All-ages Superhero comics, set in (and around) Boston, from the Boston Comics Roundtable.

A young superheroine and a vampire fight it out in a swamp near Salem; a boy discovers his own hidden powers while facing down his demons at the Roger Clap Elementary school in Dorchester; a group of superkids has to deal with delays on the T while hurrying to battle a pink slime monster at the Prudential.  These are just a few of the locally-based superhero sagas in the first issue of “Boston Powers,” a new, all-ages comic book series from the Boston Comics Roundtable. 

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The five stories in “Boston Powers” #1 were created by local writers and artists, all belonging to the BCR, an organization of comics makers that has been meeting regularly, holding events and publishing anthologies since 2006.  This is the group’s first series designed specifically for kids.  Three issues are planned for this year, each featuring all-new, original super-characters, taking on monsters, supervillains and evil corporations in recognizable locations. 

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“We wanted to emphasize the silly, colorful, imaginative excitement of the superhero genre, the reasons we all fell in love with it as young comics readers” says Dan Mazur, who edited the collection. “And by inventing superheroes whose turf is in and around Boston, we hope to have made something even more fun for local kids.”

“Boston Powers” promotes positive values and diversity, while always aiming to entertain its readers and show them their own towns and neighborhoods as locations for adventure and fantasy.  

“Boston Powers” was funded in part via a successful Kickstarter campaign earlier this year. The first issue of Boston Powers was to have debuted at the Boston Kids Comics Fest on April 27th, an event that was postponed due to the current health crisis. The comic book will instead be available for order online from BCR at www.bostoncomics.com, as well as through local comic book shops. Retail price is $6.00 for the 40 page, full-color comic. 

From Boston Powers #2:

Boston Powers #3

Boston Comics Roundtable has released the third issue of Boston Powers, its series of Boston-based superhero comics for kids. Featuring all-original characters created by local writers and artists, issue # 3 presents 5 more fun and fanciful, all-ages stories set in and around Boston.

The entries in issue number 3 are:

“The Coming of Earth Boy,” an environmentally-themed comic set at Walden Pond, written by Scott Harris-King and drawn by Reggie Themistocle.

“The Conductor,” a tale of a young heroine’s magical power of the Green Line to ease her teacher-mom’s commute, written by Jason Doring and drawn by Fell Hound.

“The Blue Lobster in ‘Ship-a-Hey’,” introducing a crustacean hero who foils a plot against the U.S.S. Constitution, written and drawn by Dan Mazur.

“Newtrino,” set at the Boston Museum of Science, where a girl and her inventor uncle take on a nefarious corporation’s sci-fi-ish schemes. Written by Patrick Flaherty and drawn by Danielle C. Mesa

“The Frenemy of my Enemy is My Friend,” previews a story by Boston writer/artist Ashley, whose legion of teen heroes battle to stop villains from trashing the Boston Common.

All three issues of Boston Power boast spectacular covers by Salem artist Kurt Ankeny:

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Boston Powers sells for $6 per issue. Each issue contains 4-5 6-8 page stories in full color. The stories are all “stand alone,” so you can start with any issue. It can be purchased online directly from the BCR at http://bostoncomics.com/boston-powers-3-now-available/ , or via Storenvy at https://www.storenvy.com/stores/664885-boston-comics-roundtable, as well as through local comics shops like the Million Year Picnic in Harvard Square .

The initial run of the series was funded via Kickstarted in May 2020, and a second Kickstarter is planned for further issues in 2021.