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Elementals: The Natural Order
Reprints/
Elementals (1984) #1
Elementals (1984) #2
Elementals (1984) #3
Elementals (1984) #4
Elementals (1984) #5
Justice Machine Annual (1983) #1
The Elemental spirits of the earth decided that they needed Avatars to protect their interests on Earth's material plane. They chose 4 people who'd just at that moment been Becky Golden drowned and became the water spirit Fathom (not the Image title!), Jeannette Crane was burned up and became the fire spirit Morningstar, Tommy Czuchra was crushed in a landslide and became the earth spirit Monolith; and Jeff Murphy became the air spirit of Vortex.
Elementals (1984) #1
Elementals (1984) #2
Elementals (1984) #3
Elementals (1984) #4
Elementals (1984) #5
Justice Machine Annual (1983) #1
The Elemental spirits of the earth decided that they needed Avatars to protect their interests on Earth's material plane. They chose 4 people who'd just at that moment been Becky Golden drowned and became the water spirit Fathom (not the Image title!), Jeannette Crane was burned up and became the fire spirit Morningstar, Tommy Czuchra was crushed in a landslide and became the earth spirit Monolith; and Jeff Murphy became the air spirit of Vortex.
First published January 1, 1988
95 people want to read
About the author
Bill Willingham
998 books2,830 followersIn the late 1970s to early 1980s he drew fantasy ink pictures for the Dungeons & Dragons Basic and Expert game rulebooks. He first gained attention for his 1980s comic book series Elementals published by Comico, which he both wrote and drew. However, for reasons unknown, the series had trouble maintaining an original schedule, and Willingham's position in the industry remained spotty for many years. He contributed stories to Green Lantern and started his own independent, black-and-white comics series Coventry which lasted only 3 issues. He also produced the pornographic series Ironwood for Eros Comix.
In the late 1990s Willingham reestablished himself as a prolific writer. He produced the 13-issue Pantheon for Lone Star Press and wrote a pair of short novels about the modern adventures of the hero Beowulf, published by the writer's collective, Clockwork Storybook, of which Willingham was a founding member. In the early 2000s he began writing extensively for DC Comics, including the limited series Proposition Player, a pair of limited series about the Greek witch Thessaly from The Sandman, and most notably the popular series Fables
In the late 1990s Willingham reestablished himself as a prolific writer. He produced the 13-issue Pantheon for Lone Star Press and wrote a pair of short novels about the modern adventures of the hero Beowulf, published by the writer's collective, Clockwork Storybook, of which Willingham was a founding member. In the early 2000s he began writing extensively for DC Comics, including the limited series Proposition Player, a pair of limited series about the Greek witch Thessaly from The Sandman, and most notably the popular series Fables
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
August 24, 2017
Wow, this is one of my favorite comic series. Exceptional story and plot every issue. Way above average art throughout the entire series. Great surprises and humor all throughout the series, you just never know what is gonna happen next. If you have never experienced Bill Willingham unleashed to do what he wants with a story then this is the place to start. My highest recommendation.
November 29, 2015
Criminally underrated. One of my favorite series ever. And where is the rest of the series? I prefer this to Fables any day.
March 24, 2019
Perhaps best known for the mini-series Fables from 2003, The Elementals was the first comic series of Willingham's that I read, and I got into it because I was familiar with his work as an artist (and occasional writer) for TSR and other gaming companies in the 70s and early 80s.
This graphic novel collects the debut story of the group (as a backup story in Justice Machine Annual 1983, from Texas comics) and the first 5 issues of their own title (published by Comico, starting in 1984). 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 3.5/5.
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 4.5/5.
This is an excellent way to get into a superhero title that ran for a number of years with a variety of different publishers.
This graphic novel collects the debut story of the group (as a backup story in Justice Machine Annual 1983, from Texas comics) and the first 5 issues of their own title (published by Comico, starting in 1984). 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 3.5/5.
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 4.5/5.
This is an excellent way to get into a superhero title that ran for a number of years with a variety of different publishers.
August 6, 2013
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 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.
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.
February 12, 2013
One of my favorite superhero stories. Way ahead of its time.
August 17, 2017
Très bonne série qui prolonge les nouvelles situations mis de l'avant dans The Watchmen, soit plus de quotidien, plus de psycho dans les personnages, et situe l'exercice du superpower dans la vie réelle.
Maintenant, c'est comme normal, mais à l'époque, c'était assez inhabituel, surtout venant d'une maison d'édition inconnue. Beaucoup était réfractaire, même si la storyline était solide, parce que c'était comme des superhéros inconnus. N'est pas Gambit qui veut!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=62pPY...
( Les covers de la série)
Maintenant, c'est comme normal, mais à l'époque, c'était assez inhabituel, surtout venant d'une maison d'édition inconnue. Beaucoup était réfractaire, même si la storyline était solide, parce que c'était comme des superhéros inconnus. N'est pas Gambit qui veut!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=62pPY...
( Les covers de la série)
January 30, 2026
The potential seemed endless - then poof!
October 8, 2014
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 1980s. 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 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).
Makes me wish Willingham would get the rights back and reboot this at IDW, Dark Horse, or even >shudder< Image.
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 1980s. 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 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).
Makes me wish Willingham would get the rights back and reboot this at IDW, Dark Horse, or even >shudder< Image.
September 26, 2021
This volume is distilled from one of my favorite comic series of the 1980s.
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, 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.
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, 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.
January 31, 2010
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.
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.
May 13, 2008
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.
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.
October 5, 2025
I actually have all the Elementals comics... every issue of vol 1 2 and 3, plus the specials, the individual one-shots (Vortex was *supposed to be a 2-fer, but...), the sex specials (sorry) even. The Oblivion war. All of it. Great stories.
August 12, 2020
I liked this book, but Bill Willingham has no idea how to tell a visual story.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews