Unleash the Lightning

Let's talk about Lightning Brothers, shall we?

A while ago, my friend and co-creator, Mike Baireuther, sent me these pictures of the finished book which I've posted below.






Here's the copy he wrote for the inside and back covers, it sums up the entirety of this experience more eloquently than I ever could have.

Plot Summary:

Life pushes them apart, but lightning brings them together.

During their first day at Melbourne Catholic High, Eddie and Benji Bell get themselves into serious trouble. They find a dark, padlocked closet in the depths of the school, where they are exposed to a chemical granulate. That afternoon, while walking home, a fateful lightning strike changes the Bell brothers forever.

With the guidance of the school physics teacher, Benji and Eddie learn to create a spark with synchronized moves that focus their kinetic energy. Using this spark, the boys develop an ever-expanding arsenal of electric attacks. The boys must navigate the trials of high school social life while taking on a litany of super-villain teachers bent on manipulating the boys' and their newfound abilities.

As each year passes, Benji and Eddie mature and slowly discover the shocking origins of their powers. The Bells are the only thing standing in the way of an administrator's master plan to create a school of ReCKS, overachieving, unquestioning students. Only together can these brothers survive the perils of their teenage years. Only together can they save their school from a tyrannical obsession with excellence.

Inside of Back Cover:

Thanks for checking out the pilot issue of The Lightning Brothers!

When we first had the idea for this book two years ago, we never thought we would get to publish a first issue. This book would not have been possible without grants from the Chambers Family Fund and from the Wake Forest Department of Entrepreneurship.

The idea for this book came during our weekly, college-radio show. Our banter about the different comics we both love encouraged us to create our own story. While collaborating in the school's sketch comedy troupe, we often digressed back to comics. Semester after semester, we brainstormed and collected our ideas.

This is the culmination of hundreds of hours spent on creative projects together. Over the past year, with the invaluable help of Professor Roy Carter, our characters came to life. The Bell brothers do not represent either one of us. Using different aspects of our friends, families, and ourselves, Benji and Eddie have taken on personalities of their own.

Our goal was to create teenage super-heroes that are more adolescents that world-saviors. WE infuse the Bell's coming-of-age story with irreverent sarcasm and epic battles between the boys and their foes. Benji and Eddie are never quite sure of themselves, and ultimately, must rely on each other as their world changes around them.

The Lightning Brothers us about family, growing up, and using secret handshakes to shoot villains with bursts of electricity. We're immensely proud of our first edition and would love to hear your feedback.

Mike Baireuther and Caldwell Tanner

Don't forget to check out the website, where you can download a pdf version of the entire first issue!