"You mean, I get paid to wear cool outfits and punch people in the face?"
Welcome to the world of EXEMPLARS, where "hero work" is a part-time job, and moonlighting is always better in spandex.
My story brings the fantasy of capes and alter-egos a little more down-to-earth. In other words, it's vigilante by night and ... uh ... dental assistant by day?
You'll recognize the setting as 21st-century America, though some of the names are different. Colonnade resembles a certain gigantic city on the West Coast, and Little Harbor, Matinal may or may not have an Aerial Lift Bridge. As for the heroes themselves ... sure, they can see through walls or set their enemies on fire, but really, they're like most people. They check Facebook multiple times a day and order late-night take-out when they're too lazy to cook for themselves. (Sound familiar? I hope so!)
The main character is 20-year-old Mezzanine, a small-town boy just moved to Colonnade. He meets his new mentor, the fire-powered Red Phoenix, and his new teammate, a girl his age named Fawn.
However, all is not as it seems. Mezzanine comes off as confident and plainspoken (and maybe a bit too talkative for his own good!) But he's hiding more than a few secrets, and Phoenix and Fawn can only wonder -- Who is this guy, what are his true powers, and what on earth is he doing here?
I mentioned earlier how I wanted to bring fantasy more down-to-earth, and here's what I mean -- The comic is going to tackle some serious issues, and hopefully in an open, honest way. But the story isn't just doom and gloom, not by any means! So while there's plenty of seriousness, there's plenty of humor and plenty of corny jokes, too.
Nevertheless, I'll be the first to admit -- EXEMPLARS is a strange mix of things. There's comedy and drama, action and romance, sci-fi and Shakespeare, etc., etc. As you can see, it's a lot of different stuff mashed together! However, if you're a fan of genre-defying comics, I think you'll find something in the story you connect with.
For me, creating this webcomic has been a dream come true. I've always wanted to build my own universe and tell a story that I really care about. Right now, the comic updates 3 times a month -- on the 1st, 10th, and 20th of each month. I'm in charge of writing, the amazing Carl Nelson is in charge of artwork, and I hope you'll join us as we bring Mezzanine and his world to life. So what are you waiting for? Start reading now!
