Disease: Virus X (deadly to Kryptonians, cured by white kryptonite) .
Drug: Venom (Batman was addicted to it and it gave Bane his physique), Dried Frog Pills (Discworld).
And of course Moe’s drink the Forget Me Shot.
AD’s Temocil.
Do they have to come from movies or TV shows?
There are a couple of streets near here that inspire fictional diseases:
Infectious Clementina and Malignant Natoma
On the disease front, around the same era, there were Grandin Gender Reversal germs.
Other comic book diseases -
Clench, an ebola variant that was a problem in Gotham during one of the bat-events (No Man’s Land, IIRC).
Dispotellis, a sentient disease, currently a member of the Sinestro Corps.
Venusian Stinkwart Plague, extinct by the early 31st century, it’s still enough to get a decontamination team into the Legion’s HQ when Lightning Lad tries to get some privacy by claiming they’re quarantined for it.
Transmetropolitan is full of fictional drugs and diseases - drugs range from the simple Stim to (probably badly incorrect) recreations of Hitler’s urine, diseases include venerealy transmitted ergot infections (one of many diseases that Spider Jerusalem is known to have contracted at one point or another) and sentient venereal worms (Robert McX’s dark, disturbing secret).
Other Simpsons drugs include Focusyn, which is a Ritalin knockoff, and Viagragay, an impotence drug for bald men.
What about Diminished Gluteal Syndrome (DGS), which Hank Hill suffers from? He basically has no ass, and needs support to his spine, thus he wears a prothesis?
“We’re here! No rear! Get used to it!”
“You’re wearin’ butt boobies!”
My favorite fictional drug is Retinax, the eye medication to which Captain Kirk is allergic in Wrath of Khan. I use a medication called Naphcon A for my eye allergies, and I can never, ever remember what it is called, because I always think of it as Retinax.
The disease in the recent “I am Legend” remake is not named as far as I recall. Anyone else remember it being given a name at any point in the film ?
In the original Omega Man it’s Neutron Bomb, not a disease, that does for the human race as I recall (though I can only really recall the Simpsons take on it). Never read the book.
The “white blindness” (myxomatosis) in Watership Down always sounded incredibly creepy.
Though of course, that is a fictional name for a very real disease.
From Cordwainer Smith:
Drugs
Stroon (aka, the Santaclara drug) – immortality drug
The cranching wire – Stimulates the pleasure centers
The Caps – more pleasure center stimulation. From Smith’s general timeline, this probably replaced the cranching wire.
Super-condamine – the most powerful euphorant – “If you took it in your present shape, you’d be dead in three minutes, but those three minutes would seem like ten thousand years of happiness in your mind.”
Diseases
The Achrosian Sickness – caused a hormonal change in females that caused them to develop cancers.
Dromozoa – Not quite called a disease, but they infect people and cause them to grow extra body parts. Also allow them to take super-condamine safely.
I wouldn’t change a thing. No one could top Smith when it came to names.
Thanks ArchiveGuy, I had forgotten about Soma from Brave New World.
Marley23, I never knew Jerry Garcia was referred to as Captain Trips. The name doesn’t sound so out of left field now.
Vellocet, Synthemesc and Drencrom from *A Clockwork Orange * are pretty good names, thanks Labdad.
“Sexlexia”, heh heh.
And I never knew that the disease in The Stand was Captain Trips! Or maybe I did and forgot, I saw the miniseries more than a decade ago.
If you changed “psychic abilities” to “an uncanny memory for pop culture trivia”, that would be the best drug name evah.
Anybody remember a Don Martin story for MAD that referred to the dread condition of recalcitrant plebney? That’s the name I use for any mysterious chronic ailment that’s not too serious. Constant itching on the back of your hands? Recalcitrant plebney. Stiff neck and eye floaters on awakening? Recalcitrant plebney. Chin pimples after eating too late at night? Recalcitrant plebney.
GASP! :eek: That was in RoboCop 2, which might explain the sophomoric drug name.
I’ve always like King’s name for the addictive painkiller in Misery: Novril™
Also, let’s not forget Obay™
And the stuff Milhouse was taking, Represitol.
And of course the awesome Brass Eye fake drug “Cake”. A UK Mockumentary show where they got various celebrities and politicians to record “anti-Cake” awareness PSAs:
I have a vague memory of a similar scheme in The Fabulous Furry Freak brother comics.
The first episode (?) of Cowboy Bebop featured a drug with the appealing name “Bloody Eye.”
Garcia came first. The Stand was heavily into Music and such, so the reference really fit it well I thought (I also loved the miniseries opening with “Don’t fear the Reaper” by BOC while it panned around showing all the dead).
That makes sense. I’ve read a lot of King’s other work and he seems a big classic rock fan. And that’s not counting “You Know They Got a Hell of a Band.”