Merge:Monkey Joe

Monkey Joe was the squirrel sidekick of the D-List superhero Squirrel Girl. He was smarter than an average squirrel, which may have been the reason he was her constant companion even though she could talk to all squirrels. He even showed an affinity for the use of computers.

Character history
In Squirrel Girl's first public appearance, Monkey Joe helped her to defeat Doctor Doom. However, the duo dissappeared for a very long time after that. In 2005, Squirrel Girl and Monkey Joe were revived from obscurity and joined the Great Lakes Avengers (GLA) for their first ever miniseries written by Dan Slott. Shortly after they joined (and Squirrel Girl made certain that Monkey Joe was an official member as well), Monkey Joe met his demise seemingly at the hands of Dr. Doom (whom he had helped defeat in his first appearance). This turned out to instead be Leather Boy, an ex-GLA member kicked out for not actually having any powers, who was dressed in a variation of an old Doctor Doom costume. The death was part of a marketing promise that a member of the GLA would die in each issue of the miniseries, as a parody of comic book deaths.

Monkey Joe also served as a comedic commentator for the GLA miniseries. A cartoony version of him appeared alongside the story holding signs with humorous, often smart-ass, remarks on the events of the story. After his death in issue #3, the narrator circle showed a deceased Monkey Joe hanging lifeless. His presence in the narrator circle continued in issue #4, however he now possessed a halo.

At the end of GLA #4, Squirrel Girl found a new squirrel companion whom she named Tippy Toe and gave a pink bow. Tippy Toe mimics Monkey Joe's role as Squirrel Girl's sidekick almost exactly.

The trade paperback of the GLA miniseries is dedicated to the memory of Monkey Joe, and reads "Monkey Joe 1992-2005. He loved nuts. He will be missed."


 * Note*: Monkey Joe was seen playing cards with the rest of the fallen GLA members when Doorman briefly visited the after-life. He seems very bitter about his demise and less forgiving than the other deceased members.