#5 Astral

Billy Whittaker is not exactly cool with having superpowers.  He doesn’t like it, not one bit.  Even though his power allows him to take energy from the “astral plane” and form it into solid force–such as a battering ram, a blade, or a set of “energy jaws” that can cut through just about anything–Billy curses whatever higher power exists out there for giving him what amounts to a “curse”.

However, he still goes out and fights crime, often by the side of the heroine Windwalker, or sometimes by himself, using the name “Astral”.  As a struggling college student, Billy’s a smart but reserved young man who never seems to have enough money, so no costume.  Even so, Billy’s not afraid of being caught on tape or having his image put up on the ‘Net.  You see, despite hating his powers, Billy uses them for good, not because it’s going to make him money or a star, but because, in his view, it’s the right thing to do.  It may sound old-fashioned, but Billy has seen enough people suffer because of crimes and the machinations of the powerful.  And his “curse” might be the only way to even the odds.

Alongside Windwalker and the new Red Raptor, Billy has clashed with members of Mitchell Baranovich’s team of super-powered enforcers.  One recent surprising development was the start of a relationship–sort of–between Billy and the former enforcer Firesprite (Lia Galloway).  Firesprite is now on her own, having left Baranovich’s clutches, and sometime she teams up with Billy.  Billy himself is not sure about where things will go in regards to Firesprite and himself, but…as long as she’s out of Baranovich’s grasp, that’s good enough.

Billy has no illusions about what could happen to him if Baranovich–or any of the criminal gangs–decide to really pursue him and bring the full weight of their power to bear on him.  Until that happens, though, Billy–as Astral–will continue to bring right to a world gone wrong.

Category: 2011, Manga, Scifi, Superhero