Original Air Date
- Aug. 8, 2025
Part 1 Begins
Super Show ID 1: Superhero Smash (0:30)
- You’re listening to Superhero Smash on WIUP FM 90.1
- Featuring “The Best in Superhero Music and Comic Book Lore”
- I’m your host, Dr. Gian Pagnucci, a.k.a. The New Professor X
Heroic Audio Episode Theme: Blade (0:30)
- Today on Superhero Smash we’ll be fighting those blood thirsty creatures of the night, vampires
- Alongside the Daywalker who hunts them, Marvel’s Blade
Hero Opening Song (6:07)
- “Bloodletting (The Vampire Song)” by Concrete Blonde
Super Show ID 2: Superhero Smash (0:30)
- You’re listening to Superhero Smash on WIUP FM 90.1
- Focusing on current superhero movies and popular culture events
- All summer long, I will be playing great music about superheroes as well as music that is featured in superhero movies and shows
- I also will be talking about comic book history and heroism
- And you can rest assured that no matter how much super cool stuff I talk about during each episode, you don’t have to worry because Superhero Smash is a NO SPOILERS show!
- Superhero Smash is aired exclusively on WIUP FM 90.1
- Contact me, the New Professor X, via email: SuperheroSmash3000@gmail.com
- I love to hear from the Legion of Superhero Smash Fans!
Heroic Instrumental Theme Music (1:27)
- “Daywalker” by Mark Isham from the movie Blade
The Superhero Smash Comic Book Vault (2:00): First Appearance of Blade
- The Comic Book Vault Sound Effect (0:12)
- Blade First Appearance: The Tomb of Dracula #10
- Publication Date: July 1973
- Publisher: Marvel Comics Group
- Creators: Marv Wolfman (writer) and Gene Colan (artist)
- Value: $825 on eBay (CGC graded 4.0 on a 10-point scale) and signed by Marv Wolfman himself!
- The Tomb of Dracula #10 is worth a lot, so check your parents’ attic in case they have an old copy of that comic lying around; but you better wait until this episode of Superhero Smash is done, because there is a bunch of cool stuff coming up in the rest of today’s episode
Super Song #1 (3:40)
- “Vampire” from Olivia Rodrigo
Part 1 Ends (@15 minutes)
Part 2 Begins (@15 minutes)
Super Show ID 3: Superhero Smash (0:30)
- Listen to Superhero Smash on WIUP FM 90.1
- Featuring “The Best Superhero Music and Comic Book Lore” in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the DC Cinematic Universe, and our U-niverse too!
- Check out pagnucci.org and click the big Superhero Smash button
- Or email the New Professor X using the address SuperheroSmash3000@gmail.com
- I love to hear from the Legion of Superhero Smash Fans
- If you are enjoying today’s show, you can catch more Superhero Smash on Thursday mornings at 11:00 a.m. all summer long on WIUP FM 90.1
Super Secret Origin Story: The Origin of Blade (5:00)
- According to Wikipedia, “Eric Cross Brooks was born in a brothel in the Soho neighborhood of London, England,[17] on October 24, 1929.[18] His mother was Tara Vanessa Cross-Brooks, an heiress seeking sanctuary with Madame Vanity, an agent of the Order of Tyrana. When Tara experienced severe labor complications, a doctor was called; in actuality, the doctor was the vampire Deacon Frost, who killed Tara by drinking all of her blood. However, this inadvertently passed along certain vampire enzymes to her baby son as he was born. Eric thus became part-vampire, preventing him from being turned by a vampire’s bite. Blade thus gained the powers of vampires but could also walk in daylight.
- “Due to his father Lucas Cross being falsely imprisoned in his native Latveria, Eric was raised in the brothel, believing his mother to have been an employee there. At age 9, returning home from school one day, he saw an old man being attacked by three vampires. Eric helped the man, Jamal Afari, distract his attackers so that he could kill them with a silver sword. Afari, posing as a jazz musician, soon became a father figure to Eric, teaching him music and training him in the ways of fighting vampires. Eric was soon able to defeat many of the weak, younger vampires that he and Afari found in abundance. Over time, the young man became an Olympic-level athlete and a formidable hand-to-hand combatant; his skill with knives and daggers was such that it earned him the nickname ‘Blade’ among both his fellow hunters and the vampires they opposed, who began to fear him.”
Super Song #2 (3:21)
- “The Sharpest Lives” from My Chemical Romance
- My Chemical Romance blends alternative rock, emo, and pop-punk together in its music
- Superhero Smash and WIUP FM 90.1 feature all kinds of music!
The Significance of Blade’s Creation (2:00)
- In a YouTube interview, Marv Wolfman explained about the importance of his creation of Blade:
- “When I was at DC, I was working with a partner and we were working on the Teen Titans, a different version of it than I later did, and [we] came up with a Black superhero and we wrote it, and it was drawn and everything and for one reason or another the story was never published. There were all sorts of explanation but I was never there. All I know is the story was never published, and one of the promises I made to myself was that the next character I created would be a Black character like the character for Teen Titans because I didn’t think Black characters were represented at all in comics to any great degree. I felt coming from New York City, going to a school, and everybody who attends that high school is pretty much everybody who lives within a few blocks of you, because that’s the way it works. I went to school in Manhattan, called High School of Art and Design, and it took people of all of New York. You saw people of all kinds there, so it didn’t sound strange to me to use a Black character, and I just never understood why they didn’t. So [when] I came up with Blade, it came to me literally in a second. I’m not joking, I had just gotten the Dracula assignment, and I wasn’t thinking about anything. Suddenly, the character came full blown. I knew exactly who he was and what he looked like, and I knew everything about him.”
- “Marv Wolfman – Creator of Blade and Writer of Tomb of Dracula – Interview”. YouTube. November 20, 2021.
- “When I was at DC, I was working with a partner and we were working on the Teen Titans, a different version of it than I later did, and [we] came up with a Black superhero and we wrote it, and it was drawn and everything and for one reason or another the story was never published. There were all sorts of explanation but I was never there. All I know is the story was never published, and one of the promises I made to myself was that the next character I created would be a Black character like the character for Teen Titans because I didn’t think Black characters were represented at all in comics to any great degree. I felt coming from New York City, going to a school, and everybody who attends that high school is pretty much everybody who lives within a few blocks of you, because that’s the way it works. I went to school in Manhattan, called High School of Art and Design, and it took people of all of New York. You saw people of all kinds there, so it didn’t sound strange to me to use a Black character, and I just never understood why they didn’t. So [when] I came up with Blade, it came to me literally in a second. I’m not joking, I had just gotten the Dracula assignment, and I wasn’t thinking about anything. Suddenly, the character came full blown. I knew exactly who he was and what he looked like, and I knew everything about him.”
- In another interview, Wolfman talked about what a powerful character he believed Blade was:
- “I knew if I let him, Blade would eclipse the other characters [in The Tomb of Dracula] so I pulled him back and let original supporting characters Rachel, Frank, and Quincy shine. I also wasn’t happy with my Blade dialogue, so I pulled him out of the book for a while — I think almost a year — and when I brought him back I played him a bit straighter. The early Blade dialogue was cliche ‘Marvel Black’ dialogue. Later on, I tried to make him more real. But it took growing up as a writer.”
Super Song #3 (5:12)
- “Vampires Will Never Hurt You” from My Chemical Romance
Part 1 Ends (@30 minutes)
Part 2 Begins (@30 minutes)
Super Show ID 4: Superhero Smash (0:30)
- Listen to Superhero Smash on WIUP FM 90.1
- Featuring “The Best Superhero Music and Comic Book Lore” in the MCU, the DCU, and our U too!
- Check out pagnucci.org and click the big Superhero Smash button
- Or email the New Professor X using the address SuperheroSmash3000@gmail.com
- I love to hear from the Legion of Superhero Smash Fans
Long-Lost Hero: How Blade Saved Superhero Cinema (5:00)
- I usually like to talk about a long-lost hero on Superhero Smash
- But today I want to talk about how all of superhero cinema was nearly lost before the premier of the movie Blade in 1998
- Prior to Blade, there had been mostly failed superhero movies with bad special effects and poor acting
- This included a Captain America movie in 1990
- A Fantastic Four movie in 1994 that was never released and was only filmed to hold onto the character rights
- And, worst of all, 1986’s Howard the Duck
- The worst thing about Howard the Duck was that George Lucas was an executive producer for the film, and so I had been telling my friends how great the movie was going to be
- When we went to see it, it was so terrible they all wanted me to give them their money back! Luckily matinee’s were still cheap in those days, but you owe me $9 bucks, Mr. Lucas!
- In the 1990’s, Marvel Comics was also facing potential bankruptcy
- Fortunately Marvel green-lighted a Blade movie and it became a mega hit
- Starring Wesley Snipes in his best performance ever, Blade earned $131.2 million at the box office, proving that a character primarily known only by comic book readers could carry a movie to box office success
- This helped save Marvel and laid the groundwork for the rest of the MCU
- Blade updated the comic book source material
- Instead of the original Blade costume which included garish green bellbottoms and oversized glasses, in the film Blade wore black leather and Ray-Bans
- Wesley Snipes made Ray-Bans look so good that 30 years later, I’m wearing a pair and they still look cool!
- Blade also told a gritty, realistic story, and even including elements of horror in the superhero movie
- Blade helped bring respectability to superhero movies and they have been going strong ever since!
- And thanks to Alyssa Miller’s article “How Blade Kickstarted the MCU and Every Other Superhero Movie” for adding to my knowledge of Blade’s gr0undbreaking role in cinema history
Super Song #4 (3:32)
- “Blade (Techno)” by Victor Wick
- The film included techno music from the vampire dance club in which the movie opens
A Super Team-Up: Blade & Buffy? (2:00)
- There are a lot of vampires out there, so Blade could definitely use some help
- So here’s an idea, how about Marvel has Blade the Vampire Hunter team up with Buffy the Vampire Slayer?
- They are both great at killing vampires
- Unfortunately, that team up hasn’t happened so far, although many fans have said they would love to see it
- Maybe we can get Marvel to do that team-up by featuring this next song as part of today’s special Blade episode
Super Song #5 (2:23)
- “Buffy the Vampire Slayer-Main Theme” by Geek Music
Part 3 Ends (@40 minutes)
Part 4 Begins (@40 minutes)
Super Show ID 5: Superhero Smash (0:30)
- Listen to Superhero Smash on WIUP FM 90.1
- Featuring “The Best Superhero Music and Comic Book Lore” in the MCU, the DCU, and our U too!
- Check out pagnucci.org and click the big Superhero Smash button
- Or email the New Professor X using the address SuperheroSmash3000@gmail.com
- I love to hear from the Legion of Superhero Smash Fans
- And I better give a Superhero Smash Super Shout-out to my son Cormac, listening out in Philadelphia, who recommended this next movie to me which helped inspire today’s episode
Vampires and Irish Music: Sinners (3:00)
- If you haven’t seen it yet, HBO started streaming the fabulous movie Sinners on July 4th
- It’s a great film with Michael B. Jordan at the top of his game as usual
- I won’t give much away about the film since Superhero Smash a no spoilers show!
- But I will say it is full of surprises although I can’t really hide the fact that it is also full of blood thirsty vampires since I’ve made the film part of today’s show
- I especially loved the Prohibition-era setting of the film
- I’m also pleased to say that HBO will be releasing a version of the film interpreted in Black American Sign Language
- Loyal listeners of Superhero Smash will recall…
- Superhero Smash Back Issue Bin (Season II): Audio Issue #27: Ant-Man & Superhero Smash Special Guest Star Amelia Bowdell (7/11/24 with Audio)
- That action packed episode focused on the film Ant-Man and the film’s unique effort to be inclusive of the Deaf community
- Sinners actually has a Blade connection
- Ruth E. Carter designed the costumes for Sinners. According to the SuperheroHype website, Carter “appeared on the John Campea Show and stated that the MCU Blade reboot, featuring Mahershala Ali’s rendition of the character, was supposed to have a 1920s setting. She was part of its development for some time and was making preparations for the production. However, the project was “shut down” due to the 2023 Hollywood strikes.”
- “How Blade Reboot’s Story was Similar to Sinners“ (SuperHeroHype, April 24, 2025)
- According to Sev Ohanian on MovieWeb, one of the producers of Sinners, Carter had a warehouse full of period-appropriate clothes and Marvel was generous enough to let the Sinners production crew use them
- Sinners is also full of great music, from blues to Irish folk music, and even features a special guest appearance by famous bluesman Buddy Guy, although you’ll have to watch very carefully to spot him
- I don’t have time to play all the great music in Sinners, but here’s one fabulous blues song for you
Super Song #6 (2:55)
- “I Lied to You (Radio Edit)” by Miles Canton
Super Romantic Interlude: Blade & Dr. Karen Jenson (2:00)
- In the first Blade movie, Blade’s primary love interest is Dr. Karen Johnson, a hematologist who is bitten by a vampire and becomes his partner in fighting against Deacon Frost.
- Karen works on developing a cure for vampirism but taking it would mean Blade would lose his powers
- I won’t tell you what Blade decides, though, because Superhero Smash a no spoilers show!
- This does lead to a great vampire love song, though…
Super Song #7 (5:35)
- “Total Eclipse of the Heart (Radio Version)” by Bonnie Tyler
- The song was originally titled “Vampires in Love”
- The classic video is set in a vampire school
Super Show ID 6: Superhero Smash To Be Continued Next Issue! (2:00)
- Same Bat Time, Same Bat Channel: Dr. David Henningsen of Northern Illinois University will be back to talk about communication privacy management and secret identities
- If you are enjoying today’s show, you can catch more Superhero Smash on Thursday mornings at 11:00 a.m. all summer long on WIUP FM 90.1
- Super Public Service Message: The Altoona Curve will be hosting Supervillain Night tomorrow at 6:00 p.m.
- Rumor has it they’ll be giving away Harley Quinn bobbleheads, so I’m definitely going
- Drop by the ball park and tell ’em the New Professor X sent you!
- Listen to Superhero Smash on WIUP FM 90.1
- Featuring “The Best Superhero Music and Comic Book Lore” in the MCU, the DCU, and our U too!
- Check out pagnucci.org and click the big Superhero Smash button
- Or email Professor X using the address SuperheroSmash3000@gmail.com
- I love to hear from the Legion of Superhero Smash Fans
- And remember, while Superhero Smash is about the adventures of amazing individuals,
- “You don’t need superpowers to be a hero. The only thing it takes to be a hero is the courage to do what’s right when someone needs your help.”–Gian Pagnucci
Heroic End Credits Song (3:12)
- I highly recommend all three movies in the Blade trilogy. There was also a TV series that was pretty good.
- And if you’re sad that the Blade reboot got canceled, you only need to watch last summer’s Deadpool vs. Wolverine to learn why “There’s only one Blade”
- “Monster Mash” by Bobby “Borris” Pickett and the Crypt-Kickers
Part 4 Ends (@60 minutes)