Top 10 Superhero Spoof Teams

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#10: Captain Carrot and His Amazing Zoo Crew!

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Funny animal parodies of superheroes are not uncommon, but they aren’t usually considered as a canonical part of a major publisher’s universe. However, Captain Carrot and his pals were part of the crazy pre-Crisis DC world. Living on Earth-C, they got their powers when the Superman of Earth-1 accidentally sent a mysterious meteorite their way. Mild-mannered comic book creator Rodney Rabbit became the superman-like Captain Carrot. His crew included the feline Alley-Kat-Abra, porcine powerhouse Pig-Iron, super-speeding turtle Fastback and others. The Captain’s satirical humor was gentle and fond but found its marks. And the crew even made it into DC’s company-wide crossover, Countdown to Final Crisis – in their own unique way.

Team Impossible comes to us courtesy of The Venture Brothers, a spoof of Jonny Quest. But the Impossibles are clearly inspired by a certain pioneering Marvel Comics Foursome. There’s a brilliant scientist who’s also super-stretchy, plus his wife, who has to keep things together to keep from turning her skin invisible. Throw in her brother, who goes all flame-y at the merest hint of oxygen, and Ned, who’s basically a giant callus, and you have a fantastic parody going. The Impossibles take the family dynamic in new and hysterical directions you definitely won’t find in the pages of “Fantastic Four.”

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#8: The Justice Ducks

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The lead character of the much-admired “Darkwing Duck” TV series was a take-off on the Dark Knight (among other characters). But just as Batman finds it necessary to team up with his super-peers, so does Darkwing when his foes join together as the Fearsome Five. Darkwing is aided by a kinda-sorta-Iron Man-like Gizmoduck; a Scarlet Witchy- Morgana Macawber; the simple-minded Stegmutt; and the aquatic defender Neptunia. Darkwing’s ego allows ample room for spoofing by itself, but the quirks and attitudes of his colleagues chide the often-contrived superteam conflicts that have become tropes themselves.

Alright, even the name is enough to cause giggles among long-time fans of DC’s premier superhero group. But the good folks at SpongeBob SquarePants didn’t stop at the name. Instead, they let the silliness run rampant by putting SpongeBob and friends into the superhero business with predictably disastrous results. The IJLSA, featuring a line-up of Avengers/ Justice League types, was itself vastly amusing. But they became even more so when Mermaid Man had to recruit SpongeBob and friends to fill in for the original team.

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#6: The Ripping Friends

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Let’s face it: Even with the occasional Wonder Woman or Scarlet Witch, most super teams have traditionally been boys’ clubs. By subtitling themselves The World’s Most Manly Men, the Ripping Friends gleefully acknowledge that lots of testosterone is a prerequisite for their gang. Four massively muscled brothers – with the manly names of Rip, Slab, Crab, and Chunk – have massive muscles – take on such crises as a living wad of gum, a severe shortage of beef and underwear with a mind of its own. The Ripping Friends’ humor was over-the-top and outlandish – but then so is the concept of a superhero team.

In military parlance, the phrase “Section 8” used to refer to someone who was not mentally capable of serving. Yeah, that sounds like this group of, for lack of a better word, heroes. Led by the overweight drunk named Sixpack, the team includes a guy who welds dogs to things, a pervert who keeps saying “Bueno” and a Frenchman who wields a mean baguette. There’s more, but you get the idea. This psychotic group is one of the most twisted team parodies – and all the more spot-on for that. Hell, Sixpack even manages to save the world. Not before almost all his teammates die, but hey – you take the good with the bad.

Of course the feverish brains of Trey Parker and Matt Stone couldn’t resist a target like a superhero team. It started out with Cartman, of all people, becoming a costumer do-gooder – or vigilante, at least. Soon all of the gang was involved, although their superpowers are, shall we say, limited. I mean, a suit made out of Tupperware? Fighting crime by tattling to parents? In typical “South Park” fashion, the stories don’t focus only on superheroes but take in Lovecraft, Stanley Kubrick, and even bake sales. Because, why not? After viewing Coon and Friends, you’ll wonder why you ever took guys in tights and capes seriously.

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#3: Justice Friends

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What do superheroes do when they’re not superhero-ing? The answer, according to the Justice Friends: Get on each other’s nerves. At least if they make the mistake of being super-roommates. As a backup segment of “Dexter’s Laboratory,” the Justice Friends popped up regularly to poke fun at Captain America, Thor, and the Hulk, as well as numerous other friends that dropped by. But the fun was most often focused on super-dudes dealing with everyday obstacles like cleaning the apartment or chasing a bee. Defeating super-villains is one thing, but everyday chores – now that’s tough!

Seriously, was anything much weirder than Bob Burden’s bizarre and fascinating Flaming Carrot? Well, actually yes, such as the idea that he and his pals would form a team of working-class heroes. This mediocre team included practically anyone that could come up with a costume. If you carry a shovel, you’re the Shoveler. Your carrot-shaped head is on fire? You’re the Flaming Carrot. You know, kinda no-frills. Operating in a surreal world with a logic all its own, the Mysterymen were a strange but strangely lovable group of misfits.

Before we reveal our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions:

The Vindicators

The Inferior Five

The Great Lakes Avengers

Kids of all ages may take these dudes semi-seriously now, but when they started out the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles were, in essence, a spoof. They were brought together to mock four popular trends of the time in comic books, and it’s all there in their name. But they were primarily a parody of “Daredevil” - both the Turtles and Matt Murdock gained their powers from a crashed truck carrying radioactive ooze, have mentors named after wooden objects, and face off against evil ninja organizations named after extremities. Sure, they’ve become so iconic through the years that it’s hard to remember their parody beginnings, but they’re there.