My Greatest Adventure #83 (1963)
by Arnold Drake & Bruno Premiani
Negative Man has been the Doom Patrol member with the least exposure so far. Let’s see if we learn anything about him.
We begin with the harshest description of a criminal I’ve ever seen: a “poor, demented, jobless” dishwasher keeping the city hostage…
…by threatening to shoot a huge tank of natural gas.
Genuine question: was this a real thing? Did buildings in the 60s actually have GIANT TANKS OF NATURAL GAS THAT ANYBODY CAN SHOOT?
This looks like a job for the Doom Patrol, apparently. While Robotman distracts the man…
…Elasti-Girl show up with a string of nylon (identified as such in the story), and Negative Man helps her to get towards the gun.
This is a fantastic showcase of Premiani’s artwork, but don’t let it distract you from the hilarious way Robotman is distracting the guy: by pretending that his imaginary wife is in a nearby movie theater.
So the Doom Patrol saved the day, although they are still being called freaks by the press.
Negative Man is incredibly understanding, giving the SLIGHTEST criticism to the use of term “freaks”…
…and Chief criticizes him for it!!!
OH COME ON, how on Earth does “Thanks for the compliment, but remember we’re still human” constitute a “foolish squabble”???
Chief now decides it’s time to test the extent of their powers. Which is not a bad idea, but coming after that insane reply makes me question his motives.
Why does he need to test how much punishment Robotman’s body can take? He’s the one who built it!
At this point, Robotman can withstand “only” 20,000 pounds. That’s slightly above 9 tons for us non-Americans.
This really showcases that Elasti-Girl is currently the team’s powerhouse, because she’s able to lift that elevator with one hand. Granted it doesn’t mean she’s lifting 20,000 pounds, but still.
Chief wants to test how much she can shrink herself, which is smaller than an ant.
“There is no time for me to grow back to normal size, even though I can do it in a split second! I only have time to run away TWICE and think about everything I’m doing!”.
The Silver Age, man…
Thankfully for her, Negative Man is able to whooosh the ant away.
But that was just the appetizer, because the next test is how long can Negative Man’s energy-self exist independently from his body. I did wonder how he know it was exactly 60 seconds, and it turns out it’s just how much he’s risked.
Unfortunately for him, this just happens when a couple of scientists are sending a radio signal to Mercury…
…which just happens to bounce against Negative Man.
I think I better start saying “Negative Man” to refer only to the energy being and “Larry” for the guy with the bandages, otherwise it’s going to be reeeeally confusing.
This is bad news because Larry supposedly can’t live without Negative Man.
Luckily, Chief just happens to have a machine that can put him in suspended animation.
If I were Robotman I’d be asking “did you have this thing when you put my brain inside a robot? Couldn’t you freeze it and wait for science to develop a cure for not having a body?”.
Without Larry to control it, Negative Man is basically brainless and keeps bouncing from electric signal to electric signal.
As mentioned in the first issue, Grant Morrison’s run will introduce the idea that Chief is a psycho that created the Doom Patrol on purpose to study them.
I’m keeping track of moments that either confirm or disprove the idea: the fact that Chief is interested in studying their powers AND keeps revealing that he secretly has devices ready to counteract them… is starting to feel a liiiiiittle suspicious.
As if having Negative Man hunted by the authorities wasn’t bad enough, there are ALSO minor criminals taking advantage of the situation.
The situation is SO bad that the Army decides to destroy Negative Man, using special focused beams of energy.
Hmmmm, how DID they get the idea or the technology?
Chief sends Elasti-Girl to stop them. She first gives a great view to the neighbors…
…and then CRASHES THROUGH THE STUDIO where the Army general was giving the speech!!!
Great scene, but was this REALLY necessary!? It’s not like the Army was going to shoot Negative Man within seconds. They could’ve just phoned the studio!!!
This also turns out to be completely useless, because Negative Man ends up destroying the TV studio and the general can’t warn the Army in time.
Because I guess the General didn’t have any other way to contact this men?
Also, Negative Man DEFINITELY has a body count now.
The rest of the Doom Patrol is ready to trap Negative Man with the Chief’s invention, but… remember those criminals from earlier?
Guys… what did you think was going to happen?
You just prevented the Doom Patrol from saving their friend and you KNOW you can’t harm them; did you think you’d get away after sabotaging them?
The device is damaged, so Robotman is going to use HIMSELF as a conductor.
The electrical insulation that protects his brain is as good as last issue showed the heat insulation was.
And so we end with Negative Man re-integrating with Larry.
Historical significance: 0/10
Negative Man existing for more than 60 seconds is typically a death sentence.
Silver Age-ness: 2/10
Surprisingly low.
Does it stand the test of time? 8/10
A couple of forced coincidences, and it’s impossible to do this in later years when the team is properly integrated with the DC Universe, but otherwise it still holds up well.
Times Robotman has been damaged: 2
Issues when Robotman is never damaged: 2
Interesting letters: this is the first issue to show the reaction to the Doom Patrol, and it’s quite positive.
“Increasingly realistic dialog and depth of characterization” IS a good description for the Doom Patrol, but what kind of Golden Age comics was Paul reading???
Would the Doom Patrol feel honored or insulted for being compared to the Metal Men?
