During 1986, an 18-year-old Ben Edlund created a mascot for the New England Comics newsletter. Who could have imagined that the absurdist superhero spoof known as The Tick, would have grown into such a cult hit. But just how much do you know about this bumbling hero?
The Tick made his first appearance in the New England Comics Newsletter #14 in 1986, and by 1988 had garnered his own comic series. The success of the comic led to FOX producing an animated series during 1994. Edmund wrote and co-produced all three seasons of this popular series, during which The Tick received its greatest mainstream fame. In 2001, FOX attempted a live-action version of the show but this only lasted for nine episodes.
In the comic version, The Tick was declared legally insane and was even seen escaping from a mental institution. However, this factor didn't pass onto the TV version. Instead the character simply has no memory of a time before being The Tick, in fact he doesn't have much of a memory at all. Still, he is considered to be well-intentioned, friendly, and is prone to giving inspirational speeches with bizarre metaphors.
Many of the other recurring characters are parodies of famous superheroes and villains, including Batman, Aquaman, Wonder Woman, and Captain America. These characters are Batmanuel, Die Fledermaus, Sewer Urchin, American Maid, and Captain Liberty. The Tick even works at the Weekly World Planet Newspaper under Clark Oppenheiner, who doubles as the Caped Wonder. Clearly, the parodies were very thinly veiled.
It seems you will once again get to hear The Tick's boisterous battle cry of "Spooooooon!" as Amazon has announced plans for a new live-action Tick. A half-hour pilot for the new series will launch on Amazon Video on August 19, 2016 with Peter Serafinowicz (Guardians of the Galaxy) as The Tick.