{"id":27481,"date":"2023-01-31T09:00:31","date_gmt":"2023-01-31T09:00:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/?p=27481"},"modified":"2023-01-27T18:31:42","modified_gmt":"2023-01-27T18:31:42","slug":"the-all-new-atom-volumes-3-4-the-hunt-for-ray-palmer-small-wonder","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/2023\/01\/31\/the-all-new-atom-volumes-3-4-the-hunt-for-ray-palmer-small-wonder\/","title":{"rendered":"The All-New Atom volumes 3 & 4: The Hunt for Ray Palmer & Small Wonder"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"
\nBy Gail Simone<\/strong>, Rick Remender<\/strong>, Mike Norton, Pat Oliffe<\/strong>, Dan Green <\/strong>& Trevor Scott<\/strong> & various (DC Comics)
\nISBN: 978-1-4012-1782-2 (TPB Hunt) 978-1-4012-1996-3 (TPB Wonder)<\/p>\n

After the events of Identity Crisis <\/strong>and 52<\/strong>, <\/strong>superhero physicist Professor Ray Palmer<\/em> disappeared, leaving his world behind him. But life goes on, and his teaching chair at Ivy University was offered to a young prodigy from Hong Kong. The neophyte just happened to be Palmer\u2019s pen-friend and confidante: privy to his predecessor\u2019s secrets ever since he was a child.<\/p>\n

Dr.<\/em> Ryan Choi<\/em> unwillingly inherited his predecessor\u2019s super-hero career as well – under some rather suspicious circumstances – battling super-villains, monsters and seemingly random chronal catastrophes that are making Ivy Town a viper\u2019s nest of bizarre occurrences.<\/p>\n

With this third volume (collecting issues #12-16 of All-New Atom<\/strong>) the so-likable legacy hero joins an eccentric team of heroes to track down his missing mentor in a story-arc that coincided with events of unfolding mega-crossover Countdown to Final Crisis<\/strong>\u2026<\/em><\/p>\n

Written by the brilliant Gail Simone and illustrated by Mike Norton, Dan Green & Trevor Scott, the The Hunt for Ray Palmer <\/strong>starts with \u2018Never Too Small to Hit the Big Time\u2019 <\/em>as size-shifting homicidal maniac Dwarfstar<\/em> returns, swiftly followed by a procession of Palmer\u2019s oddly unique Rogues\u2019 Gallery.<\/p>\n

Temporal anomalies are devastating the city and Choi\u2019s only chance to sort it all is the creepily coincidental alliance offered by infamous \u201ctime-thief\u201d Chronos<\/em>\u2026<\/p>\n

\u2018Second Genesis\u2019 <\/em>finds Choi and the wily villain lost in the South American jungles, encountering the tiny alien barbarians Palmer once lived with (see Sword of the Atom <\/strong>link please) before the new Tiny Titan links up with Donna Troy<\/strong>, Jason Todd<\/strong> and the Monitor<\/strong> – all major protagonists in the aforementioned Countdown to Final Crisis<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Choi joins forces in their search of the entire multiverse, with a first stop in \u2018Heavens to Bitsy\u2019 <\/em>taking them from the super-scientific civilisation located on the bottom of Choi\u2019s pet dog (not his underside, but the bit by the tail\u2026) and from there to the post-existence paradise where all dead superheroes go. The manic manoeuvring features classy and clever cameos from a host of departed DC stars\u2026<\/p>\n

However, nothing is as it seems and by the time the new \u201cchallengers of the unknown\u201d reach neutral ground and a rendezvous with Green Lantern<\/strong> Kyle Rayner<\/em>, it\u2019s clear that something or someone is sabotaging them. \u2018Loss Leader\u2019 <\/em>sees Choi abruptly yanked from the quest and returned to Earth to save Ivy Town from the effects of the swifty escalating and accelerating time-storm one: of the funniest and grossest hero exploits ever recorded – or as Choi puts it, \u2018<\/em>Ewwww\u2019<\/em>\u2026<\/p>\n

The book concludes on a hilariously action-packed high note with \u2018Forward! Into the Past!\u2019 <\/em>as further hints on the identity of the mastermind behind the All-New Atom\u2019s troubles are revealed when Ivy Town takes a reality-warping, mind-bending trip back into the Summer of Love.<\/p>\n

Ghosts, aliens, monsters, naff villains and Hippies abound, and there\u2019s a guest-shot for those clearly inadequate guardians of the Time Stream, the Linear Men<\/em>\u2026<\/p>\n

This fun-filled frantic frolic is a joyous return to clever, light-hearted adventure of the Good Old days (whenever they were) and these collected tales are everything a jaded superhero fan needs to clear the palate and revive flagging interests.<\/p>\n

\"\"
\nThe All-New Atom volume 4: Small Wonder <\/strong>sees the adventures of the legacy Tiny Titan come to an abrupt halt with this final collection of mind-bending, time-busting yarns, collecting issues #17, 18 and 20-25 but sadly and inexplicably omitting #19 – a rather tasty subterranean thriller fill-in from Keith Champagne & Jerry Ordway.<\/p>\n

Whether the switch from gleefully, wistfully whimsical scripter Gail Simone to darker, more hard-edged Rick Remender indicated the series was failing or perhaps actually caused its eventual demise is a matter of speculation – but it was probably neither and just another example of rapidly changing popular taste shredding sales below a viable cut off point\u2026<\/p>\n

Following the events of publishing events Identity Crisis <\/strong>and 52<\/strong>, <\/strong>size-changing part-time superhero Professor Ray Palmer<\/em> vanished, leaving his world behind him. But life went on regardless, and his position at Ivy University was offered to a young prodigy from Hong Kong: Palmer\u2019s confidante and someone privy to his predecessor\u2019s secrets since childhood. Ryan Choi inherited his Palmer\u2019s super-hero identity too – under rather suspicious circumstances.<\/p>\n

The kid battled super-villains, monsters and seemingly random chronal catastrophes that were making Ivy Town a viper\u2019s nest of bizarre occurrences and nexus of improbability.<\/p>\n

Gail Simone started proceedings with 2-parter \u2018The Atom and the Amazon\u2019 <\/em>– <\/em>illustrated by Mike Norton, Andy Smith, Trevor Scott & Keith Champagne: a bravura blend of action, adventure and surreal comedy wherein expanding villainess Giganta<\/em> sexually harasses the junior professor into a date whilst the mysterious forces and agencies infesting Ivy Town jockey for position before an impending emergent crisis\u2026<\/p>\n

Things come to a head when Federal Department of Metahuman Affairs agent Diana Prince<\/em> steps in and asks Choi to wear a wire on his assignation\u2026<\/p>\n

When a creep with a detachable brain provokes a confrontation, Wonder Woman<\/strong> steps in and events spiral out of control until Ryan uses a brilliant seldom-seen ploy to calm things down. Sadly, the pacification is only temporary, as the brain-thing incites the entire city to attack the heroes, before The Atom saves the day \u2026and is rewarded by the most outrageous offer he has ever heard\u2026<\/p>\n

Simone ended her run with \u2018A Few Small Affairs\u2019 <\/em>wherein the sinister mastermind behind so many of Choi\u2019s problems traps the diminishing hero in a perfect prison: a paradisiacal hallucination\u2026<\/p>\n

Meanwhile in consensus reality, demons, monsters and aliens rampage through Ivy Town\u2026<\/p>\n

To see how he stops that mess you\u2019ll need to get this book, but that\u2019s not the end of the affair. That comes in epic encounter \u2018Inside Out\u2019 <\/em>by Rick Remender, Pat Olliffe & John Stanisci, pitting the out-of-his-depth Tiny Titan against truly horrendous odds and seemingly insurmountable hazards.<\/p>\n

In \u2018The Positive Aspects of Negative Thinking\u2019<\/em>, <\/em>Choi learns that his explorations of the micro-cosmos have infected him with a virus and unleashed a monstrous carnivore on the city that only he can deal with. \u2018How to Disappear Completely\u2019 <\/em>then leaves him shocked and reeling when the beast devours his best friend Panda<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Consumed with a need to make amends, Choi is utterly unaware that arch-enemies Chronos and Dwarfstar are preparing to attack, and is horrified and derailed to discover that the micro-monster has since disintegrated dozens of citizens. Meanwhile, his bodily infection is causing him to uncontrollably shrink in violently painful spasms\u2026<\/p>\n

Donning a high-tech containment suit, Choi struggles on in \u2018Strange New World\u2019<\/em>: <\/em>becoming lost in the Microverse before joyfully discovering that the townsfolk \u201cconsumed\u201d by the monster were in fact simply reduced to sub-atomic proportions and entrapped in an extremely hostile new universe.<\/p>\n

That elation is tempered however when he realises that time passes much faster there, and if the horrors inhabiting the place don\u2019t eat them first, they will all die of old age before he can save them\u2026<\/p>\n

Guest-starring time-displaced hero Booster Gold<\/strong>, \u2018Forecast Fascist Future\u2019 <\/em>focuses on Chronos and his partner in time-crime, a mysterious lady from Choi\u2019s past, before the myriad plot-threads of the series converge and Ray Palmer returns to save the day: revealing some shocking truths to – and about \u2013 his successor in \u2018Time\u2019<\/em>, a gripping conclusion to a bold epic and conclusive proof that the Tiny Titans should have been awarded more time to continue their adventures\u2026<\/p>\n

Alas they didn\u2019t and the series passed away, but at least lovers of fun, fantastic fantasy Fights \u2018n\u2019 Tights fiction have these volumes to enjoy, if they can find them. Let\u2019s all hope that DC get around to rereleasing all of them digitally ASAP\u2026
\n\u00a9 2007, 2008 DC Comics. All Rights Reserved.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Gail Simone, Rick Remender, Mike Norton, Pat Oliffe, Dan Green & Trevor Scott & various (DC Comics) ISBN: 978-1-4012-1782-2 (TPB Hunt) 978-1-4012-1996-3 (TPB Wonder) After the events of Identity Crisis and 52, superhero physicist Professor Ray Palmer disappeared, leaving his world behind him. But life goes on, and his teaching chair at Ivy University … <\/p>\n

Continue reading “The All-New Atom volumes 3 & 4: The Hunt for Ray Palmer & Small Wonder”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[211,150,76,82,48],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-27481","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-atom","category-booster-gold","category-dc-superhero","category-green-lantern","category-wonder-woman"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p4AFj-79f","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27481","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=27481"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27481\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":27487,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27481\/revisions\/27487"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=27481"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=27481"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=27481"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}