''The Amazing Screw-On Head'' is a one-shot

comic book A comic book, also called comicbook, comic magazine or (in the United Kingdom and Ireland) simply comic, is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are of ...

written and drawn by

Mike Mignola Mike Mignola (; born September 16, 1960) is an American comics artist and writer best known for creating ''Hellboy'' for Dark Horse Comics, part of a shared universe of titles including ''B.P.R.D.'', '' Abe Sapien'', '' Lobster Johnson'', '' Wit ...

and published by

Dark Horse Comics Dark Horse Comics is an American comic book, graphic novel, and manga publisher founded in Milwaukie, Oregon by Mike Richardson in 1986. The company was created using funds earned from Richardson's chain of Portland, Oregon comic book shops know ...

in 2002, starring the character of the same name. ''The Amazing Screw-On Head'' stars a robot living during the

Lincoln administration The presidency of Abraham Lincoln began on March 4, 1861, when Abraham Lincoln was inaugurated as the 16th president of the United States, and ended upon his assassination and death on April 15, 1865, days into his second term. Lincoln was th ...

whose head can be attached to different bodies with different tactical abilities, and who functions as an agent of the U.S. government. The idea for the character was inspired by

action figures An action figure is a poseable character model figure made most commonly of plastic, and often based upon characters from a film, comic book, military, video game or television program; fictional or historical. These figures are usually mar ...

, particularly Batman ones, which seemed to Mignola to be the same figurines with different paint jobs. Mignola imagined a

robot A robot is a machine—especially one programmable by a computer—capable of carrying out a complex series of actions automatically. A robot can be guided by an external control device, or the control may be embedded within. Robots may ...

with a head that screwed onto different bodies to suit the occasion, hence "Screw-on Head". An animated

pilot An aircraft pilot or aviator is a person who controls the flight of an aircraft by operating its directional flight controls. Some other aircrew members, such as navigators or flight engineers, are also considered aviators, because they a ...

, based on the plot of the comic, was produced by the

Sci-Fi Channel Syfy (formerly Sci-Fi Channel, later shortened to Sci Fi; stylized as SYFY) is an American basic cable channel owned by the NBCUniversal Television and Streaming division of Comcast's NBCUniversal through NBCUniversal Cable Entertainment. ...

in 2006, with Bryan Fuller as writer and executive producer and

Chris Prynoski Chris Prynoski (born November 1, 1971) is an American film and television producer, animator, and director, known for his work on TV programs such as ''Downtown'', '' Metalocalypse'', '' Freaknik: The Musical'', ''Motorcity'' and '' Megas XLR'' a ...

as director.

Plot

Comic

Screw-On Head is an agent for President

Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln ( ; February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was an American lawyer, politician, and statesman who served as the 16th president of the United States from 1861 until his assassination in 1865. Lincoln led the nation thro ...

. He is summoned by Lincoln to track down Emperor Zombie, an

undead The undead are beings in mythology, legend, or fiction that are deceased but behave as if alive. Most commonly the term refers to corporeal forms of formerly-alive humans, such as mummies, vampires, and zombies, who have been reanimated by supe ...

occultist The occult, in the broadest sense, is a category of esoteric supernatural beliefs and practices which generally fall outside the scope of religion and science, encompassing phenomena involving otherworldly agency, such as magic and mysticism a ...

and originally a groundskeeper at Hyde Park. Zombie and his henchmen, the vampire Madam and scientist Dr. Snap, have stolen an ancient manuscript. This will allow him access to the temple of Gung, a warlord who nearly conquered the world over ten thousand years ago with supernatural power gained from "a fabulous

melon A melon is any of various plants of the family Cucurbitaceae with sweet, edible, and fleshy fruit. The word "melon" can refer to either the plant or specifically to the fruit. Botanically, a melon is a kind of berry, specifically a " pepo". Th ...

-sized jewel", which Zombie obviously plans to use for himself. With the aid of his manservant, Mr. Groin, and dog Mr. Dog, Screw-On Head manages to track down Zombie, but not before the villain and his henchmen find the treasure: instead of a jewel, the tomb contains a

turnip The turnip or white turnip ('' Brassica rapa'' subsp. ''rapa'') is a root vegetable commonly grown in temperate climates worldwide for its white, fleshy taproot. The word ''turnip'' is a compound of ''turn'' as in turned/rounded on a lathe and ...

with "a small parallel universe" inside. Zombie unleashes the Demigod within, but Screw-On Head manages to defeat it in combat.

TV pilot

The 22-minute pilot differs from the comic mainly in that the characters are fleshed out with backstories. Rather than a master of languages, Emperor Zombie (

David Hyde Pierce David Hyde Pierce (born April 3, 1959) is an American actor and director of stage, film and television. He starred as psychiatrist Dr. Niles Crane on the NBC sitcom ''Frasier'' from 1993 to 2004, and won four Primetime Emmy Awards and a Scree ...

) is the first of Screw-On Head's (

Paul Giamatti Paul Edward Valentine Giamatti (; born June 6, 1967) is an American actor and film producer. He first garnered attention for his breakout role in '' Private Parts'' as Kenny "Pig Vomit" Rushton, leading to supporting roles in ''Saving Private R ...

) manservants, who has turned to evil despite Screw-On Head's advice. Out of revenge for his first defeat, Zombie developed what he refers to as a "petty vengeance fetish", killing the seven replacement servants after him, and before Mr. Groin (

Patton Oswalt Patton Peter Oswalt (born January 27, 1969) is an American stand-up comedian, actor and writer. He is known as Spence Olchin in the sitcom ''The King of Queens'' (1998–2007) and for narrating the sitcom '' The Goldbergs'' (2013–present) as ...

), in gruesome ways. The pilot also featured

Molly Shannon Molly Helen Shannon (born September 16, 1964) is an American actress and comedian who was a cast member on ''Saturday Night Live'' from 1995 to 2001. In 2017, she won the Film Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Actress for her role in ...

Mindy Sterling Mindy Lee Sterling (born July 11, 1953) is an American television, film and voice actress. She portrayed Frau Farbissina in the ''Austin Powers'' film series and starred in the web series ''Con Man'', the latter of which earned her a Primetime ...

, and

Corey Burton Corey Gregg Weinberg (born August 3, 1955), known professionally as Corey Burton, is an American voice actor. He is the current voice of Captain Hook, Ludwig Von Drake, Dale and others for The Walt Disney Company, Shockwave on '' The Transformer ...

in various roles as well. On July 12, 2006, ''The Amazing Screw-On Head'' TV pilot was aired online at scifi.com with a survey to decide whether or not the show went to series. According to Mike Mignola on the November 29, 2006 Fanboy Radio podcast, the series was not picked up by the Sci-Fi Channel. The pilot was released on DVD on February 6, 2007.

Awards

''The Amazing Screw-On Head'' won the 2003 Eisner Award for Best Humor Publication."2003 Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards"
Hahn Library Comic Book Awards Almanac. Retrieved September 17, 2012.

References

External links