Still got Phone Guys, though:

Sorcerox

A life-long coal miner, Karl Jandacek was caught in a mine collapse. Caught in a pocket, his foot pinned under a rock, Karl watched in horror as some sort of liquid seeped into the cave and began to fill what space he had. It looked like he would drown. But he did not.

Instead, as the strange fluid finally submerged the wounded man, it caused a burning sensation. Karl soon lost consciousness.

When he came to, Karl wasn’t Karl anymore. His body had changed. He looked down at his clawed hands and grey skin from new eyes and noticed that he could see things he could not see before, mystical energy fields that permeated everything around him. And he could affect this energy.

The people on the surace assumed Karl Jandacek had died, but instead he wandered further underground to test his powers. When he dug himself out a year later, he was Sorcerox, a sorcerous monster intending to conquer the world.

To serve him, Sorcerox has created two mystical monsters, Fire-And-Wind and Water-And-Rock. Each with the powers of the elementary materials of which they are made. Fire-And-Wind is a flying flame and Water-And-Rock is a flowing torrent with a stone core. While these are beings of rudimentary intelligence, they have developed a sort of personality. Fire-And-Wind is a reckless, impulsive, angry creature. Water-And-Rock is more patient, more calculating, more cunning. Together, these elemental enforcers make a powerful pair, a threat to the heroes that oppose Sorcerox. The primary line of defense against Sorcerox’s villainous invasion is the wizard dog Wizardog, who makes a point of digging up the villain’s schemes and routing them wherever they turn up.

Okay, behind the scenes stuff: Sorcerox was another one of those unnamed sketches that I found among my files and decided to give a name and a story to. He looks more like something I’d been trying to fit into a more generic (and probably terrible) fantasy story, but I figured he could work in the context of a superhero story just fine. To that end, I tried to give him a more standard supervillain origin (a blue collar worker who has an accident and gains powers is Electro, for example). I didn’t quite nail it, but I like how it turned out well enough.

The two elemental monster things I just drew because, once I’d had the idea, they seemed like they’d be easy to draw (and it is easier than drawing people, even if they aren’t too indicative of their nature). I thought that they’d be henchmen for some mad scientist character, but when I sat down today to write some villains up, it all looked like it fit together.

Still got Phone Guys, though:

Dr. Malevolence

Dr. Janessa Tindall will show them all! They laughed at her theories about a connection between the human mind and teleportation. Tindall turned to criminal backers to fund her projects. She still failed. Her attempt to prove her findings resulted in a terrible disaster and dozens were killed. Tindall was sent to prison. But her criminal backers did not forget her, they broke her out of prison and put her to work as their own weapon designer. Tindall killed them all for their insolence and went on to be her own criminal, holding cities hostage and building rampaging robots. Nobody would ever laugh at her again.

The state of the Female Mad Scientist in fiction is one that could use some improvement (here is an article on the topic). Heck, women are underrepresented as regular scientists too, and not just in fiction. In the real world even. But given my belief that how we shape our fiction can affect how we see our world, it is my duty to pump out some lady science-types. And this is villains year, both of today’s villains are Mad Scientists Who Aren’t Dudes. Dr. Malevolence here is, I guess, more of a standard Crime Scientist that you’ve gotta have if you are dealing with superheroes.

Injectia

Some people might make a poor life choice in a fleeting moment after having a bad idea, but Tara Jensen was truly devoted to her bad idea. Removing her left arm, Tara has replaced the limb with a giant syringe. But the device is more than a simple needle, it contains high-tech workings that allow her to work with chemicals and formulas and viruses, giving her various ways to utilize her new appendage. Naturally, Tara has styled herself as the supervillain Injectia and embarked on a career of crime with no end in mind greater than continuing her messing around with chemicals and viruses. She has become a primary target for the government’s hero, the Securer.

Not much to add. Another mad scientist, this one perhaps more of the kind of obsession with her interests than a desire for revenge or anything. I think Injectia would barely care about people who have wronged her or who are trying to capture her. She’s just really interested in her science and doesn’t care who she hurts in the process.

It is 1930 and it is Montreal. Mary Travers just bursts into a recording studio and records her song. It’s a hit! Hooray Canada!

There’s some stuff to like in this one. I like to think that the recording studio owner guy is trying to get home to see his family and this woman just ruins all his plans. He first uses his unique magical ability to know if someone has ever recorded before to try to dissuade her, but that isn’t any good. He tries to lie about having no records, but his Idiot Henchman Georges doesn’t realize he’s lying and tells her they’ve got plenty. Finally Mr. Owner tries to bring money into the matter, but Idiot Henchman Georges helpfully points out that Travers’s offer is “a working man’s salary for a month” in case anyone from an era with inflation is watching. The record is made and the owner’s family grows ever more distant because he never comes home on time.

I like this one well enough. It’s not super quotable, though Idiot Henchman Georges could be quoted if I ever saw the chance, I guess. But it moves along quickly, has humor and a nice soundtrack. I’ll hand Four out of Five Pieces of PDR’s Reviewing System Cake to this Moment. Skimming Wikipedia makes it clear that this didn’t go down like this in real life, though. I think I’m going to have to start deducting some Pieces of Cake from real life one of these days.

I gotta respect La Bolduc for singing in some kind of crazy messed-up fictional language. That sure is a bold move. Good night everyone!