Perfect Man
Written by Troy Wilson, Illustrated by Dean Griffiths,
Page 1
Michael Maxwell McAllum was the smallest boy in his class. He lived in a small house in a small town on a small street. Sometimes he went on trips with his family.
Page 2
Perfect Man was the greatest superhero of them all. He lived...well...no one knows where he lived. Sometimes he went to other dimensions.
Page 3
Michael Maxwell McAllum was Perfect Man's biggest fan.He covered his walls with Perfect Man posters. He read Perfect Man comics and played Perfect Man video games.
Page 4
He ate Perfect Man cereal and wore Perfect Man T-shirts. He watched Perfect Man on the six o'clock news. He cut Perfect Man out of the newspaper. He wrote Perfect Man stories. He made a Perfect Man website.
Page 5
Before he went to sleep each night, he turned out his Perfect Man lamp. He dreamed about Perfect Man.
Perfect Man,
Perfect Man,
Perfect Man.
Page 6
And then Perfect Man quit. Just like that. He said it was time for a change. He said it was time to start a new chapter in his life. "Who will save the world when you're gone?" the reporters asked.
Page 7
"I used to be the only superhero around," Perfect Man said. "These days, it's hard to keep track of them all. They'll do just fine without me."
"What's your secret identity?"
Perfect Man smiled. "If I told you, it wouldn't be much of a secret, would it?"
Page 8
"Where will you go?"
"Someplace quiet," Perfect Man said.
"What will you do?"
"Oh, I'll find something. After all,
there's more than one way to
save the world."
Page 9
"You must be so sad," Michael's mother said. "You must feel like you've lost your best friend." She didn't understand. She didn't know Perfect Man like he did. Perfect Man would come back. Just like the time he came back from deep space when he escaped the cosmic pirates.
Page 10
Just like the time he came back from Dimension Z when he beat Zrog the Unbeatable. Just like the time he came back from the dead when he...well...died. He always came back. Always.
Page 11
That summer, Michael
Maxwell McAllum watched
on TV as aliens invaded
New York. They always
invaded New York. They
never invaded his small
town. The Amazing
Five teamed up with
the Super Squadron
to stop them.
Page 12
Perfect Man will come back,
he thought. Summer ended.
Michael Maxwell McAllum
went back to school.
Page 13
And Perfect Man came back. Just like that. Perfect Man had changed. Michael didn't recognize him at first. He wasn't wearing his costume anymore. His hair was thinner. His stomach was rounder. He didn't even call himself Perfect Man anymore. He called himself Mr. Clark. He was Michael Maxwell McAllum's new teacher.
Page 14
Mr. Clark never broke the chalk. He never lost his temper. And he never got sick. When Mr. Clark talked about the planets, it seemed as if he had visited them himself.
Page 15
When there was trouble in the schoolyard,
Mr. Clark was there. When Alexander
dropped his art project, Mr. Clark was
there. He was everywhere at once.
At least it seemed that way.
Page 16
Mr. Clark was the fastest marker in the world. And, best of all, Mr. Clark looked inside people. He saw all the good stuff and helped them bring it out. He helped them find their super powers.
Page 17
Michael Maxwell McAllum knew
Mr. Clark was Perfect Man.
He was sure of it. But he didn't
post it on his website. He didn't
tell Mom or Dad. He didn't tell anybody.
Page 18
Instead, he wrote a story about Perfect Man. In the story, Perfect Man became a teacher in a small town. Only one boy suspected his secret. When Perfect Man decided to fight crime again, he made the boy his sidekick.
Page 19
Michael Maxwell McAllum gave the story to Mr. Clark.
"Well, that's an original story," Mr. Clark said. "It's the best Perfect Man story you've written yet. I think the ending could use a little work, though."
"I know you're Perfect Man," Michael said.
Mr. Clark smiled. "Do I look like Perfect Man?"
Page 20
"You're disguised," Michael answered. "I remember how you kept Dr. Plasma's shape changing machine when he went to jail."
Page 21
"Or maybe your friend the Dark Avenger helped you out. He's a master of disguises."
"Those are good theories," said Mr. Clark.
"Am I right?" asked Michael.
Page 22
Mr. Clark didn't say "yes" and he didn't say "no."
He said, "If Perfect Man were here
today, he'd tell you exactly what
I'm telling you now. You don't
need to be the sidekick, Michael.
You can be the superhero."
"What do you mean?" asked Michael.
Page 23
"You already have a super power," said Mr. Clark. "You have the power to write. You write very well."
"I guess I write okay..."
"No," Mr. Clark insisted. "You write very well. Do you like to write?"
Michael nodded.
"Then I hope you keep writing," said Mr. Clark. "I really do."
Page 24
He paused. "Do you want to know a secret, Michael?" Michael Maxwell McAllum leaned forward. "Yes. Yes, I do."
"To be a good writer, you have to read and you have to write," said Mr. Clark. "But there's another step. A secret step."
Page 25
"What?" asked Michael. "What is it?"
"You have to live," said Mr. Clark. "You have to try new things. You have to meet new people. That's what good writers do. They live. And it's all research. Every second of it."
Page 26
Michael leaned back. He thought for a second.
Then he said, "I have one question."
"Yes?"
"What does flying feel like?"
Mr. Clark laughed. "Don't you have
another story to write?" he said.
Page 27
Michael Maxwell McAllum did have another story to write. He had a lot of other stories to write. Some of them were wonderful. Some of them were awful. And most of them were somewhere in between. He tried new things and met new friends.
Page 28
He made new mistakes.
"It's research," he told himself over and over again. "It's all research."
He grew and he wrote and he lived.
Page 29
Today Mr. Clark is still a teacher. He loves what he does. Sometimes he thinks about Perfect Man and smiles.
Page 30
Michael Maxwell McAllum is a best-selling author. He loves what he does.
Page 31
Mr. Clark is Michael Maxwell McAllum's biggest fan.
