art by Rodolfo Migliari

A lifelong comic book fan, "Norrin" (as he calls himself), has always dreamed of being a superhero. More than dreamed-- he has lived, breathed and tasted it, losing countless hours to flights of superheroic fancy.

Norrin misses the pivotal moment when the Ax-Cell-Erator explodes and the Freshmen are imbued with super powers. He's out eating pizza.

Bitter and frustrated far more than he's even willing to admit, Norrin tries to convince the team that they have great responsibility with their great powers. He struggles to become the leader of the bunch, despite The Beaver's superior intelligence and The Puppeteer's greater maturity. The other kids in the group tolerate him because they need someone to make decisions, but Norrin's fragile ego is frequently abused.

Norrin constructs a suit of armor and grappling hook for himself, and continues to add new mechanisms, constructs and widgets every day.

art by Rodolfo Migliari

Beautiful Annalee begins our story with heartbreak: Her father has cheated on her mother and abandoned their family. Trying to understand how people do what they do, what exactly they're thinking, becomes Annalee's goal at college. She majors in psychology, and while she's trying to understand the other immature students, the explosion of the Ax-Cell-Erator gives her greater insight than any human has ever had.

Annalee can jump into people's minds and snoop around. Sift through their memories, learn their greatest secrets and even control them. She's only able to maintain the leap for a few minutes at a time, and her physical body is an empty, helpless shell while she's gone. Any physical harm that becomes her new host also transfers to her own body, too, so she must protect her prey.

art by Rodolfo Migliari

As the first of his family to ever leave their Pennsylvania town, Liam is faced with a culture clash of the highest magnitude. Thrust into a world of computerized phones, machines that dispense soda and electronic can openers, Liam is mesmerized by modern society. If he were honest, he'd tell you he's barely able to hide his terror. But his faith in the good Book and in his friends keeps him going.

Because the Amish do not believe in unwarranted pride, they dress very plainly. Liam, trying to be true to his culture and his new team of friends, sews the Freshmen Logo on the inside of his hat.

Liam gains the ability to start massive earthquakes by shuffling his stocky belly. He's afraid to use his power, though, because the Bible tells him never to cause harm to others.

art by Leonard Kirk

Charles, a Greenpeace member and die hard environmental activist, loves nature. But once he gains the ability to speak with plants, he's not prepared for their bitter attitudes and foul mouths. And the fatal-ish attraction of his Ficus, Susie, is dangerously bizarre.

Charles is a vegan, but now that he hears plants and vegetables begging for mercy, he's left with almost nothing to eat. Watch as the man becomes unraveled.

art by Joseph Michael Linsner

Jacques Lalleaux (The Squirrel)

Jacques is a proud womanizer, using his roguish looks and charming accent to bed women the world over. As an exchange student, he has swapped fluids and broken hearts on both sides of the world.

The Ax-Cell-Erator explosion imbues Jacques with the abilities of a squirrel. As a result... well, he becomes obsessed with hoarding acorns. This puts a bit of a kink in his plans to bed all the women of Freese College.

art by Joseph Michael Linsner

A lifelong romantic and avid follower of celebrity relationships, Paula Pophouse defines the fan base of US Magazine. As Annalee puts it in her journal, however, Paula didn't exactly win the genetics lottery, and she's never even been asked out on a date.

Despite her low self-esteem, Paula is all smiles. She's a firm believer in romance and true love. However, when her powers give her the ability to make anyone fall in love with her, she finds it difficult--impossible, even--to keep from abusing them.

Paula uses her powers on dreamy exchange student Jacques. The result is her dream come true: A gorgeous, devoted boyfriend.

art by Rodolfo Migliari

Elwood Johns (The Intoxicator)

A math whiz determined to enter NASA, Elwood Johns is tasting his first alcoholic beverage when the Ax-Cell-Erator's explosion gives him the ability to intoxicate anyone with a super-powered burp. The problem is that Elwood himself must be drunk--or stoned--to fuel his powers.

Trying to balance his important and complicated schoolwork with his superhero responsibility to be plastered all the time is most difficult for Elwood. This might bother him more if he could remember his name.

Jersey Girl Renee Bellochio is a natural-born Italian spitfire, the kind of girl who will brush you back on a softball field, cook up some bomb-ass sausage and peppers and then empty a can of aqua-net into her already-rigid 'do.

Renee comes from a family of Jersey gangsters and she desperately wants to rise above them and become a movie star. After scoring surprisingly high on her SATs, (doubly impressive because she was dealing with the aftereffects of her second abortion), Renee was accepted into Freese College.

Renee shares tandem telekinesis with her sometimes-boyfriend, Brady. When they're touching, she can pull objects toward her.

The Drama Twins

art by Leonard Kirk

Brady has been dating Renee since 9th grade, and it's made him a mean, miserable son of a bitch.

Trying to look and sound like Eminem isn't easy  when you're from an upscale New Jersey family with their hands in law and politics. Especially when your street rep is damaged by your obsessive love for a girl who constantly berates and antagonizes you.

With hopes of permanently bringing out her softer side, Brady follows Renee to Freese College. He sleeps in the guys' dorm, even though he's not enrolled. The result is constant bickering, which leaves their friends, teammates and neighbors on edge.

When Brady touches Renee, he can push things away from his body with their tandem telekinesis.

art by Leonard Kirk

The Beaver is the Freese College school mascot. When he's left in the girls' dorm room as a prank by the frat guys, the explosion of the Ax-Cell-Erator gives him off-the-charts intelligence and a very snooty English accent.

The Beaver would be an amazing asset to any superhero team, and an unrivalled leader for The Freshmen, if it weren't for his obsession with building dams. Even in the most dire of moments, The Beaver can't quite clear his mind, and the team often has trouble getting him to focus on the issue at hand.