Each Friday, we'll be letting a different DC.com writer share what they'll be reading over the weekend and why you might want to check it out. Here's this week's suggestion for a perfect Weekend Escape! 
 

The world’s third smartest man is back with a new secret origin story. Released to coincide with his big screen debut in last year’s Superman, Mr. Terrific: Year One is a six-issue story told from genius inventor Michael Holt’s perspective, recalling who he is and how he came to be. While the broad details of his backstory have remained consistent since his introduction in the pages of The Spectre almost thirty years ago, this retelling gives fans far more specificity into Michael’s struggles, his doubts and the heroism that defines him even more than his brilliance.
 

THE PREMISE:

Unlike most other “Year One” stories, Mr. Terrific: Year One is told in two distinct halves. One half takes place in the present, with the veteran team leader of the JSA and JLA investigating traces of energy from Darkseid’s recent attack against the Justice League (this was seen in the DC All In Special, but you don’t need to be familiar with it to read Mr. Terrific: Year One). The rest of the story is set much earlier than this, when Michael was a grieving widower who had just sold his company to Athena Prescott of Prescott Industries—who’s immediately shown to be one of the worst CEOs he could have done business with. As Prescott’s criminal enterprises become clear, Michael feels the call to do something…but what? With help from his friend Black Lightning, we see the young Mr. Terrific stumble through his journey from depressed genius to tech-wizard superhero, overcoming obstacles and growing into the legend he is today.
 

LET’S TALK TALENT:

Mr. Terrific: Year One comes from Al Letson, a writer who’s relatively new to DC. As Letson presents us with the two ends of Michael Holt’s career, we gradually see the inexperienced young hero of the earlier storyline develop into the skillful leader of the later one. Mr. Terrific is a character who’s often at risk of losing his personality to his pure scientific and technological genius, but right away, Letson shows us the fragile human element of Michael, as he grieves the death of his wife and unborn child from a car accident. This pays dividends over the course of the story as we learn how Michael’s technological zeal impacted his relationship with his wife, and how he was never even sure if he wanted to raise children.

Mr. Terrific: Year One is also notable for having two artists working to bring it to life, with Edwin Galmon providing glamorous, high-energy artwork for the part of the story taking place in Terrific’s present. For the past perspective, the interior pages come care of veteran artist Valentine De Landro. His work presents Michael’s world with a far more stark, grounded and realistic view. The superhero action feels new and frightening from a ground-level POV, and it helps to present Michael as a thoroughly gifted, but all-too-normal man stepping into the ring with gods and monsters.
 

A FEW REASONS TO READ:

• In addition to learning more about Michael’s character, we see a side of his friend Black Lightning that is often unseen. Both men are talented and highly educated, but still struggle with balancing their gifts to serve both sides of their superhero identities.
   
• Fans of James Gunn’s Superman will be properly educated on not only who Mr. Terrific is, but how his trademark inventions, like his distinctive T-Spheres, came to be. There are even sly nods to his best moments from the film slipped in from time to time.
   
• Mr. Terrific: Year One ends on a major revelation about Terrific’s future, making this flashback story not only crucial for filling in the blanks of his past, but also required reading to see what happens to this remarkable character next.
   

WHY IT’S WORTH YOUR TIME:

Mr. Terrific has long been one of DC’s coolest characters. Sadly, he’s also been one of their most slept on. Mr. Terrific: Year One, naturally, shows us his humble beginnings, and paints such a gripping picture that it’s hard to visualize the now-fashionable hero as low and downtrodden as he’s presented in the beginning. Seeing that part of his life, however, gives Mr. Terrific a relatability that may have been missing in the decades since he was introduced, and goes far in making him even cooler as an A-lister. With a stunning final issue, this miniseries is a must-read for fans new and old and shows why now is the best time to get into the slickest super-genius in the DC Universe!

Mr. Terrific: Year One by Al Letson, Valentine De Landro, Edwin Galmon and Marissa Louise is now available in bookstores, comic shops, libraries and digital retailers as a softcover graphic novel. It can also be read in full on DC UNIVERSE INFINITE.

Donovan Morgan Grant writes about comics, graphic novels and superhero history for DC.com. Follow him on Bluesky at @donomark and X at @donoDMG1.

NOTE: The views and opinions expressed in this feature are solely those of Donovan Morgan Grant and do not necessarily reflect those of DC or Warner Bros. Discovery, nor should they be read as confirmation or denial of future DC plans.