Plastic Man, Phantom Girl, Metamorpho and Mr Terrific are off on a road trip. Through interdimensional space. While the guys are all from 21st-century Earth, Linnya Wazzo hails from the Planet Bgztl, the vagaries of the Dark Multiverse having separated her from her parents.
Happily, Mr Terrific - the third-smartest man around - can get her home, at least for a visit. She can’t be permanently parted from the gentlemen heroes because the Dark Multiverse has linked them in such a way that if any of them is more a mile from the others... BOOM! Still, it’s not a bad day to be Phantom Girl.
The road home isn’t without bumps, though. The Terrifics - newly named by Plastic Man - are sucked up by a cosmic vacuum cleaner, out to collect space rubbish and sell it for scrap. Soon, the gang are having a Star Wars moment.
I won’t spoil the hi-jinks that ensue. Safe to say, though, that storytellers Jeff Lemire and Evan ‘Doc’ Shaner, in their first collaboration on this series, gel wonderfully. The dialogue is full of personality and point, while the art is the work of a born storyteller.
The heroes look splendid, the spaceship setting suitably imposing and the Monster of the Week threatening in a wonderfully wacky way. Where the book really scores, though, is in the final scenes on Bgztl, as high adventure is replaced by deep emotion.
The character interaction is wonderful; despite Plastic Man and Metamorpho having a bit of a prickly relationship, when there’s work to be done they mesh marvellously. Phantom Girl shows useful insight into a teammate. And dour old Mr Terrific makes a joke! Four very different people are coming together as a team, relaxing around one another.
Oh, and there’s an Easter Egg for old L.E.G.I.O.N. fans - keep an eye out!
The colours of Nathan Fairbairn and letters of Tom Napolitano add to the quality of a thoroughly enjoyable issue, one that’s topped off with a wild cover by Shaner.
Four issues in and this is a favourite series. If you’ve not yet checked it out, this is a great jumping-on point.
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The Terrifics #4 review, Evan ‘Doc’ Shaner, Jeff Lemire, Nathan Fairbairn, Tom Napolitano, DC Comics
A good issue! Glad Doc Shaner is finally handling the art for a few issues.
ReplyDeleteI might have missed the L.E.G.I.O.N. easter egg...unless it's a Klaramarian (the same race as Chun Yull, the Faceless Hunter from Saturn) among the junk ship's crew. Or maybe the dialect the crew's leader speaks? It's not Interlac as I know it, but it might be a precursor from L.E.G.I.O.N. It's been ages since I've read that book.
Check out the Bgztl background folk...
DeleteAh! I guess one of them looks like Phase. It's been a while since I've seen her.
DeleteI'm glad last issue has turned out to be a blip but I'm hoping Fake Phantom Girl gets some originality and Plas and Rex's conflict gets toned down...
ReplyDeleteReasonable requests!
DeleteIsn't Bgztl just out of phase with Earth?
ReplyDeleteThat’s how it was, yeah, it seemed to be a very off-model parallel Earth.
DeleteProbably my favorite issue of the series thus far. It's great that Jeff Lemire's finally gotten a tight hold over balancing his cast in an ensemble book; this is probably his second best team book after Black Hammer. The interactions among the characters are great, the book is funny, and the plot has been interesting so far. Adding Doc Shaner for two issues just sweetens the deal significantly. Shaner's probably one of the best artists working today, and he's perfect for this book.
ReplyDeleteThanks Sean, I’ve been meaning to try Black Hammer and you’ve given me the push I needed.
DeleteI was only vaguely interested in this book, but you put Doc Shaner on it, and I'm all, "BUT OF COURSE!" Now I want it.
ReplyDeleteIsn’t it mad he’s never had a mainstream DC book before now?
DeleteEye loved how friendly Michael was acting in this issue as well as Phantom Girl and Plastic Man's heart to heart but eye am a dullard what was the L.E.G.I.O.N. easter egg? Was Phase in the background of the last page?
ReplyDeleteSomeone who looks very much like her is in the panel where Linnya’s mother appears.
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