Ultimate American

Ultimate American

For Dean Truman, being a hero runs in the family. His father Tex is a legendary figure for his exploits with C.H.I.E.F., and was even director of the agency for many years. His mother Gabrielle was also a C.H.I.E.F. agent of great renown. His brother Joe (from his father's first marriage) battled evil for years as a freelancer. So when he found himself in our nation's capital of Federalton training to be the United States government's official superhero, it felt almost like it was inevitable.

Dean Truman joined the Army out of high school, and proudly served his country as a soldier. Like the rest of the world, he was amazed by the emergence of Captain Satellite and the other heroes who followed in his footsteps. Little did he know that his life would soon intertwine with these larger-than-life figures. He was selected by the top secret Monarch-12 committee as the ideal candidate in the military for the role of Ultimate American, the Faceless Defender of Democracy. Presumably, Dean's bloodline played at least some factor in that decision.

It came to pass that Sgt. Dean Truman was completing his crash course in being a superhero when Third World unleashed the Macro Warriors on Major City. Seeing this emergency both as urgent and opportune, his handlers sent Ultimate American to assist in the battle against the giant robots. Their confidence in their charge paid off, and Ultimate American played a key part in that day's victory. What no one could have foreseen was said victory leading to the formation of a super team - with Ultimate American in charge.

Ultimate American was alarmed to be named leader of this new "Invincible Alliance" considering he was brand-new at the job. However, the mantle of leadership suited him well, and he came to think of his fellow members in the IA like platoon buddies. This was why he chafed when his government bosses sent him orders to file reports on the activities of his teammates. But to disobey seemed unthinkable.

Finally, the situation became intolerable, and Ultimate American made an ultimatum - no more stooging on his friends or he would resign entirely from his costumed identity. Tex Truman interceded on his son's behalf and pulled strings to resolve matters without a messy public controversy. Dean Truman was granted an honorable discharge and allowed to retain full control of the Ultimate American guise. In return, the Invincible Alliance accepted a C.H.I.E.F. liaison, and to the surprise of no one, Tex was appointed.

Today, Ultimate American is a full-fledged civilian guiding the affairs of the Invincible Alliance and trying to keep them on a steady course. Despite lacking powers or gimmicks (other than training, conditioning, and a good right cross), there is never a question of who's in command. He attempted maintaining a secret identity early in his career, but it was completely blown by the time he almost quit. He makes no bones about who he really is now. After all, it's hard to pretend you're not related to your dad when he shows up for a meeting.

Away from the action, Ultimate American is very private, and shares little of his personal life despite residing at Invincible Alliance headquarters. His friends believe he is driven to prove he is worthy of the legacy of heroism he has inherited. It is also obvious he is haunted by the disappearance of Joe Truman, the half-brother he never knew.

Firegirl

Firegirl

Fiery newspaper reporter Roxanne Prize of The Major City Courier was not only one of the first people befriended by Paul Mann when he arrived in Major City, but she soon became his girlfriend as well. Outwardly, they seemed the very picture of a happy couple, but both of them were keeping secrets. Roxanne's secret was that she was trying to dig up clues to the mystery of Paul Mann's background.

Although Roxanne had initially become involved with Mann to learn more about him, she grew to genuinely love him. That made it a gut-wrenching decision when her research was finally completed and she had reached her conclusions. Should she release the story, or should she just forget it? In the end, her (somewhat unethical) journalist side won out over her personal side.

When Roxanne's exposé on Paul Mann broke, it drove a wedge between the two of them that was impossible to overcome. To make matters worse, it soon became clear to everyone that Roxanne's reasoned deduction of Mann's “true” identity was, in fact, wrong. Having lost both the man she loved and her already iffy journalistic credibility due to her deception, Roxanne more or less went into hiding. She resigned from The Courier, retreated to El Oceano on the west coast, and began writing for celebrity gossip magazines under a pen name.

When Paul Mann created his Captain Satellite persona, Roxanne Prize saw an opportunity to make amends for what she had done. Flying to the east coast on “special assignment” for one of her client publications The Sleuth Gazette, she turned up on the MTI campus ostensibly to interview Mortimer (Blue Behemoth) Kane and Danny (Drone Man) Graham about their recent exploits. But she had an ulterior motive - she pleaded with the two newly-minted heroes to make her a superheroine.

After considerable convincing and arm-twisting, the nonplussed pair relented and pooled their resources to help Prize develop her own super identity. The result of their efforts was the flame-discharging gun the Pyro Pistol. With this weapon in hand, Roxanne fashioned her own flashy heroine costume. A week later, Blue Behemoth and Drone Man had a new partner in their crusade when Firegirl made her debut.

Firegirl has sought to use her return to the limelight to redeem herself for her past transgressions, and perhaps make the world a better place in the bargain. She is known far and wide as a strong woman who is ingenious, courageous, and more than a little flirtatious. She even has her own super powers now, as an especially bizarre case gave her mastery over fire and rendered the Pyro Pistol superfluous. Firegirl is a founding member of the Invincible Alliance, and has distinguished herself time and again.

Captain Satellite and Firegirl appear to have finally made peace with each other over their relationship and the betrayal that ended it. Though Firegirl still has lingering guilt over how it all went down, Cap is perfectly content to let bygones be bygones after so much time. Shelly Ericson, on the other hand, is still not sure she feels so forgiving about the matter.

Firegirl is currently based out of Invincible Alliance headquarters. Being a superheroine is now her full-time job, though she still takes freelance writing gigs. She seems oblivious to the crush teammate Blue Behemoth harbors for her. Will the blue-furred beast with the mind (and heart) of a man be able to confess his true feelings to her someday?

Drone Man

Drone Man

Everyone at MTI knew Danny Graham was a technical whiz. They also knew he was a total flake. Despite being a certified genius, the only one of his grad student colleagues who even deigned to associate with him was Mortimer Kane. And Morty was just as lacking in social skills as Danny.

Things started getting interesting for Danny when his friend Morty was transformed into the creature who became known as the Blue Behemoth. Kane's attitude changed along with his appearance, and Graham grew worried that his formerly mild-mannered friend was taking too many crazy chances. Danny designated himself the Behemoth's watchdog, but keeping up with the big lug proved to be no easy task. Danny Graham decided the best way to handle his problem would be to create a super identity of his own, based on his affinity for gadgets and gizmos. And bees.

So was born Drone Man! OK, not the most awe-inspiring superhero name. It points up the fact that, while Danny has a good heart and brains to spare, he falls a little short in the sense department sometimes. In fact, the only reason he even settled on “Drone Man” in the first place was because Blue Behemoth managed to talk him out of his first choice. The blue-furred man-beast didn't think “The Bumbler” would strike anyone as impressive.

Drone Man's uniform is equipped with, but not limited to, the following specs: body armor, insulated helmet, two-way radio antennas, multi-purpose compound lenses, anti-gravity boosters, navigation wing pack, and sting beam disc system. So you see? He has the skills to create a dynamic and powerful set of gimmicks; he just can't come up with a catchy name for himself. That's the way it goes sometimes.

Drone Man joined Blue Behemoth in his crimebusting, and the pair earned considerable praise for their good works. He also assisted BB in creating a superheroine alter ego for Roxanne Prize. This association laid the foundation for the Invincible Alliance, and Drone Man is one of the group's charter members.

When not out doing the hero bit, Danny makes his home at Invincible Alliance HQ. There are several practical advantages to this choice: quicker response in case of emergency, easy access to state-of-the-art scientific facilities, and the ability to better keep Blue Behemoth out of trouble. The latter might be most important, and is certainly no picnic even today.

Blue Behemoth

Blue Behemoth

Mortimer Kane was the very definition of the word “milquetoast.” It didn't matter that he was one of the most brilliant graduate students at Major Technological Institute (MTI); he was so unassuming and timid that he was largely ignored by most of the campus population. In fact, the only person he could truly call a friend was his colleague Danny Graham. That wasn't really bad, except Danny was just as socially inept as he was.

Morty Kane's life took an unexpected turn the day he got caught in his experimental Molecular Modifier. It affected an irreversible change on Kane, mutating him into a large, blue-furred anthropoid. His intelligence was left intact, but there was a noticeable difference in attitude. He became more boisterous, opinionated, and outgoing.

Ostracized even further due to his condition, Morty created the Blue Behemoth identity to fight injustice and...well, for something to do. Soon joined by his buddy Danny under the name Drone Man in the crimefighting business, the duo forged a solid reputation at the college and in the surrounding area for their tireless efforts to keep the peace. By becoming even weirder, two losers had made themselves Big Men on Campus.

Blue Behemoth (now his legal name) possesses tremendous strength, fantastic stamina, and astonishing agility. However, his condition does have its disadvantages, too (besides that pesky "no longer human" thing). For example, contrary to popular belief, BB's mask is not a quaint affectation. A side effect of his transformation is color blindness, and the mask contains corrective lenses designed by Drone Man to maintain proper vision.

Unsurprisingly, Blue Behemoth has developed a number of idiosyncrasies since his change to ape man. Though a proponent of clean living as a human being, he has become fond of fine cigars, stag magazines, and all manner of alcoholic beverages since his transformation. Most people know better than to try to argue with him about such matters at this point.

Blue Behemoth and Drone Man were instrumental in assisting Roxanne Prize in creating her own secret identity as Firegirl. BB harbors a crush on Prize, but so far has been unable to admit it to anyone. It remains to be seen if this uncharacteristic throwback to his old personality traits will persist.

Blue Behemoth was there when the Invincible Alliance was founded, and remains one of the core members of the group. Though he is loathe to admit it, the IA gives him a sense of belonging and purpose that had been previously lacking in his life. He can frequently be found loafing around its headquarters when not on a mission.

Lucha Yourself: Diablo Dinamita

A pair of wrestling masks emulating "Diablo Dinamita" aka the luchador alter ego of Devil Dynamite. Created in January 2016 via the Lucha Yourself generator (apparently now defunct) promoting Lucha Underground. Neither look 100% like Devil Dynamite's mask, but oh well. It was still fun.

History of Captain Satellite - Part 1

History of Captain Satellite - Part 1

In the beginning, there was Ferro Man.

(2007 artwork of Ferro Man)

Ferro Man was pretty blatantly inspired by/ripped off from the character of "Ferro Lad" in the DC Comics series Legion of Super-Heroes. Available evidence suggests I created Ferro Man in 1980. It may have been as early as February, though it was probably March. It could have been as late as April or May, but I vividly recall drawing him in my 2nd grade classroom.

Ferro Man was not my first original character, though "original" is definitely debatable in his case. I can't even trace a direct line from him to Captain Satellite. I just choose to start with him because he was the centerpiece of the longest-running fictional world of my childhood, and he filled the same basic role that Cap does now. Ferro Man was essentially a synthesis of Iron Man and Batman, with a dash of the authentic Ferro Lad thrown into the mix. He was the top hero in the imagination of Christopher Elam well into the 5th grade.

It was during my 6th grade years (1983-1984) that I rather inauspiciously conceived a character during recess who would turn out to be very important indeed. It was so unexpected that I genuinely have no recollection as to when this art actually happened. I say it was 1984, but that's really just a guess. Could be 1983; could be 1985.

Basil Whittaker

Basil Whittaker

Basil Whittaker is the charismatic British billionaire and daredevil adventurer who entered the public consciousness due to his heavy investment in the Magnetic Records music label (famous as the home of the band the Scarys). He didn't seek out the spotlight at first, but when it focused on him, he found it irresistible. His knack for publicity stunts has ensured that it never leaves him for very long, especially when coupled with his overall eccentric demeanor.

Basil Whittaker originally financed Paul Mann's start-up company Mann Creations when Mann mysteriously appeared on the scene a number of years ago. Somewhat uncharacteristically, Basil did this with no fanfare, and later sold his interest in the company back to Mann himself. Mann considers Basil his mentor, and the two have a surrogate father/son relationship that is perhaps so obvious that it led to the non-revelation that ended Paul Mann and Roxanne Prize's relationship.

When not tending to his myriad business interests or off on some boondoggle like circling the Earth in a hot air balloon, Basil is one of the foremost art collectors in the world. He specializes in pieces that are considered “grotesque” by the population-at-large. This hobby is the source of some consternation among his friends and associates since no one is sure whether he is pursuing it ironically or because he genuinely likes the works he buys. Basil isn't saying, and everyone is afraid to ask.