constantly whipping up new crap that he dismantles later.
    Reed Richards? He regularly invents "Science!" stuff, and a lot of it becomes mainstream in the Marvel universe (like the water breathing pills and unstable molecule suits). All the superheros come to _him_ whenever they have an issue.
    Best of all: Dr. Doom. He's invented devices in less than a day that steal Silver Surfer's Cosmic Power, The Cosmic Cube's power, and The Effing Beyonder's powers.

    1. Re:Don't comment on comics w/o experience. by chthon · · Score: 1

      The original Professor X built the danger room, probably together with Beast. In the reboot of the series in the 70's, indeed Shi'ar technology was added. One other invention of him is Cerebro. However, since Professor X mostly uses his mental capacities, he really does not have that much engineering feats.

  53. Washu by SnarfQuest · · Score: 1

    What about Washu? Isn't she the universes greatest scientist?

    --
    Who would win this election: Andrew Weiner vs Andrew Weiner's weiner.
  54. Obvious MobileTatsu-NJG Didn't Read Orig Article by BBF_BBF · · Score: 1

    Didn't even get to the title of the article, which is "Which Comic Book Character Is The Greatest Maker Of All Time?", eh?

    Alice is a character in a comic "strip", not in a comic "book".

    Technicalities *do* matter when one is dealing with geeks debating about which imaginary character is superior. ;)

  55. Kimiko by tessellated · · Score: 1
    --
    'When the Going gets Weird, the Weird turn Pro.' - Hunter S. Thompson
  56. Re:Best comic engineer? None of the above! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Wally was my first thought as well, but mostly for how he deals with work.

  57. What about by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Florence Ambrose?

  58. Brainiac 5 by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    My personal preference is for Querl Dox, aka Brainiac 5. Its not just his inventions (flight ring, force field belt, etc).

    At one point he went a little off his rocker and decided to destory the universe. Having had access to the Miracle Machine, a device that converted thoughts into reality (a gift from the controllers that he had been one of the few people to safely use without accidentally destroying himself with a stray thought), he realized that even he with his great intellect could not conceive... could not conceptualize a death that large with the machine. He could not dream it. All he would end up doing was destroying as large a chunk of the universe as he could imagine in his mind at one instant.

    So. He used the machine to dream up a being that could (named Omega) and had him do it. Only as part of a grandstanding move had him appear elsewhere and journey to it, only so that he could beat the crap out of anyone in his path while doing so...

    Then, (while still insane) he decided to change his mind, and found a way to destroy this being, by only using matter-eater lad.

    alright alright, if you adjust for race and century it is Ozymandias. Yeah, taking out Manhattan, saving the world. He so trumps luthor by being smart enough to not hire morons for henchmen like Luthor invariably does. And by not revaling his plans until after he does them

  59. Skuld by SnarfQuest · · Score: 1

    I think Skuld would beat most of the wimps on his stupid list. Heck, Urd would probably be a lot better choice than his Marvell list of idiots.

    --
    Who would win this election: Andrew Weiner vs Andrew Weiner's weiner.
  60. Lio anyone? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I get a chuckle out of Lio's creations. Mark Tatulli is quite creative. Check them out below.
    http://www.gocomics.com/lio/

  61. Re:Obvious MobileTatsu-NJG Didn't Read Orig Articl by MobileTatsu-NJG · · Score: 1

    Didn't even get to the title of the article, which is "Which Comic Book Character Is The Greatest Maker Of All Time?", eh?

    Alice is a character in a comic "strip", not in a comic "book".

    Technicalities *do* matter when one is dealing with geeks debating about which imaginary character is superior. ;)

    Heh. I like how the offensive part of my post wasn't referring to being a woman as a handicap.

    --

    "I like to lick butts!" by MobileTatsu-NJG (#32700246) (Score:5, Informative)

  62. nearly all men? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Thirteen out of the 14 are men? Sad. In the real world science and engineering are done by men and women, but writers still don't seem to understand that.

    1. Re:nearly all men? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      No, in real world Science and Engineering is done almost completely by man. Do I really need to once again list the names of people receiving nobel prizes, field medals, chess master champions, best writers, best engineers (look at every innovative company).

  63. Re:Best comic engineer? None of the above! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    The correct answer is Wally, from Dilbert. He saved the Apollo 13 mission and invented the cursor. Easily, the answer to your question of

    Which Comic Character Is The Greatest Engineer?

    Wow! I always thought it was Dilbert, not Wally. But that changes things. You gotta admit, though, that Dilbert is pretty good. Maybe 2nd best, now that the facts are out.

  64. Idle? by Escaflowne · · Score: 1

    Shouldn't this be tagged as idle and thus be filtered out (for me)?

    I think I've found an editor worse than Samzempus and Roblimo.

  65. Yes, but... by Minwee · · Score: 2

    All that engineering talent and still Reed Richards is Still Useless.

  66. Let me "Venture" a comment by Sporkinum · · Score: 2

    Dr. Jonas Venture was pretty awesome. Shame that Dr. Thaddeus "Rusty" Venture tried to use those coat tails to make a name for himself. Albino computer scientist Pete White and hydrocephalic "boy genius" Master Billy Quizboy have more raw talent than "Rusty".

    --
    "He's lost in a 'floyd hole"
    1. Re:Let me "Venture" a comment by hazem · · Score: 1

      Jonas Jr. seems to be doing pretty well in his own right.

      The Lepidopterists is my favorite episode of the whole series.

  67. I am your babies daddy... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    ORLY? No Anakin Skywalker?

  68. Tony from the webcomic Real Life by sandytaru · · Score: 1

    He's a super genius engineer, and also technically a supervillain. Right now he is building a giant underground lair under Greg Dean's apartment. Other inventions have been time machines, spacecraft, supercomputers, you name it.

    --
    Occasionally living proof of the Ballmer peak.
  69. /. ed to oblivion... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    that is the server that hosts MAKE and the blog page thereof. Would love to see the list but all I get is a 503 error.

    In any case the first comic character I thought of was that master of human engineering from the Dilbert strip....my vote also goes to Wally!

  70. Kimiko Ross by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    ...from Dresden Codak. Designed her own cybernetic limb replacements AND figured out how to harness the energy from dead authors spinning in their graves.

  71. Dr Manhattan by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Engineer of time and space.

    Also Dream from The Sandman, engineer of, well, Dreams.

    Any one else notice how many article writers are using the ", well, " these days? They think its a trick to let them say something obvious without anyone realizing how pointless the sentence they wrote is. Stick it to 'em!

  72. Meh! Calvin's the greatest engineer! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Meh! Calvin's the greatest engineer (he's also the greatest patent troll. Consider the following inventions that changed the world: transmogrifier, time machine, transmogrifier gun, invisible cretinizer, duplicator, cerebral enhance-o-tron, writer's block, bed making robot and huge bird foot!!!

    http://calvinandhobbes.wikia.com/wiki/Calvin's_inventions

  73. Don't be so continentalocentric by the_other_chewey · · Score: 1

    Have a look at the other side of the Ocean: Professor Cuthbert Calculus: Realistic moon rocket in the mid-1950s, color TV, mini submarine, ...

  74. Mod parent up! by Kyusaku+Natsume · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Another that comes to mind is professor Farnsworth from Futurama. He invented XXX century's robots, built a spaceship that moves the entire universe, and got laid, several times.

    --
    Mexico: 100% conservative's America now!
    1. Re:Mod parent up! by Spad · · Score: 1

      Don't forget the Finglonger!

    2. Re:Mod parent up! by Zenaku · · Score: 1

      Farnsworth did not invent the finglonger, though he did invent a device to show him what it would have been like if he had.

      --
      If fate makes you a motorcycle, you become a motorcycle.
  75. Hubert J. Farnsworth by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Good news everyone! :Professor Hubert J. Farnsworth is the greatest scientist from New New York! Notable works include the Smell-o-Scope and the conversion of the Dark Matter into useful energy

  76. Gyro Gearloose by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Gyro Gearloose has built so much out of nothing but a scrap yard. No fancy clothes, no high tech lab, and NO MANTLE! Still producing marvels like walking houses, intergalactic space ships as well as hovering hammocks.

  77. Wow... where's the love? by SomePgmr · · Score: 1

    I can't believe nobody on /. mentioned, Linus "Microchip" Lieberman, of Punisher fame! Though I guess he wasn't THE hero of those series.

  78. The list goes on... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Reed Richards, Thanos (he cloned Galactus!), Bruce Banner, that clone of Adam Warlock (Magus?), Dr. Doom, Norman Osborne, Kilowogg (I think that's how it's spelled)...

    My vote is on Thanos. Wile E. Coyote is a great choice, but he's not a comic book character primarily so I disqualified him. I can do that.

  79. Hello, Ironman! by Lord+Kano · · Score: 1

    That is all.

    LK

    --
    "Hi. This is my friend, Jack Shit, and you don't know him." - Lord Kano
  80. From Dick Tracy... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    "Brilliant", the blind inventor of the two-way wrist radio. (His boss, Diet Smith, was no slouch: he build the magnetic space coupe, but Tom Swift did something similar, with a little help from his alien friends...)

  81. Missing: by Viperpete · · Score: 1

    Missing:

    Elroy Jetson

    Tinker from Speed Buggy (He build a frigging sentient dune buggy)

    Rhinox from Transformer: Beast Wars

    --
    loose: not fitting closely or tightly != lose: to suffer the deprivation of
  82. Doctor Who and Perry Rhodan by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    While my vote splits between Dilbert and Calvin, everyone seems to have forgotten Doctor Who and the entire cast of Perry Rhodan.

  83. Between Doom and Richards by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    All aliens and regular humans gifted with alien gifts and those from the distant future, (who stand on the shoulders of giants), are off the list. So are the non-mythologically well-known characters like Angela âoeAngieâ Spica, and Paul Norbert Ebersol. (Who???)

    That makes the list a lot shorter.

    Now ask yourself this:

    Can Batman build a time machine? Open dimensional portals? Cure space viruses in a few hours? No. No he can't.

    Does Iron Man's suit have the ability to casually prevent a sun from going nova? Absorb the Beyonder's powers? No.

    The only two people on the list capable of such feats are Richards and Doom; they perfectly balance each other out, which is why the are each other's nemeses.

    Lex is probably the next on the list, but still nowhere near the level of those two sci/engineering juggernauts.

    That's it.

    This isn't even a contest.

  84. Gyro Gearloose by fjin · · Score: 1

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gyro_Gearloose I remember his from Donald Duck magazine. Made many wonder machines and just plain and boring spaceships to travel distant planets.

  85. Pat and Mat by aralin · · Score: 1

    I think Pat and Mat win this one. Look at some of the animated short stories below and check some more about them on wiki.

    http://www.patmat.cz/?lang=e
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pat_%26_Mat

    --
    If programs would be read like poetry, most programmers would be Vogons.
  86. perhaps a bit off by Evtim · · Score: 1

    Leonard from Quirm appears in a kind of comic book. "The last hero" by Prattchet, I mean.

    Now that's an engineer. Too bad Terry did not include bloody stupid Johnson in this story.

  87. Do you even have to ask? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Gyro Gearloose.

    No question.

  88. Gaston, Grunf by orange47 · · Score: 1

    My first thought was 'no DIlbert?' but that one is already mentioned in comments. Another 'greatest engineer' would be Grunf from Alan Ford. and my fav: Gaston Lagaffe http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/a/a6/Gastonpied.gif

  89. Calculus by MacroRodent · · Score: 1

    Exactly what I was about to post! He is a character that is foremost an engineer. Professor Calculus is from the Tintin series by Herge (in the French language originals he is named Tournesol), and the character is supposedly based on the great real-life inventor and explorer Auguste Piccard (see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Auguste_Piccard ) On the other hand, most of the characters in the article were unknown to me (a Finn), so continentalocentrism cuts both ways.

  90. Florence from Freefall. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I'm surprised no-one has mentioned Florence from Freefall yet.

    http://freefall.purrsia.com/

    1. Re:Florence from Freefall. by WillAdams · · Score: 1

      ::applause::

      She's all the more impressive since her comic is limited by real-world physics which the author tries very hard to get right.

      William

      --
      Sphinx of black quartz, judge my vow.
  91. Counter-Arguement by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I'm surprised the High Evolutionary didn't make the list. He created a whole counter-earth. All on his own. Without public money.

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High_Evolutionary

  92. Bicycle Repair Man! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Lwjv_VRM7A

  93. Standing Applause!... or is it Applesauce??!!? by rts008 · · Score: 1

    Rocket motors sputtering out all of the time, detonators failing, wings collapsing, etc. and ad nauseam....I second that.

    I also cast my vote for Wiley Coyote without reservation.

    I also would like to propose the creation of a 'Wiley Coyote' award to be used for those that show exceptional ability to single-mindedly pursue a single goal...no matter what happens.
    Dedication to the mission, perseverance, and willing to bounce right back into it, no matter what.

    Maybe set it up like the Nobel awards work, with a committee to vote on the winner from a pool of candidates.

    The candidates would be selected by ?....Profit!!!

    I would like to get my foot in the door and suggest for the voting committee:
    1. Scott Adams
    2. Gary Larson
    3. Frank Zappa
    4. scratch #3, he's dead, Jim.
    5. George Carlin...dammit, see #4
    6. The Gong Show crew
    7. *continue list here*

    --
    Down With Slashdot BETA!!! I've been around the corner and seen the oliphant; you can only abuse me from your perspecti
  94. Gaston Lagaffe! by Mattsson · · Score: 1

    Obviously, it's Gaston Lagaffe!

    --
    /.Mattsson - My native language is not English, so please don't whine over linguistic errors. (That's lame anyway...)
    1. Re:Gaston Lagaffe! by kleuske · · Score: 1

      Finally, someone making sense! Who else can invent, create and use a new musical instrument annex WMD? M'Enfin?!

      --
      Timeo hominem unius libri
  95. Well.. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    The greatest is ofcourse: Gyro Gearloose

            Belgium: Gyro Gyroscope
            Brazil: Prof. Pardal
            Bulgaria:
            Canada (Québec): Gyro Gearloose
            Chile: Giro Sintornillos
            China:
            Colombia: Ciro Peraloca
            Czech: ikula
            Denmark: Georg Gearløs
            Estonia: Leidur Leo
            Finland: Pelle Peloton
            France: Géo Trouvetou(t), Gyro Sanfrein (Geo Discover-everything, Gyro Without-brakes)
            Germany: Daniel Düsentrieb
            Greece:
            Hungary: Szaki Dani
            Iceland: Georg Gírlausi
            Indonesia: Lang Ling Lung
            Italy: Archimede Pitagorico
            Japan: (Jairo Giarsu)
            Korea: (Jairo Gieoruseu)
            Latvia: Bruno Bezbremze
            Mexico: Ciro Peraloca
            Norway: Petter Smart, Goggen Skrueløs
            Netherlands: Willie Wortel
            Poland: Diodak
            Portugal: Prof. Pardal
            Russia:
            Serbia: Proka Pronalaza
            Slovakia: Gyro Vynálezca
            Slovenia: Profesor Umnik
            Spain: Ungenio Tarconi
            Sweden: Uppfinnar-Jocke
            UK: Gyro Gearloose

  96. Gyro Gearloose ++ by Noodlenose · · Score: 1

    ...and Little Helper. NN

  97. Professor Beaker by seanellis · · Score: 1

    Not from Muppet Labs, but from ExTechOp (a subsidiary of SHIELD) in the Elektra graphic novel. His work on the revivification of Arthur Perry was incredible, even if ultimately flawed.

  98. Batman had the most important power of all by brokeninside · · Score: 1

    The bottomless bank account.

    For strict engineering cred, my vote goes to Peter Parker. Sure, he had super powers, but he also engineered some pretty spiffy tech on a shoe-string budget.

    1. Re:Batman had the most important power of all by Kelbear · · Score: 1

      Batman also has power over time itself.

      Anytime he needs to know something or have done something he goes back in time to pre-emptively develop what he needs.

      Otherwise, how does he fight crime during the night, pose as a playboy during the day, and then somehow research/train/build everything for every situation in the time between day and night?

      Tony stark is an even worse offender. son of a bitch actually had an "anti-spiderman" device on hand "just in case". Batman made anti-JLA contingencies but at least he didn't carry it around with him all the time.

  99. All wrong! by lxs · · Score: 1

    Handy Smurf beats them all.

  100. Nope.avi by Elliot.exe · · Score: 1

    Lex Luther makes Isambard Kingdom Brunel look inadequate. But I think Tony Stark has some "uber skillz". But the engineer from TF2 could take them all on...NOPE.AVI.

  101. Peter Parker gets my vote as well by brokeninside · · Score: 2

    Most of the engineers on the list have the best labs that money can buy and virtually unlimited bank accounts to buy the most exotic of materials.

    Meanwhile, Peter Parker gets by on a photojournalist's salary and tinkers in his spare time.

  102. Hands down. Calvin. by inAbsurdum · · Score: 1

    Calvin of Calvin and Hobbes fame. The ethicator, with the moral compromise spectral release phantasmatron. The transmogrifier. The time machine. The cerebral enhance-o-tron. The duplicator. The invisible cretinizer. Oh, and the bed-making robot (although that one did fail). Need I list more?

    --
    -- I am the Monkey Guru.
  103. Re:Obvious MobileTatsu-NJG Didn't Read Orig Articl by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Might have started as strip, but there are multiple books out now.

    captcha: tolerant

  104. Surely the big G man would trump all here? by trytoguess · · Score: 1

    I mean heck any smuck can manipulate existing matter and energy, but to create the aforementioned items, plus creating all the rules behind it, AND knowing all the nifty ways the rules can play out? That's well beyond anyone here no?

    True, he started out in a bunch of books, but he then appeared in every media know to man, so I think god still counts.

  105. Boy Genius by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Please dont forget DEXTER boy genius who started inventing stuff and playing with technology at an age when other comic characters were out playing in the sunlight!!!

  106. Mother-of-Invention by bamwham · · Score: 1

    The Tick is a cartoon, not a comic book, but Mother-of-Invention would have to be my favorite scientist villain. Probably not the best (I think he would even admit that) but using a time-machine (which was already invented) to go back through time to kidnap inventors so that he could then invent their inventions! Genius.

  107. The man of Bronze... by krouic · · Score: 1

    Doc Savage, who else ?

  108. BOFH by bursch-X · · Score: 1

    Admit it you always wanted to be like BOFH. He's da man!

    --
    There are two rules for success:
    1. Never tell everything you know.
  109. Have no fear, Mighty Mouse is here! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Mighty Mouse, of course. I'm shocked this had to even be asked!

  110. Hands down is.... by hesaigo999ca · · Score: 1

    Hands down, the brightest was Tony Stark, creating himself a mini emp device that generated enough electricity to power a small city, but also with enough mg force to stop that metal splinter from slipping into his heart, then you have all the suits over the years he worked on, of which war machine was the most prominent.

    Sure, you can build bombs or this or that...but when you travel a multitude of different types of creations....of which from what I saw in the movie even included captain americas shield if that was just a preview, although we know stark was not responsible for it in the comics.

    1. Re:Hands down is.... by Zinho · · Score: 1

      .but when you travel a multitude of different types of creations....of which from what I saw in the movie even included captain americas shield if that was just a preview, although we know stark was not responsible for it in the comics.

      I think that was supposed to be Tony's dad or grandfather making the shield. Certainly one of the Starks, but probably not Tony. Just remember the line from the first Iron Man movie: "It's how my dad did it, it's how my grampa did it, and it's worked pretty well so far." He's got quite a legacy to build on, and deep bank accounts to draw from, but he wasn't the one to build all that up.

      --
      "Space Exploration is not endless circles in low earth orbit." -Buzz Aldrin
    2. Re:Hands down is.... by hesaigo999ca · · Score: 1

      But he was the one to make it work and improve no the design to actual usage and past prototyping

    3. Re:Hands down is.... by Zinho · · Score: 1

      But he was the one to make it work and improve no the design to actual usage and past prototyping

      Are we still talking about Captain America's shield? If you've switched to the reactor design, I'll agree with you. Tony was not yet born, though, when WWII was being fought, and Cap. A. already had his shield back then. Don't get me wrong, I'm still giving Tony props for the things he did; I'm also recognizing that he comes from a line of successful engineer/businessmen who had many successes of their own. Whichever Stark is mentioned in the new Captain America trailer is certainly not Tony, and the credit for the shield should go to the correct Stark.

      --
      "Space Exploration is not endless circles in low earth orbit." -Buzz Aldrin
    4. Re:Hands down is.... by hesaigo999ca · · Score: 1

      There is a trailer for Cpt America???, I got to see this, Thor's sucks the big one, although I guess when you try to combine mystical/mythical with the scientific, you do not have much choice, but I just can't wait for the final Avengers, they better hurry before someone croaks of old age.....makes me feel like its Star wars all over again with all this waiting...

  111. My kids vote for... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Johnny Test's twin sisters Susan and Mary.

    Phineas and Ferb

    Dr. Heinz Doofenshmirtz

  112. Re:Obvious MobileTatsu-NJG Didn't Read Orig Articl by drinkypoo · · Score: 1

    Heh. I like how the offensive part of my post wasn't referring to being a woman as a handicap.

    Well, I think we all know women personally...

    Women are still upset that they make about as much less as men as the amount less time they spend in the office. If that's not a handicap I don't know what is. The being upset, I mean.

    --
    "You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
  113. Gina Diggers by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I would go with Gina Diggers from Gold Digger. She builds time machines, interdimensional space ships, and "a lever system with arms the size of the solar system and a fulcrum the size of jupiter."

  114. Venturing to Duckberg by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    What about Gyro Gearloose, from the Donald Duck comics?

  115. No Futurama Love? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    The professor of course... just wait until the smell-o-scope is a reality!

  116. G1 Transformers Wheeljack by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    He created the Dinobots... with Rachet's help.

  117. Another nominee by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Don't know about greatest, but Bernie (from Doonesbury) should be on the list.

  118. Re:Best comic engineer? None of the above! by T.E.D. · · Score: 1

    I second the vote for Wally. The best piece of wisdom I've ever seen in the entire run of the strip came from him: "I've found that if you wait long enough, most problems take care of themselves." (Said to Dilbert after he busted his butt to meet a deadline on a project that was subsequently cancelled). I call it "Wally's Rule".

  119. Dr Zarkov! by Trukutu · · Score: 0

    And what about an option for Dr. Hans Zarkov, from Flash Gordon, who was forced to job for Ming...

    --
    1010011010
  120. Titan A.E. by Kirin+Fenrir · · Score: 1

    Gune should get an honorable mention:

    "Does this look familiar? Do you know what it is? Neither do I. I made it last night in my sleep. Apparently I used Gindrogac. Highly unstable. I put a button on it. Yes. I wish to press it, but I'm not sure what will happen if I do..."

    --
    Caffeine is my anti-drug!

    Duranin - A NWN2 Roleplaying Persistent World
  121. What? Where's that boy genius? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    No Barry Ween? Most of his adventures started out in mundane ways (usually by reluctantly helping out somebody else), but when it called for application of technology or being one step ahead of the other guy, he had something figured out. Not to mention the attitude and sarcasm to match his intellect and his character flaws in dealing with less gifted people were often entertaining.

    Anyhow, the comics beat anything I could say to vouch for it.

  122. Doctor Octopus by DarthVain · · Score: 1

    He's got a Phd and has extra arms to build stuff with!

    Toyman probably fits the Maker profile... literally...

    I know off the top of my head I first thought of: Forge, Lex, Brainaic, and Mr. Fantastic which are all on the list.

    Though if you want to get into the ridiculously overpowered comic book folks, like Apocalypse, DarkSeid, and Thantos and the Infinity Gauntlet where they can pretty much just manipulate the universe to their will including their own molecular makeup, they are really only limited by their imagination.

    I guess that would also make Galactus the un-maker? Maybe the Anti-Monitor...

  123. Zim by Noexit · · Score: 1

    The Invader. Alternately, his super-rival Dib.

    --

    Never argue with a man carrying a water buffalo

  124. donald duck by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    donald duck

    http://www.cracked.com/article_19021_5-amazing-things-invented-by-donald-duck-seriously.html

  125. Comment removed by account_deleted · · Score: 1

    Comment removed based on user account deletion

  126. Kevyn Andreyasn by Zinho · · Score: 1

    Here's a late vote for a web-only entry: Kevyn Andreyasn of Schlock Mercenary.

    Inventor of the Teraport transportation system, he started a galaxy spanning war, successfully used a wormhole for time travel, and embeds antimatter into his Officer rank epaulets so that he can use them as antitank rounds/13.75 kiloton bombs as necessary.

    Perhaps he's not as prolific as Tony Stark or Bruce Wayne, but he thinks big =)

    --
    "Space Exploration is not endless circles in low earth orbit." -Buzz Aldrin
  127. Are we including Manga? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Are we including Manga, because these characters come to mind:

    Ritsuko Akagi from Neon Genesis Evangelion
    Kisuke Urahara from Bleach
    Tim Marcoh from Full Metal Alchemist

  128. How can anyone leave out by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Dr. Manhattan from the Watchmen. He could manipulate the very matter of the Universe!

  129. Man this is dumb by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Being a big comic book fan (although way behind the times), i was happy to see this article, but once I read it i was shocked that the slashdot overlords would post something so stupid and unresearched as this article.

    I mean the guy writing basically admitted he barely reads comics and went off of crap, lame.

    Besides, everyone should know the answer is Forge, i mean, that's his power, to make stuff.

  130. Missing: Gaston Lagaffe by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Gaston is a veritable Da Vinci of comic books! He has covered every field -- chemistry, mechanical engineering, electronics, computers, biology, music theory, rocket science. He's european and not a superhero, so I guess that's why you never heard of him

    Examples:
    http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3195/2998324088_9106a0bd77_o.jpg
    http://briconique.free.fr/images/GastonLagaffe.gif
    http://www.sceneario.com/Planche_bd_8065_GASTON.jpg
    http://multimedia.fnac.com/multimedia/images_produits/zoom_planche_bd/8/6/9/9782800126968_1.jpg
    http://www.dupuis.com/Couvertures/G/9782800145853-G.JPG

  131. Too bad by nu1x · · Score: 1

    Known Space has no comic form.

    --
    I have nothing to lose but my bindings.
  132. best engineer in comics by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Bugs bunny "Now is this town big enough for the both of us"

  133. Calvin's the greatest by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Calvin and his transmogrifier