ComicsAlliance Celebrates Drokktober!

While other sites may be content to bring you Rocktober, Shocktober or Mohawktober, ComicsAlliance is committed to commemorating the things that really matter! That's why this month, we're bringing you 31 days of the bowdlerized F-bombs of the future as we celebrate Drokktober!DID YOU KNOW...

• Minced oaths -- or as we call them here in the South, "substitute cusses" -- have been part of literature since long before Judge Anderson starded stomming and grudding her way through Psi Division. Even Shakespeare wasn't immune to having his vocabulary edited, as was the case when Thomas Bowdler created an edited version of the Bard's masterpieces that he considered to be more suitable for women and children. One assumes Hamlet and Laertes just went out for ice cream at the end of Act V.
• In comics, movies and TV, substitute cusses are most commonly seen in stories set in the future. The evolution of language allows for writers to get across the same meaning while giving their dialogue a signature flair, like the Legion's use of "sprock" and "grife," or Firefly's use of Chinese swearing despite the fact that there are no actual Asian people on the show.
• My personal favorite? "Batwitch," from Jim Starlin's run on the threeboot Legion. Not only is it hilariously unwieldy, it's a reference to a classic Bob Haney story where Superman and Batman go back in time and Superman convinces the pilgrims that Batman is actually a witch and should be burned at the stake. Superman himself uses the letter on his chest to convince these extremely stupid colonists that he's an actor, because "The S is for Shakespeare." Boom: You just got Connections'ed.

Join us tomorrow for more Drokktober celebrations!