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It’s not uncommon for comic book fandoms to uncover interesting details about their favorite characters. In a unique twist, fans from the fictional world ofThe Big Bang Theoryhave found an interesting pattern in Stan Lee’s Marvel characters. Specifically, the astrophysicist of the group, Rajesh Koothrappali, noticed that Stan Lee used alliterative names for his characters.
Raj’s interesting find intrigued many real fans at the time of the episode’s release, leading many to seek answers. Stan Lee had previously addressed this pattern in names in 2006, during the screening ofSpider-Man 2,offering an explanation that’s pretty straightforward.
Also Read:Kaley Cuoco Considered Quitting The Big Bang Theory in Rage After Feeling ‘Blindsided’ by Co-Star’s Decision
The Big Bang TheoryReveals Stan Lee’s Strange Pattern in Naming Characters
It’s hard to find another dedicated group of comic book nerds on television like the four friends inThe Big Bang Theory. The writers have brilliantly incorporated some hardcore nerd content and the extent of their research amazed real comic book fans. In the episode titled,The Excelsior Acquisition,Stan Leemakes an appearance as himself, visiting Stuart’s comic book store to sign autographs.
While the group, excluding Sheldon who’s in court, stands in line for the autograph, Raj reveals his one question for the Marvel legend. Raj (and Marvel fans) wanted to know why Lee insisted on giving his characters first and last names that start with the same letter. Raj provides examples of these alliterative names throughout the episode. His examplesincluded:
“Bruce Banner, Reed Richards, Sue Storm, Stephen Strange, Otto Octavius, Silver Surfer, Peter Parker. Oh, and worst of all, J. Jonah Jameson, Jr. […] Hey, I didn’t even mention Dum Dum Dugan, or Green Goblin, Matt Murdock, Pepper Potts, Victor von Doom. Oh, and worst of all, Millie the Model. […] Fantastic Four, Daredevil, Invincible Iron Man, Happy Hogan, Curt Connors. And worst of all, Fin Fang Foom.”
Marvel fans were also intrigued about the names afterKunal Nayyar‘s character mentioned it. However, Stan Lee had an explanation for these alliterative names, despite his character not liking Raj for pointing it out in the episode. Lee signed Leonard and Howard’s books addressing them as friends and adding ‘Excelsior’ to his name, while Raj only got“To Raj, from Stan Lee.”Poor Raj!
Also Read:Robert Downey Jr’s $2.4 Billion Worth Iron Man Franchise Has an Unexpected Connection With The Big Bang Theory
Stan Lee Gave The Alliterative Names Due To His Terrible Memory
Stan Lee gave an explanation for the alliterative naming when he appeared in a 2006 interview with Kevin Smith. In the interview, Lee revealed that he used the naming as a trick to remember the names as he was a forgetful writer. When the first and last names had the same first letter, he could at least remember one name and guess the other. Stan Lee told Kevin Smith (via CBR):
“I have the worst memory in the world. So I finally figured out if I could give somebody a name where the last name and the first begin with the same letter, I could at least remember one name. And it could give me a clue what the other name was.”
However, his clever little memory trick didn’t always work as he once wrongly named Bruce Banner as Bob Banner in one issue. This also forced him to change the name of the character to Robert Bruce Banner in the subsequent issues. He also once wrote Peter Palmer instead of Peter Parker in another issue. However, his alliterative naming quickly spread through the comic book world, with other creators adopting this approach.
Also Read:“It was supposed to be audio only”: Mayim Bialik Was Left Red-Faced By The Big Bang Theory Creator Due To One Last Minute Script Change
The Big Bang Theoryis now available for streaming on Max.
Hashim Asraff
Senior Writer
Articles Published :3018
Hashim Asraff is a Senior Entertainment Writer at FandomWire, with over 2,800 articles published on celebrity culture, comic book movies, and major TV franchises. With a background in Sociology and a keen interest in pop culture, Hashim brings a unique lens to breaking news stories, character deep-dives, film rankings, and fan-driven perspectives.His coverage often includes the MCU, DCU, hit network shows, and celebrity profiles, giving readers a rich blend of entertainment and analysis. A longtime fan of crime and investigative series, Hashim has watched thousands of episodes of NCIS, Criminal Minds, Law & Order: SVU, Bones, Blue Bloods, and The RookieA passionate storyteller and wordsmith, Hashim has also worked as a ghostwriter and managed multiple social media handles. He brought his writing expertise to FandomWire to also pursue his lifelong love for cinema and television.
