The Beginning of the Origin of ForchMan!! (Comic Version)

Thanks to Colleen Campbell for the suggestion for today's blog.

First off, to start, bare in mind that this is going to be a multi-parted blog, due to the in-depth story-line, I need multiple postings to get this out of the way.

Colleen has suggested that I tell her, and for lack of a better part, the world. The Origin story of the ForchMan Comic Book Character. I have decided to go ahead and do that, with the idea of adding some revamp to the character, since the original concept/story was done over 15 years ago.

To get an idea of the universe in which "ForchMan" occupied, the first blog is going to be telling the story of the city where ForchMan Defends.

Every great superhero defends a great city, and my original idea is no different. Originally, I was going to use Buffalo, but a city of less than a million people didn't ring "Super" so I came up, with an idea that was both a personal dream of mine, as well as a somewhat original concept.

The City that ForchMan defends... Is called Winfield City.

Winfield City, or the "Winfield Amalgamation and Rejuvenation Initiate" was based on the idea that I had that eventually, it would seem logical that both Canada and the US were going to amalgamate (I know, I am going to hear it about that one) and the two governments, who were experiencing an economic crisis, began the idea of amalgamating the two nations into one, and the Winfield City project was the first step to achieving this goal.

Basically, the idea was a self-sufficient, self governed, cityscape that would be used as an experiment to see if an unprotected border between the two nations would be manageable.

Walter Winfield, the projects developer, thought that the best geographic location would be utilized with the Niagara Region of Ontario, and Western New York State. So the cities of Buffalo, Niagara Falls (US and Canada), Welland, Fort Erie, St. Catharines and surrounding areas would all be enveloped into one mega-city.

The idea was used to stimulate the economy, by bringing in a number of new companies to do massive construction, first off to allow the travel between all areas accessible. Bridges, Expressways, Major roads were to be built, as well as governments providing incentives for major companies to base their operations within Winfield City, to stimulate growth.

Buffalo/Fort Erie, providing the downtown core, St. Catharines/Welland providing the industrial as well as the Commercial sectors, Niagara Falls Providing the Tourism and the remaining areas focussing on a massive overhaul on agricultural pursuits. The idea, was to have the city itself, sustained without any outside help, until the project was deemed a success, and the idea expanded to other "Border Cities", and finally the two countries would be merged.

Security/Policing was a major issue at first, but both governments put into place security measures that ensured that enough police/services were made available, and the city itself, was equipped with a major CCTV security system that was state of the art, and ensured that an eye was kept on security.

The initial phase was an immediate success, thanks mostly to Winfield's charisma and charm. Industries were brought in, and the area began a growth that was unheard of, as people were flocking to new jobs, and new lives in an area that, at the time had no growth and no hope.

The first phase of construction lasted 2 years, from 1993-1995.

In 1996, the city was about 45% completed, with plans to expand at a rapid rate.

Until "He" Came.

General Harland Mills. (The whole story will be a future blog) One of the most decorated, and most brutal 5-star Generals of the first Iraq war. Mills was dishonorably discharged in 1991, after laying waste to an entire Iraqi village. He had originally been sentenced to life in Military Prison, but had escaped with the assistance of a group of Mercenaries and the like calling themselves "Terror, Inc."

Mills, not wanting to see America amalgamate with Canada, as well, wanting to leave his mark on the world, and amass an incalculable fortune, decided to start his criminal empire in this new Metropolis.

His first strike on the city, was the new Hydro-Electric Power Plant, located in the former "Niagara Falls". the idea was to hold the plant, and it's workers hostage, and demand a hefty sum, the problem was, was that one of his Henchmen, got careless, and accidentally triggered a massive power discharge that was unleashed on the entire city. The Surge reached out, and killed a total of 171 people.

Only one person who was struck by the discharge survived, but was comatose afterward.

His name, Chris Fortier. a 19 year old video store employee, who was taking out the garbage before his shift ended, and was caught in the line of one of the massive discharges, and was found unconscious in the middle of the parking lot, and rushed to the hospital.

And so begins our tale.

The next part will start to elaborate on our hero.

But that's just my opinion... What do I know???
F.M.