I haven't written much about comics lately. It seems like politics have taken over this space for a lot of the last several months. But I was compelled to write after I saw this site.

It'll take you to another blog dedicated to discussion and ridicule of the various fictional cities and towns of the DC Comics universe, debating what happened to them, what super heroes live there now (since they've been more or less abandoned), and so on. There's also a lot of space dedicated to the sexual identity of obscure Golden Age super-hero Black Condor (who was, in his secret ID, a United States Senator).

Feel free to respond to that as you will.

As for the fake cities, I love this kind of discussion. You see, a great deal of debate exists online and elsewhere about the geographic locations of the made-up cities where the super-heroes dwell. While I never weigh in (because I guess that would cross some kind of line), I enjoy reading comics geeks raging about where their fave heroes live.

For example, we've all heard of Metropolis, right? It's where Superman lives, and it's usually considered to be modeled on New York. According to DC Comics, Clark Kent grew up in Smallville (which is supposedly in Kansas), and then he moved to Metropolis . . . which is in Delaware.

Rage, rage, rage against the dying of the four-color light!

Likewise, we know that Batman lives in Gotham City, which is also based on New York (though the new movies shoot their locations in Chicago, and hell, Metropolis and Gotham couldn't possibly be in the same place, right?!!?!). Anyway, DC Comics says Gotham's in Jersey, not far from Atlantic City.

There are tons of other fictional cities - which gives the geek population more time to rage. There's Central City, where the Flash used to live, which might be in Illinois, Ohio, Missouri, or Kansas. Reports vary. There's Keystone City, where he lives now, which might be in Pennsylvania, Ohio, Kansas, or . . . well, it doesn't matter.

Then there's Coast City, which is sort of LA and Santa Barbara mashed together, but that doesn't stop the geeks online from occasionally arguing that it must - MUST - be on the gulf coast of Florida, Bama, or Texas. Or Star City, home of Green Arrow, which has been placed alternately by DC Comics as a stand-in for Boston, Chicago, and San Francisco, three cities that have . . . not a whole lot in common.

This site also refers to a few lesser-known "fictionopolises", like:

1) New Venice - ostensibly a Florida city where Aquaman used to hang out, and where all the roads are canals;

2) Midway City - Hawkman's old home, which . . . well, frankly has nothing particularly interesting to say about it. I've seen it depicted as being somewhere in the upper Midwest - Michigan, Illinois, or Wisconsin.

3) Civic City - where the Justice Society hung out during World War II, which might be in Pennsylvania, but really, nobody knows.

4) Federal City - which sounds like Washington, DC, but isn't . . . but I don't know why.

5) Middletown - where the Martian Manhunter lived. This might be in Colorado. And really, that makes sense! Who wouldn't put a semi-nude green super hero with a cape in the middle of Colorado?

There are more, but I don't need to fan these flames any more than they've already gone. And sorry, I can't answer questions about why no super-heroes live in your hometown. Yes, I know that there are no heroes to speak of in the Southeast or Southwest, and that the Midwest's hero population is thinning.

Or is it? Where should these cities be??

Dude, if we can start this debate on my blog, I'll be forever grateful.