Prince: Pop Star. Movie Star. Comic Book Hero?

"Visionary" and "ahead of his time" are terms that were never wasted on Prince.

The pop legend who was found dead Thursday at his Paisley Park Studios in Minnesota proved that as a wildly influential singer-songwriter-multi-instrumental musician in the recording industry, building a catalog of critical, commercial and classic hits like "1999," "When Doves Cry," "Kiss," "Cream" and many others.

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But Prince wasn't content to keep his creative contributions confined to the musical world.

He starred in Purple Rain, a 1984 musical tied to his massively successful album of the same name. He then directed and starred in 1986's Under the Cherry Moon, before writing, directing and starring in a Purple Rain sequel of sorts, 1990's Graffiti Bridge.

And decades before mainstream popular culture achieved "peak superhero" thanks to movies like The Avengers and The Dark Knight, the Purple One provided songs for the soundtrack of the film that laid the groundwork for the current proliferation of comic book-based movies, Tim Burton's Batman (1989).

Two years later, though, Prince took things a step further with his own comic book. No, it wasn't a comic that he wrote or drew. He was the title character of Prince: Alter Ego, a fictionalized account of the artist that was published by Piranha Press, a now-shuttered imprint of DC Comics, the company that owns Batman and Superman.

That's right. Along with all his other monumental achievements, Prince also has a line on his résumé that reads, "Comic Book Hero." How that compares to "Style Icon" and "Musical God" is a debate for the ages.

The comic―written by the late Dwayne McDuffie and illustrated by Denys Cowan and Kent Williams―is quintessential Prince: enigmatic, sexy, stylish, with a few motorcycle-riding flourishes thrown in for good measure.

Set in the pop star's real-life hometown of Minneapolis, the story deals with Prince pondering the nature of creativity with his literal and figurative muse (who goes by the name, conveniently enough, of Muse) while battling his one-time friend, now musical rival, Gemini.

The two had been bandmates, but the differences in their musical styles become too much of a strain on their personal professional relationships:

Each is convinced of the correctness of his vision. Prince believes the music must be used to nurture the human spirit; Gemini, to unleash the primal urges and free the rage within humanity.

In the end, they agree to disagree.

That disagreement, however, leads to a greater rift that ends their creative collaboration, as well as their friendship. It's a rift that is described in terms immediately identifiable to any superhero geek:

Twin cities, twin men.

Dark has the light, yin has its yang and Batman has his Joker.

And did we mention that Prince also does a bang-up job of curbing gang violence in his hometown, thanks not only to his words ("I thought you were supposed to be leaders. What happens to your people if you start a war with each other?" he tells two gang leaders, who then relinquish their weapons and shake hands), but also his general badassery?

For all its faults, the final panels in the Prince: Alter Ego do provide a fitting tribute to an inventive and bold artist who was a creative force of nature that couldn't be contained to just one medium.

BTW, for any crass collectors and speculators out there: A new eBay listing for the comic has the seller asking $375 or best offer. Older listings have prices ranging from $75 to $9.99, depending on the book's condition.

(Interesting side note: Alter Ego might be the rock star's first official comic book appearance, but Ace, a character with some very heavy Prince influences mixed in with a bit of mid-'80s Michael Jackson iconography, appeared in two Spider-Man comics in 1985 and 1986. You be the judge.)

ARTWORK: Excerpts from Prince: Alter Ego, written by Dwayne McDuffie and illustrated by Denys Cowan and Kent Williams. Main image illustrated by Brian Bolland (Piranha Press | DC Comics); Ace from the cover of Peter Parker, the Spectacular Spider-Man Annual #6, illustrated by Mark Beachum (Marvel Comics)