Short Summary
This arc introduces Basil, Amy, and his teammates while also laying down the foundations for several future plot points. Basil has manifested as a
Gadgeteer and when he is discovered building a laser gun by his sister, she herself reveals she is the supervillain Mindstar and gives
exposition on the world of heroes and villains. Basil then spends the next few months establishing his base and preparing for his first night out. While things go bad at first, he eventually defeats b-class villain Ice Queen with the help of fellow heroes Hekate and Tyche and they decide to team up. We also get a flashback to what was essentially the in-universe end of the
Silver Age This arc provides examples of:
- After-Action Patch-Up/After-Action Healing Drama: Zig-Zagged between the two since Hecate's injuries are just serious enough for her to require immediate action, but not so serious that Brennus and Tyche can't engage in a little small talk and discuss code names.
- Curb-Stomp Battle: More like a Curb-Stomp Massacre since at no point do any of the heroes in the interlude do damage to DiL.
- College Is "High School, Part 2": Inverted. Basil can apparently pick his classes and schedule, skip his last class without being stopped by the teachers and, while there is a dress code, Vasiliki mentions later that they don't have to wear them outside of special school events.
- Part of this may be because the United Junior Heroes go there and need freedom to change and leave without suspicion.
- A Death in the Limelight: In the "End of an Age" interlude, pretty much every character that isn't The Dark or Desolation-in-Light.
- Elaborate Underground Base: Basil spends two months building one, complete with control room, laboratory, and several tunnels that lead to different parts of the city. Also, it's a lair. Bases are for dorks.
- Establishing Character Moment: Several.
- Basil's is when he can focus on asking practical questions about his sister despite the huge revelation she pulled.
- Amy's is when she makes it clear that she chose to be a villain for fun and then made her boyfriend and best friend kill themselves when they cheated on her.
- Dalia's is when she starts showing off her Adonis body during a fight before focusing on helping Hecate and assisting Brennus in an operation.
- Vasiliki may be a bit of a subversion. None of her more prominent characteristics (her Straight Man tendencies, being a Neat Freak, being a Grammar Nazi, fighting evil as revenge for her cousin's death) are really on display in this arc.
- Even Mooks Have Loved Ones: Aimihime cares very much for her father, and no one else can guess why. It should be noted that the love of his daughter doesn't cause him to become a better person or defect.
- Foreshadowing: Several that set up future events and reveals.
- The Dark says Basil's killer instincts are strange for one so young.
- Something Basil was inventing caused the Dark to erase it from his mind. The time was apparently too early for it.
- Innocuously Important Episode: A chapter starts with Basil watching Desolation-in-Light attack Moscow. At first it seems to just be an event to show how powerful she is. Later we find out this attack has made a cold war turn red hot, and adult superheroes leaving to help keep the peace plays a big part in why mostly teenage capes are allowed to fight high-class threats.
- Insistent Terminology: Brennus makes it very clear that he has a secret lair, not a base. Also, Frankenstein dabbled in reanimation, not brain surgery.
- Mid-Battle Tea Break: Protector and Doctor Despair are in the middle of what is to be their epic final battle. Then a floating baby appears out of no where and they call a truce to help it. The situation becomes much less silly when the baby kills them.
- The Plan: Amy planned to have Basil get beat on his first solo mission in order to have him seek protection with her.
- Pre-Meeting: Basil and Vasiliki meet hours before running into each other in the battle. Although there is no hostility between them, Basil doesn't think they will interact as much as they later do.
- Starter Villain: The Snow Queen is this despite being a solid B-class villain who is much stronger than Brennus. Pretty much every fight after this is an S-rank event with the Snow Queen being outclassed by the other antagonists Brennus fights against.
- Super Hero Origin: This entire arc is Basil's origin as well as the origin of his team.
