Tuesday, March 12, 2019

Review: THE TERRIFICS #1

THE TERRIFICS No. 1
DC COMICS – @DCComics

[This review was originally posted on Patreon.]

STORY: Jeff Lemire
PENCILS: Ivan Reis
INKS: Joe Prado
COLORS: Marcelo Maiolo
LETTERS: Tom Napolitano
32pp, Color, $2.99 U.S. (April 2018)

Rated “T” for Teen

The Terrifics created by Ivan Reis and Jeff Lemire

“Meet The Terrifics”

DC Comics has launched a new superhero comics initiative, “The New Age of DC Heroes,” coming out of its Dark Nights: Metal event miniseries.  This line of comic books will consist of eight new comic book series:  The Curse of Brimstone, Damage, The Immortal Men, New Challengers, Sideways, The Silencer, The Unexpected, and the subject of this review, The Terrifics.

The Terrifics is written by co-creator Jeff Lemire; drawn by co-creator Ivan Reis (pencils) and Joe Prado (inks); colored by Marcelo Maiolo; and lettered by Tom NapolitanoMister Terrific, Phantom Girl, Metamorpho, and Plastic Man are The Terrifics, a team of superheroes exploring the stranger aspects of space-time in order to find a way home.

The Terrifics #1 opens with Mr. Terrific barging into the lab of wacky scientist Simon Stagg... where he finds Metamorpho in a state of stress.  Stagg has created such a crisis situation that Mr. Terrific summons Plastic Man.  When this conflagration sends Mr. Terrific, Metamorpho, and Plastic Man to the Dark Multiverse, they find more mystery and Phantom Girl.

Since it was announced, comic book readers have declared that The Terrifics is DC Comics' version of Marvel Comics' venerable (but currently canceled) comic book series, Fantastic Four (FF).  Even if that were true, there is nothing in The Terrifics #1 that matches the imagination and epic storytelling of any issue of Fantastic Four produced by the FF creators, Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, nor any of the issues produced by beloved FF writer-artists, John Byrne or Walter Simonson.  Basically, if The Terrifics is DC's FF, then, DC Comics and its creators have decided to produce a tepid, dishwater version of the Fantastic Four.

That said, The Terrifics #1 has some potential to be a by-the-book superhero comic book that trades in inter-dimensional adventures and weird fiction.  I figure that it could run as long as Jeff Lemire's previous weirdo superhero comic book for DC, Frankenstein, Agent of S.H.A.D.E. (16 issues).

I do like the art team of Ivan Reis and Joe Prado, and I am intrigued by the surprise appearance of an Alan Moore-created character at the end of this first issue.  So I might return for some more.

5 out of 10

[This comic book contains a preview of The Curse of Brimstone #1 by Philip Tan, Justin Jordan, Rain Beredo, and Wes Abbott.]

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"


The text is copyright © 2018 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

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