Image Comics Announces New Super Hero Series ‘Midlife (Or How To Hero At Fifty!)’

by Olly MacNamee

Writer Brian Buccellato (No/One, The Flash, Chicken Devil) and artist Stefano Simeone (The Last Days of Black Hammer, Radiant Black) are re-teaming for new ongoing Image Comics’ series, Midlife (Or How to Hero at Fifty!), debuting this October.

We have a full synopsis, a first look and statements by the creators to share with you below:

“Ruben Kwan is a 50-year-old firefighter who’s been afraid of fire his whole life. Instead of running into burning buildings, he pushes papers, living in the shadow of his father—who died a hero on the job. After 25 years in the LAFD, he’s firmly in the middle of an unremarkable life… until his new wife gets pregnant and a random act of courage reveals that Ruben is FIREPROOF! Readers won’t want to miss out on this totally relatable (sometimes cringey) story of a middle-aged dad who’s about to find out that his new powers have major strings attached.”

“I’m super excited to tell this weirdly personal story that is tonally closer to my recent Aftershock series, Chicken Devil. It’s a combination of grounded, humorous, dark, and absurd—featuring a biracial fifty-year-old rookie hero who accepts the challenge of using his newfound powers for good… even if he does have a bad back and creaky knees. It’s also an opportunity to tell a superhero story from a different point of view, with a protagonist who is half Chinese and half Puerto Rican and drawn from my own life experience as a father starting a new family again at fifty.” – Brian Buccellato

“When Brian first talked to me about his idea for Midlife my son had just been born, so I can relate a lot with this. Ruben is 50 and I’m in my 30s, but I feel older. So now I just need superpowers. I hope people will enjoy this series, it has so much heart and action, I think we all need someone like Ruben to protect us in real life.” – Stefano Simeone