The Terrifics (2018) #16 NM (9.4) cover A Plastic Man Dark Nights Metal

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Dark Meddle

Storytellers: Ivan Reis & Jeff Lemire

Inker: Joe Prado

Colorist: Marcelo Maiolo

Letterer: Tom Napolitano

Cover: Reis with Miaolo

Cover Price: $2.99

On Sale Date: February 28, 2018

**NON SPOILERS AND SCORE AT THE BOTTOM**

The moment we’ve all been waiting for! Seeking to fill a Fantastic void left over in Marvel’s publishing schedule, this book was announced, ohh…July 2017? Maybe in August. And I’ve been chomping at the bit ever since to check it out. So let’s delay no longer! Have a look at my review ofThe Terrifics #1, just below!

Explain It!

It is no secret that I love wacky superhero teams.The Doom Patrol, Batman and the Outsiders, Secret Six, various iterations of the Suicide Squad, I love ‘em all. I think I like strange heroes making the unlikely decision to band together, and perhaps overcoming their poor self-esteem to do good deeds. Or maybe I just like it when stretchy folks hang out with people made of chalk. Whatever it is, that has been the real draw to this comic book for me, and not the obvious allusion to Marvel’s Fantastic Four. That dig is just a little icing on this cake, for me.

Spinning out of theDark Knights: Metal event that has yet to actually conclude, this issue gives away a little of the ending that is due out in March (I think.) Seems Simon Stagg is trying to access the Dark Multiverse for some greedy reason, and using Metamorpho’s ability to convert into Nth Metal to do it. Things have gone tits up, and Mr. Terrific shows up on the scene in an awesome expanding T-sphere that perked my S.H.A.D.E. sense…Jeff Lemire did write a great series featuring the group during the New 52, after all. Mr. Terrific’s brought Plastic Man in his dormant egg form, explaining later that he’s got some molecular wibbly-wobbly that makes him resistant to the Dark Multiversal something-or-other—this gets more fleshed-out in the final issue to Dark Nights: Metal, I presume. Whatever the case, Metamorpho goes bonkers and breaks free of his bonds, releasing Multiversal goo everywhere that subsumes our heroes and tosses ‘em into Green Hell.

After this, it’s just the three fellas getting to know each other through gags and a dire situation while tracking down a signal that turns out to be Linnya, better known as Phantom Girl. How she wound up standing in some giant’s corpse in the Dark Multiverse is unknown, but she turns out to be pretty helpful in warding off some huge chiggers that beset Mr. Terrific, Plastic Man, and Metamorpho upon landing. Turns out the signal followed, however, wasn’t to Phantom Girl, but to some kind of a beacon stashed elsewhere in the gross corpse—and it’s a distress message from none other than Tom Strong! Yes, the Alan Moore one!

And it almost doesn’t bear saying that the art team of Reis, Prado and Miaolo has, once again, put out something visually incredible. I enjoyed seeing how Plas was rendered best, still “cartoonish” against the more realistic forms of Mr. Terrific and the others, but quite tangible and present. The story is just a lot of fun, and while it’s a little disappointing to get this issue before the conclusion of the event that was supposed to create it, I can’t rightly blame this series for that. How’s this for a tagline, put this on your trade collection cover: “Jeff Lemire and Ivan Reis’The Terrifics is…pretty keen!”

Bits and Pieces:

A great introduction issue, even for people unfamiliar with any of the characters. This book stands very well on its own merits, and not just as a tweak to the Marvelous Competition. There's some spoilers forDark Nights: Metal, that I presume can't be helped, but screw it: we've waited for a team book like this for long enough.

8.5/10

colorist : Marcelo Maiolo inker : Joe Prado cover : Reis with Miaolo storytellers : Ivan Reis & Jeff Lemire letterer : Tom Napolitano