Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton, comic book heroes
As Sanders and Clinton battle it out in the presidential debates, they're also competing for comic book fans, as stars of their own titles. Spoiler alert: Neither of them has mutant superpowers.
Why should Batman, Wonder Woman, Spider-Man and Deadpool have all the fun using cool gadgets and unusual powers to battle villains?
Granted, politicians may feel like unusual candidates for superheroes, but they do have the power to affect the lives of millions.
The 2016 US presidential candidates are perfect fodder for comic book pages, and with that in mind, the publishing company Storm Entertainment (formerly Bluewater Productions) has come out with a line of biography comics depicting both Republican and Democratic politicians at their best and worst.
In May, Storm published a new Hillary Clinton bio comic for its Female Force line: "Hillary Clinton: The Road to the White House."
Written by Michael L. Frizell and illustrated by Joe Paradise, the comic focuses on the more controversial parts of her political history, such as the Benghazi hearings, as well as campaign strategy sessions as she eyes the Democratic ticket for the White House in the 2016 presidential elections.
In October, Democratic candidate Bernie Sanders got his turn, with "Political Power: Bernie Sanders."
Bernie Sanders fights for the little people in his comic, just like Superman (but without the alien backstory).
Written and illustrated by Paradise, the Sanders comic tells the story of the longest serving independent member of Congress in American history. Sanders is depicted as a humble senator from Vermont and a staunch supporter of the middle class who promises to end the ineffective partisan divide in Congress.
While the art for the Clinton and Sanders comics doesn't differ (it's the same illustrator for both), the stories seem to reveal a bit more of Clinton's darker times, as opposed to the Sanders title, in which the Bern comes off looking a bit more like, well, a superhero.
We see Sanders deal with his parents' struggle to pay doctor bills after his mother's health issues, and a young Sanders deciding to run as an independent for political office in the '70s. But there's also a segment dedicated to Sanders' rocky relationship with the NRA and his views on gun control.
Whether you're rooting for Sanders or Clinton, both comics serve up an entertaining life story.
Sanders and Clinton aren't the only politicians with their own comic books from Storm. Republican candidates Jeb Bush and Donald Trump also have biography comics that showcase their unusual lives.
Former Republican candidate Rand Paul also had a comic, complete with a hilarious cover of Paul with a scowling Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton in the background.
The comics cost $3.99 and can be purchased at Comic Flea Market.
"The goal here is not to proselytize for one party, one candidate or one point of view," Storm Entertainment President Darren Davis said in a statement. "If we are to be successful, we need to balance our stories and provide an evenhanded look at our leaders and the process by which they govern...warts and all."
Storm promises more bio comics, depicting candidates such as Ted Cruz, John Kasich and Marco Rubio.