CREATION: THE BLACK PANTHEON

The Black Pantheon is the name of Vogan’s supervillain syndicate. It got its name because a pantheon is a group of gods and deities, which is a clear hint of Vogan’s god complex. They are essentially a cult consisting of both human and neohuman followers who worship Vogan and his ideals. Their existence is as old as human civilization itself and they have resources and connections ranging from corporations to politicians. In the first volume, they are the shadowy organization that abducts the Young Guardians and eventually become their primary enemy. They have remained in the shadows for millennia, building their strength and infrastructure until the time is right to initiate Vogan’s age-old master plan. All members regard Vogan with both adoration for his charisma and fear of disappointing him. In the fifth volume, all of the Black Pantheon’s members and resources will be brought to bear as they engage the Young Guardians in one final battle.

MUSIC INSPIRATION: THE ONE-WINGED ANGEL

One of the songs that seriously ignite my imagination is The One-Winged Angel from Final Fantasy VII, preferably the orchestra version from Advent Children. As I listen to this song, I can envision the Young Guardians’ final conflict with the main villain, Vogan. During this conflict, I can see the Young Guardians battling Vogan while constantly being at the mercy of his unstoppable power. With each sudden change in note, I can see every devastating attack, every desperate countermeasure, and every ounce of collateral damage. Every now and then, I could see the cold calculating gaze of Vogan’s soulless white eyes and standing amongst the corpses of his victims. As the song comes to a close, I could see the battle between Vogan and the Young Guardians reaching a cataclysmic conclusion in fire and multi-colored energy.

SHOW REVIEW: GOTHAM

I watched the whole first season of Gotham and am currently watching the second season. The show is a unique explanation to not only the origins of Batman, but also his entire rogue gallery. I enjoyed how the Penguin was portrayed as an apex predator who started from nothing and then swiftly rose through the underworld hierarchy. With Bruce Wayne, I was interested in his transformation as a character that resulted from the murder of his parents. In a way, the boy died with his parents and the man rose to take his place, paving the way to becoming Batman. One of my favorite characters in the show is Bruce’s butler Alfred Pennyworth. Since Alfred is ex-military, when the situation requires it, don’t mess with the butler! Now that the new season has started, I am eager to see the rise of supervillains such as the Riddler and the Joker as well as how Penguin consolidates his power over the underworld. Overall, the show depicts how Gotham City was before Batman emerged to protect it. I would recommend this show to anyone who is a fan of the Batman franchise.

WRITING UPDATE: VOLUME FOUR (CHAPTER 2 ADDITIONS)

I am currently working on some modifications in the second chapter of my fourth volume. An idea crept into my mind as I thought about how my series will evolve. Based on how powerful Vogan and his minions are, there will always be the possibility of a worst case scenario in the Young Guardians’ final conflict with him. Therefore, the Young Guardians and their surviving benefactors would need to prepare a back-up plan in case their battle with Vogan causes too much collateral damage. All I can say is in the war to come, there will be blood (LOTS OF IT) and the world will need a future.

CONCEPT: A CHANGED WORLD

One of the greatest questions I have often asked myself while writing my series is how the world would react if super humans existed in the world today. Would the presence of super humans cause normal humans to react with fear, hatred, or hope? Due to human nature, it is a very complex concept to consider. When the Young Guardians first started their superhero careers, they were regarded with hope and intrigue because they were the first known super humans to exist and became something of a fad. However, in the aftermaths of volumes two and three, the superhuman population explosively increases and the world’s view on super humans changes drastically. If there was an increase in the superhuman population, how would society change? What laws or regulations would be in place for super humans? Would super humans and normal humans be able to coexist peaceful or destroy one another and the world along with them? The answers to these questions will be revealed in my fourth and fifth volumes as well as three of my upcoming short stories.

CONCEPT: SUPERHERO SUIT

Every superhero has their own suit with a distinctive style. In addition, when the situation requires, a superhero has a unique method for changing into their suits. Superman wears his suit under his civilian clothes while the Flash keeps his suit inside a ring. The Young Guardians have their own signature way to change into their uniforms whenever duty calls. Unlike most superhero suits, which are made of either cloth or kevlar, the Young Guardians’ suits are made of a very malleable nano-fiber technology that can be contained inside of their belts. The nano-fibers are very durable, able to protect the Young Guardians from knives and gunfire, and flexible enough to adjust to the shape of the wearer. By pressing the belt buckle, the nano-fibers burst out of the belts and envelope their bodies up to their necks. With this method, the Young Guardians would be able to enter battle at a moment’s notice, which would save them a lot of trouble finding a place to change.

WRITING UPDATE: FOURTH VOLUME (CHAPTER 4)

I am currently planning the fourth chapter of my fourth volume. Here, the Young Guardians will have their first encounter with their latest enemy and try to adapt to the changes that have been done to their team. When the Young Guardians first started their superhero careers, they were such an efficient crime-fighting team because they had been friends since childhood and trust one another, which allowed them to fight opponents with coordinated attacks with minimal words. Now, the Young Guardians are going to have to figure out how to combat their latest foe with a collection of vigilantes who only have a few months of crime-fighting experience. It will be a good case of character growth for the Young Guardians as a group. In addition, this new enemy they will be facing will be eery, powerful, and unnatural. With this in mind, I look forward to writing the forthcoming battle.

SUPERVILLAIN REVIEW: LEX LUTHOR

Another iconic supervillain is Superman’s nemesis, Lex Luthor. Lex Luthor would be a prime example of the mad scientist archetype because he utilizes technology and his intellect against Superman. One of Lex Luthor’s weapons of choice is Superman’s primary weaknesses: Kryptonite. With Kryptonite, Lex Luthor uses a mind-over-muscle method in order to fight Superman. In the film Superman Returns, Lex Luthor created a landmass that was completely made of Kryptonite, which was enough to give Superman the strength and vitality of a terminally ill cancer patient. What makes Lex Luthor such a dangerous supervillain is his intimate knowledge of Superman’s weaknesses, which he can exploit for maximum damage. Another aspect that makes Lex Luthor a prominent supervillain is despite his illegal activities, his wealth and resources give him powerful political connections, which gives him enough leverage to not only avoid prison, but also further his agenda. Overall, Lex Luthor is a formidable enemy to face whether if you have powers or not.

PREVIOUS CAREER: ACTING

One of my passions besides writing is acting. Throughout my time in high school, I spent all four of my years participating in a variety of different plays such as Charlotte’s Web, Hamlet, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead.

In Charlotte’s Web, I played Homer Zuckerman, which I portrayed with an accent similar to John Wayne’s. In Hamlet, I played the ghost of Hamlet’s father, which I did by impersonating a madman. With Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead, I had two roles, Polonius and one of the pirates. While playing Polonius, I portrayed him as a zealot who was eager to serve. During the pirate scene, I poked my head out of one of the barrels with a bandana wrapped around my head, an eyepatch, and sword in my teeth. In addition, we also did a musical for Peter Pan and I played a pirate again, but I added even more energy into the role by making my character overzealous when it came to making Captain Hook happy.

Later in life, I learned how to do voice acting and impressed my instructor with an impersonation of Skeletor from He-Man. One might say that I excel at imitating eccentric and crazed characters. I might do some acting again. Only time will tell.

SUPERPOWER: INVULNERABILITY

Another iconic superhuman power is invulnerability, which is the ability to withstand considerable damage while remaining completely unharmed. In some cases, an individual can stand against attacks ranging from a barrage of bullets to a nuclear explosion. Two of my main characters, Patrick Donovan and Derek Marvin, possess this power in their own unique ways.

With Patrick Donovan, his ability to absorb heat not only increases his physical strength and stamina, but also his durability as well. The more heat Patrick absorbs, the more damage his body can withstand. When Patrick’s heat absorbing power first manifested, his invulnerability increased to the point in which he could tear apart solid machinery without injuring his bare hands.

With Derek Marvin, his body is already sturdy enough to sustain multiple collisions with energy shockwaves a blow from Cyber Shadow while only suffering a headache. However, even Derek’s durability has limits and can be breached if the attack inflicts sizable damage. Unlike Patrick’s version of the power, Derek’s invulnerability does not increase.