Spoilers: Something new is coming from DC with a new age of Heroes and the fate of the Multiverse may be in their hands. The Terrifics #1 is a great story with a direct tie-in to the outstanding series Dark Nights Metal. Metal is a series about an evil force from the Dark Multiverse which has invaded the DC Universe using special elemental metals as a conduit for power. The Dark Universe is a dark image of the Multiverse full of evil nightmare versions of people and events that should not exist and eventually shift out of focus over time.
The Dark Universe threatens to invade the Multiverse and gets stronger every day which is where the Terrifics come into the story. This is the story of the birth of the team bringing some characters who have been around for some time but have not been featured in a major way for a while. Let’s review the characters found in the Terrifics.
First up is the leader of the team, Mister Terrific. Michael Holt is a brilliant scientist and engineer who has spent the last few years hopping between different Earths before the Dark Multiverse catastrophe brought him to ours to stay. He is noted for his tiny free-floating supercomputers called T-Spheres that obey his commands. They are connected to his thoughts and able to do many remarkable things. Mister Terrific is amazing in self-defense with hands that are lethal. He is one of the most respected scientific minds in the DC Universe, and someone even Batman looks to for help in the lab when things get really serious.
Next, is Metamorpho, the Element Man. Rex Mason’s superpower is the ability to literally transmute his body into any element or combination of elements, meaning he’s able to shapeshift into just about anything. Since the Dark Multiverse invasion, Rex’s powers have been not worked very well overwritten by the pull of the Dark Multiverse’s metal-based powers.
Plastic Man is next, Eel O’Brien. He was made of a special compound that allows him to bend, shift and transform like rubber or plastic. He’s almost completely indestructible except like Metamorpho the invasion of Dark Metal was affecting his physiology a lot so Batman has been keeping him locked in an egg-shaped form in isolation for quite some time for his safety.
Finally, there’s Phantom Girl but not the Phantom Girl of the Legion of Superheroes from the future named Tinya Wazzo but the mystery woman’s name is similar, Linna Wazzo. No key yet what her relationship or connection to Tinya is at this point in the story. Of course, she has the ability to go intangible. Here is a strange team for a strange adventure. Ivan Reis and Jeff Lamier are the storytellers and artwork by Joe Prado and Marcelo Maiolo.
Story and art are good with a guest appearance from Tom Strong on the last page. Tom Strong was created by Alan Moore, who brought him to comics in the pages of Strongmen of America and America’s Best. Tom Strong is a Science Hero in absolute peak physical condition, who is noted for his fantastic adventures with his family. DC has the rights to the character and are introducing him in this series.
Bound together by fate, united by the spirit of exploration and hope for tomorrow, the Terrifics bound from the Dark Multiverse of Meta! When Mr. Terrific, Metamorpho, Plastic Man and Phantom Girl find themselves literally bound together by a tragic accident, our team of unlikely allies must rely on one another to make their way back home. But a startling revelation on their return trip brings them face to face with a new mystery: where in the universe is Tom Strong?
THE TERRIFICS #1 by Ivan Reis, Jeff Lemire, Joe Prado and Marcelo Maiolo is now available in print and as a digital download.