The Human Zoo Somewhere in San Diego, a mysterious figure calling himself the Beast seems to be in some kind of pain and is searching for the source of the screaming monkeys he hears in his head.
Meanwhile, Buddy Baker, no longer content with operating as a "small-time" hero, strives to make his way into the big leagues. He begins practicing his powers by tapping into the physical characteristics of cats, birds, fish, and spiders. To further promote himself, he makes an ill-advised guest appearance on the Dick Griffith Show. Griffith humiliates him on national television, and Buddy decides to beef up his look by adding a leather jacket to his costume.
Elsewhere, in an alleyway, the Beast is attacked by a mugger, who he kills without hesitation, before finding his way to a S.T.A.R. Labs facility, the apparent source of the sound he had been tormented by.
Later, Buddy responds to an emergency at S.T.A.R. Labs. There, Doctor Myers - who had been working on a cure for the AIDS virus - tells him that he was hoping for Superman but will settle for Animal Man regardless. He shows him one of the lab's animal testing facilities, ransacked with broken cages and emptied medical containers all over the floor. The test monkeys have somehow been fused into a gelatinous ball.
