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| 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 Americansuperherocomic book first published in 1984 and created byBill Willingham, for which he was both writer and artist.
The Elementals first appeared in theJustice Machine Annual, published by Texas Comics in 1983.[a][b] 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 byComico Comics.
In a variety of specials andlimited series, Comico publishedElementals until 1996. Comico's publisher,Andrew Rev, purchased theElementals property from Willingham in the 1990s.[citation needed]
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, thefour 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.[c]
Shadowspear, once released from Saker's control, formed a giant malevolent thunderstorm that circled the globe, occasionallytransforming animals and corpses into monsters, thus keeping the Elementals busy for many years.
Martin A. Stever reviewedElementals inSpace 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 inElementals".[5]