Barry Hubris

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caption = Barry Hubris
character_name = Barry Hubris
publisher = New England Comics Press
debut = "The Tick" #11, August 1992
creators = Ben Edlund
alter_ego =
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Barry Hubris is a wannabe superhero turned supervillain in The Tick Comics, created by Ben Edlund and published by New England Comics Press.

As a superhero known as the Tick, he first appears in "The Tick" #11 at the Comet Club, in New York City where he encounters the Tick. Barry, feeling that the Tick is trying to steal his own superhero persona fights, but loses to the Tick. The result of this battle is that Barry is divested of his pseudonym and all of his superhero possessions, including his "Tick Cave" and they are awarded to the Tick and Arthur. Barry descends into melancholy and refuses to wear clothing of any kind, a state that those who are forced to associate with him find unsettling.

As the Tick, Barry's arch-enemies are the Evileers led by The Terror. After the Tick's victory, Barry attempts to engage the Evilleers hoping they will destroy the Tick and he can reclaim his possessions. This becomes a running theme as Barry tries various schemes to regain his superhero name, including getting the Tick recommitted to Evanston Asylum, teaming up with the Tick's enemies and obtaining the Thorn of Oblivion, a powerful ninja artifact. While Barry goes from superhero to supervillain, it is clear that he is not really committed to evilness, but simply obsessed with destroying the Tick and anyone who gets in his way. After the Tick is returned to Evanston Clinic, Barry reassumes the Tick's persona, but goes on a rampage against heroes and villains alike, prompting several supervillains, including Chairface Chippendale to fly to Evanston to liberate the Tick. In the "The Tick's Big Summer Annual 1", he battles another of the Tick's antagonists, the Chainsaw Vigilante.

It is later revealed that Barry was an inmate at the Evanston Clinic at the same time as the Tick and escaped when the latter did. Mighty Agrippa also reveals that Barry never has had an original superhero idea and merely attacks and defeats other superheros in order to appropriate their persona until he gets bored and goes looking for a new one. Besides the Tick, Barry has also been known as The Louse, Captain Two-by-Four, The Beachnik, The Cheese Wizard, The Littlest Girl Scout and Buttery Lobster.

In "The Tick: Days of Drama" series Barry has relocated to Blissville, a town where superheroes and villains coexist symbiotically by scripting crimes and fights. Barry spends his time constantly mowing his lawn -- a situation that prevents him from hearing the voices in his head -- and doing so while still nude.

Barry's weapon is a shield which has superhuman crushing power. He also has a lobotomized dog, named Host.

Appearances in other media

Barry Hubris appears in the "The Tick" animated television series in the episode, "The Tick vs. The Tick" (Episode Seven, Season One - Original air date: 10/22/1994). The episode is based on the story which appeared in "The Tick" 11, as the Tick defeats Barry at the Comet Club for the rights to the name. Jim Cummings provided the voice of Barry Hubris. Prior to the cancellation of the show, a script was written for a fourth season episode which would have featured the return of Barry, and explained that he was the brother of Arthur's girlfriend, Carmelita Vatos.

Bibliography

* "The Tick" 11-12, August 1992-May 1993
* "The Tick: Big Blue Destiny" 4, April 1998
* "The Tick: Luny Bin" 0-3, July 1998-December 1998
* "The Tick's Big Yule Log Special 1999", December 1998
* "Tick & Arthur" 1-3, February 1999-June 1999
* "The Tick's Big Summer Annual" 1, July 1999
* "The Tick Heroes of the City" 5, September 1999
* "The Tick's Big Tax Time Terror" 1, April 2000
* "The Tick Pseudo-Edition" 13, November 2000
* "The Tick in Color" 4-5, August 2001-October 2001
* "The Tick Days of Drama" 1-2, 4, 6, July 2005-June 2006

External links

* [http://www.thetick.ws/comvillains.html The Tick! Gallery of Cartoon Villains and Supervillains]
* [http://home.jps.net/~lsnyder/3_tick.html The Ticklopedia: Baby to Boils]
* [http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0191906/ IMDb entry for Jim Cummings]