“Love what you’re doing...”
Frank Schildiner, New Pulp Author
Note: This page summarizes chapters of the Ms. Megaton Man™ Maxi-Series published on this blog. It contains many spoilers, particularly section I. For chapter summaries, scroll down to section II.
I. How the Prose Series Relates to the Megaton Man and Bizarre Heroes Comic Book Series
The Ms. Megaton Man™ Maxi-Series™ is a prose experiment (a roman-feuilleton) that tells the first-person story of studious college student Clarissa James and how she meets former megaheroes Stella Starlight (the See-Thru Girl), Trent Phloog (Megaton Man), Bing Gloom (Yarn Man), Kozmik Kat and others, and eventually discovers her own megapowers.Clarissa James, a college student in Ann Arbor, was first introduced in Megaton Man #4 (Kitchen Sink Press, June 1985). She was not seen again until Return of Megaton Man #1 (Kitchen Sink Press, July 1988), by which time she was living with Stella, Pammy, and Trent in a communal off-campus house. Clarissa became Ms. Megaton Man in Megaton Man Meets the Uncategorizable X+Thems #1 (Kitchen Sink Press, April 1989).
Although specific dates were never specified in the Megaton Man comics, events logically happened prior to publication, on average at least five years earlier. The comics were thus nearly contemporaneous to the events depicted, and set in their approximate original time period of the early 1980s. Naturally, they feature technology and social attitudes appropriate to the time. While the Maxi-Series is not a retcon, it is an attempt to deepen the Megaton Man mythos and is thus told from the first-person point of view of Clarissa.
Volume I: Ann Street (#1–#31) retells and expands upon the narrative sketched out in the ten-issue Megaton Man comics series, the three-issue Return of Megaton Man mini-series, and the one-shots Megaton Man Meets the Uncategorizable X+Thems #1 and parts of Yarn Man #1 (Kitchen Sink Press, October 1989). Some of the hitherto untold stories include how Clarissa met the Y+Thems (successors to the X+Thems), Clarissa's home life and her relationship with her sister Avril (Avie), and how Clarissa met met Rex Rigid and Chuck Roast (Liquid Man and the Human Meltdown, respectively) for the first time.
Volume II: North Cass Corridor (#32–#63) is all-new, featuring never-before-told stories that bridge numerous storyline gaps between X+Thems #1 and parts of Yarn Man #1. Revealed for the first time is how Clarissa met a number of characters such as the Phantom Jungle Girl, Rubber Brother, B-50, Audrey Tomita, Wilton Ashe, the Slick, Gene Griffen and Allan Jordan, and others, who were first introduced in the one-shot comics Pteranoman #1 (Kitchen Sink Press, August 1990) or the eighteen-issue Bizarre Heroes comic book series (Kitchen Sink Press, May 1990 and Fiasco Comics Inc., May 1994 to July 1996). It ends with the return of Clarissa's biological father and her mother's counterpart from another reality to this dimension.
Volume III: Troy (#64–#89) is also all-new. It recounts how Clarissa meets numerous additional characters from the Bizarre Heroes comics for the first time, including Doctor Messiah, the Asp, and the Negative Man/Negative Woman among them. This volume, which takes place in the late winter and spring of 1984, and features her first trip across time and dimensions. It culminates in Clarissa's graduation, serving as a de facto prequel to that comic book series, which ran from 1994 to 1996.
Volume IV: Civilian (#90–#119) will turn the entire prose (and comic book) series hitherto inside out. It begins with Clarissa's astral trip with Doctor Messiah to an alternate reality in which Megaheroes never existed—only civilian secret identities. The ramifications for Clarissa, Avie, Trent, Stella, Simon, Preston, Pammy, Chuck, and many more will be jarring enough. But, what to do when when the Mutanium Particle shows up, with the Partyers from Mars and the Thirteenth Scientist in hot pursuit? And what can Clarissa, trapped only in an astral body, accomplish then the entire reality of the Megaverse of Multimensions is threatened and Doctor Messiah bugs out? This volume rewinds the summer of 1980 to the summer of 1983 covered in the previous volumes in an alternate world, giving new meaning to the term "what if?"
Volume V: Real Time (#120-150) plunges Clarissa headlong into the Civilian reality, where she finds nearly all of her friendships, relationships, and family ties to be different and more complicated. How will she function in a world where she is the only Megapowered being? How will she function without a support system of other Megaheroes and a secret government agency at her back? And how does she quell the fears of a racist America alarmed that its Nuclear-Powered Hero and the only unstoppable Megabeing on the planet is a queer woman of color?
Volume VI: Starship Summer (#151-180) finds Clarissa after the successful completion of her first year of grad school hanging out with Donna Blank (the Phantom Jungle Girl) and running into characters from Bizarre Heroes and Border Worlds. The main action involves visitors from the future who cause mayhem during a summer high school music camp.
Volume VI: Starship Summer (#151-180) finds Clarissa after the successful completion of her first year of grad school hanging out with Donna Blank (the Phantom Jungle Girl) and running into characters from Bizarre Heroes and Border Worlds. The main action involves visitors from the future who cause mayhem during a summer high school music camp.
Note: At least one more volume (VII) is projected to cover the fall and winter of 1985-1986, when the remaining scenes of Yarn Man #1 not already reprised in Volume I take place. During this period of time, Clarissa will complete her second year of grad school at Warren Woodward University and earn her master's degree. "The Dork Nuke," a story involving both Ms. Megaton Man and Megaton Man from Pteranoman #1, occurs subsequently; the events of the Bizarre Heroes series take place in 1988 and thereafter.
II. Summaries of Published Chapters
Volume I: Ann Street
(August 1980-April 1983)
(August 1980-April 1983)
#1: Meet Stella Starlight! (published February 23, 2019).
In this opening chapter, Clarissa is a sophomore who runs into former Megahero the See-Thru Girl Stella Starlight while registering for classes. These events take place in August-October, 1980. (See Megaton Man #4, Kitchen Sink Press, June 1985).
#2: Need to Know (published March 1, 2019).
Clarissa runs into Stella again later in the semester, and learns that she is pregnant with Megaton Man's baby, and that Stella has no intention of telling the father; Clarissa wonders what the child of two Megaheroes is going to turn out to be. These events take place in October-November, 1980.
#3: Me and Sue Caza! (published March 8, 2019).
Clarissa spends Thanksgiving with her sister Avril (Avie) in Detroit, and tells them she plans to move into a house with Stella and her friend Pammy. This causes some consternation, but Clarissa's father is supportive. These events take place in November 1980.
#4: Spring Break (published March 15, 2019).
Stella suddenly decides to tell Megaton Man about her late-stage pregnancy and voyages back to Megatropolis (New York); she reports back to Clarissa and Pammy back in Ann Arbor. These events take place in March 1981. (See Megaton Man #9, Kitchen Sink Press, April 1986).
#5: Calling Occupants (of Interplanetary Craft) (published March 22, 2019).
Stella completes her report on what happened in Central Park; days later, Civilian Trent Phloog shows up in Ann Arbor, mysteriously without his former Megaton Man Megapowers. These events take place in March 1981. (See Megaton Man #10 and Return of Megaton Man #1, Kitchen Sink Press, June 1986 and July 1988).
#6: Civilian Trent (published March 29, 2019).
Trent Phloog, having lost his Megaton Man Megapowers, arrives in Ann Arbor to be near Stella, who is pregnant with their child. How he lost powers in Central Park--by swallowing the Cosmic Cue-Ball--is recounted. These events take place in March 1981. (See Megaton Man #2 and #9 and Return of Megaton Man #1, Kitchen Sink Press, February 1985, April 1986, and July 1988).
#7: The Mysterious Preston Percy (published April 5, 2019).
Civilian Trent Phloog gets the lecture of his life from Clarissa's sister Avie, then a Mega-Soldier Syrup booster shot from Preston Percy, causing him to revert to his Megaton Man persona once more. (See Return of Megaton Man #1, Kitchen Sink Press, July 1988).
#8: A Night at the Hospital, a Day in the Funny Papers (published April 12, 2019).
Stella is admitted to give birth to Megaton Man's love child while Clarissa spends a lonely night at home, broken up by a visit from Yarn Man and Kozmik Kat. (See Return of Megaton Man #1-3, Kitchen Sink Press, July-August-September 1986).
#9: The Dean’s List, Again (published April 19, 2019).
Clarissa shocks her sister Avie with details about her weekend of love with Yarn Man; the spring 1981 semester comes to a successful conclusion with Clarissa returning to the Dean's List, and her family takes her out to dinner with Trent and Stella, with romantic implications for the power couple.
#10: The Local Section (published April 26, 2019).
Clarissa returns from her summer camp counselor gig to find Daddy working on home improvements around Ann Street; later, she consults the I Ching at Border Worlds Used and Slightly New Bookstore. (These events take place in the summer of 1981.)
#11: The Ivy Covered Halls of Higher Learning (published May 3, 2019).
Before the fall 1981 semester kicks in, Clarissa surmises that one of Trent's bookstore coworkers is providing a handy outlet for his pent-up libido; Preston explains why two nuclear-powered megaheroes reproducing is of such concern to ICHHL.
#12: Kozmik Kat’s Trick-or-Treat (published May 10, 2019).
The Ann Street house is decked out for Halloween 1981, and Kozmik Kat--in full regalia--shows up looking for Yarn Man, who's gone off the grid.
#13: Late to the Party from Mars (published May 17, 2019).
Stella throws a big Thanksgiving bash that is crashed when aliens dump a drunken Yarn Man off on the front lawn. (These events take place in November 1981.)
#14: Thanks for the Use of the Safe Room (published May 24, 2019).
To dry out, Bing (Yarn Man) is locked in the basement rec room Clarissa's Daddy built, but Clarissa finds a way to sneak in for a conjugal visit (or would that be a booty call?). (These events take place over the holidays of 1981 and carry over into early 1982.)
#15: Yarn Man’s Hippie Crash Pad (published May 31, 2019).
Clarissa risks blowing the entire spring 1982 semester as she holes up with Bing in the basement rec room her daddy built - until Mama intervenes. (See Megaton Man Meets the Uncategorizable X+Thems #1, Kitchen Sink Press, April 1989.)
#16: Ms. Megaton Man Breaks Out! (published June 7, 2019).
Clarissa's bored as the oldest camp counselor in the summer of 1982. But when she returns to Ann Street, she saves Preston and Trent from a toppling tower of firewood, only to realize she now has megapowers of her own! (See Megaton Man Meets the Uncategorizable X+Thems #1, Kitchen Sink Press, April 1989.)
#17: Body by Nuke (published June 14, 2019).
Clarissa gets a new, improved official megahero costume manufactured in New Jersey, based on Stella's pattern, to begin the fall semester of 1982. Meanwhile, Trent gets a workout with Samson "Nuke" McSampson, who takes a shine to Clarissa along the way. (Some event depicted in Yarn Man #1, Kitchen Sink Press, October 1989.)
#18: Origin Secrets (published June 21, 2019).
Mama is horrified when Clarissa returns home as Ms. Megaton Man, and refuses to divulge any further info about her biological father. Distracted, Clarissa tests her megapowers, and winds up in orbit--in ICHHL's killer satellite
#19: Megatonic University (published June 28, 2019).
From outer space to underground, Clarissa learns the legends of a university beneath her feet from Imelda, the mystical hippie clerk at Border Worlds Used and Slightly New Bookstore.
#20: Campy Coverless Comic Books (published July 5, 2019).
Since Mama won't tell, Clarissa examines the funny papers for clues about her megaheroic paternity.
#21: Daddy Issues (published July 12, 2019).
Clarissa feeds "worms" to Simon and clips articles with Kozmik Kat.
#22: Dr. Joe’s Lab (published July 19, 2019).
Following the trail of her cape and Kozmik Kat, Clarissa stumbles onto the Kiosk of Cryptic Secrets.
#23: Dining Room Diagrams (published July 26, 2019).
Clarissa uses the dining room table to map her secret world, then learns a new trick with her visor.
#24: Start Spreading the News (published August 2, 2019).
Over Chirstmas Break 1982, Clarissa, Avie, and Koz pile into the Pacer and head for New York. Destination: the old Navy Yards and the Youthful Permutations headquarters!
#25: The Devastation Chamber (published August 9, 2019).
Kiddo, pregnant mascot of the Y+Thems, withstands the withering assault of Rex Rigid's training machines, while Avie declares, "That's showbiz!"
#26: The Hole on Fifth Avenue (published August 16, 2019).
Avie narrowly averts a sexual assault in the showers and the Q-Mobile narrowly averts disaster involving a phantom skyscraper.
#27: A Side-Trip to New Jersey (published August 23, 2019).
Visiting the Doomsday Factory, Clarissa and Avie's learn their dead grandmother is still turning out modern megahero uniforms.
#28: Everything But the Kitchen Sink (published August 30, 2019).
Ms. Megaton Man tests her mettle for fun with the Devastation Chamber, then for real with the rapacious Human Meltdown himself.
#29: Megaton vs. Meltdown (published September 6, 2019).
Chuck abducts Avie and Clarissa has to make a daring rescue--over the Jersey Shore!
#30: Miscegenation Man (published September 13, 2019).
Packing up and about to leave New York, a glimmer is spotted on the skyline of Manhattan--none other than Roman Man has returned to usher in the New Year, 1983!
#31: Man, Woman (published September 20, 2019).
Clarissa visits Imelda and gets the lowdown on Trent; Pammy's book, Megamusings, comes out; Stella leaves Trent in Clarissa's hands. What a way to end Clarissa's second junior year and the spring 1983 semester!
Volume II: North Cass Corridor
(May 1983-December 1983)
(May 1983-December 1983)
#32: Notes from Underground (published September 27, 2019).
Clarissa the author explains the writing of Volume I and working with Detroit Day columnist John Bradford; the editor (Don Simpson) speaks out.
#33: Arbor State Extension (published October 4, 2019).
Spending the summer of 1983 back in Detroit, Clarissa confesses her fears of the mess she's made of her life back in Ann Arbor, and resolves to finish her senior year of college in Detroit--at the Arbor State Extension!
#34: You're Not the Boss of Me (published October 11, 2019).
Clarissa can't escape from Secret Agent Preston Percy, except into the pages of Pamela Jointly's book, Megamusings: Collected Controversial Columns, 1975-1980, which she corrects with annotative marginalia.
#35: Giving Nuke a Tumble (published October 18, 2019).
Clarissa hooks up with Samson McSampson, the "Body by Nuke" trainer, and gets a mysterious drawing table from a magenta-haired art student.
#36:Sex and the Single Megahero (published October 25, 2019).
Clarissa describes her sex life back in Detroit in the fall of 1983, with the new normal: a certain magenta-haired art student named Nancy with an uncontrollable gag reflex!
#37: The First Holistic-Humanist Congregation of Cass City (published November 1, 2019).
The Youthful Permutations move into the North Cass neighborhood of Detroit, at the invitation and consternation of Avie, who seeks refuge in Clarissa's garrett apartment next door.
#38: My Appointment with Pammy (or, Meeting Jointly) (published November 8, 2019).
Feeling marooned in Detroit, Clarissa reminisces about happier times on Ann Street with controversial columnist Pamela Jointly. But is Ms. Megaton Man just being snookered to dish dirt for a new tell-all bestseller?
#39: North Cass Ditty in the City (published November 15, 2019).
The Y+Thems and Nancy revel in an urban street fair as Clarissa gets some much-needed free therapy from social worker Donna Blank to alleviate her parental concerns.
#40: Topmost Secret Priority (published November 22, 2019).
Clarissa starts the fall semester in a class with Audrey Tomita, who explains her down-low relationship with Warren Woodward University Teaching Assistant Wilton Ashe. Later, Charlie Bradford reveals the mysteries of the downtown furniture clip-art company.
#41 The Thirteenth Scientist (published November 29, 2019).
Clarissa finally has a heart-to-heart talk with Mama and learns the secret identity of her biological father. Later, Grandma Seedy, long believed dead, offers an even stranger perspective on the origin of the Megaverse.
#42: The Theoretical Unraveling of the Kitchen Sinkverse (published December 6, 2019).
Grandma Seedy, a renowned physicist, can go along with dimensions splitting apart, but can't get her mind around them mashing up, which is apparently what has taken place. Later, Clarissa spends an autumn afternoon with her favorite Nuclear Family, and the lynchpin holding the "Everything-but-the-Kitchen Sinkverse" together.
#43: The Arms of Krupp (published December 13, 2019).
Some of Megaton Man's old nemeses try to off him while he's merely a non-megapowered civilian, forcing Clarissa to stand her ground. The question is, who were they really after?
#44: The Saucer in the Back Yard (published December 20, 2019).
Clarissa is visited by the Partyers from Mars, or rather one of them, who offers the answers to every question Clarissa has about the Megaverse -- except the questions she most wants answered.
#45: Reality's Leftovers (published December 27, 2019).
Clarissa makes pancakes and takes credit for a gift; later she does some archival research on the universe that was split in two then fused back together. Plus: Meet Winnie Wertz!
#46: Will the Real Mervyn Goldfarb Please Stand Up? (published January 3, 2019).
Clarissa chases a megavillain who's supposed to be dead down a rabbit hole of mystery under the Arbor State campus, only to find a befuddled Dr. Joe Levitch and a civilian friend who she never expects to be there.
#47: Dana Dorman, Two Doors Down (published January 10, 2020).
Youthful Permutation Domina hits on Clarissa while Clarissa hits on a plan to uncover the mystery of Megatonic University. But it will require the assistance of Rubber Brother and social worker who keeps company with a gorilla.
#48: Donna Blank, District Defender (published January 17, 2020).
Clarissa meets Bad Guy for the very first time, at a custody hearing determining the fate of the Son of Megaton Man!
#49: Enter: The Phantom Jungle Girl (published January 24, 2020).
When Audrey is reported missing, Clarissa finally reaches out to social worker Donna Blank, who turns out to be sharing office space with the Brilliant Brain and Cowboy Gorilla!
#50: Tall Tales Told on the Ann Arbor Trail (published January 31, 2020).
Sticking to the back roads, the New Crime Busters wind their way to Megatonic University, as Fanny tells her backstory.
#51: B-50, the Hybrid Man (published February 7, 2020).
Clarissa and the New Crime Busters infiltrate the underground Megatonic University compound to rescue Audrey, presumably kidnapped by Wilton. But they come across another project even more threatening, or cybernetic soldiers controlled by the Son of Dr. Software!
#52: Big, Blue, Bulky Guy (published February 14, 2020)
Mervyn Goldfarb, the man who exploded, is alive and well, and living the life of a Megatonic University project gone wrong. Confronting B-50, the Hybrid Man, Bulky Guy proves more than a match--until he loses his glasses. (These events take place in late October, 1983.)
#53: I've Got the Senior Thesis Blues (published February 21, 2020)
Clarissa and Kozmik Kat discuss Multimensional mysteries deep into the night; later, Clarissa meets a mysterious emissary from Office 17a; finally, another white van circles the neighborhood near the Self-Important Art School. (These events occur in the last week of October, 1983).
#54: Devil's Night in Detroit (published February 28, 2020)
Clarissa explains the tradition of the night before Halloween in the Murder Capital of the World, meets the mysterious Reverend Enoch (who has a spiritual view on the fusing of Megaton and Meltdown Universes), and succumbs to Domina, who kneels to conquer. (These events take place on Sunday night, October 30, and Monday morning, October 31, 1983.)
#55: Sex and the Motor City (published March 6, 2020)
Clarissa sketches the sexual atmosphere in early 1980s Detroit as Dana turns increasingly cold toward her. Later, Clarissa gets a visit from Gene Griffin, who wants to take it slow, an alien concept to the fast-moving Ms. Megaton Man. (These events take place in early November, 1983).
#56: Ms. Megaton is Skank (published March 13, 2020)
Clarissa tells her judgmental sister Avie about her love life, then drops in on a drawing class at the Self-Important Art School, where Dana is modeling. Chas Bradford runs afoul of the old-school teacher for adding embellishments; later, someone is dissing Ms. Megaton Man with hurtful graffiti. (These events take place in November, 1983).
#57: Revelation from Missouri (published March 20, 2020)
Clarissa and Avie compare and contrast personal tastes in explicit erotica. Later, Clarissa sneaks a peak at an even more esoteric genre of literature: the home-grown religion of Anna Clarabelle Bartlett based on her 1930 vision of a divinity names Nere. Finally, our plucky heroine retrieves her clarinet from the attic of her childhood home and runs into Daddy. (These events take place in November, 1983).
#58: Megahero-Free Zone (published March 27, 2020)
After Thanksgiving with Avie and Mama, Clarissa has a vampiric vision while practicing the clarinet. Later, Earth Mother Stella lays down the law about costumed characters visiting Ann Street, and a UFO steals away with one of Mama's pumpkin pies.
#59: Mona Lisa Outer Drive (published April 3, 2020)
Chas asks Clarissa to pose for his art school assignment, but an upstairs neighbor beats her to it. Later, the Y+Thems convenes a late-night meeting to determine whether an errant member should continue in the group.
#60: Spotting a Roof-Runner (published April 10, 2020)
Clarissa ruminates about her role in turning lesbian dominatrix, artist's model, and Youthful Permutation Dana into a megavillain. Later, she spots a costumed interloper swinging on a curious pop-gun rope around town and plans a meet-up, but fears he will stand her up.
#61: Cool Jazz Christmas in the Medieval Court Café (published April 24, 2020)
Clarissa and Avie discuss sex before breakfast, particularly Ms. Megaton Man's latest conquest; later, at afternoon tea in the Detroit Fine Arts Museum, they plan a surprise holiday visit to Mama.
#62: This Fairground, This Battlefield (published May 1, 2020)
After foiling an armed robbery, Clarissa has a talk with Dana before everyone and the Time Turntable show up, including the Silver Age Megaton Man the Mod Puma.
#63: The Snows of State Fair Avenue (published May 8, 2020)
Clarissa meets her biological father and her mama from another dimension, and must negotiate between old and new realities.
#64: Edge of Nineteen Eighty-Four (published May 15, 2020)
Clarissa recounts her Mexicantown dinner with her biological father, the Silver Age Megaton Man, and her mama from another dimension, the Mod Puma. Later, 1983 comes to an end on a sour note.
#65: At No Fixed Address (published May 22, 2020)
Threatened with eviction, Clarissa and Avie search for an upgrade in accommodations before Ms. Megaton Man's final semester of undergraduate college begins. Meanwhile, Chas draws Avie in a new megahero persona!
#66: Plenty of Free Parking (published May 29, 2020)
As 1984 dawns, Clarissa, Avie, and Kozmik Kat visit Ann Arbor on a snowy day, but find things amiss on Ann Street and even more upside down than ever at underground Megatonic University.
#67: Knock Down, Drag Out (published June 5, 2020)
Clarissa steps into the ring for a few rounds with Alice Too (a.k.a. the Mod Puma, her mama from another dimension) and Clyde Phloog, her biological father (the Silver Age Megaton Man) before Doctor Software confronts himself from another dimension: Dr. Joe.
#68: Will the Real Dr. Joe Please Stand Up? (published June 12, 2020)
Clyde swallows a capsule that renders him a normal civilian, but will the Silver Age Megaton Man disappear forever? And Grandma Seedy reveals why she's lured Doctor Software into the underground laboratories of Megatonic University.
#69: Art History With Doctor Messiah (published June 19, 2020)
Clarissa gets a dose of modernism and anti-modernism at the Detroit Museum of Fine Arts, courtesy of a mystical professor and his teaching fellow, a woman Chas imagines as an Egyptian deity.
#70: The Once and Future Crime Busters (published June 26, 2020)
Clarissa visits The Inland Ocean Archeological and Anthropological Institute to hand in her assignment, and glimpses herself in a future team of megaheroes in an archaic photograph.
#71: The Troy+Thems (published July 3, 2020)
When baby Biff Phloog starts getting out of hand, Preston thinks he has a solution for the Y+Thems: the old headquarters of a team of megaheroes that have been lost in another dimension since the 1970s: The Teen Idols of Troy, Michigan.
#72: Guess Who's Not Coming to Dinner (published July 10, 2020)
Clarissa flies to Ann Arbor to convince Trent Phloog to become Megaton Man again, only to find Stella Starlight's half-brother Chuck Roast, the Human Meltdown, who had assaulted Avie in New York, sleeping on their sofa.
#73: The Whistleroar of the Wondrous Warhound (published July 17, 2020)
Avie works on her weight training and her patented trademarked yell; later, Clarissa gets her burgundy hair and becomes further entangled in the Troy+Thems.
#74: Double Negative (published July 24, 2020)
First, a major character switches genders, then another major character switches genders, all while Rubber Brother spills milkshakes all over the new Troy+Thems headquarters carpeting.
#75: He, She, Him, Her (published July 31, 2020)
Wilton and Audrey argue over the proper pronouns for their new teammates with Avie and Clarissa, while avoiding the subject of the old Detroit Crime Busters.
#76: Who'll Have You? (published August 7, 2020)
With Tempy and Andre switching genders, the Troy+Thems find themselves with a boy-girl problem. Percy brings in outside experts to develop a draconian bathroom policy, and the team is up in arms. (Note: This chapter serves as a direct sequel to "The Crypt of Crime," the story from Pteranoman #1 that introduces the Phantom Jungle Girl, Cowboy Gorilla, and the Brilliant Brain.)
#77: Schroedinger's Cat (published August 14, 2020)
Stella and Clarissa offer their undergraduate research of fusion and dispersion, respectively, during the annual festival back on the Arbor State University main campus, and our favorite scholars are besieged by more parents than they can handle.
#78: Afternoon of the Asp (published August 21, 2020)
Clarissa asks a simple question and get a partial explanation of the universe that only complicates her picture of reality.
#79: A Little Pseudo-Martian Told Me (published August 28, 2020)
Clarissa gets some strange books from Doctor Messiah, runs into Partyer from Mars Anton Parsec, and is visited by Trent Phloog, formerly Megaton Man, who makes a surprising offer.
#80: Escape-Ism From Flung-Into-Ness (published September 4, 2020)
The enormity of the Multimensions weighs on Clarissa's mind, even as she prepares to graduate from college, and all that pulp reading eats away at her brain!
#81: Views from Olympus (published September 11, 2020)
The Troy+Thems link up with megaheroes from Brooklyn to Bayonne, and Domina makes a comeback with new armaments. But the Multimensions will never be the same when Kozmik Kat gets a snootful of Dana dust!
#82: My Excellent Adventure With Koz (published September 18, 2020)
Clarissa and Kozmik Kat are propelled through the Dimensional Portal, where they replay an earlier Kozmik Kat adventure that hasn't happened yet in the future!
#83: The Tragic Realization of Temporal-Dimensional Travel (published September 23, 2020)
The Megaton Mice prove no match for inexorable urban renewal as Clarissa and Koz meet the Wizard of Core City (and Ms. Megaton Man's favorite megahero), Winnie Wertz.
#84: Archangels and Other Responsible Grown-Ups (published October 2, 2020)
Clarissa learns that there is a higher level of being than megahero who stand at the thresholds between realities. But, far from cosmic beings, they walk among us, and are as close as our friendly neighborhood new age mystical congregation.
#85: Who Watches the Watchmen? (published October 9, 2020)
Clarissa gains a new perspective on her world after a night with Gene Griffin as she's finally about to graduate college once and for all.
#86: Apocalyptic Megachallenges (published October 16, 2020)
#61: Cool Jazz Christmas in the Medieval Court Café (published April 24, 2020)
Clarissa and Avie discuss sex before breakfast, particularly Ms. Megaton Man's latest conquest; later, at afternoon tea in the Detroit Fine Arts Museum, they plan a surprise holiday visit to Mama.
#62: This Fairground, This Battlefield (published May 1, 2020)
After foiling an armed robbery, Clarissa has a talk with Dana before everyone and the Time Turntable show up, including the Silver Age Megaton Man the Mod Puma.
#63: The Snows of State Fair Avenue (published May 8, 2020)
Clarissa meets her biological father and her mama from another dimension, and must negotiate between old and new realities.
Volume III: Troy
(January 1984-May 1984)
(January 1984-May 1984)
#64: Edge of Nineteen Eighty-Four (published May 15, 2020)
Clarissa recounts her Mexicantown dinner with her biological father, the Silver Age Megaton Man, and her mama from another dimension, the Mod Puma. Later, 1983 comes to an end on a sour note.
#65: At No Fixed Address (published May 22, 2020)
Threatened with eviction, Clarissa and Avie search for an upgrade in accommodations before Ms. Megaton Man's final semester of undergraduate college begins. Meanwhile, Chas draws Avie in a new megahero persona!
#66: Plenty of Free Parking (published May 29, 2020)
As 1984 dawns, Clarissa, Avie, and Kozmik Kat visit Ann Arbor on a snowy day, but find things amiss on Ann Street and even more upside down than ever at underground Megatonic University.
#67: Knock Down, Drag Out (published June 5, 2020)
Clarissa steps into the ring for a few rounds with Alice Too (a.k.a. the Mod Puma, her mama from another dimension) and Clyde Phloog, her biological father (the Silver Age Megaton Man) before Doctor Software confronts himself from another dimension: Dr. Joe.
#68: Will the Real Dr. Joe Please Stand Up? (published June 12, 2020)
Clyde swallows a capsule that renders him a normal civilian, but will the Silver Age Megaton Man disappear forever? And Grandma Seedy reveals why she's lured Doctor Software into the underground laboratories of Megatonic University.
#69: Art History With Doctor Messiah (published June 19, 2020)
Clarissa gets a dose of modernism and anti-modernism at the Detroit Museum of Fine Arts, courtesy of a mystical professor and his teaching fellow, a woman Chas imagines as an Egyptian deity.
#70: The Once and Future Crime Busters (published June 26, 2020)
Clarissa visits The Inland Ocean Archeological and Anthropological Institute to hand in her assignment, and glimpses herself in a future team of megaheroes in an archaic photograph.
#71: The Troy+Thems (published July 3, 2020)
When baby Biff Phloog starts getting out of hand, Preston thinks he has a solution for the Y+Thems: the old headquarters of a team of megaheroes that have been lost in another dimension since the 1970s: The Teen Idols of Troy, Michigan.
#72: Guess Who's Not Coming to Dinner (published July 10, 2020)
Clarissa flies to Ann Arbor to convince Trent Phloog to become Megaton Man again, only to find Stella Starlight's half-brother Chuck Roast, the Human Meltdown, who had assaulted Avie in New York, sleeping on their sofa.
#73: The Whistleroar of the Wondrous Warhound (published July 17, 2020)
Avie works on her weight training and her patented trademarked yell; later, Clarissa gets her burgundy hair and becomes further entangled in the Troy+Thems.
#74: Double Negative (published July 24, 2020)
First, a major character switches genders, then another major character switches genders, all while Rubber Brother spills milkshakes all over the new Troy+Thems headquarters carpeting.
#75: He, She, Him, Her (published July 31, 2020)
Wilton and Audrey argue over the proper pronouns for their new teammates with Avie and Clarissa, while avoiding the subject of the old Detroit Crime Busters.
#76: Who'll Have You? (published August 7, 2020)
With Tempy and Andre switching genders, the Troy+Thems find themselves with a boy-girl problem. Percy brings in outside experts to develop a draconian bathroom policy, and the team is up in arms. (Note: This chapter serves as a direct sequel to "The Crypt of Crime," the story from Pteranoman #1 that introduces the Phantom Jungle Girl, Cowboy Gorilla, and the Brilliant Brain.)
#77: Schroedinger's Cat (published August 14, 2020)
Stella and Clarissa offer their undergraduate research of fusion and dispersion, respectively, during the annual festival back on the Arbor State University main campus, and our favorite scholars are besieged by more parents than they can handle.
#78: Afternoon of the Asp (published August 21, 2020)
Clarissa asks a simple question and get a partial explanation of the universe that only complicates her picture of reality.
#79: A Little Pseudo-Martian Told Me (published August 28, 2020)
Clarissa gets some strange books from Doctor Messiah, runs into Partyer from Mars Anton Parsec, and is visited by Trent Phloog, formerly Megaton Man, who makes a surprising offer.
#80: Escape-Ism From Flung-Into-Ness (published September 4, 2020)
The enormity of the Multimensions weighs on Clarissa's mind, even as she prepares to graduate from college, and all that pulp reading eats away at her brain!
#81: Views from Olympus (published September 11, 2020)
The Troy+Thems link up with megaheroes from Brooklyn to Bayonne, and Domina makes a comeback with new armaments. But the Multimensions will never be the same when Kozmik Kat gets a snootful of Dana dust!
#82: My Excellent Adventure With Koz (published September 18, 2020)
Clarissa and Kozmik Kat are propelled through the Dimensional Portal, where they replay an earlier Kozmik Kat adventure that hasn't happened yet in the future!
#83: The Tragic Realization of Temporal-Dimensional Travel (published September 23, 2020)
The Megaton Mice prove no match for inexorable urban renewal as Clarissa and Koz meet the Wizard of Core City (and Ms. Megaton Man's favorite megahero), Winnie Wertz.
#84: Archangels and Other Responsible Grown-Ups (published October 2, 2020)
Clarissa learns that there is a higher level of being than megahero who stand at the thresholds between realities. But, far from cosmic beings, they walk among us, and are as close as our friendly neighborhood new age mystical congregation.
#85: Who Watches the Watchmen? (published October 9, 2020)
Clarissa gains a new perspective on her world after a night with Gene Griffin as she's finally about to graduate college once and for all.
#86: Apocalyptic Megachallenges (published October 16, 2020)
Clarissa and Stella graduate, but will they even walk together? Plus, the Silver Age Megaton Man leaves Ms. Megaton Man a gift at Border Worlds Used and Slightly New Bookstore.
#87: Those Chosen Few (published October 24, 2020)
#87: Those Chosen Few (published October 24, 2020)
The celebration back at the Ann Street house turns is overrun by megaheroes fresh from New York-Megatropolis, courtesy of the Time Turntable. Among them is Stella's ex, Rex Rigid, who has an offer for Rubber Brother, the Phantom Jungle Girl, and Ms. Megaton Man.
#88: The Quantum Tower (published October 30, 2020)
#88: The Quantum Tower (published October 30, 2020)
The Clarissa goes to New York with Kozmik Kat to take up Liquid Man on his offer to join the Reconstituted Megatropolis Quartet with fellow Detroiters Rubber Brother and the Phantom Jungle Girl. The only problem is, where will their new headquarters be? Try that giant hole on Fifth Avenue!
#89: Crown Heights (published November 6, 2020)
#89: Crown Heights (published November 6, 2020)
Clarissa ruminates on her time in New York with her dad, the Silver Age Megaton Man. But will she remain in Megatropolis as part of the Quartet, or return to Detroit and study urban policy in grad school? Oh, the dilemmas of being a young, single, biracial, bisexual megahero!
Volume IV: Civilian
(Including Scenes from an Alternate Universe,
Summer 1980-Summer 1984)
Clarissa sums up everything she knows about the Everything-but-the-Kitchen-Sinkverse, Fiascoverse, or Megaverse she lives in (take your pick), and what she's learned about life as a megahero. This before everything she thought she knew about Multimensionality is turned upside-down and inside-out...
#91: On the Down-Low (published November 20, 2020)
#91: On the Down-Low (published November 20, 2020)
After her big college graduation and summer fling with the Megatropolis Quartet in New York, Clarissa finds herself back in Detroit in a funk. Unable to concentrate on her upcoming grad studies, she loses herself in a weekend of raunchy sex with her second cousin, the former Megaton Man, who overshares a few intimate secrets about the See-Thru Girl.
#92: Magic Carpet Ride (published November 27, 2020)
#92: Magic Carpet Ride (published November 27, 2020)
Desperate to learn how to escape reality with a Dimensional Portal or a Time Turntable (or schlocky paperback fiction), Clarissa seeks out Doctor Messiah for instruction on how how to visit other realities the natural way: by meditating on an Oriental carpet.
#93: Tripping with Doctor Messiah (published December 4, 2020)
What's the opposite of an adventure? Clarissa is about to find out as she visits a mundane reality of civilians without megaheroes, and has the chance to experience what her life would be like had she never been born Ms. Megaton Man.
#94: The Parallax View (published December 11, 2020)
Clarissa watches her origin as Ms. Megaton Man all over again, from an objective point of view, until she's pulled into the struggle between Preston and Trent for alpha-male supremacy.
#95: Civilian Clarissa (published December 18, 2020)
Stuck in her civilian identity, Clarissa realizes she's a just a normal woman in a world without megaheroes. Will Grandma Seedy believe her far-fetched stories of split universes and Cosmic Cue-Balls?
#96: How We Lost the Farm (published December 25, 2020)
Clarissa visits her biological father, who in this reality never became the Silver Age Megaton Man. Although he can't bequeath his daughter megapowers, Clyde Pflug has something better: a plan from Jesus!
#97: Secret Identity (published January 1, 2021)
As Halloween 1982 approaches in the Civilian reality, Grandma Seedy comes through with a costume request: a Ms. Megaton Man uniform that's almost as good as the real thing. Meanwhile, Clarissa deals with crutches and two dads, neither of which is a Megahero.
#98: George Has a Gun
#93: Tripping with Doctor Messiah (published December 4, 2020)
What's the opposite of an adventure? Clarissa is about to find out as she visits a mundane reality of civilians without megaheroes, and has the chance to experience what her life would be like had she never been born Ms. Megaton Man.
#94: The Parallax View (published December 11, 2020)
Clarissa watches her origin as Ms. Megaton Man all over again, from an objective point of view, until she's pulled into the struggle between Preston and Trent for alpha-male supremacy.
#95: Civilian Clarissa (published December 18, 2020)
Stuck in her civilian identity, Clarissa realizes she's a just a normal woman in a world without megaheroes. Will Grandma Seedy believe her far-fetched stories of split universes and Cosmic Cue-Balls?
#96: How We Lost the Farm (published December 25, 2020)
Clarissa visits her biological father, who in this reality never became the Silver Age Megaton Man. Although he can't bequeath his daughter megapowers, Clyde Pflug has something better: a plan from Jesus!
#97: Secret Identity (published January 1, 2021)
As Halloween 1982 approaches in the Civilian reality, Grandma Seedy comes through with a costume request: a Ms. Megaton Man uniform that's almost as good as the real thing. Meanwhile, Clarissa deals with crutches and two dads, neither of which is a Megahero.
#98: George Has a Gun
The Partyers from Mars are on the cusp of fulfilling their mission on Earth: finally capturing the elusive Cosmic Cue-Ball! But the Mutanium Particle is not out of moves, especially when the Thirteenth Scientist shows up and the alarm is sounded: "George Has a Gun!"
#99: They Pronounce the Doctor...Braindead! (published January 15, 2021)
Just as the Partyers from Mars corner the Cosmic Cue-Ball, defeat is snatched from the jaws of victory as the Thirteenth Scientist reappears! Special Guest-Stars: The Devengers!
#100: Dr. Sax (published January 22, 2021)
Clarissa finds herself back at the Inland Ocean Archeological and Anthropological Institute, and although the world she left before her sojourn with Doctor Messiah hasn't much changed, she has. Later, while holed up in her apartment, a silent, mysterious black cat appears, insistent on naming itself.
#101: Secret-Secret Weapon (published January 29, 2021)
After a devastating attack on the team headquarters, Clarissa finds herself demoted from auxilliary member to last-resort-on-probation auxilliary member of the Troy+Thems, and sister Avie promoted to Domina's daredevil sidekick! Plus, it takes two Alices keep the Youthful Permuations fit.
#102: The Multimentional Pinpointer (published February 5, 2021)
Tempy and Andrea's fraught relationship threatens their collaboration on a device that could help navigate the vast Multimensions with ever greater precision, but could also leave a back door open for the malevolent machinations of Doctor Braindead!
#103: Call for Papers (published February 12, 2021)
Clarissa gets word of an academic conference that's right up her alley, if she can master the hyper-intellectual discourse of Hypothetics in time.
#104: Postcards from the Edge of Forever (published February 19, 2021)
Feeling left out of the local megahero scene, Clarissa takes to a daily diary, chronicling her escapades as an intrepid grad student teaching assistant. When she visits Donna Blank for a talk-therapy session, she feels like more than one person.
#105: The Blank Book of Dreams (published February 26, 2021)
Clarissa begins writing her experiences down on paper. When Chas Bradford reads them, he knows it should be his next graphic novel. But is Clarissa willing to collaborate on such an intimate project?
#106: Drawing Board Booty Call (published March 5, 2021)
Backing into a backdoor relationship may seem easy for Clarissa, who is focused on grad school, until she runs into Peggy. Will Avie inevitably find out her costume concept artist is meeting in the middle of the night with her dreamy older sister?
#107: Ms. Megatronica and Ponty Polverizzo (published March 12, 2021)
Clarissa does some archival literary criticism and meets a future Bizarre Hero who take his stage role as a post-grad academic to extremes and tries it out on the squares further up Woodward Avenue.
#108: West Forest Knight Rangers (published March 19, 2021)
Avie, the Mod Puma, and Dr. Sax team up with the Harlequin and Vagabond to patrol to liminal streets of the North Cass District, giving Clarissa the willies. When Avie returns, Clarissa wonders if pulp magazine adventurers can actually be real. (These events take place in October 1984.)
#109: My Dinner with André (published March 27, 2021)
Clarissa has cocktails and appetizers with friends before taking in an art film. Returning home, she finds the West Forest Knight Rangers have been at it again!
#110: The Criminality Clinic (published April 2, 2021)
Clarissa takes a secret tunnel to Canada to visit a laboratory that turns crooks into warehouse workers, and the bronze lady who hasn't aged a day since the halcyon days of pulp adventure.
#111: I Was a Grad-School Sex Addict! (published April 9, 2021)
Clarissa visits a university social worker after a rebuke from sister Avie that Clarissa may be having too much sex and not enough love in her love life.
#112: Postmodern Sleeping Arrangements (published April 16, 2021)
Clarissa gets an unlikely ride to Ann Arbor for Halloween 1984, and flashes back to a mysterious prophecy from a childhood visit to New Orleans.
#113: October Surprise in November (published April 23, 2021)
Clarissa learns that Ms. Megaton Man has become a contentious issue in the presidential elections since the return of her father, the Silver Age Megaton Man as America's Nuclear-Powered Hero.
#114: Hiding in Plain Sight (published April 30, 2021)
Clarissa attempts to dodge the media but can't dodge an old housemate, Pamela Jointly, who was too distracted to cover the story of the decade: the breakout of Ms. Megaton Man!
#115: The Burgundy Blip (published May 7, 2021)
While the news media hunts of the daughter of America's Nuclear-Powered Hero, Clarissa thinks of a foolproof disguise: getting a haircut. Later, Preston Percy proposes an even more daring solution.
#116: Live, Coast-to-Coast (published May 14, 2021)
In the waning days of the election campaign, Clarissa is compelled to appear on national television with Mama, the Mod Puma, her father (the Silver Age Megaton Man), and ... herself!
#117: America's New Nuclear-Powered Hero (published May 21, 2021)
Clarissa comes to grip with a Counterpart who's claimed her Megahero identity, and is even influencing her dreams!
#118: Never Even Kissed a Girl (published May 28, 2021)
Clarissa is astonished by all of Ms. Megaton Man Too's wondrous exploits, and even more appalled at how clean-living her Counterpart from the Civilian reality is. She even goes to a real church!
#119: I Lost My Powers In This World (published June 4, 2021)
When it becomes clear that Clarissa Too has lost her powers for good, Clarissa One has no choice but to resume the mantle of Ms. Megaton Man, including the burgundy-haired wig Tempy has made for her. (This chapter takes place in late November, 1984 and concludes Volume IV.)
Volume V: Real Time
(The Civilian Reality, Fall and Early Winter, 1984)
#120: Will the Real Ms. Megaton Man Please Stand Up? (published June 11, 2021)
Clarissa wonders what's to be done with Clarissa Too now that her Counterpart is devoid of Megapowers and homesick for her Civilian reality.
#121: Mistaken Identity (published June 18, 2021)
Clarissa seeks the aid of Michele Selket so that Clarissa Too can be home for the holidays. But after a tearful farewell, something goes wrong, and it's Clarissa One that gets sent abroad across the Dimensional Divide.
#122: Real Time (published June 25, 2021)
Clarissa first has to get the lay of the land, where she's the only Megapowered being, and named Ms. Megaton. How can she fill the shoes of Clarissa Too -- who was a better student, a better friend, and a better Megahero than Clarissa One could ever be?
#123: Flying Blind (published July 2, 2021)
Clarissa finds herself back in the Civilian Reality with a sister who thinks she's gone bonkers and a world that regards her as a menace to society.
#124: Melody Chrysanthemum (published July 9, 2021)
Clarissa runs into the Nuclear family at Border Worlds Used and Slightly New Bookstore, and sister Avie finds her inner folk singer. But Preston is taciturn about a project to replicate Megaheroes from Ms. Megaton's blood sample.
#125: Re-Election Day (published July 16, 2021)
Clarissa casts her ballot for the challenger to President Harry Foster Lime, then watches the returns in horror as her candidate sweeps the Electoral College!
#126: Docs and Cats (published July 23, 2021)
Doctors Seymour Starlight and Mercedith Robeson James discuss their failures to manufacture an Atomic Soldier in the Civilian Reality during World War II; Clarissa reveals their unlikely success in her native reality, including the creation of a talking cat!
#127: Return to Doomsday (published July 30, 2021)
Clarissa gets a glimpse of where it all didn't begin in the Civilian Reality: the labs where Major Meltdown and Megaton Man failed to materialize.
#128: The Transdimensional Transceiver (published August 6, 2021)
Clarissa has trouble explaining to the scientists of the Doomsday Factory how she came to the Civilian Reality, let alone how all of the Multimensions work. Then, she discovers a means of contacting her home reality!
#129: Ex Nihilo (published August 13, 2021)
Avie uses her electric guitar rig and the Transdimensional Transceiver to help Clarissa to phone her home reality.
#130: Slaughter on Tenth Avenue (published August 30, 2021)
Clarissa and her protectors make themselves at home in the creepy and mysterious Doomsday Factory.
#131: Banks of the Nile (published August 27, 2021)
Clarissa's naptime dream brings a message from Michele; later, she tries to get close to bodyguard Gene, who is all business about securing the Doomsday Factory from invasion by land, sea, or air.
#132: The Megatown Mob (published September 3, 2021)
The Doomsday Factory gets an unexpected visit from the Nuclear Family: Stella, Trent, and Simon, and even an alternate Kozmik Kat.
#133: Rex, Rose and Mega-Bad Guy (published September 10, 2021)
A disgruntled orthopedic shoe salesman in the Civilian Reality, Rex Rigid turns traitor to help President-Elect Bad Guy gain megapowers in the Project Megaton laboratory of the Doomsday Factory. But Stella Starlight has some Mega-Soldier Syrup of her own up her sleeve.
#134: Mr. Megaton (published September 17, 2021)
Trent Pflug is perhaps democracy's last hope against a tyrant ruling America, if he can survive a Megaton Man-sized jab of Mega-Soldier Syrup.
#135: Night Flight (published September 24, 2021)
Clarissa and Koz (Too) chase after Mega-Bad Guy and Mr. Megaton, with all risking a watery death in view of the Statue of Liberty, if perchance the laws of physics were to suddenly take hold in the Civilian Reality.
#136: Coup Détente (published October 1, 2021)
Clarissa dreams up a way Clarissa Too may get her megapowers back from Trent Phloog back in her native reality, although it involves reversing the draining effects of the Cosmic Cue-Ball. Plus: how ICHHL plans to carry on a covert war of Megaheroes vs. President Bad Guy.
#137: Trading Places (published October 8, 2021)
ICHHL gets several more lame disabbreviations; Clarissa Two explains how she regained her megapowers from Trent; and Clarissa swaps the screwed up Civilian Reality for her own screwed up native reality.
#138: The Dreaded Conference Paper (published October 15, 2021)
Clarissa discusses her Theory of Everything with anyone who will listen, including old lovers who aren't necessarily interested in her scholarship.
#139: Flashback to Microville (published October 22, 2021)
Clarissa learns how Megaton Lad became Megaton Man, and how Trent got a train ticket to Megatropolis with a strange, outdated schedule. (This episode takes place in May 1976.)
#140: Cross Under at Manhattan Transfer (published October 29, 2021)
Trent recounts his first trip out of Microville to Megatropolis, and the Megaverse will never again be the same! (This episode takes place in May 1976.)
#141: The Manhattan Project (published November 5, 2021)
Trent visits the rough-and-tumble City Room of a great metropolitan newspaper and risks giving away his secret identity when he has to rescue a groovy chick. (This episode takes place in May 1976.)
#142: The Quantum Quest Quartet
In a midtown skyscraper, a foursome of costumed megaheroes detect the return of the Cosmic Cue-Ball to their dimension, as well as an imposter of America's Nuclear-Powered Hero. (This episode takes place in May 1976.)
#143: Bicentennial Battle of the Millennium! (published November 19, 2021)
A mysterious radio broadcast summons America's Nuclear-Powered Hero to the Statue of Liberty; when both Megaton Man and the Human Meltdown answer the call, mayhem ensues! Also, a bug-eyed monstead eats the Quartet's logo! (This episode takes place July 4, 1976.)
#144: The Flight of Dr. Braindead (published November 26, 2021)
A bug-eyed monster eats the logo the Quantum Quest Quartet, leaving them without recourse except to rename their group! Plus: Megaton Man and the Human Meltdown team up to thwart the theft of the Cosmic Cue-Ball! (This episode takes place July 4, 1976.)
#145: Fusion Jazz (published December 3, 2021)
Clarissa processes Trent's flashback by picking up the guitar and checks in with some old acquaintances in the more mundane surroundings of Warren Woodward University. (This episode takes place in December 1984 and January 1985.)
#146: Megatron Man #1 (published December 10, 2021)
Chase Bradford's first comic book is published and the auteur makes an appearance in an Ann Arbor comic shop. But Clarissa takes exception to any number of narrative details the underground cartoonist has gotten wrong, including the race and gender of the story's main protagonist. (This episode takes place in late February 1985.)
#147: Deep Throat (published December 17, 2021)
Clarissa completes her conference paper but realizes she's been leaking important inside info on the secret lives of megaheroes when she sits down and read the first two issues of Megatron Man (this episode takes place in March 1985).
#148: Tête-à-Tête in Troy (published December 24, 2021)
Soren calls a summit at the headquarters of the Youthful Permutations to discuss the infringement of their intellectual property - their parody likenesses - by "independent alternative underground groundlevel" cartoonist Chase Bradford. But can they halt the publication of Megatron Man #3?
#149: Hypothetically Speaking (published December 31, 2022)
The day-long academic conference finally arrives as Clarissa meets MeToo predator (avant la lettre) Terrell Smythe, fends off a touchy-feely Trent Phloog, and stumbles upon a cubicle handjob among colleagues (this episode takes place in March 1985).
#150: Megahero Gossip (published January 7, 2022)
Clarissa ruminates on the successful completion of her first year of grad school, gets an Egyptian-gallery debriefing from the Asp, and entertains an unexpected visit from her friendly neighborhood secret agent, who warns of a mysterious, cloaked object orbiting planet Earth.
Volume VI: Starship Summer
(The Early Fiascoverse, Summer 1985)
#151: Around the World (published January 14, 2022)
Clarissa visits Fanny (Donna) in the Lily-White Suburbs of Detroit, where she's a lonely specatacle for future X-Ray Boy Larry Barton; meanwhile, criminal-from-the-future Rory Smash lands in the twentieth century with renegade scientists Cody and Drasin Revell (this episode takes place in the summer of 1985).
#152: Shore Leave (published January 21, 2022)
A starship from the future orbits the earth with a mission to find two renegade scientists; meanwhile, the occupants of the hotrod make themselves at home in Detroit.
#153: The Blow Dryer (published January 28, 2022)
Preston Percy and Lemon Lime monitor events below on Earth from thier orbiting ICHHL killer satellite, and decide to intervene.
#154: Visiting Artists (published February 4, 2022)
A high school's summer arts camp threatens to tank until unexpected and extraordinarily skilled visitors appear to offer masters' classes in music and murals.
#155: Stakeout (published February 11, 2022)
Donna keeps an eye on the strange visitors to a Detroit neighborhood; Clarissa confronts one in a food co-op and plans a picnic.
#156: Garage Band (published February 18, 2022)
The students of the summer arts camp speculate on their mysterious instructors' origins and wonder if the coming year of jazz band will rock 'n' roll.
#157: Green Dolphin Street (published February 25, 2022)
Rory Smash calls on an old friend for assistance, but finds the Meddler indisposed.
#158: Screen Door (published March 4, 2022)
Cartoonist Chase Bradford, returned from a stint in the world of alternative comics, is ready to sell out to the big publishers, but needs to crash on Avie's sofa first.
#159: Green Eyes (published March 11, 2022)
Dr. Sax tags along on some of Rory Smash's errands.
#160: Telegraph Road (published March 18, 2022)
Preston Percy is seduced by Lemon Lime in a tawdry motel on one of Detroit's main thoroughfares.
#161: Open Solo (published March 25, 2022)
Musicians in the Stevenson High School Senior High School Summer Arts Day Camp endure more bewildering instruction from the virtuoso visiting artists.
#162: What Cape Saw (published April 1, 2022)
Clarissa plays back the spy recording made by her cape and buttons when it played Peeping Tom.
#163: One of Our Spitfires is Missing (published April 8, 2022)
Hoskins misplaces her science-fictional sidearm, and Dallas must help find it before it falls into the wrong hands.
#164: Roberts (published April 15, 2022)
Preston Percy and Lemon Lime investigate a mysterious explosiong with Donna Blank, Jasper Johnson, and Chase Bradford in tow; but they need an outside consultant: Roberts.
#165: The Bizarre Files (published April 22, 2022)
Chase Bradford, cartoonist brother of The Detroit Day columnist John Bradford, shows up in the city room with his slightly weathered sketchbook, the only documentation of a vanished ray gun.
#166: The Tele-Organic Health Food Co-Op (published April 29, 2022)
Agents Percy and Lime follow a lead to a small grocer, raising the antennae of the renegade scientists from the future who are gainfully employed there.
#167: The Scene of the Crime (May 6, 2022)
Detroit Day reporter John Bradford investigates the mysterious fatal explosion at a high school boiler room, and copyboy Barnes belatedly signs up for the summer arts program.
#168: Up North (June 20, 2022)
Ernie Penn Pierson takes his sent-from-heaven faculty on a woodsy retreat only to discover they really were heaven-sent.
III. Archival Images
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| A favorite sketchbook drawing from 2012, inked in 2020. |
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| Clarissa sketched in 2012. |
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| Unpublished cover for a proposed Ms. Megaton Man one-shot, c. 1990 (advertised in Yarn Man #1, 1989). |
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| Her attitude hasn't changed: First sketchbook concept drawing of Clarissa in the Ms. Megaton Man costume, 1989, inked 2010. |
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| Dr. Levitch recounts Clarissa James's origin as Ms. Megaton Man in Yarn Man #1 (Kitchen Sink Press, October 1989). |
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| Clarissa James, studious undergraduate student, sketched one of the Yale libraries on my visit there in 2012. |
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| Clarissa, Trent, and Preston from Megaton Man Meets the Uncategorizable X+Thems #1 (Kitchen Sink Press, April 1989), partially colorized 2019. |
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| Clarissa becomes Ms. Megaton Man in Megaton Man Meets the Uncategorizable X+Thems #1 (Kitchen Sink Press, April 1989). Colorized. |
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| Unpublished drawing, 2013. |
IV. Reader Comments
On Chapter #83: "It honestly makes more sense to me than the linear time travel type of mechanics."
"For the record, Ms. Megaton Man is definitely my favorite character in the Megaton Man-Bizarre Heroes cast. In all honesty, I'm not sure
why exactly, albeit I know that in Bizarre Heroes she always stood out and
I always liked when she appeared."
"...the writing is crisp, accessible and often funny, the characters are still engaging and even relatable. I don't know how much sex is normally in these things so I don't know if the sexuality is over the top or not."
"I have groceries now and have planned to listen to a few excerpts of Ms. Megaton Man™ Maxi-Series while preparing and consuming breakfast. ...I am able to hear my laptop read your blog by highlighting a passage, right clicking, then selecting 'read aloud.' I have begun...the voice takes [some] getting used to...[but] the content is entertaining..."
"Wow, that was wonderful! I can't wait for chapter six!"
"...the writing is crisp, accessible and often funny, the characters are still engaging and even relatable. I don't know how much sex is normally in these things so I don't know if the sexuality is over the top or not."
"I have groceries now and have planned to listen to a few excerpts of Ms. Megaton Man™ Maxi-Series while preparing and consuming breakfast. ...I am able to hear my laptop read your blog by highlighting a passage, right clicking, then selecting 'read aloud.' I have begun...the voice takes [some] getting used to...[but] the content is entertaining..."
"Wow, that was wonderful! I can't wait for chapter six!"
"[Megaton Man always had] way more going on in it than The Tick ever did -- deeper, heavy, grown-up stuff, plus Border Worlds, and the fact that you did issues like [Megaton Man #5] ... [The Tick] was always way [too] similar [to Megaton Man] and more for kids ... You [kept] growing and made something profound."
"Love your work, Don! I’m just glad to see new material."
Add your comments below.
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All characters, character names, likenesses, words and pictures on this page are ™ and © Don Simpson 2020, all rights reserved.
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