THE FIRST ISSUE PROJECT
Pitch #5: Enhanced
"Okay... So... That's new."
Seven friends were hanging out in the woods one evening, having fun, chatting, maybe partaking in substances their parents wouldn't approve of, and then, a light fell from the sky. Being naturally curious, they followed it, and came upon a cave. After a few minutes of arguing, it was decided they would enter the cave. To check things out, y'know?
Inside, they found a small piece of some unfamiliar machine, which subsequently exploded, knocking the seven friends out, causing a cave-in that trapped them inside.
They came to quickly, and then that's when things got weird. One discovered she had extraordinary strength, one started levitating, one started hearing the others' thoughts, one became invisible, one crackled with electricity, one created a ball of light, and one... wondered what sort of power she got, and felt kinda left out.
Enhanced is the story of seven friends dealing with the end of their high school years, and trying to learn about their newfound powers. Where did they come from? Are there others like them? How are they supposed to use these abilities? Should they even use them at all? And what sort of power did Amelia get?
Cast:
Victoria: Light constructs. Rich girl, daughter of the CEO of a tech company. Would be one of the popular girls, if she could actually stand any of them. Prefers her circle of misfit friends, because they're at least decent human beings. Puts on a front of being uptight and snobbish, but is surprisingly down-to-earth.
Samantha: Flight. The self-described "funny one." The rest disagree with that assessment. Will do pretty much anything for a laugh, which has caused her more than a little trouble. Goofy, but loyal.
Madison: Strength. The most grounded and level-headed one in the group. Naturally, nobody listens to her. A source of endless deadpan snark. Feels that being gay makes her an outcast, but at least her friends are supportive.
Grace: Electrokinesis. Has a fairly volatile temper, which mixes poorly with such a dangerous power. Smart, but impulsive. Not given to thinking things through. Has kind of a lousy relationship with her family, and views her friends as her "better family".
Nicole: Telepathy. A bit of a ditz. Tends to live in her own little world. Extremely sweet and kind, and generally liked by everyone. Maybe she's not the brightest, but she's the most dependable friend you could hope for.
Jen: Invisibility. The troubled one. Feels ignored by her parents, and subsequently acts out. Might have been suspended from school too often to graduate on time. Angry all the time, and hates pretty much everybody except her six friends.
Alannah: ? A complete hippie, raised by hippie parents. Utterly calm and serene at all times, no matter what's happening around her. Unable to be fazed by anything, her most repeated phrase is "It's all good." Has no idea what her power might be.
What happens when you get these abilities? Will it change your whole life?
Thursday, March 27, 2014
Wednesday, March 26, 2014
Kallisti!
Pitch #4: Kallisti!
"CONGRATULATIONS, MORTAL! YOU HAVE BEEN SELECTED TO BE THE MORTAL VESSEL OF MY INCREDIBLE POWER! BE OVERJOYED, AND BASK IN THE GLOW OF THE GODDESS OF CHAOS!"
"Okay, first, what the fuck. Second, who the hell are you? Third, what the fuck. Fourth, how did you get into my apartment? Fifth, WHAT. THE. FUCK."
Kallisti! is the story of a young woman and her new roommate, the Goddess of Chaos, Eris Discordia.
You see, one day, the Goddess got Bored, and said unto Herself, "Hey, why don't I make a superhero? All the cool deities are doing that, right?" And so She searched the world for twenty three minutes, before finding a mortal vessel who was good enough. "She'll do, I guess," spake Eris.
Belinda was a relatively ordinary young woman, working at a cool little record store that's probably about five minutes from shutting down at any given time, living in a tiny apartment with a deranged roommate. And then, Eris found her, and decided to grant her powers beyond those of mere mortals. Because why not?
"So, here's the list of powers you're getting, here:
Kicking
Ass
Levitation
Light stuff
Invisibility to pigeons
Strength
Total awesomeness
Invoking chaos."
"Wait... Do I get the power of kicking ass, or the separate powers of kicking and ass? I'm not sure I want the power of ass."
And so, by invoking the power word KALLISTI, she becomes the champion of chaos and good, bringing awesome justice to orderly evildoers everywhere. In theory.
Cast:
Belinda/Kallisti!: Young, poor, and bored. Initially pretty reluctant to take Eris up on her offer, but eventually grows to like being a superhero.
Eris: A divine maniac. Tries to be a wise mentor, but ends up sounding more like a cartoon character most of the time. Her enthusiasm knows no bounds.
Ferret: Belinda's untidy roommate. Makes very rare appearances, speaks even more rarely.
Mr. G. Face: Eris' arch-nemesis, who seeks to cover the whole world in stultifying Order. Not a nice dude.
"CONGRATULATIONS, MORTAL! YOU HAVE BEEN SELECTED TO BE THE MORTAL VESSEL OF MY INCREDIBLE POWER! BE OVERJOYED, AND BASK IN THE GLOW OF THE GODDESS OF CHAOS!"
"Okay, first, what the fuck. Second, who the hell are you? Third, what the fuck. Fourth, how did you get into my apartment? Fifth, WHAT. THE. FUCK."
Kallisti! is the story of a young woman and her new roommate, the Goddess of Chaos, Eris Discordia.
You see, one day, the Goddess got Bored, and said unto Herself, "Hey, why don't I make a superhero? All the cool deities are doing that, right?" And so She searched the world for twenty three minutes, before finding a mortal vessel who was good enough. "She'll do, I guess," spake Eris.
Belinda was a relatively ordinary young woman, working at a cool little record store that's probably about five minutes from shutting down at any given time, living in a tiny apartment with a deranged roommate. And then, Eris found her, and decided to grant her powers beyond those of mere mortals. Because why not?
"So, here's the list of powers you're getting, here:
Kicking
Ass
Levitation
Light stuff
Invisibility to pigeons
Strength
Total awesomeness
Invoking chaos."
"Wait... Do I get the power of kicking ass, or the separate powers of kicking and ass? I'm not sure I want the power of ass."
And so, by invoking the power word KALLISTI, she becomes the champion of chaos and good, bringing awesome justice to orderly evildoers everywhere. In theory.
Cast:
Belinda/Kallisti!: Young, poor, and bored. Initially pretty reluctant to take Eris up on her offer, but eventually grows to like being a superhero.
Eris: A divine maniac. Tries to be a wise mentor, but ends up sounding more like a cartoon character most of the time. Her enthusiasm knows no bounds.
Ferret: Belinda's untidy roommate. Makes very rare appearances, speaks even more rarely.
Mr. G. Face: Eris' arch-nemesis, who seeks to cover the whole world in stultifying Order. Not a nice dude.
Rose Quartz
Pitch #3: Rose Quartz
"Look, there has to be a better solution to this than us just beating the crap out of each other. If for no other reason than that, if it came to that, I'd win. We both know that. So, maybe we should just talk like adults about what's going on here, and work out a way to end this. Because I've seen way the hell too much violence lately. Trust me on that."
Rose Quartz is the nom-de-cape of Rose Hoffman, a woman who met with a tragic end, and who came back in an unexpected way.
After being murdered by a wannabe-evil-wizard, Rose was accidentally brought back to life in an indestructible stone body. Having no idea what else to do with this sudden change in her life, she decided to become a superhero. After all, she now has immense physical strength and is literally invulnerable. It certainly seemed like the thing to do.
Rose's primary attribute is kindness. She does what she does because she wants to help others. Because she's strong enough to face things that others cannot. Also, for all of her power, she avoids violence whenever she can. When a situation turns into a fight, she feels that she has failed. Not because she's in any danger of losing a fight, but because turning things into a fist fight will only perpetuate a cycle of violence. She beats up the villain, and the villain comes back for revenge, and more innocents are in danger of getting hurt in the crossfire. No, she'd much rather talk things out and work out nonviolent solutions to conflicts.
Of course, she doesn't always get things her way.
Supporting cast:
Aliza Hoffman, PhD: Rose's mom. A supportive, caring mother, who is understandably freaked out by her daughter's disappearance and subsequent transformation. Also, a professor of psychology.
Joy and Lou: Two of Rose's best friends. Joy is, true to her name, extraordinarily upbeat and cheery. She's a student of geology and a trans woman. Lou (short for Louise) is Joy's long-time SO. She's a bass-player in a band, and has had a variety of day jobs. Joy is flighty and pixie-ish, while Lou is grounded and stable.
Detectives Rios and Stevens: The two police detectives who first find Rose after she's brought back to life. Frequent helpers of Rose.
Cinétique: A stylish, cool, charming, telekinetic superhero from France, who comes to Rose's home town. Obviously, Rose falls for her.
Villains include: NecroMandy, a high school girl who can raise the dead, DevilDoll, a deranged contortionist bank robber, Armory, who can pull magical weapons from a pocket dimension, and, of course, the previously mentioned evil wizard.
It's not the powers, but how, why, and when you use them, that make you a hero.
"Look, there has to be a better solution to this than us just beating the crap out of each other. If for no other reason than that, if it came to that, I'd win. We both know that. So, maybe we should just talk like adults about what's going on here, and work out a way to end this. Because I've seen way the hell too much violence lately. Trust me on that."
Rose Quartz is the nom-de-cape of Rose Hoffman, a woman who met with a tragic end, and who came back in an unexpected way.
After being murdered by a wannabe-evil-wizard, Rose was accidentally brought back to life in an indestructible stone body. Having no idea what else to do with this sudden change in her life, she decided to become a superhero. After all, she now has immense physical strength and is literally invulnerable. It certainly seemed like the thing to do.
Rose's primary attribute is kindness. She does what she does because she wants to help others. Because she's strong enough to face things that others cannot. Also, for all of her power, she avoids violence whenever she can. When a situation turns into a fight, she feels that she has failed. Not because she's in any danger of losing a fight, but because turning things into a fist fight will only perpetuate a cycle of violence. She beats up the villain, and the villain comes back for revenge, and more innocents are in danger of getting hurt in the crossfire. No, she'd much rather talk things out and work out nonviolent solutions to conflicts.
Of course, she doesn't always get things her way.
Supporting cast:
Aliza Hoffman, PhD: Rose's mom. A supportive, caring mother, who is understandably freaked out by her daughter's disappearance and subsequent transformation. Also, a professor of psychology.
Joy and Lou: Two of Rose's best friends. Joy is, true to her name, extraordinarily upbeat and cheery. She's a student of geology and a trans woman. Lou (short for Louise) is Joy's long-time SO. She's a bass-player in a band, and has had a variety of day jobs. Joy is flighty and pixie-ish, while Lou is grounded and stable.
Detectives Rios and Stevens: The two police detectives who first find Rose after she's brought back to life. Frequent helpers of Rose.
Cinétique: A stylish, cool, charming, telekinetic superhero from France, who comes to Rose's home town. Obviously, Rose falls for her.
Villains include: NecroMandy, a high school girl who can raise the dead, DevilDoll, a deranged contortionist bank robber, Armory, who can pull magical weapons from a pocket dimension, and, of course, the previously mentioned evil wizard.
It's not the powers, but how, why, and when you use them, that make you a hero.
SMELL MY HAND
Pitch #2: SMELL MY HAND
"This is a story...
This is a story about ROCK AND ROLL.
Or, maybe, it’s a story about a girl living in a dorm room in her first year of college. Or maybe both. Who knows? Whatever."
SMELL MY HAND follows the story of Roisin, a college freshman moving into the dorms and figuring out what the heck she's doing with her life. It's one part "Odd Couple" comedy as the queer punk rocker Roisin conflicts with her conservative Christian roommate, one part rock and roll, as Roisin starts up her band, the titular SMELL MY HAND, and one part that-zine-you-made-in-high-sch
Cast:
Roisin: The heroine. A tiny ball of mania. Out and proud lesbian, and she doesn't give a shit who knows. Plays bass guitar, and frequently overestimates her ability with it (but more than makes up for it with enthusiasm). Loves both kinds of music: punk and rock. Dials everything up to 11. EVERYTHING. Is studying communications, because she couldn't come up with anything better to do.
Amanda: The roommate. A sheltered girl from a conservative Christian family. Is initially repulsed by Roisin and her "lifestyle", but both learn to tolerate each other over time. Is inherently kind, and mostly just wants to be nice to everyone. Frequently fails at that, but she tries. Is planning on becoming a doctor, because she wants to help people.
Kirsten: The guitarist. So mellow she's almost comatose. The most talented one in the band, but doesn't have a whole lot of drive. Nobody's quite sure how long she's been at college, what she's studying, or whether she intends to graduate. Frequently the voice of wisdom, when she bothers to talk at all.
Mitzi: The drummer. Bouncy, bubbly rockabilly girl. She's on the heavy side, and don't you dare make any nasty comments about it. Possibly the only person who can rival Roisin in the enthusiasm department. Tries to be the life of any party.
Farzana: The girlfriend, maybe? A girl Roisin (literally) runs into on move-in day. Not out to anybody, and kind of afraid of her family's possible reaction. Generally calm and serene. Often unsure of herself, even though she shouldn't be. Brilliant and charming, but severely introverted.
Other cast members include: Mary, the ubiquitous background skater girl, Skeevey Dave, Kirsten's gutterpunk boyfriend, Margot, Roisin's trans* dorm neighbor, Max, Roisin's rock and roll rival, Nora, the unutterably cool girl, Cassie and Sandy, Amanda's judgy friends, and many others.
SMELL MY HAND. Rocking is mandatory. Rolling is permitted.
"This is a story...
This is a story about ROCK AND ROLL.
Or, maybe, it’s a story about a girl living in a dorm room in her first year of college. Or maybe both. Who knows? Whatever."
SMELL MY HAND follows the story of Roisin, a college freshman moving into the dorms and figuring out what the heck she's doing with her life. It's one part "Odd Couple" comedy as the queer punk rocker Roisin conflicts with her conservative Christian roommate, one part rock and roll, as Roisin starts up her band, the titular SMELL MY HAND, and one part that-zine-you-made-in-high-sch
Cast:
Roisin: The heroine. A tiny ball of mania. Out and proud lesbian, and she doesn't give a shit who knows. Plays bass guitar, and frequently overestimates her ability with it (but more than makes up for it with enthusiasm). Loves both kinds of music: punk and rock. Dials everything up to 11. EVERYTHING. Is studying communications, because she couldn't come up with anything better to do.
Amanda: The roommate. A sheltered girl from a conservative Christian family. Is initially repulsed by Roisin and her "lifestyle", but both learn to tolerate each other over time. Is inherently kind, and mostly just wants to be nice to everyone. Frequently fails at that, but she tries. Is planning on becoming a doctor, because she wants to help people.
Kirsten: The guitarist. So mellow she's almost comatose. The most talented one in the band, but doesn't have a whole lot of drive. Nobody's quite sure how long she's been at college, what she's studying, or whether she intends to graduate. Frequently the voice of wisdom, when she bothers to talk at all.
Mitzi: The drummer. Bouncy, bubbly rockabilly girl. She's on the heavy side, and don't you dare make any nasty comments about it. Possibly the only person who can rival Roisin in the enthusiasm department. Tries to be the life of any party.
Farzana: The girlfriend, maybe? A girl Roisin (literally) runs into on move-in day. Not out to anybody, and kind of afraid of her family's possible reaction. Generally calm and serene. Often unsure of herself, even though she shouldn't be. Brilliant and charming, but severely introverted.
Other cast members include: Mary, the ubiquitous background skater girl, Skeevey Dave, Kirsten's gutterpunk boyfriend, Margot, Roisin's trans* dorm neighbor, Max, Roisin's rock and roll rival, Nora, the unutterably cool girl, Cassie and Sandy, Amanda's judgy friends, and many others.
SMELL MY HAND. Rocking is mandatory. Rolling is permitted.
Disasterrific!
Comic pitch #1: Disasterrific!
"Sometimes weird things happen. Sometimes a swarm of three-foot bees with laser eyes will descend upon an innocent city and steal all their zippers. It's a thing. It happens. Sometimes it's worse than that, though. Maybe a rift opens from another dimension, and you've got an invading army of who knows what on your hands, or maybe the flying saucers finally come down and attack, or maybe some old god gets tired of being ignored and takes it out on the world, or maybe it could be something much, much worse.
Yeah, it's probably something worse.
When the catastrophically weird shit goes down, you need a team. A team made up of people who are the best in the world at their specialties, and/or people who were available that day. More importantly, you need a catastrophically weird team.
That's why we're here. To protect the Earth from the crazy ass shit that could rip it apart any day now. When there's a threat to the planet, we punch it in the face. The threat, that is, not the planet. But if the planet is the threat, then we'll punch that, too."
Disasterrific! is, at its core, a full-on gonzo superhero team comic. Fast-paced madness, bizarre catastrophes, and insane heroes are what this is made of.
Cast:
Ms. Wizard - The team's leader. An expert on magic and the occult, widely seen as morally ambiguous. In her recent investigations into a personal matter has discovered several threats to humanity's continued existence, and has decided to assemble a team to deal with them. Is definitely hiding something. Perhaps several somethings.
Professor Science - A mad scientist, with emphasis on the "mad". She was once a fairly typical scientist-adventurer (or, at least as typical as those get), but, at some point she saw something that changed her. Since then, she's been inventing things that make no sense to anyone but her, and has been stretching the definition of "science".
AwesomeGirl - The muscle. She used to be a pretty normal girl, but she got sick of that right quick, and decided she wanted to be a superhero. Years of training, numerous bionic enhancements, and lots of weird science chemicals later, she got her wish. Now, she's AwesomeGirl, face-puncher for justice. Tends to think with her fists, but her fists can be pretty smart.
The EXTREMIST - A living avatar of the 1990s. He's what would happen if Rob Liefeld and a Mountain Dew commercial had a baby. He rides seventeen skateboards and bungee jumps from the open sky, all the while slamming down carbonated beverages no mere mortal could ingest. He wears sunglasses on his sunglasses, and his costume is 80% pouches.
Count Goatula - Yes, he's a real goat. Yes, he's a real vampire. No, he's not a real Count. He's a Duke.
Andrea Martinez - A twenty-something goth who one day discovered that she's actually an angel incarnated on Earth. Needless to say, this caused a bit of confusion. Especially since she's a Satanist.
Urmvulagxt - A sentient pile of worms in the shape of a man. Might actually be some sort of elder god. Intends to eat the universe. Thoroughly unpleasant, and helps only under protest.
Together, these... uhm... "heroes" will face threats ranging from evil corporate ninjas, to extradimensional machine wizards, to a small town populated by nuclear robots, to the personified concept of universal annihilation.
If anybody else could do this job, they haven't stepped up.
"Sometimes weird things happen. Sometimes a swarm of three-foot bees with laser eyes will descend upon an innocent city and steal all their zippers. It's a thing. It happens. Sometimes it's worse than that, though. Maybe a rift opens from another dimension, and you've got an invading army of who knows what on your hands, or maybe the flying saucers finally come down and attack, or maybe some old god gets tired of being ignored and takes it out on the world, or maybe it could be something much, much worse.
Yeah, it's probably something worse.
When the catastrophically weird shit goes down, you need a team. A team made up of people who are the best in the world at their specialties, and/or people who were available that day. More importantly, you need a catastrophically weird team.
That's why we're here. To protect the Earth from the crazy ass shit that could rip it apart any day now. When there's a threat to the planet, we punch it in the face. The threat, that is, not the planet. But if the planet is the threat, then we'll punch that, too."
Disasterrific! is, at its core, a full-on gonzo superhero team comic. Fast-paced madness, bizarre catastrophes, and insane heroes are what this is made of.
Cast:
Ms. Wizard - The team's leader. An expert on magic and the occult, widely seen as morally ambiguous. In her recent investigations into a personal matter has discovered several threats to humanity's continued existence, and has decided to assemble a team to deal with them. Is definitely hiding something. Perhaps several somethings.
Professor Science - A mad scientist, with emphasis on the "mad". She was once a fairly typical scientist-adventurer (or, at least as typical as those get), but, at some point she saw something that changed her. Since then, she's been inventing things that make no sense to anyone but her, and has been stretching the definition of "science".
AwesomeGirl - The muscle. She used to be a pretty normal girl, but she got sick of that right quick, and decided she wanted to be a superhero. Years of training, numerous bionic enhancements, and lots of weird science chemicals later, she got her wish. Now, she's AwesomeGirl, face-puncher for justice. Tends to think with her fists, but her fists can be pretty smart.
The EXTREMIST - A living avatar of the 1990s. He's what would happen if Rob Liefeld and a Mountain Dew commercial had a baby. He rides seventeen skateboards and bungee jumps from the open sky, all the while slamming down carbonated beverages no mere mortal could ingest. He wears sunglasses on his sunglasses, and his costume is 80% pouches.
Count Goatula - Yes, he's a real goat. Yes, he's a real vampire. No, he's not a real Count. He's a Duke.
Andrea Martinez - A twenty-something goth who one day discovered that she's actually an angel incarnated on Earth. Needless to say, this caused a bit of confusion. Especially since she's a Satanist.
Urmvulagxt - A sentient pile of worms in the shape of a man. Might actually be some sort of elder god. Intends to eat the universe. Thoroughly unpleasant, and helps only under protest.
Together, these... uhm... "heroes" will face threats ranging from evil corporate ninjas, to extradimensional machine wizards, to a small town populated by nuclear robots, to the personified concept of universal annihilation.
If anybody else could do this job, they haven't stepped up.
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