Is it starting to show that I kind of like the weirdo characters? Especially when it comes to DC. More than another Batman or Superman yarn, I want a good Vibe story. Or Blue Devil. Or, in the case of this week's prompt, Metamorpho: The Element Man!
Created by Bob Haney (Metal Men, Doom Patrol) for the January 1965 issue of The Brave and The Bold, Rex Mason's particular brand of big, dumb fun earned him a 17-issue solo series based on his adventures. Altered beyond repair by the Orb of Ra, Mason took naturally to superheroics, using his newfound ability to turn into any element or compound known to man to fight crime, because that's just what you do when ancient Egyptian artifacts destroy and rebuild you. He also fell in love with Sapphire Stagg, the daughter of Simon Stagg, his employer, and the man responsible for his condition.
As a founding member of The Outsiders, a former Justice Leaguer, Doom Patroller, and Outsider again (although at first that was actually a small part of him that broke off and achieved sentience of its own before being reabsorbed into Rex later), Rex is thoroughly entrenched in the DCU at large. And, though he may be a bit of a freak, he's got a lot of heart, and he might be immortal. So at least he's got that going for him.
PS: Sorry to spoil a minor plot thread towards the end of Judd Winick's Outsiders run. You should read it anyway just for Grace. Totally worth it.
I'm not super-familiar with this character, other than the Mike Allred strip in Wednesday Comics, so I apologize if this is a little generic.
ReplyDelete"How do you get a gaseous brain to be still?"
PAGE ONE.
1.1: METAMORPHO sits in the lotus position on the floor. His cell-phone in front of him. He's trying meditation to gain better control of his powers. He’s attempting to achieve calm and center himself but really his body is always shifting. He’s completely solid now. Cell Phone captions are unattached, static-looking, and over the top. Most of the shots in this are the same.
CAPTION [CELL-PHONE]: When you’re ready breath in through your nose and out through your mouth.
META [THOUGHT BALLOON]: You callin’ me a MOUTH BREATHER?
1.2: METAMORPHO’S lower body begins to fade away in a cloud of gaseous what-have-you.
CELL: Now count each breath to a count of ten.
CELL [2]: One with the rise…two with the fall.
1.3: CLOSE on Metamorpho’s serene face, a slight smile.
CELL: Let the thoughts of your physical being GO.
META [THOUGHT BALLOON]: …
1.4: Pan back to 1.1 and now Metamorpho’s body has disappeared: except for his head.
META [THOUGHT BALLOON]: Exclamation point.
CELL: Now bring yourself back to the physical senses.
1.5: Metamorpho’s UPPER TORSO fades back into view.
META [THOUGHT]: Meditation is like taking a DUMP—you let it all out of your system.
--END--