And we're back with the Metal Men once again!
Our metallic shape-shifting heroes didn't appear much in other DC Comics publication.
That is until the guys responsible for the 80s/early 90s Justice League (International) decided to give them a try.
The Metal Men didn't get another on-going series or mini but instead served as back-up stories in the latest iteration of the Doom Patrol. Penned by Kevin Maguire under the direction Keith Giffen (writer of said Doom Patrol comic) & J.M. DeMatteis, it was a return to comedy, a genre that is seriously lacking in today's comic books.
Was this new Metal Men story a disguised Super Buddies ploy?
Or did the BWA-HAHA suit Doctor William Magnus and his Metal Men?
Let's dig into...
Comic title: DC Comics Presents: The Metal Men 100-Page Spectacular
Art by Kevin Maguire & Tim Levins (fill-in artist)
Story by Keith Giffen & J.M. DeMatteis
Silver Age: Metal Men feature - Art by Kevin Maguire & Story by Bob Haney
Published by DC Comics
From 2011
Lineup Metal Men
Format: Collects the 7 part Metal Men back-up stories from the 2010-11 Doom Patrol issues 1-7 as well as the One Shot SILVER AGE: The Brave And The Bold #1.
As said above, this "Metal Men 100-Page Spectacular" is actually a reprint of back-up stories featured in the new Doom Patrol issues.
The story kinds of picks up where the Metal Men mini and their later appearance in Superman/Batman ended up.
Thanks to some independent contacts, William Magnus was able to restore back Gold and build him a body again. The Metal Men are now composed of Gold, Iron, Lead, Mercury, Tin, Platinum (but she prefers Tina) and newest member Copper.
Doc is living in the suburbs now, where the government decided to relocate him (after his adventures on Oolong Island).
But the neighbors are trying to have them expulsed, because he's living with friggin' dangerous robots next door!!
Meanwhile, the Metal Men are sent on various missions across the globe, thanks to a pretty regular income of little jobs sent there way now.
Since Gold had to be rebuilt from scratch he kinda lost his head (that's a fact actually!) and he's now overwhelmed by his primary personality.
Well to be precise the whole crew his sort of acting to the extreme of the personality each represent.
Tina is acting like a crazy desperate housewife, Mercury only cares about himself and his favorite TV Show "Douglas, Robot Hunter!!", Tin is as shy and incapable as ever, nobody cares about Copper. Oh, and Lead and Iron are starting to feel like they're the middle brothers of the Daltons.
Then Magnus and Tin are captured by The Clique, evil mannequin robots built by a rival scientist, the real Douglas Robot Hunter finds out about them and attempts to save the world from the robot invasion and the neighbors are still trying to get rid of the Doc and his Metal Men.
And Gold is more obnoxious than he's ever been.
Ancient gods, humor, comedy, slapstick, this book got it all!
This comic was beautifully drawn by Kevin Maguire who really gets to shine here more than ever.
Reading old JLI stories penciled ny Maguire was already a joy, but giving him these stretchy cartoony characters really allowed him to play with expressions and faces like only he can!
Gold specially gets a full range of dickish expressions during this book.
Doc is slowly losing it, Merc' only has eyes for the Robot Hunter, Copper is sadly ignored...
Tina even gets a new hair style per chapter!
It really looks like he was having fun being back with these writers and on these characters.
Meanwhile Giffen and DeMatteis co-writing is on-par with their early 90s Justice League stories. The story flows well, the characters click together.. It's only sad it lasted for so few pages!
They even joke about Dan Didio's DC Comics and their current situation in each issue's credits!
It is truly a work of love!
The characters seem all crazy and to be jumping off the pages!
The art is great, I didn't even had a problem with Tim Levins acting as a guest artist for an issue (Maguire couldn't answer the call due to some personal problems).
It isn't as serious as past "in-continuity" (as nerds say it) appearances of the Metal Men. But it is all for the best, trust me!
Overall, a must read!
DC fans or Marvel-fanboys/DC haters! Metal Men newcomers, don't even worry about knowing these fun looking colored characters or not!
It's quite new readers friendly, self-contained and you only wish it could have lasted longer.
Fans of the ol' JLI/Superbuddies will adore it! It's as fun as that other super heroic gang was, minus no "event tie-in".
There's also a little bonus in the form of a reprint of SILVER AGE: THE BRAVE AND THE BOLD #1.
Which is great!
"The All-New Silver Age" was a thematic event from DC, rather than an in-story event (like Blackest Night).
Kinda like the recent DC Retrospective or the Julius Schwartz-centric DC Comics Presents .
In the early 90s, DC decide to tell tales taking place in the early days of their various heroes' career, while working around a Silver-Age-vibe from the covers to the content of their books.
In this tale from "Brave & The Bold", the team first meets Batman, Green Arrow and Black Canary, actually super-villains impersonating them through magic...and vice-versa!
Due to a strange occurence...they end up as real human beings!!
I had this as a separate issue, but it was nice to have it collected here on good quality paper.
The art's also by Kevin Maguire but from another writer.
Nice story, if a bit short and rushed near the end.
I give it:
