M

MADMAN. Th e Madman of Snap City is the star of multiple series by comics auteur

Mike Allred , including Madman , Madman Adventures , Madman Comics , and Madman
Atomic Comics. Combining Allred’s interest in metaphysical speculation, pop-culture
kitsch, and superhero action, these titles have established Allred’s reputation as a
talented and increasingly ambitious craftsman and storyteller.
Allred’s narrative began in the 1992 Madman miniseries published by Tundra.
When readers fi rst meet the title character, he is a disfi gured, childlike amnesiac prone
to sudden fi ts of horrifying violence and introspective ruminations on the nature of
existence—a dual nature that fi nds expression in the yo-yos, slingshots, and other
children’s toys that he has converted into weapons. Th ough his precognitive and
psychic powers off er him insights into the souls of others, Madman is a mystery to
himself. Beneath his mask, he is Frank Einstein—a character Allred had previously
spotlighted in Grafi k Muzik (1990) and Creatures of the Id (1990)—the victim of
a car crash brought back to life by the brilliant but unbalanced Dr. Boiff ard. One
of Frank’s few ties to his forgotten past life is his costume: His only memory is of
reading comics starring his childhood hero, Mr. Excitement, and he fi nds it soothing
to wear his idol’s distinctive exclamatory lightning bolt design. Aided by his faithful
girlfriend Joe, and Boiff ard’s partner, Dr. Flem, Frank begins to make a new life and
piece together the remains of his old one. His peaceful existence, though, is often shat-
tered by the minions of the evil Monstadt, a former ally of Boiff ard’s obsessed with
the secret of eternal life.
Th is fi rst series was a critical success and drew particular attention for Allred’s
clean-lined and dynamic visual style, a style infl uenced by Alex Toth , Jack Cole, and
Bruno Premiani, and informed by Allred’s aff ection for pop culture ephemera of all