Young Miracleman
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Young Marvelman (also known as Young Miracleman) is a fictional comic book character appearing in Marvelman. The character was created by Mick Anglo and first appeared in Marvelman #101 published in July 1955. He is the alter-ego of Dickie Dauntless. and transformed into superhuman form by saying the word "Marvelman" (later, for legal reasons,"Miracleman"). The character was later adapted by Alan Moore for his updating of Marvelman in Warrior in 1982 (and subsequently killed off again, appearing only in flashbacks and a one-shot story in the Eclipse Comics run of Miracleman in issue #6.
Following the atomic bombing of Kid Miracleman, Young Miracleman and Miracleman by their creator, Dr. Gargunza, Young Miracleman died as the explosion caused his human and superbody to occupy the same space at once in underspace where the superbodies were stored, while Kid Miracleman survived unscathed and Miracleman survived as a human with no recollection of his identity as a superbeing.
During the Neil Gaiman run just after the Alan Moore had Miracleman establish a totalitarian utopia, Dickie's body cloned after it was found in suspended animation in the Qys' underspace just moments away from death. Taking a sample of the still-living cells from the hideous chunk of meat that was Dickie Dauntless/Young Miracleman as a result of the explosion that destroyed the Miracleman family, Miracleman and his pantheon cloned Young Miracleman during periodic interludes of individual issues in the first collection of Gaiman's Miracleman run, The Golden Age. Following The Golden Age, Gaiman managed to finish three of the six-part Silver Age, though only two of them ever saw print.
In the Silver Age, Young Miracleman's presence and reactions reflect the 1950s superhero attitudes and values and how he reacts to the utopia Miracleman has created on earth, as well as his proclaiming himself God with the freedom to do as he pleases, raising certain questions as to what differences--if any-- existed between the malicious Kid Miracleman and Miracleman. Young Miracleman's shock and traumatizing realization that his past was a lie (as revealed to him by Miracleman) shows his unhappiness with the truth, though he slowly tries to accept it and enjoy the peace that his friend and mentor has created while questioning if he truly belongs there, amidst the many superbeings and wonders in the brave new world.
While he is loved by many and happy to travel the world of wonders, he does have dreams of Kid Miracleman in his menacing incarnation which he tries to reject because of his memories of Johnny Bates as his friend and kind, playful demeanor. This is not helped by his knowing that Miracleman killed Johnny Bates so that he would never transform into his alter-ego Kid Miracleman, in spite of Johnny's innocence and Kid Miracleman having developed his own self-awareness separate from Johnny Bates.
During his travels and first week alive, Young Miracleman is observed carefully by Miracleman and Miraclewoman, who are seen debating his relationship to Miracleman throughout. Miraclewoman argues that Dickie loves him; Miracleman assures her that Dickie RESPECTS him, to which Miraclewoman insists that she's right, even while Miracleman shows her clips of Gargunza's hallucinatory adventures the Miracleman family lived in dreams where Dickie can clearly be seen admiring women-- evidence of his sexual frustrations.
After touring New York city after a parade is held in his honor, Dickie returns happily to Olympus, almost ready to accept the brave new world that Miracleman has created, but still feeling somewhat awkward around Miracleman. It is only after he is about to go to bed that Miracleman comes in to speak with him, discussing his schedule around the world and letting him know that he can do whatever he wants now that he's back, to which Dickie immediately questions if those are the same ideas Kid Miracleman had that drove him mad, being able to do whatever he wanted as a God. Miracleman assures him that he is right in what he does, and then begins to state he and Young Miracleman need to resolve certain things between them, which a confused Young Miracleman has no idea about what he's talking about. Miracleman then kisses Young Miracleman. Miracleman is then seen being punched right through the wall and into space by a shocked and confused Young Miracleman. Tears streaming down his cheeks believing that his friend and mentor may just be a lecherous pedophile, Young Miracleman yells at Miracleman and asks if that was just what he did that caused Kid Miracleman to become the murderous villain that destroyed London. Miracleman tries to reason with him and states that he's made an error in judgment, but Young Miracleman bursts into tears and flies away, asking him not to follow him.
The series ends on this cliffhanger, as Eclipse Comics went out of business shortly after, but from this point, it would have continued into the dreams that had Kid Miracleman taunting Young Miracleman as he lays resting in the Himalayas in the few pages that were printed in magazines shown as teasers for how the saga was unfolding under Gaiman and Buckingham.
The massive legal entanglements involving Marvelman/Miracleman presumably also apply to this character as well, and it is hoped that they will resolve favorably so that the saga can be completed.
