Drawing in part from his own experiences, Say Anything frontman Max Bemis sought to tell a story about mental illness wrapped in a superhero shell. With help from artist Jorge Coelho, Bemis’s story of a mentally ill man with latent superpowers came together as Max told his first printed comic story. As the miniseries wraps up, Tim, the protagonist, is in a dire situation and must think fast.

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Tim and hopefully-girlfriend-to-be Lily are cornered by a mentally ill man spewing mutated creatures from his mouth, and Tim has no choice but to make his powers kick in. By smoking crack. With his mind addled and powers raging, Tim easily defeats the man and hi conjured creatures and makes Lily run to safety. It’s then that a new threat appears in Billy, another mentally ill man who constructs terrible weapons. Nearly beaten, Tim taps into previously unknown powers to defeat him and out Dr. Mays as the villain he is. A year later, Tim continues to visit Mays in the mental hospital and lives happily with Lily, while he’s always just one missed pill away from being a hero again.

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Max Bemis picked an interesting story to tell with his first comic work, but it’s obviously one close to his heart. Tim’s story mirrors Bemis’ own in some ways, minus the superpowers, of course. Even without the personal touch, it’s an incredibly unique story, as mentally ill characters are rarely shown as actual heroes in comics. It was nice to see someone like Tim, who despite his problems, was essentially good and wanted to protect others.

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Coelho’s art was a great fit for the story, as it was great at depicting Tim in both normal scenes and those that were decidedly weren’t. Whether it was Tim’s superheroics, his manic episodes, or just him hanging out in a bar, Coelho drew it all in a way that accentuated the mood and flow of the story.
Bemis, as a first time comic writer, made a big impression with this. Hopefully, he gets the chance to write a few more comics, as his unique perspective and songwriting background give him a special quality that many comic writers don’t have.