One of my major creative writing projects over the years has been my "r/K Universe". Originally, conceived as a comic book universe, I have continued development of the characters and story arcs as part of an RPG video game. At present, I lack the financial resources for such a massive project.
The r/K Universe is expansive and includes hundreds of characters, including full backstories, along with dozens of story arcs that originally constituted a dozen separate comic book titles. This project is on the scale of what Stan Lee accomplished in the 1960s with Marvel, yet sadly I have no Jack Kirby with me nor have I been a comic book editor for the past decade like Lee. However, I have worked with over one hundred artists to create concept work for the r/K universe. A sampling doesn't really do justice to the project, but it is what I can share at present.
In 2023, I redeveloped the project as eight graphic novels focused on the origin stories of eight superheroes from the r/K Universe. Still, a massive undertaking and on my backburner at present.
What makes my comic universe truly unique is my Bill Ides arch-villain character. Bill is using his vast telepathic superpowers to control the minds of regular humans so that they have no awareness that the world transformed a million people to super beings. The community of new super beings cannot hope to live normal lives because their former family and friends are made to not recognize them as a result of Bill's nefarious machinations. Essentially, the r/K Universe has a strong political character regarding individualism and human rights. The reason that I developed my universe this way is because it always seemed ridiculous and insulting in other comic universes that regular humans are powerless cattle unable to protect themselves from the ravages of super powered beings who do battle at the drop of a dime and cause millions of dollars in damage with the bat of an eye.
Additionally, in the r/K Universe, there are human "survivors" who were imbued with a natural immunity to the power of telepathic minds. These survivors can see the world for what it truly is and they seek to stop Bill Ides. Meanwhile, many factions of super powered beings are seeking to topple Bill Ides, however, he is secure through being able to use his telepathy to have humans as foot soldier cannon fodder meat shields to protect his physical body. Bill's critical weakness is that he is elderly and was not gifted with super powers that will grant him immortality. As a result, Bill seeks alliances with other super powered beings who have the ability to preserve his life through their unique powers.
The r/K Universe is expansive and includes hundreds of characters, including full backstories, along with dozens of story arcs that originally constituted a dozen separate comic book titles. This project is on the scale of what Stan Lee accomplished in the 1960s with Marvel, yet sadly I have no Jack Kirby with me nor have I been a comic book editor for the past decade like Lee. However, I have worked with over one hundred artists to create concept work for the r/K universe. A sampling doesn't really do justice to the project, but it is what I can share at present.
In 2023, I redeveloped the project as eight graphic novels focused on the origin stories of eight superheroes from the r/K Universe. Still, a massive undertaking and on my backburner at present.
What makes my comic universe truly unique is my Bill Ides arch-villain character. Bill is using his vast telepathic superpowers to control the minds of regular humans so that they have no awareness that the world transformed a million people to super beings. The community of new super beings cannot hope to live normal lives because their former family and friends are made to not recognize them as a result of Bill's nefarious machinations. Essentially, the r/K Universe has a strong political character regarding individualism and human rights. The reason that I developed my universe this way is because it always seemed ridiculous and insulting in other comic universes that regular humans are powerless cattle unable to protect themselves from the ravages of super powered beings who do battle at the drop of a dime and cause millions of dollars in damage with the bat of an eye.
Additionally, in the r/K Universe, there are human "survivors" who were imbued with a natural immunity to the power of telepathic minds. These survivors can see the world for what it truly is and they seek to stop Bill Ides. Meanwhile, many factions of super powered beings are seeking to topple Bill Ides, however, he is secure through being able to use his telepathy to have humans as foot soldier cannon fodder meat shields to protect his physical body. Bill's critical weakness is that he is elderly and was not gifted with super powers that will grant him immortality. As a result, Bill seeks alliances with other super powered beings who have the ability to preserve his life through their unique powers.
Characters
There are 127 full character profiles for the r/K Universe, including over one hundred concept pieces commissioned from artists. The artists hired for concept work hail from over twenty countries from around the world. Working with so many talented and great people was one of the most rewarding experiences I have had as a narrative director.
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Bill Ides |
Ginman |
"BILL IDES & GINMAN" - lines by Tony Vargas, colors by Ivanna Matilla, concept and design by Thul Husk
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Powers/Abilities: Bill Ides is the most powerful telepath imaginable. He can control the minds of billions of people at a time. He can erase memories to an extent. He can control the minds of other powered beings in certain rare circumstances.
Appearance: Bill Ides is a man in his mid sixties. He has long white hair and a long white beard. He has no eyes in his sockets. Style/Costume: Bill wears a long regal robe at nighttime. During the day, he wears a fashionable toga-style garment. Affiliation: "The Richers" Back story: Bill Ides was an author and world traveler. He had a great interest in history. He wrote several history books, biographies and tourist guide books in his life. Bill was born blind. His parents supported him through all levels of education. He married and divorced once. When transformed during the Dark Energy Wave, Bill found the pain so agonizing that he gouged out his own blind eyes. He can now "see" in a manner of speaking, but, the price of his powers has been great relative to his own sanity. Dark Energy Wave: Bill Ides is in Egypt and moves into the unearthed palace where the dark energy surge was released. He uses the locals as an army and slave force. He contacts all powered beings, or "richers", mentally to set up alliances for his new world order. His power is managed through going to a special "time lapse" dimension. |
Powers/Abilities: Ginman is a powerful healer. He can remove the feeling of hunger and he can turn most liquids to an alcoholic ambrosia that has addictive qualities. He is empathic and a low level telepath.
Appearance: Ginman is in his late fifties, however, he uses his power to slow his aging. He has a long, black beard and is a powerful, sturdy man. Style/Costume: Gin wears a long robe and hood that covers his eyes most of the time. He has streamlined, light armor underneath the robe. Affiliation: The Uprising (leader) Back Story: Gin lived in Oxford, England for most of his life. He was a professor of philosophy and ethics at the renowned school. He had a wife and children. He fantasied about the age of Druids upon numerous visits to Stonehenge. The organization of cults and ancient society was a great fascination for him. It is no surprise that he started his cult when he was bestowed incredible power. Dark Energy Wave: Ginman leads his cult through Stonehenge every day. The Uprising must battle a team of anti-heroes called The Fallen and a team of heroes led by Lochness called The Cart Horde. At the same time, Ginman has to fend off the control of the Array of Evil who are based in London. Bill and Ginman are close associates willing to coordinate their actions for a time in order to maintain a balance of power. Ginman is particularly frustrated with Evolucia and her rule of Atlantis, as well as, Sir Real's continuous interference with the spread of Ginman's cult. |
Crunchy
"CRUNCHY" by Brett Parson
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Phyllis
"PHYLLIS" by Art Gutierrez
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Powers/Abilities: Crunchy can turn any part of her body to sand or stone.
Appearance: Crunchy is an 18 year old blonde-haired, blue-eyed bombshell. Style/Costume: Crunchy wears a brown trucker cap, tank top, tight fitting jeans and hiking boots. Affiliation: Independent Back story: Crunchy grew up in San Diego, California. Although she was a clever girl, the Sun, surf and beach interested her more than school. She worked as a lifeguard in high school and enjoyed mountain hiking in SoCal and neighboring states. Her siblings were much older than her and her parents had already retired and moved to Toronto in order to be closer to some of their grandchildren. Crunchy loves her powers and is quickly learning how to master them, however, she is very sad about the fact that she cannot swim anymore. When she is immersed in water, she turns to quicksand and moves very slowly. Dark Energy Wave: Crunchy begins a journey across the United States, with the final goal of reaching Toronto to contact her parents. Insidiously, The Meddler will not allow her to travel quickly. She finds that hitchhiking is her only option. As she travels from coast to coast, she encounters many random super powered beings. Crunchy is not eager to do battle with them, but her hand is often forced in the matter. |
Powers/Abilities: Phyllis is a doppelganger of Evangeline. Few, if anyone are aware of this fact. Thus, Phyllis has the same powers as Evangeline. She prefers to manipulate her form as opposed to shapeshifting like Evangeline.
Appearance: Phyllis is in her late twenties. She is very beautiful and exotic. She most often appears with purple skin and orange hair. Style/Costume: Phyllis wears a tailored straight jacket skirt ensemble. Affiliation: The Host Back Story: Phyllis is mysterious and the truth is that she is a doppelganger of Evangeline's from an alternate reality. That reality failed and the super powered beings who destroyed that universe were brought through a gate and put in stasis and cryogenics in an asteroid that floats around one of the moons of Jupiter. Phyllis was released and transported back to Earth by Sassy. She immediately attacked Skank and tried to kill her... or perhaps feigned interest in that endeavor. Skank punished Phyllis by locking her up in the basement dungeon of their HQs, The Meat Market. Skank throws her enemies and failed loyalists into the dungeon maze for Phyllis to play with. Phyllis has been known to escape the dungeon on occasion and she will also fight alongside Skank and the rest of The Host. Only time will tell what Phyllis has planned and what she already knows about possible fates of this universe. Dark Energy Wave: Phyllis helps Crunchy reach Skank's chamber. They share a little information, but, Crunchy gains some valuable Phyllis riddles to consider for the future and she learns some of the weaknesses of Skank and what to expect from her. |
"ATLANTIS" - art by Alex Tooth, concept by O. Bannon, design by Alex Tooth and Thul Husk
Atlantis
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Each superhero and supervillain team in the r/K Universe has a headquarters location. I commissioned a handful of concept environment artworks for these headquarters. Here is a sample - Evolucia's Atlantis, home of the Atlanteans, including Evolucia, Boogey Girl Cassie, Scribe, Manuka, Totem, C.C., Whipper Snapper, Pteera, Kiora, Athora, Miss Civ, Isla, and Rana.
I created a video on the Atlantis piece to give an idea of the design process collaboratively while working on concept pieces for the r/K Universe. |
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Professional Collaborations
Bar none, the greatest aspect of having crafted the r/K Universe was the opportunity to work with talented, creative artists from around the world. I approached some of the artists to see if they were interested in exchanging recommendations. These are some of their recommendations for me:
Brett Parson"Collaborating on (r/K) was a blast. Weird wacky ideas, interesting characters to draw, and sexy girls, cant go wrong there. It was also a very smooth, and relatively painless process, which is always a breath of fresh air in a world crawling with slave driving psychos! Can't wait to take a crack at the next character."
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Ben Tan"Flo was one of the more interesting characters I've ever drawn. I have never met a creator with a stronger vision for their characters and a passion for seeing them realized."
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Cristina Marin"I stumbled on the r/K Universe character list rather haphazardly, and I was immediately drawn in. The characters were very different and creative -and there were so many of them! One of my favourites was Calypso, and I was glad that I got to draw her. The working experience went very well. Adam was polite and specific about the commissioned piece. He is very devoted to his project and does a good job promoting the artists that work for him."
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Emily Nguyen"It was a real pleasure working with Adam. He responds very quickly and has enough patience when an artist is working on his commissions. Not only is he very polite, but he is also very considerate of other people's time and needs. I also find it very easy to follow what Adam expects in a picture because not only does he provide reference pictures and character personality, he also describes particular structures of the character in detail and in the most precise words! Some people would just use vague terms like "outfit too loud" or something like that, leaving the artist very confused. He knows how to use words, thus is a very talented writer :)
Speaking of being a talented writer, I find that he has made some pretty interesting characters! Not only that the designs are so unique, but they have very bizarre background stories too! Reading their descriptions made me realize that he has a highly imaginative mind! Coloring these characters has put my creativity to the next level!" |
Doug Spencer"I had a blast working with Adam on the (r/K) Universe characters. Each character that I was privileged to work on was very interesting and had a ton of personality. I could tell right away that Adam really cared about each one and how they were portrayed. The smallest detail wasn't overlooked. It showed me how much passion he has for his story. It reminded me of Robert E. Howard creating the whole Conan universe. Being fictitious, top to bottom, every little component matters if your story is going to be believable. I was also amazed at how many different artists he was able to get to cover his characters. The variety of talent was awesome. There were several drawings I would have loved to get a hold of and put colors to. I can't wait to see what's next for (r/K) and am honored that I had a part in the creation of it."
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My documentary video on the r/K Universe included a dozen interviews with Toronto-based artists that I had commissioned.
Character Concept Sample
Many artists that are commissioned must also become the character designer for a character concept piece, however, for the r/K universe the artist is given my extensively detailed profile for the character and the piece that I envision. I like to credit the artwork with myself as the creator of the concept ("concept by"), the artist as the engineer of the piece ("art by"), and both myself and the artist as the designers of the artwork ("design by"). Here are some of my character concept designs, rendered by a variety of talented artists that I have commissioned over the years. Worth noting, pinup is the preferred style of artists for character concepts and it is the industry standard.
*click on the image for full view
*click on the image for full view
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Bonus Works
I would be remiss to allow my online portfolio to leave out any of the great artworks that were created for the characters of the r/K universe over the years. My character designs go back to 2002 and were developed by 2009 so that I could approach artists with the unique designs. I commissioned a lot of art between 2010-2013, however, I also created a pinup contest at Deviantart that had hundreds of submissions. This bonus gallery is a mix of paid commissions, favorite WIPs, and contest entries.
