And lo, let the problematic inappropriateness begin! “Sigh,” as Emp is wont to utter. (Alas, matters grow far more problematically inappropriate in the pages to come.) The events of this story would eventually lead me to devise the so-called “Unwritten Rules” regulating, let us say, improper interactions between bad guys and superheroes—but, sadly, a little too late to help out poor Emp in this early and notably misguided scene. Should be said, though, that Treacherous Girl—aka the future Ocelotina, for long-term Empowered readers—brings up a legitimate issue, given that Emp’s superpowers are derived from the eminently shreddable hypermembrane. Stripping Emp of her potentially dangerous—if temporarily tattered—supersuit could be considered a legitimate tactic on the part of an apprehensive captor. Then again, since I rarely—or pretty much never—bothered in these early days to depict exactly how Emp escapes the manyfold “damsel in distress” situations she finds herself in, hard to say how apprehensive her captors should be. Does Emp commonly regain her powers and break free of bondage, or is she constantly being rescued by teammates—or does some other resolution occur? Mysterious!

Panels 2 and 4: Notice that Goatee Dude’s character design has drifted considerably from his appearance in the first few pages, thanks to my disinterest in working up a design sheet ahead of time to define exactly what he’s supposed to look like.

Panel 3: Nice that Treacherous Chica expresses such concern for Emp’s well-being, what with the “no bad touches” admonition to Goatee Boy. As we’ll see, though, this solipsistic young lady clearly doesn’t consider said admonition to apply to any “bad touches” that she might be contemplating.

Panel 4: Note that Emp’s supersuit-necessitated approach to swimsuit-area grooming might have seemed a tad more remarkable when I was writing this page a decade ago. (Or perhaps not.)

-Adam Warren