Supermanhas proven to be a hit with critics and at the box office, successfully laying the groundwork for theDCU. One of the standouts of Superman wasEdi Gathegi’s Mister Terrific. Despite being a character most audiences might not have heard of before the movie, by the time the credits rolled onSuperman, Mister Terrific had become a fan favorite.There is reportedly already talk of a spin-off series for Mister Terrific, and given both James Gunn’s love of the hero and audience reaction, that seems entirely possible.
The number one spin-off idea fans tend to throw out for Mister Terrific is an adaptation of the superhero team The Terrifics. Created in 2018, The Terrifics is DC’s spin on The Fantastic Four, with the team featuring archetypes that overlap with Marvel’s first family. While a version of The Terrifics is possible, given that another team member, Metamorpho, appears in Superman, it seems unlikely that a straightforward adaptation of the team would be considered, due to the similarities toThe Fantastic Four, the MCU’s new lead franchise. However, there is another Mister Terrific-related story that would be the ideal spin-off project for him, one that can build on themes and characters introduced inSupermanand also gives the DCU a stealthy way to introduce The Terrifics.The Mister Terrific spin-off should adaptStrange Adventures.
What Is DC’s ‘Strange Adventures’?
Strange Adventureswas a 12-issue limited series by Tom King, Mitch Gerads, and Doc Shaner, published under the DC Black Label, featuring out-of-continuity stories from March 2020 to October 2021. The comic draws its name from an old space-age-themed superhero comic by DC Comics, published in the 1950s and 60s. The new miniseries focuses on Adam Strange,a space-age hero modeled after John Carterand Buck Rogers, who originated in DC Comics back in 1958. Adam Strange, an archaeologist, was transported to the alien planet Rann, where he met and fell in love with a woman named Alanna. Strange uses Rann technology to become the planet’s protector before returning to Earth.
Strange Adventurestells two parallel stories. In the present, Adam Strange lives on Earth and is now married to Alanna. He turned his classic Silver Age exploits into a popular book before seemingly being framed for murder and publicly labeled a liar and war criminal. Adam is put on trial while the flashbacks recount the war between the planet Rann and the Pykkts species.
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Mister Terrific is a key part of the story, investigating Adam’s case and slowly uncovering that Adam’s bright smile and friendly demeanor hide a dark secret, one that reframes the classic space-age pulp adventure stories with a more modern military approach, leading to horrific consequences. Even though the comic was sold as an Adam Strange-centric storyline,it was also a Mister Terrific story and one that showcased the character’s incredible intellect and also how a seemingly normal man (a genius, though) can hold his own in a world full of aliens and metahumans, or as the DCU calls it “Gods and Monsters.”
Strange Adventuresis a strong starting point for a Mister Terrific solo venture. Despite centering on Adam Strange, the story is essentially a detective narrative, with Mister Terrific serving as the Sam Spade or Hercule Poirot of the plot. Mister Terrific has more than proven himself equipped to handle anything. The combination of detective story, sci-fi pulp adventure, and military espionage thriller is a unique pitch for a superhero project, but one that theDCU seems to be embracingto avoid criticism of superhero fatigue.
Builds on Themes Found in ‘Superman’
Strange Adventures' revelations about Adam Strange reframe the classic pulp sci-fi hero as a war criminal who committed horrendous acts in the name of intergalactic peace. This offers a shocking deconstruction of the character and a pointed commentary on how war is often portrayed as heroic. This type of story, on the surface, sounds more at home with Zack Snyder’s darker take on the DC heroes than Gunn’s.
However, the idea of taking a traditionallyhopeful message and exploring its darker implicationsbuilds on the themes that James Gunn established about Krypton inSuperman. The film reveals that Jor-El and Lara, Superman’s biological parents, did not send Superman to Earth on a heroic mission; instead, they chose Earth because it would be easy for him to take over and begin anew on Krypton. WithLanternspotentially revealing a dark secret about the Green Lantern Corps, it appears that a recurring theme in the DCU is exposing the dark truths of institutions and previously held ideas of who the good guys are, thereby clarifying what makes the superheroes truly heroic.
Adam Strange’s story, of a man who went to extremes to save his wife and her home world, provides a nice reflection on Mister Terrific’s own backstory.Supermanis largely unconcerned with any of the heroes' origins, as they arrive fully formed, and Mister Terrific is no exception. In the comics, he is a former Olympic athlete with 14 PhDs and is considered the third-smartest man on Earth.He became the superhero Mister Terrific after his wife and unborn child died in a car crash. Having Mister Terrific investigate a hero’s tragic past naturally leads to exploring his own origin and what sets him apart from a character like Adam Strange. Much likeGuardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3revealing the truth about Rocket’s origins, aStrange Adventuresadaptation could do the same for Mister Terrific.
Tom King’s Work Has Become a Cornerstone of the DCU
Writer Tom King is one of the most critically acclaimed, but also polarizing, writers working in comics.Much of his work deals with the writer grappling with the ramifications and horrors of war through topics like loneliness, PTSD, and self-harm.This has been praised in storylinessuch as his run onBatmanandMister Miracle, while also leading to controversial storylines, including theHeroes in Crisisevent. Following 9/11, King had planned to get into comics. Instead, he joined the CIA counterterrorism unit, where he served for seven years.Strange Adventuresmight be the most extensive exploration of his time in the CIA, as it reframes the classic Silver Age-inspired space adventures of Adam Strange through the lens of the War on Terror, showing a “hero” doing terrible things in the name of peace.
King’s work, often presented in short miniseries, is perfectly suited for adaptation. His critically acclaimedVisionsminiseries served as both an inspiration forWandaVisionand the upcomingVision QuestDisney+ series at Marvel. Tom King has been brought into the fold for the DCU, beingone of the writers James Gunn recruitedwhen crafting the initial plans for the universe. Two of his comics,Supergirl: Woman of TomorrowandMister Miracle, are already set to get adaptations, withSupergirlopening in June 2026 andMister Miracletaking the form of an animated series. He is also one of the key writers onLanterns.Gunn is clearly a fan of his work, and given Mister Terrific’s placement in theStrange Adventuresseries, it seems like the perfect fit for James Gunn’s DCU.
‘Strange Adventures’ Can Be a Stealth ‘Terrifics’ Story
It Can Adapt the Rann-Thanagar War
Since the DCU draws inspiration from, but doesn’t directly adapt, the comics,Strange Adventuresprovides a strong framework for aMister Terrific spin-offthat could also be reconfigured to explore other DCU characters established inSuperman. Namely, it could focus on the Justice Gang, and specifically, Hawkgirl. The comic’s conflict between the planet Rann and the Pykkts could be reworked as a war between Rann and Thanagar, the planet inhabited by a hawk-like alien species that includes versions of Hawkman and Hawkgirl. A Mister Terrific project could not only adapt Strange Adventures but also the 2005 six-issue limited series,Rann-Thanagar War, which pitted the two alien races against one another in war.
Supermandoesn’t delveinto Hawkgirl’s backstory, but actress Isabella Merced teased that she is reincarnated from an alien and retains her dark memories. This effectively merges the three iconic versions of Hawkgirl: the original’s Shiera Sanders Hall, whose backstory involves being reincarnated; the Silver Age Shayera Hol, an alien police officer of the Thanagar species; and finally, the modern age Kendra Saunders, the name of Merced’s Hawkgirl. Kendra could remember her past life and the crimes Adam Strange committed against her and the Thanagarian people. This would put Mister Terrific in a difficult position: remaining objective while acknowledging that one of his teammates is traumatized and confronting the fact that, as he told Lois, he “doesn’t do other people’s emotions.”
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The Green Lantern Corpsalso plays a vital role in theRann-Thanagar Warstoryline, which, given Mister Terrific’s teammate, Guy Gardner, provides another great entry point into this intergalactic investigation story. Meanwhile, the newly appointed member, Metamorpho, could be expanded further.With both Mister Terrific and Metamorpho being members of The Terrifics, the team’s origins could be planted in an adaptation ofStrange Adventures. Since The Justice Gang includes two of the four members of The Terrifics, what if the superhero team is not a prototype of the Justice League but rather The Terrifics, with Guy Gardner as a stand-in for Plastic Man and Hawkgirl filling the role of Phantom Lady?
MixingStrange Adventures,The Terrifics, and theRann-Thanagar Warstoryline makes for the perfect set-up for a Mister Terrific-led project. One that not only builds on the themes established inSupermanbut also expands the roles of supporting characters like Hawkgirl, Guy Gardner, and Metamorpho, and gives Mister Terrific the spotlight he deserves.Strange Adventuresmight not be the traditional Mister Terrific spin-off, but it is the best that serves the character and the DCU.
