The New Wave

Creation

The New Wave was a superhero team which was a comic book published from 1986-1987 by Eclipse Comics. The team debuted in a preview included in the pages of two other Eclipse publications, The New DNAgents #9 and Miracleman #8, before having its own its own book. For the first eight issues, The New Wave was published bi-weekly as a 16-page book. However after issue 9 through the end of issue 13 the book became a full-sized monthly.

The comic series was co-created by writer Mindy Newell. The initial art team included penciller Lee Weeks and inker Ty Templeton. Issue #6 featured fill-in artist Erik Larsen. Issue #13 was drawn by artist Eric Shanower.

History of Publication

The first five issues of the series depicted the team's origin, and is set on a space station owned by a corporation headed by a CEO with plans for world domination. During the course of the story, the extraterrestrial Tachyon is teleported onto the station, by scientist James Holmes, with whom Tachyon bonds. Dot, a spy with the power to shrink, sneaks aboard the station on a government mission. Circus acrobat Polestar stows away after a romantic interlude with a space shuttle pilot, while Avalon, Holmes' teenage witch daughter, and her boyfriend, the telekinetically powered Impulse, are brought there by the CEO to use as leverage against Holmes. Megabyte, one of the CEO's robot guards, switches sides and assists the others to foil the CEO's plot. After deciding to stay together as a team, issues 7 - 9 depicted the team traveling to the mystical realm of Avalon, during which the titular character's mother is revealed to be the Lady of the Lake of Arthurian legend. Subsequent single issues focused on The Volunteers, a group of superhumans with ties to Dot, Polestar's life in the circus, a "very special issue" about teen pregnancy, and Tachyon's sense of alienation.

Following the cancellation of the regular book, The New Wave returned in a two-issue "micro-series" called The New Wave versus The Volunteers. The book was rendered in 3-D in addition to non-3D format.

Following the bankruptcy of Eclipse Comics, its properties were purchased by Todd McFarlane, including the rights to the New Wave characters. The supporting character Heap has been re-imagined as an antagonist to McFarlane's character, Spawn.

Members

• Avalon - The teenage daughter of the legendary superhero "The Lady," Avalon is a powerful witch of Druidic ancestory.
• Dot - The diminutive freelance spy with the power to shrink herself and at this tiny stature could fly and fire bio-electric blasts.
• Impulse - Avalon's next door neighbor, also her love interest. He is powerful mutant with telekinetic abilities.
• Megabyte - A highly sophisticated robot which was programmed with the brain patterns of a physically disabled teenage boy.
• Polestar - The circus acrobat and performer, she carried a telescoping pole for hand-to-hand combat and to assist her in her acrobatics.
• Tachyon - The blue-skinned, blue-haired extra-dimensional being who was trapped on Earth had the abilities of superhuman strength and the power of flight.

Supporting cast members included James Holmes, Avalon's father and a extremely talented scientist who would be responsible for bringing Tachyon from his home dimension, and The Heap, warrior creature of nature.