Monday, April 18, 2022

May have bought this because "Priapus" sounded dirty.

But, it is a title we haven't seen in our seventeen year run! From 1993, Terror, Inc. #12, "Corporate Intimacy (For Love Nor Money Part 4)" Written by D. G. Chichester, pencils by Kirk Van Wormer, inks by Temujin, Bud LaRosa, and Steve George.
This was the penultimate issue of Terror, Inc., who at the very least was a distinctive looking character: he looked like a green catfish man, I always thought. The length of the spikes on his face might vary from artist to artist, but in his series they were good-sized. Terror had a somewhat convoluted history, largely because his co-creator Chichester imported him from St. George #2 in the short-lived Shadowline comics. Terror had some kind of curse, that left him as basically a rotting corpse, but he was able to steal limbs and body parts as replacements. I haven't read a ton of books from him, but he was usually a cheerful-if-morbid ghoul, working as a mercenary.
Crossovers are intended to drive up sales, but I'd guess this one didn't particularly move the needle: "For Love Nor Money" was a six-parter with Cage and Silver Sable: Cage would continue for another four or five issues, while Silver Sable still had a couple years to go. This chapter was the point where the three finally decide to team-up against the bad guy, creepy satyr-looking Priapus. The crossover's MacGuffin, "Vatasayana's Tryst," can make people see their past or lost loves, and the issue ends with Sable fighting off a twisted version of Sandman, Cage is swamped with regret over his lost Reva, and Terror is bogged down in his fantasy and those of the guys he stole the body parts from. Aw, the last issue had Ghost Rider and was an Infinity Crusade crossover!

4 comments:

Mr. Morbid's House Of Fun said...

To be fair it does, but not as loaded a word as Carnal Serpent though. Definitely not keeping it PG for the kids.

Also, I hope that's a finger trapped in that heart-shaped box...I hope.

Not sure that Sable & Sandman hooked up if this is what's being referred. He probably was crushing on her, but I highly doubt it was reciprocated, but I could be wrong.

From what I remember of Terror Inc it was a weird-ass book I used to see on the shelves with a weird-ass protagonist as the lead. He seems like he'd make a better supporting character than the lead, especially with someone like Deadpool.

H said...

It definitely was meant to sound dirty. From what I've heard, the writers were surprised they managed to get as much through as they did. They meant that as a censor deflector, something to get the stuff they wanted to use through.

I've got the Silver Sable issues of the crossover (pretty sure that I've mentioned my love of that series before) but don't have either of the other titles. Terror Inc. just does nothing for me, and I prefer Cage in his original look. If nothing else, this proves that Marvel at least had something of decent quality in the 90's.

CalvinPitt said...

The little bit I knew about Terror was from a trading card of his, and even then, I figured he was some Punisher or Ghost Rider character I'd never heard of.

Mr. Morbid, Gerry Duggan actually did use Terror in his Deadpool run (the one after Hickman's Secret Wars) as part of DP's "Mercs for Money" group. I don't know how accurate the portrayal was, though. He seemed more grouchy than the kind of manic guy in the panels from this comic. But the book already had Slapstick and Madcap to play nutjobs.

Mr. Morbid's House Of Fun said...

@CalvinPitt: Yes, I do remember that and his inclusion actually made sense. Same for Solo and Madcap. I know realistically a combustible group like that wouldn't last very long, but I wish it did have a long enough run to squeeze out every bit of zaniness & imaginative madness out of it.
I do remember that same Terror Inc trading card as well. The 92-93 marvel trading cards sets were my favorites, only behind the 90 & 91 editions.