The Intimates
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The Intimates was a 12-issue American comic book written by Joe Casey and published by DC Comics in the Wildstorm Universe. The Intimates were created by Joe Casey, Jim Lee and Giuseppe Camuncoli. The Intimates followed the lives of superpowered teenagers and their lives in a school for superheroes. It focused on the characters behind the superpowers and their lives rather than missions or action-oriented conflicts seen in most superhero comics.
The series was known for its "information overload" storytelling style, with "pop-up" panels and "info scrolls" at the bottom of each page, providing small facts about the events taking place, such as glimpses into a character's history or random "facts." One issue featured a fake ad for the food given away at the Seminary, "chemically treated to calm ALL overactive behavior!"
[edit] History
The series was an instant critical hit, but would suffer from slow sales its entire life. Originally Lee provided covers and occasional panels, with Camuncoli providing the rest of the art. However, Lee's contributions became less and less frequent as the book went on, until he finally left to join Frank Miller on All-Star Batman and Robin the Boy Wonder. Camuncoli would stay on longer, but also eventually left to draw Batman and the current Captain Atom: Armageddon miniseries. Casey would see the book through to its cancellation, but also wrote the Avengers mini Earth's Mightiest Heroes for Marvel during his time.
"The Intimates" may or may not be totally in continuity with the rest of the Wildstorm Universe. Characters like the WildC.A.T.S and Deathblow are referenced, but Mr. Majestic's sidekick Desmond appears in issue #2 and references the final three issues of that hero's book, which apparently are not part of official history.
[edit] Cast
The main cast are six superpowered teens who share a homeroom at The Seminary.
- Punchy
- A teenager with an affinity for "Super Espionage Boom" comics who uses a Punching Nun puppet of mysterious origin. The puppet allows him to generate a giant red fist capable of knocking down trees or punching through steel doors. He secretely holds feelings for Destra, but she acts indifferent.
- Destra
- A fashionista who gained explosive fingernail clippings and invulnerability due to a romantic liaison with her alien boyfriend. Her father is one of The Seminary's biggest contributors. Throughout the series she explores her suspicion that the food served at The Seminary is chemically treated to control student behavior
- Duke
- A super-strong and invulnerable All-American boy. The staff at The Seminary believes in his potential as a superhero, but Duke is reluctant. His father is an overbearing redneck who enjoys shooting propane tanks, and encourages his son to not "take any crap!"
- Empty Vee
- (a pun on MTV) Extremely shy and quiet, Vee was exposed to a metorite that crashed in her backyard. This changed her natural state to invisible and gave her the power to become visible. She has a crush on Punchy for the first three issues, but he rejects her advances.
- Kefong
- Kefong is a late student whose powers allow him to create "temporal bubbles," which can protect him from mental subversion or cause others to vomit. His character is modeled after Dean Martin and Bruce Lee. He is also an accomplished breakdancer.
- Sykes
- Sykes is the result of brain experiments by his parents. He wears technology that creates a "null field" around his head; if this is turned off, the immediate area is enveloped in a psychedelic madness. He appears catatonic, never speaking and rarely acknowledging the world around him. It was revealed in issue #6 that his uncle sexually assaulted him.
