T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents #1

Superheroes working for the government has been a theme in comic books for decades. But, that was not always the case. Back in the mid-1960s, illustrator and writer Wally Wood came up with a unique concept. Since comic book superheroes and spy movies were such big hits at that time, why not combine the two into a comic book? And so he did and Tower Comics’ T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents was born.

The story was a simple one but brilliant. The Higher United Nations Defense Enforcement Reserves was established. Its members consisted of key intelligent agents, a small percentage of which used advanced body and mind enhancements to boost their physical and mental capabilities. But, there was a catch, each time the equipment was used the person using it suffered a setback. For example, the super speedster Lightning aged at an accelerated rate. The series was a short-lived success and Tower Comics disappeared after about a year. However, the T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents did not go down without a fight. Over the years since Tower’s demise the T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents have periodically reappeared in short runs from various publishers. None lasted but a few issues.


Let’s hope that’s not the case with DC Comics T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents series just released. The script by Nick Spencer is filled with suspense, unexpected twists and turns and more that a few surprises. Cafu’s art is reminiscent of the original series with tight pencils, minimal details that don’t distract from the story and clear and concise layouts that move the story along at a quick pace.


T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents #1 sets up a scenario where nothing is at it seems, even the kidnapping of the captive T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agent Raven. Someone or something is out to disrupt the T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents and the T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agency is left totally in the dark. It’s lost all of its enhanced agents and must recruit a new team. How they go about it is totally unexpected and yet once revealed makes perfect sense. T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents for DC Comics looks to be a winner.