Freak Force is the name of a fictional team of bounty hunters operating out of Chicago, Illinois in the Image Comics series Savage Dragon, all created by Erik Larsen, many during his adolescence they are made up of 'superfreaks' (the collective name for the various types of Super-Powers) that were the support cast of the series. Debuting in Savage Dragon they later had their own 18 issue series, and a mini-series some time later, two members, Superpatriot and Dart had their own series, in Superpatriot's case, three. Image Comics is the third or fourth largest American comic book publisher. ... In comic books, first appearance refers to the date or issue of a characters first appearance. ... Look up September in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... 1992 (MCMXCII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday. ... Cover to The Savage Dragon (original miniseries) #1. ... Superpatriot is an Image Comics superhero created by Erik Larsen in 1992. ... Mighty Man is a Big Bang Comics superhero, who first appeared in Big Bang Comics #1 of the Image Comics line. ... Nickname: The Windy City, The Second City, Chi Town Motto: Urbs In Horto (Latin: City in a Garden), I Will Location in Chicagoland and Illinois Coordinates: Country United States State Illinois County Cook Incorporated March 4, 1837 Mayor Richard M. Daley (D) Area    - City 606. ... Official language(s) English Capital Springfield Largest city Chicago Area  Ranked 25th  - Total 57,918 sq mi (149,998 km²)  - Width 210 miles (340 km)  - Length 390 miles (629 km)  - % water 4. ... Image Comics is the third or fourth largest American comic book publisher. ... The Savage Dragon is a long-running comic book by Erik Larsen, published by Image Comics since 1993. ... Cover to The Savage Dragon (original miniseries) #1. ... Superpatriot is an Image Comics superhero created by Erik Larsen in 1992. ... Superpatriot is an Image Comics superhero created by Erik Larsen in 1992. ...

With the Exceptions of Superpatriot and Mighty Man, all of the team were part of a failed 'freak force' programme in the Chicago Police Department, created out of the success of their new super-powered officer The Dragon, and a need to have more super-powered officers because The Dragon was having to be loaned out to other police forces around the county, having first drafted Dart, who was working as a vigilante in Detroit, and finding Horridus chained in her parent's basement, Dragon also recommended to homeless freaks Barbaric and Ricochet he had met while tracking The Shrew, who was possessed by a villain Horde, Ricochet met the final member, Rapture, while sulking because she was too young to join the project, being under 18. There was a number of mistakes, including Barbaric nearly klling Cyberface's break-away team from criminal organisation the Vicious Circle while they tried to teleport away, and Dart badly injuring a criminal called Cesspool, who filed a lawsuit and then the group were forced to work under tight police restrictions, incuding uniforms, which restriced their ability to work, the group left. Mighty Man is a Big Bang Comics superhero, who first appeared in Big Bang Comics #1 of the Image Comics line. ... Motto: Speramus Meliora; Resurget Cineribus (We Hope For Better Things; It Shall Rise From the Ashes - this motto was adopted after the disastrous 1805 fire that devastated the city) Nickname: The Motor City and Motown Location in Wayne County, Michigan Founded Incorporated July 24, 1701 1815  County Wayne County Mayor...

Freak Force The Series

The initial 18 issue series was written by Keith Giffen and Erik Larsen and with art by Victor Bridges who used a style very reminiscent of John Byrne and noticeably gave the character Horridus large lips she otherwise did not have. Two major plot points were carried over to the main Savage Dragon series, that of the main series villain Chelsea Nirvana and the character of Bludgeon. The series frequently guest starred Larsen and Gary Carlson's hero Vanguard, but, surprisingly, The Dragon himself featured very little in comparison. Keith Iath Giffen (November 30, 1952 - ) is an American writer, artist and penciller of comic books. ... Cover to The Savage Dragon (original miniseries) #1. ... John Byrne. ... Vanguard is a Science Fiction themed sprite comic written and produced by JnvReno, who also writes the webcomic Here Is A Question. ...

Stories

The series' main sub-plots were the vengeful Chelsea Nirvana, daughter of Mighty Man's 1940s foe Dr. Nirvana, who was secretly plotting her revenge on Mighty Man, and then Freak Force in general from the position of their secretary, and the secret past of Barbaric and Ricochet in a super-freak prison camp, initially represented by the mysteries Inhibitor who later joined forces with Chelsea, and the super-powered creations of Johnny Redbeard.

Issues 1 and 2 featured stories mostly unrelated to the overall plot, with issue 1 mostly setting the scene and giving the team their downtown headquarters, as well as a shambolic fight against a nuclear powered character Major Disaster, and issue two tying into the long-running Covenant Of The Sword sub-plot that would not be resolved until the 75th issue of Savage Dragon some years later, issue 2 introduced Chelsea Nirvana as the group's secretary. The Savage Dragon is a long-running comic book by Erik Larsen, published by Image Comics since 1993. ...

Issues 3, 4, and 5 featured the series' first story arc, with Chelsea Nirvana using one of her father's old inventions to clone Mighty Man, Ricochet and Barbaric (twice, after failing to remember Superpatriot was mostly robotic) resulting in a public battle between the clones and the originals, plus Vanguard, who was in a nearby record store, the fight ended when Chelsea pulling the plug on the clones turning them into 'gloop', while clearing the up the mess this battle caused, Mighty Man, Barbaric and Ricochet were attacked by Inhabitor, able to stretch inanimate objects, mostly floors and walls.

Issue 6 detailed the origins of Mighty Man and Rapture, and so in turn, the fate of Chelsea's father, who was killed during experimenting on Rapture, an experiment that gave her her powers. Issue 7 featured an appearance of delusional Detroit hero Killkat (later of the Deadly Duo) who is obsessed with Dart, and saw the joining of forced between Chelsea and Inhibitor, and set up the next story-arc.

Issues 8 & 9 introduced Jake Farrel, a government agent and old 'acquaintance' of Superpatriot, who enlisted them to defeat metal eating ants that crash landed in Brazil, the story again guest starred Vanguard, and was a cross-over with Cyberforce, Issue 10 was the only issue to feature The Dragon in any major way, in a stand-alone story featuring a bullied and abused teen Joey Finklebarr who wakes with incredible strength and murders his abusive father and classmates, after nearly killing Freak Force, The Dragon is able to talk him into giving himself up. Cyberforce is an action-adventure comic book created by Marc Silvestri. ...

The final issues were divided up into three major story-arcs. 11, 12 and 13 had Jake Farrel once again drafting Freak Force, this time with two members of Superpatriot's old team The Liberty League Mr Big and Hornet to remove The Cosmic Cops, who had commandeered New York with intentions of taking the populace, Horridus was revealed as being half extra-terrestrial and accidentally sabotages the Cosmic Cops, who flee, however both Mr Big and Hornet perish and Rapture's leg is broken, annoyed at the team's performance in the mission Dart quits. Issues 14 and 15 further destroyed the team and it's morale, as Bludgeon, a petty criminal empowered by Johnny Redbeard (a man who can give others superpowers, Redbeard was based on John Byrne) goes on a rampage, leaving Ricochet and Mighty Man comatose, though Bludgeon is killed by Joey Ficklebarr (with one flick of his finger) brought from prison Rapture the team is in disarray, and Chelsea and Inhibitor has secretly kidnapped Dart and Phillis Deader, Mighty Man's roommate. Official language(s) English de facto Capital Albany Largest city New York City Area  Ranked 27th  - Total 54,520 sq mi (141,205 km²)  - Width 285 miles (455 km)  - Length 330 miles (530 km)  - % water 13. ... John Byrne. ...

Issue 16 began the final story, setting up the final two issues, Inhabitor forces Johnny Redbeard to give Chelsea his own powers, and then kills him, before going on to revive Ricochet, Freak Force disband and Chelsea gives her henchmen super-powers, 17 & 18 delt with Barbaric and Ricochet's past, a prison camp ran by Dr. Verlag, when Barbaric is taken there. The remaining Freak Force, Chelsea and Inhibitor and their henchmen under ther leadership of Jake Farrel work together to destroy the place and free the superfreaks there, and Chelsea is revealed as turning into a man.

This story continued on into the regular Savage Dragon series and Chelsea and Inhibitor’s gang, made up of her henchmen and the freed prisoners were one of the gangs that took part in the Gang War story, that also included the Nixed Men (minor characters from the Savage Dragon Vs. Megaton Man Special, who were also Redbeard's creations) and She-Dragon, because Chelsea has mutated into an exact look-a-like of Redbeard, Cyberface killed a number of them, and had Negate, a Vicious Circle villain who could take people's powers, de-power Chelsea, who, in her de-powered form looked identical to her father, Chelsea appeared later in the Savage Dragon series, eventually getting her revenge by killing Anne Stephens and becoming Mighty Man, before she in turn was killed and the powers were given to Dart.

Freak Force Mini-Series

Released some time after the initial series ended and set after the Mars Attacks Image event, Larsen was again involved overseeing the project, which was written by Eric Stephenson and illustrated by Andy Kuhn.

The Mini-series had one story, that of the attack of the 'Frightening Force', a new team of enemies organised by Chelsea Nirvana, now a normal powerless man attacking the group out of revenge shortly after they became funded by Eric Clapton, a rock singer who likes to insinuate he is the vigilante Star (when in fact it was a policeman Chris Robinson, who was his bodyguard, and in this story, his Limo driver) and added Star to the team's roaster, there is one sub-plot that of a prison break by a villain Ultimatum that releases Joe Finklebarr, Finklebarr is essential to ending the battle between Freak Force and Frightening Force, killing Inhibitor and Star. Negate takes Finklebarr's powers from him returning him to a normal boy.

Dart is not part of the major story, she is on holiday with her lover Justice, one of Superpatriot's children, the other, Liberty appears heavily pregnant, having been impregnated by Martians during the Mars Attacks Image event, Ricochet is also revealed to be pregnant.

Freak Force were absorbed into The Dragon's S.O.S project, a government sponsored team replacing Youngblood who were killed during the Mars Attacks Image event (in truth Rob Liefeld creator of the team was no longer part of Image Comics after being voted out by his co-founders for alleged talent poaching) Barbaric and Ricochet were married in Savage Dragon issue 41 to help a lucrative merchandising deal, Rapture was killed an issue later while on an S.O.S mission and Dart was crippled in issue 47, she later gained the powers of Mighty Man. This page refers to the Image comic Youngblood. ... Example of Liefeld’s artwork from Onslaught Reborn, featuring Iron Man, Namor, Onslaught, Rikki Barnes and The Hulk (all background), as well as Captain America (center). ... Image Comics is the third or fourth largest American comic book publisher. ...

This Savage World

After killing Damian Darklord, The Savage Dragon caused an alternate Earth to exist, and now, the original Earth the previous Freak Force series happened on was destroyed, however all of the Freak Force existed on this world:

Superpatriot has been the most featured, along with Mighty Man, originally under the control of the villain Cyberface, who was now running America, he is now a major support role, Anne Stevens, alive in this reality, had never realised she could become Mighty Man, and had to be shown by The Dragon and has been gradually getting more adept at her superheroing. Dart was taken by re-occurring Savage Dragon villain Mako to a desolate island during a prison break that originally occurred in Savage Dragon (series) 3 but was recently killed during a battle between Mako and The Dragon, Barbaric and Ricochet were part of a gladiatorial arena that also included Madman and Rapture was fat and repulsive, they were teamed up once in a tongue in cheek back-up story. Madman is a comic book series set in one of the many parallel worlds existing in the Multiverse. ...

External links

• SavageDragon.com - Larsen's official site