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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 20, 1993)
es lities were -js and be- ^ough fra- 'hich made r in Texas the small neir num- ■ry chapter 'd the in open rush in order to nity mem- brum was er of men said, y starting r numbers jp, but we redible re- 'd to make nut it's up acre based semester's i even big- year." r women, e not per- xrison. etail man- ty groups ?r expen se aware- ence. re line we at least let that you ith this," u can go, e to help appened bey were Id, a , said the ing to get rommen- ': v o... -ditor itor editor llik, Carrie lay id Joe Leih i Scroggs, i and , semesters periods), at University. Oivision of McDonald rtising, call ay through To charge Monday, September 20,1993 The Baitalion Page 3 Tubularmcm By Boomer Cardinale Fritch By Critch ■■And lloa-t dob rxext "Vo Orions shoulder (s bfoe Girina Nieloula honv Ebcx CariAae,dr\ oncbalole star, -thctt corrBrrt astronomer^ Soy moy blast inh> Q blade bole. OJtHtm the ntyt (6,000 years. 'foLi Set -Bvdr SfeoW the Ooa^VtUaVr <VaS , Vagis - . 1 aacl Gerttol 7 v^j^U the ^un , R.U-M'gC., uuViere Honster X came tram. tie. taught God-zAU \r\ . 1_ SauJ '(t arx ~T-V/. Comic book focuses on urban reality JUST THE BEGINNING The Associated Press WASHINGTON - A man watcher a rape from his bedroom window and does nothing. He lat er goes to an all-night convenience store and blows away a dozen po lice officers while fleeing from some thugs. It's another bloody night in the big city as depicted by the creators of'Tlatbush Native," a new comic book series aimed at inner city au diences. And rather than providing pos itive role models, the creators' goal is to portray the stark reali ties of urban living. "We're not trying to glorify vi olence, but at the same time we're not trying to sugar coat reality," said Kemp Powers, the editor of Ratline Comics. "If there's violence, it's in re lation to what's going on in the story." Powers is one of three Howard University sophomores who start ed the comic book after their idea was rejected by the school news paper. Two issues of "Flatbush Na tive" are on sale in the District of Columbia at $2.50 each, and the creators are seeking a distributor. Flatline joins an increasing number of black-owned compa nies seeking to fill a gap in the $500 million-a-year comic book in dustry with Afrocentric or inner- city story lines. But most have sought to rede fine black characters from their traditional comic book roles as vil lains or sidekicks. Big City Comics, based in Irv ing, Texas, has created the urban superhero Brotherman, while Greensboro, N.C.-based ANIA, an association of black comic compa nies, has created such heroes as Ebony Warrior, The Original Man and Zwanna: Son of Zulu. Flatline's editors say they are more interested in reflecting ur ban reality. Their "heroes" use their pow ers to help themselves instead of saving the world and are as likely to do bad things as good. The character in the first issue, is not punished by story's end. The idea has not caught on for everyone, including a fellow cre ator of Afrocentric comic books. "I think the black community has had enough of the black man depicted as violent, doing drugs," said Roosevelt Pitt Jr., creative di rector and co-owner of ANIA. But Steven L. Jones, a cartoon historian and art consultant in Philadelphia, says moral ambiva lence has a special appeal for young people these days. Powers, 19, and his partners, Ornette Coleman and Will Watkins, both 18, came up with LIVE! IN CONCERT G. ROLUE WHITE COLISEUM j t | MSC TOVN HALL PRESENTS 12 CHESNUTT With Special Guest DOUG SUPERNAW Tickets Go On Sale TODAY 7:00 a.m. at the MSC Box Office Order by phone from 8:00 a.m. - 7:00 p.m. at 845-1234 STUDENTS - $12 ALL OTHERS - $15 Person's with disabilities please call 845-1515 to inform us of your special needs. We request notification three (3) working days prior to the event to enable us to assist you to the best of our ability. By Jason Brown the idea for Flatline Comics while talking about how they thought comic books ought to reflect real life. And to Powers, who grew up in the Flatbush section of Brook lyn, N.Y., the real world is violent. In "Flatbush Native," the pro tagonist can charge himself up like a battery with superhuman power by killing another person. But the energy will kill him within minutes unless he uses it destroy ing his enemies. The heroes in other series now in the works are not all black and the stories are not always violent. Powers said. "But all of our characters are very, very human. They all en counter things such as greed, lust — some things that mainstream characters never have go through their minds," he said. "You never saw Captain America look twice at a woman. Well, it doesn't work that way." ? fREE SAMPLES Texas A&M College Republicans Presents An American Hero Ret. Lt. Col. Oliver North FREE ADMISSION Wednesday, September 22 8:00 PM MSC Rudder Complex Sponsored by William Howard Flowers Jr. Lecture Series & Young America’s Foundation A book signing will follow the speech in the theater foyer