Art imitates life in the comic book series Powers Squared. The book follows identical twin brothers Eli and Marty Powers who, upon starting college, discover that they were given superpowers when they were younger. A magical kitsune granted them the gifts of telepathy, super-sight, invisibility, and teleportation, plus Marty gained superspeed and Eli became telekinetic. The limitation is that each of the young men can only use one power at a time and only for a few minutes.

Powers Squared was co-created by twin brothers Paul and Trevor Hankins and their father David Hankins. The brothers grew up as fans of cartoons, anime, comics, and manga, but noticed that identical twins were often used as gimmicks or consistently fell into stereotypes.

“Our idea was to tell a story about twins that wasn’t a stereotype. Marty and Eli may be twins but they’re more than just one half of a whole,” Paul said.  

Powers Squared #14 will be released on October 19, 2022, featuring art by Rachel Wells and colors by Julia Canon. Titled “The Imposter Part 2,” the issue wraps up the two story arcs that began in issues 10 and 13, with Eli and his allies trying to rescue Marty from being used by their adversary. The comic features other villains called the Convincer and the Imposter who have used a compound known as viribus to gain special powers.

Powers Squared is set at the fictional San Romero Community College, and aspects of the comic’s website are formatted like a university site. It provides links to where the comic can be purchased, has a mailing list named after the school’s newspaper, The Hound Dogs’ Howl, and sells shirts and other merchandise under The Campus Store tab. Paul and David also host a weekly podcast (under the Media tab) that provides updates on the book and connects with other creators.