The Tick Omnibus #1

The Tick, fresh off a stint in the nuthouse, stumbles into The City with a mission to be a superhero—despite having no powers, no plan, and a very questionable grasp on reality. When ninjas attack and a train nearly ends his brief career, he’s still no closer to proving he’s anything more than a walking punchline.

In "Night of a Million-Zillion Ninja," The Tick finds himself caught in a chaotic standoff when Oedipus Ashley Stevens tries to keep the Thorn of Oblivion from a horde of ninjas—despite the fact that she originally stole it from them. Trapped inside Oedipus' house, the unlikely trio of The Tick, Oedipus, and her parents, Reginald and Amanda Stevens, are forced to endure a dinner party that grows increasingly surreal as the ninjas outside grow more determined.

In "A Big Fight," The Tick and Oedipus Ashley Stevens find themselves ambushed at a dinner party by a squad of ninjas, plunging the evening into chaos. As the attack escalates, The Tick’s grip on reality frays, leading him to an absurdly grand plan to obliterate Ninja World—while Paul the Samurai, armed with nothing but a loaf of French bread, races across the globe to confront his nemesis Sagin. Meanwhile, Arthur steps in to help untangle the madness, and the Thorn of Destiny looms as a mysterious key to the escalating absurdity.

In "Villans Inc.", The Tick stumbles into a bizarre scheme when The Running Guy attempts to stage a fake showdown with the fearsome villain The Red Scare to boost his own heroic credentials—only to have his plans derailed by the absurdly confident presence of The Tick and an unexpected guest named Arthur.

In this offbeat, deadpan gem from The Tick Omnibus #1, The Tick patrols the city with his usual mix of absurdity and determination, bumping into Brachiating Man, who proposes a partnership to eradicate crime entirely. The Tick, ever focused on the immediate fight rather than grand solutions, remains committed to his mission—though not necessarily the method.