NAME

As far as the Walshes go, the last name came first. It was the name of the ‘company’ my cousin and I started while playing our Role Playing Game. Eventually we just adopted it as our last name. I guess we thought it would be easier for people to identify us if we had the same name as the lagest corporate entity in that world.

As for the First name, I chose it while writing the ‘Shadow Force’ movie script. I convinced Chris that we needed to give the characters different names so that we could write them objectively, so Tim Aikin became ‘Tom Walsh.’

His callsign, Starstriker, was the name of a character I had created a long time ago, while playing the RPG. It seemed like a good fit, given his abilities.

APPEARANCE

His look and attitude are also mostly based on my own. I think it comes through most when he is arguing with Kevin. In fact, most of the dialogue between them is pulled straight from arguements and running jokes between Chris and I.

ROLE IN THE COMIC

Tom started Walsh Inc. with his cousin, Kevin, when they reunited after several years of living on opposite coasts. Although he is a shrewd businessman and cunning negotiator, Tom is known for being the ‘conscience’ of the company. He is a humanitarian who always puts the public's interests before his own and sometimes before Walsh's.

Tom's personality is based in part on my own. My cousin Chris and I created an RPG many years ago and Tom represents the role I took on while playing it. As a result, Tom is optimistic, charitable, compassionate, and a real team player.

Mostly, he serves to balance out what Kevin does, like story-telling inertia; for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction.

THEMES

Of all the many, many, many themes that run through this comic, Tom's are probably the most inspirational. What I really want to get across with this charcter is the triumph of the human spirit. Tom is often the only person around who acts selflessly, but he never lets that deter him. He would be a knight in shinig armor if I've ever seen one.

Tom is also a living example of a liberal democrat. He believes that large corporations and governments should use their money and power to help the less fortunate, and raise the quality of life for society as a whole.

There is a sub-theme, if you will, about super-heroes and the roles that their powers often relegate them to in popular comics. Tom is the ‘speedy guy’ who would typically be the comic relief or hot-headed second stringer in any other super team. But with Shadow Force, I really wanted to stay far away from stereotypical characters, so Tom is the selfless, cool headed leader of the team instead. He uses his speed much like his other non-super powers; to take quick, decisive action.