Further Reflections on Black Super Heroes By The Penrod

Mr. Terrific (Michael Holt)

I am not going to talk about how Mr. Terrific is a fantastic example of a African-American super hero and how his racial identity is a big part of his character, because that is not the case. For every Black Panther, Luke Cage, and every other modern black super hero; there is only one “post-modern” black super hero and that is Mr. Terrific (and well Spawn, but his face is burned off anyway). His crusade is not defined by being black and his origin has nothing to do with being black; his character just happens to be of that race. Though it may seem that this lessens the characters impact but black comic book heroes are similar to a black sitcom on UPN or the WB; sometimes, it seems, that the characters do very little than perpetuate racial stereotypes. It is refreshing to see a unique black super hero.

Michael Holt’s Mr. Terrific, is a previous Olympic decathelete, has 14 Ph.Ds, and owned a firm called Cyberwear. It seems like overkill, attempting to take the black super hero out of the ghetto, but the concept is that he’s Batman without the initial tragedy of losing his parents. His story changes when his wife and unborn child die, not by murder, but by a car accident. Holt then contemplates suicide until he is met by the Spectre, a familiar of the original Mr. Terrific tells Holt of his now predecessor’s life story. Inspired, Holt chooses take up the mantle of Mr. Terrific, and later Chairman of the Justice Society. That’s where Batman and Mr. Terrific differ. Though both characters are born out of tragedy, Batman chooses to be a hero to avenge his parents while Holt chooses to be Mr. Terrific just because he feels he can make a difference. The real unique quality of Mr. Terrific does not come from his racial identity but his religious identity. In a universe that has angels (Zauriel) and God’s wrath (the Spectre), Mr. Terrific stands out as an atheist. This is as much a part of Mr. Terrific’s character as Daredevil’s Catholicism, but what separates the two is how unrelenting Mr. Terrific is even when faced with the supernatural. This is an excerpt from Infinite Crisis #5:
Ragman: And you still don’t believe in a god? Wasn’t the Spectre a member of the Justice Society?
Mr. Terrific: Before my time.
Ragman: What about guys like Deadman or Zauriel? And my own suit is made up of corrupted souls?
Mr. Terrific: A unique energy that could quantify as a telepathic discharge upon death.
Ragman: So you don’t believe in anything? You don’t have any faith?
Mr. Terrific: Of course, I do, Ragman. Got faith in my team.

The Penrod