Danny Wall

ACTION PACK
Issue One, “Pack in Action!” 
By Danny Wall
 

PAGE ONE

 

FOUR RUNNING INSET PANELS along the top of the SPLASH page, and FOUR RUNNING INSET PANELS along the bottom.

PANELS ONE thru FOUR, top:
One by one, various members of ACTION PACK receive the call to action! Extreme Close-Ups only-- as one call comes over a smartphone (with the Action Pack logo filling the screen); one over a smartwatch; one from a laptop computer; and one from a landline phone.
 

SOUND FX
(each panel)
Tzing?
 

SPLASH PANEL, centered 
JACK ROCKET strikes a dramatic pose, a dynamic combination of commander and rockstar! A bit of the Action Base can be seen behind him, that strange mix of ancient cave and retro "Kirby-tech™." 
 

JACK ROCKET
Let the call ring out!
 

PANELS FIVE thru EIGHT, bottom:
As above, Extreme Close-Ups only, as other members individually prepare for the meeting-- a glove is pulled on; long hair is tied back; boots are laced up; a belt is buckled.
 

SOUND FX
(each panel)
Tzing?
 

PAGE TWO & THREE
 

PANEL ONE
2/3 double-page spread of the Action Base, over Jack's shoulder, as he watches the various ACTIONEERS make their dramatic entrances at the same time! Each teleportation is accompanied by its signature sound of "TZING!" They're all here-- RESPLENDENCE, GOOP GIRL, SPOTTY, BIRDSONG, HOUND DOUG, CINNAMON, BUGOUT! In the background, CHIMEARA, the pug-faced dragon, smiles while typing away on a pad-like device.
 

JACK ROCKET
Ready, Set, ACTION!
 

PANEL TWO
Jack begins an inspirational speech, his face as earnest as always. 
 

JACK ROCKET
Welcome back to the Action Base! I know not everyone can make it every time. I made an agenda but it's pretty much the same as last time...   

​

PANEL THREE
The various kid heroes lined up, looking up towards Jack, and each admiring his speech in their own way. Except for the littlest, Spotty, who's lost somewhere looking distant and picking his ear with his pinky. 

JACK ROCKET (off-panel)
Be heroes, make the world better. It's a pretty big place, so we're going to do our part to put as many heroes in it as possible. 
 

PANEL FOUR
Jack's younger sister, Kia (a.k.a. Goop Girl), stands alongside him, although he can't see that her earnestness is more feigned.
 

KIA
Thanks, Jack... I think I speak for everybody when--
 

PAGE FOUR
 

PANEL ONE
Kia slaps Jack on the back, to his surprise!
 

KIA
Tag! You're it!
 

PANEL TWO
Several of the Actioneers hop to it, happy to turn and run! (Bugout leaps high, having bugged-out his legs into grasshopper-form, over Cinnamon as she runs. Even Hound Dog smiles wide as he lopes along!) Jack is left in the background calling after them.
 

JACK ROCKET
Kia! Wha--? Wait!
 

PANEL THREE
Her arms folded, Arisa (a.k.a. Resplendence)watches them go while next to Jack.
 

ARISA
What are we going to do with them, huh? But you can't blame *them* if your speeches go too long.
 

PANEL FOUR
Jack says nothing, but looks at Arisa, deadpan.
 

PANEL FIVE
Stat panel, except he pokes her with an index finger.
 

SOUND FX
Tag!
 

PANEL SIX
Stat panel, but this time Arisa's face is deadpan to Jack's smirk.
 

PANEL SEVEN
Stat panel, again, but this time Arisa tags Jack with a slap on the back, enough to stagger him a bit.
 

SOUND FX
TAG!!!
 

ARISA
No-tag-backs-I-said-it-and-you-didn't-standard-tag-back-rules!
 

PAGE FIVE
 

PANEL ONE
Bugout joins Kia, who is stifling a snickering laugh, in a hiding place behind several large knobby piece of machinery. 
 

PANEL TWO
Jack bursts in, with ROCKET force, to the surprise and delight of the younger kids, touching Kia as he does so.
 

JACK ROCKET
Tag, you're it!
 

BUGOUT
Ah-hahaha!
 

PANEL THREE
Jack continues to rocket down the hallway, and Bugout has grown an extra set of arms/insect legs to help him run down the hall, too.
 

KIA
Hey!
 

PANEL FOUR
Kia grabs a chunk of the wall she's reeling against. It crackles and glows as she starts to "get goopy" from its disintegrating energies, slowly creating her Goop Girl carapace.
 

KIA
Now you guys are asking for it!
 

PANEL FIVE
Bugout looks over his shoulder as he scuttles, almost knocking back Spotty and Birdsong.
 

BUGOUT
Watch out, guys! She's going goopy!
 

PANEL SIX
Now Goop Girl, Kia races down the hall, leaving a gaping hole in the wall.
 

GOOP GIRL
What! Jack used his powers first!
 

PANEL SEVEN
Jack calls back to Goop Girl's fleeing figure, who's too far away and having too much fun to care.
 

JACK ROCKET
Goop Girl! Don't disintegrate stuff indoors!
 

PAGE SIX
 

PANEL ONE
Arisa runs in, grabbing Jack by the arm as she looks down the hall.
 

ARISA
Which way did they go!
 

JACK ROCKET
I'm not playing. C'mon. Let them have their fun.
 

PANEL TWO
Arisa and Jack stroll deeper into the Action Base headquarters.
 

JACK ROCKET
I want to show you something. Remember how I said we could change the world?
 

ARISA
Yeah, and I remember saying I'd like to take that bet.
 

JACK ROCKET
Well, here's an idea.
 

PANEL THREE
 

JACK ROCKET
Or more specifically, an Idea Room!
 

Jack waves his arm to display a wide and wildly decorated room with high ceilings and porthole-like windows of various sizes. The technology makes patterned ribbons along the walls and floors, vaguely resembling large, interconnected Chinese ideograms.
 

ARISA
(awed)
Oooh, Okay...
 

PANEL FOUR
CHIMEARA sidles in with welcoming arms, but she is a bit dismissive of Jack's comment.
 

CHIMEARA
Actually, it was my idea.
 

JACK ROCKET
Your invention. My idea.
 

CHIMEARA (cont'd)
'Pistachio'/'Fish taco'...
 

PANEL FIVE
Arisa stands dwarfed by one of the displays and its array of checkerboard buttons below.
 

ARISA
Is this supposed to be a computer?
 

PANEL SIX
At the furthest wall, below the largest oval display, Chimeara presents the main component, which resembles more of a giant pipe organ, complete with multiple rows of keys. 
 

CHIMEARA
Well, it definitely computes things, so, I suppose.
 

PAGE SEVEN
 

PANEL ONE
Chimeara plays several notes, giving into the flow of some unheard music.
 

CHIMEARA
It doesn't produce any music, but it can listen. You play the chords you want to hear, string along the notes that compose people, places...

​

PANEL TWO
Chimeara's talons cascade along the keyboards.
 

CHIMEARA
See, Arisa? This is a medley of Jack-and-Kia-things.
 

PANEL THREE
Jack and Arisa marvel at the hodgepodge of portholes and windows, some of them even floating mid-air. Now like viewing screens, each displays a different scene of Jack and Kia. Jack cannonballing into a swimming pool, Kia riding a bike, both together trying to tackle their ice cream cones, faces of happiness, of painful tears, of sleeping, etc.  
 

PANEL FOUR
Arisa pulls down one to show to Jack. It displays Goop Girl finally tagging Birdsong, who is grossed out by the touch.
 

ARISA
This one's up to date!
 

PANEL FIVE
Jack grabs a portal, holding it reverently as it casts its glow upward.
 

JACK ROCKET
(hushed)
Rockadelic!
 

PAGE EIGHT
 

PANEL ONE
Jack and Arisa gaze at the Idea Machine, flanking Chimeara. She continues to play the machine softly. 
 

JACK ROCKET
OK. I approve. Mostly because this was way better than my idea.
 

CHIMEARA
I’ve also started composing some original stuff. What do you think? 
 

PANEL TWO
Close up of Arisa’s face, a mix of horror and sadness as she looks at a glowing window from below, off-panel. 
 

ARISA
It’s... awful. 
 

PANELS THREE thru FIVE
A collection of circular portal-windows, each with their own tragedy: A house on fire, a sea of protesters, an abandoned baby. Other portals of smaller sizes dot the periphery, but the scenes are scratchy, indistinct.  
 

PANEL FOUR
Chimeara looks sad, a sudden apologetic realization as she considers Arisa’s reaction. But Jack’s attention is elsewhere.
 

CHIMEARA
Oh, dear! Uhm, well, it’s still an unfinished piece...
 

JACK ROCKET
Wait! This one!

​

PANEL FIVE
The display reveals a man all in black, from his turtleneck and gloves to his denim jeans, except for a cheap, vaguely transparent plastic skull mask. A giant blast of energy is erupting from a dish-mounted gun, and bills of money scatter like leaves around him. 
 

PANEL SIX
Chimeara peers into the portal while Arisa looks on, pensive.
 

CHIMEARA
Ah, you see, Jack’s search for justice is more or less a D-flat, so...
 

PAGE NINE
 

PANEL ONE
Jack ardently explains.
 

JACK ROCKET
No! That gun! It’s Yaoguai tech! Somebody got their hands on Yaoguai stuff and are robbing banks! 
 

PANEL TWO
 

CHIMEARA (off panel)
Maybe a lower key... there! A news report!    
 

Surveillance footage of the bandit inside a bank vault, with scars from the energy weapon seared haphazardly among the rows of deposit boxes. He is opening a box and pouring its jewelry into a duffel bag, the ray gun slung with a strap over his shoulder.  
 

PANEL THREE
Chimeara examines a peripheral readout while Arisa continues to stare at the monitor, halfway between reserved and quizzical. 
 

CHIMEARA
They’re calling him the Death’s Head Bandit. Holbrook, Arizona? 
 

ARISA
So, what, we beat him up or something? 
 

PANEL FOUR
Jack is pacing, already lost to his imagination of the future.
 

JACK ROCKET (smaller, to himself)
Maybe?
 

JACK ROCKET (cont'd)
What really matters is getting that gun off the streets. We all knew that getting rid of those creeper aliens wouldn’t be the last of those Creeper Aliens.
 

PANEL FIVE
Arisa looks skeptical, but Jack is in his “speech mode.” 
 

JACK ROCKET
We can’t unsee it, but we can make a choice. And heroes are made when you make up your mind. 
 

PANEL SIX
Jack holds up his phone with the Action Pack app logo filling the screen.
 

JACK ROCKET
Chimeara can chime us anywhere, even to Arizona! We just need one other... 
 

PAGE TEN
 

PANEL ONE
The Standard National bank of Holbrook, Arizona, looks lonely despite a few patrol cars, a security detail, and rolls of yellow police tape among the barriers. And the small crackles of light upon the roof. 

SOUND FX
Tzing! Tzing! Tzing! 
 

PANEL TWO
A few pigeons fly away and the dust settles from the energetic entrance of Jack Rocket, Arisa (now, Resplendence), and Hound Doug on the rooftop.
 

JACK ROCKET
Perfect! Glad you could make it, Hound Doug! 
 

HOUND DOUG
Ready for action, Jack! But are you sure the others can’t come?
 

RESPLENDENCE
Oh my god! Everything’s so ... flat! 
 

PANEL THREE
A low angle captures Jack and the others looking over the lip of the roof.
 

JACK ROCKET
No need for a full assemblage. Chimeara can just chime them home when they get tired of tag anyway. 
 

PANEL FOUR
Resplendence marvels at the world below, trying to take in the quaintness of it all.
 

RESPLENDENCE
(to herself, really)
I mean, the horizon is just ... forever! That’s so amazing! And everyone uses that Old Timey Western font everywhere. That's just the best.
 

PANEL FIVE
Hound Doug tries his best action pose, although it is nowhere near as natural or at ease when side-by-side Jack's.
 

HOUND DOUG
And not when you got my nose. It's worth all of y'all, 'specially when they're such a big dog-aura about this town.   
 

PAGE ELEVEN
 

PANEL ONE
Jack rockets off the rooftop.
 

JACK ROCKET
Be back in a second. 
 

PANEL TWO
Hound Doug continues to brag about his powers.
 

HOUND DOUG
Basically my dog powers get stronger the more dogs in the area.

​

RESPLENDENCE
You should totally call yourself "Alpha."
 

HOUND DOUG
But my name's Doug. 
 

PANEL THREE
Jack zooms back from below, carrying an empty, battered security box with him.
 

JACK ROCKET
Got something that will help.  
 

PANEL FOUR
Hound Doug sniffs the box carefully while Jack explains to the Pack.
 

JACK ROCKET
I figured it'd be too hard to pick out a stranger's scent. But the stuff he stole might all smell the same.
 

PANEL FIVE
Hound Doug's face is serious, while visions of dog breeds swirl about him. 
 

HOUND DOG
Did you know dogs can tell the shapes of smell like humans can see patches of color? 
 

PANEL SIX
Jack Rocket and Resplendence on the roof, as seen from Hound Dog's "smell-o-vision" point of view, patchworked, a kaleidoscope of vibrant outlines.  
 

RESPLENDENCE
No. That sounds amazing though. 
 

PAGE TWELVE
 

PANEL ONE
The Sundowner Motel, a lonely series of two-story motel rooms along a lonely street. It, too, is in “smell-o-vision,” all overlaid with a mosaic of prismatic colors. Various patches are labeled with callout balloons, but instead of words, some callouts have small icons of various dog breeds, and others have doggie emoticons. A smiley dog face, a tongue-wagging face, an angry growl … 
 

PANEL TWO
Inside a motel room, the lights are dim except for the harsh glow of the TV, which is probably for the best in a run-down, used-up motel like this. The Death’s Head Bandit, in just his white tanktop and boxers, lies on the bed, idly watching the commercials while enjoying a sumptuous fast food feast.  
 

TELEVISION
“…long-lasting freshness and a whiter smile! What better way to brighten your day!” 
 

PANEL THREE
Sudden swirls of orange! Bursts of yellow! And white, white, white! A fantastic light array explodes around the room! The Bandit flinches in panic, sending food flying!   
 

DEATH’S HEAD BANDIT
What the #@&%?!  
 

PANEL FOUR
The window shatters as Jack Rocket leaps through, zooming into the room! 
 

JACK ROCKET
Stop right there, Death’s Head Bandit! You have stuff that doesn’t belong to you! Where is it!? 
 

PAGE THIRTEEN 
 

PANEL ONE
The Bandit, still on the bed, cowers against the wall as best he can, while Jack zips with hyper-speed to different parts of the room, appearing in many different places at once! 
 

SOUND FX
(multiple)
Zip! Shwoop! Zoom!  
 

JACK ROCKET
(at the dresser)
Is it here? 
 

JACK ROCKET
(at the night stand) 
Is it here? 
 

JACK ROCKET
(at the closet)
Is it here? 
 

PANEL TWO
Jack’s stands under the mattress, on the boxspring, and holding the front half of the mattress high above his head. The Bandit goes tumbling off the other end. Jack holds the thief’s small duffel bag in his other hand. 
 

JACK ROCKET
Or is it here! A-ha! 
 

PANEL THREE
Jack, speaking mostly to himself.
 

JACK ROCKET
But where’s the Creeper tech? Hand it over!
 

PANEL FOUR
The Bandit, from his undignified sprawl on the floor, begins to pull the blaster gun from a black sack behind the TV stand. 
 

DEATH’S HEAD BANDIT
What... this? But I like my new Death Ray! 
 

PANEL FIVE 
The Bandit fires the gun, releasing a tremendous cascade of energy. Jack barely zooms upward, out of the way! 
 

SOUND FX
ZZzzhh!
 

DEATH’S HEAD BANDIT
Drop it, you little snot!   
 

PAGE FOURTEEN 
 

PANEL ONE
Jack trips into the side table and lamp, tumbling himself, the bag, the table, and its contents together as a giant swath of energy scars the wall just above him. 
 

JACK ROCKET
(mumbling)
Too … cramped in here! 
 

PANEL TWO 
Through the broken window, Resplendence cries out.
 

RESPLENDENCE
Jack Rocket!  
 

PANEL THREE
The Bandit grins with that annoyance born from cockiness, putting his skull mask on with his free hand. 
 

DEATH’S HEAD BANDIT
Another one? Come on, kids, really.  
 

PANEL FOUR 
Resplendence throws her hands outward. Her body is glowing, barely an outline in the burst of light she is forcibly throwing into the room. The swirls and bursts match those from earlier. 
 

RESPLENDENCE
Nnnn-aaaaaaah! 
 

PANEL FIVE 
The Bandit throws his arms up against the luminosity. 
 

DEATH HEAD’S BANDIT
Urgh! 
 

PAGE FIFTEEN 
 

PANEL ONE, inset
With one arm still cradling his face, the Bandit blindly shoots from the back wall, tracing deadly arcs of energy.
 

SOUND FX
Ffzzzh-hzzfF!
 

DEATH’S HEAD BANDIT
#@&%!&$+#!  
 

PANEL TWO, low angle 
A giant death-beam of energy pierces into the night from the second-floor motel room, sending off bits of wall, balcony, and what’s left of the window. Small and vulnerable by comparison, the tiny figure of Resplendence is flying backward in the air … with Jack Rocket carrying her along! 
 

RESPLENDENCE
Whoa-oooh!
 

JACK ROCKET 
Resplendence! Got you! 
 

PANEL THREE
Jack Rocket in hyper-speed, first flying down to the ground, then zooming away through the parking lot.
 

RESPLENDENCE
But … I thought you can’t carry people when you rocket! 
 

JACK ROCKET 
I can carry momentum. You jumped for a second, and that’s enough.        
 

PANEL FOUR
Making a strange figure in his skull-mask and underwear, the Bandit proceeds down the hall, leaving his smoking motel room. 
 

DEATH’S HEAD BANDIT
(muttering)
Flying kids, finger fireworks, too much #@&%!& X-Files $+#! ‘round here. 
 

PANEL FIVE
At the corner of the alleyway behind the motel, the Bandit holds his ray gun high like he thinks a cop would on TV as he rounds a dumpster.
 

DEATH’S HEAD BANDIT
Hey, kid! So you want this gun? Gonna try to take it~ ~?             
 

PAGE SIXTEEN
 

FULL PAGE SPREAD, from the Bandit’s POV
Hound Doug stands, arms folded, with Resplendence and Jack Rocket similar on either side of him. Dozens upon dozens of dogs of all breeds swarm the rest of the alleyway, all focused and tense. 
 

SOUND FX
(scattered around)
Grrr…
 

HOUND DOUG
Go on. Say it. “You and what army.”  
 

PAGE SEVENTEEN
 

PANEL ONE
The Bandit is nearly bit in two as a small pup leaps up and bites him on the wrist, which also twists his body back. But the Bandit’s still got hold of the gun! 
 

DEATH’S HEAD BANDIT 
Gaaah! What —?! 
 

PANEL TWO
The Bandit swivels, both hands on the barrel, to blast the death ray at full blast! 
 

DEATH’S HEAD BANDIT 
You want me to just give you my damn gun!? Who the hell are you kids? 
 

PANEL THREE
Resplendence and Hound Doug dodge in opposite directions, with the dog army also scattering to avoid the crackling, deadly beam!
 

PANEL FOUR 
Jack Rocket socks the Bandit in the jaw, propelled by a short rocket burst, and the bad guy is tripped thanks to a shaggy sheep dog leaning opposite, against the Bandit’s quads. Classic prank move, Jack Rocket-style! In his surprise, the Bandit’s grip is loose; the gun is dropped! 
 

JACK ROCKET
We. Are. HEROES! 
 

DEATH’S HEAD BANDIT
Erg! 
 

PANEL FIVE 
Death’s Head Bandit flinches, filling the panel with his skull-eyes widened and defensive hands raised as the sounds of the dogs begin to swallow him.
 

SOUND FX (various)
Grrr! Grrr-rrr! Growl! Grrr!
 

DEATH’S HEAD BANDIT
Ah! Aaaaah! 
 

PAGE EIGHTEEN
 

PANEL ONE
The Death’s Head Bandit finds himself splayed on the ground, with dogs of all kinds biting or sitting on his limbs and body. Hound Doug kneels nearby, patting the heads of his still-vigilant guardians.
 

HOUND DOUG
And heroes’-best-friends!
 

DEATH'S HEAD BANDIT
No! No, you're just kids! 
 

PANEL TWO
In a low angle from the Bandit's perspective, Jack looms large.
 

JACK ROCKET
"Heroes" is what we *do.* Doesn't matter what we *are.* You're all about greed and selfishness. You're a villain.
 

DEATH'S HEAD BANDIT
Look, kid...
 

JACK ROCKET (cont'd)
Jack Rocket.  
 

PANEL THREE
Resplendence turns over the death ray gun, gingerly, as if it's a overripe fruit. Jack sidles up to consider it as well. 
 

RESPLENDENCE
Hmm. We should take this. Oh, it's so ugly.
 

JACK ROCKET
Where did he get it? Can we track it?
 

PANEL FOUR    
Hound Doug is still kneeling among his companions guarding the Bandit, but is looking up toward his teammates. 
 

DEATH'S HEAD BANDIT
Just some guy off of I-40, I swear! 
 

HOUND DOUG
I have no idea what that means. 
 

PANEL FIVE
Turning his head as much as possible, defeated, the Bandit is resigned to his fate.
 

DEATH'S HEAD BANDIT
So... what? You got a win, kids. It's over. Now, stop it. 
 

PAGE NINETEEN
 

PANEL ONE
In a low angle from the Bandit's POV, Jack Rocket and Hound Doug are looking down, regarding him.
 

JACK ROCKET
Will the dogs watch over him until the police arrive?
 

HOUND DOUG
Oh, sure! 
 

PANEL TWO
Hound Doug stands, stridently commanding with a pointed finger to the dogs arrayed around the Bandit's prone body. 
 

HOUND DOUG
Stay!
 

PANEL THREE
The Death's Head Bandit makes a sad and vulnerable figure in his underwear and skull mask. He sits, huddled in the alley, alone except for the army of dogs all watching him intently.
 

PANEL FOUR
At the rooftop of the bank, from their first arrival to Holbrook, Jack Rocket zooms up to join the other young heroes. Resplendence holds up her smartphone. 
 

JACK ROCKET
Done! I put all the money and stuff back. I just left it in a pile in the old vault. They won't mind.  
 

RESPLENDENCE
OK! One last look, everyone! I'm chiming us back! 
 

PANEL FIVE
Three soft bursts of light appear atop the bank from a distance.
 

SOUND FX
Tz-iiing! 
 

PAGE TWENTY
 

PANEL ONE, wide, along the top
One of the wide, cozy caverns of the Action Base serves as a Rec Room. Chimeara sits on a long semi-circular couch with a mug of cocoa. Kia and Spotty are curled up to her, sleeping. Over her shoulder, she notices the other heroes entering.

 

CHIMEARA
Oh, you're back! Most everybody went home, but these bugaboos were jealous and demanded cocoa.  
 

PANEL TWO
Hound Doug's face falls.
 

HOUND DOUG
Wha--! I want some! 
 

PANEL THREE
Chimeara lovingly cradles her own mug.
 

CHIMEARA
Nope. Adventure or cocoa. They said it was only fair. 
 

PANEL FOUR
Resplendence flops her arms over the couch to grin upwards at the matronly dragon.
 

RESPLENDENCE
But, we did just triumph over evil, so... 
 

CHIMEARA
I see! Well. Now *that* calls for ice cream. 
 

PANEL FIVE 
Jack sheepishly tries to justify himself.
 

JACK ROCKET
Justice is its own reward... But ice cream makes a just dessert? 
 

PANEL SIX, wide, along the bottom
Jack climbs over the couch to join the younger heroes, who begin to waken. Resplendence reaches out to her little brother, Spotty, and Hound Doug sits down on the end. It's a classic picture of friends and family. 
Chimeara has moved away, into the foreground and smiles to herself at the scene behind her. But is it worry or fear that clouds her pug-like face? 
 

CHIMEARA (to herself)
Oh, Jack, if only there were enough ice cream in the world for, well... Rest easy, my herolings. While you may! 
 

​

NOT THE END