Jab's Builds: He-Man, Battle Cat, Mekaneck, Buzz-Off

[Kreuzritter]

I subscribe to the multiple guys theory regarding N-forcer, sounds like it has more potential for a story

[Jabroniville]

THE GENTLEMAN
First Apperance: Astro City #1 (Aug. 1995)
Created By: Kurt Busiek, Brent Anderson & Alex Ross
Role: Excuse For Alex Ross to Draw Billy Batson Again
Group Affiliation: Honor Guard
PL 11 (145)
STRENGTH 12 STAMINA 11 AGILITY 3
FIGHTING 10 DEXTERITY 3
INTELLIGENCE 2 AWARENESS 4 PRESENCE 5

Skills:
Expertise (History) 6 (+8)
Expertise (Current Events) 2 (+4)
Insight 5 (+9)
Investigation 2 (+6)
Perception 5 (+9)
Persuasion 8 (+13)

Advantages:
Fast Grab, Interpose, Luck, Ranged Attack 2, Teamwork

Powers:
Immunity 2 (Aging, Pressure) [2]
Impervious Toughness 7 [7]
Flight 8 (500 mph) [16]

Offense:
Unarmed +10 (+12 Damage, DC 27)
Initiative +3

Defenses:
Dodge +10 (DC 20), Parry +10 (DC 20), Toughness +11, Fortitude +11, Will +9

Complications:
Responsibility (Acting Like a Gentleman)- That suit is never even CREASED funny.

Total: Abilities: 98 / Skills: 28--14 / Advantages: 6 / Powers: 25 / Defenses: 12 (145)

-The Gentleman is one of the biggest mysteries of Astro City, rarely appearing in more than a page at a time. What IS known is that he's an ageless Golden Age hero, a perfect gentleman, always friendly, and powerful enough to be at the forefront of nearly every major alien invasion, godly rampage, etc. Where his powers come from, how he got them, his exact limits, and even his real identity are all completely unknown. Personally I think he's only there so Alex Ross can get out his Fred MacMurray & Captain Marvel fetish, but that's just me.

-The Gentleman's a balanced PL 11 on offense, PL 10.5 on defense. He's capable, strong and fast, being a Flying Brick, but is very 'by the book' by their standards, with few extra powers at all. Until we see more in the comics, that's all he can really be.

[Jabroniville]

LOONY LEO
First Apperance: Astro City #13 (Feb. 1998)
Created By: Kurt Busiek, Brent Anderson & Alex Ross
Role: Comic Book Joke Character Turned Dark Story
PL 5 (68)
STRENGTH 2 STAMINA 3 AGILITY 2
FIGHTING 6 DEXTERITY 2
INTELLIGENCE 0 AWARENESS -1 PRESENCE 3

Skills:
Athletics 2 (+4)
Deception 3 (+6)
Expertise (Pop Culture) 8 (+8)
Expertise (Acting) 2 (+5)
Perception 3 (+2)
Persuasion 2 (+5)

Advantages:
None

Powers:
"Cartoon Character Brought To Life"
Immunity 11 (Aging, Life Support) [11]
Regeneration 4 (Feats: Regrow Limbs) [5]

Offense:
Unarmed +6 (+2 Damage, DC 17)
Initiative +2

Defenses:
Dodge +5 (DC 15), Parry +6 (DC 16), Toughness +3, Fortitude +5, Will +2

Complications:
Responsibility (Demons)- Leo has many personal demons to deal with, including partaking in loose women, drinking too much, and spending money in bad ways.
Reputation (Past)- Leo's past catches up with him from time to time, especially with people old enough to remember that 14-year old hooker who OD'd while he was with her.
Motivation (Fame)- As much as the game has destroyed Leo as a person, he has "the sickness" and can't turn away from it. He'll give his entire life story to a young kid, talk about how the lifestyle ruined him, then turn around and sign the damn contract to appear in commercials.

Total: Abilities: 34 / Skills: 20--10 / Advantages: 0 / Powers: 16 / Defenses: 8 (68)

-One of the neater Astro City one-shots featured Loony Leo. He was a cartoon character brought to life inadvetently by an enemy of The Gentleman, who was using a "Belief Ray" to bring movie monsters to life in a 1940s adventure. Rescuing The Gentleman, Leo managed to remain in existence once Alex Ross' boy-toy convinced the crowd to "believe in him" enough to allow him permanent life. He was a temporary sidekick to The Gent, but soon went on to do featuers (since the studios would make a killing with a LIVING CARTOON in gimmick pictures), a kids' TV show, and went down the dark side after addictions and women took their toll on him. With his Humphrey Bogart down-on-his-luck ways, he soon ended up working at a Restaurant gimmicked to his personality, filling his time with a day-job.

-Leo is a passable '40s Sidekick Character, capable of tripping up crooks and saving some lives, but he's really more of a passerby a lot of of the time. He can probably do okay in a fight (there's a scene of him in a barfight), but he's no monster. He also lacks most leonine attributes, but he has the Cartoon-like advantages of being fairly unable to die (he can take damage, but likely heals quickly, and he proved that he didn't need to eat, and couldn't die in the cold).

[BlindPugh]

I've not read nearly as much Astro City as I should've (Only life in the city & Confessions) so I was really looking forward to your Gentleman build so I could find out what a cool character he turned out to be & all his secrets. Can't believe in all the time Astro City's been running they've never given a detailed look at him.

[Skavenger]

Okay, finally got the computer back up and running, caught up on email, let's see what I've missed on the Think Tan- A-BWUH-WHAAAA?

Jab, you are my hero for tackling these characters. If you ever decide to tackle Top Ten, I'm going to need to buy more comics so I have more builds to wait for.

As you stated and people know, Astro City is one big version of "Marvels," so it's hard to know much about any one of the characters, but I have to say...it's the one series I hate loving as much as I love it. Busiek has crafted such an amazing superhero universe with so many samplings of things that could hold its own in any other superhero universe that you're left craving more. It's like a four-star buffet, where they encourage you to take a sampling of every dish, but once you get that first spoonful, they take that dish away and replace it with something else. Even a bad "Astro City" story holds up well, and even when you can see the nuts and bolts holding the framework together, you can still just admire the craftsmanship that went into building it.

I'd love a story based on N-Forcer. I'd pay money for a spotlight on the Gentleman, the Irregulars, The Crossbreed, Air Ace, or hell, that one guy who looked like a locomotive from the bar during the Confessor storyline. Give me a spotlight on Gloo, letting me see what goes through his head. Have them punch a few bank robbers, ponder some basic superhero crisis, and I'd still pick up the book and paw through it like I was a child. ...and yet, I know I probably won't get those stories, because, like cooking, once you take a dish and focus too much on one ingredient, the flavor can shift so much that it makes you want something else.

Bless the team who makes Astro City for such a wonderful meal, and damn them for always leaving me hungry.

(On a side note, are you willing to accept recommendations for other builds? There are a few characters who featured prominently in some stories that I don't see listed, such as Supersonic)

[Ares]

Yeah, the Gentleman seemed to be Astro City's Captain Marvel homage the same way Samaritan and Winged Victory were the Superman/Wonder Woman homages respectively. He's got the Captain Marvel face, his powers seemed to be flight, superstrength and invulnerability, he was super polite, nice and kind, always smiling, and he got his own Mr. Tawney in the form of Leo.

[Kreuzritter]

plus like all alex-ross renditions, smiles like a supervillain

[Jabroniville]

The big problem I have with The Gentleman, thinking about it, is how Un-Superheroic he looks. He's just a smiling guy in a suit (and like Kreuz sez, his smile is often evil-looking). No other superhero looks like that, which is funny considering how it was a MAJOR part of Busiek, Anderson & Ross' motivations to make every character look like he belonged in a comic book world. The other Tux-wielders are guys who wore turbans or hats (most magic guys), or masks (The Spirit, etc.). This guy needs a domino mask or something, because between his look and the name, I could never imagine him working in the "real world" as a character people would want to read about.

Black Rapier has a similar problem to me. His little half-cape does little to disguise that he's basically an all-black fencer.

[Jabroniville]

M.P.H. (Mike Hendrie)
First Apperance: Astro City #1 (Aug. 1995)
Created By: Kurt Busiek, Brent Anderson & Alex Ross
Role: Speedster
PL 10 (177)
STRENGTH 3 STAMINA 3 AGILITY 5
FIGHTING 8/10 DEXTERITY 2
INTELLIGENCE 2 AWARENESS 2 PRESENCE 3

Skills:
Athletics 5 (+7)
Close Combat (Unarmed) 4 (+12)
Deception 2 (+5)
Expertise (Science) 1 (+3)
Insight 3 (+5)
Investigation 3 (+5)
Perception 3 (+5)
Persuasion 1 (+4)
Stealth 1 (+6)
Technology 2 (+4)
Vehicles 1 (+3)

Advantages:
Agile Feint, Defensive Attack, Defensive Roll 2, Equipment (Suit +1 Toughness, Wind-Shield), Great Endurance, Improved Critical (Unarmed), Improved Defense, Improved Disarm, Move-By Action, Power Attack, Ranged Attack 6, Redirect, Seize Initiative, Set-Up, Takedown 2, Teamwork

Powers:
Speed 15 (60,000 mph) [15]
Quickness 12 [12]
Enhanced Advantages 3: Enhanced Initiative 3 [3]
Enhanced Fighting 2 [4]

"Speed Feats"
Movement 3 (Wall-Crawling 2, Water-Walking) (Flaws: Limited to While Running) [3]
"Move Debris" Move Object 11 (Extras: 30ft. Cylindar) (Flaws: Touch Range) (22) -- [27]

AE: "Rapid Attack" Strength-Damage +3 (Extras: Multiattack 5) (8)
AE: "Hyperfast Punch" Strength-Damage +3 (3)
AE: "Hit Everyone in Range" Strength-Damage +3 (Extras: Area- 60ft. Burst +2 for 5 ranks) (13)
AE: "Spin Attack" Affliction 10 (Fort; Impaired & Dazed/Stunned & Defenseless/Incapacitated) (Extras: Extra Condition) (Flaws: Grab-Based) (Inaccurate -2) (8)
AE: Deflect 12 (12)

Offense:
Unarmed +14 (+3 Damage, DC 18)
Hyperfast Punch +14 (+6 Damage, DC 21)
Rapid Attack +14 (+5 Damage, DC 20)
Hit Everyone +5 Area (+5 Damage, DC 20)
Spin Attack +10 (+10 Affliction, DC 20)
Initiative +17

Defenses:
Dodge +14 (DC 24), Parry +14 (DC 24), Toughness +3 (+4 Suit, +6 D.Roll), Fortitude +6, Will +7

Complications:
Responsibility (Honor Guard)

Total: Abilities: 56 / Skills: 26--13 / Advantages: 23 / Powers: 64 / Defenses: 21 (177)

-M.P.H. was little more than Honor Guard's generic Speedster until the "Beautie" one-shot, where he was doing some of the investigating that helped Beautie find who created her. Beautie mistakes his interest for a sexual one, which he denies, and he even browbeats her creator for being overly-cold. For stats, I basically figured he's a generic Speedster with a few tricks, around the PL 10 level. Despite being on Honor Guard, he was pretty easy for even a tired old lug like Steeljack to K.O. with a lucky shot, and he's never come across as really powerful.

[Jabroniville]

STREET ANGEL (Ramon something)
First Apperance: Astro City: Local Heroes #4 (Nov. 2003)
Created By: Kurt Busiek, Brent Anderson & Alex Ross
Role: Daredevil-ish Guy, Gimmick Hero, Jokey-Hero Turned Dark Hero
PL 9 (138)
STRENGTH 3 STAMINA 4 AGILITY 6
FIGHTING 12 DEXTERITY 4
INTELLIGENCE 1 AWARENESS 3 PRESENCE 2

Skills:
Acrobatics 8 (+14)
Deception 5 (+7)
Expertise (Civics) 2 (+3)
Expertise (Streetwise) 7 (+8)
Intimidation 6 (+9)
Investigation 8 (+11)
Perception 7 (+10)
Persuasion 5 (+7)
Ranged Combat (Halos) 4 (+14)
Sleight of Hand 5 (+9)
Stealth 5 (+11)

Advantages:
Accurate Attack, Agile Feint, All-Out Attack, Benefit (Ambidexterity), Defensive Attack, Equipment 3 (Throwing Halos), Evasion, Great Endurance, Improved Aim, Improved Critical (Halos) 2, Improved Defense, Improved Disarm, Power Attack, Precise Attack (Close/Concealment), Ranged Attack 6, Takedown, Uncanny Dodge

Equipment:
"Steel-Core Halo" Strength-Damage +1 (Feats: Ranged 4, Homing, Ricochet 2, Split 2) (Diminished Range -1) (9) -- (11)

AE: "Halo To The @!#$ing Mouth" Strength-Damage +2 (Feats: Penetrating 2, Split) (5)
AE: "Shuriken" Blast 3 (Extras: Multiattack) (Diminished Range -1) (8)

Offense:
Unarmed +12 (+3 Damage, DC 18)
Steel Core Halo +12 (+5 Damage, DC 20)
Steel Core Halo +14 (+4 Damage, DC 19)
Adhesive/Rubber Halo +14 (+4 Ranged Affliction, DC 14)
Sonic Halo +6 Area (+6 Affliction, DC 16)
Constricting Halo +12 (+6 Ranged Affliction, DC 16)
Initiative +6

Defenses:
Dodge +12 (DC 22), Parry +12 (DC 22), Toughness +4, Fortitude +6, Will +7

Complications:
Obsession (Stopping All Crime)

Total: Abilities: 70 / Skills: 62--31 / Advantages: 24 / Powers: 0 / Defenses: 12 (138)

---



STREET ANGEL (Ramon something)- Silver Age Version
First Apperance: Astro City: Local Heroes #4 (Nov. 2003)
Created By: Kurt Busiek, Brent Anderson & Alex Ross
Role: Daredevil-ish Guy, Gimmick Hero, Jokey-Hero Turned Dark Hero
PL 8 (119)
STRENGTH 3 STAMINA 4 AGILITY 6
FIGHTING 11 DEXTERITY 4
INTELLIGENCE 1 AWARENESS 3 PRESENCE 2

Skills:
Acrobatics 8 (+14)
Deception 5 (+7)
Expertise (Civics) 2 (+3)
Expertise (Streetwise) 5 (+6)
Intimidation 1 (+4)
Investigation 6 (+9)
Perception 6 (+9)
Persuasion 3 (+5)
Ranged Combat (Halos) 4 (+12)
Sleight of Hand 5 (+9)
Stealth 3 (+9)

Advantages:
Accurate Attack, Agile Feint, Benefit (Ambidexterity), Defensive Attack, Evasion, Improved Aim, Improved Critical (Halos), Improved Defense, Improved Disarm, Ranged Attack 4, Takedown, Uncanny Dodge

Powers:
"Halos" (Flaws: Easily Removable) [14]
"Sonic Halo" Dazzle Audio 6 (Extras: Area- 30ft. Burst) (18) -- (22 points)

AE: "Steel-Core Halo" Strength-Damage +2 (Feats: Ranged 5, Homing, Ricochet 2, Split 2) (12)
AE: "Adhesive Halo" Snare 4 (Extras: Contagious) (16)
AE: "Hard Rubber Halo" Affliction 4 (Fort; Dazed/Stunned/Incapacitated) (Feats: Homing, Ricochet 2, Split 2) (Extras: Ranged) (Diminished Range -1) (12)
AE: "Constricting Halo" Snare 6 (Diminished Range -1, Inaccurate -1) (16)

Offense:
Unarmed +11 (+3 Damage, DC 18)
Steel Core Halo +11 (+5 Damage, DC 20)
Adhesive/Rubber Halo +12 (+4 Ranged Affliction, DC 14)
Sonic Halo +6 Area (+6 Affliction, DC 16)
Constricting Halo +10 (+6 Ranged Affliction, DC 16)
Initiative +6

Defenses:
Dodge +12 (DC 22), Parry +11 (DC 21), Toughness +4, Fortitude +6, Will +7

Complications:
Obsession (Stopping All Crime)

Total: Abilities: 68 / Skills: 48--24 / Advantages: 15 / Powers: 14 / Defenses: 12 (119)

-The Street Angel's story runs alongside "The Dark Age" and it's main plot, as he's iconic of the age where the happy-go-lucky heroes of the 60s slowly become darker and more brooding. Starting out as a jokey athletic guy of Latin American descent, he ends up wearing all-black, beating the snot out of people with steel-core "Halos" and bladed shuriken while threatening them Rorschach-style to get information. In the end, he realizes he's sent several men to their deaths, and vanishes, only to get casual mentions as possibly dead since '95, and possibly training/helping out the second Quarrel. Stylistically, he seems VERY much based off of the various tribulations of Matt Murdock, aka Daredevil, who similarly got a much darker, brooding style as the '70s & '80s marched on.

-I figured the Street Angel for a PL 9- a good combatant, but not Batman-level, with some tough weapons. I built two separate versions, since I like statting out gimmick-guys alot, and he's basically two separate heroes- a swashbuckling goof-off with gimmicked weapons, and a brooding ass-kicker who just wails on dudes with Halos as blunt-edged weapons. All of them but the main one are based off of Royal Williams' description of his old self (and yes, the Constricting one I assume can squeeze a guy as well as trapping him), the main one being a nasty piece of work- it's a +4 Ranged Damage effect if he throws it, can hit three people at once, bounce around corners, swirl in an arc (hence Homing), and he can alternatively just smash people with it in his hand for +5 damage.

[Jabroniville]

Looking over some of "The Dark Age", I added another couple people to the tally, since I'd forgotten some stuff:

Hellhound
Supersonic (I actually meant him when I pointed out Starfighter- I actually forgot they were different characters, both being mustache-having Flying Bricks)
Black Velvet

Looking at the covers is funny, because so many issues are MONTHS apart, like between June and NOVEMBER of one year. And this is from a series that was promised to have a huge lead, so that it would come out on time. Maybe if Anderson didn't have to shade everything so much, it'd go quicker. What's funny is that all the 1970s heroes are so plain in design (I guess kinda reflecting the '70s of Marvel in particular). I think the Jade Dragons are a pretty clear homage to those Tigers or whatever they were in Marvel. They had karate powers and shared an amulet or some junk. "Energy" Brown has got to be the single worst codename for a super-character in history.

[Kreuzritter]

i look forward to when you get to Pale Horseman

[Jabroniville]

JOE "THE PLATYPUS" PLATAPOPOULOUS
First Apperance: Astro City: The Dark Age- Book Two #1 (Jan. 2007)
Created By: Kurt Busiek, Brent Anderson & Alex Ross
Role: Freak Crimeboss
PL 7 (64)
STRENGTH 0 STAMINA 1 AGILITY 2
FIGHTING 4 DEXTERITY 4
INTELLIGENCE 3 AWARENESS 2 PRESENCE 3

Skills:
Athletics 4 (+4)
Deception 3 (+6)
Expertise (Criminal) 6 (+9)
Insight 1 (+3)

Advantages:
Benefit 3 (Wealth), Equipment 3 (Gun), Ranged Attack 4

Equipment:
"Automatic Weapon" Blast 5 (Extras: Multiattack) (15)

Powers:
"Webbed Hands & Feet" Swimming 1 [1]

Offense:
Unarmed +4 (+0 Damage, DC 15)
Machine Gun +8 (+5 Ranged Damage, DC 20)
Initiative +2

Defenses:
Dodge +6 (DC 16), Parry +6 (DC 16), Toughness +1, Fortitude +2, Will +4

Complications:
Motivation (Greed)
Enemy (Deke)- The Platypus' second is a man named "Deke", who will one day come to betray him.
Enemy (Bamboo, Braintrust, Tommy Gunn & Domino)- Rival crimebosses control other parts of the Astro City illicit trades.
Responsibility (Pyramid)- Pyramid (think "HYDRA") funds and runs Joe's operation, and so he is answerable to them.
Prejudice (Freak)- The Platypus gained his name from his hideous appearance- he is short, wide and big-nosed, and has webbed fingers. His eyes are also much too close together.

Total: Abilities: 38 / Skills: 14--7 / Advantages: 10 / Powers: 1 / Defenses: 8 (64)

-The Platypus is more like a Dick Tracy villain than a Comic Book Villain, but he fits as the kind of guy Batman might fight in between psychopaths. He's a deformed shrimpy guy who has a big, wide nose and a beaky face (though really, almost all of Brent Anderson's characters kind of had that "beaky" quality to their upper lip), and wasn't that physically dominant, but seemed to have a loyal group of guys under him. His second, Deke, would eventually murder his boss (and end most of the other bosses, like Tommy Gunn & Domino), and use his connections with Pyramid and other groups to forge his OWN criminal empire, one which would stand for decades in the Astro-verse, allowing him to become "The Deacon of Crime".

[Jabroniville]

WINGED VICTORY (Kristin something)
First Apperance: Astro City #4 (Nov. 1995)
Created By: Kurt Busiek, Brent Anderson & Alex Ross
Role: Wonder Woman Homage
PL 11 (159)
STRENGTH 8 STAMINA 8 AGILITY 5
FIGHTING 11 DEXTERITY 4
INTELLIGENCE 2 AWARENESS 3 PRESENCE 5

Skills:
Expertise (Animal Handling) 2 (+7)
Expertise (Civics) 4 (+6)
Expertise (Behavioral Sciences) 5 (+7)
Insight 5 (+8)
Intimidation 4 (+9)
Investigation 4 (+9)
Perception 5 (+8)
Persuasion 3 (+8, +10 Attractive)
Stealth 4 (+9)

Advantages:
Accurate Attack, All-Out Attack, Attractive, Fast Grab, Fearless, Improved Critical (Sword) 2, Improved Disarm, Inspire, Power Attack, Quick Draw, Ranged Attack 3, Seize Initiative, Startle, Takedown

Powers:
Flight 8 (500 mph) (Flaws: Winged) [8]
Enhanced Advantages 1: Quick Change (Kristin to Winged Victory) [1]

"Sword" (Flaws: Easily Removable) [6]
Strength-Damage +3 (Feats: Improved Critical, Penetrating 6) (10 points)

"Armour" (Flaws: Removable) [4]
Protection 2 (Extras: Impervious 3) (5 points)

Offense:
Unarmed +11 (+8 Damage, DC 23)
Sword +11 (+11 Damage, DC 26)
Initiative +5

Defenses:
Dodge +12 (DC 22), Parry +12 (DC 22), Toughness +8 (+10 Armour), Fortitude +9, Will +8

Complications:
Responsibility (Women's Empowerment)
Reputation (Weirdo)- Many people question Winged Victory's sheer obsession with women's empowerment, and suggest that she's brainwashing women into loyalty to her.

Total: Abilities: 92 / Skills: 36--18 / Advantages: 17 / Powers: 19 / Defenses: 13 (159)

-Winged Victory is sort of the "Wonder Woman" of the Astro City world, being a feminist symbol based off of Greek mythology (specifically, Nike, Goddess of Victory). She takes it a bit further, though, being a confrontational women's empowerment-type who ends up being a controversial figure more in line with traditional Marvel-style writing practices. We've gone a bit more into her personality than we have of many super-powered Astro denizens, though, enough to make me wonder where she's gone in her relationship with Samaritan since it was last referenced more than TEN YEARS AGO.

-Winged Victory is a powerhouse and a well-balanced PL 11 fighter. She's super-strong, but not THAT much (it's hard to tell just HOW strong she is, but I figure her for sub-Samaritan level in Power Level, so it's easy to extrapolate from there), and she's a melee-combat focused type with a devastating sword (which I presume to be ultra-sharp and/or magical in nature).

[Jabroniville]

IRONHORSE
First Apperance: Astro City #4 (Dec. 1996)
Created By: Kurt Busiek, Brent Anderson & Alex Ross
Role: Old-School Hero
PL 10 (121)
STRENGTH 14 STAMINA -- AGILITY -1
FIGHTING 6 DEXTERITY 0
INTELLIGENCE 0 AWARENESS 2 PRESENCE 2

Skills:
Expertise (History) 6 (+8)
Intimidation 7 (+9)
Perception 2 (+4)
Persuasion 1 (+3)

Advantages:
Fast Grab, Power Attack, Ranged Attack 4

Powers:
"Living Train"
Immunity 30 (Fortitude Effects) [30]
Protection 13 (Extras: Impervious 9) [22]
"Freight Train" Speed 6 (120 mph) [6]

Offense:
Unarmed +6 (+14 Damage, DC 29)
Initiative -1

Defenses:
Dodge +6 (DC 16), Parry +6 (DC 16), Toughness +13 (+5 Impervious), Fortitude --, Will +8

Complications:
Responsibility (Old)- Ironhorse's time has kind of passed.

Total: Abilities: 36 / Skills: 16--8 / Advantages: 6 / Powers: 58 / Defenses: 13 (121)

-Ironhorse is a mere background character, but was given such a unique look and concept by Alex Ross (mostly) that I felt like building him. He's a LIVING TRAIN, and predates the guy who is generally considered as the "first superhero" by the public- Air Ace. This was a big surprise to the hero-obsessed Altar Boy when he first attempted to become a Sidekick at a dingy, urban bar in a bad part of town (notably the WRONG kind of bar to find a mentor). Because of his age, everyone gave him a ton of respect, and he was even able to beat The First Family's Rex in an arm-wrestling match (and it was stated that he ALWAYS won). This is as close to a "Blind Build" of the Astro City guys that I'll ever do- I just thought he was neat.