Elmerlution

Shown here are Elmer's multiple incarnations over the years. Now, the years in the picture probably aren't exact, since I can't remember very well... But dang, Elmer's sure changed, hasn't he?

First is "Proto" Elmer. Made way back when I was in... 2nd grade? Maybe? Since my skills as an artist weren't very developed back then, Elmer didn't have a very consistent appearance, at least as far as proportion and shape are concerned. Elmer was a simple yellow thing with three-fingered hands, a red tuft of hair on his head, and a big nose. Check out those eyes on top of his head!

Proto Elmer was the subject of a few short stories and picture books that I made during school when I was supposed to be learning stuff. Again, there wasn't much consistency in the stories. Elmer was a bit of an everyman, though he was kind of critical of others sometimes and had a habit of constantly running late. On his treks, he tried to catch a train, navigated monster-filled mazes, sailed on the backs of sea dragons, visited exotic islands, and got stung by bees. There were several characters that he met during his adventures, but only his cohort George still lives on to this day. Also, for some reason, Elmer lived in a hole in the ground, a la Bugs Bunny. What happened to your house, Proto Elmer!?

Elmer had no real special abilities at this point, other than perhaps his "Dash" (which was simply running quickly) and likely a knack for jumping (he had to get outta that hole somehow, right?).

Second is "Spirit" Elmer. The Elmer series degenerated into some weird Pokemon/Digimon ripoff where Elmer and his friends acquired superpowered armor from Elemental Spirits or some crap like that and used their new powers the same way anyone else would; beat the tar out of random monsters for no good reason! Focus moved from short stories to brief comic books. Shown in the picture is Elmer with his Spirit Armor on. Other than the occasional armor, Elmer was still completely nude.

Spirit Elmer was all whiny. Seriously, he could sob profusely when given the slightest inconvenience! Not only that, he was pretty dang aggressive and didn't mind punishing any monster that got on peoples' nerves. At least he had a house this time.

Something good came out of Spirit Elmer's era, though: This was the first time Elmer was associated with the element of fire, due to being bestowed Spirit Armor from the Spirit of Fire. Unlike later versions, though, his fire powers were only thanks to his armor and couldn't be done naturally. Even so, Spirit Elmer's pyrokinesis is arguably the strongest and most explosive of all incarnations. His favorite technique was charring foes to a crisp with a wave of flames.

You may have noticed the gap in years up on the picture. Elmer was...taking a break at the time.

Third is "Bold" Elmer. In this era, Elmer and his multiple colorful friends utilized teamwork and high speed assaults to thwart Dr. Laser and his many wacky contraptions to keep him from conquering the world. Sound familiar? Hold on, it gets worse...

Sonic-clone Elmer was needlessly brave and overly hasty, always rushing into whatever he deemed was capable of turning into an adventure. Heck, he thought that searching for an odd-looking crab was grade-A adventure material. Modesty was a foreign concept to Bold Elmer; really, what's the point of pretending to be average when you're so freaking great? But wait, I'm not done...

Elmer was exceptionally speedy. He liked to roll up into a ball while jumping, too. If all of this doesn't sound the least bit familiar to you, you need to get out more. Ironically, the Sonic-ripoff version of Elmer was the tallest out of all of them... All that aside, this generation also brought many good things to the series. Bold Elmer's powers may not have been as mighty as they once were, but they were now completely natural. Elmer gained the potential to pull off acrobatic stunts. His signature ability and weapon, the Flame Dash and Blazing Blade, respectively, were also introduced during this point in the timeline.

Finally, fourth is "Modern" Elmer. Check it out! Elmer's got actual clothes now! Never again shall he be a naked streaker. More colorful and marketable than ever before, Modern Elmer's future looks a bit more promising!

Modern Elmer's relatively calm and modest, a nice departure from previous forms. He's fairly content just kicking back and relaxing, but he's not afraid to show off a few nifty tricks occasionally and is prone to wise-cracking; still, he's a pretty nice guy with control over his ego. He's got a strong sense of justice and affinity for playing around, but he's not devoted to it like Bold Elmer. He even gets scared at times!

Elmer's abilities are much more defined than before. His signature move is the Flame Dash, a fiery tackle. He's also picked up some new tricks, like the Flaming Tornado, the Backflip Kick, and more. With the use of powerups, he gains even more firepower. The Blazing Blade lets him pull off hot sword-based combos, while the Phoenix Feather allows him to experience flight for a limited time and usage of one of his deadliest moves, the Phoenix Flare.

Elmer (c) me