Elementals (Comico Comics)

Last updated
Elementals
Publication information
Publisher Texas Comics, Comico
First appearance Justice Machine Annual #1 (1983)
Created by Bill Willingham
In-story information
Member(s)Morningstar
Vortex
Fathom
Monolith

Elementals is an American superhero comic book first published in 1984 and created by Bill Willingham, for which he was both writer and artist.

Contents

Publication history

The Elementals first appeared in the Justice Machine Annual, published by Texas Comics in 1983. [lower-alpha 1] [lower-alpha 2] The Elementals were supposed to become a bimonthly series, alternating with the Justice Machine, but Texas Comics folded after publishing the one comic. [3] [4] After Texas Comics folded, The Elementals were taken over by Comico Comics.

In a variety of specials and limited series, Comico published Elementals until 1996. Comico's publisher, Andrew Rev, purchased the Elementals property from Willingham in the 1990s.[ citation needed ]

Fictional setting and characters

When a centuries-old sorcerer named Lord Saker built a machine called the Shadowspear to harness the supernatural powers of the world, he upset the natural order of the universe. In response, the four elements, unimaginably powerful spirits who together formed the foundation of existence, each chose an ordinary human who had been killed by their element, and resurrected him or her. They granted each member control of that particular element, eternal youth, and the ability to heal from any wound (given sufficient time). The team consisted of:

The four eventually defeated Saker and his minions, the Destroyers, a team of six: Shapeshifter, Annihilator, Chrysalis, Behemoth, Ratman (who later changed sides), and Electrocutioner. [lower-alpha 3]

Shadowspear, once released from Saker's control, formed a giant malevolent thunderstorm that circled the globe, occasionally transforming animals and corpses into monsters, thus keeping the Elementals busy for many years.

Reception

Martin A. Stever reviewed Elementals in Space Gamer/Fantasy Gamer No. 83. [5] Stever commented that "Willingham's imagination must be on overdrive to come up with some of the far out ideas in Elementals". [5]

Bibliography

One-shots and mini-series

Spin-offs

Trade paperback collection

Notes

  1. Texas Comics, based in Houston, was the creation of a few comic book fans who had previously worked together on a fanzine called Comics Informer. The company operated out of the offices of the retailer Camelot Comics. [1]
  2. Justice Machine Annual also featured a crossover between the Justice Machine and the T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents, [2] a famous 1960s superhero team originally published by Tower Comics.
  3. The Destroyers and an early version of Saker known as Doctor Apocalypse originally appeared in 1982 in Death Duel with the Destroyers and The Island of Doctor Apocalypse , two Willingham-written supplements for the superhero role-playing game Villains and Vigilantes .

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References

  1. Interview with Keith Wilson, Scoop . Archived at the Wayback Machine.[ dead link ]
  2. Sodaro, Robert J. "The Resplendent Sound of T.H.U.N.D.E.R.!" Comics Value Annual (1999). Archived on ThunderAgents.com,[ dead link ] which is archived on the Wayback Machine. Accessed Jan. 15, 2023.
  3. Texas Comics at the Grand Comics Database
  4. "Texas Comics Goes Under: Justice Machine Now Homeless", The Comics Journal #88 (Jan. 1984), p. 13.
  5. 1 2 Stever, Martin A. (October–November 1988). "The Ruler". Space Gamer/Fantasy Gamer (#83). World Wide Wargames: 29.