Brat Pack

Rating:
Summary: Absolute power corrupts and makes evil fun...
Review: Ever wonder why there were so many teen sidekicks in golden and silver age comics? Okay, there was obviously Robin (three of them to date), assorted Superboys and girls, Wonder Woman's aide Wonder Girl, The Flash apparently had kids with super speed, Captain America had Bucky... and on it on it went. Basically they were there to give the heros someone to explain the plot to for some of their more ingorant readers. Someone that the kids could identify with, at least on a fantasy level. What Rick has done with this story is show us how dangerous this practice would be if done in a structure with actual consequences. And he does it in pure warped Veitch style. You've got the Midnight Mink, a sort of gay vampy Batman, JUDGEJURY, a facist Punisher type "Hero"(an impotent white supremicist muscleman on steroids), Moon Mistress, a WW type with serious man-hating issues (she makes candy treats out of cojones severed from male foes, brrrr!) and King Rad, a kind of Bruce Wayne on speed character bent on living the ultimate rush. All of these dangerous types are collectively known as "BLACK OCTOBER" (go figure), and are aware that they have comic books and merchandise based on their exploits a la the JLA or the Avengers. They figure teen sidekicks would help with sales, so they get some (leading to Chippy, Kid Vicious, Luna and Wild Boy, respectively). The problem is that they have no more enemies left, so they go after anyone who doesn't agree with them, which leads to the appearence of Doctor Blasphemy, a proported super-villain, who is actually the only person in the entire story who consistantly tells the truth. The teens get in the way and are killed, so new recruits have to be found and trained. Kids are recruited and shown their respective hero's secret identity. This takes us to the seamy underside of each hero's personal life, each with their own dirty little secret. Warped sexual identities, racial bigotry, social apathy, drug addiction, megalomania and religious faith are all taken apart and put back together askew in this satirical tale. This story is an offshoot of THE MAXIMORTAL with a link at the end to that storyline. I really can't say enough good things about this story. It's sick, it's shocking, its awe-inspiring, it's thought-provoking, it's edgy and ultimately, it's high-art! It's also hilarious in a black kind of way. If you like stories that take apart the Superhero mythos and parade it for the naked emperor that it is, then this is for you! (...)!

Rating:
Summary: Absolute power corrupts and makes evil fun...
Review: Ever wonder why there were so many teen sidekicks in golden and silver age comics? Okay, there was obviously Robin (three of them to date), assorted Superboys and girls, Wonder Woman's aide Wonder Girl, The Flash apparently had kids with super speed, Captain America had Bucky... and on it on it went. Basically they were there to give the heros someone to explain the plot to for some of their more ingorant readers. Someone that the kids could identify with, at least on a fantasy level. What Rick has done with this story is show us how dangerous this practice would be if done in a structure with actual consequences. And he does it in pure warped Veitch style. You've got the Midnight Mink, a sort of gay vampy Batman, JUDGEJURY, a facist Punisher type "Hero"(an impotent white supremicist muscleman on steroids), Moon Mistress, a WW type with serious man-hating issues (she makes candy treats out of cojones severed from male foes, brrrr!) and King Rad, a kind of Bruce Wayne on speed character bent on living the ultimate rush. All of these dangerous types are collectively known as "BLACK OCTOBER" (go figure), and are aware that they have comic books and merchandise based on their exploits a la the JLA or the Avengers. They figure teen sidekicks would help with sales, so they get some (leading to Chippy, Kid Vicious, Luna and Wild Boy, respectively). The problem is that they have no more enemies left, so they go after anyone who doesn't agree with them, which leads to the appearence of Doctor Blasphemy, a proported super-villain, who is actually the only person in the entire story who consistantly tells the truth. The teens get in the way and are killed, so new recruits have to be found and trained. Kids are recruited and shown their respective hero's secret identity. This takes us to the seamy underside of each hero's personal life, each with their own dirty little secret. Warped sexual identities, racial bigotry, social apathy, drug addiction, megalomania and religious faith are all taken apart and put back together askew in this satirical tale. This story is an offshoot of THE MAXIMORTAL with a link at the end to that storyline. I really can't say enough good things about this story. It's sick, it's shocking, its awe-inspiring, it's thought-provoking, it's edgy and ultimately, it's high-art! It's also hilarious in a black kind of way. If you like stories that take apart the Superhero mythos and parade it for the naked emperor that it is, then this is for you! (...)!