Polite Dissent

Now I guess I have no choice but to explain the hero that is “Freedom Beast.” I’d take notes if I were you; H is probably going to give us a test when he finishes with the DC Comics Encyclopedia.

B’wana Beast debuted in Showcase #66. Mike Maxwell, a big game hunter, encounters a wizened native shaman who gives him a magic helmet and potion with which he can become B’wana Beast. The helmet grants him the power to fuse two animals into one and the elixir gives him heightened senses and strength. As B’wana Beast he lives in a secret hideout on the top of Mount Kilimanjaro with his ape companion Djuba and fights injustice throughout Africa.

Recently, Maxwell passed on the B’wana Beast mantle to Dominic Mndawe who chose to rename himself (sadly) Freedom Beast. With this, a ridiculous — yet somehow fun — character became just stupid.

B’wana Beast’s best appearance was in Grant Morrison and Chas Truog’s Animal Man#1-4. A close second would be his appearance in the Justice League Unlimited episode “This Little Piggy.”