These five issues are also the first story arc of the series, and feature the Destroyers - a supervillain group Willingham had created for the Villains and Vigilantes game. As superhero stories go, this one is pretty good. The world isn't heavily populated with other super-powered people, and there are real consequences to the violence involved in a super-powered combat - considerations that were rarely worried about in the Marvel and DC comics of the time.
This actually caused some controversy in the letters columns in the issues at the time. In this respect, the writing is good. Plot-wise, it's nothing exceptional - the main supervillain is planning to take over the world, the superheroes are out to stop that from happening.
Even so, Willingham mixes things up a bit and throws in some unusual circumstances. Still, there are times when the pacing doesn't seem right and it seems in a couple of the issues that Willingham was running out of pages to finish that issue's story and needed to cram a lot into the last few pages. So, the writing overall gets 3. Artwork - if you like Willingham's artwork and I do then there's a lot to like here. There are a couple of different inkers used during these issues, so there are some variances, but overall his art is strong.
The artwork gets 4. This is an excellent way to get into a superhero title that ran for a number of years with a variety of different publishers. Mar 06, Mike rated it really liked it Shelves: graphic-novel , superhero. Bill Willingham has found success with his Invincible comics as well as the wildly popular Fables series. Unfortunately, this series of comic books, from the early 80s, is often overlooked and, because it was published by such a small and now defunct company, it is very hard to find.
I didn't even know these existed until about fifteen years after the fact and I was only able to re-read this graphic novel after finding it in an old box of books. In a historical context, it is interesting to note Bill Willingham has found success with his Invincible comics as well as the wildly popular Fables series.
In a historical context, it is interesting to note the many references or send ups that are made to classic Marvel comics - something that wasn't really done all that much or to great success these characters basically are the Fantastic Four, but with serious mental issues and the inability to save lives.
Seeing as though these comics came out several years before Alan Moore's Watchmen, I believe Willingham deserves a lot more credit for changing the face of comics and this series should be right up there along with Sandman, Dark Knight, V for Vendetta, Marvels, and all the other cornerstones of the industry.
Aug 15, Renaud Germain rated it really liked it. N'est pas Gambit qui veut! A great series that is, sadly, hardly remembered. Willingham—who today is probably best known as the writer of Vertigo's Fables—draws and writes one of the best superhero books of the s.
It starts out strong here, and gets even better in the issues that follow if you can find them. An exciting, more mature take on the concept. May need seem revolutionary by today's standards, but at the time this was really a trend-setting book.
Because of that, I think it mostly holds up well today. Once Wil A great series that is, sadly, hardly remembered. Once Willingham was no longer involved, the book slid slowly into oblivion and irrelevance as Comico went bankrupt and the rights holder tried to cash in on what fan affection there was with poorly done new series and sex specials which were a "thing" in the 90s.
Jan 22, Troy-David Phillips rated it really liked it Shelves: comics-and-sequential-art. This volume is distilled from one of my favorite comic series of the s.
It introduces our main characters, principle antagonists, and the supernatural concepts that made this series so fantastic. It is a genuine shame that the entire series cannot be reprinted.
The art is solid, the story-telling equally so. This series would advance and expand the concepts and grow into a true magnum opus. The characters of Fathom, Morningstar, Vortex, and Monolith are well-developed, and their relationships, bo This volume is distilled from one of my favorite comic series of the s. The characters of Fathom, Morningstar, Vortex, and Monolith are well-developed, and their relationships, both with each other and their antagonists, are also well-built.
I recommend this volume for a truly unique presentation of a super-hero team book. Dec 28, Travis rated it really liked it Shelves: comic-books. An interesting attempt and one of the earliest to do super heroes in the real world.
Willingham hits a nice balance of big super hero action while also adding in politics, debates on morality and showing the violence has consequences. Lots of interesting characters and ideas. These early issues are the strongest and most focused.
Once Willingham stopped doing the art, the series seemed to lose some of it's focus. Great series with a great storyline. The story of 4 people who are selected to represent the Elements in the battle of good versus evil. Fire, Water, Earth, and Air. Willingham does a great job, it's a shame his series never made it to the big leagues. It matches and surpasses "popular" superhero sagas with no problem. Well worth a read if you can find it. Feb 21, Susan rated it it was amazing Shelves: comics-individual , comics , I actually have all the Elementals comics Become a Patron!
Some rights reserved. Terms of Service Legal Privacy. Register Log in. The Concept: Willingham admitted in later interviews that Elementals was created on the fly with very little pre-planning, but if you look back at the original work as a whole you see a number of things that could be grasped onto to create a new series. Comments iroberts says:. May 9, at pm. Oh 3 sets.. Ratman developed an infatuation with her.
Eventually, he makes his way to Seattle and wants to start a relationship with her. This doesn't go well when you're a wanted supervillain. Of course, in the process of using Ratman's feelings, Fathom did develop some general compassion for him. She realized that while violent, he wasn't entirely pathetic. Even so, she does thoroughly hurt him. When the Elementals' government liaison shows up to arrest Ratman, he escapes while still professing his affection for Fathom.
This builds from the events of Elementals It also features a wonderful buddy adventure with Morningstar and Fantasia Faust, the iron golem-turned-assassin.
They face off against the Dragon Argaud's son, Dave Dragavon, out for revenge for his father's death. The animosity earned between Fantasia and Dragavon gets revisited in Willingham's later adults-only series Ironwood.
There's a bit of farce, as Dave hasn't planned this out very well. We also see that the literally tough-as-nails assassin Fantasia has a soft spot for suffering animals. Morningstar's husband Merlin has a novel solution to Dave Dragavon's dilemma.
All the while, we get gorgeous artwork by Bill Willingham. This is the issue where the Oblivion War seemed to be kicking into high gear. The Elementals and Thor divvy up missions to follow some attacking spheres from the Oblivion planet. This issue follows the spheres that went to the prison where several members of the Destroyers are kept. With fantastic art by Adam Hughes , this issue stands out among all of the second series.
It shows how the Elementals fight their enemies, a little more ruthlessly than superheroes traditionally did at this time. We also get a single, normal person using the last of his strength to take out the commander of the Oblivion forces. This is a powerful issue, but as the cover shows, it could be very triggering to some people, for a variety of reasons. It's also more powerful if you've read some of the series, especially the first five issues.
This issue brings years of subplots to a head and completely shocks the reader. Morningstar's fiancee Eric reveals that he's actually the villain Shapeshifter. Telling her life story, she has manipulated Morningstar this entire time as revenge for Morningstar nearly killing her on Nacht Island.
Reminding her of all of the times they were intimate, Shapeshifter leaves Morningstar a gun to end her humiliation and pain. We end the issue with a gunshot in the woods. A dark ending, even for the '80s.
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