Silver Age

A young underachiever struggles to navigate his grandfather Gus's senile paranoia, attempting to establish a more personal connection before his mind deteriorates completely, all while unraveling the mystery of Gus's past with the help of a sinister stranger.

Elliot, a man in his thirties living in the apartment his family left to him, is asked by his father to take care of Gus, his grandfather in the midst of senility. Uncertain of his ability to handle such a weighty responsibility, Elliot is soon overwhelmed by his grandfather's fantastical, sometimes violent episodes of paranoia. When a mysterious letter with spidery handwriting arrives in the mail, Gus flies into a panicked rage and Elliot fears he's "broken" his grandfather. Elliot is awoken suddenly by Gus in the full throes of a fantasy wearing goggles and affecting a bizarre voice, his withered, but strong, hands firmly grasping at Elliot's shoulders.

Amidst all of this, Elliot is haunted by the name his grandfather keeps repeating: The Red Talon.

After fruitlessly enlisting the help of his childhood friend, Lucy, Elliot determines to track down the author of the enigmatic letter for answers. He finds a generous old man, Kurt, who offers to tell Elliot anything he wants to know about the man he considers his oldest friend…and his greatest enemy. When Elliot mentions The Red Talon, Kurt transforms from a kindly septuagenarian to a steely-eyed villain and reveals to him that Gus used to be a masked vigilante, and he his arch nemesis. Before fleeing the house, Kurt tells Elliot to ask his grandfather about Ben Kovak.

Rushing back home, Elliot finds Gus passed out on the couch, his trunk open and a collection of files bearing the name of a child missing since 1957: Ben Kovak. As Elliot questions whether he really knows anything about his grandfather, Kurt dons a pair of bright red laboratory gloves and washes the dishes, his gentle laughter crescendoing to a maniacal cackle.