#terryverse

Trigger Warning: A Strangers in Paradise Story (one-shot) (2025)

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Reluctantly, Terry agrees. Even if he would rather help Stephen with his issues, checking in with the Ferry Godmother would probably be the best course of action.

"Alright Stephen, I'll get back to you on that." "Hm."

And so, Terry finally went to approach the control room, the domain of the Ferry Godmother. Unsure of what to expect, Terry lightly knocks. Immidiately, the door swings open.

"Ah, Terry, good to see you. I trust you spoke to Alfred? What a fine chap. Come in, come in, close the door. It's important."

"Well Terry, let me get right to the point. You probably remember that crystal you found on the island. Truth is, it's not just any old crystal. It is a crystal I have, in fact, been looking for. And I doubt I was the only one."

The Ferry Godmother reaches behind the crystal. Terry watches, not really sure what to expect. "The thing is, I knew this crystal was not as it appeared. I suspected whoever hid it, constructed a decoy shell around it. My suspicions were confirmed when I cracked it open." She pulls out a small blue stone.

By the seriousness in her voice, Terry suddenly realises that he is beholding something of extreme importance. "You see this, Terry? This is one of the keys to end a conflict that has been waging for many many years. Inside this stone, there are powers you couldn't possibly fathom."

Terry is in disbelief. Had they been using a mystical artifact as an axe all this time? Before he can respond however, the door to the control room is thrown open.

It's Trash, bursting in! "Godmother! It's one of the Captain's ships, approaching fast! We must prepare for battle!"

Echo: Pages 5-26

What we know so far:

Phi Bomb/Experiment: This has been mentioned in Five Years, so Echo is the book where it started. I believe this has the Alaskan Collider Incident in it, but I don’t know for sure yet.

Julie has a sister

Julie’s in the middle of getting divorced, but hasn’t signed the divorce papers yet

Spoilers below the cut:

No doubt this is the era of shared universes. Specifically, shared universes of comics or movies based on comics. DC or Marvel are the indisputable kings of the fictional universes. Personally, I was never interested in comics that weren't DC's (except for Spiderman). But no matter how much I read, I've rarely encountered what I like most in a work of fiction.Likeable and interesting female characters.Maybe, if I'm lucky, an LGBT character with a good plot.The few times I find a modest love story between two women feels like having won the lottery (DC's Bombshells is a gift from the gods and we don't deserve Marguerite Bennett). But as Cat Grant preaches, good things happen when you leave your comfort zone and today I want to talk about the gold mine that I found. An universe full of fantasy, suspense, humor, happy endings and what I like the most: women.

Terry Moore and the Terryverse

This is Terry. He's a nerd, like you and me. He makes his own fanarts, parodies, and fancasts that includes Hayley Kiyoko. He's the living proof that men are psychologically capable of understanding and writing about women. He wrote a couple of issues of Spiderman and that's how I decided to find his independent work and discovered the Terryverse, his fictional universe that consists of 4 graphic novels: Strangers in Paradise, Echo, Motor Girl, and Rachel Rising. Soon he'll publish Five Years, which will be a crossover of the 4 comics. You'll wonder what makes it so special. Hold your aunt: all are protagonized by female characters, each with their own desires, personalities, defects, friends and stories. And it has a very highly appreciable lbt content! And they're all so enjoyable, that I'm going to take a moment to describe each of the 4 comics and why they're so good. 

Strangers in Paradise:

(a 3 issues first short story + the 90 issues main story)

This is the pillar of the Terryverse. Terry Moore's magnum opus. His longest, most moving comic and full of so many plot twists that makes it worth every page.And it's a slowburn love story between two best friends, Katina Choovanski and Francine Peters.(insert cover)Katina 'Katchoo' Choovanski, badass, intense, highly talented, smart and traumatized. Francine Peters, a loser whose life is a tragicomedy. Katchoo loves Francine, and Francine is confused about what she really wants for her life. Add a global mafia clan full of bisexual women and an adorable Japanese man and we have a fairly faithful summary of SiP. 

Echo

30 issues

Terryverse's second graphic novel is an epic sci-fi adventure. What would happen if a disastrous recently divorced woman obtained Firestorm's powers?Julie is a photographer who also takes care of her traumatized older sister, who's at the wrong time and place and gets stuck on a highly dangerous metallic substance called The Alloy. The government wants the Alloy to make weapons to create black holes, and use them to attack China. Julie and Dillon, a man who needs the Alloy to find his girlfriend, have to escape from the government and from Ivy Raven, the private investigator who won't stop until she finds Julie.Like all Terryverse's stories, the main key is the relationship between the female characters. Julie has complex relationships with her sister, with Annie (the creator of the Alloy) and with Ivy Raven. The sexual tension between Julie and Ivy is the best thing in this story. It's advisable to read this comic after Strangers in Paradise, because some secondary characters make small appearances.

Motor Girl

10 issues

Sam is a former military young woman, back in her hometown after being kidnapped and tortured on a mission that went wrong. As a result, Sam currently suffers delusions and has an imaginary friend, a talking giant gorilla. One day on the outskirts of the city, Sam meets a small alien who landed in front of her house. With the army investigating, Sam and her imaginary friend will have to protect the little visitor from another planet.This is the shortest comic of the Terryverse. Something funny happens here: unlike the rest of the stories, the main focus is Sam's trauma, her metal health and how to move on with her life. And still, it's the funniest story I've read in a long time, maybe because of the absurdity of the situation. Its connection with the rest of the Terryverse is Francine Peters's old aunt, who is a main character, being Sam's boss and friend. Being practical is the least important story, but Sam's charisma makes her the best character on the Terryverse.And this has the most lovable talking gorilla (sorry, Mallah).

Rachel Rising

42 issues.

Okay, listen, so far I've tried to be analytical and expository in a critical way but I can't be impartial with Rachel Rising. This story is going to blow up your head and you need to read it asap. What the hell are you doing sitting there doing nothing!? Go read Rachel Rising!! NOW!!

If Motor Gir had the most charismatic protagonist, Rachel Rising has the most empathetic and amazing characters. Really, there's not a single character here that's not a marvel. And I've to add, it's the only story I've found that tells a love story with a guy who couldn't be less attractive, but manages to be the most beauteous character in this universe.Rachel Beck wakes up one morning in the middle of the forest, with no memory of how she got there. She has strangulation marks on her neck and her heart doesn't beat. Rachel will have to investigate her own murder and find out why strange things are happening in her city, with the help of her (gal pal) best friend Jet, her forensic aunt Johnny, and Zoe, a 10 years old serial killer. This story has everything. Plot twists, friendship, true love, family, fantasy, magic, revenge, reimagined biblical characters and many good scares. It's not a story about zombies, it's a mystery inside another mystery inside a plan of revenge against God himself. This is Terry Moore's masterpiece, that story that stays with you long after you finish it. It has the advantage that its connection to the Terryverse is not really relevant to understanding anything, so you can read it individually.

In conclusion...

I'm avoiding talking in detail about Strangers in Paradise XXV because, rather than telling a story of its own, what it does is lay the foundations for the next year's great crossover, Five Years. Francine and Katchoo, Julie and Ivy, Sam and Rachel's gang face the end of the world that was built in the plots of Echo and Rachel Rising. Reading the interactions of all these amazing women and how they met was a delight, and a great promise of more. There are two ways to read the Terryverse. You can start chronologically with Strangers in Paradise, then follow with the others. Or you can start with the best one, Rachel Rising. I recommend starting with Rachel Rising, see if you like the style and art, and then read SiP.Today many people want more female representation in a medium as masculine as the American comicbook. Here is the representation, now you just have to enjoy it.

Rachel Rising #13 (2012)

Rachel Rising #31 (2015)

Rachel Rising #29 (2014)