Mr. Hood is the tale of Derek Roberts, a 22-year-old man living in the city of Bellport, whose link to the “Ares Bioform” has given him awesome powers—including the ability to sprout organic weapons, such as nail claws and bone-shard guns. When Derek’s adopted father (a Soviet defector and biochemist who was secretly the city’s first vigilante, “Saint Hood”) is murdered by an alliance of Russian and Italian mobsters, Derek tries to ignore his desire for revenge and live the kind of honorable life that would make his father proud. But when his father’s friend and colleague, Ed Levitt, betrays him by giving him the “Ares Bioform”—an organism said to be his father’s final experiment—Derek’s life is violently splintered.

The Bioform brings forth the dark side of Derek’s subconscious and his relentless obsession for revenge. Derek Roberts becomes a man torn in two. In the one half, he remains himself—a scared and confused young man who wants to be a hero. In the other, he is Mr. Hood—a terrifying engine of murder and mayhem that will avenge his father’s memory at the cost of his father’s spirit.

Throughout his journey, Derek must separate his friends from his foes and figure out whom he can trust and who is manipulating him. He must overcome the bloodlust in his heart and make himself whole. Derek Roberts has to make Mr. Hood a hero. For if Mr. Hood is not a force of good, he will certainly become one of evil.

As an “urban” superhero saga, Mr. Hood is uniquely positioned to attract and galvanize a broad urban audience by presenting a superhero that they can recognize and relate to—one that mirrors their own culture, psyche, obstacles, struggles and triumphs. This particular target audience has been largely overlooked and is ripe for a tale of this nature.